Hoodie success!

I love this hoodie. So much. All of it. Even the parts that are a little wonky. Because I made it and ... most importantly ... wear it all the time.



It's the Sol Hoodie from Jamie Christina.

The fabric is a recycled, washable wool I got in Oregon at Rose City Textiles.

That store blew my mind. They have THISMUCH fabric. Seriously.



And it's all outdoors/performance fabric.



I think the wool was about $45.

I washed it on warm and dried it on low and it came out perfect. Then I got sewing.

The pattern was pretty easy to follow. The diagrams are super helpful and the writing is clear. The only thing I would have appreciated is a note about which sleeve is the left and which is the right. I didn't know that the sleeve backs typically have two notches and that's how you can tell. Google helped me through that one ... but not after I sewed the sleeve in wrong first. :)

The really awesome part about the pattern is the section about how to sew knits. There's a page with tips and techniques about which stitches work best for those of us who don't have sergers.

I experimented on my fabric with all the options and ended up using a twin sewing needle. The zig-zag on the back gave my stitches the perfect amount of stretch. I'd never even heard of that method before, but it worked SO WELL.

The construction is pretty straight-forward. First you essentially make a vest:


Then add sleeves and a hood! I don't have a full-length mirror at home, so sorry about the work bathroom pics.





THUMBHOLES!!!!!!!


Anyway, I'd totally make this pattern again, and probably will soon. I'd like to alter the hood/neckline a bit so instead of ending at the collarbone it would zip up all the way to my chin. Most of my hoodies from Patagonia or whatever are like that, and I like to have the option to hide like a turtle if needed. :)

Also, these guys:



SNOW!



And before the snow:

Outfitting little dudes for a weddding

Oh man, these outfits.



Oliver+S Art Museum pants and vest.



So cute. The pattern is great, like all Oliver+S ones. Well-written instructions and helpful diagrams.

There are welt pockets on both the pants and vest.





The wool and orange deer are from a local shop, Four Winds Quilting. The rest is JoAnn's finest.

Recent-ish projects!

A few things I've finished ... haven't been that great about taking photos of stuffs.

A cowl for someone for Christmas!



It's the Honey Cowl from Madelinetosh in Mountain Colors yarn. Whole thing took about a week to knit, working at night, etc. It's a fun, mindless pattern and turns out soooo squishy and soft.

Just as a heads up to anyone who uses this yarn: It's totally great ... but ...

I almost had a panic attack when I washed the finished cowl. I got done knitting at the *ahem* bar after work, and then took it home to block it. I soaked it in Eucalan wash. I LOVE washing finished knits in this. They turn out incredibly soft, and I've never had any issues. I also like that you don't need to rise, because that means less stress on the fibers.

Anyway, I soaked the cowl for about 30 minutes, and the water in my sink was dark green. PANIC No. 1.

Then I laid it out on the table to block. And the yarn felt just awful. It's a DK weight, which I use a lot, so I'm familiar with how it acts after being soaked. But this was a nightmare. Stringy. No body. Hard to lay straight. Panic No. 2.

I love how soaking and blocking normally eases any awkward stitches in my work. But this looked like a trainwreck.

So I poured a bit of whiskey, took a drink, did some swearing and just trusted that it'd all be #@%*ing better in the morning.

But it wasn't. It still looked awful. And it wasn't even close to dry. (Panic No. 3) I needed to mail it by 2 p.m., so I committed a major knitting sin and pulled out the blow dryer. I started with no heat, then worked up to the low heat setting.

MAGIC!

Once it got close to dry, it looked AMAZING. Totally awesome. Soft and squishy with even stitches! Sooo good. Exactly what I wanted.





So if you ever use Mountain Colors Twizzle yarn, don't panic right after you block it. It'll work out in the end.

Here's the yarn on the skein:



:::

Other recent knits:

Man hat:


It's a broken rib pattern, cast on in multiples of 8. Pattern here.

A baby hat that was too big, so now it's mine.


Bandana cowl (for when it was minus 35 and I WALKED TO WORK):


Pattern from The Purl Bee.

[HORRIBLE PHOTO ALERT] This hat and my super-sexy mop:


No pattern, just modeled off my favorite hat.

This is WARM. The outside is wool (the grey is new, the blue is thrifted), then there's a layer of quilt batting, and then inside is Michael Miller Organic Sherpa. The most amazing stuff.

:::

Just a ton of baby pants:

With old sheets:


A bunch that got auctioned off:


All Quick-Change Trousers, which are reversible, from Anna Maria Horner's Handmade Beginnings.

:::

Hoodie for a baby, or Chowder:




From Oliver+S Little Things to Sew.

Tuesday

If ever there was a day for the freezer to break, this is it.