Archive for August, 2007
Yesterday was all sewing - all day!
Sunday, August 26th, 2007
I’ve been sort of lurking on several of the cloth diapering sites you guys have suggested. My favorite so far is Diaper Sewing Divas.
Yesterday, after reading all the info on all of the patterns, ordering supplies, and getting up the steam…I did a little sewing:
That’s 6 newborn diaper covers and 6 size small diaper covers. The bright colored fabric is a laminated polyester, and the other layer is a cotton chambray. These are from the Very Baby pattern.
I also made 16 (!!) size small (Very Baby all in one pattern) fitted diapers. The yellow ones are the first batch, then the flowered ones, then the beige ones were the last ones of the day.
The yellow are made of two layers of birdseye cotton for the inner, a cotton stretch knit for the outer, and 8 layers of birdseye for the pad inside. The flowered ones are a 100% cotton flannel ($1/yard!!), using the flannel for both inner and outer and with 6-8 layers of the same flannel for the inner pad. The beige ones are birdseye for inner and outer, and 6- layers of the same birdseye for the pad.
I’m not sure why it took me so long to get to doing this…probably the overlap of my two jobs (started the new one with 2 weeks left of the first one) and just not being very confident in my sewing skills. I wasn’t sure if I’d be able to follow the pattern correctly, and there are so many different kinds of fabrics and snaps and elastics. I think I was overwhelmed by all of the information.
Even now, I have no baby to test these on, so I won’t know if they even WORK for a few months yet.
I did learn a lot about the process, and even modified the pattern to my own needs. I omitted the waterproof layer from the dipes, so they’re “fitteds,” but not “all in one.”
After all that sewing, I was really stiff today! I guess I pretty much sat at the machine from 8:30 am to about 10 pm.
To move around some, Nate and I walked over to the coffee shop for breakfast, and afterward stopped by the fabric store and picked out some cuter fabrics for the next batch.
Yesterday while I was working on these, he kept telling me how professional they looked, and how much he appreciated me sewing them…it was so heartwarming! I love it that he’s into the idea of cloth diapering, and that he really understands the time and love that goes into it!
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OOH! And this yarn from Zenstring just came! It’s bluefaced leichester…for diaper covers.
(don’t worry, Medea likes being used as a prop!) 
Posted in just chit chat, baby | 14 Comments »
Good Baby News!
Friday, August 24th, 2007
You know how I took that Maternal Serum Screening test (Otherwise known as the TripleScreen) 3 weeks ago? It checks the baby’s hormone levels in my blood for signs of Down Syndrome and neural tube defects. I got a call yesterday and it came back NORMAL.
So that’s great.
Yesterday we also met with Nate’s HR person about transferring health insurance, so that’s DONE. We’re now officially ALL SET at least as far as the financial stuff goes.
I went to Unravel yesterday to talk about the fall class schedule, and I’ll be teaching beginning knitting and a lace scarf class.
Beginning Knitting:
October 20, Nov 3, Nov 17. This class is taught as a series, and you have to sign up for all three.
(10 am - 12 noon.)
Lace Scarf:
October 27 (1 pm - 4 pm.)
For the Lace Scarf class, I’m going to design the pattern myself, so everyone who signs up will get a copy of the pattern, too.
I guess that’s all the big news…class is going great (I’m teaching a college class this semester.)
Posted in events, baby | 4 Comments »
First day of school!
Wednesday, August 22nd, 2007
(wish me luck, I’m teaching today!)
Posted in Uncategorized | 8 Comments »
Photo Sunday (Petal)
Sunday, August 19th, 2007
I finally got the buttons sewn on the Petal sweater, so we were able to take the final photos. I decided to use smaller buttons than I originally planned because the bigger ones just didn’t sit well right at the top of the neckline. These are still vintage Bakelite buttons…just smaller. A few years ago I managed to amass quite the Bakelite button collection through some serious and dedicated eBaying. Lucky for me NOW, because I’ve become incredibly lazy.
I realized something today that I’m totally going to pass off as a “design feature” of this sweater. Having the two buttons and the two buttonholes makes is possible to vary the ease in the front of the sweater. And, luckily, it looks equally fine with one button closed as it does all buttoned up.
If you’re really careful while finishing, you can even wear it with the “lapels” turned out like a real little suit jacket.
I’m putting the finishing touches on version 1.0 of the pattern, which will go out to the TestLab this afternoon or tomorrow sometime.
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This has been just a great weekend. Yesterday we rearranged the furniture in the living room. We brought the futon out of the baby’s room and put the rocker IN the baby’s room. (Friends have decided to build us a crib, so we needed to make room for that.)
I also set up a new bookcase in the LR and put all my cloth diaper sewing material in pretty baskets so I can have it out (but not OUT) all the time. We did a major floor-cleaning and furniture-and-curtain vacuuming. Nate took a bunch of Rubbermaid containers of my too-small clothes out to the garage and got that all organized.
I’m not exactly sure why this brings me so much joy, but it DOES! I’m in this total cleaning-binge-mode right now…lately (and this is new) clutter bugs the HELL out of me, and I literally lie in bed at night obsessing about what needs to be organized next. Somehow, though, dusting hasn’t yet become a priority. 
Today we went out to take Petal Pictures. I haven’t really been happy with a photoshoot since Germany, so that was nice.
Then we went out to lunch to my favorite big-salad bar-having place. After that, we stopped by work to pack up and move out all my extraneous books and papers. It feels so good to be moving on to the next phase of our lives. I really don’t think I’ve been this happy in years.
In fact, this just might be the happiest I’ve EVER been in my LIFE.
Posted in just chit chat, Patterns | 27 Comments »
It’s almost Frrrriday!
Friday, August 17th, 2007
I’m swatching for another maternity sweater. This time, I’m using this gorgeous Merino from Neighborhood Fiber Co. It’s hand dyed by Ms. Karida in what she calls a “semisolid” colorway. There is a very subtle verigation that really catches the light.
I’m trying out reversible cables on this one. (Fabric that cables on both the RS and WS.) Thanks to a little help from my friends, I *think* I’ve got it!
SO…I can tell you one big thing that’s been going on behind the scenes that I’ve been unable to blog until now: I’m leaving my job at the end of the month. I’m teaching a class fall semester, then staying home for at least a year.
I’ve been rushing around trying to get everything finished up there before my last day, figuring out what to do with our health insurance, and getting all kinds of other stuff in place.
That’s where I’ve been lately, if you’ve been looking! And it’s why I’ve been stressed the past weeks. It may not seem like a big change, but WOW. Going from full-time scientist to stay-at-home mom…it’s a major life change.
And a BIG secret to have to keep!
Posted in yarn reviews, just chit chat, baby | 6 Comments »
More baby clothes
Wednesday, August 15th, 2007
So, Ok…I’m totally addicted to my baby. I know that sounds rediculous, and it probably is. But I can think of nothing else.
To help assuage this feeling of urgency in regard to “getting ready” I keep something baby on the needles at all times.
Here’s the most recent Baby Thing:
It’s a pair of “Picky Pants.” (Another soaker.) For this one, I used Theresa’s pattern and followed it to the T. The pattern is like a choose your own adventure novel, in that it’s 18 pages long…and after completing one step you decide whether to add some feature (short rows in the seat) or another (long or short legs, different hem treatments.) I’ll definitely make these again! (Yarn is Cascade 220 tweed.)
And here’s the most recent Baby Thing from Mom:
It’s a sweater from Jill Eaton’s “Minnies” baby book, with another set of handmade buttons. CUTE. This one is Malabrigo worsted!!
(photos taken at night, again!)
Posted in just chit chat, Patterns, baby | 11 Comments »
Look at what Shannon did!!
Wednesday, August 15th, 2007
I LOVE that I’ve inspired this colorway! (It’s an 8-oz hank of Merino fingering!!)
Stitch Cleveland, Shannon’s new shop, is open on Etsy. Verrrry nice!
Posted in yarn reviews, just chit chat | 2 Comments »
Santa Fe!
Monday, August 13th, 2007
We’re just back from a little getaway to Santa Fe and Taos.
Since I teach on M, W, F…there will be no long weekends until December. SO…we decided to run off for a few days now while we still can.
It was a great time. Santa Fe is so cool. We loved the architecture and went to several museums and art galleries. We stayed in a nice hotel (I bid on the room on Priceline! It works really well for last minute reservations!) and just really relaxed. Believe me, it was hard to get up with the alarm today!
I didn’t even take my computer…this weekend was about US and just de-stressing. I just don’t usually take the time to do that.
Posted in just chit chat | 3 Comments »
TAGGED!!
Tuesday, August 7th, 2007
Amy and Shannon have tagged me as a Rockin’ Grrl Blogger.
Is it fair to re-tag people who tag you? If so, I’d re-tag both Shannon and Amy…but if NOT, here 5 blogs that I love to read:
1: Karida
2: Robyn
3: Yahaira
4: Leah
5: Cathi
…hm… not very many of my five are updating lately, but believe me, they all really are rockin’.
Because of the lack of updates above, I’m giving you a few more:
6: Amber
7: Veronik
8: Kristin
Is everyone on vacation or what!?
I have more…and I’ll tag you if you don’t get off vacation and post!
Posted in just chit chat | No Comments »
My first…soaker.
Tuesday, August 7th, 2007
To those of us who are new to the whole cloth-diapering world, the word “soaker” being used to describe a diaper cover is just gross.
But that that’s what it’s called.
And there are a million and a half free soaker patterns on the internet.
So (and they tell me this is true) apparently, you can put a cloth diaper on a baby, then put a pair of wool undies on top of that…and it won’t leak. You have to wash the wool undies in a lanolin mixture first, but isn’t that interesting? That wool is as waterproof as some other manmade stuff? I love wool.
I used the cast on number from this pattern and then “winged it.”
MODS:
Instead of doing the k1 p1 stitch pattern, I worked mine all in stockinette. I also did a more decorative decrease method at the edges (slip the first stitch, k1, skp, k to last 4 sts, k2tog, k2) on every RS row.I picked up a multiple of 4 sts for the waistband and worked that in k2p2 ribbing, making eyelets for the draw cord in every P rib, about 1 inch up. Also picked up for ribbing at legholes.
Main part is regular worsted yarn (maybe Brown Sheep naturespun?) that I dyed with KoolAid, and the ribbing is all Malabrigo merino worsted. The photos are kind of technicolor again…because when I get home from work I go to SLEEP. Then I can get up for a couple hours and do some stuff, like take photos…in the dark.