The Unavoidable Long Pause

It’s been on my mind to post, as I know it’s been over a month.  Time flies when you’re dealing with a lot!

I have 4 samples done for the next design series (2 hats, 1 tam, and 1 sweater), with a minimum of 6 more to knit.  I’m at that point in the design process where I need to work on the pattern notes and begin getting it all written up.  

Every designer surely has their own way of approaching the process.  I tend to swatch, make basic notes, make working charts, then begin knitting, adding to the notes as I go.  Before beginning further samples, I usually need to pause, as I like to then get much of the pattern written up, and the charts finalized.  Formatting, editing, and proofing continue for quite awhile, whilst I knit up further samples, until I feel the pattern presents all the necessary info as clearly and as organized as possible.  Then, there are the photos to take and edit, then get the whole shebang uploaded to 4 sites, then do the minimal marketing I do.

And therein lies my current situation.  I’m at that pause phase in the process, where I need to get all the details written up, but I can’t get to it right now.  Hubby’s health has thrown us yet more painful curve balls (the poor guy is falling apart at the seams), that began mid-November.  Two months later, the issues are still unresolved, so it’s been stressful, looking after him, and taking up the slack, doing his chores as well as mine, and now I also have the taxes to prep for the accountant.  He does what little he can, but his pain and unsteadiness is very limiting.

Like many, if not most, women I have a lot of responsibilities, leaving not as much calm creative time as I would definitely prefer, esp. at my age!  Although I’ll be 66 in a few months, I don’t think of myself as old and ready to retire to a rocking chair!  I take very good care of this body, as it’s the only one there is!, but this, too, takes time and mindful effort, from waking to bedtime.

All this notwithstanding, I still need to knit, especially in the evening, after dinner and my shower, whilst I de-stress.  And right now, the simpler the better.  So, I pulled out a simple garter stitch shawl with built-in I-cord that I began months ago, then tucked into a drawer whilst I knit on design samples.  

I’ve pulled out 4 stitch dictionaries to find the right edging, but the person I will be giving it to loved the bobble and sawtooth edging on the adaptation I knit of Susan Mills’ ‘Highland Fling’, so I may use it again on this shawl.

Unlike most scarves I’ve seen that begin at one skinny end, which then increases to a wider middle, then decreases down to the other skinny end, this one begins at the center bottom.  If one increases just one st at the beg of each row, it makes a deeper, less wide shawl, unless, of course, one keeps going.  If one increases one st at *both* the beg and end of every row, it creates width more quickly.

I am using 1 strand each of a DK wt. superfine merino with a fingering wt.    100% baby alpaca, on US size 10 (6mm) ndls, so that the garter stitch isn’t too dense.  A bit of drape in a shawl is a good thing!

In case you’d like to knit a similar shawl or scarf, this is how I began, inc’g just at the beg of rows:

 

Long Tail CO 3 sts, turn.
Row 1: (K1, M1) 2x, k1 = 5 sts, turn.
Row 2: (K1, M1)2x, yfwd, slip the last 3 sts purlwise = 7 sts, turn.
Row 3: K3 I-cord sts, M1, k1, yfwd, slip the last 3 sts purlwise = 8 sts, turn.
Row 4: K3 I-cord sts, M1, k2, yfwd, slip the last 3 sts purlwise = 9 sts, turn.
Row 5: K3 I-cord sts, M1, k3, yfwd, slip the last 3 sts purlwise = 10 sts, turn.

Continue until you have your desired width and depth, then BO in Attached I-cord.

If you have more foresight that I, CO with a long enough tail, so you can graft together the 2 I-cord edges at the tip.  I would do this especially if *not* adding an edging.

I plan on then CO sts for the edging and working a perpendicular join at the end of EOR.  I’ll post pics as I progress with it!

Now to go drizzle the orange icing I made onto the orange cake that I baked  today, using freshly juiced and zested oranges!  Good food at least takes his mind off his issues for a bit.

Onward!
Dawn

Free Pattern – Star Tams!

My gift to fellow knitters this holiday – a free pattern available on Ravelry and in my Payhip store – ‘Star Tams'.

The tams need only 1 skein of the tam’s MC with a small amount (approx 1/2 to 1 oz) of the CC color for the brim and I-cord bow.

Sampled in Cascade Yarns Eco Duo and Cloud.  Eco Duo is a beautifully soft merino singles, of which the Zebra colorway is my favorite!

Two samples are size M-L, and use the yarns held singly.  The 3rd sample is size S-M and uses the yarns held double.  As the Eco Duo is a palindrome, it's very easy to line up the colors, for knitting doubled.

Tams are a quick-to-knit gift for a loved one or yourself, and who doesn't love a one skein (ish) project!

Happy Knitting!
Dawn

New Pattern!

It took far longer than I wanted, but pattern #12 for this year (Nordic Kids’ Cardigan) is finally done and published to Ravelry, Etsy, and my website!  The 26 charts is what slowed me down, but I wanted the pattern to be easy enough to follow for almost any knitter.

One sample used Lamb’s Pride Worsted, one of my go-to yarns, and for the 2nd sample I used Garnstudio/Drops Nepal.  

I haven’t used Nepal in many years, the last time I think was for some socks, so I had forgotten how nice this yarn is, as well as inexpensive.  I no longer ask yarn companies for yarn support – I buy all the yarns for my patterns, so cost is definitely important.

I do try to use US grown and processed yarns, but I also love the softness that alpaca lends to yarns, and that means Peru.

Just two more patterns to finish up before the end of December, although ideally I’d like to get them finished in the next 10 days!  That may be over-reaching, but I know that once I begin getting and mailing out Christmas gifts and cards, my mind won’t be up to  writing patterns!  

Knitting, however, continues almost without interruption.  And these days, with hubby’s health throwing us curve balls now and then, having things to knit is imperative.  

This following cardigan design will likely be done in January, as this is the first sample, and I tend to want to knit 2 samples for sweater patterns.  It’s a teaser photo, as it’s showing the WS of the pattern!  I’m really pleased with the design, and the yarn (Valley Yarns Becket) is SO soft and cozy.  As you can see, it's in 2 blues, white, and sand – one of my favorite color groupings.  Can’t wait to wear it!

Personal-use knits tend to be socks – thick, thin, and everything in between!  But, this winter, I am adding a larger, personal-use item to the To-Knit list, and that’s a pair of wool slacks.  Wool pants on eBay tend to be lined and for going to work.  I don't like the former (cold nylon!) and I'm not doing the latter!  I have several patterns saved, which I need to study and, very likely, amend.  

Many years ago, I knit a pair of EZ’s tights/leggings, long ago deconstructed, when they were no longer needed.  If I didn’t need to wear Molnlycke’s Tubigrip from feet to knees to help the legs deal with their inclination towards swelling, I’d just reknit her tights in my now more slender size.  These days, though, I need pant legs with a bit of ease - no skinny legged jeans for me!

There’s still time for me to cogitate about what yarn I want to knit them in – Nepal?  Alaska?  Nature Spun Worsted?  Galway? A strand each extra fine merino and baby alpaca?  I intend on choosing wisely!

If you’re knitting or weaving holiday gifts, may your yarn never tangle, may your stitches be even, and may your selvedges be a thing of beauty!

Onward!
Dawn

The Finish Line

I have been diligently trying to create and release 12 new designs this year, and hopefully, in every year to come, in an effort to make up for far too many years when I couldn’t work on many new designs.

The 2 designs below are #’s 9 and 10 for this year, and as it’s October, it seems I am on track for this year!  At least until the holiday season and hubby’s new batch of upcoming surgeries derails me a bit, as well as the weaving I’d like to get back to, if only for a short time.  

And lest I forget, I still have outdoor garden work to finish, as well as cleaning the rest of the outdoor windows I began a week or so ago!

As I *am* only one person, some things have long ago fallen by the wayside, like the bi-weekly bread baking, or continuing with the bagel-making experiments, or even getting to finish this year’s spring cleaning!

12 patterns may not sound like a lot, but patterns do take a long time.  There’s knitting the samples, making the charts, writing, editing, and proofing the text, taking and adjusting oodles of photos, to get the best ones, then tweaking the layout, so everything logically fits into just as much space as it needs, and no more.  I tend to spend as much time writing the patterns as I do knitting the samples!

Some knitters may wonder if I use test knitters or tech editors.  Short answer: I do not.

Not only have I been designing and publishing my work for over 30 years, but my experience with designing for print publications for many years, as well as being a juried member of the AKD (Association of Knitwear Designers), previously known as PKDG (Professional Knitwear Designers Guild) helped hone these skills.

LOL, now I wouldn't mind having an assistant to take some of the load off, leaving me more time to design.  If said person was also good at creating social media posts and newsletters, all the better!  Like many creatives, I’m not very good at promoting myself.  

Although, to this end, I spent some time recently reinstalling the IOS into the older iPad.  It’s amazing how clogged up that thing got over the years.  Even after deleting everything that the iPad allows one to delete, its entire memory was still full.  

As we no longer depend on it for day-to-day productivity, I just re-installed the IOS from within iTunes on my iMac.  Now, it has under 400 MB memory used up for system, leaving me plenty of space for work. Yay!

I am not one to throw away old technology, willy nilly.  It will serve me to take photos, and hopefully, videos, to upload to instagram.  I do not need a cell phone, and hence do not have one, and although I researched how to upload to IG from a desktop, it was too bothersome to do it that way.  

Now I just need to find time to make IG posts, as well as the FB ones I normally do, and the Mailchimp new product emails, after uploading new designs to 4 websites!  But as the world has long gone visual, instead of written (more’s the pity, as I do love words!), I do need to try and fit into customer’s expectations.  We’ll see how it goes!

Now, those 2 new patterns!

Marina

About the Design:
This is an easy-to-knit and wear triangular scarf / mini shawl. I knit the first one many years ago in aran weight cashmere, although without the I-cord edging, and have used it almost every day! It serves as a scarf, and as a head scarf on cold mornings. It is knit from the center bottom outward, with Applied I-cord, and can be knit to any width.

I’ve sampled it in squishy, soft, undyed 100% superfine merino, as well as in frothy Cascade Yarns Kid Seta in a shimmering aquamarine held with Kraemer Yarns Stotts Ranch Limited in navy.  

Dimensions - before blocking
Width, tip to tip: 50”
Depth, at the center bottom: 12 to 12.5”

Finished Dimensions
Width, tip to tip: 52 to 54.5”  
(The aqua/navy fabric blocks a bit larger than the merino.)
Depth, at the center: 12.5 to 12.75”

Materials:
Natural Sample: YarnUndyed non-superwash merino, 182 yds/100 gr: 2 skeins
Sample weighs 159 gr. (5.6 oz.)

Aqua/Navy Sample: Cascade Yarns Kid Seta, 70% mohair, 30% silk, 230 yd / 25 gm: 3 balls #24 aquamarine; and 
Kraemer Yarns Stotts Ranch Limited, 52% Luxurious Diamond Fiber Kid Mohair / 48% Superfine Merino Wool, 610 yd / 100 gr: 1 skein
Sample weighs 109 gr. (3.85 oz.)

24-32” US size 10.5 (6.5 mm) ckn
2 Size 10.5 dpns

Tapestry ndl

Gauge:
Natural Merino Sample: 18 sts sts & 24 rows = 4” (10 cm) in St st, and 14 sts and 28 rows (7 ridges) = 4” in garter stitch with size 10.5 ndls.


Aqua / Navy Sample: 16 sts sts & 20 rows = 4” (10 cm) in St st, and 13 sts and 28 rows (7 ridges) = 4” in garter stitch with size 10.5 ndls.
To save time, take time to check gauge

Substitute Yarn Weight: Worsted to Aran (WPI = 11.5 to 13)

Skill Level: Beginner

Beach Roses Hat & Mittens

About The Design:
I first used this Fair Isle pattern for a cell phone cover, then immediately planned these women’s mittens and hat.  Most of the color changes are easy to work, only the center motif changes colors frequently.

The roomy mittens are worked Norwegian-style with a back of hand pattern, palm pattern, and 3-st stripes running up each side.  

You can knit the hat first, to get familiar with the patterning, as its only shaping is at the crown. I left the hat pompom-less to show off the flowers circling the top, in between the crown shaping stitches.  

This set would make a special gift!
 
Finished Dimensions
Hat Circ: 21.5”, Hat Depth to Top of Crown: 9”
Mitten Circ: 9”, Total Mitten Length: 10”
Cuff Length: 3”, Hand Length: 7”

Materials - Mittens
Lamb’s Pride Worsted, 85% wool / 15% mohair, 190 yd / 4 oz.:

2.64 oz. / 125 yds. #M10 Creme (MC),

.28 oz. / 13 yds. #M04 Charcoal Heather (A),
1.67 oz. / 79 yds. #M166 Plum Smoke (B),

.51 oz. / 24 yds. #M157 Orchid Blush (C),

.31 oz. / 15 yds. #M159 Deep Coral (E),

.08 oz. / 5 yds. #M03 Grey Heather (F), and
Harborside Aran, 100% wool, 162 yd / 100 gr.: .2 oz. / 10 yds. Sandstone (D).
One pair weighs 4.3 oz.

US size 5 (3.75 mm) dpns, set of 5
Tapestry ndl

4 stitch markers

Stitch holder or waste yarn

Materials - Hat
Lamb’s Pride Worsted:

1.87 oz. / 89 yds. #M10 Creme (MC),

.26 oz. / 13 yds. #M04 Charcoal Heather (A),

.46 oz. / 22 yds. #M166 Plum Smoke (B),

1.17 oz. / 56 yds. #M157 Orchid Blush (C),

.2 oz. / 10 yds. #M159 Deep Coral (E),

.11 oz. / 6 yds. #Mo3 Grey Heather (F), and
Harborside Aran: .19 oz. / 9 yds. Sandstone (D).
One hat weighs 3.88 ozs.

US size 7 (4.5 mm) dpns, set of 5
16-24” size 7 ckn

Tapestry ndl

6 stitch markers

Substitute Yarn Weight: heavy worsted

Gauge:
22 sts and 30 rnds = 4” (10 cm) in St st, and 24 and 26 sts = 4” in color patt with size 5 ndls, or size to give gauge.


20 sts and 28 rnds = 4” (10 cm) in St st, and 22 and 25 sts = 4” in color patt with size 7 ndls, or size to give gauge.

Marina is $3.50, Beach Roses is $6, both on Ravelry, Etsy, my site, and Lovecrafts.

Happy Knitting!
Dawn

This and That

I am nearing the end of the current spate of household projects.  8 of the 10 new LR and DR curtain panels have been shortened and re-hemmed, my bedroom curtains have been turned into Swedish blinds, another Swedish blind was made for the bathroom cabinet, and I revamped some disused curtains for the kitchen.

I still need to finish the last 2 curtains and sew new heat packs. But I needed a break from sewing, to re-knit several pairs of house socks that have worn out, and am knitting a couple/few more pairs, as I must have thick socks to wear around the house, but can run out of time as the holidays draw near.  

The re-knitting of socks seems to taunt me!  I get a pair re-knit, check that off the list, so I can get onto other work, then a week later, another pair needs re-knitting, then another.  It’s like laundry, cleaning, and cooking – they’re never done.

In between, I am trying to focus on knit designs, as I need some of them done, so I can get back to getting the floor loom put together and re-warped for the rest of the rugs I began  before the loom had to be dismantled and moved.

There’s 3 designs in the works with more to CO, which I won’t start until some of these projects are done and published.

After 30+ yrs of knitting socks, they are second nature to me, so sock knitting is a good way to fill the hours when I’m too tired to work on ‘real’ projects.  LOL, with everything I am responsible for, becoming too tired for ‘real’ work can sometimes be the rule, not the exception.  

Digression – I have recently taken notice of a well-known knit designer, who, in just 8 years or so has amassed hundreds of patterns, translated into a handful of languages.  

Granted, most of her work is uncomplicated stockinette, but I don’t know where she finds the time!  I’d love to be able to work full-time on my designs, whether knit, weaving, or spinning, but then nothing would ever get cooked or washed, as well as things done for hubby that he can no longer do.  I’d be lucky to have the time to squeeze in paying the bills and ordering ‘all’ the things we need ordered, and forget about having a garden!

Such production, and her massive popularity, has been making me feel small, like I’m wasting my time.  I don’t normally compare myself to others, eh, until now.  

I realize I am not her, I don’t have her life, and although a plain stockinette sweater or two are welcome additions to any wardrobe, I’d be bored to tears *only* making plain sweaters or plain anything.  I love cables and color patterns, especially the latter.  I need to honor that, and remember that.

Back to socks – the DK, worsted, and heavy worsted wt. socks last longer than the bulky wt. ones as I don’t wear them as often.  The bulky wt. ones give a nice padding underfoot, esp. on hard floors, so they wear out more quickly.

They can either be knit with a bulky wt. yarn or stranding a chunky wt. yarn (around 130 yds/100 gr), which gives the thickness of a bulky to SB wt., with even more squishy padding than when using a single yarn!  As with this latest pair of re-knit socks.  

I pulled out some old Cascade Yarns Pastaza and a skein of their Sitka, both discontinued, both soft singles, which one doesn’t ordinarily think of using in socks, but I thought, What the heck, I’ll try them together.  I chose the smallest possible stranding pattern of K1A, K1B, alternated on the following rnd with K1B, K1A, creating a tiny dice, and used US size 5 (3.75 mm) dpns, if I remember correctly, though it could have been US 4's.  Bad on me, I didn't keep notes.

 

 

Yes, I could have kept the pattern repeating the same rnd for stripes, but, as with heel stitch vs eye of partridge stitch, stranded stripes tend to pull in more than alternating the color placement on each rnd.

Thus far, they are soft, cozy, and warm.  They do pill, but I expected that.  We shall see how long they last.

Onward!
Dawn

Favorite Movies

 I thought I’d post all the movies I love, and have watched more times than I can recall!  These aren’t all the movies I’ve ever seen, of course, just the ones I enjoy re-watching.  I tend not to re-watch high drama or sad stories, much preferring comedies or romantic comedies.

In alphabetical order:

27 Days
84 Charing Cross Road
9 to 5

About Time
A Fish Called Wanda
A Good Woman
A Good Year
A Knight’s Tale
A League of Their Own
Always
Amadeus
Amelie
A Month by the Lake
An Affair to Remember
Anne of Green Gables (1985)
A Room with a View
Arsenic and Old Lace
Auntie Mame

Baby Boom
Back to the Future trilogy
Barefoot in the Park
Becoming Jane
Bed & Breakfast
Beetlejuice
Beverly Hills Cop
Big
Biloxi Blues
Blame it on Rio
Blazing Saddles
Blind Date
Breakfast at Tiffany’s
Brighton Beach Memoirs
Bringing up Baby

Caddyshack
Casablanca
Catch Me If You Can
Chances Are
Charade
Cheaper by the Dozen (1950)
Chocolat
Christmas In Connecticut
Christmas Vacation
City of Angels
Clara’s Heart
Clue
Clueless
Coco Before Chanel
Cold Comfort Farm
Cousins

Dangerous Liaisons
Death at a Funeral
Death Becomes Her
Defending Your Life
Dejå Vu
Demolition Man
Desk Set
Desperately Seeking Susan
Dirty Dancing
Divine Secrets of the Ya Ya Sisterhood
Doctor Zhivago
Don’t Tell Mom the Babysitter’s Dead

Easy Virtue
Eat Pray Love
Emma (1996)
Enchanted April
Erin Brokovich
Ever After

Family Stone
Father Goose
Feds
Ferris Bueller’s Day Off
Field of Dreams
Flying Down to Rio
Follow the Fleet
For Keeps
For Pete’s Sake
Foul Play
Four Weddings and a Funeral
French Kiss
From Time to Time
Funny Farm
Funny Girl

Gaslight
Ghostbusters
Gigi
Girl with a Pearl Earring
Gosford Park
Guarding Tess

Hannah and Her Sisters
Harry Potter (all of them)
Heartburn
Hello Dolly
He Said, She Said
His Girl Friday
Hope Floats
Houseboat
Howard’s End
Hysteria

Indiana Jones movies
I.Q.
Immortal Beloved
Indiana Jones (all 4 mvcies)
Inner Space
I Remember Mama
I Was a Male War Bride

James Bond movies (all of them)
Jewel of the Nile
Joy Luck Club
Julie & Julia
Jumpin’ Jack Flash
Just Like Heaven

Kiss Me Goodbye

Ladies in Black
Ladies in Lavender
Legally Blonde
Leap Year
Life with Father
Love Actually
Love Punch
Love’s Kitchen

Mamma Mia
Mannequin
Mansfield Park
Meet John Doe
Mermaids
Milk Money
Miracle on 34th Street (1947)
Mission Impossible
Miss Congeniality
Miss Pettigrew Lives for a Day
Mona Lisa Smile
Monkey Business
Moonstruck
Mr. Blandings Builds His Dream House
Mr. Lucky
Mr. Mom
Mrs. Dalloway
Mrs. Doubtfire
Mrs. Harris Goes to Paris
Mrs. Henderson Presents
Mrs. Miniver
Murder Ahoy
Murder at the Gallop
Murder by Death
Murder Most Foul
Murder on the Nile
Murder She Said
Murphy’s Romance
My Cousin Vinny
My Blue Heaven
My Fair Lady
My Favorite Wife
My Old Lady
Mystic Pizza

Nadine
Nanny McPhee
None but the Lonely Heart
Notorious
Notting Hill

Ocean’s Eleven
Ocean’s Twelve

On a Clear Day You Can See Forever
Out of Africa
Overboard

Peggy Sue Got Married
Penny Serenade
Persuasion
Peter’s Friends
Postcards From the Edge
Practical Magic
Pretty in Pink
Pretty Woman
Prime
P.S. I Love You

Radio Days
Rain Man
Raising Arizona
Real Genius
Remains of the Day
Roberta
Robin Hood Men in Tights
Romancing the Stone
Roxanne
Runaway Bride

Scrooged
Searching for Bobby Fischer
Seems Like Old Times
Sense and Sensibility (1995)
Shadowlands (1993)
Shall We Dance
Shining Through
Shirley Valentie
Sister Act
Sixteen Candles
Sleepless in Seattle
Soap Dish
Something to Talk About
Somewhere in Time
Star Wars (ßoriginal trilogy)
Steel Magnolias
Stranger Than Fiction
Sunday in New York
Suspicion
Sweet Charity
Sweet Home Alabama
Swing Time

The Age of Innocence
The Bachelor and the Bobby Soxer
The Best Years of Our Lives
The Big Chill
The Bishop’s Wife (1948)
The Breakfast Club
The Bridges of Madison County
The Color Purple
The Colour Room
The Devil Wears Prada
The Divorce of Lady X
The End of the Affair
The Favor
The Fifth Element
The First Wives Club
The French Lieutenant’s Woman
The Gathering Storm
The Gay Divorceé
The Ghost and Mrs. Muir
The Goodbye Girl
The Help
The Holiday
The Importance of Being Earnest (2002)
The Inn of the Sixth Happiness
The Italian Job (2003)
The Lake House
The Last of the Blonde Bombshells
The Long Walk Home
The Love Letter
The Magic of Ordinary Dats
The Money Pit
The Notebook
The Odd Couple
The Pelican Brief
The Philadelphia Story
The Prince and I
The Prince and the Showgirl
The Princess Bride
The Proposal
The Quiet Man
The Red Violin
The Saint
The Talk of the Town
The Thin Man
The Thomas Crown Affair (1990)
The Trouble with Angels
The Trouble with Harry

The Way We Were
The Winslow Boy (1999)
The Winter Guest
The Women (2008)
Titanic
Tootsie
Top Hat
Trading Places
Troop Beverly Hills
Two If by Sea
Two Weeks Notice

Under the Tuscan Sun

Victor/Victoria

Waking Ned Devine
Weekend at Bernie’s
What a Girl Wants

What's Up Doc?
When Harry Met Sally
Where Angels Go…Trouble Follows
While You Were Sleeping
Who’s That Girl
Witness
Woman of the Year
Working Girl

Yentl
Young Frankenstein
You’ve Got Mail

Onward!
Dawn

Windows to the World

Now and then I’ve been looking online for fabric so to sew new living room and dining room curtains.  The rooms are open to each other, bisected by the upstairs staircase, so the rooms need coordinating decor.  The wine colored swag valances, which we’ve had since we moved in now remind hubby of a funeral home!  So, they need to go into storage, aka the too small linen closet.

We both like the Waverly Charmed Life and Rustic Life toiles, but I actually found it to be far less costly to just buy the curtain panels and tie backs, then the fabric, to sew them myself.

Amazon has the curtain panels reasonably enough.  As they didn’t have a 54” length, which we need to clear the top of the long radiators under the windows, I bought the 84” length, which I’ll trim and re-hem. This will also give me extra fabric for pillows and whatnot.

Caveat:  The listing says the color is cornflower.  It isn’t, it’s much closer to navy.  I have this toile in cornflower, which is much lighter.  The color isn’t what I prefer, but hubby doesn’t mind it, so I’ll live with it.

They are unlined, but a heavy enough fabric which doesn’t necessarily need lining.  So, I’ll press, cut and re-hem and hang them as they are, BUT, 4 of the 5 windows face south, with no trees out front to block any of the sun.  The 5th window faces west, so is only slightly less sunny.  Sun = fading. 

Even the curtains on the east-facing kitchen window and kitchen door window have all faded, and that’s just east light!  SO, one pair at a time will come back down and get a muslin lining.  It will be a less onerous task to tackle that project a bit a time instead of lining all 10 panels at this particular point in time.  Sewing is done in the dining room, which is warm in the summer with no AC in that room, so, small doses of working there is preferable.

As the sewing machine was coming out anyway, I figured I’d tackle all the other windows that needed a redo.

I began with the bathroom cupboard, which stores toiletries and medical supplies.  The sink is a pedestal, so there’s no built-in vanity to put all this stuff.  I’ve been wanting to make a Swedish blind for the cupboard for quite awhile, ever since I sewed new bathroom curtains and a shelf topper in this blue, white. and yellow plaid fabric.

So, this was the first project to get done.  Swedish blinds are great – they only need a face and lining fabrics not much wider than the window, which can contrast or coordinate, a couple of 1” plastic O or D rings, some cotton cord, a window cleat, and about a 1/2” dowel or scrap length of narrow wood for the bottom of the blind.  As the blinds use far less fabric than a pair of panels, they are less costly to sew.

Traditionally, the blinds were attached to a wood batten and secured to the top of the window frame, as shown in "Swedish Style" by Katrin Cargill.

I prefer something more impermanent, so I just hang the Swedish blind from a tension rod.  This makes it super easy to take down, vacuum or wash the fabric and cording.

The cotton cord on this blind, and the 2 coming up below, was some soft cotton 2-ply yarn I had no other use for.  I ran it through my spinning wheel, adding a lot more twist, then cabled it back onto itself.  Although I have some proper cotton cording, I find it to be rough on the hands.

Next up was revamping my bedroom curtains.  I sewed plain, lined panels with ties several/many? years ago, but not only did I get tired of tying the curtains up every morning, then letting them down at night, but, even with the double layers of fabric, they still let in too much light at this time of year.  

So, they came down, got washed and pressed, then cut down to size.  The face fabric then became the reverse side fabric, and I added a darker allover print to the face, then sewed tabs from the wide selvedge.  As we were all out of scrap wood or dowels, I temporarily used the rollers I saved from the old living room and dining room roller shades, when the vinyl went kaput and we needed to replace them.  

As you can see, I need to take the shade down and resew the tabs at the top that hold the 'O' rings.  I should have sewn the tabs down much closer to the rings, to the tabs don't pull over, as you can see in the photo.

I am seriously no fan of vinyl, and avoid it if I can, but I share the house with hubby who needs the living room as dark as possible at night, as he’s needed to sleep there since the first of the recent bout of surgeries, with more to come.

Next up is making new curtains for the kitchen, the toughest project, as the kitchen window is 70” wide x 33” deep.  This window needs a plain, light blocking panel that ties up at 2 places, as the window faces east.  All that light is far too bright in the morning, especially for someone (not me) who tends to wake with a massive headache.  So, it needs to tie up and then be let down at night.  It’s too wide a span to easily have a Swedish blind.

Whatever I sew for the window, though, also needs to coordinate with the kitchen door window and the valance for the sliding glass doors in the breakfast room.  LOL, all using just what I have on hand.

All for another post!

Onward!
Dawn