ROSEMARSH KNITS

I don't think that post title works but I am too tired to do anything about it. So after the obese squirrel, I wasn't in a rush to create a new ornament.I felt like that rotund fellow covered my bases for the rest of the year, until Puffits and I upgraded our tree from a modest three-footer to a very impressive pre-lit five-footer. ROSEMARSH KNITS: KNIT A DONUT ORNAMENT The pattern specifics are below. If you decide to make one, I hope it's an enjoyable part of your season. And regardless of what this time of year does or doesn't mean to you, and however you happen to feel about it, I hope it's better than you hope, not as bad as you dread, and that your 2016 is superior to this year, because 2015

seriously sucked!

ROSEMARSH KNITS: OBESE SQUIRREL ORNAMENT You could still fit this pattern to plastic craft bauble. I’ll provide some notes on that at the end of the body portion below. You can also skip the bell/acorn part and just leave the paws free or attach all manner of other objects: little knit walnuts, tiny jars of ROSEMARSH KNITS: KNIT A MUSHROOM SPRITE Yarn and Needles: To make your mushroom sprite teeny, tiny (about 1.5" high) use Aunt Lydia’s Crochet Thread Fashion 10 on four U.S. size 00 (1.75mm) double pointed needles (dpns).Be warned, it's a super thin and finicky combo, so I can understand if want to scale that up a bit. Fashion 3 and size 1 (2.25 mm) work well too but you can use any type of yarn and appropriately sized needles. ROSEMARSH KNITS: FUNGISPRITE Yarn and Needles: I suggest Aunt Lydia’s Crochet Thread Fashion 3 on four (4) 2mm (U.S. size 0) double pointed needles (don).If you're not used to working with smaller needles and yarn, try a DK or sport weight and appropriately sized needles to ROSEMARSH KNITS: SORT OF REALISTIC FOX SCARF I was going to make this a shop exclusive pattern, but there are a couple reasons why I feel better giving it away. First, there are already so many takes on this concept. ROSEMARSH KNITS: KNIT A SPOOKY, SPARKLY SPIDER Taking shape from a few of my favorite things, here is a new knitting pattern for creating a little spooky, little sparkly spider that can be used for what I imagine to be countless applications. ROSEMARSH KNITS: JUMPING SPIDER To add a joint to each leg, thread the closing tail up through to the center of the leg. Pinch or pin the leg so it bows in the center. Make a small stitch just below the bend to secure it in place. ROSEMARSH KNITS: FAT CAT BAUBLE Finally, get that tail on there. Centered between the two hind legs is a good place, about equal height of the cat’s head. Again, it never hurts to pin everything first to try different placements. ROSEMARSH KNITS: GARDEN NEGLECT AND PAINTING PROGRESSION While I wouldn't mind devoting a few future posts to the art and science of gardening in itself, this herbal update is really a clumsy segue to breakdown my latest watercolor to date. This one was inspired by a photo taken at one of my favorite places on earth, the Brooklyn Botanical Garden-- a garden that's probably never experienced any form

of neglect.

ROSEMARSH KNITS

I don't think that post title works but I am too tired to do anything about it. So after the obese squirrel, I wasn't in a rush to create a new ornament.I felt like that rotund fellow covered my bases for the rest of the year, until Puffits and I upgraded our tree from a modest three-footer to a very impressive pre-lit five-footer. ROSEMARSH KNITS: KNIT A DONUT ORNAMENT The pattern specifics are below. If you decide to make one, I hope it's an enjoyable part of your season. And regardless of what this time of year does or doesn't mean to you, and however you happen to feel about it, I hope it's better than you hope, not as bad as you dread, and that your 2016 is superior to this year, because 2015

seriously sucked!

ROSEMARSH KNITS: OBESE SQUIRREL ORNAMENT You could still fit this pattern to plastic craft bauble. I’ll provide some notes on that at the end of the body portion below. You can also skip the bell/acorn part and just leave the paws free or attach all manner of other objects: little knit walnuts, tiny jars of ROSEMARSH KNITS: KNIT A MUSHROOM SPRITE Yarn and Needles: To make your mushroom sprite teeny, tiny (about 1.5" high) use Aunt Lydia’s Crochet Thread Fashion 10 on four U.S. size 00 (1.75mm) double pointed needles (dpns).Be warned, it's a super thin and finicky combo, so I can understand if want to scale that up a bit. Fashion 3 and size 1 (2.25 mm) work well too but you can use any type of yarn and appropriately sized needles. ROSEMARSH KNITS: FUNGISPRITE Yarn and Needles: I suggest Aunt Lydia’s Crochet Thread Fashion 3 on four (4) 2mm (U.S. size 0) double pointed needles (don).If you're not used to working with smaller needles and yarn, try a DK or sport weight and appropriately sized needles to ROSEMARSH KNITS: SORT OF REALISTIC FOX SCARF I was going to make this a shop exclusive pattern, but there are a couple reasons why I feel better giving it away. First, there are already so many takes on this concept. ROSEMARSH KNITS: KNIT A SPOOKY, SPARKLY SPIDER Taking shape from a few of my favorite things, here is a new knitting pattern for creating a little spooky, little sparkly spider that can be used for what I imagine to be countless applications. ROSEMARSH KNITS: JUMPING SPIDER To add a joint to each leg, thread the closing tail up through to the center of the leg. Pinch or pin the leg so it bows in the center. Make a small stitch just below the bend to secure it in place. ROSEMARSH KNITS: FAT CAT BAUBLE Finally, get that tail on there. Centered between the two hind legs is a good place, about equal height of the cat’s head. Again, it never hurts to pin everything first to try different placements. ROSEMARSH KNITS: GARDEN NEGLECT AND PAINTING PROGRESSION While I wouldn't mind devoting a few future posts to the art and science of gardening in itself, this herbal update is really a clumsy segue to breakdown my latest watercolor to date. This one was inspired by a photo taken at one of my favorite places on earth, the Brooklyn Botanical Garden-- a garden that's probably never experienced any form

of neglect.

ROSEMARSH KNITS: PATTERNS Looking for one of my patterns? Here are the links so you don't have to go combing through my posts. You can find them through my Ravelry designer page as well. I'll keep this page updated but also friend, favorite, or follow me on Ravelry, Etsy, Twitter, and Facebook for

pattern updates.

ROSEMARSH KNITS: 2019 I don't think that post title works but I am too tired to do anything about it. So after the obese squirrel, I wasn't in a rush to create a new ornament.I felt like that rotund fellow covered my bases for the rest of the year, until Puffits and I upgraded our tree from a modest three-footer to a very impressive pre-lit five-footer. ROSEMARSH KNITS: DECEMBER 2015 Yarn and Needles: To make your mushroom sprite teeny, tiny (about 1.5" high) use Aunt Lydia’s Crochet Thread Fashion 10 on four U.S. size 00 (1.75mm) double pointed needles (dpns).Be warned, it's a super thin and finicky combo, so I can understand if want to scale that up a bit. Fashion 3 and size 1 (2.25 mm) work well too but you can use any type of yarn and appropriately sized needles. ROSEMARSH KNITS: MY LONG LOVE OF STRINGS AND PAINTING I've owned a violin for something like eight months now. Am I eight months better at playing a violin? No. I'm not even three days better at playing the violin. ROSEMARSH KNITS: MARCH 2011 Rather than using my first post to write about the fact this is the first post and explain what I intend to do with this blog, I feel like I should post something with a ROSEMARSH KNITS: 2016 I'll try to do a general update on the stuff I've been learning before the end of the year, but if not, who cares? 2016 is dumb. It is the year I married Puffits and it's been a good bird-feeder year--lots of new visitors--but otherwise, fuck 2016. ROSEMARSH KNITS: MAY 2011 Which was created, anticlimactically enough, by brewing a cup of tea and photographing it with just the right amount of steepage(?). A simple idea that, upon execution, turned out to be more time consuming and detail intensive than expected. ROSEMARSH KNITS: JUNE 2011 "Despite this uninterrupted uniformity, life is anything but tedious owning to nature's inexhaustible richness which, time and again, produces ever-new, beautiful and fascinating forms that provide new material to speculate and ponder over, to draw and describe. ROSEMARSH KNITS: APRIL 2011 I hope to have an actual, eggster-appropriate entry ready for you few-but-mighty readers before the end of this weekend, but also to be done before the end of this weekend is the entering of a painting in this month's Faces of Pearl Art Contest on Facebook.It will be my second time entering and hopefully not my second time not winning, although that seems rather likely. ROSEMARSH KNITS: 2011 From August 15th through September 15th, use this coupon code: MARSH01 to get 15% off anything in the Rosemarsh Etsy shop For those of you who've never attempted to sell on Etsy, or if you're one of those incomparable sellers who has never had an item sit in your store for more than four months, you may not be aware of Etsy's relisting/renewing racket.

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DECEMBER 17, 2019

CHRISTMAS ORNAMENTS OF PATTERNS PAST I don't think that post title works but I am too tired to do anything

about it.

So after the obese squirrel

,

I wasn't in a rush to create a new ornament. I felt like that rotund fellow covered my bases for the rest of the year, until Puffits and I upgraded our tree from a modest three-footer to a very impressive pre-lit five-footer. It's very extravagant, so much so that it felt like an excuse to get some clip-on fake candles. I friggin' love those phony Christmas tree candles. The naughty bunny below the tree is not a present; she lives here. The larger tree also put me in an ornament making mood, though not enough of one to crank out a new pattern. Instead, I decided to revise some of my older, non-ornament amigurumi into Christmasy versions. If you're thinking of attempting any of the below, I am sorry for the lack of details. This is really more of a show-and-tell than an instruction. I can say that two out of the three really don't require you to knit any extra bits. For the like two people that actually work from my patterns, I've seen how you folks do your own remixing. I have every confidence you can figure this stuff out and make it better. Just the same, I'll try to recount as many of the steps I took. Of course, if there's a truly overwhelming response--like say, from three or four people, all begging for detailed patterns to make the following projects--I will gladly provide them. Not until next year though. I mean c'mon. So let's start with the simple yet finicky...

CHRISTMAS SPIDER

To make this one, I just worked the Spooky Sparkly Spider pattern in metallic crochet thread (Aunt Lydia's Metallic 10 in silver). I didn't do any colorwork--well, I did at first, in gold, but it looked just a little too gaudy, even for Christmas. The single color decision was for the best. If you've ever worked with a metallic plyed or sparkle yarn, you know how much of a head/hand ache it is. The stuff is course, splitty, and twists up anywhere there is the slightest

slack.

It doesn't seem to matter how the stuff is plyed. I experienced the same difficult using a chain-ply glitter yarn for my sparkly knit

Jumping Spider

.

I love the result but only because memory never fully retains pain. I'm actually thinking about trying another one as I type this. Stop

it!

Currently our tree-topper until Puffits woodturns something more

conventional.

Okay, so once the spider was knit, single color, it's just a matter of further sparkling it up to make it suitable as a Christmas tree spider. Silver seed beads for the eyes and a blingy crystal on the abdomen did the trick for my tastes. When attaching all this stuff, I used nylon beading chord. I used the same to create a loop for spider

suspension.

As I alluded on Twitter, a Christmas spider is backed by tradition. Even if it wasn't, I'd still have some in my tree. Not sure if this is obvious, but I'm very fond of spiders and I don't understand why they aren't constantly adored and celebrated by all. Even if you don't share my love for them, here's why you might still have one in your Christmas tree. _A woman was hard at work preparing her home for a Christmas celebration. In the process of cleaning and decorating, the spiders in the house hid in the attic, as not to be swept up or dusted away. When the house quieted later that night, they returned downstairs to find all the beautiful decorations and a lovely tall tree. They explored all these new things excitedly, eager to be part of the glittering festivity. Behind them they left strings of grey silk, unknowing dulling the shine of the woman's hard work. When St. Nicholas arrived at the house, he saw how the spiders had so enjoyed the scene but also feared that the woman would be heartbroken when she'd wake to see her decorations covered in webs. St. Nicholas then transformed the grey webs into threads of silver and gold, further beautifying the home. _ The legend is said to explain the tradition of tinsel inclusion on Christmas trees and why it's lucky to have a spider of some sort in your tree. I try to include at least several each year. This silverly little friend is the newest.

GINGERBREAD VOODUDE

I think I mentioned modifying the recent Tiny VooDoo Doll pattern into a gingerbread man at some point in that post. It was easier than

I expected.

I haven't yet tried a fully-stuffed, sitting-upright version. Instead the result resembles the thicker cookies I make. I know it's controversial, but I like a thicker, chewer gingerbread. The trick is

extra molasses.

When it comes to knitting them, the trick is under-stuffing and flatting them as you go. Instead of the short rows that enable the VooDude to sit up right, I just knit an extra four rounds before dividing for the legs. I think that amounts to a decent gingerbread man torso. The arms are still the same, just keep them barely stuffed and flatten them out before and after attaching to the body. Now, the picture makes it quite clear, but I still want to emphasize that I am crap at embroidery. It requires that I actually look at what I'm doing and think about it before I do it. Frankly, that's not my style. I trust you'll do better. I tried safety eyes on the larger fellow and embroidered on the smaller. I remain unsure of which I prefer. Some white glittery yarn was haphazardly stitched in place for the icing cuffs and smile. The green buttons are ribbon that's been overlapped. Feel free to use actual small buttons or whatever you can attach that will look like candy or icing. I didn't have any that I liked but I did find Dress It Up buttons in glittery candy canes and

gumdrops.

CHRISTMAS PUDDING SPITE I've noticed a increase in the amount of Christmas pudding iconography in recent years, which is a little weird because I've never actually encountered any sort of plum or boiled pudding in reality. Here in the States, or at least in my region/personal experience, it's cookies, pies, red and green nem-em-nems, and yes, Christmas Donuts

.

And while I grew up with fruit cake and panetonne always being present on the table, I'd never see anyone actually cut into it--let alone eat it. It might as well've been a candle holder. I never tasted nor met the ole Christmas pudd in person but it's easy to recognize similarities in its stout dome shape and the structure

of the Fungispite

.

Like the Christmas spider, there's nothing to change from the original pattern. The yarn just needs to be a good pudd color. The add-ons are what finishes the job. The icing is made by casting on about five or six stitches and joining in the round to make a cap. I increased around evenly--every other stitch and then every two stitches--until the circle was just wide enough to top the sprite's head, figure about four rounds.  Then I

created the drips.

I started by binding off two or three stitches, then I knit across three or four stitches, turned without wrapping to purl, and turned again, essentially creating just enough length to indicate a drip. I decreased at the first and last stitch and then drew-through. I cut the yarn, reattached it to bind off an additional two or three stitches, and then worked back and forth across a few more to create the next drip. I varied the width and length of each and ended up with about five drips with enough of a gap between each to fit around the sprite's eyes--like a little sugary powdered wig...with some strange

bangs.

There were a lot of ends to weave in and some that were used to attach the end and sides of each drip to the sprite. It was then time to move on to the holly garnish. The knitted berries on the larger sprite were made by casting on two stitches, increasing several times in both, and then drawing through all and pulling tight, kind of like making a freestanding bauble stitch. Apparently I didn't want to do it again with the thinner crochet thread so I used beads. I think I like the glassy sheen on the beads better, though it is more cherry-like. I don't know if that's a issue with traditional puds. It shouldn't be. It's called a plum pudding but I understand it's loaded

with raisins. Ugh.

With the holly leaves, I'm not even sure I can describe what I did in any helpful way. I cast-on like six or seven stitches, knit back and forth on two or three of them, and then bound off those few before doing the same with those that remained. My intent was the create a spot of dark green with a jagged edge like a holly leaf. I don't think the result was very convincing but it didn't seem to matter when it all came together on something so small. I could probably think of a better way to do it if I were to make a proper pattern, which I'm not going to do unless, as mentioned, there's quite a clamor for it. So there you have it. Merry all the things. Merry nothing as well, because sometimes the nothing is the best part when there is so much something happening, as there tends to be this time of year. And whatever this year brought, I really do hope 2020 is better. I aim to keep making stuff either way and I thank you if you're along for

it.

Posted by Rosemarie Montefusco

at Tuesday,

December 17, 2019

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