Tag: finished object

Finished Object Friday – 1/10

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This post originally appeared on my Ko-fi page in 2 parts on January 10 and 12, 2025.

When I originally finished the first version of my Biased Marie Sweater, I used the leftover yarn to create a tote bag (of sorts, I’m not exactly up to date in my knowledge of bag styles so let me know if it’s got another name) with a closing flap. I even sewed a lining for it and clipped it in, and then I set it down for a very long time. (You may start noticing a theme of that in these posts…)

A crocheted bag with diagonal stripes of pink, red, purple, blue, and green with a flap over the top and a granny square strap in the same yarn hanging on a white door.

Mostly I set it down because I originally planned to stitch the lining in by machine, but I don’t have a walking foot and it absolutely was not going to work without one. So I was going to have to stitch it in by hand, and I decided that was a job for later me.

The inside of the bag with blue and white gingham fabric with machine-sewn pockets, stitched in my band using black thread and a blanket stitch.

Honestly, it took later me all of maybe 10 minutes to do it. But that seems to be the theme with a lot of these that just need finishing. For next week, I’m planning to sew buttons on a sweater I finished at least a year ago. Probably a 5 minute job, that one.

Part 2: I completely forgot that I actually did finish something else this week: stitching Cookie Monster and framing all four of these.

Four framed cross stitches on black Aida fabric in black square frames. Clockwise from top left: Animal, Stitch, Cookie Monster, Garfield and Odie.

You may notice that I switched Stitch and Cookie Monster in the cover image. That’s because my mom pointed out that Stitch should go under cookie monster like he’s waiting for the crumbs. They are in this orientation because that’s how I stitched them and I’m using this image in a video, but that was too funny to pass up.

A finished cross stitch on black Aida held in a wooden hoop of Cookie Monster holding a cookie.

All of these patterns are by MotoRuxin, and I made them on 14 count Aida. They are in 4×4 photo frames, for a size reference.

On a semi-related note, I’m dusting off my old YouTube channel and adding reels from the past few weeks (basically anything not really time-sensitive that I’ve created in DaVinci Resolve and therefore can easily add YouTube-friendly music to). I’m also now on Bluesky which (at least for the moment) is where I’m probably going to be most active.

Finished Object – Framed Sweater

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I finished this sweater two weeks ago, delivered it to the shop a week and a half ago, and am only just now getting around to writing about it. The good news is, if you are looking to make one for Rhinebeck, you’ve still got 2 months. If you are just here for the mathematical details, it’s at the very end.

The front view of a knit sweater with pink and peach color work on the body and sleeves in a pattern of squares filled with “sunbursts” of alternating colors and purple hem, cuffs, and shoulders.

This is the Framed sweater by Andrea Mowry of Drea Renee Knits, her Rhinebeck sweater release this year. I was asked to knit a sample in Malabrigo Rios for The Altered Stitch, my LYS.

The back view of a knit sweater with pink and peach color work on the body and sleeves in a pattern of squares filled with “sunbursts” of alternating colors and purple hem, cuffs, and shoulders.

Unfortunately, for these pictures, my dress form only went small enough to show this at 0” of ease. Seriously, my dress form literally only went down to 34.5 inches around the chest, which was actually lucky that it fit, just doesn’t show it with appropriate ease as called for in the pattern. But I guess if you like your sweaters with no ease, this demonstrates that for you.

Close up of the inside of the neckline of a pink and peach color work sweater with purple details showing the floats and pickup edge.

As cool as the outside looks, I almost love the inside more. Though its resemblance to a Good Humor strawberry shortcake bar often made me hungry while working on it. One tip I will give for this neckline (and really any neckline where you cast off while working shaping/shoulders), use Jeny’s Surprisingly Stretchy Bind-off even though you will be binding off in knit stitches only. Keeps you from having a neckline that doesn’t fit over your head.

A finished knit sweater with pink and peach color work on the body and sleeves in a pattern of squares filled with “sunbursts” of alternating colors and purple hem, cuffs, and shoulders laying flat on a light wooden floor.

Now for the details in one convenient place:

Size made: Size 1, finished chest measurement 34.5 inch circumference

Needles used: US 5 (3.7 mm) for ribbing, US 7 (4.5mm) for body

Color A (hem, cuffs, and shoulders) – 68 grams (approx. 142.8 yards) of Malabrigo Rios in color 282 Leo (less than 1 ball)

Color B (lighter color in body) – 135 grams (approx. 283.5 yards) of Malabrigo Rios in color 695 Peachy (less than 2 balls)

Color C (darker color in body) – 132 grams (approx. 277.2 yards) of Malabrigo Rios in color 057 English Rose (less than 2 balls)

Extra construction notes (in case they help): I used the Tubular cast-on and bind-off suggested in the pattern on the hem, cuffs, and collar, but used Jeny’s Surprisingly Stretchy Bind-off for the part of the neckline that is picked up for the collar. 

If you choose to make this sweater, especially using this yarn, feel free to ask any questions and I will at least try to steer you in the right direction.

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Finished Object – Amigurumi Batly from Eureeka’s Castle

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A few weeks ago, the dogs were being real beggy long before dinner time. I told the little one he was going to drive me batty, and then my brain got stuck on an idea.

A crocheted blue character with pink batwing shaped ears, black glasses, white fangs, a purple and black shirt, tan pants, and brown shoes sitting in front of a TV

I had to make an Amigurumi version of Batly from Eureeka’s Castle. I am fairly certain this is the first character I’ve created without a pattern. I usually tend to stick to food when I’m making it myself. So I decided to start with the smallest piece and work my way up from there so I wouldn’t get to that piece and then have to work impossibly tiny.

Tiny blue knitted tubes on gray knitting needles

That smallest piece happens to be the finger. After a few failed attempts to create them with a crochet hook, I decided I would just make teeny i-cord niblets my smallest double pointed needles.

Small blue crocheted hands sticking out of black crocheted sleeves

I then attached them with crochet stitches, offsetting the thumbs by a couple rows to give him the correct handshape. I finished the hands off and then worked the sleeve around the wrist and up the arm, creating a bit of a raglan top to the sleeve by ending them in a triangle. I stuffed those sleeves with yarn scraps because they were too narrow to really fill with polyfil.

Two crocheted brown pointed lump shapes

I then made roughly teardrop/ Hershey kiss-shaped shoes about the same size as the hands and stuffed them with scrap yarn as well.

A pair of arms with blue hands sticking out of sleeves and a pair of pants with brown shoes sticking out.

I made his pants bottom up in the same manner, giving them a cuff at the bottom with a row of double crochet stitches and attach gin them at the top. The pants I stuffed with a handful of pipe cleaners that will be important later.

The purple torso now connects the arms and pants

I gave him a proportional torso in purple because the puppet wears a two-tone track jacket, but I wanted to make it a little easier on myself at this point so I just made it a single piece. This part was the first bit I stuffed with polyfil.

The character with a finished head with a slightly open mouth, pink tongue, white fangs, black nose, and slightly buggy eyes

I worked the head from the bottom up. Everything seemed to be going ok up the chin. I made the inset for the mouth and the eyes based on a combination of what would fit the head and the smallest I could go. Things started going south, and ignored it and pressed on. I even made the ears and sewed everything together. But this head was entirely too small.

The body of the character with a pile of facial features next to it on a gray chair

I had to frog the head, and make it bigger. Luckily, I was able to make it to fit both the body and the pieces I had already made. The only piece I had to finish at the very end was the glasses, which I ended up figuring out how to shuttle tat so they would be small enough without completely frustrating me. Then, it was time to test the best part I built into him, considering it’s one of the character’s favorite activities.

Crocheted Batly hanging upside down by his knees from the top of a TV

He hangs upside down, thanks to the pipe cleaners in his legs! I wasn’t entirely sure this was going to work, because he kept getting heavier as I added pieces. But I used enough pipe cleaners that it worked. I am so excited about it that I’ve hung him upside down from one of my shelves instead of sitting him on it.

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