A Sad Slipper Tale

Not-So-Tiny Slippers, as they were intended.

A few weekends ago, I decided to myself a new pair of slippers, as my store-bought ones were ready to be put out to pasture. I grabbed a skein of Berocco Vintage Chunky from my stash and casto on for Ysolda Teague's Not-So-Tiny Slippers from Whimsical Little Knits 3. After a day of knitting, they were done...but just ever-so-slightly too big for me.

In hindsight, I realized I made two major mistakes:

Mistake #1: Not checking my gauge.
Mistake #2: Continuing to knit even though they seemed too big.

Time for damage control! I tossed them in with my next load of laundry to see if washing and drying them would make a difference - no such luck. Magical laundry elves did not resize my slippers in the laundering process.

I decided the best course of action would be to felt them down to size. While the yarn I used was superwash (and one of my favorites, might I add), I have found that even the heartiest of machine washable yarns cannot withstand being exposed to extreme temperature changes and agitation without felting even a little. I had a tiny glimmer of hope that this would work.

The first felting experiment got me closer to my goal, encouraging me to try again. I didn't have anything left in the laundry hamper, however....so I grabbed a towel and tossed it in with my slippers. Unfortunately for me, I grabbed an unusually pilly towel, which brings me to mistake #3: not putting the slippers in a pillowcase when felting them. This is something I briefly thought of doing, mind, you, but then shook it off before proceeding full-steam ahead. I'd like to think I should know better at this point in my knitting life, but that clearly isn't the case!

At any rate, this is how my slippers came out after this final felting experiment:

Sure, I could use my nifty little sweater shaver and salvage what's left of them, except for one minor detail: THEY STILL DIDN'T FIT. Argh! I think this is a case of operator error mixed with a pinch of the universe not wanting me to have avocado green mary jane slippers. Ok, universe. Message received.

I picked up the pieces and cast on for some new slippers (on I Love Yarn Day, as it happened), using some Chunky Noro I had hiding in my stash. These were also a no-go. Perhaps I misread the directions, but they produced the weirdest non-foot-shaped slippers I've ever seen. Perhaps I'm not meant to knit myself some slippers? I don't want to give up just yet, but it seems the universe is trying to tell me something.

If anyone has a favorite pattern for quick-knitting slippers (preferably in worsted or chunky-weight yarn), I am all ears!

Overdyeing A Finished Knit

Even after just a few years of knitting or crocheting, you're bound to have some finished projects lying around that never get worn or used. After 10+ years of crafting, I have more than just "some" or "a few"....and with my ongoing quest to declutter my house this year, I've become obsessed with going through these forlorn projects and making some Big Decisions. Sometimes, they are perfectly fine and just need a new and loving home. Other projects may have not turned out quite right: there might have been some mistakes in the knitting that I thought I could live with, or the yarn was gorgeous but not well-matched to the pattern, or my taste has drastically changed since I finished making the project...in any case, why on earth did I keep knitting?! Who knows, but I don't feel good about gifting anything that falls into this category to someone else. These projects have been relegated to the "frog pile" (or should I say, frog pond?), to b...

Easy DIY: Beaded Vintage Snowflake Ornament Kits from Solid Oak Inc.

I was really excited to step outside of my comfort zone and try something new as part of my "Christmas in July" theme this month. The kind folks at Solid Oak Inc offered me a chance to review one of their Nostalgic Christmas beaded crystal ornament kits I couldn't resist. My tree is already full of ornaments I've inherited or been gifted from other family members and friends, so these pretty crystal beaded ornaments will fit right in I think! I was super impressed with this compact little kit , which includes everything needed to create three gorgeous vintage-style ornaments - just add a pair of round nose pliers (I found mine on Amazon for less than ten bucks). The instructions had some fabulous tips for newbies like me; for example, it recommended sorting the beads and laying them out in order on a towel or beading mat to prevent them from rolling away. That may seem obvious, but I was totally ready to start beading on my kitchen table without a...

What If I Didn't Add Heels?

Last weekend, I finished the first sock with my Waterlilies yarn , and just for yuks, I tried it on even though it was basically just a tube sock. Much to my surprise, it fit really well, even without a heel. Who knew? So, that got me thinking: what if I just didn't add the heels? I never thought a tube sock would actually fit nicely, but I genuinely like the fit, so...why spend time to add the heels? As the saying goes, if it ain't broke, don't fix it.... Let's say I decide not to add heels once the second sock is done - there will still be placeholder yarn for the afterthought heels, as you can see above, so should I leave it in and just weave in the ends? Or should I remove it, put the live stitches back on needles and at least graft them together using more of the Waterlilies yarn? I plan on mulling all of this over as I knit the second sock, and I'd love to hear your opinions of what you think would look best (or if you think this whole "n...

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