De-stashing, Creating and Packing

In my on-going attempt to de-stash supplies from my craft studio I made a couple of drawstring bags.

I used an old shirt for the top one.  I loved the colors of it so much that I couldn't let the fabric go to waste.  I used ribbon in my trim stash for the drawstring.  The other bag is made from a fabric scrap. 

I made a crochet chain with some brown cotton yarn for the drawstring on that one.  

I think they could be useful for lots of things.  However, I'll soon be using them as shoe bags in my suitcase for a three week road trip I'm going on with my daughter.  They'll work great to keep pairs together, keep the shoes clean, and keep surrounding clothes clean as well.  I have some fabric bags I've saved from sheet sets I've bought too (the sheets often come in bags made from the same fabric and have a drawstring at the top).  All together, I think I have enough for all the shoes I plan to take.

I've been thinking a lot about the supplies I have, ideas of how to use them, and things we could use for our trip.  One night, it hit me.....I'd knitted a market bag years ago that would work great to hold dirty laundry in my suitcase to keep it separate from the clean clothes and help my suitcase stay organized.  I happened to have another large skein of Handicrafter Cotton yarn that would work perfect for another bag.  That way, my daughter would have one too.  I mentioned the idea to her and she loved it.  That's all I needed to get started.  One week later and here it is...

I knitted it with a circular, size nine needle.  I added a few extra rows of knitting below and above the section with holes and at the top, above the handles.  It's nice and stretchy and should work out great.

And, best of all, my daughter loves it!  :-)  Oh, yeah...and I have a little less yarn in my stash.

Although, it didn't use the whole skein.  So, I still have enough left for something else.

My daughter finished up her Spring semester and is now home for the summer.  She's been busy sewing like crazy!  She loves to sew!  And, she's excited to make things to wear on the trip and over the summer.  In less than a week, she's already made two skirts and has a dress almost complete!

I'm planning to do a little sewing too.  I hope to have some stuff to post soon.

We usually camp in our RV when we travel.  However, we'll be taking the car on this trip and staying in hotels.  We don't like to drive for lots and lots of hours at a time.  So, on the way to our main destination and back, we've broken up the trip with lots of stops in fun places and to spend time with family in a couple different places.  We'll be traveling through nine states!  I'm excited and a little nervous at the same time.  I'm hoping it'll be awesome and that we'll make lots of great memories!

Knit, Knit, Knit, Frog, Knit, Crochet, Knit, De-Stash, Knit, Finish, Repeat!

Before I left on vacation I spent a lot of time looking at my stash and pattern possibilities on Ravelry. I'm still on a mission to de-stash and that's just what I'm doing. I've been starting and finishing projects, finishing up loose ends on others, frogging a few, and still starting new ones. I've been inspired and excited about knitting again (even a little crochet) and I think I've got my knitting mojo again...maybe it's the sheep shoes!

The first thing I did on my trip was to finish my Sangria Shawl. I don't have any new pictures of it yet but you can click on the name and see it's beginnings. I love this shawl! The colors, textures, and overall effect of the yarn is delicious!

The next thing I did on my trip was to start a simple scarf. I found the pattern on Ravelry...it's called "Scrunchable Scarf". The stitch pattern is done in threes plus one stitch on each side. I used some Bernat Denim Style yarn in blue. I tried it with a few needle sizes, decided on 10 1/2's and quickly got started. The only thing was...it was making a ridge down one side and a dip down the other...hmmmm? I frogged it and started again, adding another set of three, thinking it would add a ridge down the other side and make it symetrical. It didn't work! Hmmmm? Oh well...I knitted it anyway and it turned out nice. I finished it shortly after we got home from our trip. It's super soft and "scrunchable"...just like the pattern name says...


Another project I started on our vacation was this...some stripey socks with Knitcol yarn I had bought last year. I finished the first sock last weekend but had so much yarn left over in that ball (it'll take two balls of yarn) that it bugged me enough to frog the sock back to the leg and add more to the length of that, in hopes that I'll use up more or most of the yarn...keeping my fingers crossed that I have enough now to reach the end of the toe (I really need to learn the toe up method!)...


I had taken some left over Sugar n Cream yarn to make a little project bag but didn't get to it until I got home. I ended up crocheting it. It's loosely inspired by the "Work Your Way Up String Bag" pattern (also found on Ravelry) but I did it in the round so I would only have the bottom to sew up...


I added lining...


And, an I-cord drawstring...


I still need to get some thread to match the "Cupcake" color of the yarn so I can sew the lining to it. Otherwise, it's done!

I also finished up a lot of loose ends after I got home by tucking the ends into several projects that I had previously finished but neglected to do that final task to truly finish them. That felt good!

I worked on my "Flower Basket Shawl" this weekend. However, since this project has done little more than frustrate me, I'm planning to frog it completely and use the yarn for something more enjoyable.

I'm also about to cast on my first tank top! After months of having trouble deciding on projects and lacking my usual knitting enthusiasm, it's extra nice to have that excitement back again! I just hope I don't burn myself out! lol

Well, I'm off for a day at the beach...fresh, cool air, beautiful scenery, and...of course...knitting!!! :-D

Missing Mojo

I feel like I've lost my knitting mojo...temporarily, I hope. I've tried to find it this past week by casting on a sweater (several times), only to end up cancelling that project due to knitter errors and lack of enthusiasm over the pattern. I've had trouble focusing on my lace projects. So, it's best to leave those until my brain can focus enough that those projects don't get frogged back to the stash bin. And, I've had trouble getting excited over any specific patterns to really get started on anything new. So, in an attempt to get creativity and excitement back into my fiber lovin' world, I decided to make a quick, little project bag. Frustrated with the pattern and the fiddly way it said to knit it, I put down the knitting needles, picked up a crochet hook and winged it. Here's the result...


It's made with Sugar N Cream cotton yarn from my stash and left over fabric from a quilt I made for my daughter. I love making stuff with what I have. It feels great and lessens the stash. The crochet bottom is sturdy enough to keep the bag standing and not flopping over. I like that. And, the light color fabric makes it easy to see what's inside. The drawstring is a simple knitted I-cord. Quick. Cute. Fun. A successful project! I think I might be feeling a little mojo. I'm feeling some inspiration and I've even found a pattern and stash yarn to excite me. Time to cast on and see if I've truly got my mojo back.