I am going to knitting hell.

This is not a Thing that got finished in January. Well, sort of. Maybe. I actually finished knitting it last February, but it's been sitting, unseamed, in a box.

And unseaming, gentle readers, is why I am going to knitting hell.

It occurred to me last night, as I was putting aside the machine after sewing the lining hem on the dress, that I couldn't think of any good reason why I shouldn't seam the purse with the machine. Afterall, I had just made a knit dress, and it turned out nicely, and the only difference between that and a knit purse -- in my head -- was the gauge and weight of the fabric.

In other words, I decided to be lazy. I decided that handstitching the purse was overrated, and I'd see what my machine could do.

And you know what? Being lazy was awesome. It's the nicest seams that I've ever had on a knit project, and my machine could handle it like a pro. I was worried that it wouldn't feed the material (because really, that's all that knitting is -- making fabric to put together or wear), but it did.

It was fast, and the seams are even and straight, and the machine is good. I am probably going to knitting hell for taking a shortcut, but the final result is so worth it. If I can get away with it, I'm never seaming a knit fabric by hand again.

And really? If I seamed things by machine, they'd probably get done a lot sooner.

Big excitement on a Saturday night

I get to use my swift for the first time. 

 Yes, this is what passes for excitement around here.

You can tell to the girl to stash down... but then there's a sale.

When  I was in Joann Fabric a week ago to get a legitimate need for the dress, I saw some gorgeous linen-cotton fabric that I knew had to be a skirt for me.

Now, I know that buying more fabric was not crafting down the stash. And it wasn't being frugal -- although since it was 40 percent off, I could at least make the argument that I wasn't paying full price.

But I wanted it. And it was perfect for me. And, well, I really wanted it. Which, come to think of it, is mostly why I have a stash and a craft supply buying problem.

Anyway. Having found the fabric, I needed to find a pattern. I could have gone with something I had already -- Butterick 3134 -- but I wasn't super thrilled with all the panels, and I didn't really like how it had a thicker defined waistband. So I did what any girl would do who Really Wanted Something: I started looking at Vogue's website.

And there I found it: Vogue 8749. I liked how the waistband was nothing more than the facing (well, I'm lining it, so no facing) flipped over, and how it was flowy without being overwhelming.

I got lucky, and Vogue patterns were on sale at Joann for $3.99 through today. So I went back last night, bought the lining fabric, the zipper, the linen, and the pattern. And now I'm all ready to make it. At some point. Maybe in April or March.

I'm also stalking another Vogue pattern -- Vogue 8784. It's part of Vogue's spring collection, and was the only one that I saw there that I decided I Must Have. Sadly, even though the patterns were marked down to $3.99, my Joann didn't have the new Vogue ones in. But they're also on sale this coming weekend, so I'll make a stop back in on Friday before I go out of town.

Yeah, shush. They'll get made. Eventually.

Me, procrastinate? No. Never.

Um, this dress is cutting it a little close to my deadline. But... it's Jan. 28, and all I have to do is hem the lining and figure out what on EARTH happened with the zipper that's making it not zip all the way to the top.

This is what I learned along the way for this project, which I started... two weeks ago?

1. After sewing a velvet dress, doing knit fabric is easy peasy.
2. If I actually bother to cut out the dress, the rest of it goes quickly.
3. I hate buttonholes.

Honestly, if I'd actually kept doing the dress, and had done it consistently, I would have been finished ages ago. But I never bothered to cut it out until after Martin Luther King Day, and then I didn't do anything with the pieces for a while. And for some reason, that darn dress just wouldn't stitch itself. Clothes these days.

So this is Vogue 8442. I did it in a lightweight knit fabric, which feels like a brushed knit. So soft. So nice. Lined with a black lining.

On me, it doesn't look nearly as tentlike as it does on the dressform. I'm chalking this up to the fact that my arms and sleeves don't usually hang next to my boobs at all time, and thus you can actually see form definition when I wear it.

I can't remember how long I've had this pattern. But let's put it this way: When I bought it, it wasn't out of print. The fabric was part of the Joann Mixed Media collection... which I can also no longer find online. I think I bought that in 2010 or early 2011.

The accidental first project

Why can't a girl find a hat that won't smush her hair in the winter? That was the question I asked on Facebook.

I hate how when it's cold out, I have to wear a hat (because I'm neither stupid nor crazy, although I am picky) to keep my little ears from freezing off in Pittsburgh winters. But when I have to wear a hat, I also smush and scrunch my hair down. It's bad enough that it's fine and flat. I certainly don't need the weight and circumference of a hat contributing!

So when I was griping about small hats, it occurred to me that gasp! shock! amazement! I could actually just make my own hat. And thus began the January Knitting Project: Damnit, I'm Cold.

Damnit, I'm Cold helped me use up some yarn that's been sitting around since I learned how to knit, and I made my very first hat. That hat was incredibly warm -- and still is -- but was ugly as sin. I keep it in the car for hiking trips in the winter so it doesn't really see the light of day. It's your basic Paton's Classic Wool in Jade. Sadly, although I only came close to using half a skein, at least it's half a skein less than I had -- plus, I got a cute hat out of it!

Look, Ma -- I've got a craft blog!

One of my big goals/resolutions/whatsits to keep me accountable in 2012 was to actually craft down my stash. Three main reasons:

1. I have... an addiction. I love yarn and fabric, and can't seem to help myself from buying fabric and patterns and yarn when they go on sale -- and even when they don't. At last count, I think I've got more than a mile of yarn in my apartment, and while I don't have enough fabric to coat a football field, it's probably getting close. I have 39 patterns. This is... problematic.
2. I also like clothes. I really like clothes. I like buying them, but hate how in this day and age, even though a girl may have an hourglass figure, of sorts (40-36-42), if it's not a stick thin hourglass, you might be out of luck finding what you need and want. And damnit, I like cute clothes. I love vintage styles, and I hate how it's hard to find clothes that are made well, yet affordable, and don't require you to wear three layers of camis and shirts just to not reveal yourself to the world.
3. I also am cheap. I have fabric and yarn, damnit, and it's silly to keep paying perfectly good money for more fabric and yarn, and then go out and buy more clothes. So, I figure if I can use the fabric and yarn and the patterns to make clothes and accessories that I like, I can save money. And if I save money, I can buy a house.

So here we go (albeit a bit late, which is why this and the next few posts are backdated). One sewn item and one knitted item each month for 2012. 12 months, 24 projects. I think I can do it.