Saturday, October 9, 2010

Funky Fall Gloves and Halloween Crafts!

When I first saw these gloves I thought "oh how perfect for Fall!" But then I hesitated. They were knit in pink and day glow white and the effect was just a tad too girlish for a woman of my mature years. But then a kit for the gloves became available in blue and green. Why I could see instantly what a huge difference that made. You can see it for yourself, can't you? These gloves are much more mature and age appropriate...


Okay, so maybe the gloves are teetering on wrong side of the "big mistake" equation. But, it's not like I'm going to wear them to the office. No siree Bob. But they cheer me up and certainly announce the arrival of Fall!



If I wasn't so beleaguered with work these days I would have ripped these back and knit them with bolder stripes and eliminated the orange stripes. Le sigh. Maybe they'll grow on me. I also knit the top I'm wearing. It's knit in Rowan wool cotton on US 4 needles. I knit it years ago, long before I was blogging. I love Rowan wool cotton, it's such a comfortable yarn to wear and holds up really well. The pattern was written out for me by the LYS where I bought the yarn, L'Atelier in Santa Monica. I told them I wanted to knit a top in this yarn and they wrote up a pattern for me. That's one of the nice perks of buying yarn at a LYS.



At the very least, I can wear them to a pumpkin patch to buy a Halloween pumpkin!




Particulars: Dial Up Gloves; 4 skeins Spud & Chloe FINE sock (superwash 80% wool 20% silk) - brown - blue - green - orange; US 2 needles (circular needles and magic loop technique until I reached the fingers and then switched to double pointed needles). I found this pattern frustrating because the color join is very "frugly" despite my best efforts to try and diminish the unsightlyness using various techniques. I'm sure there is a "fix" for smoothing the color join but, frankly, I was just too tired to make the effort, and the yarn did not frog well, so I just pushed forward. These gloves are knit in the round and then turned inside out (i.e. reverse stockinette) and that may have exacerbated the problem. Or maybe it was just me. My only modification was to add some shaping. I began the glove in the large size and then made gradual decreases (1 stitch every 9th row after I was 2 inches from CO edge) until I had the number of stitches for the medium size which took place just before the thumb opening.


Fun and Easy Fall Crafts

As I alluded to above, work has been unbearably miserable lately. I've decided I would not make a good soldier, because when life is reduced to work, sleep, and duty it isn't long before I'm not a happy camper. I do still manage to find time to craft though, as it is necessary to keep me sane. Since I suspect I'm not the only one who is pressed for time I'm going to share some quick and easy craft projects to get you ready for Halloween!

Needle Felt A Magic Pumpkin!



This is a needle felted pumpkin using a "soft" technique and it's perfect for the absolute beginner. I bought this as a kit from Fairie Bling and it came with everything I needed. Instead of making two small pumpkins I opted to make one larger pumpkin. Finished size is roughly 3.5" x 4.5."

Decorate a Vintage Halloween Ornament

The inspiration for this vintage Halloween ornament came from last year's Create & Decorate Magazine (October 2009). It was very simple and fun to make and I'll probably fill this one with candy and give it as a welcoming gift to our new neighbors, once it gets a little closer to Halloween. I haven't actually met these new neighbors yet. I'm hoping they aren't too stuffy. But, if they have moved to the far reaches of Topanga, odds are they are a bit eccentric like the rest of us.


Particulars: paper mache cone (10.5" x 4") sold online at The Craft Shop for $1.99; I painted and decorated it with various and sundry Fall decorations picked up at craft stores. I particularly like the Vampire Blood gift tag (sold as a set of 6). I can also see adding these tags to a wine bottle as a hostess gift or tied onto a wine glass stem like a toe tag/name tag! These ideas just come naturally to me. I think it's my practical nature. Oh, before I forget the tags are made by Crafty Pagan Designs who has an Etsy shop filled with fun paper goods.

Until next time, be well and love well and take the time to decorate for Halloween ~ I know it will make you smile!

30 comments:

Sue said...

The color in those gloves is just gorgeous! Your top does look as though it has worn very well! We are having some beautiful sunny weather at the moment. Pity it wouldnt stay like this all through summer instead of the really hot days. Your little pumpkin looks very cute too, what a clever idea.

Tracy said...

The gloves are so much FUN, Claudia! And very age appropriate, I think. ;o) It's good to have a little fun accessory now and again. And just LOVE the felted pumpkin--very cute! I'd like that a season pin cushion...LOL! The fall/Halloween cone is lovely. I've not made anything like that before...gives inspiration. Hope work will ease and you have more time for fun knitting.... Happy Weekend, my friend ((HUGS))

Unknown said...

How awesome!!!! Just love it!!! Those gloves are lovely too! Thanks for sending me the link to this and for showing how you use my tag! So cool! Have a wonderful Halloween!

Unknown said...

I'm very jealous hearing you say "fall is really here" but seeing you wear a sleeveless shirt! If I could just get a California fall one more time, I would be so happy! It was in the low 50's earlier last week, and rainy and gray. I called my husband to complain and said, "you realize this is winter where I come from!"

By the way, those gloves look great. I've been thinking about making some fingerless gloves this year. So I may use your inspiration to get me going.

Bridget said...

Oh Claudia I think those gloves/mitts are fun! Heck, you can buy a business-like set, you might as well make the fun ones for yourself. I love the top too, as that is one of my favorite styles.

Your Halloween crafts are pretty inspiring ... I may have to try do something myself ...

Rebekah said...

Well I love the gloves, they are really cute and fun. And I think no matter how old we are, we always need at least one thing that's cute and fun and a tad young for us. As long as its not a spandex zipper black dress. I have my stripey socks I wear under my suit and in my boots. no one knows that my feet are having so much fun when I'm prepping depositions. Now th glvoes may be a little harder to hide, but there's always the weekends!

subliminalrabbit said...

has work been miserable of late for EVERYONE? is it something about october? maybe. at least you're finding time to be crafty - go you!

the arm-warmers are fun! and thanks for the other crafty ideas.

i'm going to go drink a nice, fair-trade oolong i bought from a local company in portland now - in an attempt to combat this ridiculous weird-weather headache. i know you'd appreciate that. ;)

Allie said...

Claudia those gloves are just gorgeous! They look so nice and warm. The top is lovely too. Look at your perfect nails....sigh.

I'm glad you found time to create. We all need that down-time. Especially when things get stressful.

I love your Halloween ornament - that is really great. Downright elegant!

t does wool said...

loving the decorations,Claudia.
and beautiful mitts.
enjoy~

jillian said...

Those gloves are pretty and so fun! I love your top (esp. the neckline) and your halloween-y crafts. So much creativity!

raining sheep said...

So enjoyed this post! I actually absolutely LOVE those gloves. Those are my kind of colors - they are a bit 70s and fabulous. It must of been hard knitting all those finger pieces. I wish could wear a top like yours, but it's pretty nasty out right now! We have had such great weather this past week, but something is blowing in. I had my family over for thanksgiving dinner tonight and now am relaxing and taking time out to read blogs. sigh! I love that kind of evening. Hugs.

At Home Mommy Knits said...

Love your gloves...perfect for fall! Your pumpkin is adorable and will make a great decoration all the way through to Thanksgiving.

I hope work gets better for you and you have some down time to enjoy!!

SissySees said...

So much to love here... the top, the gloves, the Halloween decor - especially the felted pumpkin - your smiling face...

That's a great top though. Love the color and the pattern. I'll have to try that yarn too.

knittingdragonflies said...

Wow you are uber creative! Love the gloves, they make me giggle! They will be a super warm and nice pop of color when it cools off.
Take care
Vicki

Monika said...

Your new mittens go very well with jeans. I'm not a fan of reverse stockinett though, but they do look nice. I like that they are long.
The pumpkin is adorable.
I'm sorry work is taking so much time, but I'm glad that you still manage to do some crafting!

gMarie said...

I am always late to your blog party! Love the gloves - but I especially love that you are wearing long gloves with a sleeveless shell! Fabulous.

the little needle felted pumpkin is just way, way too cute. Pumpkins are my favorite - if I wasn't worried a certain bone-headed Boy would eat it, I'd make some. g

KnittySue said...

Love the gloves they are a fun fall addition...and that sweater is awesome and a great fit. I can't imagine just writing up a pattern..poof just like that...amazing.

betty said...

The gloves look like great fun. BTW -- I think pink/white would have been fine also.

I love that cone ornament thingie. Halloween is getting pretty odd in that people around my neighborhood are decorating for it more than for Christmas.

Renee said...

Very fun and styling gloves, Claudia! I can't get enough of fingerless mitts, they really are terrific to knit and wear. Your shell is a really classic knit, so wearable!

Lovely pumpkin!! And very lucky neighbour to get such a lovely holiday (is Halloween a holiday?) favour.

Hilary said...

I am so in love with your gloves! I like the orange stripes (very autumn-y!), and I like the thickness of the stripes, too. Oh, and I *always* have trouble with color joins...I cheat by knotting the two colors together really tightly in the back of the work, but you can always kind of tell.

I'm so sorry work has been so icky lately. :( I hope that turns around soon!!

lapdogknits said...

Fun, fun, fun. I knew the moment I saw the first photo you were living in the same neck of the woods...The gloves are perfect, love the colors, interesting decorations.

Anonymous said...

So sorry for the work crunch. I've been there. Day Glo is a little much, I agree, but otherwise I plan on wearing pink-and-white until I'm ninety. I hear it goes very well with pure white hair (tee hee). Your gloves are perfect until you get there, though, you young whippersnapper! Ursula

Mr Puffy's Knitting Blog: said...

Thank you for making me laugh, Ursula, and for everyone's nice comments! Whippersnapper may not be appropriate but it's a great word - LOL

Murielle Creative Knitting said...

Love love love the gloves, the pumpkin, the cone - everything!!! You just get better and more creative all the time!! Kudos m'dear:))

Ally Jay said...

It can be tough going when life is reduced to the bare essentials. Finding time to craft even if just a few minutes is so necessary for my mental health too.

Ally Jay said...

BTW the gloves loook groovy

Rachel said...

I think we all need fun accessories...and those gloves fit the bill! You've been busy knitting and crafting up a storm...I hope it helped your sanity!

Anita said...

I think the gloves are awesome! :) And your sweater is absolutely lovely.
The pumpkin is cute, I'll have to try that one. Did you see my felted sheep? I think I may have caught the needle felting bug. LOL
Hope you are doing well & not working too hard.

Ann said...

Fantasric gloves!
I like how they're knitted and I like the color.
And the photo with a pumpkin is super!

amanda said...

Claudia! I love those gloves! And that photograph of gloves, pumpkin and perfect nails - again!!! :)