Stitches in Play: tidbit tuesday

I'm quite aware that it's Wednesday but this mama forgot that this Tuesday I had to take three kiddos to vote, then for a run in the park followed by some much needed sweater shopping. Then they insisted they were hungry and made me feed them. And when we got home after taekwondo it was way too dark to take pictures - darn time change. Enough excuses...

tidbit #1 - How I sew buttons on to knits.

1. Thread needle with wool. Double yarn but do not knot.

2. Pull needle through from the back, leaving a long tail of yarn.

3. Pull back through the second buttonhole.

4. Knot the two ends. Twice.

5. Snip ends. That's it.

I like this very simple method better than the traditional way because it's fast, secure and doesn't require much stabbing into the knit sweater - allowing you to remove the button for washing or for when you want to switch it out for a new look.

tidbit #2 - piecing pieced strips without pinning. These are for the Leslie quilt.

Before beginning to sew, align the first seams (not the the tops of the strips) because it's most important that the seams match. Use sewing machine to sew just past this first intersection. Stop with the needle in the down position and ...

align the second intersection and sew over it. Stop with the needle in the down position and align the next seam. You will continue gently tugging the fabric to match the seams til you get to the end of the strip. See finished blocks here. I find this method to be much faster than pinning all 10 intersections before heading to the sewing machine. (I tried to take photos with the fabric in the sewing machine but they turned out way too dark - hope this makes sense)

This method works for all quilts patterns where two or more seams need to be matched - try it when sewing blocks together into a quilt top.

Hope you find a way to incorporate these tidbits into projects you're working on.

I'd like to thank everyone on all the neighborly love from the last post. I will be posting the top down "recipe" for the mods I made to the original neighborly later this week. I also ordered more of the same wool (because I love it so much Jennifer) to knit a 'big girl' neighborly and I will be sharing the pattern once I get it knit up.

Also, several weeks back I dvr'd Oprah to see the show with Stephanie Nielson - that's one inspiring lady. But apparently I don't know how to program my dvr because yesterday I realized that I have taped the last 16 Oprah shows. So last night I browsed through a show on shoes and accessories from last week that featured this knit "infinity scarf' from the Limited. Ladies, we can so save $40 and make this "must have" fashion accessory! I'm thinking some:

size 13 circular needles,

250 yards of bulky yarn, and

120 stitches, joined in the round

in a 1x1 rib pattern.

Easy peasy! I'm going to start mine today. Let me know if you decide to knit one. After all, how can we enter the winter season without the "must have" accessory?

Have a fantastic rest of the day!

Comments

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Love the tips. That scarf is great and sure looks easy. I'll have to hunt up some bulky yarn :)

Posted by: Andrea | November 04, 2009 at 03:00 PM

great tips and thanks for the heads up on the must have accessory. wouldn't want to run into oprah on the street without one on! seriously, it is cute! I think it would be great in a nice tweedy yarn too! have a great end of the week!

Posted by: Lisa Q | November 04, 2009 at 05:52 PM