Spool Knitter

The sound of metal knitting needles swooshing and clicking together as if they're in a race instantly takes me back to the my childhood, sitting in my Grandma's living room watching TV, while she chatted away with the other adults, never skipping a stitch.

She tried to teach me how to knit, probably several times.  Unfortunately, it was a skill that I never really acquired.  Somehow about halfway through a simple square I find my tension is always so tight that I have to pry the wool off of the needle and each row seems to end up with a different number of stitches, even when they aren't supposed to!

While I lived in Japan though I found the perfect solution...spool knitting!  You could get all kinds of shapes and sizes of spool knitters there.  These weren't your ordinary spool knitters.  You can make sweaters with these things if you want!  I tend to stick to scarf projects though because they're quick and easy, but the possibilities are still endless.

This tutorial will be in two parts.  This week I'll show you how to make your own spool knitter and then next week I'll show you how to use it to make some last minute Christmas gifts (or something for yourself~).

Here are the supplies you will need:

Any plastic container will do (but cleaning out an ice-cream pail is half the fun~)
Also, you don't need all of these blades, I just wasn't sure which one would work best.

Steps:

1) Your ice-cream pail should be empty (yum) and clean.  Remove any handles and turn over so that it's upside down.  Use your measuring tape and a marker to measure an equal amount across the bottom.  I found a line on the bottom of the pail and then measured approximately 1.5" down from there.

 

                       

2) Using a sharp knife, cut along this line.  You may want to use safety gloves for this step.

3) Time to measure again.  I used 3/4" as the length and width of each my sections but if you have a smaller container you can make the sections smaller.  Don't worry if some spaces or sections are not exact, it doesn't matter, just try to get it close enough to not have a great big gap somewhere in the middle.

4) Time to cut again.  Cut along each of the squares you just measured.  You should end up with something that looks a bit like a castle fortress.  Try to round off your corners just a tiny bit if you can.  You don't want your wool to catch on anything or to scratch yourself when you start knitting.



It looks a bit messy, but that's OK, it still works.

That's it for this week.  I figured you might need a couple of days to empty your ice-cream pail and find a nice ball of wool to work with next week.  Any kind will do but I like to use something bulky and that's nice and soft.  For a regular size scarf, one ball will do.  If you want something extra wide or extra long you may want two.

If you've already eaten all of your ice cream or are using some other type of container, try making some different sizes and space your sections differently.

Make sure to come back next Friday because that's when I'll show you how to thread your knitter and how to make a simple but beautiful scarf at lightning speed.  See you then!

Don't forget to enter my giveaway, directions are on the side bar under the followers list.

I had so many visitors this past week!  Thank you all for stopping by.  Under the Table and Dreaming by Stephanie Lynn sent the most people my way, so drop by over there and say hi!

I'll be posting this project at the linky parties throughout the week, including Todays Creative Blog. 

Make sure to click on the tab above and check them all out.

Have a great week, make sure to leave a comment if you have any questions.

Inspiration Shot: Elephants

Given yesterday's Show and Tell post I thought I'd continue with the theme and share some elephant shots from Africa.

Isn't she beautiful?  She looks so happy!

I had big plans while I was on safari.  I took lots of super duper close up pics of all different kinds of animals and was going to create a sort of collage or grid with all of them.  I never did get around to it but I still like the idea.

I hope this beautiful creature inspires you to create or just to look at the world from a slightly different angle today~

Show and Tell: Draft Catcher

For those of you who have been hanging out here since the beginning of Etcetorize, you'll remember from my Super Hot, Super Easy Ironing Board Cover post that I mentioned that I live in an old house.  I don't think I mentioned that it's 98 years old though.  It's beautiful and I love every nook and cranny....except for the basement.  It's unfinished.  And you know what that means...it's cold.  brrrrrrrr!

Also, because it's old, not every door shuts tightly.  And now that the snow is starting to swirl outside I can really feel all that cold air trying to make it's way through the basement door, into the rest of the house.

So, I picked up this cute vintage draft catcher pattern at a second hand store and thought it would be perfect to put in front of my basement door.  I can't find a date on the envelope but I'm sure it must be from the 70's.  It just has the look and feel to me.  (By the way, did you know that you can order archived Kwik Sew patterns from the 70's on their website????  So cool)

I fell in love with the elephant in the top photo and am super happy with the way he turned out!

The only thing I would warn you about if you tackle a similar project is to stay away from the foam chips.  If you ever have to stuff anything and you can use something else...DO IT!  I will avoid using them again at all costs.  They are the messiest and most annoying thing ever.  They must be made up of at least 90% static cling.  They were from one end of my house to the other until I rolled out the Dyson~

Hopefully this little guy will help keep the cold air downstairs.  What do you think?  Do you have other creative and attractive ways of keeping those cold fall and winter winds at bay?  Don't be shy, leave a comment and share your ideas!

Don't forget to enter my giveaway.  You'll find directions on the side bar.

I usually only share my weekend tutorials in all the linky parties throughout the week, but I like this project so much I think I'll share it too.  You can check out the linky parties by clicking the tab at the top of the page.

It's a sign~

Every time I step into my favourite second hand shops I always seem to stop and stare at the pile of silver trays and plates that are constantly accumulating on the shelves.  For the longest time I've been trying to figure out what I could do with them, but no matter how hard I stared at them, nothing would come to me.

And then I picked up the latest edition of Somerset Home.  There it was, right in front of me...the perfect project!

Angela Harris from yourangil.blogspot.com created beautiful objects with these trays to decorate her home and send out affirmation messages to her family.  I was so excited when I saw this, I knew that I had to make some for my house too!

Here are the supplies that I used:

Most important are the trays, the chalkboard paint and a brush, and some tape.  The rest is just fun embellishments~

Steps
1) Lightly clean the area that you will be applying the chalkboard paint to. 

I did a little research on cleaning silver (apparently toothpaste and a soft cloth are the way to go) but I quickly decided that what I loved about thiese little treasures was the patina.  It gives them character and age.  So, I left the rest of the tray alone and continued.

2) Tape around the area that you want covered with chalkboard paint.  This was my first experience using chalkboard paint and I thought that this step would ensure a nice clean edge....sadly it did not.  It wasn't bad but when I removed the tape it did lift some of the paint.  So, if you have an ultra steady hand you can skip this step.  Otherwise, just be super gentle when you remove the tape later on.

3) Paint the chalkboard paint onto the tray.  Give it 2-3 coats alternating the direction of your brush strokes on each layer.  It takes about an hour or so to dry in between each layer depending on how thick you paint it on.

4) Once the last layer of paint has dried thoroughly very, VERY gently remove the tape.  Now for the fun part - embellishing!!  Tie on pretty ribbons, sparkly butterflies, and other things to personalize them.  If your tray doesn't have handles or a filigree edge, you can use a hot glue gun to attach things.

5) Write special messages on the trays for your guests or family members and hang on doors or special places.



Aren't they gorgeous?!?!?  I hung the one above on the outside of my washroom door.

And the one below hangs on the door knob to my guest room.

I thought that I'd be able to set this one on the door casing outside of my studio but it wouldn't stay up there.  I ended up using a 3M Command Strip and sticking it right to the wall.  I love it!

What do you think?  Could you make these more 'masculine' or maybe more professional for an office?  What else could you use them for?  Leave a comment and share your ideas~

Don't forget to sign up as a follower and enter my giveaway here.

Hey!  This project has been featured on Lambaround as a Best in Show nominee! 
Check out Lamb's site and vote for my project to win~

My top referrer this week was Blue Cricket Design .  Go visit Becca for inspiration and creativity~

I'll be posting this project at the linky parties on the linky tab above.  Check them all out for more fun and great ideas~

Inspiration Shot-The Masai

A few years ago I had the incredible experience of travelling throughout Eastern and Southern Africa for 2 months.  I saw so many incredible things and met alot of really wonderful people.

One of the experiences that really stuck with me was a visit to a traditional Masai village.  Yesterday's Show and Tell post really got me thinking about community and how much we can do when we all come together.

So, today I'm sharing some shots of colour from Kenya and the Masai people.  I love how everyone, even the men, are so full of bright colours:

A special treat this week:  It's not shot really well but I just love how all of the voices sound together~

Leave a comment.  Let me know if this inspires you~

Show and Tell: Pillowcase Grand Total!!

In the beginning of October I showed you how to make Super Easy, Super Pretty Pillowcases.  And back then I told you that I was giving mine to the local emergency shelter for homeless people.

Well, the local Quilt Guild and the local Fabricland joined me, and together everyone is donating over 450 570 pillowcases!!!




Each pile is 10 pillowcases~

The Quilt Guild made over 60 alone and then to top it off Barb at Fabricland offered free remnants and prizes to customers who wanted to help out.  The response was overwhelming!



Barb-Owner of the local Fabricland Store

I'm so proud of my community.  Our original goal was to gather at least 141 pillowcases.  We're a small city with only three shelters and that's the number of pillows that are used every night.  I can't believe I was actually worried that we wouldn't make that goal.

A super huge thank you to everyone who participated.  I know lots of people want to continue and to donate throughout the year so I'm even more thrilled that the giving will continue.

Check out the Million Pillowcase Challenge link on the side bar and join the fun!