Updated: Ugh, Ugh, Ugh

I am beside myself - beside myself - about these fucking jeans.

OMG - I actually want to break something and I am SO judgmental of people who get frustrated and want to break things.

I sewed 15 practice buttonholes on fabric identical in every way to the interfaced waistband on the jeans. Each one worked to a greater or lesser extent - that is, after I figured out the right tension and settings etc. Spent an hour plus.

I worked on the FUCKING jeans and not once, not twice, not three times - five fucking times the buttonholer messed up the stupid waistband - which I hate, by the way. Did I mention I had already ripped off the first vile waistband, recut the entire thing with 2 extra inches and re-affixed it to the jeans (the top of which had stretched)?

Did I mention that took me 2 hours?

Did I mention these fucking things are probably too big and I would definitely not recommend sewing the natural-waisted pattern (vs the low-rise)? They're ridiculously high - and I say that as a woman who's had a child.

Did I mention that I finally said fuck it, to the tracks of thread, all inter-seamed, and scissor-slashed the buttonhole out nonetheless?? I know it was rash. As a creative being, I am not rash. I am measured. But in a fit of pique the likes of which made me want to slash my wrists I used the fabric as a metaphor. Maybe I need therapy?

So now I've got a hole where the button needs to go but it's not the right size or shape, nor is it supported at the outer edges by actual thread. It's a freakin' disaster.

I'm this close to actually throwing these things away. I've only ever not completed 1 project - and it never got past the muslin stage. It was the 2nd or third thing I'd ever made and I didn't yet have the skill to see the problem to the end. I cannot believe, given my do or die nature, that I'm seriously considering ditching this project but I am shaking from rage and disappointment in myself right now. I am drinking a glass of wine to calm myself down.

One last attempt. I'm going to try to find Patty's post on hand working buttonholes and see if I can save this thing.

I will not rip off the waistband and try again. Life is too short for that kind of misery.

Please tell me if you've ever had this awful sort of sewing experience. One where you wrecked things right at the end. I need to know I'm not alone.

I want to cry.

Update: So I worked on trying to fix the buttonhole by hand last night (an hour plus) but it still looks as hideous as ever. I even thew them in the wash. FYI, washing machines do not fix stitching as they clean.

Here's where I'm at (and I may do a more fulsome post deconstructing things, but in lieu of that):

• I did put the button on and do them up. They are most definitely too big everywhere.
• The crotch length is too low (not tremendously, but still requires tweaking). This is the most useful piece of take-away, should I decide (one crazy day) to revisit this pattern.
• Were I to make them again, I'd go down a size (to the U), use the low rise pattern (though this doesn't address the need for a contour waistband), and shorten the crotch by half an inch.

Take away:

• I have more (gorgeous) RTW jeans than anyone needs.
• My Brother machine, for its many good points, is shit at doing buttonholes at the best of times. I cannot, in good faith, even attempt to use it for this purpose anymore (not like I've done more than 3 projects with one button hole, but you know what I mean).
  
• I'm going to have to figure out how to use my Singer straight stitch with buttonhole attachment (the machine, arguably, I should have used all along - despite my apprehension about not understanding it well enough). I mean, the attachment comes with vintage, space-aged directions!
• As a result of this project, I now know how to do a lapped zipper, twin stitch sewing on denim (or not), front pockets, back pockets with fancy stitching - and my top stitching has improved tremendously. This hasn't been a dead loss. I will use those skills many times, in the future, I am sure.
  

I'm going to put the jeans away for a week. Maybe I'll hem them and, at that point, put them out on the lawn for someone who won't even notice the Buttonhole Disaster 2011. I've decided to view them as a muslin (a very painstakingly finished one), as they've given me many pieces of useful information for future jeans endeavours.

Your comments have sustained me in a dark moment peeps - even if it's kind of pathetic to consider something as small (in all ways) as a messed up buttonhole a mega disaster. I know this is a trivial occurrence (though it may help me to understand myself and my motives better). I'm sure I'll write more on this later, but for now, work calls...

Pastel Perfection

Eeek! My Powdered Egg Excelana wool from the UK has arrived!

It's the very same wool used to construct the Jan Sweater:

Apparently, it's spun from the fleece of the Exmoor Blueface (whatever that is), which lives on the moors of North Devon. It's "a lustrous yarn with a soft handle, great stretch and excellent stitch definition". It's processed by one of the few worsted fibre processing and spinning plants still operation in the UK in conjunction with Susan Crawford, the genius behind the Stitch in Time series.

Talk about your awesome cross-promotion.

I haven't yet begun to knit with it, so I can only tell you how yummy it feels from on the skein. But you should know that I imported the very same wool used in the beautiful styled Jan Sweater shot, above, for about 30% less the cost of the wool I purchased in a local yarn store in TO ($45.00 vs. $65.00). I also got a discount for having pre-ordered A Stitch in Time, Volume 2, as yet to be published. You might recall that the only way to receive the Jan Sweater pattern - which isn't in either volume of A Stitch in Time - is to pre-order the second volume .

Money well spent, I say.

Update: I was mistaken (which is to say I must have misread) about the Jan pattern and its appearance within the second volume of A Stitch in Time. Apparently, it will be included. So feel free to wait for the book to come out. Or just go for it and pre-order now!

The Measure of A Woman

OK, not so long ago, someone posted about this bracelet:

I just can't remember who - sorry. And, so intrigued was I, that I went to Modcloth.com to check it out.

I don't wear bracelets. I can barely manage rings and necklaces. And I'm not into brass. Like, at all. But this thing just spoke to me. I mean, curlicue measuring tapes are a big part of my life.

Deal is, I tried to buy it. I can count on one finger how many times I've seen something on a blog, clicked on the link and decided: I want to buy this right now. I went to purchase, only to discover it was sold out.

I cannot count on any fingers the number of times I've been even remotely interested in buying something online that, on trying to buy, I learned was Sold Out. Unless you include candy from Britain.

I searched other sites. It was sold out everywhere, inasmuch as everywhere routed me back to Modcloth (the original vendor). Uncharacteristically, I clicked on Modcloth's option to be notified if the item became available again. What the hell, I thought, it's not like that's ever going to happen. The thing about big sites, though (which I think Modcloth qualifies as, though, in truth, I've only visited once), is that they get restock. I don't know that I appreciate this feature...

Two hours ago I was notified that the bracelet is back in stock. The shipping is $18.00. High on drugs pricing, IMO. And yet, somehow, I just bought a vaguely mass produced, brass, expensive-to-deliver item of jewelry the likes of which I (heretofore) have never worn.

Talk about the power of symbolism.

Knit Wit

How could my camera run out of juice just as I was putting together the Kristin's Book of First Sweater Photos??? Is there no justice???!

Fortunately, I managed to get the following shots before it all went south:

Admit it, that proto-Inuit knit closure is genius! I got it at Lettuce Knit for 25 bucks. Handmade! And because I had one extra ball of yarn to return (they take your extras back, peeps?!), the price was only $14.00 for me...

Not the most artful shot of the back but it's the only one I have. Trust me when I say it fits very nicely.

I grafted the centre back neck. To y'all who don't knit (i.e. me three weeks ago) that means I took 2 rows of "live" stitches and knit them together with a thick sewing needle from stitch holder. It was kooky but not very scary. Also, those are my mattress stitched seams. They may look like crap to advanced knitters, but to me they are a thing of beauty :-)

Another gratuitous shot...

And another still, that proves I'm working on those Jalie jeans (see left background)...

Here's that grafted back neck area from the right side. It's totally neat and aligned in real life. In this shot it looks a little wonky.

And here's the sleeve. Took me 3 hours to do each sleeve as I invisibly mattress stitched the front and back shoulders - much harder than it sounds in light of all the decreased stitches I was working around. At the top of the shoulder, I matched the horizontal shoulder sleeve to the vertical body sleeve. That was a trip.

I am very happy with this first effort but it's not perfect. For starters, the sleeves are too long and there ain't no way I'm going back in to fix them! Also, as I suspected it would be, the wool is thicker than my preference. I can tell I'm going to be a fingering weight knitter (despite the time involved in working with very delicate, slim wool). It hasn't felted, and it's very soft and luxe, but I do find it a bit fluffy for my liking.

What you can't tell, since the camera conked before I could take a shot of me in the sweater, is that it fits (sleeves notwithstanding) perfectly. In my opinion, good fit obfuscates a myriad of other challenges. And the fit, my friends, is fine.

I'd like to thank all of the wonderful knitters and sewist/knitters in the beautiful blog community who supported me through this adventure. You have been invaluably helpful and I am so appreciative.

I'm waiting on the yellow wool to start the Jan Sweater. Till then, I've got some jeans to keep me busy.

Kids These Days...

Today I've taken the day off work. No, it's not to knit (though days off are there to do with whatever one chooses, you know!). It's to go and see my child's French play at the absurd hour of 1 p.m. If I have time to knit before then, so be it.

When she awoke this morning, my child suggested that I wear something like "regular jeans and a black T shirt - an ordinary one". Over breakfast, she reminded me that it's a drab day, and darker colours are more suitable than bright ones on days such as these. While dressing, she came into my room and picked out the freakin' outfit she "sincerely hoped" I would wear.

WTF, people?! My daughter is embarrassed by me! You know, I could handle that if I were a hot mess in the fashion department, but really. People stop me on the street to compliment my ensembles!!

I'm half inclined to put on every colour of the rainbow and wear a wide-brimmed hat.

Update: Of course, I wore the boring outfit. The gratitude in her eyes was enough to justify it. And now I have all kinds of leverage when I want her to change her outfit. If only I could parlay it into argue-free showering.

I'm Still on the Blog Break, but...

In brief: I've been trying to sew a sleeve into the knit sweater for 3 hours now. (I'm sewing it in flat, will seam up the sides afterward.) Getting the front shoulder at sleeve seam to graft/mattress stitch in nicely is like playing Chopin - for, like, a non-musician.

I've done the shoulders / back yoke, stitching horizontally to vertically, with reasonable success. I've also managed to seam down the facings neatly.

I suspect / pray to the knitting goddess that mattressing 2 vertical seams will be reasonably straight forward after the vertical to horizontal - but what do I know. I didn't think it would take me 3 hours to do 3/4 of a sleeve seam. I cannot believe how many times I've ripped out the yarn. Were this a sewing project, the garment would have fallen apart by now.

On the plus side, immersion wet blocking is not difficult or scary at all, though it does take up a lot of space. You throw the knit pieces into a sink with a bit of Soak, rinse carefully, roll pieces in a towel (and then another towel) till drip-free. Finally, lie them over a dry towel on a pinnable surface, and pin according to schematic dimensions. Seriously peeps. It's not rocket science and you're not going to wreck things, even if your fibre gets very flexy with water. Just stay calm and pin to measurements. When the pieces dry, they'll be nice and flat, totally soft and even.

The Lady Grey coat taught me confidence in hand sewing. Even though knit-construction sewing is a totally different animal, and as irritating as it is right now, I wouldn't call it anxiety-provoking. I've read that some knitters loathe the construction part of sweater-making so much that they bring their blocked pieces to people to finish the job. To a totally newbie knitter, hours into the so-called dreaded task, that still seems rather extreme.

I'm saying this to myself and any first-time knitter who might read this one day: It's not difficult. It's finicky. Get yourself some tea. Put on some music. When you finally sort it out, you're going to be very happy you stayed the course.

We Interrupt This Scheduled Break...

...to tell you that:

A) I officially loathe making jeans. These things are going to have to make me look like freakin' Elle Macpherson at this point, or I will never regret purchasing my jeans for the rest of my jeans-wearing years. Latest irritation: ripping off the waistband which, somehow, managed not to be long enough to fit the top of the pants - despite being the correct size according to the directions. Did I mention that retrofitting the too-long zipper took 30 minutes last night?

B) Just completely wet blocked the side fronts of the cardigan (final sleeve will be finished this evening dammit. I can't wait to see what blocking's all about). Whoa, peeps, you weren't kidding when you said that alpaca stretches. Mind you, I re-wrangled things into the schematic dimensions, so I'm not going to freak out. I don't know how this is going to improve the overall look of the finished garment, but I'm following the rules.

Does anyone have any advice about the best way to finish the garment i.e. sew it up? I'm going to graft the back neck (where the side fronts merge) but other than that I don't know what's best. Someone suggested that I pick up stitches and 3 needle bind off the sides. I really don't get picking up stitches but I think your stitches need to be live to 3 needle bind off, yes? Oh, so many terms and pins and towels and books...

May or Meh??

I appear to be pulled, simultaneously, in 15 different metaphoric directions. I'm not loving the feeling.

The weather utterly sucks. If I were suicidal by nature, I'd be worried that nature was about to drive me to suicide. Weeks of rain. Scarves and gloves in mid-late May. Umbrella carcasses - tops dissected from their sticks - hover around every corner because wind storms pop up whenever. Now they're predicting a wet, colder-than-normal summer. I want to cry.

Work is very busy, keeping me late, bringing me in early.

I've got plans to go away for the long weekend with friends, which means I've got to get my ass ready to go away (and that of the kid). Right about now, that seems like a lot of effort (though I'm sure, if the weather ever clears, and when I find myself in a house with lots of good food, friends and drink, I may just revise this perspective).

I've been working for what seems like EVAH - though has technically been less than 3 weeks - on two time-dense projects:

• The insanely fiddly jeans.


• The sweater that's teaching me how to knit.
  

I wish I had something to show you other than 2 garments, 80% of the way there, but I don't, so I can't.

I'm trying to find the energy to complete them in the evenings, but after really long days - and action packed weekends - there's not a lot of sparkle left. Not to mention, I don't really know what I'm doing in either case, so none of the production is rote.

Then there's the guilt I feel for not commenting more on blog posts I love. And the meh that I feel for not having any of my own comments to respond to (because I haven't posted in a few days). Ah, that's a fun circle-addiction.All this is to say, I'm going to drop out for a few days. Probably a week. Unless, the minute I press Publish, all of a sudden I find myself needing to say things and time with which to say it.

I hope, when next we chat, I'll have at least some new item of clothing with which to regale you.

A Word About Knitting and How I Am Insane

Darlings, talk about a horrible Blogger glitch. It was kind of like the apocalypse, but it did give me time to knit without feeling like I should be commenting on all of your awesome posts! It's like that working mother conundrum, just to make an extremely ridiculous comparison: When I'm blogging I want to be knitting. When knitting, I want to be blogging. I always want to be sewing. Strangely, the urge to parent rarely interferes with any of this. :-) Don't worry. The kid makes her needs known.

But this post is about my latest crazy knitting moment.

BTW, before we move on to the new let's do a quick review of the sweater I'm still currently working on. I've finished the back and fronts and I'm now on the sleeves. I don't intend to make the belt (I don't like it), so I'm nearing the blocking stage. Of course, every stage I near fills me with equal parts excitement and trepidation. I've talked with a bunch of long-time knitters, none of whom do complete immersion wet blocking. They feel that iron steam or spray bottle blocking has the same impact. I do want to hear your opinions pls... Oh, and don't think that I haven't considered posting photos of my current work. The thing is, it's really boring to look at a swatch of stockinette stitch. I am confident the finished product will be much more impressive.

OK, onto stories of crazy knitting (or simple craziness)...

I discovered, on Ravelry, that this sweater (which doesn't appear in either volume 1 or the soon-to-be-released volume 2 of A Stitch in Time) is being offered as an enticement to pre-order volume 2:

The Jan Sweater

OMG, really who could live without obtaining this pattern?? I spoke with the knitonthenet people who advised that pre-order of the second volume is non-negotiable for access to it (even if you just bought volume 1 two weeks ago).* Since I do intend to buy the book when it is released, it wasn't too painful to shell out the $53.00 now. And the Jan pattern arrived 5 seconds later!

This is my next project and I am so making it in yellow.

*FYI, there's a UK magazine called The Knitter which will apparently contain the pattern instructions in the next issue, to be released in a few days. I know I want the second volume of A Stitch in Time, so I don't feel like paying $20.00 for the mag now, only to buy the book later. Esp. since the Jan pattern is mine either way. Having said that, you might want to go from the mag.

Don't You Feel Like It's Time For a Pool of the Week?

Check out the whole post at desire to inspire...

Zipper Dentata

For the woman who doesn't understand zips, the lapped jeans zipper is a special kind of anxiotic. Otherwise having come quite a way with the Jalie jeans - at the regrettable, frustrating, pace of a snail, I might add - I have spent the last week contemplating its many potential pitfalls. I've read Peter's tutorial, I've read Debbie's. And, seriously, it just scares me more.

Don't get me wrong. Debbie and Peter are awesome instructors and their instruction is well-thought out and beautifully presented. So have at it, Jeans Sewists of the Future.

To me, it just looks really fucking hard.

By the end of today, I couldn't handle the suspense any longer. While, arguably, I should be knitting (more on that soon), I just had to hit the sewga room (aka lair) as soon as I got home from work. Note: Mid-week sewing is a rarity in these parts.

I brought every tutorial I could get my hands on. Combined with the (thankfully) useful Jalie technical drawings - the directions are a bomb IMO - I got with the job.

Within an hour I had sewn the zip neatly - that tape Debbie mentions is SO useful - but when I turned the whole thing over, it occurred to me that I can't tell the difference between it and a regular invisible zipper. Have I done something wrong? I'm sure I followed the combined direction to a T. There does appear to be a slight overlap on the left side (if you can call it that) but it's not very pronounced. Does one create the lap by sewing the left fly front in that ubiquitous rectangle-meets-oblong top stitch shape? I haven't done the top stitching yet. I figure I should determine whether I need to rip the whole thing out first.

I guess my problem is that, despite all I've read and the many pairs of jeans I've reviewed, I just don't know what it's supposed to look like at this point.

I would welcome any feedback.

PS - I know this would be easier to judge with photos but I just don't have the energy for snaps tonight.

Timely

Remember this book, that started it all:

A Stitch in Time by Jane Waller & Susan Crawford

Well, thankfully it arrived (finally) today, as I sit at home with a sick and clingy kid, and it's all I could have hoped for.

Some of the patterns look outrageously complicated. But I'm sure there will be 1 or 2 I can manage (after I finish my current sweater).

Whether you knit or no, buy this book. It's just beautiful and it gives an amazing perspective on fashion and body philosophy of the '20s - '40s. Apparently, it's a painstaking reconstruction of a book (the manuscript and photos of which were) destroyed by fire.

Jean Genie

So you know I'm participating in the MPB Jeans Sew Along, right? I'm using the ubiquitous Jalie Jeans pattern. Apparently, it won as Pattern of the Year.

Nonetheless I'm very pleased to have the sew along to review along with the Jalie instructions. Because Jalie has a unique way of presenting information. And by "unique", I mean "not so easy, as far as I'm concerned". This is to say nothing of the 27 sizes available on one sheet of paper. No joke - the pattern you'll use for your 5 year old is on the same page as the one you'll trace for you. That's a lot of stuff going on on one page, peeps. Tracing took me 2 hours.

Whatevs. I'm willing to work with it for its supposed awesome RTW look and fit.

I'm using a mid-weight dark blue denim with 3 per cent stretch:

Pocket positioning is an art. You have to be sure to align both pockets on the exact same part of your tush or you run the risk of looking lopsided!

Note: I've only done 1 pocket so far. The other one is staring at me ominously. Cuz, you know, jeans stare.

Not the clearest photo, but you can see the twin stitched pocket, now affixed.

Why, you might ask, is the swoosh on the pocket in sassy orange, while the pocket side stitching is "jeans blue"? Well, the orange thread is very thick and the denim (or the machine) just can't take it. Especially when it's being twin stitched. I learned this, painfully, over the course of an hour. I could start from scratch and go find some less thick, similarly orange thread, but I'm not displeased with the blue. It's much less conspicuous - which isn't a bad thing on one's first attempt.

I'm opting not to flat fell the seams, but to twin top stitch them. It will give me more latitude until I perfect the fit on me.

On the topic of sizing: I cut the V, though I think - unless these fit small - I might have to serge off quite a bit on the side seams. The U might have been better, but I'd rather start off too large than too small. I changed the arch of the back crotch. I didn't touch the front because I don't understand, exactly, how the fly will influence fit. I'm just going to have to use this pair experimentally. You know how I love that.

Update: I have now stitched both back pockets at the expense of 3 twin needles. And those suckers aren't cheap. I think I'm out 20 bucks... Note to jeans sewists: Go out and get an actual denim twin needle. It's unlike me to be unprepared in this way - and to sacrifice, not 1 but 3, needles to my impatience - but I'm over it. Another 10 dollar needle is in my future - this time of the correct gauge...

Nature Vs. Knitter

The reason you haven’t seen much of me around here for the past few days is because I’ve spent every waking moment (not otherwise accounted for) knitting this freakin’ sweater. My child has eaten an array of questionably appropriate dinner foods: hot dogs, take-out Indian, cheese and crackers with carrot sticks. The laundry is unlaundered. My (vaguely old-looking) hands are truly cramped by the time I retire – 2 hours later than I can generally keep my eyes open for – at approximately midnight.

Do you ever play spider solitaire and find yourself unable to quit. If you lose, you think “just one more game; I know I’ll be a winner next time”. If you win, you want to see how long the streak will last. That cycle can go on for a good hour. C’mon, you do that. I know you do.

You’ll be pleased to hear that I don’t gamble. I don’t buy lottery tickets. I don’t go to the track (though, really, it might be just the place to knit!).

My friends laugh (a kind of rueful, knowing laugh) at my type A knitting style. But what can I do? I come by it honestly. Apparently, it’s not very knitter. Apparently, knitters are gentle creatures who sculpt their laid back world views in a woolly canvas. On Wednesday I had the most fun at a knitting night at Lettuce (a veritable hotbed of serious fibre art crafters). What welcoming and friendly women! What gynocracy! Alas, as so often happens, on some fundamental level, I felt removed. And not because I’ve been knitting a week and these women have been doing it for a combined 200 years. (Moreover, who, more than I, loves to talk parenting and politics with a bunch of smart women, drinking booze? Isn’t that kind of like paradise?)

It was when I queried a couple of them about how long they’d been working on their items – for how long they imagined their (many complex) projects would continue – that I felt the encroaching divide. I assume I'm paranoid, but at that point, I think I might have seen the slightest inkling of a questioning look. And I just could not relate to the claims that these knitters couldn’t say, that they work simply according to their natural pace, that time is not really relevant. Seriously?!

Call me a (goal-oriented) philistine, but how the hell does anyone do anything without considering their investment of time?

Let me break it down for you (and I know this because I’m keeping a line-by-line ledger of my every row):

• I started this project on April 30.


• I started over on May 1.


• It took me 15 hours to knit the back of the cardigan.


• It has taken me 7 hours to knit one side of the front – and I estimate another half an hour before it’s done.


• While this is entirely speculative, I surmise that it will take me another 7.5 hours to knit the other front half.


• And probably 5 hours to knit each sleeve.


• I’ve opted not to make the belt – I’d prefer to use another closure – probably one of those wooden knitting pin closures. I’ve always wanted one of those!


• Blocking will take approximately an hour (followed by time to dry).


• Then I’ve got to sew it all together (by hand). I don’t know – maybe that will be 3 hours? (Sewing things up with wool is apparently quite easy). Of course, it could take forever and I’m deluded.

Since no one seems to be able to give me any feedback about how long it takes to knit a simple sweater, I’m going to make my own guess: 50 hours. That’s if all goes as planned (stifle your giggles please). Note: I'm entirely new at this. I'm sure a seasoned practitioner could do this in less time...

Maybe I’ll never be a real knitter (or a real sewist, for that matter) because I’m not doing this for the simple pleasure of working with my hands. I make things because I want to make things. I want to see how they start from nothing and turn into practical and (hopefully) beautiful products. I want to systemize my skills by deconstructing them in notebooks that I can look at again and again. I want to keep lists – to itemize where I’m at. I do not want to work on the same sweater for 6 months, picking it up and dropping it according to my momentary interest or schedule (which secretly and judgementally I see as a code word for “whim”). Maybe that’s eventually how it will go. Maybe I’ll get with that casual (supposedly happy-making) philosophy over time, but I can’t imagine it. Odd as it may be, for me, the joy in craft is in doing it regardless of how time-consuming or overwhelming or scary it is. Call me crazy, but I enjoy those feelings. They make me feel engaged. They give me a rush.

I'd love to hear from the knitters and sewists and those who engage in other craft hobbies. Are you type A too? Do you sense I'm corrupting the artform with my hideous attitude? Can you explain to me how you analyse "crafting at your own pace" (whatever it is for you)?

In the meanwhile, excuse me while I go ice my hands.

Another Kind Of Spring Leaf

My pastry guy, Joe, has done the most fantastic tutorial on my fave mille-feuille - the Napoleon. You've got to read the post...

Yes, he made these!

It's aspirational baking at its best. I can see project this in my future...