Lo and behold...

I was actually able to figure out the yarn substitution for my previous post "Talia Vest." For those of you who are interested, here you go...

Blue Sky Alpacas 100% Cotton Knitting Yarn in color 633 Pickle

Silken Scabbard

Here's my version of Stitch Diva's Silken Scabbard design. It came out great, however, I decided that I didn't need to do the tubular bind off---WRONG! A regular bind off just doesn't work here. It doesn't stretch enough because this is a very fitted sweater. As a result, I need to rip out the bottom and re-do the bind off. I have been procrastinating this one for quite a while. For some strange reason, finishing the bind off and weaving in the ends makes it almost impossible for me to pick up the project again. This is true even if the end result is not wearable. Why is that? Do you have that problem too? Maybe posting it will give me the nudge that I need to actually fix the problem.
By the way, the really cool thing about this pattern (and the reason that I decided to knit it) is that the shaping is done with the cables. When the pattern needs to decrease at the waist, it's the cable that decreases. Also, this is the first time that I have actually knit horseshoe cables.

Tête-à-Tête

Check out the project that I'm working on with my daughter, Taylor!

http://www.tete-a-tete-hats.blogspot.com

Taylor's Dresser

*Taylor's Dresser Drawer*

Taylor, my daughter who is just turning 15, has decided that she needs a more grown up space. The lavender and white bedroom just isn't cutting it anymore. Her new "thing" is Anthropologie, so she wants her room to be decorated in that style. If you don't know about Anthropologie, you HAVE to visit anthropologie.com. It's a fantastic store. I could (and sometimes do...shhhhh!) spend tons of time just wandering around in there. The only issue is that Anthro is pretty expensive. Ok, it's *really* expensive. My new quest is recreating Anthro on a reasonable budget. "Hello again, Mod Podge!"

I found this awesome retro scrapbook paper at Michael's and just knew that it would be great on her white Bombay Kids dresser. I think that it really transforms the style. My buddy and faux painting expert Laura gave me a bottle of magic stuff that antiques anything that it touches. You just wipe it on with an old t-shirt. I seriously have no idea what is in the bottle, but I love this stuff. I think that I may have permanent brain damage from the fumes, though.

After completing the dresser, I decided to look the paper designer (Anna Griffin) up on the internet. Voila! Matching fabric. This will make a fantastic duvet cover. I purchased enough for one side of the duvet and some pillows. Now I'm hunting for the perfect backing fabric.

I don't have any great photos of the entire dresser yet, but will post them when I do.

A Mouse in the House

*Mama Mouse*

Ok, not exactly in the house...A while ago, I was outside watering my geraniums when I heard a very strange squeaking sound. I poked around and found this adorable mama mouse tossing her babies out of a puddle of water. I called the kids and everyone watched as she took care of her teeny-tiny, naked babies.

Talia Vest

*Talia Vest*

Here's a vest that I finished some time ago, when I was pretty new to knitting. The Talia Vest is a free pattern on knitty.com by Sweaterbabe. I substituted the yarn, but for the life of me, I cannot remember the yarn's name or manufacturer. I do know that it's cotton, organic, and (of course) green. If I do figure out what it is, or somehow locate the ball band (yeah, right) I'll post it at a later time. :-)

The pattern can be found here:

http://www.knitty.com/ISSUEspring08/PATTtalia.html

*Talia Vest*

Dear Mod Podge, I love you!

*Map Shoes*

Ok...How could anyone not love Mod Podge? It's so fun to decoupage stuff, that I can't seem to stop. So far, I have covered a desk and a pair of shoes with vintage maps, a bedside table with vintage postcards, a dresser with vintage wallpaper, and two more pairs of shoes with vintage sheet music. Do you think that I might have too much free time on my hands?

*Songbird Shoes*

Finished Projects

*Botanica Medallion Cardi*

Today, I finally took the time to photograph a few of my finished knitting projects. I have a great Nikon digital camera, but I haven't figured out how to use the manual settings to get the effects that I want. I did my best, though! This one is from the cover of Vogue Knitting and it's called the Botanica Medallion Cardi. It was a very time-consuming project, but the end product is beautiful! The pattern was designed by Shiri Mor and it's a fabulous design. The center medallion is knit in a circle from the center out and then a strip is knit and attached (except for the armholes) around the edges of the medallion. I decided to substitute Tahki Stacy Charles Cotton Classic in color 3747 Dark Burgundy for the required yarn and I think it was a great choice.

Here's the original photo. I hope that it's ok for me to post it here!

Happy Valentine's Day!