Scratchie Patchy

I was hoping to have "Take Me to the Other Side" finished by the end of August, then September. Now, perhaps by the end of October... In the meantime, I am making progress, and I'm happy with the way it's turning out.

While I was digging through my stack of WIPs to see what I might be able to finish next, I discovered Lizard's May birthday present... unfinished. I'd hid the bandanas I'd cut out beneath my WIP pile so he wouldn't see them before his birthday. I'm so embarrassed then I mforgot about them. Even more embarrassing, I recently bought another yard of the very same lizard fabric when I discovered only one yard remained at a favorite quilt shop. I'd forgotten previously purchasing it as a birthday present and cutting out the bandana.

One can never have too much lizard fabric, though, right? Lizard now has three brand new bandanas. He used to wear bandanas beneath his cycling helmet to prevent sunburn through helmet vents. He'd also occassionally worn them when we hiked in the wilderness, too, probably because he didn't have as many Triple Bypass, Ride the Rockies and MS-150 baseball caps back then. Now he isn't able to ride or hike as much, so his bandana collection hasn't see the light of day much in the last three or so years. I was tickled lizard when Lizard opted to wear one of the new bandanas instead of a baseball hat during a walk this week!

Last November, I attempted to sashiko my way into finishing a long-standing quilt WIP by using some of my hand-stitched hexagons, along with batting and a second layer of denim, to patch a favorite pair of air-conditioned jeans. Punching a big needle and coordinating crochet thread through two layers of denim proved too formidable for my mettle. I machine zigzagged the patch into place and gave up because even that was more challenging than I had time and patience to squander.

After nearly a year of vacation from the project, I needed a hand-stitch project for a week away from my computer and sewing machine, and that favorite old pair of jeans was calling out to me. Hand-stitching the layers with a regular needle and jean-strength thread was relaxing and fast. Until I accidentally dragged the exposed section of my shorts-decked calf across the pinned patch. My leg looks as if I was attacked by a six-toed cat! But I'm not going to share photos of that.

Rest assured my wounded but now adequately scabbed leg will be adquately covered following the completion of just three more patches! This is one WIP I think I actually can finish by the end of September!

Linking up with Alycia Quilts.

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Denim Doodah

Six years ago, I wrote tongue-in-cheek about denim whiskers. It's even bigger a thing now than it was then!!! Websites have pages dedicated to the fad!!!

Whiskering

What are "whiskers"?

Denim Hunters

A denim vocabulary?!?
(Turns out I'm a denimhead...)

More denim than you ever thought possible

Fashion Statement
I've saved old jeans for ages. At one point, way back in the early '80s, I was making a puzzle quilt from Ragtime and Elephant Ear jeans I'd worn as a teenager, along with straight-leg jeans from my four younger brothers handed down so many times, I had just about every shade of super pastel indigo you could imagine.

Alas, my first (and former) husband ignited the entire project (along with many other WIPs) in a burn barrel back in about 1987 because he thought the grocery bags I stored everything in were trash. There was a rainbow sweater in there I'd been knitting for my youngest sister for about three years. There were T-shirts from all my siblings' band and choir days. All my concert T-shirts were in there. Even my prized Fleetwood Mac T-shirt. (No, that's not why we divorced, but it was pretty traumatic!)

I started a new jeans collection immediately after, and I've made a good many projects since then. I'm always on the lookout for new ideas. And old jeans!

I no longer have the first (or second or third) denim skirt or the one-of-a-kind classic '80s blazer (each pattern piece came from a different pair of jeans) I fashioned from old jeans back in the '80s, but I do still have the vest I made in approximately 1995...




... and the jean jacket I made from three different pairs of ice-wash jeans in about 1998.






I've had four or five denim reindeer bodies ready to be assembled since about 1999. I finally finished one last weekend because I decided our electric fireplace needed one. And because it was a WIP, and because it's nearly Christmas, and because it felt good to play with denim again.






And look what I found when I was looking for buttons I could use for eyes for the denim reindeer! Remember these?!? Remember prices like this?!?


Here are some wonderful ideas for denim rugs. I might have to get creative and do something floorish with all the jeans hems one day after I get done cutting up the next batch that's destined for a quilt. (No more new WIPS until I get a few done, but I'm dreaming about a flannel and denim rag quilt!)


Linking up with Alycia Quilts and Confessions of a Fabric Addict.

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Cleanly Fade Away

I don't know about you, but I don't know that "whiskers" on my jeans are that important.

Yahoo Style recently declared jeans should not be washed, but frozen (right alongside your food, mind you!!!), and simply spritzed with vodka if any dirty spots or smells remain. To wash jeans ruins the intended natural fading of lines radiating from the crotch, they claim. I kid you not! Read the linked story above if you don't believe me!!!

I've been washing jeans, not just mine, but for the whole family in every family I've been a member of, for pushing nearly half a century now. I recycle the denim every chance I get when knees, saddles, seams or pockets wear thin. I get many, many miles out of the recycled denim, as well, and I'm washing it just like I wash the jeans. Soap and water. Washing machine and dryer. Shrink them babies. Fade 'em, too. Soften the cotton.

My husband's grandfathers and uncles worked on their farms, and they wore jeans. I guarantee you they did not put their jeans in any ice box. And jeans would not have been worn dirty week after week after week. No children and grandchildren would have resulted if those cowboys had displayed such fashion sense. Wives would have abandoned those stinky cowboys lickety split.

Denim whiskers, indeed!

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Doin' Denim

Anyone who follows my blog regularly knows what a blast I've had with my very first indigo last year. My love of indigo extends to jeans, leftovers, projects with leftovers, recycling denim, everything you can think of made of denim, and even denim photography.

Want a dash of inspiration? Check out any one of these fabulous craft collections!

Reuse Jeans (denim is one of my favorite craft fabrics)

More Recycled Denim

scrappy

not so scrappy

Awesome Denim Quilt

What to do with jeans hems.

I'd LOVE this in my living room.

Or this.

I wonder if my dad would love this?

Not just for denim.

Wonderful!

Denim Drool

absolutely adorable

critter

AWESOME quilt!

The Pattern

Yes, yarn!

So many ideas; so few jeans!

simply amazing

I wish people wouldn't pin on Pinterest without linking to the source.
Nevertheless, this is just too cool not to share.

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Snowflake Monday

I totally ran out of white thread for my special project one day on the train, but I had my indigo hand-dyed thread, so I designed another snowflake. I just love my indigo thread, yarn and fabric. I think the denim color might be my favorite of everything I've dyed.

Blue is my favorite color, and I especially like it with white. Very snowflakey, right?

Imagine my surprise when this faded denim blue jewel landed on my desk recently.


No return address, so I don't know who sent it, but I wasn't expecting anything so beautiful, so I excitedly tore into the envelope.


It must be from someone who likes winter, birds, snowflakes and blue as much as I do, but I don't know who. I love, love, love this treasure, and I'm trying to think of something really special to make for it... maybe I can use it as an inset in a new denim jacket to use up some of the beyond-mending jeans I've been saving for the last ten or more years, and then I can wear the masterpiece to work and show it off to everyone in my office! (And everyone on the commuter train, too!) This piece is just incredible!


I have a little sister in heaven who knew of my snowflake passion, and so every time I hear the "snowflakes are angel kisses" phrase, I always think of her. I wonder if she blows snowflakes at me and giggles when they catch me by surprise. So this cross-stitch is more dear than the giver may ever know.

I've received a few unexpected gifts from readers over the years, and each of them delights me. Each has arrived when I needed an extra little pump to get me through a stressful day. Or week. Or month...

This one came from Beth, thanking me for my patterns. I've had her address buried on my clipboard at work for two years because I fully intended to send something special in return. The office where I work was total chaos at the time, with a new building owner and new security measures, remodeling and construction, office and floor moves, department and boss changes galore, and I'd just received the devastating post-diagnosis on my bike wreck six months earlier that changed my life. Although I never lost Beth's address in all the office moves, I forgot to thank her for sending me rainbows when my world was looking pretty darned dark.


One of my readers recently asked if she could make scarves for our Makeover Madness project. It broke my heart to tell her the facility we were serving was closed due to lack of funds, and other existing facilities do not allow the residents/clients to have scarves. Sadly, scarves (and other everyday items we take for granted) can be used as weapons. So our project died an untimely death, and my co-workers and I have been searching for something else we can do to make our little corner of the world better.

Members of the Sisters of the Snowflake group on Yahoo recently came up with a brilliant idea: to make snowflakes for children's hospitals in their own towns this autumn in time for Christmas distribution. I'll be announcing more details about that in a couple of weeks.

There is a lot of darkness in the world these days. Some people are kicking that darkness to the curb in order to brighten the lives of others. May we all try to bring happiness and smiles to our own little space in the universe.

Because, after all, happiness makes the world go round!

You may do whatever you'd like with snowflakes you make from this pattern, but you may not sell or republish the pattern. Thanks, and enjoy!

Finished Size: 4.5 inches from point to point
Materials: Size 10 crochet thread, size 8 crochet hook, empty pizza box, wax paper or plastic wrap, cellophane tape, water soluble school glue or desired stiffener, water, glitter, small container for glue/water mixture, paintbrush, stick pins that won't be used later for sewing, clear thread or fishing line

Denim Frost Snowflake Instructions

Make magic ring.

Round 1: Ch 2 (counts as 1 dc), 4 dc in ring, pull hook out of loop (dropped loop) and insert in 2nd ch of starting ch 2, insert in dropped loop, pull dropped loop through 2nd ch of starting ch 2 (starting popcorn stitch made), * ch 3, 1 dc in 3rd ch from hook (dc picot made), ch 5, 1 sc in 2nd ch from hook, 1 hdc in next ch, 1 dc in next ch, 1 tr in next ch, ch 3, 1 dc in 3rd ch from hook, 5 dc in ring, pull hook out of loop (dropped loop) and insert in top loop of 1st dc of this 5/dc group, insert in dropped loop, pull dropped loop through top loop of 1st dc (popcorn stitch made); repeat from * around 5 times, omitting last popcorn stitch of Round; sl st in top of starting popcorn stitch. Pull magic circle as tight as you can get it with all those stitches in the center. The object here is to make the snowflake center poufy and 3D.

Round 2: Ch 7 (counts as 1 tr and ch 3), * 1 dc in 3rd ch from hook (dc picot made), 1 sc in next sc tip, ch 6, 1 sc in same tip, ch 3, 1 dc in 3rd ch from hook, 1 tr in next popcorn, ch 3; repeat from * around 5 times, omitting last tr and ch 3 of final repeat; sl st in 4th ch of starting ch 4.
If you're not reading this pattern on Snowcatcher, you're not reading the designer's blog. Please go here to see the original.

Round 3: Ch 4 (counts as 1 tr), * 2 trtr in next ch 6 tip, 2 dtr in same sp, 2 tr in same sp, ch 5, 1 sc in 2nd ch from hook, 1 hdc in next ch, 1 dc in next ch, ch 1, 2 tr in same ch 6 tip, 2 dtr in same tip, 2 trtr in same tip, 1 tr in next tr; repeat from * around 5 times, omitting last tr of final repeat; sl st in4th ch of starting ch 4; bind off. Weave in ends.

Finish: Tape wax paper or plastic wrap to top of empty pizza box. Pin snowflake to box on top of wax paper or plastic wrap.

If using glue, mix a few drops of water with a teaspoon of glue in small washable container. Paint snowflake with glue mixture or desired stiffener. Sprinkle lightly with glitter. Wash paintbrush and container thoroughly. Allow snowflake to dry at least 24 hours. Remove pins. Gently peel snowflake from wax paper or plastic wrap. Attach 10-inch clear thread to one spoke, weaving in end. Wrap fishing line around tree branch (or tape to ceiling or any overhead surface) and watch the snowflake twirl freely whenever you walk by! Snowflake also may be taped to window or tied to doorknob or cabinet handle.

As much as I love this snowflake in hand-dyed denim thread, I made a white one for my special project!

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Snowflake Monday

I recently made my first indigo vat. I've been apprehensive because the initial steps of the process were, well, um, unsavory. When I first learned about indigo way back in about seventh grade, I wondered who the heck peed on his mom's weaving, enabling her to discover this ancient dye process.

When my adopted son was about 8 years old, and perhaps all the way until, well, perhaps even now, I realized boys will be boys. It's not always fun, it's not always squeaky clean, and if there's a way they can play with their pee, boy, do they. Little snots! Have you ever witnessed a boy (or a man) drawing in the snow with pee??? I am tempted to believe they love this more than football and golf!

In the long run, I couldn't coax myself to process raw indigo materials with one of the required ingredients... um, urine. So I bought pre-reduced indigo crystals. Someone else did all the dirty work. I added water and a couple more chemicals, and I now am absolutely addicted to indigo dyeing, even though it smells like pee while I'm mixing and dyeing. The vat is outside in the open air, and I so far have not forgotten to wear my protective mask while working with indigo. When I'm done dyeing with indigo, the cotton yarn goes into the washer with the jeans and industrial strength detergent, then a quick trip through the dryer with lovely scented softener. The indigo yarn ends up beautiful, soft and fresh-smelling.

I've been having so much fun all summer long dyeing my own thread and yarn, I may never buy commercially colored yarn or thread again! Onion skins, hibiscus and alkanet have been my favorite dyes to work with, but now indigo may have claimed the top spot. I absolutely LOVE my first batch of indigo yarn!!!


Indigo was the most significant natural dye by the end of the 19th century, but it has been around for thousands of years. In 1969, denim was described as one of the world's oldest fabrics but eternally young. Once a symbol of the working class, denim has become one of the most enduring fashion trends.

Blue is my favorite color, and I've long wondered if I could duplicate the ice wash jeans appearance popular during my younger years on yarn and thread without literally beating up the fiber. On my first indigo dyeing attempt, I got exactly the look I have dreamt about for so long.

Because ice wash is a perfect name for a snowflake, I decided to make a quick and easy hexagon motif with the first hanks of worsted weight cotton yarn I dyed by hand in my indigo vat. (And I am not having any trouble so far remembering to wear my gloves while I work with the indigo.) I might design a more intricate hexagon for worsted weight once I have enough matching hanks to complete a larger project. Right now, I don't think I'll ever get bored with this yarn.

I came up with a snowflakier variation (with picots) for this same motif and worked up join-as-you-go instructions. I joined motifs and made fun projects including today's Ice Wash Snowflake Cowl. I also created a more traditional thread snowflake adaptation.

Autumn and Emma of the Sisters of the Snowflake group on Yahoo had asked if I might consider designing a snowflake specifically for the group. The thread adaptation of this pattern, the Sister Snowflake, will be featured in the Yahoo group, which is free to join and features weekly snowflake crochet-a-longs, project photos and chatter.

You may do whatever you'd like with motifs you make from this pattern, but you may not sell or republish the pattern. Thanks, and enjoy!


Finished Size: 3.5 inches from point to point for the plain variation; 5 inches from point to point for picot variation
Materials: Approximately 150 yards of worsted weight cotton yarn for the cowl; approximately 8 yards of worsted weight cotton yarn for just one motif; size H crochet hook

Ice Wash Snowflake Cowl Instructions

Make magic ring.

Round 1: Ch 2 (counts as 1 dc), 1 dc in ring, * ch 1, 2 dc in ring; repeat from * 4 times; 1 hdc in 2nd ch of starting ch 2 to form final ch 1 sp of Round. Pull magic circle tight, but leave opening big enough to allow stitches inside it to lay flat.

Round 2: 1 sc over hdc just made, ch 3, * 1 sc in next ch 1 sp, ch 3; repeat from * 4 times; sl st in starting sc.
If you're not reading this pattern on Snowcatcher, you're not reading the designer's blog. Please go here to see the original.

Round 3: Sl st into next ch 3 sp, ch 2 (counts as 1 dc), 4 dc in same ch 3 sp, * ch 1, 5 dc in next ch 3 sp; repeat from * around 4 times; ch 1, sl st in 2nd ch of starting ch 2; bind off. Weave in ends.
NOTE: To join a second row of motifs, work the join 3 times instead of 2 and work only 3 total unjoined points. When joining to 2 points previously joined, make sure to catch at least 2 strands in the join.

To join more than one motif, follow the instructions below for Round 3 on additional motifs after the first one is complete.

Round 3, Joining Round: Sl st into next ch 3 sp, ch 2 (counts as 1 dc), 4 dc in same ch 3 sp, * ch 1, 5 dc in next ch 3 sp; repeat from * around 4 times; ch 1; sl st in 2nd ch of starting ch 2; bind off. Weave in ends.


For the picot version of the motif, following the instructions below for Round 3.

Round 3: Sl st into next ch 3 sp, ch 2 (counts as 1 dc), 4 dc in same ch 3 sp, * ch 4, sl st in 3rd ch from hook (picot made), ch 1, 5 dc in next ch 3 sp; repeat from * around 4 times; ch 1, sl st in 2nd ch of starting ch 2; bind off. Weave in ends.

To join more than one motif, follow the instructions below for Round 3 on additional motifs after the first one is complete.

Round 3, Joining Round: Sl st into next ch 3 sp, ch 2 (counts as 1 dc), 4 dc in same ch 3 sp, * ch 2, 1 sc in picot of 1st snowflake, ch 1, sl st in 2nd ch (immediately before sc) (picot join made), ch 1, 5 dc in next ch 3 sp; repeat from * around 1 time to join next picot on 1st snowflake; ** ch 4, sl st in 3rd ch from hook, ch 1, 5 dc in next ch 3 sp; repeat from ** around 2 times; ch 4, sl st in 3rd ch from hook, ch 1; sl st in 2nd ch of starting ch 2; bind off. Weave in ends.
NOTE: To join a second row of motifs, work the picot join 3 times instead of 2 and work only 3 total picot points that are not joined. When joining to 2 picots previously joined, make sure to catch at least 2 strands in the join.




Finish: For the cowl, I made 18 motifs and joined them in two rows. Cowl also could be made with 3 rows of motifs by making 27 motifs and may be made as wide as desired by making more than 9 motifs for each row of motifs. This project does not require blocking and pinning, but looks much lacier if blocked and pinned.

After making and joining 2, 3 or desired number of rows of 16, 24 or desired number joined motifs, join in a circle by joining 17th (or 25th) motif to one end of row and then the opposite end as shown below. 18th (or 26th and 27th) motif is then joined on 5 points, with only one point free-standing.

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