Found You, Fishnets!

So it turns out that one of the designers who I'd bookmarked for Fishnets HADN'T disappeared, just decoupled her Ravelry and her blog. So. I'm archiving it here so I don't lose it again. Source.

Foo Foo

Yarn: One hank of Malabrigo laceweight baby merino
3.25mm hook
split ring markers
darning needle
gauge: 44sc in rnd = 8 1/2″
Pattern as is makes a US 9 Women’s.

Chain 16, flip the chain, sc into the bottoms bumps for 15 sc, flip the chain again, sc in the top loops for a total of 30 sc in the round. You can mark side sts at either end or eyeball them. The increase sequence is like my other sock toes: round one, work inc before and after each marker. For round two, work even.

Work like this until the toe is as wide as you want it, about 1/2 to 3/4″ less than the width of the ball of your foot. When you hit that size, work even until the toe cap is about 2-2 1/2″ deep or desired depth.

Netting: starting at the side of your toe cap, chain 4, skip the next 3 sts, sc in next one, ch 4, skip the next 3 sts, sc in the next one, work like this around, don’t worry if you don’t have enough sts for an even set of multiples, just get to the point where you don’t have enough sts left to skip 3, and just work your sc into the ch-4 space that you created previously. These socks are not about obsessively counting, remember, they are about sex and hormones and crocheting on Manitoba’s really crappy, bumpy highways which cause much too much distraction for the proper counting of stitches.

Work about 12 rounds of ch-4 netting. Put it on and stretch towards your ankle. If it feels long enough, start working the heel. If not, work a few more rnds of netting. If ch-4 netting feels too tight, try ch-5 instead.

Heel: Flatten sock widthwise and work from one side to the other: ch 1, turn, work 25 sc across one side.

Ch 1, turn, work 24 sc, stopping short of the last st, leaving it unworked.

Ch 1, turn, work 23 sc, stopping short as before.

Repeat this row, working one less st, until you have 10 sts left. You should have a little triangle with steps on it.

Turn the heel: Ch 1, turn, work across the 10 sc, and, working into the side of this st, and into the next sc below, make a sc2tog. Work a ss into the next side edge below. 11 sc. Turn.

Skipping the ss, sc in the 11 sc, and work a sc2tog into the side edge of the 11th sc and the one below, then work a ss into the side edge below that. 12 sc. Turn.

Repeat this process until you have “picked up” your original 25 sts. Carry on in netting pattern as before, only this time, ch-5 instead of ch-4. If you didn’t ch 4, then chain 1 more than your number.

Work 12 rounds of ch-5 netting, try it on, tug gently to see how it fits – incidentally, it helps if you have a vehicle dash to do this on, as gravity will help you to tug and pull your netting into place. It also makes for interesting facial expressions of the folks in the oncoming lanes of traffic.

Continue on, but this time, work the rest of your rounds in ch-6 netting. Do this until your sock, when stretched out, comes almost up to your knee.

Next rnd: work one rnd in ch-5 netting

Next rnd: work one rnd in ch-4 netting

Next rnd: ch 3 (does not count as st), work one dc in each sc, and 4 dc in each chain sp. You may need to fudge to get a number that divides by two.

Next rnd: Chain 3 (does not count as st) Work ribbing by working fpdc around first dc in row below, then bpdc in next dc in row below. Work fpdc, bpdc across, join with ss, ch 3.

Work two more rnds of dc ribbing, fasten off. Weave in ends and enjoy your socks!!!!

Quilted Sweatshirt

At the risk of turning down the dark road of sweatshirt-land in lieu of cozy delightful sweaters, I am interested in making one of these quilted sweatshirts.



Those are the fashion inspo for a tutorial on making a quilted sweatshirt, found here.

Should I make one? It would be cozy as hell, but with all the quilting, be less flexible, and so would need to be bulky. Which is not the look I try to go for.

Bonus tutorial: homemade shoeslaces out of bias tape. Why did no one think of this before?!

Key Qualities

C Major
Completely Pure. Its character is: innocence, simplicity, naïvety, children’s talk.

C Minor
Declaration of love and at the same time the lament of unhappy love. All languishing, longing, sighing of the love-sick soul lies in this key.

Db Major
A leering key, degenerating into grief and rapture. It cannot laugh, but it can smile; it cannot howl, but it can at least grimace its crying.–Consequently only unusual characters and feelings can be brought out in this key.

C# Minor
Penitential lamentation, intimate conversation with God, the friend and help-meet of life; sighs of disappointed friendship and love lie in its radius.

D Major
The key of triumph, of Hallelujahs, of war-cries, of victory-rejoicing. Thus, the inviting symphonies, the marches, holiday songs and heaven-rejoicing choruses are set in this key.

D Minor
Melancholy womanliness, the spleen and humours brood.

Eb Major
The key of love, of devotion, of intimate conversation with God.

D# Minor
Feelings of the anxiety of the soul’s deepest distress, of brooding despair, of blackest depression, of the most gloomy condition of the soul. Every fear, every hesitation of the shuddering heart, breathes out of horrible D# minor. If ghosts could speak, their speech would approximate this key.

E Major
Noisy shouts of joy, laughing pleasure and not yet complete, full delight lies in E Major.

E minor
Naïve, womanly innocent declaration of love, lament without grumbling; sighs accompanied by few tears; this key speaks of the imminent hope of resolving in the pure happiness of C major.

F Major
Complaisance & Calm.

F Minor
Deep depression, funereal lament, groans of misery and longing for the grave.

F# Major
Triumph over difficulty, free sigh of relief uttered when hurdles are surmounted; echo of a soul which has fiercely struggled and finally conquered lies in all uses of this key.

F# Minor
A gloomy key: it tugs at passion as a dog biting a dress. Resentment and discontent are its language.

G Major
Everything rustic, idyllic and lyrical, every calm and satisfied passion, every tender gratitude for true friendship and faithful love,–in a word every gentle and peaceful emotion of the heart is correctly expressed by this key.

G Minor
Discontent, uneasiness, worry about a failed scheme; bad-tempered gnashing of teeth; in a word: resentment and dislike.

Ab Major
Key of the grave. Death, grave, putrefaction, judgment, eternity lie in its radius.

Ab Minor
Grumbler, heart squeezed until it suffocates; wailing lament, difficult struggle; in a word, the color of this key is everything struggling with difficulty.

A Major
This key includes declarations of innocent love, satisfaction with one’s state of affairs; hope of seeing one’s beloved again when parting; youthful cheerfulness and trust in God.

A Minor
Pious womanliness and tenderness of character.

Bb Major
Cheerful love, clear conscience, hope aspiration for a better world.

Bb Minor
A quaint creature, often dressed in the garment of night. It is somewhat surly and very seldom takes on a pleasant countenance. Mocking God and the world; discontented with itself and with everything; preparation for suicide sounds in this key.

B Major
Strongly coloured, announcing wild passions, composed from the most glaring colours. Anger, rage, jealousy, fury, despair and every burden of the heart lies in its sphere.

B Minor
This is as it were the key of patience, of calm awaiting ones’s fate and of submission to divine dispensation.

From Christian Schubart's Ideen zu einer Aesthetik der Tonkunst (1806) translated by Rita Steblin in A History of Key Characteristics in the 18th and Early 19th Centuries. UMI Research Press (1983).

Needlepoint Pillow Idea

I just wanted to save this Florentine pattern.

Subversive Femme's Tutorial on Removing Pants Darts

Again, in the chance of a disappearing link, here is a quick tutorial from Subversive Femme. This was not written by me, nor photographed by me. Just very useful.

1. To remove the darts, trace around your pattern piece (we never cut the original, right?)


2. Redraw the dart lines down to the side edge of the pattern piece, somewhere near the knee area. Keep the same start points on the waist edge.


3. Fold the new dart closed


4. Retrace your new pattern piece, and re-draw the waist so it's even (you can see the faint blue line of where the previous folded piece was).

How to Iron a Shirt

This was not written, translated, or photographed by myself. But just in case the link goes pear-shaped, here is how to properly iron a shirt. (source)

Of course, there are different ways to iron a shirt which all give excellent results. The way I will describe is mine, the method that I use, and that I learnt. There are also a few little tricks which the ironers taught me, since we should not forget that ironing is a craft. This is also a way of paying tribute to them, which they deserve. The shirt which I will present is an old shirt with a yellowed collar but it will do for the demonstration.

Equipment Required:


First of all get a piece of fairly stiff card and trace a band 25 cm long by 3 cm high (10” by 1 3/16”).


Fold it exactly in half.


Make a little notch about 1 cm long (3/8”).


Put it aside and let’s look at what follows.


You will need a spray bottle to moisten. Some use a “patte mouille” but personally, I don’t like it.


A plastic supermarket bag. For bespoke shirts from web dealers a Lidl or Leader price bag will do.


Of course, an iron. This is mine, it’s a professional model weighing 1.2 kg, but any iron will do as long as it


Is a dry iron, without steam. One can use steam provided one has the necessary equipment: -A steam table with holes to let the steam through or -A vacuum table which, as its name indicates, vacuums the steam (very often used by tailors) I continue


A sleeve board Notice that this one is not recent- it belonged to my father.

Shirt Preparation:


Start by spraying the shirt generously

Spreading it out along its length


Fold the collar on the right side so that the sleeves are on the inside.


Hold the collar as shown with both hands vertical


Then roll the shirt around the collar, with the sleeves inside.


To get this


Slide the moistened shirt inside the plastic bag.


Remove the air from the bag


By rolling the bag


To get this. It is very important to roll the bag well enough so that as little air remains as possible. As there will be very little air there will be very little evaporation and the humidity will be well distributed on the whole. Leave it to “infuse” for at least half an hour, an hour being preferable. 2 or 3 shirts can be prepared like this and left 2 to 3 days as long as the bag is sealed as hermetically as possible.

Preparation for Ironing:

Take the shirt out of the bag.


And pull the collar with both hands taking care to grip the collar and the stand at the same time so as not to distort them.


Pull all seams since the tight stitches have a tendency to pucker during the wash.


The sleeves



The armholes


Right to the shoulders


Start by measuring the collar. If the neck seems too small redo the operation, pulling even more

Ironing:


Start by ironing the collar on the reverse side of one point toward the middle, then from the other point, stopping in the middle.


Then following the same steps (from the points toward the middle) iron the right side. We always iron this way; if your collar has been made in the traditional method (non-fused) this avoids making creases as the excess has been brought behind.


Then "break" the collar.


Spray the break of the collar again.


Iron again, pressing very hard on the iron.


While the part which has been ironed is still hot, “roll” the collar as shown in the photo, starting from one side


Then the other (video at the end of this article)


Then button the still-warm collar.


We continue with the sleeves, starting with the cuffs.


Above then below


To make the pleats on the sleeves we use the sleeve board, pulling the cloth lightly to make the pleats


According to the length of the sleeve placed over the sleeve board we determine the desired length of pleat


We can also make the pleats from the inside of the sleeve but the iron will butt up against the opening and the pleats will be shorter than if done with the sleeve board.


Place the sleeve flat on the table, buttoning the placket button if there is one


Iron the sleeve, pulling on the cuff so that the pleats keep their shape You will notice that it helps to be ambidextrous to do this


Iron the whole sleeve until the armhole seam which must be done with the point of the iron. Do this for both sleeves.


Iron the back


Then the fronts, holding the placket firmly


Taking care to iron around and between the buttons


The same on the left side, holding the placket firmly.


Ironing around the embroidery so as not to crush it.


Until the shoulder seam


Iron the shoulders on the sleeve board and the ironing itself is finished. 2 options are now available: Either we put the shirt on a hanger and button the collar. Be careful to avoid metal hangers which deform the shoulders; instead use plastic or wooden hangers which are wider. Or we can fold the shirt to place in a wardrobe and this is what I will show now.

Folding:


Start by replacing the stays in the collar


Take some tissue paper or very fine paper


Button the collar and slide the paper inside


Being careful to ensure it goes as high as possible without pleats


Button the front Personally I only button one of every two but to each his own…


Take the piece of card, and position the notch at the second button.


Pull the shirt taut.


Turn it over while holding taut.


Fold the two sides using the piece of card as a guide - this way your folding will be perfectly symmetrical.


Fold the sleeve, keeping it at the level of the armhole to avoid creases.


Fold the sleeve back over itself without extending beyond the front.


Do for both sleeves


Fold the hem back about 10 cm (4”), all depending on the length of the shirt


Fold it back, slipping your hand inside so as not to make any creases.


Pull both sides taut


On the right side and the reverse and the shirt is completed. Let it cool in fresh air for at least ½ hour

The Extras:


We add a plastic band to support the collar when shirts are piled one atop another


A butterfly stay will hold the collar “roll” while supporting it. In place of a plastic band and butterfly stay we can use stiff card with a small notch for the butterfly, like for the folding gauge.


Finally, clips on the sides are an additional support.


And to finish, a plastic bag for ultimate protection.


And that’s the end of this very/too long article on ironing a shirt.