Why Is Perfection So Elusive?

I love perfection, but find it so rarely. I want my house to be perfectly clean, I want my kids to have straight A's, I want my kids to behave perfectly and never get into trouble, I want to look in the mirror and see a skinny, 40-something, I want no flaws in my sewing and knitting....you get the idea.

I have learned to accept imperfection.  My kids have taught me that.  However, I don't accept it that well in myself - especially in my creations.

I recently completed a knitting project which was partially machine knit on my Ultimate Sweater Machine and partially hand knit.  The pattern is a stylish, modern vest called Vestish.  I whipped out the back on the machine last spring but there it sat all summer while I dealt with more of life's imperfections (broken bones).  When the kids headed back to school I worked on the vest front.  The shaping was giving me some problems and I read and re-read the instructions...felt something wasn't right, resisted the nagging voice in my head and forged ahead.  When I proudly completed it and looked in the mirror (trying to ignore the extra 20 pounds) I realized I had made a mistake - a nagging, mistake!  Most laymen will probably not notice it, but most knitters will and it bugs me.  However, I am not sure it bugs me enough to undo the ribbing, undo the side seams and reknit....What would you do?

I think I'll eat a candy bar.

I've Been Bitten by the Quilting Bug

I have had the opportunity to work for a wonderful fabric company, Contemporary Cloth.  It is filled with beautiful quilting, home dec, and vintage fabrics.  I love seeing the color combinations of fabrics selected by quilters.  They have an amazing eye for color.

My quilting experience has been limited to t-shirt quilts.  These are fun to make, but pretty straight forward.  The biggest challenge I have is selecting a fabric for the sashing that will coordinate with the t-shirt colors.  I then machine-tack the quilt together.  It's not really "quilted" (it also doesn't need to be because I only have a top and fleece backing.)

So I'm always amazed when I see beautiful quilts that are really works of art:  the colors, the designs, the stitching.   I like to reflect on how something that was a necessity has been elevated to an art form.  Once, scraps were saved to be used for practical items.  Likewise, knitting has become part art form, part hobby, part therapy.

On this project, I performed my first "quilting."  And I'm hooked!  Like knitting, I loved the repetitive nature of sewing the parallel rows of stitches.  (Well, they aren't perfectly parallel...)

What is this little bit of quilted fabric?  It's a potato bag!  I had to test it out for myself.  There are patterns all over the internet.  I followed these and they are a snap to make.  (If you use prequilted fabric it would be really fast, but then where's the fun of stitching all those rows?)

I would like to say that I enjoyed my fluffy potato just like everyone describes, but instead, I have to report that I scorched the bag!  I guess I overcooked it....back to the drawing board.

Yarn Arrived for Highlander!

A bundle of yarn finally arrived for me at my local yarn store. I am so excited to try a handpaint yarn for a sweater. This is a bit "out of the box" for me...one who normally prefers solid colors.

Highlander is a fantastic pattern from Anne Hanson of Knitspot.  I can't wait to get started!

Mother Daughter Sewing

Annie and I are doing some sewing for an auction. Our friend is putting together a mother/daughter basket. This is the first installment: mother/daughter capri sun tote bags. Stay tuned for more....

Metro Scraps

What is it about Fall and Plaids?