The Homesteady

Remaking: An Old Sweater Knitted Into a Sontag Wrap

I have a few hand-knitted items I've made over the years that simply don't work for me anymore. They no longer fit, or I just find myself choosing them less often than I used to (or sometimes not at all). 

Rather than get rid of them, I've decided to rip them out and make new things from the yarn. This kind of remaking is a new kind of crafting to me, and it feels so good to deconstruct these pieces and imbue the fibers with new use. 

I started by unwinding the very first sweater I ever knit (see below) some 11 years ago, and creating an 18th century- (and Outlander-) inspired sontag, which is a long shawl that wraps around the front and ties in back.


Here's the sweater! I was so proud (I still am). I wish I remembered the pattern and the yarn, but it was so long ago and I bought both in person at a yarn store in New Haven, Connecticut – the name of which I also can't remember. I do recall that I was shopping there with my mom and my aunt, and we'd all been taught how to knit together by my college roommate (one of the most special learning experiences I've had). 

I wore this sweater a lot of the years, and even as recently as to Miles's 2nd birthday party. But after more than a decade of wearing (and washing – not 100% sure I should've put this yarn in the washer and dryer, but oh well), I felt finished with it. It didn't quite fit well anymore – it had shrunk and I had grown. Time to make something new.

(Watch my "Remaking" story highlight to see even more pics from the very beginning of the process.)

I ripped out the sweater and, on the advice of my wise friend Jack, wound the yarn into hanks, twisted them into skeins, and gave them a wash. After they dried (the fibers having relaxed quite a bit), I wound the skeins into balls and started on this pattern. But wait! 

After finishing it completely, I wasn't satisfied with the i-cord edge. (In the pattern's defense, it called for a lighter weight yarn than what I was using, and despite sizing up my needles and knitting a successful gauge swatch, I suspect my gauge was altered.) I ripped it out, and decided to start again with a new pattern: this one. It was just what I was looking for, and I'm really so pleased. 

It's historically inspired, but I've worn it quite a bit already, even over a sweatshirt (we're working on a few heating issues in the new house!). 

I'm already working on another remaking piece. How good it feels to shop in my own wardrobe for knitting supplies! 

My Go-To Gifts for a New Baby

So many friends in our (socially distanced) circle are expecting or just welcomed beautiful new babies! I wanted to share a few of the things I typically buy to celebrate the arrival of a new little one – and the birthing parent too.

(That William Morris quote comes to mind as a guide: "Have nothing in your houses that you do not know to be useful, or believe to be beautiful." Although in this case beauty is in the eye of the parent, so I lean more towards use.)

1. Something from the registry. This is an easy one and always a good bet. The parents-to-be know what they need! Get it for them.
2. Burp cloths. These will always (always) come in handy. I'm going to share the sewing tutorial for the black linen quilted one you see in the photo soon; the pretty rainbow ones I ordered from here, and they're only $8 for a set of two [affiliate link].
3. Baby hats. Again, so useful, especially for winter babies! And I'm quite certain there's nothing cuter than a baby in a bonnet. I knitted these two; the pink one with this free pattern (the same pattern I used to knit the hat Miles wore home from the hospital) and the bonnet with a pattern from this book. 
4. Reverse zip pajamas. [affiliate link] I was so grateful for these when Miles was tiny. Target sells sets of three pajamas that have a zipper which zips from top to bottom instead of bottom up. This means being able to do diaper changes without getting your baby undressed all the way – so nice for middle-of-the-night changes, especially when it's cold!
5. Postpartum healing tea. We got lots of incredibly sweet gifts after Miles was born, and one of them was a bag of postpartum hormone-balancing tea. This was a BIG help to me in those first few bleary weeks. It was the only thing that took the edge off my anxiety and I was grateful for it every day. (And there was no note! I still don't know who sent it!) I haven't been able to find the exact same tea, but this one looks similar and I ordered a few bags for friends who will soon be postpartum [affiliate link].

I'd love to hear your go-to gifts for new babies and their parents, or what you received after having a baby that really came in handy.

A Chunky Cable Scarf w/ Pockets & Fringe

My awesome sister-in-law Raven asked me a few months ago if I could make something for her: a shawl with pockets and fringe. The piece in the photo she sent me as an example was crocheted (sadly), so I set about finding a similar knitting pattern to make her for Christmas.

I used the free Easy Winding Cables Wrap pattern from Mama in a Stitch as my base, and then knit two "pockets," stitched them on the ends of the wrap, and added fringe.

This was nice and satisfying to knit, and between the super chunky yarn and the thick needles it went very quickly, too. 

It was also nice to work on something so decorative. Usually my knitting (and crafting in general) tends toward the utilitarian/functional -- this was a nice break from that, and an opportunity to make something beautiful for beauty's sake. 

Needless to say, it was hard to part with this one! It reminds me so much of the patterns in the 2010 Rowan Purelife Autumn collection. That paperback, if you can get your hands on it, has resonated so powerfully with me over the past decade.

We're Moving!

 

I'm so happy to tell you that Kristie and I have bought our first house! We'll be spending the first few weeks of 2021 moving into our new home, and I can't wait. (Miles is excited too!) 

 

We've spent about a year looking for a house to buy in our area, and let me tell you, searching during a pandemic proved especially challenging. I'm so grateful to our realtor Becky for (sometimes literally) holding our hands throughout this process. 

 

I want to acknowledge the history and current practices of wealth disparity in this country. As a white person, I've benefited from the discriminatory implementation of the GI Bill and intergenerational wealth that made this home purchase possible. If you want to know more about wealth gaps due to the implementation of the GI Bill, redlining, and "40 acres and a mule" –– and info about reparations –– explore these links:

 

How the Racial Wealth Gap Was Created

Racial Disparities in Lending

Forty Acres & a Mule

The 1619 Podcast

Black Reparations & the Racial Wealth Gap

I want to acknowledge the history and current practices of colonialism, treaty violations, and government-sanctioned land theft in this country and other colonized countries. As a white person, I've benefited from settler colonialism that made this home purchase possible. Our new home is on Pocumtuc land. If you want to know more about activism efforts and the indigenous landback movement –– like Land Defenders' ongoing and important work to close Mount Rushmore –– explore the resources below:

 

Landback FAQs

Four Case Studies of Landback in Action

Ȟesápa, a Landback Film

An Indigenous People's History of the United States

Searchable Map of Indigenous Lands
A Call For Reparations: How America Might Narrow The Racial Wealth Gap

 

I want to acknowledge my deep gratitude to my dear friend Katy for rising to my request for help navigating the writing of this post with her emotional energy and thoughtfulness, and by providing the resources I'm sharing now. Her support as we worked on this together as two white women is helping me hold myself accountable in decolonizing how we as white people approach and understand home ownership.

 

I'll be back soon with pictures and projects from our new space. 

What to Sew With Extra Fleece

Miles was (by request) a blueberry for Halloween this year! I hope he always lets me make his costumes.

It's a little hard to tell here, but he wore blue pants, a blue sweater (hand-knit for him by the mother of a coworker of mine, which just happened to be the perfect shade of blue), a blue fleece "bubble" I sewed for him with elastic at the bottom that I stuffed with a blanket (inspired by this costume; affiliate link), and a hat I knit for him with this pattern, plus a freehanded leaf and stem.

Anyway I didn't make the costume itself from a pattern, so I estimated on the fleece yardage I'd need and overbought. I had SO MUCH left over. Here's what I made to try to use it up...

I don't think you can really have too many toddler hats around, can you? This pattern was free and super easy. I used a decorative stitch on my sewing machine the looks like snowflakes. My brother requested I make one for him too after seeing Miles's.

Yup, that's a little stuffed Pete the Cat, destined for Miles's Christmas stocking. I printed out a picture of Pete to use as a pattern, then used yellow felt, safety eyes, and white paint for his eyes. I freehanded the whiskers and nose with embroidery thread.

I sewed two washable, reusable Swiffer duster covers using this free pattern. Kristie reports that they work just as well, if not better, than the disposable dusters.

The most popular of the stash-busting fleece projects I made: the warm whale. It's full of rice so we can stick it in the microwave, and after 15 seconds, it's the perfect thing for a certain three-year-old's aching belly. I printed out a cartoon whale and used it as a pattern, and added button eyes, sewed it partially then filled it with dry rice using a funnel before sewing it up. You can tell how well-loved it's already been by how pilled it's gotten!

I used the rest of the fleece to make more hats using the pattern I linked above, and donated them. What are your favorite fleece projects?

Repairing a 50-Year-Old Sweater

This sweater is old. No one knows exactly how old, but it's been traded between my mother and her brothers and sister for at least five decades. (And by "traded between," I think I actually mean "stolen from" :) It's a sentimentally valuable –– and very warm –– family treasure for our mischievous group. 

Originally borrowed from a friend of the family, we believe the sweater's province lies in Oslo. The sweater's tag identifies the fibers as "moth proof" 100% virgin wool, and the brand as Husfliden (which translates to "Handicrafts"). It also notes the sweater was handknitted in Norway. My mom did some investigative work and found this 1996 Chicago Tribune article that features the Husfliden, "a handcraft organization founded 104 years ago" –– 128 years ago now –– that "contracts 150 knitters throughout Norway to make the sweaters, caps, mittens and thigh-high stockings sold at its four shops in Oslo." In fact, it looks like Husfliden is still in operation! I don't know if I have any Norwegian readers, but if you know anything about the organization's history or arc, I'd love to hear from you.

Back to the sweater (referred to in my family by the name of the original owner, so storied is its reputation). The thoughtful construction is evident, but this beautiful sweater's age is starting to show. The old fibers are simply breaking, leaving unraveling holes. My mother asked me to do what I could to repair one of the cuffs that had been especially damaged by time.

I started by developing a plan. I'd put in a lifeline before the damage begins, rip back to the lifeline, and then knit in a rib to restore the cuff. 

Next I walked to WEBS, both to trawl their inventory for a close-matching yarn and to discuss my plans with the smart knitters who work there. I have to admit, it was very validating when one of the associates affirmed my plan by saying, "That's exactly what I'd do." I had a very proud (and somewhat self-satisfied) smile behind my mask. It was such fun to share the project with them. They passed the sweater around, bending over the cuff and discussing yarn weight, needle size. I think they enjoyed the intersection of knitting and history as much as I do! We felt like fiber archaeologists. 

Ultimately they recommended Cascade 220 Sport, a DK/sport weight, and we matched the sweater's color most closely to 4002 Jet. You'll see it's not a perfect match, but I think that unless you're looking for it, it's hard to tell. 

I put in two lifelines (using this tutorial as a guide) and carefully ripped the damaged yarn back. 

Then I transferred the lifeline stitches to my needles. After having worked a few swatches with the new yarn using different size needles, I opted to go with US 2 double-pointed needles, with a very relaxed tension. (I think 3's would've been perfect, but I don't happen to have any.)

As soon as I picked up those live stitches, it was like I was sitting next to the person who'd made it so many years ago. Their work was awake again. It felt like reaching back into history and placing my hand on top of someone else's. 

I finished the cuff repair in an evening, and wore the sweater the next day ostensibly to take these pictures but also because it's so warm and delicious. I'm glad I wore it for another reason, however –– I spotted a few more places that needed mending and was able to make quick work of them. 

Do you think my mother would blame me if I didn't give it back...?

(Just kidding, Mom.)

Dyeing a Thrifted Silk Shirt With Onion Skins

Last year I bought this off-white short-sleeved silk shirt from the thrift store. I wore it a few times, but never loved it -- it was too close to the color of my skin. So I decided to dye it darker using onion skins!

This was my first foray into natural dyeing, and there are a lot of people out there more talented and knowledgable than I, but this is what I did...

Here's the "before." It also had wooden buttons that you can't really see here.

I started saving our onion skins, and even asked at the grocery store and Target if I could collect the onion skins from their produce bins (awkward for sure, but everyone always said yes -- although this was pre-pandemic). 

Once I had what I felt was enough, I boiled them for about an hour, then covered the pot and let it all sit for two days. Then I strained out the skins and composted them, retaining the liquid. I snipped the buttons off the shirt and soaked it in cold water, then submerged it in the dye and put the heat back on. I simmered the shirt in the dye for about an hour, then left it submerged for a few days (I took to heart the dyeing adage "longer is stronger") before rinsing it out and washing it regularly.

This was after the first wash. The color had changed, but I wanted it darker. I repeated the steps above, but using red onion skins. And then did it again after that, and added new buttons.

This shade works much better, I think! I certainly wore it more often this summer than I did the year before. And the experience made me feel a bit braver when it comes to natural dyeing. 

What We Can Do Now to Prepare for a Hard Winter

Winter is coming. And it may be a difficult one, made so by the virus's ever-increasing rates that necessitate continued social distancing to protect ourselves and our communities – not to mention holidays that will look very different from years past. Shorter days bring their own challenges, and combined this year with possible quarantines, I want to be proactive about planning now for a winter season that will lend itself to as much gentle rest and affirming work as possible.

Aiming to both cross longstanding to-do's off my list and to set positive habits now, here are a few things I've done or plan to do to preserve more time and peace in the months to come:

• Started a Pinterest board of knitting and crafting projects to work on during the winter months
• Got the oil changed in my car
• Washed my reusable pads in OxiClean
• Started going for a 2-ish-mile run every other day
• Set up regular weekly (virtual) appointments with my therapist
• Bought a "happy light" [affiliate link] and started using it every morning
• Ordered enough reusable masks that I don't run out between launderings (this is the one I'm wearing in the pic, in the pattern "Luna" – affiliate link)
• Began planning a late summer family vacation
• Gotten in the habit of taking "night walks" after dinner – that's what Miles calls them even though we stroll at 5:30. Sometimes we bring flashlights; sometimes we use the constellation identification app on Kristie's phone to explore the stars. 
• Started a winter reading list

One more thing that has been bringing me joy has been taking care of our home; meaning sweeping, doing dishes, putting toys away, cleaning the stovetop. (No one's more surprised by this than me!) After hours spent at a computer, taking care of physical, tactile tasks is a balm and helps me feel so pleasantly productive.

Others are sharing winter coping strategies, too. A Cup of Jo lists ways to cultivate cheerfulness; the Washington Post takes a more clinical track on ideas to cope with the intersection of pandemic depression and seasonal affective disorder; the Postmodern Homemaker's guide to preparing your home for winter of two years ago is not 2020-specific, but important (and probably satisfying to complete) nonetheless.

What can you start doing now to make this coming winter easier and, dare I say, joyful? 

Our Alternative Trick-or-Treat Plans for 2020

Halloween this weekend is obviously not going to look quite like everyone imagined. Our town's traditional downtown trick-or-treating has been canceled, so we decided to have our own (very) mini Halloween parade on Friday. Miles's little friend Eleanor will be here with our nanny Lucy for the day, so we invited Eleanor's parents (who are our close friends) over for an afternoon march around the block in costumes! (Miles is going to be a blueberry.) The parents and Lucy will take turns giving out treats as we walk, and we'll stop for a dance party with some of our favorite blow-up Halloween decorations in the neighborhood. 

But as Miles nearly 3 and Eleanor just a few months behind, I didn't want to hand them too much candy. We have some tiny packs of M&M's and fruit leather buttons from Trader Joe's to give them, as well as TJ's leaf-shaped tortilla chips. I also made them wands using printables from the Magic Playbook plus paper straws, yarn, and ribbon, and t-shirts with their names ironed on. (I used these tees and these iron-on letters – both these links are affiliate links to Amazon. Check your local craft stores first!!)

Despite how hard and weird everything is right now, this is a magical time in their lives and we're all so lucky that they're getting to spend it together. I hope they remember the good parts. 

Miles and Eleanor are both so young that I don't think they really know what they're missing out on with Halloween being different this year – but hopefully we can still make it special and fun! 

3 Ways to Preserve Fall Leaves

Ask anyone and they'll tell you: this is the prettiest time of year to live in western Massachusetts. My child happens to agree. Every time we're out – whether it's playing in the backyard, going for a run in the jogging stroller, or walking to the car – Miles spots leaves he wants to pick up and take home. There's a new pile on the back porch every afternoon, and I find them stuffed in all of our pockets when doing laundry. 

Of course, even the most coveted fall leaves will start to crumble left on their own. Here are three ways to preserve fall beauty a little longer. 

ONE // Dip in beeswax

Heat beeswax in a double boiler. Once it's liquified, dip leaves once. Let cool. (Our nanny then helped Miles thread the leaves onto string to make garlands.)

I bought two pounds of beeswax at the beginning of the season from a local beekeeper I know through work. We've also been using it to make candles and to make beeswax wrap for food storage. Ask around and find a local source for your beeswax!

TWO // Iron in wax paper

Arrange your leaves between two pieces of wax paper. Place a towel on top and iron carefully; hang in a window to catch the light. 

I have such fond memories of walking home from school in the fall and picking up the prettiest leaves I could find to do this project with my mother. (I guess I know where Miles gets it!)

THREE // Make leaf rubbings

Peel the paper wrapper off a crayon. Place a piece of construction paper on top of the leaves; gently shade over the leaf with the crayon's long edge.