Eleven Stitches

New Jersey Sheep and Fiber Festival

A week ago, David and I attended the New Jersey Sheep and Fiber Festival.  It was entertaining, as always.  Of course we got to see the usual cute animals.

 

And I of course had to visit the vendor that I think of as the "Button Lady". I got a few buttons.

I love her booth, and I always stock up.  I'm not sure if I should be proud or sheepish that she remembers me now.  I'll go with proud :)  Last year I bought a lot of buttons that were only 5 or 6 per set, but I found that they weren't usually enough for the cardigans that I needed them for.  So this year, I made sure to get enough buttons that match.

Oh, and how perfect are these buttons for that striped cardigan that I haven't finished yet?

I did see something new at the festival this year. Duck herding.

Yes, duck herding.

It was quite adorable.

It was a great time.  It also felt like a warm up for the New York Sheep & Wool festival, which is coming up in a month! 

More Knit Dresses

I'm finding that being busy does not cut down dramatically on my crafting time.  I need to craft to stay sane, so I find a way to work it in.  Busyness does prevent me from taking photos of my crafted items, which of course affects my blogging.  I finally made it outside to take some photos of two dresses I finished.

Both dresses are Vogue 8553.  I'm finding it nice to make a pattern twice in a row, because the second time the dress comes together so much more quickly.

 

The fabric is a cotton-blend knit that I bought online, but it seems that I no longer have a record of where I got it from.  The dress came together easily.  It has some details to it, such as gathering in the front and back and pleats along the skirt.  I was afraid that it might be difficult to put in the front and neck bands, but they went together easily.

The dress is comfortable and swingy.  (Swingy is a plus in my book.)  It made me brave enough to cut out the pattern in some purple knit fabric I had been saving for almost a year.

This fabric is from Mood, of Project Runway fame.  The store was really fun and they had so much fabric!  This dark purple fabric is soft and slinky, and I was saving it for something that I knew would be a success.

Several co-workers complimented me on the dress this week, and were surprised to hear that I had made it.  I took that as a big compliment, since they all know that I sew. 

So yay, two more very wearable dresses.  I'm feeling a chill in the air now, and I think fall will be here soon.  Perhaps this year I will overcome my cool-weather sewing slump and make some dresses with sleeves!