She's Gone

Hi Knitters,

Here's the thing, I am leaving for a few days. I don't know if I will have internet access where I am going. Still continue to enter in my Super-Duper Giveaway because it isn't closed and it won't be closed until this weekend. Keep those entries coming in! If the entries are not posted right away they all will be posted when I get to it. No worries there, Knitters. I've got you covered.

Here's the other thing, when I am on vacation without internet access I can't send out pattern orders immediately. If you order a pattern from my shop over the next few days I will send it out to you as soon as possible when I return. I personally send out all orders via email. I really like doing it this way because people often write me notes and requests and then I can keep track of the orders and respond to people. However, this means that if I am gone the patterns do not get sent out immediately. You will have your pattern in your inbox by this weekend, I promise. No worries there either, Knitters. 

That's enough about that: ) 

One more thing, I have had several questions about the Flower Cardigan from Itty-Bitty Nursery over the last couple of days, which seems a little funny. I have been having an extremely busy last couple of days including a huge knitting project deadline which I just completed and mailed off today. I haven't had time to look up the pattern to refresh my memory and then to figure out the answers yet. I will do this on my return as well. In the meantime Ravelry is a great place to ask questions and to get answers. My Ravelry group is Itty-Bitty Knits. You may want to ask over there to see if someone can help if you can't wait.

Ahhhhhh. I will be doing lots of this.
And lots of that.

I'll be back before you know it. I'll miss you.

best, susie

Super-Duper Giveaway!

Hi Knitters,

I'm cleaning out big time. Which means if you want to win a big bunch of yarn you are in luck. I am throwing in a sweet little handmade apron in a 4-5 year-old size. I bought this for The Collector and she only wore it once or twice. It has been folded up in a drawer for years so it needs a good press. It is in perfect condition. The Collector isn't much of an apron girl and I'm not either. The apron has two buttons in the back. It is completely adorable and vintage looking and some little girl out there would just love it. It would make a great art smock, too.
Okay, here is the yarn that I will happily pack up and send to you when you win:

3 skeins of Tahki Cotton Classic in light blue (already wound full skeins)

2 skeins of Tahki Cotton Classic in off white (already wound full skeins)

4 skeins of Tahki Cotton Classic in white (already wound full skeins)

1 skein of Tahki Cotton Classic in red (already wound full skein)

2 skeins of Rowan All Seasons Cotton in Lemon (really pretty yellow)

2 skeins of Rowan All Seasons Cotton in Orange Creamsicle  variegated

1 skein of Rowan All Seasons Cotton in Denim variegated

1 skein Classic Elite Provence in purple

1 skein Classic Elite Provence in blue (already wound full skein)

2 skeins Tahki Cotton Classic Tweedy Cotton in multi blue, red and yellow

1 skein Tahki Cotton Classic Tweedy Cotton in multi purple, green and pink

1 skein Noro Sukara (gorgeous!!)

1 skein Lorna's Laces Shepherd Worsted in Georgetown #152 (gorgeous!!)

1 skein Cascade Luna 100% Peruvian Cotton in yellow

Yep, all of that is included. That's enough yarn for a whole lot of baby hats or for anything you feel like. I need to clear out and I hope you can help.

Leave me a comment on this blog post and say hi, tell me something good, tell me something funny, whatever comes to mind. Leave some sort of identifying information like a name, location, link, email address (it's up to you). Please do not email me to enter, you need to leave a comment. I am not sure when I will end this contest. Next week is spotty for me, I will be in and out and my work load is never-ending. I am just opening the contest up and then I will end it when I get a chance. I am leaving it at that. Leave only one comment, please. 

I will randomly select a winner with a number generator. I will post the winner on my next blog post. The winner will have 2 days after I post to contact me with their mailing address. If I don't hear from the winner after 2 days I will select a new winner and then I will post it on the blog.

That's all. Have fun! Go for it!

best, susie

p.s. more to come...this is hardly scratching the surface.

Meeting Allegra

Hi Knitters,

Yesterday I had the opportunity to hang out with Allegra Wermuth for an hour or two at Lakeside Fibers.  Allegra had contacted me awhile ago about getting together during her time in Madison this week. She is from Colorado but is visiting family here. I was glad to meet her.

As I walked in the door of the shop I spotted a new issue of Yarn Forward. I picked it up to page through as I waited for Allegra to arrive. She got a little lost on the way but she made it after a call to the shop to get directions. Anyway, I was flipping through the pages and lo and behold there was a feature on Allegra's new site called Petite Purls. I was so excited and I wondered if she had seen the page yet.

Anyway, when she arrived at Lakeside the first thing I asked her was if she had seen the page on her site in the magazine. She hadn't seen it yet and she was thrilled about it. It was fun to get to share that moment with her. It is huge publicity for her new site. Petite Purls is a brand new online magazine that offers free knitting patterns for kids and babies. It is very well done. Sort of like Knitty for the kid/baby crowd. The first issue was released this summer. Be sure to check it out if you get a chance. It is a good place to submit for publishing if you are interested in designing and pattern writing. Allegra founded the site with Brandy aka Pixie Purls.

Allegra's daughter is beautiful and so good. She was a busy little one year old but no trouble at all. I was impressed and glad I got to meet her, too. It is always fun to meet a knitter on the move and that's exactly what Allegra is! Watch out Knitting World!

By the way, check out Allegra's Boheme free pattern. It's a good one.

Bye for now!

best, susie

An All-Purpose Skirt

Hi Knitters,

Since The Collector slept, once again, in her new skirt I sewed about a week ago, I had her stand still for a quick snapshot when she woke up this morning. How convenient is that being dressed for the day just by crawling out of bed? Oh to be a kid...

The skirt is a good all-purpose skirt because you can wear it, sleep in it, play (hard) in it and you could even dress it up if the occasion ever arose, which it usually doesn't around these parts. The pattern for the skirt is by Indygo Junction and it is called, Girly Gored Skirt IJ829. I bought the pattern and fabric here. The size range is for 2-10 year olds but it is generous sizing and could be easily modified for even bigger sizes. You really go by measurements.

The Collector picked out 4 different cotton fabrics all by herself. You don't need much of any one print. She especially likes the panel (look above) on the right front with the dotted swirls. It's called Fairy Dust. Of course.
The skirt has an elastic waist which I could have cinched in a bit more before stitching it closed but it's okay for now. I'll probably open up the seam and fix that when I get a chance. The flair at the bottom makes for good swirling action. (Don't you love that ratty hair? I do.) What a simple, well-written pattern. This is my first sewn garment. I am pretty pleased if I do say so myself:)

I love the sewing so much. I am becoming slightly obsessed I'm afraid. I am longing to finish the quilt I started last month. I am so close to being done. The renovation and work have sidelined me for the time being.

As soon as this house project is done, that old quilt project is coming out in full force. In fact, I saw this quilt project yesterday and am nearly having a heart attack about it. That quilt is making me long to finish my first quilt and make another one just like this and fast. I love the quilted lines and how they are not exactly measured and straight. That is my kind of quilting.

Here is the new dusty unfinished wood floor in the kitchen. The wood really warms the room up. My girls are having fun with this big empty room for the moment. Along with their neighbor friends yesterday and well into the night, the kitchen became a stage. There was dancing and costume and pageantry galore. It was pretty funny stuff and it literally went on for hours. The littlest neighbor, who is 6, started calling at 7:30 a.m. this morning to restart the action with my girls again this morning. They were game but had to move the "show" outside because of the construction.
After I took the other kitchen shot I then turned to my right and saw this lonely sight. This pretty much sums the kitchen situation up, a lone toaster oven set up on a gardening bench. I need not say more.

Have a super-duper Tuesday, Knitters. I have loads of knitting work to do, a doctor's appointment for my ongoing rotten and painful heel issue (plantar fasciitis). Ouch! And last but not least, I am meeting up with Allegra Wermuth, who is in town, and who is one of the founders of Petite Purls. That should be fun.

One last thing, this new free pattern should be up and available for download in a couple of days if you are interested.

Bleh, that's it!

best, susie

The Summer of Craft

Hi Knitters,

Wow, this month is going fast. I have been knitting up an absolute storm but unfortunately the projects can't be shared as of yet. There is a lot to share coming up in the near future on the knitting front. That's just the nature of the game.

In other crafting news, I am pleased that I have been able to squeeze in quite a bit of other types of crafting this summer that I have been able to share. An example of this is the little sewing book kit I made for a gift recently. It turned out great and I thought you might like to make one, too.

I took a scrap of white wool blend felt and cut out a small book size rectangle for the cover. I would give measurements but I never measured or used a ruler. I used the "ol' eye-ball it" method of measurement. You should use this, too, it makes for more fun I find. I sewed, with my machine, some ribbon scraps on the front and one on the side to make it like a book binding.
I cut two rectangle fabric pieces and sewed them together, right sides out. I used my pinking shears to trim the edges. Then I stitched a line down the center to attach the pages to the book. I found a handful of buttons to sew on the right side of the pages. I tried to pick common buttons that might match up to replace a missing button. 

The left page is my favorite. I threaded 3 sewing needles one with brown thread, one with white thread and one with black thread. I knotted the other end of the thread, too. I cut out a tiny piece of fabric and stitched on a pocket. I wound up each thread separately into a coil and stuffed it in the pocket. The needles are literally ready to go in a flash. I also pinned on two safety pins to the right side of the pocket. 

I think this is the perfect emergency sewing kit for home or travel. When you are home and in need of a quick fix for a hole or a button you can always look here first. You know how you are always running out the door when you notice you have a missing button. Here's your solution. For travel it is perfect as well because it is little and flat. I could fit this in any suitcase no matter how full.

I hope you make one of these for you to keep or as a gift for someone you love!

By the way, the fabric scraps are from The Collector's new skirt I sewed up last weekend. I have to get her in a couple of photos to share that with you as well. It is really cute and it was simple to sew. That will be coming up.
Speaking of The Collector, I have a quick story for you. The other day we were biking home from the pool together. She often will do this:

All of sudden you realize when you are biking along that she is not with you anymore. When you look back you'll see she has jumped off her bike, quietly, without a word, to pick up some sort of nature she has spotted. Well, this time when I looked back, and I had gotten quite far ahead, she was gathering up this tiny nest. She was so excited about it. I don't know how she even saw it, it was on the ground way under a big pine tree. That's called eagle eye, I guess. The nest is kind of falling apart but she loved the fact that the bird had woven pieces of thread into the twigs and a bit of fluffy stuff to boot. I love her quiet urge to stop and gather. It is no big show, it comes from within.

The best part of this story? When I wasn't in my studio, The Collector snuck in there and took a small fabric bird I had sewn recently and sat it right in the nest on my table. Perfect fit. When I came in later the bird in nest was sitting front and center. It was like she had this idea all along. I like it when kids do quiet and cool things but don't draw attention to it. It's like they just have a need to do something but they don't need any sort of recognition for it. That's awesome. Now I will never take the fabric bird out of that nest. It's there for good and I will cherish it. When I talked to her about how much I like the bird in the nest, she just smiled and nodded like she knew how good it was.

Now, if you want to stitch up your own bird look here for the free pattern. It is incredibly easy with or without a sewing machine. It's only two tiny pieces of fabric. I have made lots of these simple birds and they make a lovely little gift. I think a bunch of these in a big bowl on a table sewn up in fabulous fabrics would be fantastic or you could use one for a pin cushion. 

It has been a busy, busy weekend with lots of family activities and today looks a little less full. I have a big (in size) knitting project due on August 18th and I am not anywhere near done. Guess you know what I am doing today. Do you think I'll make it? Wish me luck, I'll need it.

Take care.

best, susie

Filmy Green

Hi Knitters,

Picking a wall color is trying sometimes. I studied tons of paint color cards and went back and forth to the paint store several times to pick up sample paint to swatch on the wall. Many of the colors were just too light or too dark. The color I ended up with is called, Filmy Green by Sherwin-Williams (is that a national company?). It is a light-ish gray-green, heavier on the green with more of a hint of gray. It is a warm shade. Green is always good in my book. I love the tint of gray as we are getting gray countertops with chunky black and white specks. It isn't representing itself very well in my photo but when I walk into the painted room and see the color on the walls it makes me so happy. It is refreshing and soothing and beautiful. Perfection.

The hardwood floors are going in today. You can see the planks stacked on the floor. We are doing tons of work in our basement, too. That is going to be loud today. Then some finishing and sanding of the floors and refinishing of the floors in other sections of the house are taking place. Dusty, dusty. Plus we have to move our ramshackle excuse of a kitchen out of the living room. Where the "kitchen" will go? Who knows. Oy.

Okay, enough about that. On to another type of film, I went to see Julie & Julia and looooved it. Meryl Streep and Amy Adams? That's a big yes from me. My husband and I snuck out a couple of nights ago to see the movie. My favorite scene in the entire movie goes something like this:

Julia (Meryl) and her goofy, adorable sister get all dolled up in a fancy way for a social evening. Before the evening starts they stand close to each other to gather one last look at themselves in the mirror. Julia and her sister smile and peer into the mirror. Julia says, "Pretty good. (pause) But not great!" The two sisters joyously burst out laughing as only sisters can do with each other. My husband and I quietly laughed so hard and well into the next scene at this honest, lovable, humorous self-evaluation. The. Best.

That's exactly how I feel when I look in the mirror most days:)

Have a good Thursday, sweet and kind Knitters.

best, susie

p.s. 2 quick links:  here and here...fun, fun, fun.

Mama's Got a New Bag

Hi Knitters,

How are your flowers doing this summer? Mine seem to be flourishing lately with the wet and warm weather we are having. My yard is a mess of truck and tractor tracks and mud, however, I still have a few remaining pots filled with flowers which makes me happy.
Well, I spent an afternoon sewing the other day. I made a new tote bag that is already spoken for. It is going to be a gift.
I used a natural lightweight cotton canvas fabric. The entire bag, every piece, is lined with fusible interfacing. I love that stuff. It gives such shape and body. I cut out fabric circles and left the edges raw so with wear and tear the edges will fray. I like the look of fraying edges but the edges won't fray too much because I ran straight stitch quilting lines vertically and horizontally on the bag to hold the circles. The quilting lines are in a butter yellow and are subtle but they give interest and texture to the outer layer of the bag.
I lined the inside with the same canvas and included two lined pockets. Gotta have pockets. The bottom of the bag has rounded gussets. Your bag always needs to sit on its own, right?
The quilting lines were done continuously. So I'd stitch one line, turn the corner and then I'd head back the other direction. The lines are done in different widths apart, I didn't measure. Some lines are closer than others. The straps are skinny and easily fit over the shoulder.
This was really fun to stitch up. I am loving the sewing. I can only fit it in on occasion. The canvas bag is sturdy but also has a delicate feeling. It is light as a feather and I'd love to keep it for myself but it will go.

I also whipped up a fun skirt for The Collector in recent days. I'll get some photos to share. This skirt is the first clothing item I have ever made. It actually fit and she loves it. That's a great feeling.
Who doesn't love a good tote? You always need one and to have one that is handmade is all the better in my eyes.

What are you whipping up this summer? I'd love to hear about it.

best, susie

P.s. Here is a link on quilt binding tutorials I need to check out. And here is an adorable pouch tutorial I got from Jaime's blog. I want to make some zippered pouches like this.

Linkster

Hi Knitters,

My latest free pattern is up for the taking. You are going to have fun with this one. It's the best gift project, it's good for anyone. Click here to get the skinny.

That's my oldest in the photo above. (And because I know someone will ask, it's just a t-shirt, there's no connection:) He's sweet and scruffy.

I have been gathering so many cool things for you. Once again, here we go!

fantastic craft ideas for kids (thanks, betz!)

Betz's bucket

Fantastic knitted hat

Great review of Kristin's farm/knitting workshop weekend

I don't know, fun and kooky and little, just look

a scruffily quilt that I will make for sure

a really fun, sweet, creative blog

Incredible blog and artist and listen to a great interview with Abby here!

Cutest sewn bag free pattern, love the shape-will do!

We are making progress on our house and we are surviving just fine, it's really not that bad. I am keeping my eye on the prize. This is the kitchen as of yesterday afternoon. I can't wait for the fun stuff to start coming through the door. To me this kitchen space looks enormous, it really isn't, but to me it's the world, a life-changing space. 

Take care, sweet Knitters, and enjoy your weekend. Please let me know how your Ramblings turn out. I'd love to hear about it. I have another incredibly cool looking and unusually constructed scarf coming out for free on the S & C blog in the near future. I'll keep you posted. I'm just a girl who loves a good scarf:)

best, susie

Two Little Girls and a Braid

Hi Knitters,

The Collector saw the cover of this catalog that came in the mailbox yesterday. We talked about how sweet and cute it was that the girls had their hair braided into one braid.

Today she called her best buddy, who is also her fairy house buddy, and the buddy ran right over to our house. She only lives through the backyard. Then the Collector found a hairbrush and then she found me. 

I braided two heads of beautiful dark chocolate and milk chocolate hair into a mega-thick and gorgeous braid.
This was the result. Aren't they cute? The Collector is on the left.
Then with their new joint braid the girls giggled and shuffled and hugged all the way over to the friend's house. To see them find such joy in something so simple was endearing.

I love little girls. 

best, susie

Link Time

Hi Knitters,

Hope you are well. I am giving you a sneak peek exclusive of one of my next free Spud & Chloë patterns. It is a squishy, cable-y, chocolate yummy scarf. It is super-duper simple and I have about 5-inches to go. This would be a perfect first cable project. It's a great scarf for men or women. I am knitting the scarf in Spud & Chloë Rootbeer which is the richest dark brown yarn I have run across. The color pulls you in for good. Soon, very soon. I'll let you know when it's up for download if you are interested.

I don't know if you know this but I collect links for you. Every time I see something fun, incredible, different or useful I bookmark it to share. My bookmark pull-down is getting really full so it's time to share links. Here you go!

funny and wonderful 

interesting blog I'd like to explore more

love these shapes, I'd like to knit those.

I like her, scroll down and look:)

come on! that's really cute.

I like these big over-sized sweaters. Cozy tweed.

I stole (she won't mind) that link from Dianne.

I'd like to make this scarf out of Kersti

yes, please to these

That's enough for now, right?

Well, it's the start of another crazy week. Now the swim team is over, the kids are going to be around more than ever and the work inside our house is going to be more than ever. It's not just the kitchen.

Here is our kitchen this morning. That linoleum is probably the original flooring from about 30 years ago. When we moved in there was another layer of linoleum which we changed to hard wood. Now our hard wood is gone, too. See where the flooring changes? That's where a wall used to be. The boarded up window on the left is going to be a big sliding door out to our backyard and stepping onto our new deck which is almost finished.

The doorway to the right covered in plastic goes to our living room in the front of the house. This is the room where I take a lot of photos for the blog with the decoupage table. This is our makeshift kitchen right now. That table is covered with food items and paper goods (we have no sink).  I hope my table survives. Our refrigerator is sitting on a big piece of plywood in there, too. We have moved furniture and our piano into this room so it is incredibly cramped and crowded and messy. 

The workers and their trucks will be pulling up any minute and it will all start again.

Now you know.

best, susie

How It Is

Hi Knitters,

This is the back of my son's head and in case you can't quite make it out it's the Madison skyline. Every year he celebrates the end of the summer swim team season with a fun hair cut to wear to the enormous All-City Swim Meet. This meet, which hosts thousands of swimmers, is currently going on today and over the next couple of days. It is quite an event and my kids look forward to it every year.

Today it poured rain and it was in the upper 60's. The kids still had fun.

That's how it is in Madison weather-wise this summer.This is how it is in my kitchen right now.

best, susie

Zipped & Marked

Hi Knitters,

I'm an early bird this morning. I got up to finish a pattern that is due at Blue Sky Alpacas on Thursday and it's Tuesday so I had no time to waste. I finished the pattern writing and gave myself a big pat on the back. I had the project done and knitted and the pattern plotted and handwritten out in my sketch book for some time now. It was just a matter of putting in the correct words and numbers in the computer in pattern form. 

I'll never know why but I can't seem to type in my patterns as I knit a design. I have to scratch out notes in pencil in a sketch book. Why? It would make my life easier in the end. Maybe I will keep trying to be able to do that.

To treat myself after I finished I pulled out a bowl of brand new colored pencils with super sharp points and I cut a strip of card stock just the right size for a bookmark.
On one side I drew a stripe pattern and on the other side I drew multi-colored dots.
I wanted to add a little something to the edge so I found a short green zipper on my studio shelf. It seemed to be just the ticket.

Those are the knobs that were pulled off my kitchen cabinets which are now in a dumpster on my driveway. The glass balls look like candy and the beach glass knobs were purchased at the Madison Art Fair on the Square many years ago from an artist out of Florida. The sandy glass squares and orange fish (looks like a Swedish Fish to me) are my favorite knobs. I will find a new place for them on a dresser or something. I had the funkiest little handmade kitchen and now it is going to be more like a normal serene kitchen. That's going to be weird for me. I am feeling slightly torn about it but we need the space, no question. A wall is being removed to give us the added space. 

I took some before, during and will take some after shots to share at some point. You might get a kick out of that.
Anyway, back to the bookmark, I fired up my sewing machine and sewed on the green zipper edging to one side of the hand-colored bookmark. I cut the end to fit and stitched right across the bottom to hold it in place.
Pretty slick if I do say so myself. I'd love to see that zipper sticking out of my current craft book or novel. It's pretty darn cute.
I made this for a friend and since I will be mailing off my project design later I will pop this right in an envelope to mail off as well. 

The book underneath the bookmark is this. It is fantastic and patchwork-y and clever and simple all at the same time. Joelle is cool and I will support anything she does. I am pretty much obsessed with patchwork and this book is a good fix. Now maybe I'll find a moment to finish up my quilt. Probably not until next week due to an enormous all-city swim meet that will take up 3 days at the end of this week. Oh well, it gives me something fun to look forward to. I told The Collector that maybe I could sew up her skirt today. She liked that.

One last thing today, I did an interview that came up yesterday on the Ready, Set, Knit! podcast by Kathy and Steve Elkins who own this fabulous yarn shop. I do a lot of ordering from them and they have excellent and fast customer service. It is show #138 and you can listen on the link I provided or you can go to Itunes to find it among other places to upload or whatever you'd like. Ready, Set, Knit! is a weekly podcast that is informative and entertaining and packed full of interesting guests. I am a devoted listener and haven't missed a single episode. Kathy is very talented and leads an intelligent and thoughtful interview. I am impressed at how skillfully she leads the conversation every time interjecting and listening at just the right spots. Please take a listen if you are interested.

By the way, the construction at my house was insanely loud the day of the interview, it was unbelievable inside and out and they cut enormous holes in the side of my house for windows and cut down four gigantic trees. I had to go sit at my sister's house up on her third floor for some peace and quiet. She wasn't home but she is so sweet to me. She had a fan blowing near a table where she thought I should sit for the interview. She had three bottled waters and a selection of my favorite Crystal Light To Go packets to add some flavor. (I am obsessed with Crystal Light To Go packets, tried every flavor, love them to death. Oh, and I always recycle.) She has always taken care of me since I was little and she still takes care of me today. I am so lucky to have her for my sister. Lucky and fortunate.

I hope you all have entered in the giveaway I'm hosting over here. It will close when I get up on Thursday morning so you still have time to leave a comment.

Have a great Tuesday, Knitters. I hope you all get to sneak some time to make something today.

best, susie

Giveaway & a Rainy Day Craft

Hi Knitters,

First off, I am hosting a fantastic giveaway over here. Hop on over quick to enter. I want you all to be included. I am even throwing in a Pom Tree!! And you know how I feel about the Pom Tree. You will love all of this loot. Be sure to click on the link to find out more information about the items in the giveaway.

All you have to do is comment on Spud says! Please do not email me to enter this one. Good luck!

We have been having a couple of rainy days as of late. Yesterday was one of those all day rain sessions. I was trying to think of a fun new craft for The Collector and me. I remembered seeing and talking about felting rocks with my sister. She had this book where she saw the felted rocks. I didn't think I had the book so I even called her to see if she could look up how to do this in her book. Later on, I found that I have my own copy of Last Minute Fabric Gifts and I don't even remember buying it. I wonder if I have my sister's copy. Anyway, this book is where you can find out about the specifics of felting rocks. 

So I have a bag of roving in fun playful colors. You can get this same roving here. They have a wonderful collection of colors to choose from.

The Collector ran outside to pick out some rocks from our yard. She kept to fairly small to medium-sized rocks. The smaller rocks were easier to felt for sure.

Basically all you need is a rock, some roving, some thread, hot water and soap and a nylon. The author of the book offers some great details and instructions on how to make the rocks felt up really well. There are about 5 steps to go through, and then repeat several times, so you need to check the book before you start. I don't want to give too much away from the book. 

This is a fun project to do together because there is one point where you really need two sets of hands. I couldn't get any of my older kids to participate but The Collector is always game for a good rainy day craft. That's why she ends up on my blog so much. She is a crafter at heart. My other kids can often take it or leave it when it comes to crafts at this point and that's fine, too.
I took this shot of The Collector through my storm door, she didn't even know I was there. After dinner she made quite a few more felted rocks on her own while sitting on our front step. You can see her hands working the felt around the rock. It was such a quiet peaceful moment of making for her. I know that feeling so well. Love and contentment.

Make some felted rocks! You'll love it. I want to get a big bowl of felted rocks to put out on a table. I think it would be great fun. We are well on our way.

Go enter the giveaway!

best, susie

p.s. look here for some coolness. It's almost gone!

p.p.s. look here for some food-loving fun!

p.p.p.s. I am excited about this mention.

Trunk Show Finale

Hi Knitters,

Did you notice anything different? Does the blog look well-rested, refreshed, updated? Just thought I'd ask:) I've had a little work done. That's one of my watercolors that I did for Itty-Bitty Hats but they didn't get in the book. The painting in the header is of the Ribbons hat. I haven't made that sweater yet but it sure would be cute. Maybe soon...

I finally found some time to pop into the fabulous, acclaimed quilt and knit shop, Stitcher's Crossing yesterday. I love this shop for many reasons. One, it is big and beautiful and stuffed with fun textiles of all sorts. Two, the staff is incredibly friendly and helpful when you need it and they let you browse, touch, look and enjoy on your own when that is what you need. Three, it is right by my house, convenience rocks! Four, they are always switching up their displays and decor which is fun and inspiring to see. And five, Stitcher's has a monthly newsletter and class offerings that can't be beat. There may be a few more reasons to go to this shop but I'll stop there for now.

Well, I was thrilled when Sharon, the owner, asked me when I was in the shop one day if they could host the final leg of the Itty-Bitty Nursery trunk show. What a great way to end a trunk show that's been on the road for over a year now right by my home. The shop has the trunk show through the end of July so if you haven't stopped in you still have a week to do so.

The shop is located at 6122 Mineral Point Road, 53705, which is on the west side of Madison. There are maybe 20 or more original pieces that I knitted and designed for Itty-Bitty Nursery. The displays are fun and they are sprinkled though out the shop. The theme of the shop this month is the cupcake so this trunk show fit right in, starting at the front door with the knitted cupcake tea set from the book.

Love this cupcake quilted piece. Is it a table runner or a wall hanging? Either way it's cute.
It feels strangely good to be reunited with the projects in this book. I loved seeing the finger puppets, Three Pigs and a Wolf, and their houses and the black cooking pot. Remember the wolf can be dropped through the brick house's chimney right into the pot.
The pacifier clips are still just as fun as ever. Unfortunately, the frog pacifier clip disappeared at one of the shops along the way. That makes me sad. The elephant and the flower still remain and they are as cute as ever. I always get asked where I bought the clips and the answer is Target.

Remember that the Flower Pacifier Clip is a free pattern on the sidebar of my blog and I have a tutorial on how to knit the petals on the sidebar as well. The petals use a double-knitting technique that is pretty slick.
The Collector was as happy as I was to revisit the projects I had knitted so long ago. She remembered everything. She is especially taken with the tea set and the Garden Mice Mobile (the mobile is knit in Blue Sky Alpacas Dyed Cotton which is the best and just check out the colors, yum). I love those little knitted mice. They would be the best for stand alone knitted toys. I told The Collector we could remove the mice when the mobile came home so she could play with them or put them in her room. She did not like that idea at all and told me she is saving the mobile for when she has babies. That was a warm moment for me to say the least. I love that.

Note to self: Don't bring The Collector along when going to Stitcher's Crossing if you don't want to buy a bunch more stuff than you intended. She picked out four fabrics for a skirt, plus I had to buy the pattern, and then she spotted a baby doll bassinet pattern. I had to get that pattern, too. I can't resist her pure enthusiasm. I washed and ironed the fabrics for her skirt when we got home and she stood right by my side, literally, watching and waiting. I could feel her breath on my arm. She trimmed all of the fly away strings after the washing and folded the pieces after I pressed them. Too much.
One of my favorite sets in the book is the Circles and Stripes Stroller Blanket and Jacket and the Chubby Bunny. I am really sad to say that the Chubby Bunny has also disappeared along the way never to be seen again. I clearly remember the feeling I had when I finished that bunny and it was elation. It is one of the first times when I truly realized how much I loved designing and making knitted toys. It was a revelation. It kills me that the original Chubby Bunny is gone. I can't believe that things get stolen like that but I know it happens. Sad about that.

This set is done in the Blue Sky Alpacas organic cotton which will forever be my favorite cotton to work with. If you haven't tried the dyed or organic cotton you simply must.
The hoodie Stroller Jacket and mittens set holds the sweetest memories for me. My sweet mom, who was the most wonderful seamstress ever, lined the inside with Sherpa fleece (bought at Joann's) and stitched in the tiny zipper (bought here) for me. I love and cherish that she was part of this book project.

Once again, the Blue Sky Melange was the biggest treat to work with ever. The colors are beyond any designer's dreams. They are deep and rich. I can't wait to get this pillow home. This will be used non-stop. There is a pocket on the back of the pillow to store your current book. My girls both want this pillow in the worst way.
The felted mommy-bag is in terrific shape. I can't believe how well this has held up. It makes me happy to see that I still love these projects just as much today as when I made them a few years ago. The good thing about this genre of knitting is that these projects never go out of style. That is a good kind of knitting. Forever knitting.

The bag is made with Cascade 220 and boy is this a fun and fast knit. There is a pocket on the side just the right size for a bottle and there are pockets on the inside to fit diapers or whatnot.
The Collector also has her eye on these pillows. She can't wait to toss them on her bed. These are made out of Crystal Palace Cotton Chenille and holding two strands together throughout. These are fast and squishy fun.
The Itty-Bitty Nursery Trunk Show will be at Stitcher's Crossing for only one more week. The shop is adorable, charming, welcoming and is chock full of inspiration for knitting and quilting and embroidery and punch needle work and cross stitch and fabrics and on and on.... Be sure to stop by and have a look around if you are in the area. I know this shop is a must see for quilters when they do shop tours in the area and it has been recognized on a national level for being an all-around excellent place of business. I agree!

On another related note, I brought in the quilt top I finished last week to pick out a backing and get the batting. I am excited about the backing fabric. I washed and ironed and pinned the two fabric pieces I am using together. Now I just have to run a seam to join them. I am going to bring in my quilt to Stitcher's to pin the sandwich together on their big quilting tables in the classroom area of the shop. They have clips to hold the fabric in place on the tables, too. Then I will bring it home to quilt it and head back to get help with the binding. Can't wait. The ladies at the shop seemed hesitant about me doing free motion quilting for my first project. I am still going to practice on some scraps to see if I can do it. If not, I am just going to run straight lines throughout which I will love just as much.

The last thing I did yesterday while I was there is I signed up for a basic quilting class for the fall. It meets three times and I figure that I could use some basic instruction and it will really help my sewing skills along in general for all kinds of projects. I am not interested in doing intricate quilting but more like the kind of quilt I just made where I make up my own pattern as I go along. It will be good for me to get some tips and tricks in the class. My sister might sign up for the class as well which would be really fun. I am hoping she joins me. I am excited about taking a class, what a treat for me. I never do stuff like this.

For now.

best, susie