Handspun Kerchief

I realize I forgot to show off a finish object from January, an Age of Brass and Steam kerchief!

I started this way back in the springtime of last year and thought I should finish it before baby arrived. I love the pattern for its simplicity and how it sets off the handspun, which is '24 karat' from Hobbledehoy Fibers.

It's a bit artsy for everyday wear but it's still a lovely finished handknit.

Quilt Take 2

I've previously mentioned on this blog that I'm a serial repeater. If I like a pattern a lot, there's a good chance I'm going to make it more than once. My most recent repeat will look extremely familiar, as it's a twin of the project I just finished in January.

I've said before that I'm not a quilter but I admit that there is something addictive about quilting precuts. The one I used here is the Farm Girl jelly roll from Riley Blake. I took out the actual farm girl prints and just love the rest (particularly the canning jars I used on the quilt back).

Repeating the Jelly Roll Jam pattern allowed me to fix my mistakes from the first quilt, namely using a less lofty batting and doing a different quilting pattern. The result is that I like this one better than the first even though it may be a little too girly for the new little boy in my life.

I'm honestly lucky I finished this quilt at all with a newborn. It helps that everything but the binding was done before LittleH arrived and I've had lots of grandparents around to hold the baby while I got other things done. I'm going to have to scale my projects down a bit once the grandparents leave.

Hello World

You'll pardon me if I don't have a lot of crafting to show off in the near future as I've just completed a pretty large work in progress:

Little H is adorable, wonderful, and is taking up most of my time. On the plus side, we're having fun cuddling and using the new quilt for tummy time!

Happiness.

An Actual Quilt

I have a mixed relationship with quilting. For all that I'm getting comfortable with making quilt tops (one blogged here, the other set needs blogging), I've never actually finished a proper quilt. I've always gotten stumped at what to do once the top is finished. But I'm happy to report that I've finally finished a whole entire quilt:

The quilt in question is a Jelly Roll Jam quilt using this adorable Moda "Into the Woods" fabric. I really got into using quilting precuts in 2014, particularly mini-charm packs, and recently thought I would try my hand at different kind of precut pack - a jelly roll. It didn't hurt that the Fat Quarter Shop came out with a pattern (with video!) for making a simple and cute jelly roll quilt.

For all I like how things turned out, being new to a craft always means a few things to do better for next time. In this case, that means making my backing a little bigger, using a less lofty batting, and trying a more complex quilting pattern (I would rather my quilt didn't look like a row of mounds in a plowed field). Otherwise, I think my bumbling attempts (with help from this book) to actually quilt something turned out well and I'll be much more comfortable with the process for my next quilted project.

Overall, I'm happy with the final quilt, especially that I was able to use the second half of the jelly roll pack for a striped backing. I think the final quilt is adorable and I'm feeling much less anxiety about this whole quilting thing. This is good, as I have a couple quilt tops on hand to finish and my eye on the Fat Quarter Shop's second pattern in this series, Jelly Roll Jam II. :)

Baby Bits and Bobs

We're continuing the theme of baby knitting here at casa BrineyDeep. This time by revisiting a pattern I've knit a couple times before: Magic Slippers.

These booties are seamless and straightforward to construct, which makes them fun to knit. Plus, I learned that I can knock a pair out in the time it takes to watch a football game, which is perfect for getting me through all of the post-season NFL games that are on right now.

And of course, you can't have a pair of baby booties without matching mittens. These are the Teensie Weensie Mittens (Ravelry link). Not only are tiny mittens adorable, but I love that they don't have a thumb.

I'm hoping that these will both fit baby at the same time and that baby will be able to get some wear out of them before it gets warm again. Then again, I do live in Wisconsin, so baby might just be wearing these from the time zie's born in March until May or June when the snow finally melts! All the more reason to stock up on knitwear.

Prep Work

As we get close to baby's due date, the good knitter in me is feeling the need to get some baby knitting done. It's been hard enough to knit while pregnant that I can only imagine it will be impossible once the baby arrives. So if I want to stock up on baby knitwear, I'd better do it now.

The first item I finished was a Norwegian Sweet Baby Cap. I've knit this pattern before and loved the results so I was very happy to have one I could keep for "myself".

The second item off of the needles was an EZ Surplice Baby Jacket (Ravelry link). This one is really adorable and kind of ingenious as it adjusts fit with a growing baby. A row of yarn overs along the hem allows you to button the jacket up as tight or loose as necessary. My only complaint is that the pattern was written in a very Elizabeth Zimmerman style, meaning instructions were not laid out in an orderly fashion and there were lots of sidebars for variations. Still, it's quite a cute sweater!

I have a few more knitting plans for baby (and a few items I've already put away), so we'll see how much I can get done before March!

Camden

It's been a little quiet on the blog in the last few months. There are two reasons for this. First, I over-committed myself this autumn and haven't had a lot of crafting time until recently. Second, I just haven't had that much energy to craft. The reason why brings me directly to my latest sewing project:

I've had my eye on making a cape for a while now. In fact, I bought McCall's M6446 a couple years ago and have been hoping to get around to actually making it. That point finally came this autumn now that I'm actually in need of some looser-fitting winterwear.

Being due in early March in Wisconsin means finding new warm clothes that are hopefully also stylish. This had me pulling out my M6446 pattern, buying some absolutely lovely wool fabric, and starting to plan. And then Seamwork magazine (whose patterns I subscribe to) threw a wrench into the whole works by releasing the Camden cape pattern. All of a sudden, I was faced with the dilemma of which beautiful cape to make (I had enough wool for either).

I ultimately decided to go with Camden because I liked the clean look, the high neckline, and the fact that the cape was lined (meaning I wouldn't have to professionally finish the inside seams). The one detail I did borrow (loosely) from M6446 was the pockets. If you ever decide to make the Camden pattern, it's definitely worth taking the time to add some pockets; not only do they hold things for you but they provide a natural place for your hands to go in compensation for the unnatural armhole placement.

The pockets themselves are welt pockets, which I've never done before. Thankfully, the November issue of Seamwork also had an article on how to install pockets of this type, with several variations. Installing the pockets added several hours of researching, calculating, and sewing to the project but it was totally worth it and made me feel like a sewing genius for pulling off.

Overall, this was a lovely pattern and fairly straightforward to sew (with the exception of the pocket additions which I highly recommend). I especially loved the opportunity to add a pop of color to the project in the form of the red rayon lining. That said, it took me a good amount of time to pull this together - 3 evenings and 2 days, pacing myself manageably - which was well over the stated 3 hour sewing time listed on the pattern. Still, if you are looking for a stylish pattern for spring/autumn outwear pattern (pregnant or not), Camden is a pretty good option.