All done #34 Colour Lab Yarn

 Anyone knitting? This is the post where I show you how I have used up a craft material to the very end. I have reached this heady position 34 times since writing these posts - hence All Done #34

 I had a bit of a break over summer while I was gardening a lot but enjoyed making the owl sweater on the odd few rainy days but then I fancied some quick projects for late summer.

There were two balls a grey left from my crochet blanket. I made this newborn cardigan from a vintage pattern and really enjoyed making it for my pregnant friend.

As ever, I just about made it yarnwise watching the yarn wind down on the last sleeve. One of my most satisfying All done moments.

The chain effect was really easy to do but so effective for both boy and girl cardigans I thought.

 

I would also like to try the one on the top another day in a gender neutral colour because I think it is a lovely design on the front.

Before I made the cardigan I made this little vest top called Like Sleeves. I forget how many of these I have made now but it is an easy no- brainer make which can be lengthened to make a tunic dress or can be made short like this one. All done Colour Lab DK. Thank you for being so kind to me.

Next I spotted this amazingly soft bamboo yarn in a sale bin the other day and bought two. I wanted to make a little girl sweater for my pregnant friend's second girl. I made one for Heidi when she was small but it was a sublime cashmerino yarn, then she wore it for one day and I shrunk it! This yarn has more favourable washing temperatures. I also remember that Heidi's curled up at the front and on the cuffs so on this one I added four rows of rib which worked a treat.

I remember how much I liked knitting it all over again. Repeating my usual self induced stress, I was running short of yarn. I just made it. I knit this on bamboo needles which I seem to get a better tension on than metal ones. It is a bit large for said girl but I will keep it for her birthday next year. Another satisfying make without leftovers.

Autumn Knitting plans.

Anyway enough of this selfless knitting, back to me. I saw this rather lovely tank in The Knitter this month and bought a soft rose cotton yarn to make one for myself. I don't know if I will wear it as the photo or over a white shirt but I am enjoying a few rows a night so as not to make mistakes on the cables which are made up with a 16 row set pattern. I have marked each set of 15 stitches with markers too to make sure the cable repeats are correct. There is a lot of meticulous crossing off with a pen to make sure I don't go wrong because it is virtually impossible to rip this back part way and know what row you are on.

This top should take me to my Christmas knitting frenzy which I do every year. I have a few ideas up my sleeve for presents.

Thanks for dropping in. Jo xx

All done#33 Art Gallery Jersey

Art Gallery fabric is a purse buster however it is exceptional quality to wear, sew and wash. I find that if you buy good fabric you treat it well with thought and precision. Today I am sharing an all done post showing how I have used some fabric to the very end. This is the 33rd time I have posted an all done post which feels amazing. It is an activity I derive a great deal of satisfaction from. No joy flows to me from filling my fabric cupboard full of scraps.

I had two metres, prewashed the fabric then used the first cut to make a T-shirt for myself with a shirring detail. It has four way stretch which makes it very comfy to wear.

Megan had her eye on this fabric too so I used a small piece to team up with some left over sweatshirt fabric to make this top for her. She absolutely loves it - I do too.

To use the final small pieces, I had a knicker making morning followed by a try of the Watson bra. A new pattern to me which I toiled first to get the fit right before using the last of the lovely fabric. It was sods law because the fit was just fine on my first go but you never know with bra making. Always worth a try first.

All done dancing cats: 1 adult T-shirt, 1 feature wall on a kids top, three pairs of knickers and bra. Pretty good for 2 metres of fabric.

Do you have stash to use up? Jo xxx

All Done Scheepjes Knitting #32

Another All Done post today but intentionally so. My All Done posts normally show how I have used up a craft resource to its very end over a long period of time however...

During November when I thought that not one interesting shop would be open before Christmas I put my big girl pants on and decided to make absolutely everything for Christmas. It lasted about three weeks and then the shops by us reopened. Thankfully, I gave my red hot knitting needles a break. I bought two 100g balls of Scheepjes yarn in a manly colourway to knock out some comforting gifts. 

The first pattern I tried was free on ravelry. A neck snood for my brother. He has copious amounts of thick long hair so he never wears a hat - in fact we have the same hairstyle! The pattern makes a super stretchy snood in a fisherman's rib pattern.

The yarn is made up of 40% polyamide, 40% Acrylic and 20% wool meaning that it was beautifully soft without being itchy. The snood used up one ball which was a decent depth. 

Next up I found a pattern in my Ravelry library saving it from a facebook link when it was released in September. I thought it looked perfect for another gentlemanly gift item. 

It is the On A Whim Cowl by Fated Knitter

I did stop a little shorter than the pattern suggested because I wanted the last bit of yarn for a boys hat but it was a generous original size leaving me with ample depth for a teenage boy snood. I really recommend this pattern if you like stranded work.

Lastly to eek out the last of the yarn I paired it with some plain grey acrylic and just kept knitting stripes until the yarn ran out. This hat is for a 2/3 year old and was a good size.

All Done - 200g, £8, three gifts - Nailed it!

Are you still making? Thanks for stopping by. Jo xxxx

All Done Beautiful Crepe #31

 It is time for an All Done post sharing how I have used up a piece of fabric to the very end. It is something I take great pleasure out of. This obsession means I can play around with tried and tested patterns without looking like all of my clothes are the same while reducing the amount of waste fabric I generate.

It also means favourite fabrics can be used for both Summer and Winter which was what today was all about.

During lockdown I received a bag of fabric scraps from my friend Michelle who had undertaken a clear out and this piece of fabric stood out as my favourite piece in the whole lot. 

I made a sun top from it and saved one last piece from the bin with this Linden top in mind.

There was just enough to cut the front piece and make the rest of out of stretch jersey. Now I can wear this wonderful fabric all year round. I must say the Linden Sweatshirt top is one of my most used patterns especially now that my older daughter can use size 8 from the pattern while I use size 12.

The back, sleeves, cuffs and neckbands are all in navy which compliments the patterned crepe really well.

I am super pleased with my new top. Do you have a lovely piece of fabric or skein of wool you are saving for a special project?

All done beautiful crepe. Jo xx

All done #30 Hand Dyed Cotton

My all done posts showcase how I try to use every last scrap of yarn, fabric or craft material. This is my 30th post! I love the satisfaction of using something up to the very end. Today, I have finished 12 skeins of Araucania hand dyed aran cotton by making a cushion cover for our new house.

The chevron pattern is actually a blanket pattern I have in a book, but I simply made one long rectangle and folded it over a cushion pad. The shell buttons fit perfectly through the chain spacer stitches on the chevron pattern.

Previous makes from this yarn are a wonderful scarf I gifted to a friend for her birthday using a pattern that is sadly no longer available. :(

I also made a jumper called the Skiddaw which I loved for the first 6 months and then it got bigger and bigger and bigger until I gifted it to another friend. 

The yarn was from the Black Sheep Wool company which was at a big craft show years ago. I saw this yarn all bagged up reduced from £99 £49 £29 to £10. I snapped it up; it has been very kind to me. 

Time to rummage around in the yarn basket to find some more lovely yarn to work with through to the very end. 

Two more weeks of school left to go.

Thanks for dropping by. Love from Jo xx

All done Cactus #29

My all done posts recognise my efforts to use every last scrap of crafting materials to the very end to avoid hoarding rubbish. It usually takes time to use up a whole piece of fabric but this one was just too damn popular.

This fabric is from Minerva blogger fabric from which I made a dress for my big girl. She chose it from their website. She has had one of these skater style dresses made for her every year for the last three years. It is from Mcalls M7079 - this pattern has earned its money.

 It has a simple folded over hem for the neck which I didn't think would not be very good but it turned out just fine.

She also asked for another repeat pattern which is a top from my favourite Ottobre magazine Autumn 2012. We have made many of these tops sometimes using up different coloured scraps for different parts.

The neckline on this is my favourite way to bind a T-shirt. 

There was one sizable piece left over so we made a cropped vest top for my god daughter's 14th Birthday. We are unable to go out and get her a present at the moment therefore we thought we could make her something fun. Last year we bought her three cactus for her new bedroom window sill. 

This uses another method for a neck binding where you make a neckband which is attached to the raw edge, then you top stitch it on the second pass through the machine.

It is lock down after all and making a pair of succulent knickers seemed the most sane thing I could do with the rest of the fabric although I didn't have a thread match. They are fun and very comfortable. If I get in a bad mood, I can sense that my family will ask if it is because I am wearing my cactus pants!

Finally, Heidi salvaged the last too strips to make headbands for both her and her sister. There were literally slivers left over.

I am definitely all done with this modern cactus print fabric by Rico from Minerva. Which was your favourite make?

Stay safe all. Jo xxx

All done #28 - Little Trees Fabric

It is time for another All done post, this time rather than yarn, I have used up some fabric to the very end. I have had this fabric for a few years. Christina from Colourful life sent it to me because her daughter had fallen out of love with it but I think it is sensational.

It is a beautiful quality cotton with little trees and a swirly snow-like background. I am calling this my Christmas Skirt (I loathe Christmas Jumpers!) I wore it to school on Christmas dinner day and then to the Christmas play performances.

The pattern is a tried and tested one for me. It is NewLook 6106. The waistband is called a yoke on the pattern pieces and it certainly gives a comfortable feel and a flat stomach. The pockets are big. I don't like going to the effort of adding pockets to a garment and then finding I can hardly fit a pencil sharpener in them - these were definitely pocket worthy.

These rest of the fabric was used for a pinafore dress for Megan in October 2017.

It has also made a pump bag which has been and gone over a year ago. There have been pleasant appearances on scrappy quilts over the last two years too. This is my current postage stamp quilt which is all ready to be sandwiched together.

Today, to satisfy my inner thrift, I made a little pouch with the last piece to keep all of Megan's sewing machine feet together for her new machine.

All done. A very inspirational gift of fabric. Thanks Christina.

Jo xxxxxx