Week 1: Day 1

Went to University Art today to pick up things I don't have for class. Turns out I have mostly everything, but I figured I needed some new paint and I didn't have anything to paint on.

Tonight I'll do my reading, and hopefully tomorrow, I begin some painting...

Yikes!

I just signed up for Get Your Paint On. Drawing and sketching was on my list of resolutions, and I've been wanting to learn more about painting. I just can't seem to figure out how it's done. The course seems to be just what I need: online, at my own pace, nearly anonymous...but I need to make sure I actually do something. :-)

Living is easy in California

70 degrees in January? Unbelievable isn't it? I've been to the coast twice in the past 4 days, and both times it was sunny and warm(ish). But it's supposed to get foggy again...I picked up the January 2011 edition of Country Living (British Edition) to get in a wintery mood. Aran blankets, wool knitted hot water bottle covers, a henkeeper's diary, listening to gardening stories, and a profile of Helen Swantson, the creator of Helkat Designs...ah...that's more like it.

New Year, New Knits

I've been reading more than crafting lately, but I did finish a few knits before the holidays. I didn't take any photos, though. What was I thinking? I also started two silly projects before Christmas: a dog sweater for a stuffed Westie from IKEA and a Christmas stocking that I've been planning for at least 3 years. There was no way I was going to get either finished, and no real reason to finish them.

First, the stocking. I had originally wanted to make a striped stocking, but I really don't like knitting stripes and carrying the yarn along, especially inside a tube. I ended up using the yarn for a couple of other projects, so I had to plan a little. And then it turns out, I received a pair of socks for Christmas with a similar color scheme. Great minds think alike. :-) My stocking has a short-row heel; that's why it won't lie flat.

For the dog sweater, I thought red would be nice for a white dog. I wanted to try making a one-piece sweater so I wouldn't have to work any seams. I started at the back end working towards the front. I worked the back for a few inches then added stitches for under the tummy and knit in the round for a bit. I separated for the front and back when I got to the front legs. The back was long enough once I got to the end of the leg opening, but the front need more length. I used short row shaping to increase the length in front after rejoining the front and back. The shaping looks similar to seams along the sides of the dog's chest. I also had to decrease the number of stitches at the front of the neck, so it looks a little blousy.

I'm pretty happy with the results, but learned that with dog sweaters, you really need to have the dog handy so you can check the measurements and hold up the sweater to the dog. Each dog has it's own shape, so each sweater needs to be customized.