The Dropped-Stitch Earwarmer

This earwarmer is inspired by two things: my love affair with purple and with the dropped stitch pattern. I wanted something to match by scarf but to not stand out or compete with it. So, I came up with this idea. It goes with the dropped-stitch kit that I have been making (scarf, earwarmer and fingerless gloves).

To start, I measured my head with a measuring tape. Mine is 22 1/4 inches so I can start from there. Behind my head from ear to ear, I measure 8 inches.

Abbreviations used in this pattern:
M1R - make 1 right
M1L - make 1 left
YO - yarn over
K - Knit
P - Purl
K2 tog - Knit two together
BO - Bind off

Needles: US8 straight needles
Yarn: Bernat Super Saver worsted weight yarn in lilac-colour

Pattern:

Cast on 10 stitches. Knit for 3 inches or 28 rows.

Row 29: K1, M1R, K8, M1L, K1. You now have 12 stitches.
Row 30: Knit.
Row 31: K1, M1R, K10, M1L, K1. You now have 14 stitches.
Row 32: Knit.
Row 33: K1, M1R, K12, M1L, K1. You now have 16 stitches.
Rows 34-62: Knit.
Row 63: K6, YO once, K1, YO twice, K1, YO three times, K1, YO twice, K1, YO once, K1, K6.
Row 64: Knit and drop all YO.
Rows 65-66: Knit.
Row 67: *K1, YO once, K1, YO twice, K1, YO three times, K1, YO twice, K1, YO once, K1, K6, then repeat from * until end.
Row 68: Knit and drop all YO.
Row 69-117: Knit.
Row 118: *K1, YO once, K1, YO twice, K1, YO three times, K1, YO twice, K1, YO once, K1, K6, then repeat from * until end.
Row 119: Knit and drop all YO.
Row 120-121: Knit.
Row 122: K6, YO once, K1, YO twice, K1, YO three times, K1, YO twice, K1, YO once, K1, K6.
Row 123: Knit and drop all YO.
Rows 124-151: Knit.
Row 152: K1, K2 tog, K10, K2 tog, K1. You now have 14 stitches.
Row 153: Knit.
Row 154: K1, K2 tog, K8, K2 tog, K1. You now have 12 stitches.
Row 155: Knit.
Row 156: K1, K2 tog, K6, K2 tog, K1. You now have 10 stitches.
Rows 157-174: Knit.
Row 175: BO loosely and keep a 12-inch tail.

Sew up the two end pieces using a wool needle and the 12-inch tail then trim off extra thread.

How to remodel jeans into a skirt

Ladies, let's be honest. Have you ever had this happen to your jeans?

Yeah, not pleasant. We won't go there with how they get like that. It's always the jeans that fit you perfectly too. So, this post is about how to turn this:

Into this:

For this project, I used a pair of jeans that fit perfectly (actually, perhaps a little big in the butt or the thighs), thread meant for jean sewing in gold, jean needles for a sewing machine and the sewing machine of course, a seam ripper, pins, scissors and a measuring tape. I also used a sharp needle for hand-sewing.

Cutting

To start out, you will need to cut the pants open. I did this the lazy way by cutting out the seam going up the legs. I cut it on one side then the other to remove it completely.

Next, it's time to cut the crotch out (sorry, there isn't a better word for it though). I turned the pants over on the side and smoothed them out, making sure that the edges of the waistband down to the legs were completely lined up. Then I cut out the back and the front - just enough so that the pants are in a straight line.

Next, it's time to cut the pants into a knee-length skirt. To get the right distance, I took another skirt that fit me perfectly and laid it over top of this one to get an idea of where I needed to cut it. I made sure that both the pants and the skirt were perfectly lined up then I cut them with about 1 inch of seam allowance.

Ok, so now I reused the leg fabric to make an insert for the front of the skirt. I cut away the ratty seam and cut the leg into two pieces. I folded one leg piece in the middle and used my measuring tape to get a good line. I pinned the fabric down so that it didn't shift while I was cutting then I cut up the cut side (not the folded side).

Sewing

Time to get sewing. First, I sewed the panel into the front of the skirt. On the wrong side, I pinned the top over the crotch seam to keep it in place then I pinned the panel down one side of the jeans. I sewed that in place as far as I could go (it gets more difficult at the top so I'll do that by hand).

Then, I lined up the other side, pinned it and sewed it from the top to the cut edge at the bottom.

Now there is only an inch on either side of the crotch that needs to be sewn up. I did this by hand with a needle and thread.

 

Now time to tackle the back. On the wrong side, pin the seam going up the back up slightly to the waistline (for a smooth line down) down to 2 inches before the new hem with a very small seam allowance, less than 1 cm (as these fit you already). This skirt has a small pleat in the back for movement. Sew the seam down using the jean thread and jean needle on the sewing machine.

After trying it on and making sure that it fits right, I went over the front and back seams again to reinforce them. Now, I had to sew up the hem. I trimmed the hem to even it out then pinned the hem with less than 1 cm seam allowance. I should note that if I had a serger, I would have serged at this point and then sewed it down as jeans fray so I recommend doing that if you are able to.

This is the skirt on the wrong side:

And here is the finished product!

Estimated time for this project: about 3 hours. It took a little while to cut everything out, pin the seams, reinforce them and do the hand sewing. A good estimate is between 2 and 3 1/2 hours. 

Notes:

• If you have a serger, this is definitely a project to use it on. I would have serged all of the seams after they were done and the hem before sewing it down. 
• I did plan on having two panels -- one in the back and one in the front for a nice wide skirt but it didn't look right after I had sewn it into the back so I ripped it out and sewed up the back. That is an option though. 

Ideas:

• Why not do this with a pair of jeans that is faded, ripped or torn and dye them indigo again (or perhaps slate grey, black or such) before giving them a new lease on life as a skirt?
• The instructions in this tutorial also work for any pair of pants, not just jeans.

Purple Chenille Cowl

This is one very cool loopy cowl! I was inspired by the Autumn cowl on Ravelry and this pattern isn't really much different.

Yarn: 2 balls purple chenille yarn (I got mine in a 1lb Factory Ends package from Zellars)
Needle: US 15 (10.0 mm)

 Pattern:

Using two strands of yarn, one from each ball, cast on 25 stitches. Knit (as in, garter stitch) until the piece measures 50 inches long. Bind off. Sew up the two end seams with scrap yarn and a wide knitting needle. Weave in any ends.

Notes:

• I have no idea of the care instructions for this yarn. I will note though that I will only hand wash this cowl and never put it in the washer or dryer.
• I found that the yarn tended to get tangled or pulled so I just included that in the fabric. No one will notice a knot or tangle and since the yarn was insisting on doing that anyways, I just went with it.
• This yarn drove me a little nuts as it would break whenever I pulled on it too hard then I had to weave in ends all of the time. So, I unravelled (gently) as I knit to avoid breakage and that seemed to work. 
• Another yarn note: it's flimsy. The product doesn't not hold shape like cotton or wool, so it can stretch in any direction. That is perfectly fine though as this is only a cowl.

Ideas:

• With the leftover yarn, I am pondering making one of these options: an earwarmer, a hat, wristlets or a glasses case. Stay tuned to see how I use up the last of this stuff.

Changing the size of a wrap skirt

I bought this skirt into Frenchies but it was a size 8. As it was a wrap skirt though, there was enough fabric there to make it into a bigger skirt that would fit me so I bought it.

For this project, I used white thread, a seam ripper, scissors, a white zipper, pins and a sewing machine. A button is optional.

To start, I took my scissors and cut the skirt open where it had been sewn together.

Then, I measured it on myself to see if I had extra room (which I did). I made a mental note where the seam was going to be now and then took the skirt off and pinned up a seam on the cut edge up until where I would put the zipper in and I notched it. Then, I sewed up the seam to the notch. 

Next, I basted the zipper into place then top stitched it on the sewing machine.

I didn't add a button on the side as the zipper that I had added came all the way to the top.

Last, I took out the pleats that had been sewn down with this "X" mark as they no longer hit where they should and there was fabric (instead of cuts) underneath.

And here is the finished product! It just needs to be pressed then I can wear it. 

Estimated time for this project: one evening or about two hours. I actually did it over the course of several evenings because I didn't have time to sit down and do it in one shot. Most of the time was in basting the zipper into place as I hate sewing by hand.

Notes:

• You can change the size of almost any wrap skirt as long as there is fabric underneath like this one had. If the fabric stops at the overlap, you are out of luck. 
• Most skirts have a button on the waistband to fasten it shut. I am still considering going back and adding one. I didn't as the zipper went all the way to the top but I am sure that I can think of something.

Ideas:

• If you find a wrap skirt that doesn't fit, it can always become a cushion cover. Or a tube top.