so, this year i'm going as a chickadee (bird nerd alert.) so far i've managed to whip this up out of some fleece i got a joanns.  it was the only fabric there that was grey and was textured.  it'll work out fine though since it's kinda cold here on halloween anyway. i'm having some trouble figuring out what to do with the front closure and was wondering if you folks had any suggestions.  chickadees have white bellies so i was thinking about having a button closure at the top and rounding out the bottom corners so it shows off the white dress i'm wearing underneath.

the bigger question is what to do with the back. right now it billows out kinda like an opera cape and i think i want it to be a little more fitted. any suggestions on how to do that?

thanks for the help! enjoy!

i LOVE this dress.  It is very special to me since the fabric was given to me last year by one of my dear friends who is now serving in the peace corps in togo, africa. I waited a long time to make this dress until i was sure i wouldn't screw it up. ((its my own design so i made a practice dress to test it out, which turned out awesome btw)) it started as a queen-size flat sheet and turned into the most fabulous thing i've made yet.




^the neck clasps with a gold cuff necklace


here's the basic shape.  it's basically a single seam up the back with a zipper (and clasps) and a tie around the neck.  It is fully lined with a rolled hem around the bottom. all the edges were top stitched around the "arm holes" so they'd lie flat.  it was originally planned to be shorter but i wanted to preserve as much of the beautiful fabric as i could.

its extremely comfortable except for the necklace.  its not a very heavy dress but it digs in funny at the back of my neck.  i originally had a ribbon (seen in some of the pics) but it didn't match the mood of the dress and i really like the gold.  any suggestions on what i could change it to that would still be the same color but more comfortable?

this summer i worked at a place that had no television or other mindless distractions so i took up crafting. usually i'm a sewer but since i had no sewing machine with me i decided to knit. and so i knit some shrugs.  keep in mind that i had wanted a shrug long before the whole shrug craze....  so the first one i made for myself. its the first non-scarf project. the second onw was supposed to be for my sis, but i liked it so much that i'm making her another one.

enjoy:
front

back


front

back


i used lothruin's pattern that you can find on here. the yarns were both lion brand. the first is homespun in the color praire. the second is the bulky wool thick and quick something or other in the color wood. i like the way teh second one knit up. the first one was really loose for some reason. thanks

i made this one for my sister's friend who wore her last bag out.  its big enough to hold the essentials but not so large that you're tempted to carry around your entire world.  i really love the way the colors work together.  i love the inner calico (?). its so cute.

i'm sure this is very simple but how do you "PM"? i know that is stands for "place marker" but what is that and how is it done?  and here's another question...the pattern says to end on RS row. does that mean that i stop after knitting a row? or purling a row?

this is my first pattern other than hats and scarves and i dont want to screw it up....thanks in advance

so, my brother is finally graduating from college (from uga with a physics degree) and graduation is this saturday so i decided to make him something as a graduation present. it turned out so much better than i expected and i know he's going to love it.  i have a question, though....does it look manly enough? and if not, what would you suggest i add to it?

it has snap closures, a zipper along the front under the flap, two pockets on the inside back panel, and side pockets on the outside

thanks



and here's the bag i made for his long-time girlfriend (she's so cute). i absolutely love the fabric in this bag.  she's graduating too this saturday with a masters in latin.

it has a front slash pocket under the flap (lined), magnetic snap closures, two pockets on teh sides inside, and a back zip pocket



they're not entirely square but i made them out of love, so that has to count for something

my friend called it a praire skirt but i'm not sure i quite agree...anyway it used to be this...



but i felt too much like a mermaid because it was so fitted at the top and then flared out so much.  i had to make it smaller than i would have wanted because i was a bit short on the lace since i got it on sale and only so much of it was left.  so to fix it i removed the waistband (which i'm super proud of) and shortened it up to a more "kicky" length...



i really like it.  especially when i go down the stairs and the whole bottom part floofs out really big.

and a close up of the fabric and lace:


here's the semi-matching top: http://www.craftster.org/forum/index.php?topic=31477

this is too freakin' cute. i finished it this afternoon and i'm still squealing with delight over it.  i love it

enjoy!

i've been thinking about this bag for about a week now and although i envisioned a slightly different shape i still really like it.  i used the "SUPER CUTE WALLET!!" tutorial by hdoglovesyou. thanks! Its my first bag (and wallet)

so here's where the 'hippie' part of my name comes into play...

the blue one (mine) i made over chirstmas break.  i didn't use a pattern...i just copied ones i had seen online.  it is now hemmed and has two dark blue patch pockets on the lighter blue panels.  and the red one i made for my friend over MLK weekend.  then next ones i plan on making will be a tad more complicated (just as soon as i figure out how to do that) javascript:void(0);

enjoy