In Case you Missed the MOVE notice

BEEP BEEP MOVING KNITTING CONTESSA===== this content will stay but the new blog will be rolling HERE (http://www.knittingcontessa.com). Hope you come hang out in the new digs!

Moving x TWO!

And I'm off===== with a late lunch Tuesday sidestep for a Green Chili Cheeseburger. Not as good as my beloved Santa Fe but wonderful when hotel food is what you have to look forward to and the plate (and I don't mean lunch) is overly full!!

See you next week-Unless of course I'll see you at Blogher Handmade or The Creative Connection Event!---- I'll have lots to share! 

And last but certainly not least BEEP BEEP MOVING KNITTING CONTESSA===== this content will stay but the new blog will be rolling HERE (http://www.knittingcontessa.com). Hope you come hang out in the new digs!

Let the Packing Begin-

There is something about the start of the packing process that gets to me. Maybe it is like writing the first word on a fresh sheet of paper. I've upgraded the size of my suitcase and decided to check luggage. I absolutely HATE the mad shuffle to find an overhead bin when everybody else on board is hurriedly doing the same thing. So maybe a big carry on with 'essentials'---- and check my bag and call it good. I'm flying out through O'Hare, never a thrill to zoom through trying to make a connection and carrying anything extra!

I figured if I spread the packing over a couple days and had the luxury of leaving my suitcase open in the guest room I'd be more leisurely about it and wouldn't forget anything.

Except my shower cap, I always forget that!

in rememberance

Less Sleep More Making

Faithful readers will know that I don't sleep a heckuva lot anyway but until I get home from Minneapolis St. Paul and The Creative Connection Event I will sleep even less.

I'm a ghost blogger by trade, at least that is what one of my 'professional' hats are--- along with being consummately creative------ etc. Tons to do but the fun part of my List is to make some great jewelry to wear when the wheels touch down.

 

You know, it IS easier to have a little Creative Cross Training with jewelry rather than work on the languishing knitted shawl --- or even the crocheted cowls. 

You Know What This Means Right?????

The dress form out of the box and un-sullied.
We shall sully when I get back from The Creative Connection Event---
There will be Big Fun.
and a fabulous Tutorial!

Ruffle Questions

I got some great questions about the post dealing with making ruffles yesterday. Thanks!  One was a question that asked "what if the ruffle is too tightly gathered for the area I'm pinning it?"   The answer is easy and slightly less so. The weight of your fabric and how tightly it is woven will have a lot to do with how fully your fabric strip is gathered. Please experiment first with a similar strip of fabric and try different things.

The best thing to do is to leave a very long tail on your thread when you cut it from the maching after sewing the ruffle strip. Then, if the ruffle is too tight, as you pin it along your item you can easily "un-ruffle" it as you go along. Nice and easy does it, and it is simple as pie.

Question 2 was how do I attach my ruffle. In the photo above, it is completely okay for the top edge of the ruffle to be raw. I ruffled it raw and pinned it onto the base raw. Then I use normal pressure on the foot, a normal stitch length and stitch over the top of the stitching line made when the ruffle was born. I'll go over the top of the raw edge with a simple machine overcast stitch when I'm done. If you have a double ruffle or turned down edge you stitch it onto your base in exactly the same way, the difference is that the top edge of your ruffle has been finished in some way. If you have a serger you can serge the top edge before ruffling allowing maximum fullness as well as a finished ruffle (assuming the bottom edge was narrow hemmed.) You'll see a line of air eraseable marker on the photo above. I measured the lines I wanted my ruffles to be sewn on and I butted the ruffles up to this line.

Remember, if you have a raw edge you can always sew the ruffle on 'upside down', and when you give the item a shake the ruffle will fall down over the raw edge. It's all up to YOU!

Do you have more than one ruffle? If you start from the bottom it is easier than if you start from the top!

Ruffle on!