Stitches West 2014

Wow, this annual convention just never fails to impress me. I always have a great time, but this year was amazing. My friends and I decided to take the Argyle sock knitting class together. This class started at 8:30am and ended at 5pm. I was so exhausted, but oh boy. It was so fun much! We ran through the marketplace in two hours during our lunch break. And we squeezed lunch during those two short hours as well.

Check out some of my favorite vendors from this year.

Knitter's Brewing Company: They had these $5 project bags that I love. My Argyle sock knitting instructor got a few and highly recommended. You know it's good when your teacher tells you so, right? I love the side pockets; they keep everything organized.

 My new project bag storing my Argyle sock. 

I got a few more for family. 

Big Bad Wool: This is a new booth that I haven't seen before. The owner (I think?) had her seven months old baby in her arms the entire time while she was manning the booth. I have no idea how she managed to do this with a big smile on her face. I admired her very much. I got the "Wee Cardigan" and yarn to make a soft cardigan for my little one. You see the orange pinkish yarn below? That's for this cardigan. 

These buttons made out of wood are so cute!

This is a corner of her booth with the Wee Cardigan on display.

Chromaticity Cowl: I am going to make one of these with the Bugga yarn. I am in love with this cowl design. I met the designer, Miriam Felton. She was so sweet and super helpful. She even showed me her current project. It's more fascinating for me to meet these designers than Brad Pitt? Is that weird?

Pepperberry Knits: This is also a new vendor with lovely patterns. The booth was super cute and inviting. If I had more time, I think I would sit down on the couch and just start knitting away. I purchased the Hannah hat pattern from this booth.

I am going to do another post just on the Argyle sock class I took!

Scrappy Hour Glass Doll Quilt

I am a huge fan of mini quilts. The instant gratification, opportunity to hand quilt, and being able to play with different fabrics make mini quilts the perfect project for me. I love Kathleen Tracy's civil war mini quilts. I have several of her books, and I recently finished a mini quilt top using her kit. It's sitting in my Hingerberg hoop in the process of being hand quilted.  By the way, do you remove the quilt from the hoop when you are not working on the quilt? I have been too lazy to do this...

I love how these "ugly" colors come together so nicely. 

Although I have no clue what I am going to do with it, I am enjoying the process of making this quilt. It looks like my "unfinished project" drawer has several more mini quilt tops waiting to be quilted. I better get on that!

Are you excited about Stitches West? Two of my knitting friends and I are taking a Argyle sock class together. I am beyond excited to spend time with them! 

Historical Quilts and Reproduction Fabrics

I have been super into historical quilts lately. I am fascinated by the stories behind them and the women who created them. I came across two YouTube videos (part one and two) by Eleanor Burns. They are called "Quilts from the Underground Railroad." Apparently quilts from that time were "coded" and used to navigate escape from slavery. For example, the Monkey Wrench Quilt was the first quilt displayed as a signal to gather your supplies and prepare for the escape. I don't think this concept was validated by historians, but who care!? I love the idea of it. I am tempted to make a collection of these quilts.

I visited the San Jose Museum of Quilts and Textiles not too long ago. Although those were not related to Underground Railroad, I enjoyed seeing some historical quilts. I wasn't super into the textiles. Some of my favorites:

 "Log Cabin, Courthouse Steps Variation, c. 1900. Unknown maker. Hand and machine pieced, hand and machine quilted."

 "Job's Troubles, c. 1925. Sarah Shields Cross (1856-1940). Hand pieced and quilted"

Here is a close-up of the hand quilting. It's simply beautiful. 

"Tumbling Blocks, c. 1900. Unknown maker. Hand pieced and quilted."

What did I learn from my visit you ask? You must label your quilts! The makers spent hours working on these quilts, but we will never know their names. 

If historical quilts weren't enough, I coincidentally read "The House Girl" this past week. It's all about escaping slavery in 1850. Now is that enough history or what!?

I am working on a small wall hanging using reproduction fabrics. I will share a photo with you soon!

Mini Quilts

Did all of you have a good Christmas? I hope Santa came and brought you everything on your wishlist :)

I wanted to do a little bit of quilting, so I managed to whipped up these little quilts in two evenings. They are so fun to make. You know those Moda candy charm packs? They are perfect for these mini quilts. The pack I used here is Tapestry by Joanna for Fig Tree & Co. It's such a beautiful collection.

We have a busy day ahead of us. Enjoy this great day! :)

Buttons for Baby Garments

I finished making the Highbury baby vest in one weekend using the Madeleine Tosh Vintage yarn. The yarn was wonderful to work with, and the pattern was super easy to follow. The entire vest was completed in one piece and no seaming was needed! Let me say that again... no seaming! I really love putting a vest on my little one in the morning. It keeps her warm, and it's just so easy to put on and off.

 I love the cable detail on this vest. 

Although I made four button holes as instructed by the pattern, I decided not to put buttons on this vest because my little one puts everything she can find in her mouth. So instead, I attached four snaps onto a ribbon, then I hand sewn the ribbon onto the button band. It came out great. Please let me know if you would like a detailed post on how I did that. I couldn't find much on how best to sew buttons on baby garments, so I came up with this technique.

Close-up of the button bands.

This vest was so simple and fun to make, I am casting on another one!