Crafts of the Past: more people pins

I say more, because I already posted about one here.

This pattern came from a book we had as kids. It's possible, though, that it wasn't a book for kids, but just for people who wanted to work with fabric but didn't have a lot of experience.  You know the books. I think that another project from the book was making a yarn boa using adding machine tape as a stabalizer, which I attempted but after I broke a few needles on the sewing machine I gave it up. The idea seemed sound, at least at the time.

Anyway. More people pins, as promised:

kind of a tropical dancer and this toga guy with leaves in his hair

the fancy lady with fancy glasses and this western supervillain

Notice the rope from Clue! The pattern was like a gingerbread boy, but someone went off on their own with the tropical dancer.  I am impressed by those glasses on the lower left one. They are two wire spirals stuck together that had once been a link on a funky necklace chain.

proof of progress

shirts on the drying rack

squee!

In progress for June

I'm unable to produce anything to show because life has become an unending cycle of dyeing and drying (and the drying doesn't happen quickly because of the humidity!). I dyed two colors on Saturday, and I've got two buckets ready to dye tomorrow. After that, I hope to have some shirts finished! But it's hard to say.

Anyway, here are some things I'm working away on.

out of the yellow orange and into... various piles

greens and blues from Saturday

jellyfish piecing; I work on it when I can't get at shirts

I also finished a new pair of fingerless gloves, but they were washed and now will not dry, so, no photos of those... Have I complained about the humidity yet?

score!

I was in Cincinnati for a few days, and was dragged to a used children's clothing store by my sisters in law, one that is forever shutting its doors at the end of the month. Of course, this means serious savings and I bought many shirts and pants for half off.

But! More excitingly! They were selling off furnishings and other store paraphernalia. And I snagged these for like $3:

fake plastic babies!

Models! So I don't have to use squirmy uncooperative flesh and bone babies.

When I took them out today, my elder daughter, the talking one, asked "Did they get their heads knocked off in a fight?"  She's interested in fights.  Uh, no, honey. They were just made that way.

summer = car trips = knitting

I've gone from being embarrassed about the size of my spinning stash into being embarrassed about the amount of handspun I've produced and not knit up.

And thus shamed into returning to my first love, knitting, I've been working on fingerless gloves. These pictured are made with two of my March yarns.

corridale and shetland blend

I actually knit this pair twice, because the pattern I improvised the first time wasn't working, and also, I was using the wrong size needles - once again, one should make their gauge swatch, and I didn't....

I love the color of this pair!

And the next pair is even more exciting:

navajo plied mitts

This is my more usual pattern, on my more usual needles. The thing I love about spinning yarn for a project is that you can make the yarn do the color work for you.  I just hope it works out as I planned!

It's a great pattern, easy to vary - for those of us who find it hard to do the same thing more than once, I should think so, since I wrote it myself. And very portable. One day, maybe, I'll even share it or sell it, one day...

You know, that mystical day, when I have more time on my hands?