Mazie has a new sweater

Posted on October 24, 2009 by Stefanie

…and she let me take some pictures of it!

I actually did the math on this one before we moved, Choo Choo Karen knit it up, Nipperknits Jenn Jarvis edited it, and we’ve been waiting for it to be cool enough to wear it! Mazie wore her new sweater to the park, too!

She’s such a big girl! We ran around the pond, fed the ducks, climbed on the equipment, slid down the slide, played in a pickup soccer game, were envious of some other kids’ jumpy castle, and then came home for a looooong nap.

That’s a lot of activities for a 21-month-old and a big old pregnant lady!

This is the “Gender Neutral” or “Boy” version of the pattern, and we’ve worked up a “Girl” version, too! They’ll be available together in one download here and on Ravelry for $5.

Stats:

Sizing:
Pattern is written for child’s sizes 12 mo. (2, 4, 6)

Yarn:
Lorna’s Laces Shepherd Worsted Multi [100% Superwash Wool, 3 ply machine washable worsted, 225 yards / 4 oz]
Boys: 2 (2, 3, 3) color: Fresh
Girls: 2 (3, 3, 4) color: Winona

Needles:
Sizes 7 and 8; 24” circular needle and dpns

Notions:
Stitch markers
Tapestry/sewing needle
2 buttons

Gauge:
5 sts and 6 rows on larger needles in reverse stockinette stitch

An UPcycled Tshirt Yarn Shrug

Posted on October 23, 2009 by Stefanie

Here’s the final project that I have designed for my online Upcycled Thsirt Yarn Class:

I made mine using 4 XL tshirts that grade in color from a medium blue to black.

In class, we go step-by-step through cutting the Tshirts into yarn, dyeing our yarn, and then work through each of four knitting patterns together. There are several variations of the patterns, and they are all designed to be “gaugeless” so that you can knit any of them with any of the Tshirt yarn that you make.

The next round of this class starts on October 26, and signups are open now.

My students have been posting reviews of this class on the site:

From Judy:

This was my first on-line class experience, and so of course I
wondered how it would compare to attending “in-person” workshops or
classes. It has been a great experience! Anything Stefanie Japel
offers us is bound to be unique, cutting edge, and just plain fun!
There were live chats, videos, a question forum, free patterns
& loads of downloadable information. Plus, the sense of
comradeship and community was great. I feel like I’ve made some new
friends! I can’t wait to take more classes with Stefanie!

From Susan Bourgeois:
Ravelry and Twitter: Trafficknitter

The UP-cycled T-shirt Class, taught by Stefanie Japel, includes far
more information than just recycling T-shirts into adorable knitted
garments. Stefanie is generous with information and ideas on dyeing
the “yarn” and goes in depth into color theory. The video
demonstrations are a delight to watch and very detailed. The class
includes 4 patterns and Stefanie gives detailed video instructions
that will launch any beginner knitter into knitting a lace pattern
and still tailor the garments to suit all the knitters in the
class. No matter what your level of experience is, there is
something for everyone in this class!

I expected to learn how to cut t-shirts, and make a couple of novel
knits. What I got was the best value I have had from any knitting
class.

Besides, the class was really FUN too!!

Fall Family Fun

Posted on October 18, 2009 by Stefanie

We took a break yesterday from working on the house to go to the local pick your own pumpkin patch. The family who owns it has built up a lot of little attractions for kids. This was kind of expensive ($9 per adult) but was actually a pretty good way to spend a couple of hours on a pretty fall day. Nathan and I both grew up in Iowa, so we grew up with lots of fall activities. Camping, woodfires, raking leaves, CORN…so it was nice to share that with Mazie a little bit.

Mazie climbed a tower or tractor tires: