A Bluestocking Knits

Crochet, Knitting for the Home

Mother Knows the Best Crocheted Potholders

Published by

Bluestocking

on

18th March 2018

Since I have a cone of eternity of that Lily Sugar 'n Cream in "Autumn Leaves", I made some more potholders for my mother-in-law, also hoping to get my crocheting smooth enough to eventually scale down to dollhouse size. I discovered this crochet stitch recently and was intrigued by the fact that it is extra-thick — hence the name thermal stitch. You basically grab not only the usual bit of chain but part of the chain from a preceding row at the same time, which compresses the rows together, making the finished fabric thicker than it would ordinarily be.

On the left in the top photo, is the Best Crocheted Potholder from Mama's Stitchery Projects, and on the right is the Favorite Crocheted Hot Pad (aka "Grandma Leona's Hotpad") from Kathleen at Miss Abigail's Hope Chest. Clearly, they are fraternal twins, even to the same number of chain stitches cast on — the difference lies in the very beginning, where the Best has the hanging loop worked as part of the initial chain, and in the very end, where the (twice-worked) hanging loop of the Favorite is worked, and the fact that the Favorite has a finishing row where the Best does not.

I'm sure it isn't a coincidence that both of these potholder patterns are from mothers, either! Both of the patterns have very clear photos of how to work the thermal stitch, so I can recommend either as your fancy takes you.

My potholders used 36g and 37g of the cotton respectively, but I used a size F hook because that is in fact the only middling size I have. The fabric is a bit stiff as a result, I'm sure, but that's not so bad when it will be used just as often as a trivet!

And yes, anyone searching this blog through the categories will come across crocheted potholders in the "Knitting for the Home" category….
“ABChallenge”, Photography, Sewing

“Make Nine,” and J-N

Published by

Bluestocking

on

12th March 2018

I'm kind of torn about internet challenges, which for me are a lot like New Year's resolutions — wonderful and admirable in theory, but often simply just more than one can manage in the allotted time. Possibly I am either too ambitious, or too easily distracted (ooh, a new "44 Scotland Street" novel …), and frankly, I suspect the latter. Be that as it may, I do have a list of things I want to sew this year, and when I came across the 2018 Make Nine project the other day — I shan't call it a challenge, then — I thought, "well, I like the 'gentle' part!" and so I hope that seeing my to-do list in this rather fetching nine-patch will keep me focused.

At the top, from left, is Purl Soho's Quilted Vest, because I'm finding those really comfortable in our not-quite-winter, since they are warm but not a coat, and this particular one because I love that collar!; the Circle Tech Pouch, a free pattern from Coats, which will be stocking-stuffers come Christmas; and the Hawthorn dress from Colette, because I've been wanting a really good shirt-dress pattern and hope this is it!

In the middle, Very Shannon's Reversible Sock Knitting Bag, because we all need a pretty bag to carry our current sock knitting in, right?!; and Simplicity 8050, a retro reprint from a year or so ago, because the 1940s patterns seem to suit my figure pretty well (I can't decide which I like better, though, Miss Bias Tape, though probably in a less air-raid-siren color than that, or Miss Many Buttons); and a jewel-box quilt in 1:12 scale. This particular one is from someone on the Petitpointers list, whose pictures are also on Flickr — I really like the jewel tones against the white — though I might practice on something a little simpler.

And at bottom, the Ladies' Edwardian Apron from Sense & Sensibility, because I've had a hankering for this pattern for quite a long time, and other things keep jumping the queue; a new pair of Walking Shorts from So Sew Easy, because my favorite pair has now been mended with a darned hole where I must have splashed some bleach on it at some point in the distant past, and narrow bias tape around the fraying hems, and my other pair, despite being marked as my size is at least four inches too big around the waist, which impresses people who notice it into thinking that I've lost a lot of weight, but really is only annoying because I keep having to hike them up, and the pockets are far too small. Now that I walk pretty much every weekday, having more than one pair of shorts is pretty important. I found this free pattern online, and think it will suit my needs — i.e., comfort and pockets. And lastly, another Very Shannon freebie, the Reversible Box Tote — because we all need more project bags, right?!

I think it goes without saying that there will be knitting chez Bluestocking this year — I just don't have any firm plans yet!

I've had a number of ideas for the ABChallenge, and even some photos, but (ironically) was stuck on J. Then we went to some friends' house for a "soup exchange" and game night, which was a lot of fun. We brought Bowl of the Wife of Kit Carson for the soup, and for the game a 1970s-era Mille Bornes. Both are excellent in their respective ways, and it was a cold, rather damp evening, also eminently suitable for both soup and board games, as well as good company. I had never heard of this game until we played it one night at David's parents' house some years ago, and found that not only is it an amusing family game but it has these wonderful 1950s graphics, very chic, so we have glommed on to the game and played it a number of times since, and David chose it to take with us this time. When I remembered that the French for "board game" is jeu de société, the evening was complete!

An alligator lizard, very common here in Southern California. This one was hiding near the garden hose, so I couldn't quite include its tail, which was easily twice again the length of its body!

An old and I'm afraid rather dusty brass engine of my dad's, the 0-4-0 "Mudhen" in HO scale from Ken Kidder. These particular model engines are not very popular with train enthusiasts as they are rather plain and slow, but I have a great affection for this little Mudhen as when I inherited my dad's collection this was the only one of his dozen or so treasured brass engines that started right up — after some thirty years! — and chugged off down the track, merrily as could be asked for.

And a sunrise the other morning —
Letter-writing

See You Later, Month of Letters!

Published by

Bluestocking

on

3rd March 2018

Gosh, this has been fun! The Month of Letters goal of writing a letter or postcard every day in February, and responding by mail to anyone who writes to you, requires a bit more concentrated effort, of course, than simply establishing or keeping up a correspondence, but it has been not only worth it but as I say, lots of fun. Of course it feels a little "old-fashioned," writing by hand in this day and age — I couldn't even find my fountain pen for a few days, and the Post Office was dismayingly short on stamps to hand — but I think this is "old-fashioned" in a good way. I really enjoyed choosing cards or paper to suit the recipient, and the head/hands connection of writing by hand, not to mention simply the more leisurely aspect of paper mail.

I sent bags of letters — though maybe it only seemed like it in comparison with my current output, which is pretty much just cards at Christmas and a weekly Postcrossing card — I almost managed to write a letter every day of the month, and though sometimes Sundays got skimped, I made sure to compensate by sending more than one a number of the other days, so certainly came out ahead.

I did send out many more than I received, but that is to be expected, as I don't have a particularly large circle of folks who already write, but my thanks again certainly go to those who did. It has been a real delight, too, to find something in my own mailbox as well — six letters already! — and what a pleasing assortment of stamps —
“ABChallenge”, Photography

I

Published by

Bluestocking

on

2nd March 2018

This was edited by playing around with the Creative Filters on my Rebel T5. On our old PowerShots, you get these effects by setting the camera to the effect you want and taking the photo, but with the T5, you take the picture first, then edit it in the camera. A little confusing, but the plus side is that you can not only try out the different filters — grainy black-and-white, soft focus, fish-eye, toy camera, and miniature-effect — but also some different degrees or contrasts of the effect you choose. The highest degree of fish-eye was also pretty close to the sensation I was trying to convey, but I liked the miniature-effect best, of not so much disorientation (my head is surprisingly clear at two o'clock in the morning) but just that hyper-awareness of the hour.
“ABChallenge”, Food and Drink, Photography

H

Published by

Bluestocking

on

20th February 2018

"Hobbity". And of course, "hobbit tea" (see what I did there?!), though for a hobbit this is probably the bare minimum for elevenses. Still — it is comfortable and appealing, being indoors and eating a warm scone with a cup of tea on a cold, bright winter afternoon, and what could be more hobbity than that?

Here is the recipe for the pumpkin scones, translated into American for us benighted non-metric folks, and adapted only a bit to my own preferences from Lady Florence Bjelke-Petersen's famous one —

1 tablespoon unsalted butter, softened
1/2 cup brown sugar (you can certainly use white, as in the original)
1 egg
1 cup mashed pumpkin
2 cups all-purpose flour + 1 tablespoon baking powder + 1/2 to 1 teaspoon salt OR 2 cups self-rising flour

Preheat oven to 425° F.

Cream the butter and sugar. Add the egg, then the pumpkin, mixing well, then stir in the flour, baking powder, and salt. Mix until just combined.

Turn out onto a floured board and cut as you like.

Bake for 15-20 minutes, or until done. (I usually use a stoneware tray, which takes a little longer.)

All of the versions of FBP's recipe say "cold pumpkin" but I'm pretty sure this is because the recipe is from the days when a housewife grew her own pumpkins and made the mash, and you would want to have the mash well-cooled so that it didn't start cooking the egg just from its radiant heat. And there are never any spices in the recipe, but you could certainly add nutmeg, cinnamon, etc. to good effect.
“ABChallenge”, Miniatures, Photography

G

Published by

Bluestocking

on

13th February 2018
Uncategorized

(Little) Postcards

Published by

Bluestocking

on

12th February 2018

I am a bit ahead on the Month-of-Letters-writing, if you go by numbers instead of days (wh. you shouldn't, of course, the point is to mail something every day!) — wrote two Postcrossing cards this morning and a thank-you note, sent a birthday card to my mom on Saturday, and a proper letter the day before that. Above are last Thursday's effort, a letter and some 1:12-scale postcards to a fellow Postcrosser I've been exchanging e-mails with, post-postcard, because she likes miniatures and genealogy.

There are some printables around the internet for postcards, but most of them are one-side-only (presumably you arrange them in your particular setting and leave them there, or even glue them down, and the unprinted side never shows), or you print the two sides with an edge butting up against the other, then fold and glue them together. I was fairly pleased with my two-sided sheet-music experiments and wanted to see if the method would work for postcards, so gathered an assortment of actual Postcrossing cards — because some dedicated Postcrossers have put their collections online, with the message and the stamp and the postmark, and in some cases even the full address, and of course because I'd decided to send the better results to C. — and images of actual postage stamps from various countries around the world honoring Postcrossing. (Ireland has one, also Austria, Slovenia, the Channel Islands, Finland, the Netherlands, etc.) I used the postage-stamp images as the front of the postcard because I suspected that most postcard images are too detailed to scale down that small, and that an already-small postage-stamp image would "read" better as well as reduce more clearly.

My experiment I think was a qualified success — in theory it should have worked well, as I arranged each image, scaled down to 1:12, with the fronts of the cards evenly spaced with their left edges down the left margin, and the backs with their right edges down the right margin, then printed onto plain cardstock two copies of the page, printed front-and-back. Some of them worked just about perfectly, lining up very well, but some were off by just enough that they are clearly wonky — and at this scale, even a millimeter is apparent! This might have been due to the printer feeding the cardstock with slight hesitations now and then — I can hear it do that as the cardstock feeds through, but of course that's unavoidable — or it might have been a miscalculation on my part, I don't know.

It probably would have been better to choose images for the picture-side that have a good portion of white space around the edges, because that way a slight misalignment isn't nearly as obvious — the Irish one in the middle of the right margin in the photo, for one, and the "World Post Day" one at upper left. But — on the whole, I'm pleased, and although I sent the better set to C., I still now have a stack of postcards for a future desk setting!
Knitting, Sewing

Sewing for Knitting

Published by

Bluestocking

on

11th February 2018

After yet another quarter-hour or so taken up with searching through my bin of knitting needles looking for a pair of US6s, I thought "Right — needle rolls." I have a little Martha Washington cabinet of my grandmother's, the kind with three drawers in the middle and two half-round bins at either side — some years ago I went through all of the loose knitting needles and made cards for the loose ones, with holes and stepped folds and all, but while this was a step in the right direction, it was still a chore to have to pull out a pair grab-bag-like until I found the size I needed. And so in a burst of organizing energy not coincidentally around New Year's, I sewed up a pair of large needle rolls, all out of fabric left over from other projects.

A needle roll isn't a terribly complicated thing, but neither did I feel inclined to reinvent the wheel, as the saying goes, so I spent some time poking around the internet, and then more time narrowing down the myriad of choices …

The first roll is from a tutorial at Guthrie & Ghani, which with some fiddling makes slots with more depth than just laying two pieces of fabric atop each other and stitching a bunch of lines. This is certainly a handy idea if you have a number of really large needles, but my stitching leaves a bit to be desired, as the slots are clearly of almost-random sizes and depths, and it is more difficult to ensure that the slots are the same depth at top and bottom as well.

I wasn't sure I really needed two pockets, but unlike the lovely needle rolls one sees on Flickr and Pinterest, I don't have a uniform set of needles but a hodgepodge acquired over many years, of surprisingly variable lengths and knob sizes, so as it turned out, two pockets are handy for the shorter pairs.

The second roll is therefore just the two pocket assemblies laid atop each other and stitched down. Since it was clear, once I had laid out all of my needles in a row, that not only do I have a lot, but that I have a penchant for smaller needles (five pairs of nearly-identical 3.25mm!), I realized that having shaped slots in a roll for the finer end of the range would actually be a drawback, since snugger ones would be more secure. QED!

(I vaguely remember that I used a tutorial for the dimensions of the second roll, but have no idea now which one …)

I had to piece some of the pockets, but all of these seams were easily hidden. I was delighted to be able to accommodate the lining fabric's decorative edge, too —

I still, I confess, need another roll for my dpns, and probably another for crochet hooks — I have only about four of those, but it wouldn't hurt to have them all in one place, would it! I am getting close to the end of the birds-and-flowers fabric, so we'll see.

The archivist in me was unable to throw away all of the original packaging, so I admit that I have kept some, partly for sentiment — I'm sure I inherited that set of aluminum Boyes on the left, ca.1970s if not earlier, and the Peace pair (presumably in a project somewhere …) were bought in Hong Kong — partly because, well, librarian. The Takumis don't come in that nearly-indestructible green sleeve anymore.

In my wanderings around the internet, I found quite a lot of other interesting projects, as one does, and so yesterday I made a pair of these, the "Brigitte Needles & Notions Zippered Pouch" from a tutorial at VeryShannon. Although I did have some hiccups in the process, I nevertheless managed to make two of these in one day, which is certainly a compliment to the tutorial!

These are fraternal twins, as it were, made from three coordinating fat quarters (anonymous, alas) — I would certainly have been able to make at least one more pouch, probably two, but I had only two zippers.

I had a bit of trouble with the zipper installation here, which has you stitch around the lining and then around the outer pouch, in two steps — I couldn't get things to either meet in the middle or line up neatly — and so ended up going back to the one I used last summer, which has you stitch the two sides in one go, as well as a slightly simpler method of attaching the zipper to the lining.

The next time I make some of these, I would also make the outer-pocket flap a bit longer, maybe just a scant quarter-inch, and also stitch the lining a bit short, as it tends to wrinkle a little inside (because both the outer and the inner are pretty much exactly the same size, and therefore one doesn't fit inside the other quite neatly). These, however, are minor issues, and I'm pleased with the finished pouches!
“ABChallenge”, Crochet, Photography

D, E, F

Published by

Bluestocking

on

8th February 2018

"Orbital" in pink, and "Double Bump" on the needles. I am still a rank amateur at crochet, and find it difficult to know what it is I'm looking at, so this took three or four tries before I got into the rhythm of it! Still not pleased with the jog, but there it is.

We've been having a bit of summer in February lately, with temperatures in the 80s (pushing the 30s C), but yesterday morning it was suddenly foggy and cold — by the time I went out for my daily walk, it was beginning to clear but still clinging to the valleys and dips in the landscape. Unfortunately, it had all burned off by about 9:30 …
“ABChallenge”, Family, Letter-writing, Photography

Postcards, Roses, ABCs

Published by

Bluestocking

on

7th February 2018

Today is the 7th, and my tally is at six for the "Month of Letters" challenge, so I am pretty much caught up after the late start. Yesterday I sent a Postcrossing postcard, a long-delayed Christmas thank-you, and a postcard to a young family friend who baked a cake for our get-together Sunday afternoon. (I of course stitched willfully ignorant through the ostensible reason for the gathering ….)

And this afternoon I sent Julia's photo in her Rose Parade band uniform to the grandparents and honorary auntie —

I started to read Nancy Enge's blog a few months ago because of her miniatures, but a recent post struck a chord, albeit one in a minor key, talking about being in a bit of a funk — I recognize that feeling of vague disappointment in everything one does, the paradoxical combination of restlessness and general fatigue, even the buttery-fingers part. I had a very stressful Christmas, and have already suspected that my starting a dozen or so new books and projects in the weeks since is both a symptom and a sort of self-cure. It's just that the restlessness tends to be a bit frustrating, too, when what you need is to relax, to re-focus. I have been tempted now and then to start up something along the lines of Blackbird's "Show and Tell Friday" — but more immediately, Nancy wonders if an "arbitrary and not-too-difficult challenge practice might help" to jump-start the creative energy — thus the ABChallenge, to take a photo of something representing each letter of the alphabet in order, something simple and really not demanding at all, just to blow those cobwebs away, as it were. I took these photos the other day — yes, the same day I decided to do the Month of Letters, that's what I mean! — and I have to say right up front that I like Nancy's watermark/caption so much that I have promptly lifted the idea for myself! Here is A, B, and C —