Free Pattern: Lake Effect Muff

Living in Wisconsin, you get pretty used to not seeing the grass from November through May. It was that way when I lived in Madison and it's even worse now that I'm in Milwaukee because of lake-effect snow. The past 2 months have taught me to add 3 inches of snow to the forecast just because I live close to Lake Michigan. Still, I don't mind the snow so long as I have ways to stay warm.

(I should add that, as I wrote this, an ad for ice fishing supplies came on TV. Welcome to life in the north!)

Living around so much snow means that I'm always on the lookout for things that are both warm and stylish, and nothing says winter glamour quite like a muff. I made this one out of bulky and super bulky yarns, so it knit up quickly and provides a lot of warmth. It's going to keep my fingers super toasty this winter when worn over my gloves (because, seriously, it's too cold to go outside with only one layer on the hands).

The muff itself is dead simple to make--it's simply two stockinette tubes, one inside the other, with optional fiberfill stuffing. The trickiest part is actually grafting the last row of stitches to the cast on edge, though you could always seam everything if you don't like grafting. Either way, I hope you enjoy the pattern and are finding lots of pretty and cozy ways to stay warm this winter.

Yarn:
Requires ~70 yards each of super bulky (MC) and bulky (CC) yarns.

I used:
MC: 1 skein Istex (nee Reynolds) Bulky Lopi in Gray [100% Wool, 67 yds per 100 g skein]
CC: 0.2 skein Cascade Eco Wool in Natural [100% Wool, 478 yds per 250 g skein]

Another good option is Lion Brand Wool Ease Thick & Quick (MC) paired with Wool Ease Chunky (CC).

Materials:
Size 10 dpns (or 16" size 10 circulars)
Size 8 dpns

Fiberfill (optional)

Darning needle for grafting

Gauge:
MC and size 10 needles: 14 st/20 row = 4 inches in stockinette
CC and size 8 needles: 18 st/25 row = 4 inches in stockinette

(The gauge is a little tighter than normal so as to keep fiberfill in and wind out)

Pattern:
Provisionally cast on 48 stitches in MC on size 10 needle.
Join to work in the round, being careful not to twist your stitches.

Knit 9 inches in stockinette.

Switch to CC and size 8 needles.

Continue to work in the round in CC for another 8.5 inches.

Cut yarn, leaving long tail. Weave in all ends but this one.

Fold CC lining down into center of MC cylinder, with wrong sides of the fabric together. Stuff lightly with fiberfill between the layers, if desired.

Remove provisional cast on and graft CC stitches to MC stitches using long CC tail. Weave in end.

Wear and stay warm!

Wrapping Up the Holidays

I hope you all had a very happy holidays. Husband and I enjoyed some wonderful time with both of our families over Christmas week and are now back home enjoying our last quiet day before going back to work.

The time off was great and I got some crafting done, mainly playing around with my Arbor loom. Between a skein of handspun and some leftover yarn from my Gretel hat, I whipped out over 20 squares (though I don't know what I'm going to do with them all yet). I even learned to weave a twill, which is so beautiful that it makes me excited to learn new weave patterns.

The other craft time I had came with Mom, when we hand-felted a shawl together. Mom wove the shawl for me out of wool and tencel, with a pattern that would create a lot of texture when felted (as the wool will felt while the tencel won't). The finished shawl is beautiful and textured and awesome. I can't wait to wear it.

Speaking of Mom, she gifted me a set of blocking wires for Christmas. After blocking my lace shawl and her lace scarf together in the last year, she realized how much they will help. I'm looking forward to trying them out the first time on Ysolda's mystery knitalong.

Needless to say, I had a great Christmas. I hope your holidays were just as wonderful!

Year in Review

It's that time of the year for reflection on the past year and looking forward to the next. I've never been one for New Year's resolutions, but I think planning for the next year's crafting is its own thing. But before I get to that, I want to look at the crafty highlights of the previous year.

2013 was another year of knitting Ysolda patterns. I have a few favorites from the year, including my Veyla replacements and a Gretel for me, but the one that takes the takes the cake is my handspun Strokkur sweater. It's definitely the best thing I knit in 2013.

I also did a little sewing in 2013. While my second Peony dress was a great project, my favorite sewing project of the year was definitely my dirndl. I have already worn it twice this year and I'm sure that living in Milwaukee will offer many more opportunities for wearing this outfit.

In terms of other crafty projects, the best of 2013 was definitely the rosary husband and I created for my goddaughter. Not only was it a great team project, but it turned out beautifully.

I hope that 2014 yields results that are just as wonderful. I'm already planning to knit a few projects--a Stripe Study Shawl and Ysolda's Mystery Knitalong (!)--and hope to do a little sewing as well. More importantly, I would like to finally finish one of the two big WIPs I have laying around, either my Telemark Ski Sweater or my PhD quilt. The hope is to be able to "sleep on zero" (have no WIPs) at some point this year, but we'll see what the year brings. I hope it's a great one!

Star Bunting

I love having random bursts of crochet inspiration. I never know when this inspiration is going to strike, but it's always fun to take a break from my knitting needles and pick up a hook. My most recent crochet inspiration came when I ran across this adorable "twinkler star" pattern on Pinterest and immediately wanted to make some stars.

First of all, I must say that I love this little pattern. The stars are simple to make, quick to finish, and by my second star, I had the pattern memorized. About the same time I memorized the pattern, I realized that the stars would make an adorable bunting strung along a crochet chain. So that's what I did and hung the results in my previously plain cubicle where it makes me happy while I work.

I should add that I blocked each star to give it nice points, but the stars are also pretty cute in their chubby unblocked version. There may be more crocheting in my future because the blog that published the pattern, Cherry Heart, has me ogling over all types of crochet and wee buntings. I definitely want to crochet All The Things right now.

OWL Mittens

I love finishing handknits right in time for a cold snap. This winter's just-in-time knits are my OWL mittens, which I started at the end of August. The project was slow going because the pattern was so detailed but things did speed up a bit once I learned an easier way to manage long color repeats in fair isle.

So now I have some decidedly nerdy mittens. At least the low color contrast means that they don't scream their nerdiness for everyone to see. It makes me quite happy to know that I'm wearing Harry Potter mittens that others won't recognize.

For all that I like these mittens, it's sometimes hard to see the words clearly on the palms if the light isn't right. Part of me likes this subtlety but another part of me is annoyed that I did all of that work and the pattern isn't coming through clearly. If I had to do it all over again, I would up the contrast a bit to make the words sharper. At least the back of the hands look great in all lighting.

All in all, this was a fun project and I'm looking forward to seeing how these mittens wear now that it's cold.

Scaling Back

It's been a little quiet on the blog lately and I'm sad to say that it's likely to be that way for the next year or so. I have some big projects on the docket and I don't expect to have a lot of time for knitting, let alone blogging, in the near future. For all I'm going to miss being here, I know it's best for me to not try to keep up with this blog right now.

The good news is that I'm not going on a complete blog hiatus. I plan to drop by every so often to share what's on the needles. So thanks for understanding and I look forward to popping back in here in the near future and sharing my yarns with you.

Dress Upgrades

I have a bit of a dress obsession. I wear them regularly and they are one of my favorite things to sew. But for all I've filled my closet with dresses, I've come to realize that my favorite dresses have 2 features: pockets and bra keeps.

Variety of bra keeps in my off-the-rack dresses

Dresses with pockets need no explanation for their awesomeness, but you may be asking 'what the heck are bra keeps'? Well, they are the little ribbon/snap combo that you sometimes find inside the bodice of a dress at the shoulder seam. Bra keeps make sure that your bra straps stay hidden beneath the dress, which is especially useful for sleeveless dresses and those with wide necklines.

Handsewn bra keep in my Colette Peony dress

You're more likely to find bra keeps on high-end dresses, though one of my Gap dresses has them and all of my dresses from my new favorite dress shop, eShakti, have them as well. Once I realized how useful bra keeps are, I decided that my handsewn dresses should have them too. They're particularly needed on my two Colette Peony dresses (one, two), where my straps are either visible or off my shoulders trying to work around the wide boatneck.

Bra keep making supplies

To add bra keeps to my Peony dress, I used the following materials:

• 3/8-inch wide ribbon
• Size 2/0 sew-on snaps
• Needle and thread

I constructed the keeps as follows:

• Cut two matching pieces of ribbon of 2 to 2.5 inch length.
• Fold each end down 3/8 inch and sew into place.
• Sewn one side of a snap onto one end of each ribbon.
• Sew the snap-less end of the ribbon down on the inside of the dress near the shoulder.
• Sew the other side of the snap onto the inside of the dress near the neckline, making sure the ribbon lays flat when the snaps connect.
• To use the bra keep, lay bra strap over ribbon and snap the keep shut. Straps should stay within the keeps all day.

Open bra keep

Doing all of the sewing by hand, it took me between 1-2 hours to assemble and install the keeps in my dress. But it was definitely worth the time and effort because I no longer have to fight my bra straps while wearing this dress. So hurray for bringing more bra keeps into the world!