lindsey marcella

Last day of vaca

I know it seems like I dropped off the planet, but I've just been happily making for Christmas. That means that I haven't really been able to share anything here. I've still been popping onto other blogs but have just been a bit more quiet than usual.

Derek is now back for good, and the day after he came home we went to FL. We're planning on driving back tomorrow, and just crossing our fingers that we don't hit snow. Today the sun is shining here so it's hard to make myself leave...

I've been keeping busy here (especially on cloudy days) knitting. Started and finished 4 hats and have one more on the needles. Am also making some slipper socks that I will need to felt when I get home. It's really windy today so I had my assistant pose for photographs.

Basic beanies in basic colors for people at work. Can't really go wrong with these.

 

I'll only post a few pictures now since I know the recipients don't read this blog. Can you tell where I made a mistake with the slipper socks? Whoops. They're for my 18 yr old brother though and he won't care.

Oh, I also got my new car before Thanksgiving. It's the new hard top convertible z4 and it's awesome. It has been fun to drive in this nice weather!

 

 
 

 

Thankful

Here's to a happy thanksgiving! One pie is already made, with plenty more to come tomorrow...and Derek will be here! See you soon!

 *edited to add* This isn't turning out to be such a hot Thanksgiving after all...Derek's flight was cancelled and he doesn't know yet when he'll be coming. Supposedly he is guaranteed a spot on a 10pm flight but either way it doesn't look like I'll be having a Thanksgiving, at least not today :*( . And I'm scheduled to work tomorrow (by my own choosing) because I thought I'd have all day today with Derek, so now I'm pretty bummed. Not to mention that the poor guy himself hasn't slept yet and could be up for a LONG time...

The Jackie Camera Case Tutorial

It's ready! 

 
I made a new camera case and lens cozy so I could write up what I did into a little tutorial. 

Please feel free to download the tutorial below. I like a tutorial with lots of pictures, but if something isn't clear please let me know. Please feel free to do what you'd like with the bag/cozy if you make one. And remember - even if you don't have a digital SLR this bag is also great as a clutch! Or add straps, or just use your imagination! If you do make one please let me know either by e-mail or in the comments because I'd love to see it!

Download The Jackie Camera Case Tutorial

coming soon

A little tutorial for the "Jackie Camera Case". The sweet Jacqueline requested one (from J's so cute it hurts) so I figured I'd put it together. Disclaimer: it's really not that difficult, as it really is just 2 pattern pieces. There's nothing really special about it, but I did come up with the size that's perfect for my digital SLR. Hope to have it up by tomorrow if all goes well with the photos!

Here's a silly picture I took of myself in the Aira hat I knit. I have that funny look on my face because I'm awful at these "self portraits", and I wasn't sure if I was even getting myself in the frame at all!

aira

Have you been to the Joli House blog? And seen how talented both mom and daughter are? Aira is a hat that Lily designed, and they sent me the pattern to help test knit! I started it in San Fran and finished it up shortly after I got back home.

 

I'm sorry that all you get is this sad picture of it. Go to the blog to see Lily's pretty version. This is a great hat - nice and slouchy and kind of pleaty all over. And the yarn is some of my favorite Sundara sock. This was actually a knotted skein so the color was a surprise but it is perfect. Very peacock-y in real life. And I only ran across one tiny knot.

Anyways, this hat is adorable. It grew a bit during blocking but I don't mind. If you could see the brim (no model photos since no one but Cosmo is here), you would see that it is a pretty picot. So thanks again Joli House, it was a pleasure. I did go down one needle size but I wasn't getting gauge.

Aside from my secret Christmas knit (secret that is unless you're on Ravelry), I have plans to start a few more things. I finally got my hands on some gorgeous Malabrigo sock from my LYS. Look at these colors:

 

So pretty, and so me. (I actually just typed "sew me" there by mistake...yikes.) Won't this make a pretty shawl? Keep in mind I don't really like knitting shawls, but I might make another exception for these colors.

quilt to be

I finally (FINALLY) got around to cutting out these blocks and laying them out in this pattern. Now I just need to sew them up and quilt it! This was a quilt along from June. WHOOPS. Better late than never though. I still have a scrappy quilt in it's quilt sandwich just waiting. I started to quilt it but was having major tension issues. I got frustrated (surprise surprise - i don't tend to get frustrated unless it's a craft project) and it has sat on the back of my sewing chair since. This one will not wait that long though, because I need to get started on some Christmas sewing!!!

By the way I love this Wildwood fabric! I never used to like making a project all out of one fabric line, but I am making exceptions here and there.

a new camera case

Since my poor camera broke and I had to get a replacement, that meant I needed a new case. I didn't want to buy one - both because they're expensive and because they're kind of ugly. That meant I had to make one myself. I looked all over for a digital SLR case tutorial but couldn't find any, so I improvised. I really just wanted something that I could put in my purse and ultimately bring to San Fran. I looked at a few point and shoot case tutorials to get some ideas, then made up a pattern.

 

It's really simple, with just 3 pieces. The red is a home dec weight and the lining is a cotton linen blend. There are 2 layers of batting in between and everything's all quilted together. It's rather lightweight but durable. Keep in mind I'm not throwing the camera around in this thing; it's just to get it from point a to point b. I then cut some bias tape out of a great Japanese print and it was done. Oh, the closure is just a bit of tan velcro sewed on VERY securely.

 

(Please keep i mind I took these photos with the new camera when I didn't know a thing about it...so the colors are a little wonky!)

I also had to worry about a lens too, so I basically just made a little cosy to keep it from clinking against the camera. The plaid there is what I lined the bag with. It all worked perfectly on the trip!

Oh - the best part? When I'm not using it as a case it's a perfect little clutch! :)

Knitting demon

I've been keeping myself busy with knitting. I like being able to bring something with me and working on it when I get a free minute. Can't really do that with sewing, so it's been knitting instead. The scarf/shawl above is the Meandering Vines pattern (found on Ravelry). This isn't the best photo, but the scarf is lovely. This was my first significant lace project and it went pretty well. My goal was to finish it before San Fran and I did it! Even got to wear it on the flight out.

 

And this is what I finished on that flight! This is the April Showers scarf (can be found on Ravelry or the Purlbee blog). This has been a WIP since last August! Yikes. It was a great pattern, but I could never really get into it. Maybe it was the yarn, but I do love the color. Can't really beat hot pink!

I'm working on a few things now too...some are Christmas presents and some will be for me. I'm deerlyneeded on Ravelry if you care to find out any more details on the projects!

I love surprises

Isn't it nice when you get a surprise? Derek surprises me a lot - fun little gifts and things. So does mom! (Don't forget to check out her blog!) 

 

Look at the great Barbara Walker book she found me! How cute. There are some fantastic men's sweaters in there...I don't think I'll be making those anytime soon! The book itself wasn't the only surprise though - 

 

It's signed! Mom didn't even know! Pretty cool if I do say so myself. I'm outgrowing this apartment with all the fun things I seem to bring home!

The other things aren't really surprises, but still super nice. Today I asked if she wouldn't mind swinging by Marshalls. If you read blogs, you probably know the reason - to see if they had any Munki Munki pjs to cut up. Guess what she found?

 

Yay! I know own the great alien print. I think this would be really cute in a quilt, either for a boy or a girl. Such a cute print and color. She also found some adorable flannel polar bear pjs. I'm thinking those would be great for something Christmas-y - maybe even a quilt backing.

I'm still trying to get unpacked and sorted from my vacation. The only thing about being super busy when I get home is that I never unpack! At least I'm almost done now. I even finally got to go through all of my fun Japantown goodies. I could live in Japantown and be happy not ever leaving...

back!

I'm back from a great trip to CA. I got to visit Derek thanks to his parents. We flew down and back together, and got to spend lots of time with Derek. This was a trip to San Fran so it was gorgeous. We did get rained on for a day, but it's just like rain here so we survived!

I haven't flown in awhile so it was really nice to be on a plane again (even with all of the germs!). Everything went smoothly both down and back, so we were lucky. The hotel was great, food was great, sites were great. I've got lots of pictures loaded on Flickr, with more to come. I got to use my new camera which was lots of fun too!

The week went by too quickly though, and now I'm back at work! The good thing about coming home was getting to see Cosmo again though - yay! Plus at work I'm starting a new training class and that's always fun. Much better to keep busy, especially all by my lonesome!

(FYI lots of craftiness going on...but no pictures just yet)