No-Sew Necklace Display

I had been draping my necklaces over my earring stand (at right), but they were getting in the way. Inspired by something I saw on Pinterest, I made the necklace "rack" (at left) with an inexpensive poster frame, fabric, screw eyes and knuts.

Supplies:

• 1 poster frame (or other frame)
• Fabric large enough to cover frame (I used half a yard for a 12" x 18" frame)
• Appx. 30 3/4" screw eyes
• Appx. 30 8-32 finished hex nuts

Tools:

• Electric drill with 1/16" drill bit
• Hot glue gun and glue
• Iron and ironing board
• Ruler or yardstick
• Pencil
• Fabric scissors

1. Remove the plexiglass (or glass) and backing from the frame. Measure the length and height of the backing. 

2. On the back side of the backing, draw a straight, horizontal line all the way across. This line should be roughly three to four inches from the top edge. 

3. Measure and mark one-inch increments across the line. 

4. Drill a hole at each marking, skipping the first and last two marks.

5. On right-side (RS) of backing, screw the screw eyes into the holes. Secure them with a knut on the wrong-side (WS). Set aside. 

5.  Cut fabric so that it is two inches wider and two inches longer than the backing. 

6. On WS of fabric, make one inch folds along each edge and iron the creases. 

7. On RS of fabric, fold the top edge back so that the distance from the crease to the first fold is equal to the distance from the line you drew on the backing from the backing's top edge. Iron this new crease. Be careful that your fabric is oriented the same way as your backing. 

8.  On right side of fabric, measure and mark one-inch increments across the length of the newest crease. 

9. On right side of fabric, cut a small + at each mark along the crease, skipping the first and last two marks. You will be making two small cuts at each mark; one vertical and one horizontal. 

10.  Fit fabric over the backing, putting the screw eyes through the snips in the fabric. Smooth. 

11. Carefully glue the fabric in place with one line of glue above the screw eyes and another line below them. 

12. Flip the backing so the WS is facing you. Position the fabric so the 1" folded edges overlap the edges on the WS of the backing. Glue the fabric edges in place. 

13. Reassemble the frame.

Yarn, yarn and more yarn

Somehow, I've accumulated a stash.

Here it is, spread out across my bedroom floor. I'm not quite sure how it happened... Oh, who am I kidding, I know.

I usually only buy yarn with a specific project in mind, and I always get at least one skein more than what I need, with the intent to return whatever I don't use; but then I never actually make the return. So, there are 1.5 skeins left over from a scarf I made Ben for Christmas 2010, 1.5 skeins from each of the scarves I made for our mothers that same Christmas, a few skeins left over from various baby sweaters. Leftovers from Katell, the sweater that is in perpetual hibernation even though all that's left is weaving ends in.

My mother-in-law-to-be intended to pick up knitting, and bought a bunch of yarn. It languished in her closet untouched for a year or so, when, inspired by a Hoarders marathon, she cleaned out the closets and gave the yarn to me.

Sometimes, I shop for yarn for a specific project and get distracted by other pretty yarns, and I pick those bright shiny pretty yarns in addition to what I was looking for. Then I never seem to find quite the right project for them, or I find a great pattern but just don't have enough.

The stash has outgrown its current home in a banana leaf basket in my closet, but I'm not ready to part with anything. I've spent the afternoon updating my Ravelry stash, adding pictures, and now, finally, sorting yarn. Set aside the yarns I've mentally attached to projects, the yarns I intend to use to design something. Ultimately these will stay in the banana basket in the closet, and the rest will go somewhere else, more out of the way, to be revisited later. I'll go through again once I've completed some projects, and revisit the yarns I don't see myself using at this time. If I still don't love them, I'll start trading or donating. For now, at least, I feel more in control.

Sweeten

Finished: "Sweeten" by Kim Hargreaves, published in Rowan Babies.
For Ruby Salow, our newest cousin.

I was a bit concerned that the stripes in the  yarn would end up all wonky once I sewed the pieces together, but it worked out all right. The colors in this yarn stay keep in order (purple-geen-yellow-pink-white-white-pink-yellow-green-purple), so I made an effort to start each piece at the same place within the color sequence.

Invitations

Invitations, check. I designed these myself and had them printed on paper similar to watercolor paper. My future-mother-in-law, myself and two friends spent an afternoon painting the flowers with watercolors. 

Thanks for all your help!

Letting them dry on the table...

And the finished product! We left the response cards unpainted; we are encouraging our guests to color or pain them before returning them. While my fiancé and I were at work, my mom spent the morning getting them ready to mail. Thanks, Mom!

The Sweater From Hell, part The Final; Wedding Hair Accessories

As promised, the photos of the completed Sweater From Hell, aka Movie Theater Cardigan. My dog was confused, as he seems to think it's his and has taken to sleeping on it. 

I put together a few hair accessories with the goods I picked up yesterday. Usually, when I start a project I have a pretty clear idea of what I want it to look like. Not this time. 

I kept going until I ran out of ideas/got bored. I may try some other things out yet, but so far I like the pink ones best.

Inspiration

Pics of the revised sweater from hell will be coming soon. I tried to take some myself using a tripod and the timer setting on my camera; the pictures didn't turn out well. I'll ask Ben to take some when he gets home, and try to get them up later tonight. 

I was in need of a little inspiration, so I went to my neighborhood LYS, Yellow Dog Knitting (Eau Claire, WI). They did not disappoint. 

I intended to get sock yarn for my first attempt at socks, I came away with a whole lot more.

This is for the socks. The bright colors will keep me interested as I go, since I intend to use a simple, basic pattern. 

This lace yarn was calling to me. It's a wool-mulberry silk blend; I love how it feels, and it has a nice luster. I had to take two pictures.

The gold one is a cotton-viscose blend that really shines. An idea is percolating, combining this yarn with this next one...

...with a creamy white mercerized cotton, and possibly some gold-ish beads I have on hand. Stay tuned. 

 Don't they play well together?















After Yellow Dog, I looked for some kind of a headpiece for my wedding. There was a fascinator that I loved, from the store where I bought my dress; I went back to look at the fascinator again, and didn't like it. Or anything else they had. So I made a trip to a craft store, and we'll see what I can come up with from these materials:

The Return of the Sweater from Hell

After an accidental two-week break, I had hoped to have more to show. But, during that time, my 75 year-old grandpa had back surgery and recovered more slowly than expected; then I had an abscessed tooth and am still waiting to get the root canal; and started a part-time job at a local craft store. Gramps is doing well now, back at home and walking with only a cane for assistance; my tooth pain and discomfort has subsided, but I didn't do much besides sleep and complain for a while. Tonight was my impromptu first day at the new gig, and I thought it went well. That said, I do have two things to show.

The oft-mentioned "movie theater sweater" aka "sweater from hell" was, briefly, finished and blocked.

If you can see T.R. Knight in the background, it's because we were watching Grey's Anatomy reruns and I forgot to turn it off.

It wasn't quite hanging the way I wanted, because I should have placed the buttons higher. Which sounds like an easy fix, except for the placement of the button holes.


So I ripped out the button bands and color (luckily, from picked up stitches around the garment edges, and knit in one piece).

Pictures coming soon, but I am much happier with it.


On the needles, a baby sweater for my fiancé's cousin, who with his wife is expecting his second child in early March.

 I'll share the details once it's finished :). I'd better get knitting!