Happy New Year & More Hats To All!

Happy New Year to Everyone!  Let's hope its a healthy, hopeful year for us all!

Here are some pictures of my latest batch of chemo hats.  I actually finished these back in late October or early November & took them to the cancer center.  But I was in the middle of some bag babble, so I didn't talk about them yet!

I was trying to get a little more adventurous with the yarn types I've been using.  So I pulled out some chenille yarns.  They blended very well with the regular yarns & came out soft & cuddley.  I'm not a big fan of chenille, but I have a ton of it from a yarn store going out of business sale. 

I also pulled out some fun confetti-type yarns.  They have lots of fluff on them & look rather fuzzy & cuddley.  Not a fun yarn to work with, but I don't have too much of it either!  I think the hats came out fun!  I'm sure someone out there will love them!

I also resorted to one of my favorite basic patterns, the spiral helix.  It is such a great way to use up those yarns & I made quite a few that way!  They just look so interesting & its better than a plain boring hat!  Like the hats I made in the beginning!  There are a couple with a regular ribbed hem, but most have the soft rolled brim that I like so much! 

I currently have 7 hats in the basket, but as mentioned before, I like to give them in even dozens.  So, just a few more & they'll be making their way to the cancer center too! 

 

Woohoo! The Bag Is Felted!

Yahoo!  I finally worked up the nerve to felt the latest purse!  It came out great!  The only thing that didn't come out like I had hoped was the handle, but it still looked okay, so I wasn't too worried!  I felted it before Christmas, I just haven't been able to post the results till now! 

The size came out just what I wanted, which is good & the handle ended up being long enough, once I reknit it!  All in all, a fun, interesting project that I would do again.  Silly me, I didn't keep any notes on the construction of this bag.  Must have been a moment of insanity or just the busy holiday season.  Ah well, part of the fun of designing is being able to make something on the fly! 

In the pictures above, I show the completed, felted bag, which doesn't look too much different than it did before felting.  At least not in these pictures.  I took a shot of the underside of the pocket flap so you can see the I-cord trim around the rim inside.  I hope that will keep some stability to the top, so it doesn't stretch out of shape over time.  Also, you can see the felted carries, they won't get caught on anything now, cause they are all blended together now.  I also have a shot of the handle, which didn't flatten out like I wanted, but still looks good. 

Finally, the recipient of the bag!  My daughter's friend!  She was so thrilled to finally get it!  She was able to see it in progress & was very anxious for me to finish.  The best part is that she likes it!

Just Call Me Chicken!

Yep, that's me, a wimp!  I still haven't felted the latest handbag yet.  First, the strap issue kept bothering me.  It was too short & it might have gotten shorter with felting.  So I took It apart & reknitted it longer.  I really like the length now.  Its attached to the bag & the ends are all tucked in, so I just need to felt it. 

Why haven't I felted it yet?  There is a tiny part of me that is afraid it will get messed up.  Don't ask me why, I guess because felting goes against everything we knit for!  If the felting ruins the bag, I don't have leftovers to re-make the bag. 

The other thing is I started a new job a few weeks ago.  I'm exhausted!  Wow, I can't believe how tired I've been!  So, my point is, I've been too tired to stand in front of the washer to felt the bag!  LOL!  I'm planning on felting it today, so wish me luck!  I'll be sure to post pictures of the finished result!

What have I been up to in the meantime?  Chemo hats, what else!  Lunchtime is a great time to work on a few rows of a hat.  I recently turned a batch over to the cancer center, so I'll post pictures of those soon.  Plus, I'll need to finish up my next dozen & take pictures of those, too. 

Lucky me, I'm not doing any Christmas knitting this year! Smart girl!

Bag In Progress!

Oh no, not another one!  Yes, its true.  I'm making yet another bag, a purse this time.  This is not for me, so its all good!  I'm using up the leftovers from the felted entrelac bag shown before.  This is a totally improvised pattern.  I made it up as I knit along! 

I started out with the bottom of the bag.  I made a stockinette stitch rectangle, long & rather narrow.  This is the bottom of the bag.  Then I picked up stitches around the rectangle & started my stitch pattern in the round.  I just love the way this stitch looks!  Bright, festive, fun, I think I'll use this one on a few chemo hats later on! 

Anyway, I kept the side panels in plain stockinette, with a slip stitch at both ends of the panel to define it a bit.  After a few inches, I started decreasing the side panels, so the bottom of the bag would be wider than the top.  It worked out just like I wanted!  Wow!  The side panels sort of fold inward, so it makes the bag look more square when empty, but it will have give when it has goodies in it. 

I did an attached I-cord around the front opening, then worked the flap back & forth.  I used a garter stitch side edge to help stop the curl & put garter stitch at the bottom of the flap as well.  The flap still curls from the bottom, so I'm hoping that after felting, it will lay flat.  If it doesn't, I don't know what I'll do yet! 

The handle gave me the most trouble.  I had cast on about 15 sts, & was going to work it in a long strip.  I started with just the blue, but quickly found out I wouldn't have enough.  So I added some of the pink, but didn't have enough of that either.  I had already run out of the green, so that was out.  I started again, adding the yellow, which I had the most leftover.  Ick.  I went back & forth with this for quite a few days.  I would be motivated, start knitting, then realize it wouldn't work.  I would have to put it aside for a day to stop my frustration!  Then I would frog what I had done & start again.  This went on for about a week or so.  Argh. 

Then it hit me!  Why not knit the strap lengthwise?  This way I could determine how much yarn & had & give myself a better idea of when to stop!  I put a knot in the center of each length of color, then rewound them into balls.  When I would get to the knot, I knew I only had enough to repeat what I had already knitted.  So, I cast on with the blue, about 130 sts, worked till I saw that knot, then stopped.  Picked up the yellow & did the same.  I had the least amount in the pink, so it only got 2 rows, then yellow again & finished with blue.  I barely made it with the blue.  I guess binding off takes more yarn than casting on does. 

But the strap is done, & while it is not as long as I had hoped, it will just have to do!   I have no more yarn, except for a few lengths to sew the strap on.  I had intended on making an inside pocket too, but I was over confident in my yarn quantity!  I'm going to felt it today or tomorrow, & I will post pictures of the final result!  Cross your fingers for me! 

A Special Bag

This purse holds very special memories for me!  I made this for my wedding day.  I had previously knit a beaded amulet bag for my daughter to use in the wedding.  It came out very nicely & was quick & fun to knit.  I would show pictures of it, but I have no idea where its hidden in her room! Anyway, I decided to make one for myself, but much bigger.  This is the result of my effort!

While this is based on another pattern, I sort of consider it my own, because I didn't have a pattern to follow.  Any improvisions were my own.  It uses seed beads, tons of them!  I originally ordered prestrung beads, but the color wasn't right.  Off to the local craft store & I found just what I wanted, but I had to string them myself.  That was very time consuming!  It was all a labor of love & I perservered! 

The knitting itself is very simple, it is a garter stitch base, & the beads are slid into place between the garter stitch sections.  It makes for quick knitting.  The bag is shaped by the number of beads placed between the sts.  Very easy!  I used a very fine silky thread for the knitting.  The needles are lethal!  They are very fine steel double point needles, about a size 0000.  This is the tiniest knitting I've ever done.  It took a while to get used to the small needles, but once I got moving, it went quickly. 

I tried a few different things for the handle, but ended up using tons & tons of the thread to make a thick twisted cord.  It was the perfect size for a few tissues & lipstick.  The bag is rather heavy with all the beads, but it is very slinky.  It feels wonderful in your hands!  I showed a coworker who also does crafts, she said it was exquisite!  Wow!  It is pretty neat! 

Would I do another one of these?  You bet!  Maybe not the large size, but the smaller ones are wonderful!  I have the fixings for a purple bag waiting for me to start.  The beads are even strung for me this time!  I just need the motivation!

Offspring

This purse is a descendant from the beach bag shown in the last entry.  It is made in the same basic style, but with my own "innovations" added!  I started without using the pattern from the beach bag.  I thought I could remember it pretty well, since it was a fairly simple design.  I found some great worsted weight cotton in a deep purple shade.  This was very nice to knit with.  I also used much smaller needles than recommended on the label.  I wanted it to be tightly knitted so it wouldn't have gaps between the stitches.  It was to be a purse, after all!

Again, the bottom of the bag is a garter stitch square, the stitches are picked up around the square.  The bag is knit in the round to the top.  The beach bag has "corners" to make it rather square-ish.  I didn't add these in the purse because I *forgot*!  But it was still okay!  I did add a little interest with some reverse stockingnette diamonds on the front & back of the bag.  I continued with a flap closure knitted in a seed stitch.  I added an I-cord strap & a seashell for a button. 

The body of the bag is rounder than the beach bag because it doesn't have the corners.  I don't mind though, it makes it different in that way.  This is my favorite bag for gathering shells on the beach!  It is lightweight, dries quickly if needed & it is still loose enough that some of the sand will sift out.  Yet it is knit tightly enough that I do still have to dump most of the sand out of the bottom.  It is also a great purse to carry for those times when I don't want to take the "real" purse!  This bag is about 5 years old now, & it is holding up very well! 

This bag also has memories for me!  Don't they all?!  I started knitting this while we were on our honeymoon.  I purchased the yarn in North Carolina, and started it right away.  However, we had to evacuate due to an approaching hurricane.  We were lucky to have friends in Raleigh who let us stay with them for a few days.  I remember sitting in their lovely living room knitting away on this bag.  Though our honeymoon was cut short from the storm, I have great memories of friendship & knitting! 

The Bag That Started It All!

This is the bag that started it all!  The bag that began my fun journey into knitted tote bags & purses.  This has to be one of the best bags I've ever made!  It was a pattern from Knitter's Magazine, some number of years ago.  This bag is almost 10 years old & is still holding up very well. 

We use it as our beach bag.  It works great, because it stretches more than you would think possible.  I can fit 3 large beach towels, 1 huge beach blanket & assorted goodies.  Any sand that goes in with the items gets sifted out through the stitches.  Being made of cotton, it dries quickly, too. 

The bag has launched me on a knitting journey of designing my own bags.  The bottom is knit as a garter square, then stitches are picked up around the square & the body of the bag is knit in the round.  There was a little reverse stockinette stitch design to add interest, & garter stitch rows at the top.  Add I-cord handles & a closure, there you are!  Many of my own designs are based on this format. 

Also, for me, it holds fond memories of the knitting process.  While on vacation in North Carolina, I stopped in a yarn store & found the whole thing in a kit.  Yarn & pattern.  The yarn is a very thick  cotton.  It reminds me of the yarn used for the old dust mops.  It also had just enough color to make it interesting & fun.  I just had to get it.  I made it on the beach that week & was done before we left for home.  What a great fun project & memory!