I made this silhouette cross-stitch from a still from the 2006 BBC version of Jane Eyre (the one with Toby Stephens and Ruth Wilson). It's from the fireplace scene, right after Jane puts out the fire in Rochester's bedroom. I thought silhouette art would be perfect for a Victorian piece, and used Gimp to make the chart from the movie still. It's stitched in black floss on 28-ct linen, and measures 6"x6". I was inspired as part of the Bronte-Along (check out eggplantia.com for info on that fun project). It took me more than a month to complete, but that's because I'm a slowpoke and have other projects going on at the same time.




The chart is available for free on my blog here:

http://is-five.blogspot.com/2010/05/wuthering-heights-and-bronte-along.html

i'm working on my son's nursery, and wanted to have pieces with lots of color. we're not painting the walls (rental house), so i came up with this piece to bring in loads of bright color. we're decorating with dinos and airplanes, so this fit right in.

it's an unfinished pine dresser (new), replacement drawer pulls (glass) and lots and lots of blue paint with handmade stencils (posterboard i had lying around the house).







more pics and detailed process on my blog:
http://is-five.blogspot.com/2010/03/pterodactyl-dresser.html

thanks for looking!!

***UPDATE*** Stencils now available for download here: http://is-five.blogspot.com/p/downloads-and-patterns.html

free, non-commercial, personal use only, attribute, and i'd love to see what you make with 'em! leave a comment, send me an e-mail to meghan (dot) isfive (at) gmail (dot) com, tweet me @isfive or send me a message here.

Whipped up these roomy jammies this weekend for a new mom friend of mine -- the baby always gets tons o' gifts, and sometimes mom needs something cute but comfy to snuggle around the house in. Normally, I'd make a practice pair first to keep from making silly mistakes (like not flipping the bottom layer of fabric to make the prints line up ... I like to pretend it was on purpose so it looks like the chicks are marching up one side of the PJs and down the other), but I needed to get these in the mail quickly since the baby made his appearance at 11 yesterday morning.

Pattern is Simplicity 3571 and the fabric is Urban Farm for In the Beginning from Over the Rainbow fabric shop http://www.overrainbow.com, a great source for quilting and whimsical prints. I used this pattern for some flannel pajamas for my grandmother a couple of years ago, and it's definitely a great beginner pattern, but I'd forgotten some of the weird things about it. It calls for interfacing in the collar (seriously, how much stability does a pair of PJs need?) and the top is only 4 pieces (sleeve and torso cut as one piece) rather than with sewn-in sleeves so it's kind of funny.

Inspired by this post at Craft Chi http://craftchi.com/blog/?p=1011, I made these little magnetic bookmarks from a few of the pieces from an old magnetic poetry kit I had lying around. The magnets keep the bookmarks from falling out, so they're great for travel. I use one in my purse book -- the book I always have with me in case of long lines at the grocery or post office. One's covered in paper and the other's scrap fabric I embroidered before gluing it on. They're a really quick, fun project, and all you need is one of those advertising magnets, decorative paper or fabric and some glue (I used Elmer's white glue).

They look like crazy 70s psychedlic earrings, but they're really makeup remover pads -- an alternative to cotton balls. I've seen these in various places around the internet, so I worked up a couple myself. I used a 4.25mm (6) hook and worsted-weight yarn (Peaches 'n' Cream Ombre in Fiesta, I think), so they're nice and thick. They're a simple circle, starting with 8 sc and then crocheting 4 more rounds (for a total of 5), adding 8 sc each round.

It took several weeks to get the trousers just right, but the vest was pretty easy and only took a couple of days. Patterns were McCalls 5186 for the vest and Simplicity 2562 for trousers. It's only the 3rd outfit I've ever made, so I'm pretty proud of it. I successfully matched stripes! The McCalls pattern was pretty easy to work with (I've made 2 of the variations), but the Simplicity one was a pain. Not awful, but definitely inspires me to learn drafting and make a sloper.

Thanks for looking!

I finished my first pair of gloves tonight. Finally. These ended up being way more difficult than I anticipated when I began the project (this is nothing unusual for me). I made the gloves for my husband, who is in the army and loves history. So when I found a vintage WW2 British Army glove pattern from the V&A Museum website http://www.vam.ac.uk/images/image/13027-popup.html, I had to use it. But as I read the pattern, I discovered the gloves were knit flat, then sewn up. Seams in every finger didn't seem like a good idea for the guy who rips the tags out of all his t-shirts because they bug him, so I decided to try to work these in the round on a circular needle rather than flat. That calls for more pattern-writing and interpreting skills than I had, so it was rough going for a while. I also added a buttonhole in the right index finger so Chris can use the gloves on the range and out in the field -- it'll allow him to uncover his trigger finger without having to take off his gloves.



Here's the seamless modification for the pattern. Please leave any questions or requests for clarification in the comments -- I can never tell how my notes sound to someone else.

15st26rows = 2 in

cast on 60
2x2 rib for 36 rounds
round: p1m1k1m1 with first 2 stitches of round, working 2x2 seed stitch, m1p1m1k1 with last 2 stitches of round
work 5 rounds 2x2 seed/moss (remember to k2p2 for 2 rows, then switch to p2k2)
round: p1m1k1m1 with first 2 stitches of round, working 2x2 seed stitch, m1p1m1k1 with last 2 stitches of round
work 20 rounds 2x2 seed/moss (27 rounds total)
round 54: work in 2x2 to last 8, place next 16 on waste yarn
round 55: rejoin and work in 2x2 for 15 rounds
work 21 st (18 st. for right glove) in pattern, place 13 st on waste yarn, work rest of round

work 5 more rounds

1st finger:
slip 7 stitches onto dpn. put next 14+12 st on holder, slip remaining 6 st on 2nd dpn (these should be at the front and back of the round -- take 7 from the front of the round, place next 26 on holder, then slip last 6 of round)
pick up 3 st. between last st. of round and 1st st. of round using 3rd dpn, placing marker after 3 picked up stitches to mark beginning of round.. (1 round, 16 st)
knit 7, co 4 (this is on the first dpn -- the 1st 7 you slipped at beginning of round). knit to end of round (20 st). you can even out your stitches so you have 6/6/8 on your dpns. if you want.
work 28 rounds stock st.
k2tog k1 until last 2 (13 st)
knit the next round (13 st)
k1, then k2tog to end (7 st)
k7
break yarn, draw through all st.

2nd finger:
slip 7 st. onto dpn, put next 13 on holder, slip remaining 6 onto 2nd dpn
k7 co3 k6 pu4 from inside base of 1st finger
knit 30 rounds st st
decrease as for 1st finger

3rd finger
slip 7 st onto one dpn, 6 onto another
pu 3 from inside base of 2nd finger, k7, co 4, k6.
knit 28 st

4th -- work as previous 3 for 20 rounds. k2tog, k1 for round (12 st.), k12, k2tog for round (6 st), k6, draw yarn through all st.

thumb -- pick up 8 st from waste yarn on dpn, pick up 6 st. from inside of thumb opening plus 2 st. from waste yarn, pick up remaining 6 st from waste yarn plus 2 st. from thumb opening (24 st.)
work 20 rounds.
decrease: k2tog, k1 to end (15 st.)
k15
k1, then k2tog to end (8 st)
k8, draw yarn through all st.

One of my best friends and I share a love of libraries, and now that she's pregnant with her first kiddo, I wanted to make her something fun to wear this summer. Although it's quite cute as an applique, I wanted it to be just a straight iron-on transfer. Who knew the transfer paper would transfer clear instead of white and look really horrible? I certainly didn't, but I do now! It looks OK this way, although next time I'll use different paper.

I finished the pencil skirt I made to go with the tuxedo vest (http://www.craftster.org/forum/index.php?topic=303070.0) I posted last week. I used McCall's 3830, but it was an awful pattern. I ended up reshaping the entire skirt and changing the waistband facing to a full lining. I might as well have drafted my own pattern for all it helped!

Anyway, I do like the finished product. I did the hem in a hurry this morning, so I need to redo it so it's really a blind hem, not a you-can't-see-me-if-i-can't-see-you visible hem, but other than that I'm pretty happy with it.

Here's an action shot of the full suit:


And here's a pic of the skirt:

I made this vest this week from McCalls 5186. It's my first project with tailoring, and this was a fairly simple pattern to learn. I used a really nice 100% wool suit fabric, and plan to make a pencil skirt to go with it. It still needs more pressing, but I like how it turned out. The back is the same suit fabric, not made out of lining fabric.