Design Diary: Lady Heartrose - Grading and Calculations

I've always considered one of my greatest strengths to be the fact that I'm pretty much equally right-brained/left-brained, analytic/artistic, or concrete/creative. 

While it makes me a great utility player, this dichotomy has it pros and cons. When I worked in a primarily creative environment, the highly creative folks pushed me into more administrative positions, but now that I work with primarily analytic people I get to do all the fun wacky creative things. It's been much more rare to find something that scratches both those itches, however.

And then I met knitwear design...

Textiles and drawing and geometry and Excel spreadsheets! When I design a sweater, I get to do it all.

As many designers will tell you, making something in one size is easy (especially if it's your size), making it work across 8-10 sizes? That's the difficult part and the reason why you'll see so many free patterns that are one-size only.  

Grading can be terribly time consuming, but I derive genuine pleasure from a well-designed Excel spreadsheet.At it's most basic, the spreadsheets take the body measurements and translate them to stitch counts based on my swatch, but after 5 years of designing, my template sheets have gotten increasingly complex and sophisticated and I'm pretty pleased with my latest iteration.

My sizing is all based on ASTM International Standards for Body Measurements (from a few years ago), which gives me more confidence in my sizing than when I was mushing it together from various sources.My current version also shows ALL my calculations (See the screenshot for an example), as well as regular confirmations that I'm still on stitch count and within my desiring sizing.

It helps me make sure I'm not missing anything and is a helpful bit of information to have on hand for tech editors and pattern support requests, especially when the latter comes months or years after I released a design. 

At this point is also when I lock down the nitty-gritty of the design details - width of the button band, depth of the ribbing at the sleeves/hem etc. My highly scientific method for determining these? Holding my index finger and thumb apart to what looks like a good width/depth and measuring the space with a ruler, making sure it looks relatively proportional to my sketch. Similarly when it comes to ease, I take a cloth tape measure and myself or a mannequin and see what looks right and matches the sketch. For this pattern, I wanted the hem to be fairly swingy, so there's 7-10 inches of ease at the hips (with the larger amounts at the top of the range). 

 It often feels like overkill to do the full grading before I cast on, but I like my instructions to flow fairly smoothly from one size to the next, so if I have to make a bunch of adjustments to half the sizes, I try to even it out across the size range as much as possible. Of course, that's not to say I won't calculate a portion (like the body) just to be able to cast on - I'm only human after all.

Any questions about the grading process? My favorite Excel formula? The trickiest bit to calculate? Put them in the comments below!

Next up - Sample Knitting!

Little Miss Cleaver had a Farm

LMC's 2nd birthday is fast approaching on Sunday, but since she doesn't read this blog I can give you a sneak peak of one of the presents I made for her.

Do you make stuff from Pinterest? I know a lot of people that cook from it, but not a lot that actually do projects, per say. It's definitely been the inspiration behind a few things for me, like LMC's first Halloween Costume, and this past Christmas' Advent Calendar.

This gift is really a follow-on to that advent calendar - every since she got all the farm critters in the calendar, she's been playing with them constantly and I thought it would be nice to give them a little home (and if it means less searching for a missing tiny horse or chicken for me, well, that'd be nice too.).

The barn is based on the tutorial from here.

It's a tutorial and not a pattern, so there's a certain portion of the instructions that involve winging it, particularly in respect to cutting out pieces and seam allowances and even then I made a few changes.

• Pleated the roof portions
• I cut out and sewed the batting pieces together, rather than the wrap/and tape method - if I were to do it again, I'd just interline the fabric pieces with the batting and save myself a bunch of trouble.
• I didn't sew the fold lines. They folded fine on their own, I didn't want the thread lines showing and I'm not that worried about the plastic canvas sliding.
• I did all the applique (by machine) before I sewed the pieces together, and just marked the stitching lines on everything so I didn't put a door where it'd get half cut off.
• I'd also make the button loops tighter/smaller next time.

For materials I bought some deliciously soft red brushed flannel and the white twill tape for the doors/windows specifically for the project and everything else was leftovers from other garment projects (wool, linen, twill, and corduroy).

I'll note that this is a fairly time-consuming project. It probably took me 3 naptimes to complete. Though that was mostly the applique and getting the pieces cut and arranged, the actual structural assembly went fairly quickly.

My finished product isn't quite as sharp-looking as the tutorial mostly because I was a bit loosey-goosey with the seam allowances, but I think LMC will like it all the same - I certainly enjoyed playing with it to take these photos! And come-on, it's a tiny carry-along barn with a path and pond! It's pretty stinking adorable.

Design Diary: Lady Heartrose - Swatching

Usually I sketch before I swatch, but in this case, since I worked a little backwards.

The yarn here is Swans Island DK Washable Wool Merino in Malbec. The original child's cardigan was in a hand-dyed fingering weight washable wool from the Woolen Rabbit. For the grown-up version I wanted something with similar properties, but in a slightly larger, more knit-able, scale. For that, the Swans Island was a perfect match, with the Malbec a nice feminine, but grown-up colorway.

[Full disclosure: I had ID'd this as my dream yarn a while back, and then earned access to some  yarn support from Swans Island following the publication of my  Breakwater Pullover].

Unless I know I want a particularly dense or flowy fabric, I generally begin swatching with the needle size indicated on the ball band. The swatches here are done on US 6/4.0 mm and US 7/4.5 mm. I learned to knit on size 7 needles, and as such, I've always had a bit of a soft-spot for them.

While the 7s resulted in a bit looser fabric, the main difference in these swatches is the scale of the cable pattern. The size 6 swatch uses the same cable pattern from the childre's cardigan, while the size 7 swatch doubles the thickness of the rib and cables. 

I gently washed and blocked both swatches (just flattening and not stretching), which is extra important in super-wash yarns, which I've found have a tendency to grow. Then I pinned on various place of my unnamed dress form  to see how it hangs and feels in scale to the body. Unless I'm doing a sample for a publisher, I usually keep the form at my own measurements, which is a 38-39" bust. 

Scale is the key here. If Lady Heartrose was a fall/winter cardigan, I'd go with the thicker version in a heart-beat, but for a spring/summer garment, I want something more delicate, so the thinner cable it is. The size 6 fabric also just looks a bit "cleaner" to me, so size 6 swatch wins overall!

Next up - practical math and complex spreadsheets!! 

Works in Progress

Between the snow and the seemingly never-ending stream of sickness in the Cleaver household, there's been a lot of indoor days. Some with just enough energy to build a fort to "nap" in, others of a more productive sort. 

I finished piecing my quilt top, made my "sandwich" and have begun the actual quilting of my quilt. Huzzah!

I decided to hand-quilt it. I'm enjoying the ever-so handmade nature of my uneven stitches and since there's no deadline to be finished (I started it over 2 years ago after all), there's no need to rush. I haven't done much beyond those few test circles, as my hand-work time (read: evening tv time) has been filled, as it most usually is, with knitting.

I've finished one sample sock for a new pattern (and if you're interested in being a tester, let me know!) and have been working on a number of swatches for all kinds of different designs. I sat yesterday with a stack of stitch dictionaries and post-it notes and came up with at least one idea I really adore for a submission call. I had to tell myself to bind off the swatch because I wanted to keep knitting it.

On days I've been home with LMC, for illness or weekending reasons, she keeps me on my toes- sometimes literally, as she's become very interested in ballet, which to her means yelling BALLET! and doing something akin to an arabesque attitude. I have since taught her to plié as well.

I'm not sure where she picked it up, as the only ballet I can recall showing her prior to this was bits of the nutcracker at Christmas and the occasional SYTYCD clip.But perhaps it stuck as the other day she found and insisted on wearing mommy's "ballet shoes."  Then again it could be something from daycare, as it took me a while to figure out her "ski" impression from school - there's only so much those daily report sheets tell you.

In there anything you've been working on lately?

Design Diary: Lady Heartrose - Sketching

Just in time for Valentine's, a design with a little love - Lady Heartrose and my first post chronicling my process of pulling together a new knit design.

Oftentimes I swatch first, sometimes I sketch first, but usually by the time I get around to sketching a design, I already have a pretty good idea of what I'm going to do, so I don't tend to make more than a few versions, mostly to tweak things like necklines. 

This one, being based, on the child's cardigan was even easier. The questions are pretty basic - aline like the original, or fitted?  A-line. What kind of sleeve? Something a little fuller and 3/4 length, because I think it's the most flattering/wearable. Still raglan, still crew-neck.

I usually use this "plus-size" croquis for most of my sketches, though sometimes I'll trace over a  photo of a celebrity or blogger if they provided some kind of inspiration or if I have a certain type of "ideal wearer" in mind. .  Here I just wanted something simple, sweet and lady-like. So she got a bob and a pencil skirt. She's probably looking over at a cup of tea and a slice of sweet quickbread or cake. 

Next up: Swatching!!

5th Annual National Pie Day Pie-Luck & Blackberry Pie with Lemon Streusel

For the fifth year in a row, my knitting friend and I gathered at Casa Cleaver to celebrate National Pie Day with lots and lots of pie.

Due to the seemingly never-ending snow and some scheduling conflicts, our group was slightly smaller than usual, but we still managed to have 11 kinds of pie represented. There was a spicy meat pie, lentil shepherds pie, empanadas, cauliflower quiche, chocolate tart with hazelnut crust, nutella/banana, raspberry ribbon, ginger pear, lemon meringue, cherry and blackberry.

Much pie was eaten, much tea was drank, and much knitting was done. We also managed to cover all 70 toes present with hand-knit socks.

I intended to make my traditional cherry cup-pies, but due the lack of tasty ingredients in unbaked pie-dough, my baking assistant started losing interest and I went for simple(r), by making a regular pie and using a heart cookie cutter for the top crust, which would make a great valentine's day dessert, methinks.

I also tried out a new recipe that I've been dreaming of for a while, inspired by my much-beloved Katie Cakes from Chicago. While I'd like to try one at least one more iteration before I'd call it final (adding a bit of cinnamon and clove to berries), it was pretty delicious, so I thought I'd share it here.

Blackberry Pie with Lemon Streusel:

Crust

• 2 cups flour
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 2/3 cup shortening or unsalted butter
• up to 1/2 cup of cold water

Filling

• 4 cups blackberries (boysenberries would work great too), fresh or thawed frozen berries
• 3/4 cup sugar
• 3 Tablespoons cornstarch

Streusel

• 1/2 cup flour
• 1/3 cup granulated sugar
• 1/2 stick melted butter
• zest of one lemon

Pre-heat Oven to 350 Degrees F.

Mix together flour and salt for crust. Using knives or a pastry cutter, cut in shortening until mixture resembles course meal. Add cold water a small amount at a time, until dough holds together. Separate into two equal-sized balls. Flatten balls into discs and wrap separately in plastic wrap and place in fridge for about 30 minutes, or at a minimum, while filling and streusel is prepared.

Mix together filling ingredidents and set aside.

Mix together streusel ingredients in a small bowl and set aside.

Roll out chilled dough for bottom of pan. Insert pie filling. Roll out dough for top of pan, making a lattice structure is recommended.

Sprinkle streusel on top. It seems like a lot of streusel, but I'd recommend using it all as the pie expands slightly while baking.

Put in oven and bake for 1 hour, or until pie bubbles. Briefly broil top to brown if needed.

Works in Progress

Nature, and my hands apparently, abhor a vacuum. 

I know I said I was in-between projects, but now it seems like I have so many ideas that I don't know what to do with myself. 

I picked up a half-finished pair of socks from over two years ago and am about one episode of Jeopardy! + one episode of Doctor Who  away from finishing that long neglected sock later this evening. And in a fit of productivity, I wrote up a multi-size pattern for it, like you do. Pending some good light for photos and some Adobe time this weekend, we may have an unexpected new pattern out soon! (It looks more interesting on, believe me.)

I got my new backing fabric for my embroidery piece and am being perfectionist over the "font" (as much as handwriting translated to stitching can be a font). Being a perfectionist, it's slow going and contemplative, which is how I like my embroidery to be.  

When I picked up my embroidery fabric, I also picked up my backing and batting for my quilt. I still need to attach the border to the top, and sweep the floor before I try basting anything, but I feel like it's coming along nicely. I think I'm going to hand quilt it, in a super simple way. I'm too scared to try out machine quilting just yet. at least, i'd prefer to be some practice in on a pillow top or something first before I dove into a whole quilt. 

Last and not least, my box of yarn arrived from Swans Island this week, which means I can start swatching. I've got plans for two women's sweaters, a spring/summer cardigan and a fall/winter pullover that I can't wait to start working on. And then there's the shawl ideas in my head, and LMC's second birthday is coming up soon and I have  to make something for that, and.. well you get the picture.

What's keeping your hands busy these days?

Snow!

We ended up with 20 inches of snow yesterday, somewhat shy of the 30+ inches in February 2013, but a whopper of a storm nonetheless.

But Mainers handle storms like no others I've known. We hunker down at home, wait it out, and then start cleaning up after the last flakes have fallen. I drove to work today a few hours late past some large snow mounds,to arrive at a full parking garage and office. Its amazing how quickly Mainers moves on. Of course it'll be a few days yet before the piles are moved, and we have more snow in the forecast for Friday and Monday, but that's winter in Maine for you. 

Granted, I don't have to do any shoveling (Mr. Cleaver does yeoman's work there), but the nice thing about a big snow (provide you keep your power) is how its forces you to slow down, take it easy for a day. Of course me being me, I made up some storm scones in the AM and took naptime to finish up a deadline project and sew on the sashing for my quilt top. 

As for the quilt, I've learned quite a few things already, like I would have saved myself a whole heap of seam ripping if I had just pinned my pieces together first, instead of thinking I could sew evenly in a straight line (which gets harder when the line is several feet long). Also I now know to not assume that the solid-colored pieces are dyed and not printed. But I'm very please with where it's at right now, and LMC has certainly claimed it (as with any piece of fabric or knitting I leave out) as the perfect place to "nap" or hide. 

I'm in a bit of an inbetweeny place right now. As of last night, I'm halfway through my first read of The Little Prince, and I've got nothing much in the queue to follow, I've got one knitting project finished and nothing new on the needles yet, and an embroidery piece that's stalled until I purchase some different fabric. But while my hands were empty while watching TV last night, the possibilities are open and I've got several new ideas I want to get started on, including a box of yarn that should be arrived on my doorstop soon.

I'm thinking I'm might share the process of my next knit design from start to end, would that be of interest to anyone?

Resolve

It seems like I can never quite make up my mind regarding resolutions by the time December 31st rolls around. I feel like I should review my year and make goals for the next, but in the midst of the Holiday season, it never happens.

Now that the calendar has turned to quieter days of January, that time for reflection seems more appropriate and available. I'm thinking I should just give up the Gregorian calendar and make my resolutions for the upcoming Lunar New Year (which falls soon enough on February 19th). 

From the time I was in middle school, up through college, I dutifully made a scrapbook for each calendar year. After several years off, I returned to the tradition of the annual photo albums in 2013. Of course now I make them digitally and get two copies printed, one to be perused, poked, and enjoyed today, and one kept safe for LMC someday.

My 2014 books arrived in the mail over the weekend allowing me to look back on the past year to some events seemingly so far away now (her first birthday! summer!) and some as near as two week ago. We did a LOT of stuff last year.

Some of it, much of it, wasn't a big deal - like going to Old Orchard Beach for pizza and pier fries in the snow, or trying out the splash pad at a local park. Others were medium deals - trips to the nearby petting zoo, apple picking. And there were handful of big deals - the vacation in Camden/Rockland and the trip out California. But all put together, it was a very full year. Looking back, my only regret was not taking off more days in the early summer to just be.

So I guess if I have one concrete goal for 2015, it's to take more vacation days in June and July.

But since I've taken so long to come up with my resolutions, why stop at one? 

I thought I had made a list of ten additional of disparate goals, but upon review they all sort bunched into one: 

Fight the entropy.

Or what Mr. Cleaver calls "entropy" - the gradual descent into disorder, the propensity of any flat surface to accumulate "stuff," for things once ignore to stay ignored, etc., etc. 

Yes, I'm going to try to put things away, or recycle or shred them, but more importantly - I'm attacking those stacks of needs-repair or half-finished or planned and purchased projects. Whether that means completion or admitting that its really not important to me. Sock without a mate from 2012? Unpainted closet door from 2010?  I'm looking at you!

I've actually made some good headway on this project thing, including sewing up a raglan dress for LMC and a dress for her doll I cut out in early September. I turned a broken necklace into a new bracelet/necklace.  I've repaired no less than three stuffed animals mauled by Steinbeck in his pre- and post-travel anxiety days. And I started working on a quilt I did some piecing on back in 2013. 

I'm sure in a few weeks I'll get all excited by some shiny and new project, but even it that turns out to be, I've still made a good dent in my existing stacks of stuff. 

What about you, did you make any resolutions this year? 

A Holiday Review

I finished the stocking with 2 days to spare. The last backstitch was completed the evening of the 22nd and the stocking assembled and sewn on the 23rd.

The kit came with some poly-felt for the backing, but no instructions for assembly, so I took a good look at the ones my Grandmother made and worked from there, using some pre-made piping and leftover linen for the exterior and some muslin for the lining. After nearly 21 months of work, it was proudly filled with goodies by Santa on the 24th, and somewhat anti-climatically put into storage on January 1.

I also managed to complete a toddler sweater and an apron, a large batch of cookies, several pounds of peanut brittle, the assembly of a wooden play kitchen and, with some finishing help from Bristol Ivy, a knit hat for Mr. Cleaver.

With a list like that it's no wonder I took the week after Christmas to relax and watch old movies (Charade and The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance - both highly recommended!) and Doctor Who on Netflix. I also managed to clear up some of my sewing project backlog, but more on that for another day.

Though last year was LMC's first Christmas, this was her first year with some understanding about the holiday and we really wanted it to be magical and mindful of both sharing in the traditions we grew up with (Handmade stockings! Toutiere on Christmas Eve!) and building new traditions of our own.

Christmas music was played, the Nutcracker was danced to, stop-motion animated films were watched, and food was shared with family. We took her to see Santa, who she was rather uncertain about until he gave her a little teddy bear, and then he was a great guy. We drove to see the lights and decorated together. It was enjoyed by all of us and I gained a great deal of respect for all that my parents did when I was child to make Christmas something special for my brother and me. 

Usually, when the decorations are packed up and put away on the First of the year, it always felt a little barren to me, but as we shift to this new year, life just feels so full - in the very best way possible, that it couldn't possibly feel barren at all.

__

PS -

New year - new site!

I've built a shiny new MsCleaver.com and the blog now resides at http://www.mscleaver.com/chronicles/ or you can find the rss feed at http://www.mscleaver.com/chronicles?format=rss or Follow my blog with Bloglovin

So please update your bookmarks, feed readers, etc.!