Reclaiming The Home

Big News!

Here at Reclaiming the Home big things have been going on behind the scenes.  The needles have been knitting, the sewing machine has been sewing, and bits of craftiness are showing up everywhere around the house, here and there.  Because of my cold, the only cooking that has gone on was done by the infamous Mr. Rose with some buffalo cheese dip that he was quite proud of.  I'll have to ask him for the recipe so that I can share it soon!

The big news though, comes in the form of the new public Reclaiming The Home forum! 

My goal for the forum is to be a community of people who care about their homes and the gentle home arts.  There will be tutorials, resources, and information that will help us all to learn to be better Reclaimers, while providing incentive and motivational games in a fun atmosphere where we share our love of the home with one another. 

It is a place of friendship that welcomes people from all walks of life, where we all get to be ourselves, get to know one other better, support each other, and share our joys as well as our sorrows.  You don't have to be a mother, a wife, or stay at home to enjoy homemaking.

I know you will find real community here, grow friendships, build each other up, learn new things, and just enjoy hanging out at the forum.

If you have a moment, stop on by and take a look. There is so much to be found there and so much more to come, including a big surprise event for all of the forum members that will begin within the week! 

This idea has been in the works for some time, and I am so pleased to say, has finally come to fruition.  So many people were involved in its creation.  A big thank you to Caitlin, Pam, Diane, Audrey, Rachel, Robyn, Danna, and SO many more lovely women who helped to make this part of my dream a reality!

Knit (or Crochet!) Your Bit

After a long, incredibly difficult day today, I sat down at the computer tonight, wiping away the tears of sadness and frustration, fully intending to catch up on some work.  Thankfully my deadline isn't for a while yet, because I found myself lost somewhere in the depths of the World War II Museum website, reading stories of the heroes and heroines of the past.   

It made me think of my grandfather who served in WWII as a fighter pilot.  It wasn't something that he talked about often, but I do know that he believed in selfless service and cared about the men and women of the military in a very deep way.  Since Papa passed away last fall, my mind has drifted quite often to the things I wish I could be doing with and for him if he were here.  I see so many beautiful patterns that I would love to knit for him.  His feet and head used to get so cold in his final years, and a pair of hand-knit socks or a cozy nightcap would do wonders for him if he were still here to wear them.  I decided that since I couldn't knit something for Papa, I would knit for another WWII veteran in his honor. 

Having also just read Knitting for Peace, I was incredibly inspired.  If you haven't read this book yet, please do.  You won't be disappointed.

I was so pleased to see that the National World War II Museum has organized a Knit Your Bit Campaign that knitters (and crocheters) everywhere can donate handmade scarves to.  They will be donated to a Veteran's center by the Knit Your Bit Campaign and given to a WWII veteran.  If you wish, you can include your name and address and they will send you a certificate of participation to thank you for your donation and will let your recipient know that you are the one who sent the scarf.  You may also give anonymously if you would rather.

If you have a moment, go check out the specifics on the campaign.  There are also several free patterns available for both knitters and crocheters. 

I am going to be working on some scarves this month, as time allows, and will update with pictures accordingly. 

If only I could sit and knit all day, there would be a Veteran's center full of cozy hand-knit scarves this month... hopefully the couple I am able to finish will make a difference to that one man or woman who needs that bit of extra warmth right now. :)

Audrey's Knitting Needle Tutorial!

We have been very fortunate to have  a guest speaker today!!  Audrey, a dear friend, inspiring crafter, and world-class relcaimer, has agreed to share her knowledge and skill in creating her own knitting needles!! 

If you've ever wanted to give this fun craft a try, it is truly worth it, and with Audrey's instructions, completely doable for anyone at any crafting experience level! 

Here are Audrey's wonderful instructions!

To make my DPN’s: I used common household bamboo skewers. Sharpened both ends in a pencil sharpener, sanded the shaft and points until smooth, and then polished them with a white crayon and a sheet of notebook paper.

Materials:

Dowel rods or skewers (chopsticks could work too)

Sandpaper: 100 grit – 400 grit (3-4 different grits)

Plain paper

White crayon or wax

Knob or button to top the needles. (In a pinch a rubber band)

Pencil Sharpener

Choose Your Weapon

When choosing your dowel rod you may find it helpful to have some sort of measuring device. In this way, you can get exactly the size you want. I did not measure mine at all, so whenever asked, “What size needle is that?" I told people “skewer”. Please learn from my mistakes. It will make me feel better.

If you purchase your dowel rod from a large chain store, they can cut it to your specified length. I used kitchen scissors, and had to deal with splintering.

Getting to the Point

Once you have your rods cut, you will run them in a pencil sharpener. Do the same to both ends for double pointed needles, just one end for standard needles.

True Grit

Next is the sandpaper. In this step, you will sand the needles using progressively finer (higher #) grits. By doing this you will get the rid of the splinters and burs in the wood. Be sure to sand the shaft and the point, paying special attention to the tip. The tip and the point receive the most activity when knitting and it would be a shame if your yarn kept being snagged. I found out how frustrating it could be to have to go back and sand each of my DPN’s. I have already made all the mistakes for you.

The Debate

This part is optional. I have seen some who do not polish their needles, yet I cannot tell you which way is best. If you choose to polish your needles, here’s how. Rub the entire surface of the wood with a white crayon. Then use a sheet of paper to smooth the needle, just the same as when you were sanding the wood. Once again, pay careful attention to the point and tip. 

 

The End

This is the last step, unless you have made DPN’s. This must be my favorite part. Finding that special something, that tells the world “This is custom!” Make your needles as unique as you want them to be. Glue a river stone, glass bead, or drawer pull to the end. Shove on a plastic toy or pencil eraser. Let impatiens rule your life and twist a rubber band to it. I have done that.

Congratulations

You now own, custom, one of a kind, original, not to be found in stores anywhere, hand crafted knitting needles.

When I asked Audrey to share a bit about herself with you all, here is what she said!

Name: Audrey

Husbands Name: Brian

Age: 36

Occupation: Stay at home mom/Homeschool mother

Hobbies: Knitting, crocheting, cooking, gardening, and sewing

Number of Teeth: 28

Allergies: Cats, mold and people who don't cover properly

Favorite Food: Sushi

Favorite Color: Green

Favorite Movie: The Wizard of Oz

Favorite Animal: Cat

Favorite Candy: Chocolate peanut butter cups

Her husband was able to add a bit more about her, so that you all can see a piece of the amazing gal that she is.

Audrey grew up in Brooklyn and Coney Island NY. As an adult her family moved to Hillside NJ where she attended Kean College. She earned a BS in business management with a minor in technology. She met her husband, Brian, in college and got married in 1995.

 

In college she worked for Adolph Gotcho as an assistant purchasing agent and later moved onto working for American Products as a purchasing agent and expeditor. She additionally held jobs as a sales rep in a sporting goods store, as a teacher’s assistant in a grammar school, as a worker in a laundry mat, offered a job making costumes for the renaissance festival and co-owner of an organized recreational camping business.

 

For most of her married life she has been a full time home builder (mom). Audrey began homeschooling her children in Kindergarten and continues to homeschool them today. The managerial skills she learned in college and her business life greatly help her run the home school.

 

Being a housewife and a homeschool mom she has taught herself how to hand sew, machine sew, crochet, knit, become computer savvy, repair almost everything broken in the home, cook like a short order chef, learned how to cut corners and save money, and much more.

THANK YOU Audrey!! :)  We surely do appreciate your contribution to the group!

(a few tips after trying this with the tutorial!!  You can find pre-cut dowels in some craft stores, so you may not have to cut them yourself!  You could also use candle wax or beeswax to finish off your needles if you would like to do that instead!)

Ladies (*and gents*), be sure to leave her a comment if you found this to be fun, informational, interesting, or any other number of adjectives!  :)  Thanks

Reclaiming Yarn, Electricity, and Family Time

This is what I have had my hands in the past week!  I spent a couple of days just listening to audio books and unraveling away at this beautiful angora sweater that I picked up at the thrift store for $3.95 over a month ago.  It is now a delicious pile of yarn waiting for me to put it to good use!  I love the idea of turning something that someone else cast off as unusable and turning it into something beautiful and full of possibility!

We have also been spending as much quality family time as possible since my husband will be out in the field at work this week (camping on site), so it will just be me and the girls starting tomorrow.  We wrapped presents today and put them under the tree, which just gives such a festive feel to the tree (it no longer looks naked LOL!).  I still have a few things to work on this week while hubby is away, to add to the Christmas goodness since I'm trying to do a lot of homemade things this year.  I'd post them here, but I dont want the recipients to find out what they're getting this year!!

I hope you all are enjoying the season, staying warm, and finding creative inspiration as well! 

And as a quick follow up, I am THRILLED to report that Christina finally got her power on today!  Its amazing how much we all take for granted with electric heaters, our ovens, microwave, lights, television, computers, washing machines and dryers.... my heart really goes out to all of the families and individuals without power as a result of this ice storm this season... sending up prayers, and an extra thank you for finally warming my dear friend and her family with the blessing of electricity! :)

Refashioning & Sustainability

Who would imagine that a post about refashioning would derive from rubber tires?  Still, I woke this beautiful fall morning to the smell of Goodyear burning in the air.  Every week the tire plant here burns their excess rubber (and I think maybe has something to do with the asphalt manufacturing plant as well here - at least they smell similar LOL).  Ironically, this smell greeted me with a slap in the face when I went out to my driveway only to find a flat tire on my truck.  Not one to be easily discouraged, I determined that we could make do with what we had in the house today instead of heading to the grocery store as planned.  And that we did.

I have been doing a lot of thinking lately about how I live and what my ecological footprint is.  There are so many amazing ways that we can take small steps to stop adding to the problem of degrading resources and pollution.  Toxins emitted by energy waste and man-made chemicals not only effect the environment, but us individually as well.  From tire plants to car exhaust to the number of paper towels thrown out in a day, we all make an imprint on the land we live in. 

I spent a good part of the day making clothes for my children and for children who would otherwise be cold this winter.  One sustainable way that I do this is to only use second hand clothing, fabrics, or bedding to make clothes.  Some may lift their noses at the idea of "hand-me-downs" but truly there are so many benefits to giving new life to an old garment or sheet.  If you don't mind, I would love to share my love for this amazing craft with you too...

I am a member and regular contributor t the blog Wardrobe Refashion. 
I took a pledge not to buy any new clothing for 6 months, and to
instead make items from my own two hands, reusing, recycling, and recrafting to create my own garments.  Not only is this fantastic for my budget, but it is also wonderful for clearing out my crafting stash.  In addition to that, this continues to sustain myself and my family.  By honing my skills at fashioning clothes for my family, I am helping us gain independence.  I give the gift of love to my family through every moment I spend working on items for them.   

This also saves SO MUCH in terms of the global impact that I have on the sustainability of the environment.  By using only second hand items I am saving manufacturers the energy required to make a new garment.  Because almost all second-hand clothing is donated from locals, it also doesnt have to travel much, if at all, to get from "the store" (the thrift) to my home.  If I were to buy new, I would be using a great deal of energy in the delivery of the materials to the manufacturer, then the delivery of the final product to the retailer, and finally the delivery from the retailer to the individual local storefront where I would then go and pick up my purchase.  Even storage of these items is often more expensive retail than in a thrift store, which very often does not use air conditioning or heat.  Ours also uses natural light from the windows as much as possible to save on the energy bill. 

I am always floored at the beautiful items I can find.  I am currently working through a stack of natural-fiber sweaters that I picked up a few months ago from the thrift store, that I am trying to recycle back into yarn to use.  One sweater I did not look at closely enough when I purchased it originally and it turns out that it is one that cannot be unraveled.  Rather than re-donating it, or trashing it, I turned this 100% cotton, Ralph Lauren sweater (originally 75-cents) into "new" sleeve-pants for my youngest daughter.  She was so cozy running around in our yard tonight in her new sweater-pants.  I hope to make a matching jacket from the body soon.

Do you create your own clothes?  If so, share a link or a few pictures with me.  I would love to see them, whether made with "new" or "old" materials!! :)

Knit One, Purl Two

So... I'm relatively new to knitting.  Crochet is more my craft (could have something to do with the last 16 years I have spent practicing).  True, I have been knitting for almost a year now.  True, I have knitted over 15 projects.  Still, it was not until tonight that I had ever purled.  Let me tell you, changing the way I move those needles after spending the past year adjusting to the basic knit stitch was quite a scary challenge for me.  Still, I am proud to report that I have achieved success in my purling endeavors.  More projects soon to come!

In other homey discussions, today we celebrated my husband's birthday in a sweet, low-key way that worked wonderfully for our little family.  When I asked the mister what he wanted to do to celebrate, he told me that he wanted me to cook his favorite dish, and to spend the evening snuggling together as a family.  Wish granted.  We ate Chicken Alfredo for dinner with garlic toast, and all curled up on the couch to watch Nightmare Before Christmas on the Disney Channel tonight, one of his favorite movies.

By now everyone in the Rose household has climbed into their cozy beds, and is dreaming dreams of giant mugs of cocoa and piles of crunchy fall leaves (is that just me?).  While they slumber, I sit, and entertain dreams of my own, for this house, my garden, and my little corner studio.  Right now I am looking for any and all ideas for organization and french-country (or rustic) style decorating. 

Any tips?  Inspirations to share?  Leave a comment for me if you do! :)

I think it is about time to tuck  my purly, cozy, leafy, homey dreams to bed for the night as well, and go snuggle under my covers.  That fall weather finally hit, and I am more than ready to go put my icy toes on my hubby's warm feet, like I have for the past 7 1/2 years.  Thank heavens he loves me. :)

Unwinding at Ravelry

If you havent yet, you should sign up on the waiting list over at Ravelry.   The wait list is HUGE, but trust me my friends, it is for good reason.  Besides, the lovely owners and mods are moving the list along  so quickly that you'll be invited in no time at all.  Truly!  They have been going at a rate of over 800 invites per day, so jump on the Ravelry train - you will not be disappointed!

Once you are in, do go check out the group that I set up just especially for this little blog.  Its called (fittingly) "Reclaiming The Home" and you can get to it by CLICKING HERE.  Join on in and spread the word.  It will definitely be worth while to see all of the wonderful creations, discussion, and techniques our lovely ladies (and gents if there be any) come up with!  I promise I will leave a comment on each and every submission to the group!

Here is a sneak peek of a few of the items I have posted up there.  More soon to come as i bind off and tuck in ends of a project or two I have had in the works. 

Come unwind with me over at Ravelry!  I am certain you will find just as much amazing inspiration and joy there as I do.