Crafting Rehab

This fall my Salvia ‘Hot Lips’ bushes became the home of a couple of Garden Spiders, a friendly and extremely beneficial arachnid.

The distinctive coloring on a Garden Spider’s abdomen:

A yummy grasshopper dinner:

The largest Garden Spider was longer than my finger (no one knows why they make that thicker zipper-like pattern in the middle of their web):

A Garden Spider egg sac (this one was destroyed before we knew what it was; however, the second garden spider laid one further away from the front door that we’re going to leave alone):

Not from a Garden Spider (the makers of these webs are about the size of a dime), but pretty:

There’s a baby coming! No, it’s not mine; my friend Krissy is pregnant with her first, which is due in April. I can’t not knit for a baby! I’m pretty sure it is listed as a requirement somewhere in my Knitter’s Manifesto.

I promise to take it easy though (hence why I’m starting now). The bad part is that I have to work with cotton (hello washables!), which can be rough to work with. I’m going to keep my non-greasy lotion on hand (it’s called Sew Help Me! and was a gift from Tam) and I’m going to go slow. There isn’t a rush, so I have to keep my eagerness in check.

I remembered how to knit though, and it’s really hard to keep my excitement in check.

I’m starting withBaby Bib O’ Love by Kay Gardiner and Ann Shayne. I might do a few of these, depending on how I like the pattern. After that, I’d liketo do a baby blanket…but we’ll see how my hands are doing. Oh, and at least one cute toy. Maybe a T-Rex. ;)

Other than that, I’ve been hand sewing mom’s quilt, which isn’t quite as hard as I thought it’d be. My stitches are far from perfect, however. I’ve also been weaving a little bit. My selvages are pretty horrible, and I have a tendency to slouch while using the loom (this is probably due to the tiny loom I use).

Okay, enough updates–I’m going to go knit! Um, slowly. Right.

Today the quilt backing was stretched and pinned to my carpet in the living room (the only room with enough floor space to lay the quilt flat). I then carefully laid the batting and then the pieced top over the backing, smoothing carefully. I used my curved basting pins to pin the layers together, keeping them about a hand’s-width apart (I don’t own that many pins, even with two sets). I actually got a little vigorous in my pinning, as I somehow managed to hook my carpet as well. D’oh. I then proceeded to unpin the backing from the carpet and pull the quilt (slowly, with some carpet threads attached) off the floor.

Now it stares at me from across the room. I have only to quilt it, bind it, and wash/dry it, and it will be done!

But…I’m afraid.

I’m afraid I’m going to mess it up again. That the backing will insist upon puckering in that horrible way. That my sewing machine–or myself–is not up to the task. The very thought of trying to quilt freehand makes my hands hurt, though.

The quilt will stare at me for awhile more. I have no time to quilt it tonight…but tomorrow, well, I’ll just have to get over my fears.

And hope I don’t screw it up again.

I was able to undo all of yesterday’s quilting last night while listening to Dan Carlin’s Hardcore History podcast. Needless to say, after a 2+ hours of picking out stitches I felt quite cross-eyed for awhile.

I also had pogle pick me up some more curved basting pins, so today I’ll be working on getting the backing stretched properly. Then attempt #2 at pinning and quilting.

I’ll make sure to read up on stretchy backing fabrics beforehand. Just in case.

Working within a quota system of production is not like weaving for oneself. It is no longer fun, nor does the weaver get the benefit of extra effort put in. Mass production is not at all like making single pieces at will; there isn’t time to do a careful job. This economic principle is illustrated many times in history.

For instance, in Mesopotamia, when people first figured out how to make pottery, they painted it with truly exquisite designs, but when the potter’s wheel was invented and it suddenly became possible to mass-produce the pots, the designs rapidly degenerated into a quick swish of the brush for a little color. The same effect is visible in Cretan textiles made for the central palaces, under Mycenaean rule, as they rapidly becamse plain with at most a fancy edging. Elsewhere on Crete, however, in remote areas that the Mycenaeans failed to subjugate, the Minoan women continued to make their elaborate fabrics…

Barber, Elizabeth Wayland. _Women’s Work: The First 20,000 Years._ New York: W. W. Norton, 1994. 225.

quilt backing puckering

Trying to use a stretchy flannel cloth for backing (her choice); I’m going to have to undo all of today’s work, it looks so horrid. >.<

*sigh*

I’m never pre-washing a quilt batting again. What a pain in the butt! I’ll happily settle for that “antique” look that involves not pre-washing. :P

I’m currently working on a gift for my mother, who attempted to make her first quilt last winter and ran into some, erm, problems. I’m using her quilt top, but I’ve replaced her batting (she didn’t have enough) and her backing (she didn’t have enough of this, either). I’ve also picked up a binding material that I hope she’ll like; the only pattern I could find that worked well was in flannel, which causes some wear concerns. Oh well, I can always repair it in the future. Because that’s what a good crafter does, right?

http://www.handmadenews.org/article/index.php?id=3674

At this rate I’m going to have to add a clay category. :P

• My craft room has been reclaimed and I adore the new layout.
• New wrist/thumb braces have been ordered, and I solemnly swear to wear them nightly forevermore if it means I can knit and crochet again. D:
• Slightly crafty work: my gross brass knobs on my kitchen and bathroom cabinets have all been painted a matte black. The look is growing on me (and is infinitely better than the original color).
• A 1:1 ratio of vinegar and table salt + old toothbrush + liberal application of ELBOW GREASE = brass knobs with an interesting patina (not all stains removed; laquer stains cannot be removed). I’m trying to decide if I like the look or if I want to resort to corrosive cleaners. They’re a beautiful cool bronze color, though.
• Murphy’s Oil is magic. I cleaned my sewing desk and stool with it…and the towel turned a disgusting brown. 60 years of grime adds up! I think one of my painting projects in the upcoming year will be to sand and paint over the old icky laminate finish.
• Lots of crafty plotting done, the first since April!
• New cover for the top of the sewing desk stool. The cloth is a lovely microsuede/microfiber sort of cloth that I picked up cheap from JoAnn’s sometime in the past.
• 2 new ferret beds made (from materials purchased in April, doh): one new hammock complete with hooks and one new snuggle bag (no wire).
• Prototype dangle cover made for pog, but he doesn’t think he needs it now; filed for future reference in case he changes his mind.
• Discovered my MP3 player (a Sony) will interface with a set of old PC speakers we have, so now I can be cool, too, and play podcasts and mp3’s directly!
• Dismantling a sleeveless 75% acrylic/25% wool sweater that I picked up at Goodwill when my mother was visiting in the spring. I loved the color, but my shoulders are really too wide for the type of sweater. I’ll recycle the yarn into a new project that I can wear (I’m thinking vest or shrug, maybe scarf).

Sometime today I also managed to cause a deep bruise on my right knee. I’ve had a goose-egg since I cleaned the sewing desk with Murphy’s Oil, so sometime around then I injured myself pretty seriously. Current color: deep purple. Icing it to hope the swelling goes down, as I’d hate to go waste money going to the doctor over a mystery injury. >.<

I suddenly have the urge to learn clay-making…

Polymer Clay Central - Jenny’s Faux Corner 3