A Trio Of Elliots

Hello all!  Here we are almost a week later since my last post.  How is everyone doing?  I waver between calm, rational thought and obsessive worrying and anxiety lately.   There seems to be no middle ground for me.

So I thought I'd distract myself with a long overdue post about my trio of Helen's Closet Elliot Sweaters that I made earlier in the new year.  How have I neglected to blog about them?  I wear them all the time!  Next time One Week One Pattern roles around it will be a no brainer for me given I have a total of five Elliots now! You can see my previous versions here and here.  Oh!  And I made my daughter one last year for Christmas... I don't think I have a photo of that one though.  I love this pattern.  Can you tell?

Let's get down to business here!  Note - these might not actually be in order of how I sewed them. Too many weeks and too many things have gone on in between to remember details like that and I'm a bit too lazy to figure it all out right now.  It doesn't really matter anyway.

Elliot #1 :

I sewed this one as an entry for the Fabric Snob's sew along.  It has a few mods to it - I lengthened the front, lowered the neckline slightly,  and simply lengthened the sleeves following the pattern lines so they ended up somewhat belled.  I LOVE this sweater.  It's in a hacci sweater knit from the Fabric Snob.  They still have it stock right now as a matter of fact.

Elliot #2 :

A t-shirt version is up next.  This one I'm not quite as happy with because first I lengthened it too much and then I shortened it too much.  WHY?  Why do I do that so often? ??  And now I feel that it hits at an awkward point maybe.  Also the sleeves need to be shortened just a smidge still.  I followed View C with the banded neckline, and had, as mentioned, initially lengthened it to have a curved hem.  I also initially shortened the sleeves somewhat from the pattern, but still not enough for my preference. After over shortening the top itself I'm scared I'll shorten the sleeves with reckless abandon as well and regret it.  What I don't regret at all is the fabric I used.  This one is a tri-blend jersey also from the Fabric Snob (and also still in stock) and it is so, so soft and comfy!

Elliot #3 :

I'm not going to lie... this one could be my very favourite of all my Elliots maybe.  It's definitely right up there. What seems like forever ago, Helen posted photos of herself wearing an Elliot dress.  She looked amazing in it and I couldn't get the idea of a Elliot dress out of my head.  I had some French Terry from Water Tower Textiles sitting in my stash since last August waiting to be used, and it seemed perfect for a dress with such simple lines.  For this one I simply extended the front and back to the length I wanted to have a straight hem and the rest is as View A is designed.  This dress makes me feel like a million bucks. It's comfy (hello, secret pjs!), easy to throw on and easy to wear.  It checks all the boxes!  Thanks for the inspiration, Helen!!

So there you go!  There's my three Elliots in all their glory!  It's such a great "blank canvas" type pattern with its simple design lines and possibilities for hacking.  Helen also has a great post up on her blog with her versions of just her tees which could be a great jumping off point if you're looking for inspiration!

That's it for me now - back to reality, housework and making supper.  Until next time, I wish you all to stay safe and healthy and remember, especially in these difficult times to try and share kindness and light as you go throughout your day.

A New Cardigan

It seems sort of frivolous to be posting about things like regular day to day things like new patterns, but I know for my own sense of mental health and well being I absolutely can't focus all my energy and thoughts on the current state of the world.  Anxiety looms heavily waiting to pounce at any moment and I am doing my best to not let myself be sucked in  or consumed by it.  I'm doing my best to remain calm - we are prepared and keeping ourselves informed through reputable and reliable sources and we are doing everything we can to maximize our chance of staying healthy.

So on a much lighter note, let me introduce you to an easy to sew, quick to make new cardigan pattern. This is the Castillo Cardigan* from Itch to Stitch.  I was quite excited to test this one as I am weak when it comes to a new cardigan.  I wear them so often and it's nice to branch out from my rotation of  ITS Avieros and Helen's Closet Blackwoods.

This one has a simple open front design and a unique shoulder shaping detail that uses darts.  It also has a hood of cozy proportions!  Side slits add interest as well!

Also, pockets!!!! Would you look at those pockets.  Ok, I know they're hard to see because I didn't take any close up shots, but they are a lovely large size!

One of the things I really like about the Castillo is the length.  I love a cardi that hits between the lower hip and mid thigh.  

The other thing I absolutely adore about this cardigan is the finishing on the hood seam.  The entire seam is covered by either twill tape or grosgrain ribbon if twill tape is unavailable.  I was hoping to find gray or blue for my cardi, but had to settle for black as that's all my local shop had available unfortunately.  You could even get some fun printed ribbon or tape and really let your personality shine through on this detail.

If you're wanting to pick up a copy for yourself, it is on sale currently for the release week!  Just pop on by to the ITS site.

Stay safe and healthy my friends!

Victory Will be Mine!

I told you a few posts back that I wanted to come back soon to show off my latest knitting FO.  It's been ages since I've had a proper yarny finished object, which always seems just a bit funny given that way back in 2006 my blog started out as a place specifically to share my knitting projects.

Anyway, I'm really quite excited to be sharing this with you as if feels like the ultimate in knitting projects.  Not only did I knit the project, but I spun the yarn too, which is where the ultimate part comes in.  The only thing I suppose that would make it even better is if it was from sheep I raised and sheared myself.  However, realistically speaking, I have no hot clue how to properly raise sheep nor am I anywhere physically strong enough to learn how to shear a sheep.  That is serious business my friends.  I'm always amazed at how a sheep shearer can make it look so simple!

So I do the next best thing! I spin yarn from fibre that other people have sheared from flocks raised by those that know what they're doing.  The closest I'll get to being shepherdess in my lifetime is picking T's little stuffed "Lamby" up off the floor and putting it back on his bed.

Both of the fibres I used were purchased at the Manitoba Fibre Festival in 2018 from two of my favourite Manitoba fibre artists.  The grey-ish brown is Shetland from my "down the road" neighbour, Barb of Prairie's Edge Wool Farm.  If you are local to Manitoba you need to get your hands on fibre from Barb.  It's beautiful, so lovely to spin especially for a beginner like me.  I always make sure to get a good sized batt from her booth at the Fibre Festival.

The pink/yellow/brown is from another favourite Manjusha Fibre Arts.  I always make Tammy's booth a stop on my tour of the market at the Fibre Festival too.  (I should mention that the boys always love to pick up a souvenir yarn from the festival to give to Grandma.  I give them free reign to choose whatever they would like and they always, always browse for a bit and then make a bee line straight back for the Manjusha booth.  So it's kid approved as well! LOL)

I spun this yarn before Christmas of 2018 and I made a hat for my husband out of the Shetland, but didn't know what I wanted to do with the rest of it and I had no idea what to make with the other yarn - I always worry I'll "waste" my handspun by doing a poor pattern selection.  While I had a good amount of the Shetland I didn't have that much of the pink, so that was a concern too.  I'd been eyeing up the Victory Wrap on Ravelry for quite some time and kept thinking it might be the perfect project for my precious handspun, but since my desire to knit had all but vanished and I wasn't even sure if it was THE pattern I put it off for an entire year.  Finally I decided enough was enough and just before New Years I decided it was high time to cast on something fun that might keep my needles going.

It took me almost a month. I still obviously didn't have my knitting mojo back and it was still a bit of a struggle to pick up my needles, sometimes feeling forced instead of intuitive even though I was wanting to knit it and was loving the wool.  In the end I used up almost every bit of the pink yarn.  I had mere inches left to go when I cast off the last stitch.  (Yarn Chicken score one for Sarah!)

It took me just about another month to get around to blocking it, which was silly.  I finally dug out my blocking pins a few weekends ago and set my wrap in the sink for a bath.

Exactly one month after I cast off my wrap, it had been blocked and was finally dry. I took the pins out and proudly put it on and wore it to work that morning.  It's snuggly and soft, and squishy and cozy and best of all what started out as fluffy bits of fibre became a wrap all by my own hands.

Since I still had a nice sized ball of the Shetland yarn left I decided last week that I should knit a pair of fingerless gloves for spring.  I queued up the Lambing Mitts pattern from Tolt Yarn and Wool in Ravelry last year I think.  Maybe longer ago than that even? I've no idea. Anyway, I thought they'd be a nice quick knit and handy to have as we head into spring.  They definitely are quick.  I knit the first mitt in about three hours, which felt like a victory in it's own right!  I haven't had the chance to finish the other glove yet though because I've been busy with another project.

I've just finished my other little project on the needles now and I think I can safely say my will to knit is BACK!!!!  I just finished up the Mystery Gnome KAL from Imagined Landscapes and it's become really exciting to be picking up my needles and not wanting to put them down!  Here's the little guy who's made me really want to knit again.  Isn't he cute?  He even has his very own little sweater! (also note he is standing in front of my apparently confused about the seasons Christmas Cactus that, after having only bloomed once about two and a half years ago when I bought it, is now in full glorious bloom right now in March! A gnome, the return of my knitting mojo and flowers. So many things to be happy about all in one photo!)

Gnomes are apparently magical for mojo.  You might see some more consistent knitting content here on Prairie Girl Knits yet!