lists

To make up for missing an adult party I hosted, Jay and I told Sadie we would have a Family Party the following day. She was super excited (as any 6 year old girl probably would be) and the next thing I knew there was a list on the chalkboard. Turns out all you need for a Family Party is a few key essentials - so it was easy to fulfill...and I love that baked goods is a separate item from desserts (aka daserts). We put together a Sadie and Milo playlist, danced around the house with balloons, and ate sushi and sweet things. It was awesome.

And speaking of lists, now that I'm back to reading regularly, I feel like I need to document what I've read because it would seem that I've hit that embarrassing age where you forget if you read that book or not. Also, sometimes it's nice to see a list to know that losing sleep for the sake of wonderfully written words is worth it since the sheer volume can be satisfying. But I don't want to do that here, and thanks to this post I've just learned about Shelfari.  Anyone out there use it and like it, or is there a better, less social-media like option for cataloguing such lists? Clearly I could just make an Excel sheet but that seems so dull. And colourless. And practically anti-technology.

Hmmm.

test vest

Ever loved a test version better than the real thing? I think that's happening to me right now, or maybe I just think Milo looks extra cute in these colours. But regardless of my test version love, one thing is true: I am almost done a new vest pattern! I wanted to offer more than one size this time, so I'm currently on my third version of this vest. The bonus to all this knitting is that Milo will be well stocked for at least the next two winters, but next time I'm working on a pattern perhaps I'll enlist a couple of test knitters. There are plenty of little guys out there who could use a vest or two, right?

As for this garment, I used wool from the sale basement at Romni - Rowan's Harris Aran, now discontinued. It was bargain priced, so perfect for a test. I don't remember what the aqua wool is, but that's the idea of this vest - using little scraps to make shoulder saddles. I'll save the rest of the vest details for the pattern post though, which should be written as soon as my blocked vest dries and a little boy I know survives another photo shoot. Stay tuned.

9 years later

Before we moved into our house, we tore apart our one and only bathroom. That was 2002, and although it hasn't been a construction zone for these past 9 years, we never actually finished the room. The paint job was half done, one wall needed repair, and the first sink we installed kept rusting even though we'd had it reglazed.

I should stress that this is a very small bathroom (and yes, it has to work for 4 people). We don't have room for a regular size sink so the replacement search took a while. But we finally found a new sink that was small in depth, but nice and wide. There was no counter in the original bathroom so we installed an 8" deep chunk of pine (it had been a friend's outdoor step) that works very well as a surface for "things".

Another space saving trick was recessing a medicine cabinet into the wall before the drywalling was done - we can hide oodles of junk in there. We then hung a real cabinet above the toilet for more storage, painting it the same colour as all the woodwork so that it takes up less space visually. In the mirror in the photo above you can see a wall next to the cabinet that has a window in it. The original bathroom had nothing to enclose the bathtub - just a wraparound shower curtain. We put up this wall instead, adding a window so we could get light through and also make the tub space feel a bit bigger. Oh yeah, we have a smaller than normal tub too. Thank goodness we have shops in Toronto that carry small size European products.

The curtain panel is my most recent sewing project. I used the same linen that I'd made the shower curtain out of, but I really wanted to add a bit of colour since the whole room is basically white (Para New Cameo white for the woodwork, Benjamin Moore Collingwood for the walls). The single line of patches is just enough colour and it doesn't cross the too-cute line for Jay. But I think the key decision - the one that pulls the whole room together - is painting the door black. We intend to paint all our upstairs doors black, but this is only the second one we've completed. But wow, does it ever make a difference. I think the paint guys were afraid when I said the black oil paint I was buying was for our bathroom, but I'm so happy with it.

So there it is, a finished bathroom. So finished we can even have a little fun decorating. After staying at the Farmer's Daughter hotel in LA Jay was smitten with their vintage Kleenex boxes. Ebay to the rescue and now we have one which not only looks great, but keeps a Kleenex box off of our limited surfaces. All in all, a bathroom that I'm happy to keep clean.

And let's face it, at only 4 1/2 feet across, it doesn't take me that long.

the car hoodie

Ordering knit fabric over the internet is a little hit-and-miss. Luckily my "this isn't what I expected" moments are generally offset with squeals of "this is way better than I imagined!" The mini car fabric is just one of those wonderful surprises.  Ordered from this Etsy shop, it is SO soft, quite heavy and unexpectedly double sided. Perfect.

I only ordered a half yard, so I really had to make it stretch. Because the reverse side is the solid car background, I couldn't resist using it as the cuffs and bands. I had thought I would use contrasting colours for the bands, but nothing seemed to look better. So I ended up with a fairly plain hoodie, but it seems so right. And I made it quite roomy so that Milo can get another year's wear out of it. It's too soft and sweet for only a handful of wearings.

Now on to some girlie things. I've been told cars don't cut it, but pink stripes just might.

perspective

My little girl rocks. I was sad about something that happened today and so Sadie left me a note next to my knitting. Thank goodness I have a six year old in the house to remind me of what's really important. Like heartbreaking messages in funky handwriting on miniature tablets.

And in other interesting Sadie news, this was just sitting on our desk:

Do you think someone might have an early love of shoes? I know one thing for sure - I have got to get myself some "high hell" shoes.

vest envy

My secret is out: anytime I make clothes for Milo, I want a version for myself. It's just that the shapes and styles of menswear appeal to me, and always have. When I think of outfits I've loved in movies, I picture what Annie Hall wore when they were in the theatre line, or Meg Ryan as she walked through the park with Billy Crystal in When Harry Met Sally. Both inspired (or even borrowed) from menswear. So it was only a matter of time before I made myself a vest. Milo has a growing pile of them (and a new pattern in the works!) and vests are just as practical for adults as they are for kids.

I used Alison Hansel's Leftovers pattern, which is free from Knitty. It's a great pattern for using up scraps of wool, but even without the stripes the shape is perfect. There is enough negative ease to give the vest a flattering fit while still being the classic v-neck style. Not only was the vest a quick knit, but by using Cascade 220, it was also a very economical garment. With one already knit - and worn to work a few times already - I think I will make another but splurge on some more exciting wool. And by more exciting I probably mean my favourite wool, Debbie Bliss' Luxury Donegal Tweed, because I am actually quite boring and prone to habits.

(Side note: the vest also looks great with a tie. But I'll have to sew my own because Jay's collection is a little too 1970's for my taste. And then Milo might need one too. Of course.)

hoodie explosion

Suddenly I have more hoodies than I need, but that doesn't mean they aren't getting worn. Or more made. It's quite satisfying to see my knit fabric stash getting smaller and I love that Sadie is now requesting a hoodie collection of her own. She may not wear what I knit for her, but hoodies are a sure thing.

On the theme of knitwear, Sascha from Piccoli Piselli has a great post about sewing with knits. I had a eureka! moment reading her blog back in the summer and basically I use her cuff technique for just about every garment I make. This post has also led me to a great new hoodie pattern. The ruffle detail will be perfect for Sadie and so my hoodie love can continue. Belly pockets can work for adults too, right?

growing boy

It was hard to have Milo move out of our room. I loved watching his sleeping face and being greeted every morning - plus I adore being in bed and don't like having to leave it in the middle of the night. But just as Sadie did (I swear, these kids are carbon copies of one another), he eventually craved some private space and I found two consequences that made me feel better about the whole thing: 1) I got to read again, which has been amazing, and 2) we could have fun putting his room together. Now, this all happened months ago but I took today off work and I'm home alone. The sun was shining and I finally was able to take photos.

It's our smallest bedroom, which used to be our bedroom, but the shape makes furniture layout easy (odd, because it's really hard in the bigger rooms). And by small, I mean this room is under 8' wide by just over 10' long. The sun streams into this room (it's above our kitchen and together they make up the only rooms that ever see natural light) and it has the best radiator in our whole house. It's aqua. It's awesome. So when I moved out my sewing stuff, I needed to paint but I knew I had enough cans in the basement to make it work for free. The result is 3 walls of Creamy White (kitchen paint) and one wall of Stoneware (our bedroom). I bet I would have chosen the same thing even if I could buy paint - it just feels right. Being a toddler, Milo doesn't have too much "stuff" yet, so it's easy to set up his shelves and keep things generally tidy. Jay got the Canadian pennants from Ebay and a little CN train car too so there's a wee bit of an old Canadiana theme going on. It should last until Milo drags his Bob the Builder toys upstairs.

The little bunny wall hanging was made by Jay's mom for Jay, so it's pretty special to have. There are a few special things in here (my Dad's childhood copy of Peter Pan for example) but Milo is so careful and gentle that I don't worry. He's 19 months old now and I keep expecting a rambunctious boy to emerge, yet every day he continues to be like Sadie. Again, it's so strange how alike they are.

I'll post the rest of the photos on Flickr, but I had to include the shot with Glen Miller. He sat ever-so-perfectly for the camera, right next to that rad. And the rocking chair (from my parents, it was in my house growing up) sees a lot of use. Luckily Milo is starting to sleep through most nights even though he isn't completely weaned, but this rocking chair certainly makes the visit more comfortable.

So there it is - a room fit for a growing boy. Sigh.

berry happy

Jay and Sadie make frequent trips to the local Goodwill and Salvation Army because: 1) my thrifting husband believes that frequency results in better finds, and 2) it's basically become their father-and-daughter thing. So although I would never buy merchandised clothing new, lately such stuff has been coming home with them. The story I get is that for $1, it's hard for Daddy to say no. And we're not talking Princess or Dora clothing (phew) but behold one example - a Strawberry Shortcake shirt (and the "after" shot is first, purely for aesthetic reasons).

I don't know about other Dads, but Jay isn't the best for gauging size and Sadie will say anything fits if it means she gets to carry it home. So this shirt was WAY too big and suffering from that unfortunate style of being really wide in the body but also quite short. Using my current shirt pattern for Sadie as a guide, I cut off the sleeves and a good chunk of the sides. Then I inserted new pink sleeves and added black cuffs to match the neck ribbing.  A quick serge of the trimmed bottom and voila - a brand new shirt that actually fits my girl. With an added investment of, oh, less than 50 cents.

The husband is very proud.

girlie hudson

Hands down, earflaps are a necessity this winter.

As I was finishing Milo's Hudson Hat in November, Sadie decided she wanted a matching version but it actually took me three tries to get the colour combo to work (umm, I may be a wee bit picky about colour). The purple/blue/pink stripe suited Sadie just fine and she kept reminding me to work on the hat even though I had holiday knitting to finish. Eventually I got it done, wove in all the ends, and she has been wearing it ever since. It makes her especially happy when we can convince Milo to wear his too, but being a toddler - this doesn't always happen.

Would it be wrong to make one for Jay next?  I'm already pretty close to unravelling my own (very pink) hat to make an earflap version (basically I heart the Hudson Hat pattern). We've been ice skating a few times every week and the wind masterfully sneaks its way into my ears, so a hat that ties under my chin sounds perfect. An ice-skating family of four wearing matching hats may be a little much though.

Or just about right.