Welcome to my knitting blog

Hello and welcome! Here you'll find patterns, tips, and projects!

[sworntovalor]

Here’s a “life-hack” for you. Apparently concentrated Kool-Aid can be used as a pretty effective leather dye. I was making a drink while cutting the snaps off some new straps for my pauldrons and I got curious, so I tried it, thinking, “ok even if this works, it will just wash out.” Nope. It took the “dye” (undiluted) in about 3 seconds. After drying for about an hour and a half, it would not wash off in the hottest tap-water. It would not wash out after soaking for 30 minutes. It did not wash out until I BOILED it, and even then, only by a tiny bit and it gave it a weathered look that was kind of cool. Add some waterproofing and I’d wager it would survive even that. That rich red is only one application too. Plus it smells great, lol. So there you go, cheap, fruity smelling leather dye in all the colors Kool-Aid has to offer.

[hammerhide]

WELL THEN!

[pomegranateandivy-deactivated20]

this may be important to some of my followers *and certainly not just getting reblogged because of my costuming and my boyfriends desire for leather armor*

[armeleia]

When I was in middle school we used to use it to dye our hair.  Potent stuff.

[baedlyweathered]

If you’re dying anything with kool-aid it’s best to use SUGAR-FREE ones otherwise the thing you’re dying might get all sticky

[samthor]

the flavor only packets where you are supposed add sugar are the best.  they will dye any natural fiber: leather, wool, cotton, hair,  flax, jute, silk and so forth.  heat the dye water so it is more potent.  let dry then rinse excess out in cold water.  there’s  a whole system to this. 

[mittensmcgee-deactivated2018033]

Oh my god

[triforceofdoom]

This will prove very useful for any future cosplays I wanna do.

[systlin]

DUDE

[subtract-me-from-your-heart]

And now I’m like “holy shit can i dye alpaca with this?”

[kangarohcreations]

My friend dyed her hair with this so it does not fucking surprise me you can do this shit.

[quixiiify]

Make Some Pocket Extenders for Your Pants

So I don’t know about you, but I’m often frustrated by the ridiculous smallness of girls’ pockets. At a bare minimum, I need to be able to shove my cellphone in there - come on, pants companies! So what I started doing was making myself pocket extenders. I’ve done this several times, for pants and shorts. It’s great.

I just got this pair of jeans, so I thought I’d show you how to do it. I kind of feel like it just hasn’t occurred to some of you that this is an option, so maybe now it will. All you need is your pants, some fabric (I just took a random piece from a scrap bin), a needle, and some thread (thread doesn’t even need to match the fabric since literally no one will see it).

See? Ridiculous. Like, half a cellphone, or only 2.5″. Useless.

 So turn those inside out to expose the pockets.

Figure out how big you want your pockets to actually be. I kinda go by whatever looks like might be right. I didn’t really measure them. Fold the fabric in half, so you have a pocket, and then fold it in half again so you can have two equal ones.

Try to get the edges to line up enough, pin it in place, then sew up the sides! Are your stitches crazy uneven and wonky looking? Doesn’t matter; nobody’s going to see it. These are in the inside of your pants. The only thing that matters is that it holds up. So I double-did the corners, since those tend to get the most stress.

Cut open the bottom of the existing pockets.

Pin it in place, then sew around, joining the new pocket to the old pocket. I did this by keeping my hand on the inside, so I wouldn’t accidentally sew through the other side. Again, I reinforced the corners, and didn’t worry about what it actually looks like. Then I turned it in side out to make sure the inside was all joined properly.

Yay all done! And the pockets are so much bigger now!

Whaaaat I can fit my entire phone and entire hand and probably something else now, are girls’ pockets even allowed to do that?! Heck yeah they are.

[rosalarian]

You are a goddamn hero.

[im-just-a-peach]

The fashion industry just needs to catch the fuck up!

[should-be-sleeping]

The fashion industry wants to sell you pants AND a purse. They’ve made a conscious decision not to catch up.

[legitimatelala]

Reblogging for the truth in the last comment. That is, in a nutshell, the way everything works in this world.

[blu-purpl3-indig0-deactivated20]

Reblogging for my friends with no pockets

[estfortis]

brilliant. why have I not thought of this before???

[knitwits]

Bless this post!

[macrolit]

How many have you read?

The BBC estimates that most people will only read 6 books out of the 100 listed below. Reblog this and bold the titles you’ve read.

1 Pride and Prejudice - Jane Austen 2 Lord of the Rings - J. R. R. Tolkein 3 Jane Eyre – Charlotte Bronte 4 Harry Potter series 5 To Kill a Mockingbird - Harper Lee 6 The Bible 7 Wuthering Heights – Emily Bronte 8 Nineteen Eighty Four – George Orwell 9 His Dark Materials – Philip Pullman 10 Great Expectations – Charles Dickens 11 Little Women – Louisa M Alcott 12 Tess of the D’Urbervilles – Thomas Hardy 13 Catch 22 – Joseph Heller 14 Complete Works of Shakespeare 15 Rebecca – Daphne Du Maurier 16 The Hobbit – JRR Tolkien 17 Birdsong – Sebastian Faulks 18 Catcher in the Rye 19 The Time Traveller’s Wife - Audrey Niffeneger 20 Middlemarch – George Eliot 21 Gone With The Wind – Margaret Mitchell 22 The Great Gatsby – F Scott Fitzgerald 23 Bleak House – Charles Dickens 24 War and Peace – Leo Tolstoy 25 The Hitch Hiker’s Guide to the Galaxy – Douglas Adams 26 Brideshead Revisited – Evelyn Waugh 27 Crime and Punishment – Fyodor Dostoyevsky 28 Grapes of Wrath – John Steinbeck 29 Alice in Wonderland – Lewis Carroll 30 The Wind in the Willows – Kenneth Grahame 31 Anna Karenina – Leo Tolstoy 32 David Copperfield – Charles Dickens 33 Chronicles of Narnia – CS Lewis 34 Emma – Jane Austen 35 Persuasion – Jane Austen 36 The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe – CS Lewis 37 The Kite Runner - Khaled Hosseini 38 Captain Corelli’s Mandolin - Louis De Bernieres 39 Memoirs of a Geisha – Arthur Golden 40 Winnie the Pooh – AA Milne 41 Animal Farm – George Orwell 42 The Da Vinci Code – Dan Brown 43 One Hundred Years of Solitude – Gabriel Garcia Marquez 44 A Prayer for Owen Meaney – John Irving 45 The Woman in White – Wilkie Collins 46 Anne of Green Gables – LM Montgomery 47 Far From The Madding Crowd – Thomas Hardy 48 The Handmaid’s Tale – Margaret Atwood 49 Lord of the Flies – William Golding 50 Atonement – Ian McEwan

51 Life of Pi – Yann Martel 52 Dune – Frank Herbert 53 Cold Comfort Farm – Stella Gibbons 54 Sense and Sensibility – Jane Austen 55 A Suitable Boy – Vikram Seth 56 The Shadow of the Wind – Carlos Ruiz Zafon 57 A Tale Of Two Cities – Charles Dickens 58 Brave New World – Aldous Huxley 59 The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time – Mark Haddon 60 Love In The Time Of Cholera – Gabriel Garcia Marquez 61 Of Mice and Men – John Steinbeck 62 Lolita – Vladimir Nabokov 63 The Secret History – Donna Tartt 64 The Lovely Bones - Alice Sebold 65 Count of Monte Cristo – Alexandre Dumas 66 On The Road – Jack Kerouac 67 Jude the Obscure – Thomas Hardy 68 Bridget Jones’s Diary – Helen Fielding 69 Midnight’s Children – Salman Rushdie 70 Moby Dick – Herman Melville 71 Oliver Twist – Charles Dickens 72 Dracula – Bram Stoker 73 The Secret Garden – Frances Hodgson Burnett 74 Notes From A Small Island – Bill Bryson 75 Ulysses – James Joyce 76 The Bell Jar – Sylvia Plath 77 Swallows and Amazons - Arthur Ransome 78 Germinal – Emile Zola 79 Vanity Fair – William Makepeace Thackeray 80 Possession – AS Byatt 81 A Christmas Carol – Charles Dickens 82 Cloud Atlas – David Mitchel 83 The Color Purple – Alice Walker 84 The Remains of the Day – Kazuo Ishiguro 85 Madame Bovary – Gustave Flaubert 86 A Fine Balance – Rohinton Mistry 87 Charlotte’s Web – EB White 88 The Five People You Meet In Heaven – Mitch Albom 89 Adventures of Sherlock Holmes – Sir Arthur Conan Doyle 90 The Faraway Tree Collection – Enid Blyton 91 Heart of Darkness – Joseph Conrad 92 The Little Prince – Antoine De Saint-Exupery 93 The Wasp Factory – Iain Banks 94 Watership Down – Richard Adams 95 A Confederacy of Dunces – John Kennedy Toole 96 A Town Like Alice – Nevil Shute 97 The Three Musketeers – Alexandre Dumas 98 Hamlet – William Shakespeare 99 Charlie and the Chocolate Factory – Roald Dahl 100 Les Miserables – Victor Hugo

[canthinkofaurl-deactivated20221]

5 i am a disgrace im calling bs on anyone who claims they read ulysses tbh

[stillwaitingforgodot]

23 #englishmajor

[davincichode]

29 because I need to get out more

[an-earth-witch-deactivated20181]

Only 18…but I have read about 1/3 of Ulysses, and one day I will finish it. It’s just that…it’s denser than gluten free cake….

[lastxleviathanrefollow]

Holy s hit 38. 0.o

[vaiyamagic]

21, but only beacuse I’m not counting the ones I got far enough into to know I didn’t care to finish it. (Though quite a few of these are on my to-read list.)

[marsdaydream]

uh, 49. I had no friends

[tzikeh]

81. Should be higher. I’ve got some catching up to do!

[sameone]

72, or thereabouts. I’m old.

[changingthingslikeleaves]

45.  But why is there an entry for Chronicles of Narnia and then an entry for The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe?  How are the complete works of Shakespeare listed, and then Hamlet by itself?  Why so much fucking Thomas Hardy?

[thassalia]

60–English major. High school overachiever.

[ellewritesfiction]

Thomas Hardy is the only reason I got to 25 since I read his five major works back to back last year. 😂😂 But. Reblogging so I have something to go on because I struggle to pick books out for myself anymore and I need to read more again.

[likearootlesstree]

34

God, but I hate the classics?

[knitwits]

10...kinda disappointed in myself

[knitwits]

KNIT-ON METHOD OF CASTING ON STITCHES This method of casting on uses two needles. It doesn't require that you determine how much yarn you will need to complete the cast on ahead of time. This method may be used at the beginning of a project and is also often used for casting on in the middle of a row (e.g. for a buttonhole), or at the beginning of a row (e.g. shaping) To begin, make a slip knot (loop) on one needle, approximately 6 inches from yarn end. This counts as the first stitch. In the left hand, hold needle with left thumb and index finger get, hold yarn tail close to knot. Hold free needle in right hand. Insert tip of right needle through loop on left needle from front to back. Notice right needle is under left needle and the working yarn is under the right needle. Slightly move left index finger and thumb over to hold right needle in position for a moment. Draw right needle with yarn back through loop on left needle. Bring left needle in front of loop on right needle and then up through loop. Remove right needle from loop and gently tighten new stitch on left needle by pulling working yarn. Repeat these steps for each additional cast on stitch or until you can work with ease and your cast on stitches become evenly spaced on the needle - not too loose or tight. NOTE: Cast on stitches should slide easily on the needle. If cast on edge is too tight, try again with a needle one or two sizes larger. Enjoy and happy knitting!

[knitwits]

CASTING ON Abbreviation: CO In order to start knitting it is necessary to first put a row of stitches (loops) onto one needle. This is called casting on, and there are many different methods of doing this. These two methods shown are the most versatile. Learn both methods and then decide which is easier for you. LONG TAIL METHOD OF CASTING ON STITCHES (a personal favorite) Measure off a beginning length of yarn, allowing 1 inch for each stitch to be cast on (slightly less will be needed for finer yarn or more heavier yarns) (For practice, measure 20 in from the yarn end) At the measured distance from the yarn tail, make a slip knot (loop) on one needle. Gently pull both yarn ends to tighten the slip knot on the needle. This slip knot (loop) counts as the first stitch. The end of the yarn is called the yarn tail. The yarn connected to the ball is called the working yarn. Hold the needle with the slip knot in one hand. Wrap the yarn around your other hand as follows: place the yarn tail over your thumb from front to back and bring working yarn up and around your index finger. Secure both yarn ends in the palm of your hand with the three remaining fingers. Insert tip of needle under yarn tail on thumb from front to back. Bring needle over and under working yarn on index finger. Draw needle and yarn back through loop. Slip thumb out of loop and gently pull loose end to secure new stitch on needle. Loop should fit close to needle but not tightly. You should be able to slide loop along needle but needle shouldn't fall easily out of loop. Repeat these steps for each additional cast on stitch needed or until you can work with ease and your cast on stitches become evenly spaced on the needle - not too loose or tight.

[glitterigf-deactivated20180915]

This user thinks trans women are real women

[theroomwhereitswritten]

I’m sorry, why the fucking fuck is this even up for debate??!????

~Liz

[knitwits]

Like the user above me said, what is this even up for debate?

[knitwits]

For those of you just starting out, like I was just a year or two ago, the question of, “What do I need?” must come to mind. So, I’ve compiled a list of things your basic knit kit should include.

1. PLASTIC KNITTING NEEDLES Perfect Points make knitting fast and easy. Available in 10 in and 14 in lengths sizes 1 though 7 (American measurements)

2. ALUMINUM KNITTING NEEDLES Available in 10 in and 14 in lengths in sizes 1 through 17.

3. POMPOM MAKERS Fun, handy tool makes pompoms in sizes 1 through 3 in.

4. CIRCULAR KNITTING NEEDLES All needles are available in lightweight anodized aluminum with flexible plastic tubing. Great for seamless knitting. 16 inch circulars are available in sizes 1 through 10.5 and 29 in circulars are available in sizes 1 through 17. 36 in circulars are available in sizes 9 through 15.

5. POINT PROTECTORS PRevent points from damage and keeps work on the needles when not in progress. Smooth, flexible rubber adjusts to any size needle and stays on securely.

6. DOUBLE POINT KNITTING NEEDLES Double point anodized needles are used for socks, sleeves, and any project that is knit in a tube or requires working from both sides. Double points are 7 in in length and available in sizes 0 through 8 and are sold in sets of five.

7. STITCH HOLDERS Stitch holders keep stitches secure until you are ready to work them.

8. KNIT TALLY Easy-to-use counter that helps you keep track of the number of stitches on your needles. Manually adjust number as you knit.

9. YARN BAG Great project bag that will protect your yarn ball while knitting or crocheting. Large enough to also store your project until complete.

10. CABLE NEEDLES

11. STITCH MARKERS

12. TAPE MEASURE It'll come in handy, trust me. It's a pain trying to measure a project with a wooden ruler. 13. A CROCHET HOOK This comes in handy when the inevitable dropped stitch occurs.