Although time and money limit my creativeness a lot, I enjoy making things. It's so exciting to take some rough materials and make a useful article of clothing! Click on a link to see pictures of the finished products, most of which have descriptions if you mouse over them.

Knitting

This is a record of items I've made. For links to other knitting sites, check out Chicknits. For tips on knitting, go to About.com. These sites have done such great jobs that I feel no need to give links or tips here. I've made other things too, but I'm only including items that didn't end up at Goodwill.

» Tools:

[Random Stripe Generator]

I wrote this script to help me design striped sweaters, scarves, etc. I hope it helps other knitters too!

» Projects:

[Lemon tree sweater]

Facing the threat of a week of below-freezing overnight temperatures, I knit a little striped sweater for our baby Meyer lemon tree's trunk. (January 2007)

[Mittens and Hat for 1-Year-Old Girl]

My company sponsored a gift drive this year, and one of the cards I chose was for a 1-year-old girl who wanted a knit hat and mittens. I couldn't find anything satisfactory at the mall, so I made my own. (December 2005)

[Striped Baby Sweater for Jen]

I made this sweater for Jen's baby-to-be. I used a basic seamless raglan pattern, modified slightly so that it had a slit in the back to accomodate a big baby head. (Dec 2003 - Jan 2004)

[Raglan Pullover with Variegated Sleeves (ripped up)]

A bright, exciting project to take me from winter into spring. I bought this beautiful, soft variegated superwash merino yarn from Over the Rainbow yarns (Tulips colorway) for the sleeves and used Patons Classic Wool (in Misty Mauve) for the body. I ended up frogging it because I didn't like the colors together. Oh well! (February 2003)

[Fuzzy Black Bucket-o-Chic Hat]

This hat used Bonne Marie's bucket-o-chic pattern. I liked the white fuzzy version she made, so I chose to use some of that Pomegranate Unger Utopia from my failed sweater plus some black Gedifra Technohair. So soft! And lots of attitude--I'm not sure if I'm stylin enought to wear it. (January 2003)

[Goofy Earflap Hat]

This is a goofy hat I made as a followup to my random stripe scarf. It is based on the earflap hat pattern in Rebecca 19. My gauge was too small, so I lined it with black cuddle fur, and now it'll fit a toddler-sized head. Hopefully somebody who visits Goodwill will want it! (January 2003)

[Random Stripe Scarf]

I used a bunch of acrylic yarn odds and ends to make this scarf. I lined it with black faux fur since acrylic isn't very soft. The scarf used random colors and stripe sizes. (January 2003)

[Patrick Hat #2]

This hat worked up pretty quickly. I made it to replace the first hat I made for Patrick. It had to be soft, a neutral color, and not girly (ie, no fuzzy yarn). I ended up using GEMS Merino Wool (100 grams, sport weight) in a charcoal grey/olive green color. I used this hat pattern, and it turned out well! (November 2002)

[Boston Hostel Shell]

This was supposed to be my project while I was living in hostels in Boston and waiting for my apartment to open up. I didn't finish it before starting MIT, so it took longer than expected. I didn't use a pattern; I figured I just needed to know my gauge and measurements, and it would be pretty straightforward. I used Unger Fluffy (in Off White), so it was very cheap! Turns out the ribbed cups were angled too much, so the front is WAY too revealing! Maybe I'll add some more chest coverage later on. (Summer 2002)

[Angell Street Sweater]

This is the Angell Street sweater from Berroco #210. I really liked the asymmetry of the sweater. The yarn is Unger Utopia (a really cheap acrylic) in Pomegranate. I got it at Patternworks. After making it (minus the armhole ribbing), I decided I didn't like the way it fit (and it was too bulky), so I ripped it up! (Summer 2002)

[Blue cabled sweater jacket]

This sweater took a long time! It's made out of Caron cheap-ass worsted weight light blue yarn and is based on a pattern my mom tore out of a magazine in the 70's. The trim is Adriafil Stars in Ballet Blue. The buttons were made by single crocheting over plastic rings (I couldn't find any buttons I liked and the pattern recommended using plastic rings). Too bad I ran out of yarn while working on the sleeves and the new yarn I got didn't quite match the old stuff. Oh well! (Winter 2001 - Summer 2002)

[Dyeing Cotton Yarn with Kool-Aid]

This isn't really a knitting project, but it is related to knitting. This page has my record of a few experiments I did using Kool-Aid to dye cotton. There are even illustrations! (Summer 2002)

[Funny hat with stripes]

I made this hat for Drew's contest. The main color is the same grey I used for Patrick's grey hat, and the stripes are random red and pink scraps I had lying around. It's a combination of these two patterns. It came out a little big...I need to check my gauge! (Spring 2002)

[Blue scarf with red stripe]

I made this scarf for Patrick out of some blue bulky yarn in a simple garter stitch. He hasn't worn it much; maybe the blue is too bright. (Winter 2001)

[Red scarf with fringe]

I made this scarf out of a cheap red yarn that was highly textured (I bought it at Michaels, so it must be pretty widely available). I think it was called Fascination or something silly like that. The scarf was knit in a simple garter stitch. I like it, especially the color! (Winter 2001)

[Yellow baby blanket]

This blanket was made from yellow Jiffy baby yarn using this pattern. I made it as a present for one of my chemistry professors who was a little nervous about being a father. Too bad I didn't get a close-up shot of it. (Winter 2000 - Spring 2001)

[Grey ribbed hat]

I made this hat for Patrick out of gray Wool-ease. I think it was based on this pattern, minus the cables. It got lost a while ago, so I can't take a picture. (Winter 2000)

[Pink cabled hat]

I made this hat for myself out of some pink Wool-ease (I think) based on a pattern I found in one of my mom's old knitting pamphlets. (Winter 2000)

[Two stripy sweaters]

These were the first sweaters I ever made. I knit them both while on vacation in Capitola, CA, in 1996. The darker-colored one is super baggy, but the pastel-colored sweater is wearable. I finally wove in all of the yarn ends on the pastel one and added buttons in December 2002. I gave it to one of my mom's neighbors since it was little kid-sized. (May 1996)

Sewing

[Guest Room Quilt]

A monochromatic log cabin quilt for our guest room. (October 2004)

[iPod Holder]

When I first got my iPod, I kept it in a sock, but I decided it needed a more dignified home. Of course, this isn't that much classier than a sock, but it's something. I used leftover corduroy from the pants I made a while ago, plus leftover flannel for the lining. I was going to use elastic to secure it, but it turned out to be a snug fit, and it didn't need any. It's not perfect, but I like it! (October 2003)

[Pink Silk Purse]

I made this purse as a bridal shower present for my friend, Tree. The exterior is pink dupioni silk (purchased from Winmil Fabrics in Boston), and the lining is champagne satin. It also has pretty pink buttons from Windsor Button, also in Boston. (April 2003)

[White Ruffle-Front Shirt]

I decided I wanted a ruffle-front shirt, but the only ones I could find were either really poorly made or very expensive (like this one). So I decided to make one for myself. I used New Look 6952 for the shirt pattern and New Look 6161 for instructions on making and attaching the ruffles. I modified the sleeves a little so they had a slit at the bottom for easier arm movement. I used white Kona cotton from JoAnn. (July 2002)

[Khaki Corduroy Pants]

I bought the pattern (New Look 6119) for these pants in May, and found some nice wide-wale khaki corduroy at JoAnn in July. The cool thing about these pants is that they have flared legs with folded down pieces with rivets on them. Another cool feature is that the lower parts of the legs have Velcro in the side seams below the folded part so they can be worn open or closed. Oh, and I had to use some ribbon for the drawstring because the drawstring made out of corduroy was too bulky. I love that these pants have pockets! (July 2002)

[Patrick's Robot Pants]

I made up a very simple (and abridged) pattern for pajama pants (pattern is here) after finding this cool robot flannel at repro depot. They don't fit quite right (too big in the front), but they were easy to make! (July 2002)

[Jean Skirt]

For this project, I used an old pair of LEI jeans that had torn knees. There are good instructions for this project at Not Martha (also at Get Crafty). I also drew inspiration from this skirt. Mine isn't as nice, but it also didn't cost $200! I trimmed my skirt with ribbon and pre-beaded fringe from JoAnn. (June 2002)

[Knitting Needle Case]

I was inspired to sew my own knitting needle holder by this girl. The pattern I drew for it is here. It holds straight needles in the upper tier and circulars in the lower tier. The top flap folds down, then the whole thing folds into thirds for easy transportation. Best of all, it requires a small amount of fabric, but it'll still occupy a decent amount of time. I made it out of sparkly denim and lined it with a red/blue cotton weave. (June 2002)

[White tank top]

This top was from a New Look pattern (6945) and is made out of white calico with a white flower print. It turned out a little big, but washing helped that somewhat. (Spring 2002)

[Calico wench skirt]

I made this skirt for a pirate party. It's a yellow flower print on cotton and is based on a Burda pattern (8832). I like the ruffle! (Spring 2002)

[Cap-sleeved springtime dress]

This dress was meant to be a nice springtime dress, but it came out a litle tighter and more revealing than I'd expected. The thought was nice though. It's based on a New Look pattern (6057) and is made out of a white calico with a delicate purple flower print. (Spring 2002)

[Typography bags]

I made 25 of these bags for my typography independent study project. They are gold satin lined with crimson panne velvet. I made the pattern myself! The drawstrings are i-cord, hand knit from mercerized cotton yarn. Whew! (Winter 2001 - Spring 2002)

Other Crafts

[Kozo Paper Quilt]

I made a small 10x10-inch quilt from cute Kozo paper scraps. (April 2007)

[Our Wedding Invitations]

Since we only had 9 invitations to send out for our wedding, I made them using supplies from Paper Source. (August 2005)

[Seasonal Constellation Paintings]

I made a series of four paintings so that our bedroom walls wouldn't be so bare. (September 2004)

[Passion Necklace, Revisited]

This necklace was inspired by one I saw on the Super Hero Designs website. It was called Passion, but they no longer make it. So I decided to make my own. It was an easy first project using this technique because all I had to do was pick out a bunch of red and pink beads at Beadworks. I used the bead wrapping technique on this page and 22 gauge silver wire. (May 2003)

[Bead Necklaces]

I made simple beaded necklaces for my sister, Lianna, and Patrick's sister, Meg, for Christmas. All the supplies were at my local craft store, and I used the Double Diamond Stitch from Robyn's Bead Page. Meg's necklace (in reds and pinks) is the same pattern without the large center diamonds. (December 2002)

[Marble Magnets]

This Christmas, I jumped on the bandwagon and made marble magnets for both of my parents. I drew pictures on blank index cards using markers. I really like drawing crustaceans, I think because they have those funny antennae. (December 2002)