Jammies

The shorts Monkey used to wear to bed suddenly look ridiculously tiny, so I dug through the stash and found an extra tshirt from a batch I silkscreened last summer. It ended up being a test print, with one fully inked design and several ghosts that didn't wash out completely. Out came the scissors and a tape measure, plus a little time on the serger and I've got an awesome pair of long shorts for my little guy. I wrapped the logo around one leg and was able to cut the other leg to preserve the pocket from the front of the shirt.

It looks like he is training for a MMA match. A mom can hope :)

E is for...

Happy Earth Day!

So I got sunburned for the first time in years today while working in my garden (the Monkey finally was well enough to go back to school today) and I got kind of pissed off. What the crap, Earth? Sunburn me while I'm working in my organic garden? Couldn't you maybe get someone who hasn't been carrying the same string shopping bags that I bought in France for 5 years?

Then I remembered it was Earth day, not Sun day.

Knit a sweater in Nocembruary/D is for...

Lawyerboy has been out of town for a while now with the Air Force, so picture taking of my best finished object has been rather slow in coming. I had my doubts that the Monkey would take a decent picture, so I pulled out the tripod and did it myself.
Twist is finally finished! So much for knitting a sweater in November. I did finish back in February though.

The pattern is fantastic and translates well to knitting in the round. My only complaint is the hood-it is square and the back pokes out in a manner reminiscent of an elf. Ever lazy, I tucked the point in and sewed it closed.
I am delighted with how versatile the wool is, comfortable at a large range of temperatures. But the Pattons Classic Wool pills like a mofo. I'll now get to see how well those Sweater Stones work.

Today is also brought to you by the letter D, weeks behind. D is for Dog, our sweet little pound puppy Molly. She is nearly a year old and has has the sweetest face ever. I visited her 4 times before the shelter would let me take her home, suspicious because I have never owned a dog before.

It has been intriguing (and a little sad when I think about it too much) to watch her personality emerge. When I met her she was very calm and still. I thought she must be mixed with something that didn't have the perky beagle-tail, as hers just hung behind her. Now she is joyful, energetic and affectionate, with her tail standing up when she runs. Now she is only sedate when she is really tired-apparently she was constantly exhausted in the shelter. She would submit immediately to all dogs at first; she was obviously the lowest dog of the group in her kennel. Now she walks proudly and is social with other dogs, sniffing them instead of dropping to the ground. It is sad to think how hard her life was before she came home with us, but it makes me very happy to see her comfortable and loved in our pack.

Lattice

After three weekends (plus all the time in between them) of having out of town guests, the house is finally mine. I spent most of yesterday staring into space and listening to nothing. I love my family but but as a happy hermit it is difficult to have people around me. Some of us are a little more, shall we say, intense than myself too, and that gets old. Not everything needs a plan, you know. Some of us like life like good jazz-by ear.

Today I pulled myself out of my stupor and got something done. Hard to see is the Jasmine growing up the fence. Harder to see is my neighbors living room, which it used to feel like we were staring into.

Worth doing even if I had to look a little silly doing it.

Two shirts

One cute, one utter failure. We'll start with the crappy one, so I can end on a good note.
Blahhhhhhgggg. Blue shirt, you had all the elements you needed to be cute. Except for a good pattern. With 10 separate pieces, I expected something fitted and cute; springy and a little tailored, casual enough for playgroup yet nice enough for...something nice. Yet despite a medium high neck you gap and flash to a degree that I should wear a nicer bra. The sleeves look exactly the same with my arms down as they do here with my arms up. The waist is up too high for anyone except my MIL. Pattern type/number unknown, because I threw it into the recycling yesterday when I was really pissed.

You even have saucy chartreuse lining! Damn you for not being awesome!

















The other is a brown raglan tshirt, made of mysterious swimsuit like stretch fabric from Malwart. New Look #6762. Awesome! I whipped this out in an hour or so on the serger and it is fantastic. The neckband droops the tiniest bit in front, probably because I left too much seam allowance. But you would never notice it as a problem; it looks decorative.


















This is probably my first really wearable shirt sewn. Hurray! I can see myself making this pattern again, maybe lots of times.