About Jan

Musician and geek and Juris Doctor; lover of fine art and fine craft; mother and grandmother and significant other and friend. Passionate about sewing.

Match Those Stripes!

Another of Marcy Tilton’s “Cool Combos” that came home from California with me was a bundle of gray and black stripes—one with the stripes about ¼ inch wide, one with narrower stripes, and one with sheer black stripes and abstract gray stripes. The pattern I chose was another of Katherine Tilton’s tops—this time Vogue 8817. I liked the sheer stripe so much I decided to use the sleeve from view A/B, but without the trim strips. For the body I used view C. On the middle stripe on the upper front, I used the sheer, but doubled it (cut two … Continue reading

Broken Wrist Knitting!

I just completed my first knitting project since I broke my wrist on 11/30/2012 and had surgery to install plate on 12/7/2013. I follow The Buffalo Wool Company on Facebook. A month or so before my Fateful Fall, Buffalo Wool Company posted a picture on FB of a skein of their hand-dyed “Tracks” in a color they call Black Bunny 2, a wonderful mix of shades of blue, aqua, and lime. Tracks is comprised of mostly superfine superwash merino, with a little bison for warmth and strength. This yarn is soft!! I ordered a hank of the yarn, 400 yards. … Continue reading

Katherine Tilton’s Vogue 8793

Pattern Description: T-shirt with interesting collar options and suggestions for mixing fabrics. Designed by Katherine Tilton Sizing: XSM-SML-MED/LRG-XLG-XXL Fabric Used: Purchased from MarcyTilton.com, it is now sold out and I am not positive about the fiber content. I believe it is rayon/lycra. It’s absolutely yummy with great stretch. The companion stripe has less stretch, so has to be cut accordingly. Marcy and her team frequently post “Cool Combos” – a yard or so of several fabrics that they like together. Kudos to the team, all of whom have great eyes for the mix! Needle/Notions Used: Standard 10 or 12. A … Continue reading

Oh, Pretty Baby

Look at those two photos. If you saw that mass (or mess) of yarns on the left sitting in a pile, would you have any idea that the finished product would look like that infinitely touchable baby blanket on the right? Nope, me neither. I went into Fine Points Yarn Shop on Larchmere in the Shaker Heights neighborhood of Cleveland shortly after my birthday. They had sent me a quite generous birthday discount offer, and I was determined to use it! My daughter-in-law has suggested that I make a baby blanket or two for her photo studio. She thinks her … Continue reading

Sleepy Bunny

When I saw the bear and rabbit dolls designed by Debbie Bliss for Noro Yarns, I knew the rabbit was going on my list of projects. My grandson loves bunnies passionately, so the bunny will be offered to him for his bunny collection. I love Noro Kureyon yarn. A year ago I made a throw for our family room out of Noro Kureyon in their color #321, black/brown/gray. This throw is perfect on our brown couch, and keeps my toes completely toasty while I’m knitting and watching television. All Noro yarns are hand-dyed in luscious colors, with occasional unexpected hues thrown … Continue reading

My Go-To Gift

My older son visited from Dallas last weekend. In a Monday evening text, he asked if I’d like to have lunch with him on Tuesday. When I woke up Tuesday morning, I realized I needed a quick gift to send back to Dallas with him. I’ve made a number of Nancy Ota’s Zip It bags over the past few years. My grandchildren’s teachers received bags for Christmas last year. I frequently give them as gifts to friends who will be traveling. My favorite use is for all the adapters one needs in this age of technology. No more digging through … Continue reading