Past Crafting

So, in the rush that was trying to get things done in time, I've neglected to post about a few finished objects. Here's my catchup post!

Anna's Fetchings[R]:

Pattern: Fetching[R] by Cheryl Niamath
Materials: Debbie Bliss cashmerino aran [R]; 90m/50g; 55% Merino wool, 33% Microfibre, 12% Cashmere; color: 300008 (brown) dyelot: 44
Purchased at: Woolworks
Amount: 1 skein, just barely
Needles: size 6 clover DPNs
Gauge: what's that? (aka, never checked)
Cost: $8.28

Started: First glove started:12/19 -12/20; Secong glove: 12/20-12/21
Finished: 12/21
Total time: 3 days

Finished gloves:



Gloves with care sleeve:


Gloves with Artsy Clutch:


These were enjoyable to knit. I wish I'd read all the reviews on Cashmerino Aran before choosing to knit with it. It's a very soft yarn, and the resulting fabric is extremely soft, but everyone who says it pills is right. I will probably use this yarn again, but maybe not for such a high use object as gloves.

The pattern was exactly what I hoped for. It was interesting enough to keep me going and fast enough I was able to finish it in a few days. If I'd knitted more on a given day, I could probably even finish this sooner. The one thing I didn't love about the pattern was the picot bind off, and if I do these again, I will probably change the bind off. To me, it makes the bound off edge looser than I'd want it, though it does look pretty. Also, as you can tell if you look closely, I forgot to reverse the cables on the second glove. I hadn't realized it until I was in the main body ribbing part, and I decided I didn't want to frog it back. Next time I knit this, I plan on reversing the cables. All in all, a satisfying knit. Hopefully, the recipient will like it too! As you can see in the bottom picture, this will also be given with an Artsy Clutch. That's my second FO of this post....

Anna's Artsy Clutch:

Pattern: Artsy Clutch from Bend the Rules Sewing
Materials: 3 fat quarters; could be made with two
Purchased at: Dragon fabric and lining butterfly fabric were purchased at an open market in Hilo, Hawaii years ago. The black fabric for the front and the black button are from JoAnn's Fabric.
Cost: $3 for black fat quarter (still have a lot left); $2 for button (still have one left) other fabric (both prints as well as lining flannel) from stash; 3$ for elastic (still have a lot left) total: $8

Started: 12/23
Finished: 12/23
Total time: 2 hours, maybe less

A closer look:

A look at the lining (with a glove inside):


I loved this project. Loved it. I see why it's as popular as it is! When I finished sewing, I was amazed and incredibly pleased by how polished it looked. I made my pouch slightly smaller than the pattern in the book, partly because of the size of some of my scrapps. It's just big enough to be a pencil or pen case, or as a small purse. I decided to have a 'cuff' of the dragon fabric instead of having the entire bag in that fabric for a few reasons. First off, I thought the pattern would be overwhelming if it was the entire bag. The way it is now, you have the two dragons looking down on the 'front' (aka, folded over) piece, and the rest of the black sets them off. One thing I did do, thanks to the suggestion of someone on the blogosphere (though I forget who) is reverse the pattern of the dragon on the folded over flap so that it looks right side up when it's upside down. Other than that and the size adjustment, I followed the pattern. I will make many more of these, I'm sure.