Full of Fail and Win

Image courtesy of Failblog.org, saved to my server

I can very easily fall into the "Life is full of Fail" mode. I make goals, lists, and expectations for myself every day. Yet depending on the day, my hormones, interruptions, and other variables, I fall short. So over the past few weeks, I've been trying to change my mindset from "Unattainable Perfection" to "Reasonable". "Reasonable" is not slacking, procrastinating, or giving up. It is acknowledging "This is a temporary place where I can rest and be refreshed while on this earth." It is a place of nurture and safety, not a place to be enslaved by the never ending to-do list. Yep, that all sounds good on the computer screen, now the difficulty is living it.

One of the 'wins' this month is finding a chair for our bedroom area. I wanted something simple, mid-century, with arms. Enter Craigslist. Here's my score - $10.00 and a good hot soapy bleach bath later (she's currently covered in white 'pleather') This fall, she will be off to be recovered, but for right now I enjoy her retro cool in the corner.

Another win is this scarf for a coworker. I knitted one for her a few years ago, which she promptly gave to her son/lost. I'm counting this one as a win because it was knit with (3) 1.00 skeins of mixed fiber yarn from Big Lots and the knit-up yarn is cuter than the yarn in the skein led me to believe. Hmmm, maybe I should go back and stock up on a few more colors. I'm also counting this as a win since the shrug cardi I'm currently knitting is too big - the "I didn't swatch" fail strikes again!

100 things

Image courtesy of Homewallcolor.net, saved to my server.

I've been helping some people prepare for yard sales and frankly I'm stunned by the amount of crap. Especially in my own home. This past Thursday a friend called to ask me if I would like to participate in her yard sale on Saturday. Sure - I thought - I have a few items I could scrounge up. 30 minutes later, I had filled two computer paper boxes full of stuff - and I wasn't even trying. This challenge intrigues me. Not that I want to get down to 100 items, but I like the concept of purging down to what you really want to keep.

Image courtesy of LifeHacker, saved to my server.

Which one would you rather live in?

Sprucing up and movin' on

July 2010 is my 6-year anniversary in blogdom and I definitely needed to do a little housekeeping 'round these parts. Gathering Wool originally started as a knitting blog, but over the past two years I've been branching off into more DIY/home improvement. So I've decided to change things up a bit: I'll still be knitting, but it won't be the main focus of the blog. I'm freeing myself up to post random thoughts and commentaries.

So welcome to the new Gathering Wool. I hope you like it!

My new best friend

Edited to join up with Kimba's DIY day

Hi Miniwax Stain - I think I love you.

Here's one of our bedside tables before meeting my new best friend. I purchased these end tables many moons ago from Spiegel. They are solid Mexican wood and craftsmanship, complete with rustic iron hardware. But I was feeling a bit 'meh' about look.

Here is one of the tables after just one coat of Miniwax 'Red Mahogany' and some $0.97 knobs from Lowes. I know the color doesn't look much different on the blog, but trust me. It's gone from a flat yellowish brown to a deep red-brown lustre. The stain still lets the rustic imperfections of the wood show through, but gives it a more finished feel. I think I'm going to like the knobs way more than the dangling metal pieces, too.

(By the way, that's my new craft room curtain divider behind the finished nightstand.)

And I even had time to whip up a quick scarf this week. This is a very simple 4-stitch, 2-row lace pattern that looks like you have worked your fingers to the bone.

Project specs: 1 skein of NaturallyCaron.com's Country in 'Berry Frappe' on #7 needles.

And there's still knitting

Here is the Tutti-Frutti Citron 2.0. I used some gorgeous Mirasol Hacho in the Tutti Frutti colorway. And the little peak at the neckline is only there in the photo, not when I wear it.

I also knocked off a pair of Wool Ease socks, then went out and immediately more yarn in different colors to knit some more. I actually got 1 pair of socks out of 1 skein. Bonus!

Finished home projects - really!

Linky to today's DIY day!

Look! The bathroom vanity is finally finished. 2 coats of primer, some Valspar High Gloss White, 2 brushed nickel handles, and several weeks later. Not shown is the painted interior (just some white primer) and peel-and-stick tiles to cover up the dark, shaggy chipboard floor.

The finished trim - much better than the nasty, lumpy caulk! PVC outdoor trim from Lowes.

Here is a seashell collage I made with some of our souvenir shells, a Tarjay shadow box, and some scrapbook paper as a mat.

And finally, the finished quilted headboard. I joined uniform strips of scrap fabrics, used cotton quilt batting, and an old flat sheet as backing. To quilt, I sewed down the center of each strip. The quilt is edged with some premade quilt edging found at JoAnn Fabulous (tm by my friend Sam S.) I hot-glued velcro strips to the back of the quilt and to the front of a finished 48 x 24 canvas, and attached. I should be able to easily remove the quilt to wash it. (Cashew would like you to know she was not happy to have been moved several times in the process of hanging and photographing this project!)

When I was at Joann's I also found some material to recover the stool. 15 minutes to a better-wearing cover!

And then there was one

That's right, I'm down to one WIP and even that one should be done this weekend. As a linear person, this makes me happy. Work has been crazy: I'm training one person right now and another newbie comes on board in a week. So sitting back with nothing in process to evaluate my stash and a new project sounds very appealing.

I did do a stash sift last weekend and have accumulated another box of yarn/patterns/misc. stuff to send to the Knitting Ladies at Interim House. I encourage you to send any of your destashing their way. It's a great way to spring clean and it all goes to good use.

Here are two projects I finished this week. The first one was a quick knit based on the ubiquitous Clapotis. Clapotease (the scarf) was knit using 2 skeins of Cascade Cotton Rich DK in color 8176 - a rich cream color on #7 needles.

I also finished a pair of socks using Premier's Deborah Norville Collection in "Tanzanite". I guess it's the bamboo in the yarn that makes these socks so squooshy. I barely touched the second skein of yarn (only needed it for the toe of the second sock). My only complaint is the yarn was a bit splitty, but I adjusted pretty quickly.

My second Citron is down to the last ruffly edge. I love this yarn! It's Mirasol's Hacho in shade 300 (which they call Tutti Frutti). I definitely am going to pick up more of this stuff when I'm in State College a few months from now.

The Ugly and The Pretty

Edited to join up with Kimba's DIY day -

First the pretty:

I took this -

and created this with just a little Kilz primer, some leftover paint, and Loctite.

And I finally took the pinecone lights down and put up this spring rag garland - I'm thinking spring here.

Then there was the Ugly:

This would be the bathroom caulking.

And the very sad little vanity.

This would be the Catman removing said nasty caulk (our bathroom is the size of a postage stamp, hence his draping over the edge of the tub. )

We got the caulk up, the trim down, and the vanity primed.

Stay tuned for the reveal next weekend.

I got 'er done

Part of the fun over at Kimba's DIY day!

The red cropped cardi was finished by Valentine's Day. I didn't wear it yet, but it's done. I'm not overjoyed by the sleeves, but after blocking they seemed to settle down a bit.

Project specs: pattern of my own devising using just under 10 skeins of Berroco Pure Merino on #7 needles. The buttons were salvaged off a jacket.

The other FO is the sock yarn scarf. This project made a reasonable dent in the sock yarn remnants, and I definitely think I'll do something like this again.

Project specs: the pattern is knit in the round on #4 double point needles, alternating strands of remnant sock yarn (2 colors -switching out to a new color when one runs out). The ends of the scarf are knit using 2 x 2 ribbing in solid black (mimicking a Gap scarf from last winter). The best part? All the ends are concealed in the tube so no weaving in! Particularly nice when you've got close to a bazillion little pieces.

Hopefully next week, I'll have a finished quilted headboard and a little DIY cake stand to show off...

A table's tile tale

Join the party over at A Soft Place to Land's DIY Day!

We've had this table for 25 years - it was our first 'new furniture' purchase a few days after we got married. It has served us as a dining table and a desk. It's been in storage and has moved with us 7 times. It has been a great little work horse, but unfortunately the white laminate top was showing its age. I thought about painting the top, upholstering it with oilcloth, or covering it with cork. Recognizing this table is always going to be a work horse and not a fine thoroughbred, I decided on the cheap and easy.

A few .88 cent peel-and-stick tiles from Lowes and I think our little table's ready for the Kentucky Derby (or at least a mint julep!)

Maybe by Valentine's Day?

Maybe by Valentine's Day, I'll be done with the Red Cardi. Or maybe not. I did rework the shoulders on the front and back panels and now just have to stitch them together to make sure they work. Sleeve #1 has been started, but I'm wavering on whether to make them 3/4-length or full-length. Like I said, maybe by V-day.

But at least my Christmas trip project has been completed and blocked. Citron was a great knit: fun and fast. The only problem I encountered was trying to find a cat-free place to block it out. Those cats are lucky I love 'em.

Reuse, recycle, and some lemonade

Linked to Kimba's DIY day

One of the first projects I made with my new sewing machine was a duvet cover. Here in Vermit, the nights get chilly early and last well into the spring. I sewed two flannel flat sheets (the fitted sheets had long worn out - why IS that?) together on 3 sides.

Since one sheet was a bit longer than the other, I folded it over, envelope-style. I created buttonholes on the top of both sheets, and sewed buttons to the duvet itself. By buttoning through both sheets, the duvet stays in place and is easy to shake out when I make the bed.

My lemonade comes from another project I'm working on: an aquarium. I was a bit impatient and purchased some plants before reading up on what I actually needed. 2 of the 3 plants I bought are not suitable for full submersion. So I put on my thinking cap and came up with this:

I'm 'lucky' to have an antiques mall within walking distance of my office and during my lunch hour this week, I went exploring.The terrarium itself is a heavy glass canister with a ground glass stopper. Hopefully, this little habitat will survive the cold weeks that are still ahead of us!

Learning my lessons

Over the past year, I've been disciplining myself on frogging a project at the point when I realize it's going south. This has been extremely difficult in some cases, but well worth the added hassle when I finally finish.

Two projects right now are at the frogging stage. #1 is the red sweater set: I realized the shoulder decreases were not going to meet up properly, so I've frogged all the panels back to the pre-decrease point. *sigh* The other project is my quilted headboard. I didn't properly baste/pin down the quilted lining and now, even though the lining will be concealed, I'm ripping out stitches to fix it.

The main problem with do-overs is the momentum isn't there. So I've imposed a "no new projects" rule until I finish these two. Yeah, we'll see how that goes!

Vacation finds

Today is the first DIY of 2010 - yippee!

I found this ironstone soap dish during our PA trip - $2.00 for almost pristine condition! The fabric is another find during the same trip. I've been brainstorming an idea for a larger pincushion...

And this is what I came up with! I made a cardstock template for the base, used leftover fiberfill and then handstitched a little pillow. I applied two little Velcro dots to the bottom of the cushion and the bowl of the dish to keep the pillow stationary as I add/remove the pins.

During the same trip, I found this fabric. Again a little fiberfill to puff up the top slightly, some Elmers glue, and a piece of scrapbook paper on the underside of the lid to cover up the edges of the fabric and I'm done. Total time for both projects? 30 minutes tops! Total cost? Less than $5.00!

Let the resolutions begin!

Here's resolving that 2010 will be a better blog year for me! To get this party started, some FOs and WIPs. First, the finished stuff:

Two neckwarmers! The multicolor one uses Opal's Harry Potter and the Halfblood Prince sock yarn in the "Lupin" colorway. The pattern is a lace rib done on #2 circs. The solid warmer is Elsebeth Lavold's Eucool (75% wool, 25% eucalyptus) in a broken lace rib on #6 circs.

On our annual holiday trip to PA, I worked on Citron.

I'm a few rows away from the ruffled edging and very excited to see how it will turn out after blocking. The yarn is a $2.00 cone of mohair that I picked up from the Essex Community Yarn Sale this past summer. As with most coned yarn, it looks like I've hardly made a dent in it!

I realized I'm hurting on the sock front, so I snagged a few balls of Deborah Norville's Serenity Sock yarn (superwash wool/bamboo/nylon) at Joanns for $2.50/skein. This is Tanzanite. I hope it knits up as nicely as it feels/looks.

After reading about mirasolperu.com's Miski Peruvian baby llama on Ravelry, I had to make a stop at Stitch Your Art Out in Pine Grove Mills, PA (right outside State College).

The yarn did not disappoint. In addition to picking up the celadon and the chocolate (with purpley bits) yarn, I also scored 2 skeins of the 100% merino wool in this gorgeous hand dyed colorway. Must be the post-holiday onset that makes me gravitate to these colors!

I'm back to work tomorrow, so I'm off now to see if I can finish Citron today! Happy New Year!

Some kitchen projects

The undersink area in my kitchen was kinda scary. At one point there had been a leak which caused water damage as well as some black moldy stuff. My landlord fixed the leak, but we hadn't done anything with the stained wood. The area had become a place for the trash can and a spider safari for our cat, Jack. Here it is with one coat of primer (I couldn't bring myself to photograph it in its naked state.)

And here it is after 1) two coats of primer, 2) 6 self-adhesive tiles from Lowes, and 3) quarter round molding. For $12.00 and a few hours of work, I'm in love. I just want to open the cupboard doors and gaze into the space. The CatMan thinks I've really lost it this time. He might be right.
Here's another little project with big impact.The veneer on the edge of my cabinet shelves needed some work. I wanted to do something quick and easy. All you DIYers inspired me! Before -

I purchased a thin decorative strip from my boys at Lowes and the CatMan cut it. I then used some leftover stain from the hutch and the craft desk projects: I applied one coat of Dark Walnut, let it dry then applied one coat of Gunstock. It turned out to be a perfect match! I glued down the strips with wood glue and used Frog Tape to hold them there until the glue dried. Total cost of the project - $8.00 for the piece of trim.