It really annoys me . . .

that I have had to spend so much time trying to make my skeins of Handmaiden yarn match! At $38 per skein, I should not have to do this. I ordered all these skeins together so I wasn't prepared for the color issues that I have been having. Take a look at the finished sweater body. The top has more color variation with a lot of dark spots whereas the bottom is almost solid and lighter.

I knit a swatch last night and steam blocked it to eliminate the rolling. Fortunately I had some teal Procion MX dye. I found and article on silk painting using Procion MX so I mixed a small batch of teal dye using that recipe. I had to substitute vinegar for the citric acid as I was out of that. I played around and dye painted the swatch. It was a little greener than the yarn, but it was certainly closer than the near solid color of the second skein.

I decided that I would go ahead and do the rest of the sweater and while it didn't match exactly, it was better than leaving the bottom of the sweater plain. Here is the front and the back:


My plan was to knit the plain part of the sleeves and see if they need some dye painting but I'm thinking that I'm done with the painting. I'm just going to finish it up. I wound the last skein of yarn and it looks like it will be lighter and more solid like the second skein in the sweater. I just want to finish this up.

I did a little shopping yesterday. First I replaced my ratty old sunflowers. My hydrangea is in bloom so I cut some of those and bought some calla lilies to mix with them.

I was also thrilled to find this at Trader Joe's:

Fresh lavender! I think I may go back and get some more. I am drying this and using it to make moth repellent sachets!

I also went to Joann's to get some Butterick patterns that were on sale.



I particularly like the first one. I think it will be very easy to fit with all the extra seams.

I hope to finish my curtain tomorrow. I did get it started today. I also hope to finish Labyrinth before the end of next week. Sorry I don't have anything more interesting to show off!

A bit of nostalgia

Yesterday's photo of the little girlies made me want to revisit that time again. Having a daughter gave me the opportunity to play dolls with a real little person! I love classic, traditional children's clothes and I enjoyed making them for Ems. I hate seeing little girls with miniature adult garments. I particularly hate it when they are sleezy garments like spandex pants with "Hottie" written across the butt! How tacky is that!! One thing I have always loved are traditional dress coats. I made Ems' first coat when she was 6 months old. Unfortunately that coat is packed away, but I have a photo of her in it:

This coat was made of navy polished cotton poplin with a white collar which was trimmed in white tatted lace. The cuffs and bonnet had the same trim. The coat was also lined. I made her a winter coat about a year later:


This coat was made of heavy wool felt in taupe with brown velveteen collar, cuffs and buttons. It was lined with fleece backed satin lining for warmth.

There was a matching tailored bonnet with brown velveteen piping in the back seam, brown velveteen brim and brown velvet ribbon ties.



I wish I had a photo of Ems in this ensemble. She looked like a little Victorian doll when she first wore it! If I were making this today, I would have added bound buttonholes. I much prefer them on a wool coat--I must have figured that a child's coat just wasn't worth the extra effort at that time!

Bushism of the day:
"You know, one of the hardest parts of my job is to connect Iraq to the war on terror." --George W. Bush, interview with CBS News' Katie Couric, Sept. 6, 2006

Kitty Cam: This is how Greg spent his summer vacation:

And now for the aerial view:

What a rough life!