Stitchboard Admin message #76
Re: Tunisian gauge
October 27, 2013 at 8:29:27 PM
 
Sherry,

Woo hoo, you got it...loving that idea...let's get our gifts done and convert the knit dishcloth patterns to TKS! 

Aha, so your avocation has pretty much become your vocation!  Can't love that idea enough! 

Do you think the alternating TKS/TPS elasticity is comparable to knitted ribbing?  If so...I may do that with the crop top...I think I mentioned that stupid top several messages ago.  I'm in the completely boring process of marking every 1/4" on the hem.  (Couldn't find the pens that will fade in time or with washing, so I'm marking the side that won't be seen with a regular ink pen...I figure it should wash out, and if not, nobody will see it anyway.)  I thought pulling the yarn through that tight stitiching would be bad...that's nothing compared to marking every 1/4".  I decided on that because that seems to be about my gauge in TKS, about 4 sts per inch, give or take.  Still have to ensure I can pull the hook through, though, and that may not work, in which case it will mean making bigger loops (hmm, or just using a smaller hook for loop pulling, duh!).  I'm using a backstitch, rather than a buttonhole stitch, because I don't want lacy loops from the bottom of the hem to the TKS part, which would expose skin to cold.

Then I'd envision starting in the middle back (or one side) and chaining a section for the TKS/TPS if it's elastic enough to use instead oif knitted ribbing...I'll just work vertically instead of horizontally for that, catching the bottom of the TKS section all around the shirt.

Wow, detergent companies used to give away free towels?  I never knew that.  If my mother did get free towels, she never said anything, though by the time I was doing my own laundry, they weren't giving away towels. 

Unfortunately, companies are always looking to cut corners...I guarantee nobody would give away towels today. 

I guess the dollar stores are good for something, huh?!  Hand towels!  Can't say I've seen any bath towels there.

You're right, no place is perfect.  I think the humidity there is the part that would really bother me.  Both AZ and NV are a lot less humid, though as a comedian once pointed out, an oven is an oven!    Seriously, though, better the heat with less humidity, because it does feel less miserable...one of the things I hate about being up north is getting the humidity...the hot, hot summers where all you can do is sweat. 

I probably couldn't take your heat.

Awww, thank you for the warming thoughts!    Ugh, the winters chill me right to the bone.    And you're right about snow shoveling, too...it's the absolute worst.  Matter of fact, the most heinous and offensive four letter word in my book is...SNOW!

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Stitchboard Admin message #78
Re: Tunisian gauge
October 28, 2013 at 10:38:32 PM  (in response to BetwixtTheStitch message #2)
 
Sherry,

Thanks!    I hope I'm going in the right direction with the sweatshirt, because it's wasted, anyway, until I can do something with it, so it really helps to hear your feedback.    I could turn it into yarn (LOL, swarn?), but there's not that much of it and why waste what could be a good top if it's got a bottom part again?

I can't remember what my gauge is with that particular (acrylic) yarn and knitting needles, but as a guess, likely a 6-ish.  I'm a loose knitter, unfortunately. 

Ooh, hairspray for ink removal...have to remember that...thank you!    I won't have to use it on this, since the markings are going on the underside, but I've had trouble with ink stains before and had no idea of what to use on them.  I had a pen explode not too long ago...ugh, ink all over! 

Ugh, it's those over 100 degree days that keep me away from TX!  Winters, of course, would be a totally different story.  Though my dear friend livles in a city near Austin, and she's always telling me that the winters are almost as bad as the summers.  I think their cold is very dry...or is that wet...can't remember, but she said it chills you right to the bone.  No thanks! 

Near the Miss. River in the summer must be awful. 

Speaking of the summer and hot, humid places, I have a very dear friend who lives in Mississippi.  It's sweltering there in the summer.  I can't even picture how horrible it is.  But then people there drink hot tea in the summer without a second thought...huh?! 

Yuck, Iowa winters undoubtedly last a very long time.  Reminds me of Minnesota...I was there one winter.  They'd just had a night where the wind chill had been -50...can you imagine?!  Hmm, come to think of it, it may have gone as low as -75 degrees...I don't remember, but it was sooooooooooooooo cold.  Nice people there, but man, too cold in the winter!

Wow, fresh veggies in December...that must be wonderful!  It's not something we could do here, of course.  I told my husband that when we move, I want to have a container garden in the house with fresh veggies.  I've been reading about doing that...all kinds of books about how to grow veggies and herbs in containers inside.

I especially love the idea of growing exactly what I want, without having to worry about the weather!

So when do you normally get your first freeze...December?

Do you remember how your veggies fared after that early freeze?  Were you able to salvage most of them, I hope?

We've had ours already, IIRC...less than a week ago.  All I know is I'm so cold most of the time...except when I have hot flashes, groan.  No happy medium. 

Yeah, that's it...if you've got nowhere to go, it's nice to sit back and enjoy the snow...but the high price after is going out to shovel it.    Ugh, the worst!  Now, my Mississippi friend said they want to move (on purpose, LOL!) to a place where there's snow.  I can and can't understand...I know it's because they suffer with the horribly humid summers...but at the same time...snow is just so miserable!  I guess it depends on your perspective, huh?!

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Stitchboard Admin message #80
Re: Tunisian gauge
October 29, 2013 at 11:24:02 PM  (in response to BetwixtTheStitch message #4)
 
Sherry,

Yeah, enough "swarn" to make a trivet...and not much else! 

I'm going to keep on with the tedium of stitching every 1/4".  The stitching isn't fun, because I'm not making holes in the fabric, but am using the needle to get between the fabric's "stitches," so it won't have a chance of unraveling, but the worst part is making those stupid 1/4" marks. 

Man, I wish I'd been able to consult with you back when I had the pen explosion problem!

I'm so glad the freeze hadn't affected your veggies!  Had you harvested because of the forecast or...?

Your winters sound so much better than ours.  Thankfully, we're not as bad as Iowa or Minnesota, but it still gets into the deep freeze...and stays there.

I remember one time, when we'd been in a deep freeze for weeks...and there went an ant, marching across my desk.  I said, "Where did you come from...don't you know we've been in a deep freeze for weeks?!"  No, he didn't answer...I'm guessing he must have found a nice spot in some insulation, near a heat vent.  Lucky us, huh?!    At least it was only one, so I'm guessing he was a loner...didn't see another one for months!  (Thankfully, ants for us are generally rare at any time, which makes the deep freeze ant even more unusual.)

I'm definitely jealous of the times you haven't had a freeze until Feb!  And I wouldn't mind moderate temps in Nov after a freeze.

I've only lived in climates where there's been bitter, bitter cold in the winter...dry or not, I don't know, I just know it's terrible. 

Running the air conditioner...wow!  That's unthinkable here at this point in time!

Awww, thank you for the warm thoughts! 

Oooh, please let me know how the indoor growing goes!  I personally love the idea of growing things in the house, rather than outside.  Hubby is the gardener, not me...LOL, I prefer the eating part.    It would be so much nicer to pick things right inside where it's warm...no weeding, no weather worries...too hot...too cold...not at all!  

I know when we used to have veggies growing, we'd have a bad crop if it got too hot or too cold out.  Or if we'd have as little as a nuisance flood.    That's why we finally gave up on growing things.

LOL, you must have read my mind!  Corner to corner was something I was thinking about!  So what did you do...start small and then increase on each side or...?  Seriously, I've been thinking about that, after looking at some corner to corner knitted dishcloth patterns.  They look so cool!

BTW, I don't think I mentioned the fate of kitty's costume...well, she hated it.    As soon as hubby put it on her, she became a sad little lump in his lap, to the point where we didn't want to leave it on her a second longer than necessary.  Someone else mentioned that her little one acts all "weighed down," as if the costume is heavy to walk in (!), and I bet if we'd put her on the floor, she would have walked as if she were carrying a pile of bricks.  Sigh.  Anyway, hubby immediately pulled the costume off of her, didn't take as much as one pic of her, because she was so sad looking.  Didn't have the heart to keep torturing her, as I'm sure she felt we were doing. 

At least the hat will be just a quick try-on, not quite as bad as the costume.  Well, maybe just her head will drag on the floor. 

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Stitchboard Admin message #82
Re: Tunisian gauge
October 30, 2013 at 7:26:49 PM  (in response to BetwixtTheStitch message #6)
 
Sherry,

It's good that you watch the forecast...definitely not worth leaving good veggies to chance!  And I'm so happy you were able to salvage the green ones and even ripen them to your preferred ripeness! 

Do you have to water the plants a lot in the summer?  Shade them, somehow?  I know that in years we've grown tomatoes when it was very, very hot, they didn't like that heat and we had a pretty anemic output. 

LOL, same deal here with the ants.    That was the odd thing, too...because as I said, we rarely get them.  It mostly seems to depend on what kind of weather we've had.  A lot of rain that messes up our insulation gives ants a way to get in.  Without that, we usually don't seem to have ants.  And then when we get them, we put out the "slurm," as we call it, they disappear and don't return for a long time.  So seeing that one in the winter in the deep freeze was mind-boggling!

I don't envy you with the fire ants...ugh, they sound miserable! 

That's what we thought...don't torture the kitty for the sake of a pic, as cute as she looked in her little costume.

Oh, I see, corner to corner dc...love it!    For some reason, I was picturing corner to corner TKS...that makes me want to try it, too! 

I can't imagine temps in the 80s for Halloween!  Last I'd heard, they were talking 60s here, though maybe raining, too.  Well, we don't get a lot of people around, and some years, none at all.  I'd kind of rather they don't come around, as the kitty sometimes has meltdowns when someone unknown is at her house (we're lucky she lets us live here!), and hubby is the one who likes giving out the candy, but I'm usually the lucky one who gets to answer the door, sigh. 

LOL, our weather is seasonal...two, to be exact...winter...and construction. 

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Stitchboard Admin message #84
Re: Tunisian gauge
October 31, 2013 at 8:15:39 PM  (in response to BetwixtTheStitch message #8)
 
Sherry,

I can imagine the corner to corner TKS would be wonky...sigh, the edges of TKS always cause me so much consternation.    I'm sure any solution would be inelegant at best...sigh, for such a wonderful stitch, the edges are the worst!  

Oooh, I wonder if your increases and decreases not placed on the edge itself will be a better solution?  Can't wait to hear about that! 

True, veggies & such do need a lot of sunlight...it's the heat they don't care for.  I'm so glad (and jealous) that you can grow melons...I love watermelon, and my top fave is cantaloupe.  Sigh, we once tried growing cantaloupe here...only one plant took, and that plant grew and grew...but before I could pick it, some kids came through and destroyed it.  I was so angry.  As you undoubtedly know, the grocery store stuff usually is nowhere near the quality of fresh-grown, as it's picked before the peak of ripeness so it will (in theory) be ripe when it gets to the stores, and it wasn't like I could replace this poor little cantaloupe that gave its all but got destroyed through no fault of its own. 

I've never heard of black diamond watermelons...they sound delish!  Probably don't get as much as the seeds here, never mind the starter plants, since this isn't a very big growing climate, despite some hot, hot summers. 

We had the same problem with the tomatoes, that they just sat in the heat, looking miserable and wilty. 

It sure is a lot of work for kitties to train their humans...I think our value might be sorely lacking to her if she didn't need us for opening those cans.    Luckily, we redeem ourselves with that particular talent! 

LOL!  We had a handful of kids that were with one family (two, three or four at most, I'm guessing...hubby took care of them), that was it.  The light is off and I don't expect anyone to come around (hopefully everyone knows the rule about that!).  Of course, we've already sampled the leftovers... 

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Stitchboard Admin message #86
Re: Tunisian gauge
November 1, 2013 at 9:16:25 PM  (in response to BetwixtTheStitch message #10)
 
Sherry,

I'm so glad increasing/decreasing one stitch in solves the problem!    That's the one thing I really hate about TKS, those edges...they cause me no end of stress.    Glad you've found a way to avoid that!

I hope the loop works for the turning corner.  Are they tending to sit a bit wonky? 

TSS done with a variegated yarn for a rug sounds perfect!  Would you make a traditional rectangle, or perhaps mix it up shapewise?

I don't know about fabric paint...I would suggest a rubber backing, which is painted on and shouldn't be terribly expensive.  I've seen it a few times over the years, though never really needed it.

I would guess fabric paint would just dry and not do much of anything.    I do wonder if that horrid-smelling rubber cement would do the same as rubber backing...it may even be the same product!  If it is, ugh, I hope they found a way to neutralize that smell.

Soooooooooooooo jealous of your cantaloupe crop you had that year!  LOL, truthfully, I'd take cantaloupe over beans any day.

We've had some strange veggie adventures...LOL, because I'm definitely not right in the head.    The one year I picked out blue potatoes, lemon cucumbers, banana peppers and I forget what else.  The only thing that really turned out, though, was the lemon cucumber crop.  Oh, man, those turned out so well we were giving them away...couldn't eat them all!

They didn't look like lemons...not really sure what they looked like.  We gave some to the neighbors and they put one on the table and then asked their kids, "What do you think this is?"  They never guessed it.  I do remember one guess was, "A candle."  LOL, they didn't look like anything known to man, but they sure were delish! 

Oh, I seem to recall that we grew purple beans...they boiled up looking like regular green beans when cooked...but I prefer them raw, even though they're way too fibrous for me.  Love to nosh on them, though.

Mmmm, those Black Diamond watermelons sound yummy!  If we could grow them here, I would.  Sadly, they're probably too big even for an indoor container garden.

Is the climate too warm for the Sugar Babies?  They sell the seeds for those here...I've always wanted to grow them, so am hoping either that will work for an indoor container garden, or maybe hubby will grow them outside.  I'm pretty sure those are okay for our climate.  I wouldn't actually think to grow them in a place like TX, knowing they're okay for crappy climates like ours! 

It's nice to have a challenge here and there, to keep the old brain humming.  It's also much more fun to try something new than to do same old, same old, even if the only result is failure...at least it's fun while trying! 

I hope your granddaughter's hubby gets back soon!  Is he in the military?

Did your granddaughter end up showing up for dinner dressed up?  I hope it wasn't an uncomfortable costume. 

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Stitchboard Admin message #88
Re: Tunisian gauge
November 2, 2013 at 9:23:49 PM  (in response to BetwixtTheStitch message #12)
 
Sherry,

I'm glad you found a way to compensate for the wonky corners!    Well, it's all trial and error, isn't it...which can be fun or harrowing, depending! 

Hmm, I didn't know the fabric paint was a lot like the backing!  You know, something you could try...make a very small item and put a couple of dots of fabric paint on the bottom, so you can see how well it holds up.  This way, you don't have to make an entire rug to see if it works.    (LOL, and dolls need rugs, too! )

Do they use paint-on backing on the rugs in the stores?  I haven't looked closely to see what they use, but you're right, whatever it is doesn't usually stay.  There's another project I'd like to do...a bath mat.  The ones in the stores are so expensive, and they don't last through too many washings. 

I think RH acrylic is perfect for trying out a rug or other item. 

Thanks for letting me know about the pollination issue for the Sugar Babies!    LOL, I would have been sitting there, scratching my head, saying, "Now, why aren't these growing?"

Wow, you do get seeds late for your growing season!    That's crazy.  I think we get ours about June, maybe earlier...hard to remember, since we haven't bought lately.

How do you dry beans...green beans or...?  Do you have a dehydrator?

Ugh, I don't envy you the fire ants.  I forget what happened to our blue potatoes...just didn't sprout, in all likelihood. 

Hawaii is way expensive.    I can see why...everyone wants to go there!

So are they going to be near you when her hubby transfers back, I hope? 

Little Red Riding Hood...no way!  My friend dressed as that one year, and her "mini-me" doll outfit is in the photo albums somewhere here.  I bought her a doll, and then my doll modeled the ouitfit very nicely after I made it.    I know for a while, at least, she was bringing the doll to doll shows.  LOL, except the doll I bought for her was holding a tiny toy giraffe, not a basket, because my friend loves giraffes, and that was why I'd bought her that particular doll!  Then I happened upon a hooded cape and it just screamed "Little Red Riding Hood," in light of her costume. 

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Stitchboard Admin message #90
Re: Tunisian gauge
November 3, 2013 at 10:14:22 PM  (in response to BetwixtTheStitch message #14)
 
Sherry,

I'm so glad to hear the fabric paint works!  What a great find...and once again, you're a genius!    I would tend to use that, then, in dots regularly spaced along the bottom of a rug.  (It's too bad they don't sell the fabric paint in huge containers, but because it would be too expensive to paint all over the bottom of a rug, I would definitely use dots instead.)

That's also an ingenious solution for the eyes.  I use beads...but I don't make stuffed toys for children, so I don't have to worry about eyes being bitten off and becoming a choking hazard.

Though I'm thinking of using the mini patterns from the Kindle freebie the other day (mini menagerie, I think it was called...I hope you got it while it was still free?  Not sure if it is today, sigh), and making a small toy for the kitty.  I'd love to see her curled up, holding a stuffed animal!    Of course, beads definitely wouldn't work for eyes...it would have to be fabric paint, because I don't like embroidering eyes on...they always turn out too wonky.    One side will be lower or higher, or one eye will be wider and one will be narrower.  It's just easier to use beads...but of course, not with a cat.    Big time choking hazard!

I'd be afraid the white school glue would wash off...but you're right, just about anything is better than what they use on the store mats. 

They almost deteriorate when you just look at them! 

So you just leave beans out at room temperature to dry...is that it?    Would it work for green beans?  I would love dried green beans!  Or would they have to be dried in a dehydrator to make them into good snacks?

Awww, that's so sweet that your granddaughter will be nearby!  I'm sure you won't let them starve, either. 

Is this a baby or adult sweater?  Thankfully, there are so many free patterns available for things like that!  I usually try Garnstudio and Lion Brand.

LOL, I probably would have made a tiny beaded picnic basket if I'd thought of it...or some kind of basket (LOL, what kind of basket did LRRH carry?)...but I really didn't think of it.  I also had left the doll in the package so she could take it out, and sent the cape with the pics, so she could see what it was (I figured she'd know, but in case, I included pics!).  Since the giraffe was held in the doll's arms with those clear bands, I think she said she left them on, so it was a good thing the doll had a cape, that the giraffe didn't have to be removed!

Argh, I still haven't finished the candy corn cap!    I had so many days when I had bad headaches, so I haven't worked as much on it.    I'll still finish it, even late...who says you have to wait for Halloween to dress your pets, right?    I suspect her little head will be dragging on the floor, in protest of wearing the cap, though. 

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