April 9, 2024 by princesshotflash

Sweater to Blanket

knitting
basketweave, double strand, handmade, knitting, merino, Morehouse farm, repurpose, stockinette, sweater to blanket, yarn, yarn chicken
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A long time ago, I knitted a sweater for Oat. He wanted a fisherman cable sweater, but he overestimated my knitting skills. He got something more in my realm of technical ability. I got the yarn from a sheep farm shop, Morehouse Farm. I was there for a photo shoot. This was in my distant past when I worked as a book designer. The yarn was squishy and soft. I knitted the sweater in double strands, it was super warm, so he didn’t wear it often. Here’s the sweater on our trip to Prague. It did great with all our walking around the city.

Once I moved back to Hawaii, I decided to repurpose the sweater into a blanket for my dad. Not that dad needed such a warm blanket in Hawaii but there a couple of weeks a year when a cozy warm blanket is appreciated.

I decided on a basketweave pattern with a chunky stockinette border. It was easy enough that if I put it down for a while I could pick right up. I made the blanket wide enough to cover a person and I would knit the blanket till I ran out of yarn.

Well, as expected, I put down the blanket, probably because it was too hot to knit a wool blanket. I think it’s been about at least four years of sitting is a bag waiting for the right moment. And I guess it’s the right moment. I’m not feeling creative to start a new project (I guess it part of the mourning process). And the weather has been cool and breezy. Things have fallen in place to finish this blanket.

*Left to right*: one of many balls of double-strand yarn, getting bigger, close-up of 3/5 basketweave pattern

It went quicker than I thought. I bought a Japanese floor chair (no legs, seat cushion with a back) to sit on in front of my monitor to watch my shows as I knitted. It took a little over two weeks to finished. There was a bit of yarn chicken at the end. But I won with about 12″ of yarn to spare.

*Left to right:* just the ends to weave in; I won yarn chicken

The finished size is w. 38″ x 42″. The pattern is a simple basketweave in a pattern of 3 stitches/ 5 stitches with a border of stockinette 8 stitches wide. It makes me happy that I finished a project. Maybe I can move to a new project soon.

January 2, 2024January 2, 2024 by princesshotflash

What I made in 2023

I started a post the other day about my holiday baking. I couldn’t finish it. I was not feeling it. I decided to dump that post and start a new one about what I made in 2023.

I like doing these wrap-ups at the end of the year. It’s a great way to look back at what I accomplished. It does surprise me how much I got done.

Being a full-time caregiver sometimes feels like I’m a waitress or maid to my parents. This is the reason for my projects. It gives me purpose and keeps my sanity from the stress of caring for loved ones with dementia.

Here’s my rundown of all of my mades.

Stitching

I picked up stitching in 2022 as a way to quiet my brain. It really works. I do it in the morning with my cup of coffee.

Left to right: coaster made with machine and hand quilting, scrappy trivet, scrappy bowl

Lei-making

My beautiful pakalana plants were so fruitful in their second year. I made my ten girlfriends each a (at least three strands) pakalana lei for their birthday. Pakalana is seasonal, so the birthday leis were always a surprise as most of them arrived long after their birthday.

Many stages of leimaking

Quilting

I took on a commission in 2022 to create a quilt with the fabric provided. I could do any pattern, but it needed to be as big as possible. I got stuck for several months after finishing the quilt top. I made no move moment on this quilt. I decided to rework my workroom, which was the key to getting me going again. Now I’m on quilt #7. I got the bug.

All my scrappy quilts. One was commission piece plus seven for donation or gifts.

Knitting

My knitting has been the back seat to my quilting; I have only finished a few items this year.

Left to right, top to bottom: Grandma Nancy’s shawl; Blocking Boneyard and Grandma Nancy’s Shawls in the sun; mitts for a friend; Orange loves to help; Zabutons to throw pillows; Zig zag pillow; February hat; Zick zack scarf

Finishing up

These are the partially finished projects that were gifted to me that I finished up this year. On Instagram, there’s a group called Loose Ends, that finishes up projects for the loved one. I guess this is my own Loose Ends project. I tried to return the finished project to the giver, or I gifted the project to someone special.

Left to right: This Hawaiian quilt pillow only needed quilting one little corner. I turned it into a pillow by adding an envelope back and binding it in some gifted fabric (in the perfect prints and color), then I made a pillow insert to finish off; I got three embroidered panels she made while recuperating from broken ankles. I turned one of the panels into Komebukuro (rice bag in Japanese) to hold her next project.

I’m stopping here or at this rate, I’ll never publish this before the end of 2024. I hope I have another productive crafty year. Happy New Year!

November 20, 2023 by princesshotflash

Things are changing

Caregiving, Dad, Handstitched, knitting, Mom, quilting
dementia, hand stitching, knitting, mamo print, middle stage, quilt, Things are changing
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I started this post last night while lying in bed after my dad woke me up at 2am. I heard someone in the kitchen moving around, and I got up to see who it was. I expect to see my mom as her dementia has been fussing with her internal clock, and she wakes up at all hours in the early morning. But instead, I found my dad in a state. He asked me what was going on. I didn’t understand what he was talking about. He said why did I wake him up. I told him I didn’t do that. I was sleeping. I take it he didn’t believe me and went back to his room mad at me.

Well, this just added to my bad mom day, and going back to sleep took a while. I tried to compose this post in my head but refused to get up and start writing on my computer.

Besides composing my post in my head, I started to think about how things are probably changing in my life. I think my parents (my mom, for sure) are entering a new phase of dementia. Mom has changed at a rapid speed, and I think she is now in the middle stage. My dad has been stable for quite a while, but I think Mom’s changes have stressed my dad to have this episode last night.

I have appointments for my parent to join an adult daycare group two days a week. I hope it’s not too late for my mom. My hope was the added stimulation of people and activities would help my parent’s dementia or at least slow it down. I also looked forward to having time for myself. I should stay positive that they are okay to join. It is so hard to see her change so quickly.

I’m trying to keep myself busy so I don’t get into a caregivers funk. It is really hard not to let it get to you. I’m do a lot of handwork, it some how keeps the anxiety a bay for me. I’m working on quilt #6, making a pouch for my double points, and knitting on the Noro scarf. Here’s some pictures of my progress.

Quilt #6 for a friend

Zipper pouch for my double point needles. Using a Mamo print scrap with denim for the rest of the pouch. Quilting the scap as a Hawaiian quilt patch.

I’m still working on my Noro scarf. I’m kind of feeling like it is endless. I’m aiming for the end of the year to finish it up.

I guess that’s it for now. I probably could on and on. But I’ll stop here for now. I need to run out and do some errands while the caregiver is here.

February 14, 2021March 10, 2021 by princesshotflash

Back to Knitting. . .

For a bit. I needed a project I could finish in a short amount of time without help from a tutorial video.

Hats, beanies, toques whatever you call them are my quick go-to project for something I can accomplish in a short amount of time. And that’s what decided to do. I used Graham by Jennifer Adams and Barley by Tin Can Knits. I’ve knitted both these patterns before and loved the easy of the pattern and the look of the hats.

All the yarn was from my every growing stash and a frogged cowl that I didn’t like how the stripping was looking. The striping turned out better on the hats.

In the end, I knitted four hats, 1 Graham and 3 Barley and I satisfied my need to finish something. The hats are on their way to Hawaii Pacific Health Cancer Center for their clients to wear during treatments.

Side Note: My dad have been receiving treatment for Lymphoma at the Hawaii Pacific Health Cancer Center and the care has been great. I wanted to give back in return in my appreciation. He is feeling well and continues singing, drawing and entertaining everyday.

June 10, 2020 by princesshotflash

Life

I originally started this post as a “whoa is me” post to complain about unemployment, not receiving my check, and sitting in the phone queue for 5+ hours. But I take that all back.

Yes, I am furloughed, I’m yet to receive a check from UI, I will be stuck in the phone queue until I settle this issue and my furlough has been extended to January 4th. But I can’t feel sorry for myself. That’s how you get stuck and curling up in a ball and not want to do nothing for yourself. Sometimes life is harder than you expected.

I told myself at the beginning of the furlough that I would make use to this time instead of festering and becoming bitter. It’s been a tough road, the unemployment situation doesn’t help a bit. But I still want to make the best of this time. When will I get this kind of time to do something for myself, to do something creative, to make something beautiful.

I decided to write this to remind myself I have this time to do for myself. To think about life and where it may take me. Here’s my list so far I hope I can complete some of it before the end of the year. I’ll be posting my progress and going ons at the home front with the my 4 roommates (haha).