Quick tip - makeshift light box

What's a crafter to do when she needs to trace a pattern, but there's no lightbox nearby?

Improvise one with some scotch tape and a sunny window, that's what.

Knitty weekend

Here's what I managed to put out between Wednesday night and Sunday night:
That's one cotton dishcloth from Mason Dixon Knitting, one pair of hopefully indestructible toddler socks in ugly acrylic from my stash, one half of a pair of socks for me (made with impossibly thin cotton/wool blend, pattern from Knit Socks Whatever the Yarn), about 2/3rds of a toddler sock in chunky neon blue acrylic, and seven balls of chenille yarn that was salvaged from mill ends from a weaver down in Kentucky. The last is probably the best - I bought a bag of about 5 pounds of chenille pieces a few years ago, not realizing that they were hanks made up of four-foot-long pieces of yarn with other yarn knotted to the ends. To get to the point where I can use the yarn I have to trim off the knots, then knot together the four-foot pieces, then roll it into balls, and make sure the knots end up on the inside when I use it. Waaaaay too much work, but it makes such cute crochet bunnies, and it was so cheap I can actually afford to sell them and make a profit. These are the last balls from the bag - thanks to crafting buddy Sybil for helping with the final push to get these done!

In case you were wondering, I was so insanely productive because I was at a gaming convention Thursday-Sunday. Two hours of riding in a car each way, plus hours of roleplaying games at the convention, plus a few hours of downtime at the hotel, and voila! A sock-tastic weekend! I think the best part was the look on the "serious" gamer's face when I won at Munchkin while turning the heel on my adult sock ... boy, was he ticked.

South Sea Squares Quilt pattern page

South Sea Squares Quilt

This twin-size quilt in the colors of the islands will keep you toasty warm ... and no one needs to know that the raw-edge applique technique is so simple and fast you can complete it in a weekend. Grab five of your favorite batiks and get sewing, mon!

Approximate finished size: 66"x82."


This pattern can be made in batiks, flannels, novelty or seasonal prints - just about anything you can think of! Because this project splits up easily into several two-to-four hour segments, this would work well for a class held over multiple sessions.

A person with average sewing skills should be able to finish this project in about eight naptimes (16 hours).

Photos from the pattern:

Marking the square placement

Trimming the edges before binding

Pattern includes illustrated instructions, and it is packaged in a resealable plastic bag (6"x9"), ready to hang and sell.

Wholesale price: $4.00/pattern

Suggested retail price: $7-$9, or whatever the market will bear in your area

Free shipping on your first order! Shipping charges for subsequent orders will be the actual charges for USPS Priority Mail to your destination.

I am willing to make free samples to display in your shop, if you are willing to provide the materials. Samples of this pattern will be wallhanging size. Please contact me for more information on this service.

For more information or to place an order, please contact Gretchen Woods at Lazy Mama Designs: lazymamadesigns (at) yahoo (dot) com.

NEW!! You can also place orders through my shop at etsy.com - just convo me with a request, including the number of patterns you'd like to buy, and I can post a custom listing for you at the wholesale price.

Thank you for your interest, and I hope to hear from you soon!

Second is almost done

First Southwood Squares is done, second is quilted and ready to bind. I may change the name to South Sea Squares, because it looks so tropical in this color scheme.

Can I just say how much I love the binding clips you can buy at the sewing store, the ones that are basically rust-proof hairclips? They reduce the level of accidental accupuncture involved in binding the quilt to almost zero. And they held the binding as well as, or possibly better, than straight pins. Hurray! Now why didn't I spend the $6 on them years ago?

First of the Southwood Squares finished ... sorta

Okay, so the binding isn't on yet, and the photo shows mostly the room with just a squidge of quilt, but here it is:

That's the pieced version, which I may or may not decide to sell as a pattern. It looks great in the room, but the pattern isn't anything that hasn't been done before, and the directions I've written are really tedious. I think I can do a better job with the raw-edge applique version that's currently pinned and ready to sew tonight. It takes a lot less time to finish the actual quilt, the directions are a lot easier to write out, and the pattern is one that, while simple, I haven't seen anywhere else. Sounds like a winner to me!

I'm still planning to make this my first multi-size pattern, with directions for wall hanging, twin, double/queen, and possibly king size quilts. I may also make this pattern available with several different photos on the outside package, to make it appropriate for different times of year. If you're displaying the pattern in the summer, you could use the outer page with the sample quilt in the colors above. If you're selling the pattern in the winter, you could use a different outer page with a wintery or holiday color scheme.

I'm also thinking of making small sample quilts to display with the patterns - maybe two blocks wide by three tall, something that wouldn't take much time for me to throw together and could use up some of my stash so I don't bankrupt myself. I'm not about to spend three hours of quality time with my safety pins making twin quilts for every store that sells the pattern ... much as I'd like to, I don't think my fingers are up for it! As it stands now, my poor abused fingers have only bled on the quilt once, so I'm doing okay :)

Toddler socks

Finished embarrassingly late last night:
Yarn: something worsted weight from my stash of moderate-to-junky yarns ... I'm not even sure if it's acrylic or wool. I suspect it's acrylic, but I'm not about to run the socks through the washer to find out!

Needles: Size 6 DPNs

Pattern: free download from http://stitchesofviolet.blogspot.com/2004/11/mini-basketweave-toddler-sock-pattern.html

Notes: No wrapping to turn the heel! The pattern calls for making a flap, and then you pick up stitches down both sides of the flap to form the heel. Much less confusing than the short row heel I did on my first pair of socks, but I have a feeling it makes for a clunkier heel. In these that's actually good - the flap is made in a k1,sl1 pattern, which makes for a ridiculously dense finished fabric.

The pattern was developed for Children In Common, a charity that ships supplies over to Russian orphans who have not yet been adopted. Apparently warm socks are one thing the kids always need, no matter how many they send over. Anyway, since the socks will fit some kid no matter what size they turn out to be, there was no gauge on the pattern, and I was just hoping they would turn out to be the right size for some kid I knew. Luckily, they're the right size for my daughter, at least for the next few minutes! Not sure if they'll still fit this winter, but I can always make another pair on 7's or 8's if I need to. I think these took maybe 8 hours, start to finish ... okay, maybe a little more than that, but I finished the second sock in one naptime and two movies.

Oh, one last thing. I ran out of yarn about 1/2" from the end of the last sock. Can you tell which one has the different yarn spliced in? God, I'm good.

What a working studio should look like

Not like this ... too sterile.

Not like this ... too cluttered.

Like this - perfect!

You can tell I'm in mid-project because 1) there are blocks all over the floor, 2) the table is covered in fabric scraps and recently-purchased batting, 3) the cutting table is serving double duty as a pressing station, and 4) the cats have been banned from the room.

That's the pieced version of Southwood Squares that's serving as a tripping hazard right now. I'm excited about how it's turning out ... can't wait to show you the finished product and get the pattern ready for sale!

WIP Tuesday

Here's a look at what's on my design wall ... er, cutting table, lounging around until I get a few hours to start a relatively tedious pin-and-sew-as-you-go session. Tentative pattern name: Southwood Squares.Unless I totally wimp out and/or get hit by a bus, this will be my first bed-sized pattern, and it will include directions for both pieced and raw-edge applique versions. Why? Because I need to make two of them for my guest room anyway! And making the same quilt twice gives me the heebie-jeebies, but making two different versions of the same basic idea doesn't offend my sensibilities nearly as much.

Very productive today - in one of my daughter's naptimes I managed to dig out the planning sketches I did when we were living in the hotel, confirm that I actually had enough yardage of the fabrics, cut the squares and sashing strips for the pieced version, cut the background and squares for the applique version, and cut backs for both quilts. There's going to be a whole lot of sewin' goin' on next week - yay!

Heaven!

I just spent an hour quilting - quilting! - in my new studio. Not only is my sewing machine on a taller desk than at my old house (so less hunching over), but it's right next to my computer, so I can surf the internet while sewing. Send e-mail while seam-ripping! Download porn while pinning! Er, maybe not that one, but having the computer right nearby is a great excuse to change positions and do something non-crampy every 10 minutes or so, the way I'm supposed to if I don't want to turn into the Tylenol Tyrant the next day. Of course, now my unfinished projects will mock me when I pay bills, and my unbalanced checkbook will sneer at me as I sew, but hey - at least I don't have to run up and down the stairs every time I write a pattern now.

Hurray! We're up and running!

High-speed internet connection? Check.

Most of the house unpacked and (sorta) put away? Check.

Sewing room and office unpacked and settled?

Check.
I can't tell you how much I'm looking forward to sitting down in front of the sewing machine and working on a couple of unfinished Lazy Mama projects. Oh, so much! I haven't sewn since March, other than some cross stitch and lots (and lots and lots) of knitting. My pedal foot is getting itchy just thinking about blowing through some Busy Baby Book samples for stores and my etsy shop. And I've got a quilt design all written up ... now I just have to actually make the darn thing to make sure all of my measurements and directions are right.

I'm back in the saddle again : ) : )

Anyone need a few moving boxes?

Welcome to Lazy Mama HQ, otherwise known as The Room That Will Be My Combined Office and Sewing Room, Should I Ever Unpack Enough Boxes To Find The Floor Again. Chest-high, those piles of boxes are, and all of that stuff has to go somewhere. I'll be able to weed out a few things - there's going to be a massive yard sale here in a month or two, so drop by if you're near Ohio - but most of it's necessary.

On the positive side of things, several of the projects I need to do to perk up the rooms in my new house are things that I plan to adapt to be Lazy Mama designs, so there should be some new home dec patterns and quilts coming in the next few weeks/months.

Oh, and here's a quick "Thanks!" to the folks at the Mad Hatter's Quilt Box near San Diego for their recent reorder ... glad the patterns are selling so well, ladies!

Okay, back into the unpacking grind. Hope to have less boring stuff to discuss soon!

More knitty goodness

From Knitted Toys, by Fiona McTague. Made from no-dye-lot cheapo acrylic yarn from my stash of stuff I used when I didn't know any better. Many thanks to my (soon-to-be-former) neighbor Sonia for fishing it out of my stash and mailing it to me at the hotel. And many thanks to my former neighbor Sybil for loaning me some Fiberfil so I wouldn't have to carry empty Zebra parts down to Kentucky this weekend.

It's funny, but from this photo, you can barely tell that the zebra's head is larger than his body, making him look like an escaped prison inmate with a wicked case of macrocephaly. Thanks to the indestructible nature of this yarn and how quickly the kid latched onto it when it wasn't even done yet, this sucker's going to be mocking me for a long, long time.

Next up: attempting to recreate this in crochet, as well as making some penguins and polar bears for potential future Etsy listings. I've still got 1/4 skein of black and 1/2 a skein of white, after all!

Sock-tacular

Pattern: Plymouth Yarn Design Studio: Sockotta Hat and Socks
Yarn: Opal handpainted superwash sock and sweater yarn, color 20

If you try these, be warned that if you follow the directions as written, you'll end up with the rows of toe decreases going vertically from the bottom of your middle toe to the top, rather than horizontally across the ends of your toes. I fixed the pattern for the second sock, then went back and fixed the first one that looked decidedly odd. Also, the directions for doing the short rows aren't really too clear, and I'm fairly sure that I'm not doing them precisely right, because my heels are still a little holey.

On the positive side, they fit, they're warm enough to wear in the dead of winter, and they're bright enough that my husband probably won't throw them in the dryer by accident. Plus, super-cool retro slouchy goodness. Hooray!

Next up: a zebra toy for Liza to use up some awful acrylic yarn from my stash. I'm knitting from a pattern on this one, but I'm thinking I could make up my own crochet pattern to make something similar. Maybe once I've finished this one ... and the stash-buster stuffed dog that's scheduled for after that ...

WIP Friday

Ta dah! I'm 3/4 of the way through my first knitted sock, complete with short row heels:
I'm proud of the fact that when I finished the heel and realized it sucked, I frogged it back to the last complete round and did it again, despite the severe pain-in-the-buttedness of trying to pick up the 30 stitches that were needed for the heels. Took me close to an hour to pick up those blasted things and get them turned around right on the needle. At least the second attempt looked a little better ... just don't look too closely at the other side, where apparently I did something wrong when I picked up one of the wraps.
I think I'm going to do a quick darning job on the hole to close it up, and I'll keep my eye on that spot when I do the next heel. Oh, no - it will NOT be holey again!

Fun with felting

Pattern from http://www.magknits.com/warm04/patterns/sophie.htm
Yarn: kureyon by Noro, colorway 150 or possibly 164, I can't tell online.

This yarn fought me from the moment I brought it home. I bought it with the idea of making a felted box similar to the ones in Mason Dixon knitting, only I don't have the book and only had a vague idea of how to make the box. I started knitting, and when the sucker wasn't even halfway done I had used up 3/4 of the one skein the project was supposed to take. Ithrew it in the closet and worked on other things, then started with the second skein I had bought to try to make the tote bag in One Skein ... and got a good two hours into that before I realized that their definition of "one skein" includes one skein of each color in the sample ... which was going to require five or six skeins for the pattern I had chosen. So I found a smaller handbag pattern online, unwound the second attempt, and finally managed to make something out of my expensive yarn.

I'm very pleased with the result, especially since I took a relatively drab and scratchy wool yarn and felted into a nicely striped, soft and fuzzy handbag. And it only cost me $3 to felt it in the washer here at the hotel! I wish I had brought along some more of the felting wool I have at the house ... until we move, I guess I'm just going to have to restrain my urge to make more handbags. Must ... not ... felt ...

How to waste an hour online while laughing hysterically

http://youknitwhat.blogspot.com/2006/01/return-of-boyfriend-sweater-curse.html

The language is a little salty on some - okay, quite a few - pages, but darn, these folks found some doozies. Let's hope none of my creations ever show up on a similar site ...

Super productive weekend

1. Finished the ballet camisole pattern I found online at

http://magknits.com/July06/ballet.htm

I used a bamboo yarn that I had bought for a different project, and ended up having enough to finish ... but just barely. I have a ball of leftover yarn the size of a walnut, I kid you not. Anyway, I liked the fact that the top is shaped, it's knit mostly in the round, and it's generous enough to cover my bra straps. Perfect!

Now if only the location of the switch from "in the round" to "knit-perl" wasn't so obvious (and right across the middle of my chest) ... I've gotta get my perl tension fixed one of these days.

2. Started and finished a pair of fingerless mittens, which I was trying out to see if I liked the pattern and to learn to do cables. Plus, it used up some of the yarn leftover from the sweater I crocheted a few months ago.

Yet another free pattern I found, this time from:

http://www.virtuallydesigned.com/gottamake/patterns/websurfingmitts.htm

I had originally thought of making a pair of fingerless mittens for my father to wear when he works down at the shipyard (in something more manly than plum wool, of course), but since spring has arrived it looks like I've missed my chance, at least for now. At least now I know how to do a cable ... and since some of the kids we know liked the look of them so much, I've gotten requests for two more sets. I'm working on making them as sweatbands instead of mittens, with the kid's initials instead of the ribs. Should make them the snappiest superheroes on the playground ...

Next up, a cross stitch pattern for Christmas (it's never too early to start, you know), and a third attempt to find a use for some beautiful-but-scratchy wool yarn by Noro. Wish me luck with the frogging!

We've done bought us a house!

We'll be living in Olmsted Township, in a house that's about four blocks away from the first house we ever bought together. It's a great neighborhood (full of swing sets and pools), and it's only a handful of miles from my favorite quilt store, so I'm doubly blessed.

I went ahead and got a PO box to use for our temporary address here, and I'll probably hold onto it permanently for the Lazy Mama mail. If anyone needs to mail me a check (you know who you are!), here's the new address:

Gretchen Woods
Lazy Mama Designs
PO Box 624
North Olmsted, OH 44070

And, of course, you can always email me at lazymamadesigns@yahoo.com.

Once we're past the worst of the phone calls and planning for this move, I'll be visiting the local shops and sending out a newsletter with some new releases. So keep your eyes peeled, and don't hesitate to contact me if you have a special request!

On the move - temporarily

Me, the husband, the kid, the cats, and the sewing machine are all moving up to Cleveland to live in temporary housing. Gonna be one, big happy family in a really big hotel room, for up to two months. Gah.

Anyway, we may or may not be able to connect J's new laptop to the hotel's wireless network, and my computer will be stuck in dial-up-land, so things may be a bit slow on the old blog for a few weeks. Hopefully we'll find the perfect house soon, so we can get settled (and get DSL).

I should still be able to process orders, though, and there are a few new products under development that I hope to roll out soon. So call or e-mail if you'd like to buy anything, and keep checking back for new developments.

Take care, and wish us luck!

- Gretchen

The big news

Lazy Mama headquarters is going to be moving back to Cleveland! Hurrah!

My husband has gotten a promotion and transfer, so two weeks from now my house will be on the market and I'll be living in a hotel room with my kid, my cats, and my husband (and about 15 crochet and cross stitch projects to keep me sane). We'll be starting the house hunt immediately, but we could be in the hotel for as long as two months. Gahhhhh ...

Needless to say, my internet access is going to be a little spotty, but I'll be keeping up with any Lazy Mama business to the best of my ability. So bear with me if it takes an extra day or two to get back to you or process your order - I'm doing my best!

On a side note, this will give me the chance to finally type up a couple of projects I've had floating around in my head for the last few months. And it was the perfect excuse to tidy up my studio and office, both of which are now looking depressingly sterile. I mean, seriously, how can I be expected to work in a space like this:

Jeez, I'd actually have to pick up all the threads I trim and not have a foot-tall stack of unfinished projects fall over every time I need use the cutting table. We creative types just can't be expected to flourish under those conditions :)