| T O P I C R E V I E W |
| brightmeadow |
Posted - Feb 19 2006 : 5:57:56 PM
I spent a very relaxing day today at my knitting machine and came up with a cotton apron that I am very happy with. See the pictures on my web site at http://home.earthlink.net/~brightmeadow.
I need to knit more often!
You shall eat the fruit of the labor of your hands - You shall be happy and it shall be well with you. -Psalm 128.2
Visit my web site store at http://www.watkinsonline.com/fish or my homepage at http://home.earthlink.net/~brightmeadow |
| 13 L A T E S T R E P L I E S (Newest First) |
| brightmeadow |
Posted - Feb 23 2006 : 4:42:48 PM
Thanks, that's a great idea! I like that even better than teaching them to do it!
You shall eat the fruit of the labor of your hands - You shall be happy and it shall be well with you. -Psalm 128.2
Visit my web site store at http://www.watkinsonline.com/fish or my homepage at http://home.earthlink.net/~brightmeadow |
| Nancy Gartenman |
Posted - Feb 23 2006 : 06:15:42 AM
Brenda
unless you want to or have the time don't agree to make them for sale. Just make them because you want to and save them for gifts.its suspore to help you relax not put you under presure to get something made, and then show very little if any profit. Tell everyone that asks for one to put there name in the apron basket, and you will draw one name, say every 6 mo. or you could say every ten years. they could win an apron!! yea!!
NANCY JO
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| brightmeadow |
Posted - Feb 22 2006 : 7:56:27 PM
I don't know about selling them. I showed the fabric/embellished apron to my neighbor and she immediately ordered one for herself and one to give as a gift to her daughter... and she didn't even ask the price! I told her I would make one for her for free, but I'm not going to make the one for her daughter for free too! Any ideas on what to charge? Take the materials cost and add 200%? I went to the fabric store to buy fabric for her and walked out with $10 worth of stuff for her and $20 worth of stuff for me! I will not make any money that way!
Sewing and knitting is how I relax. I am afraid that since I work full time in IT and am on call a lot, if I start selling what I make I would not enjoy it as much, it would become more like a job and more stressful. Anyway I don't think I can get a comparable hourly rate in garment-making to what I make in IT. That is probably why most of the garment-making work has gone to Mexico, Guatemala, Rumania, and China! Even if I charged minimum wage for my time, the knitted apron took me about 4 hours to make, the sewn/embellished one about 3...Of course maybe if I did it more I would speed up. Are people willing to pay $40 and up for an apron (especially if they know how to make one themselves?) Am I willing to work for less than minimum wage?
I really liked MaryJane's pattern in the book because it was so simple - very few seams. Of course I had to do some pattern drafting to make it a little bigger..and added some darts and some height to the shoulders to accomodate my ample body... but not having a waistband and ties dramatically decreases the sewing time!
When acquaintances ask me to make a sweater for them on my knitting machine, (I guess they think it's easy because the machine does all the work...) I usually tell them I would be glad to teach them how to use the machine... and every one of them has turned me down <GRIN>
But I love making gifts for friends and relatives!
quote:
Originally posted by Nancy Gartenman
Brenda,
What a cute apron, keep making them. Do you plan on selling them at some point? Anyway good job, gotta love those aprons.
NANCY JO
You shall eat the fruit of the labor of your hands - You shall be happy and it shall be well with you. -Psalm 128.2
Visit my web site store at http://www.watkinsonline.com/fish or my homepage at http://home.earthlink.net/~brightmeadow |
| Aunt Jenny |
Posted - Feb 21 2006 : 9:34:30 PM
That looks like one my Aunt used to wear..it was tiny..so was she...I am NOT either. Will love to see your knitted version when you get done...I bet it will be just as cute!!
Jenny in Utah
Inside me there is a skinny woman crying to get out...but I can usually shut her up with cookies
http://www.auntjennysworld.blogspot.com/ visit my little online shop at www.auntjenny.etsy.com |
| Nancy Gartenman |
Posted - Feb 21 2006 : 6:20:50 PM
Brenda,
What a cute apron, keep making them. Do you plan on selling them at some point? Anyway good job, gotta love those aprons.
NANCY JO
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| brightmeadow |
Posted - Feb 21 2006 : 6:13:30 PM
I got a package in the mail today, it was an apron I ordered from ebay http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=8382618046&ru=http%3A%2F%2Fsearch.ebay.com%3A80%2Fsearch%2Fsearch.dll%3Fcgiurl%3Dhttp%253A%252F%252Fcgi.ebay.com%252Fws%252F%26fkr%3D1%26from%3DR8%26satitle%3D8382618046%26category0%3D%26fvi%3D1- it was hand-crocheted, probably in the 50's, and is in beautiful condition.
I ordered it partly so that I could see it up close and figure out how to modify it as a machine-knitted apron instead of crochet.
I had to laugh, though, at how tiny it is! I was never that size since I was 8 years old!
They gave the measurements in the listing. Unfortunately, impatient person that I am, I never actually thought to look at the measurements!
I will have to get out my slide rule to do the calculatations to convert this one to a machine-knit pattern!
You shall eat the fruit of the labor of your hands - You shall be happy and it shall be well with you. -Psalm 128.2
Visit my web site store at http://www.watkinsonline.com/fish or my homepage at http://home.earthlink.net/~brightmeadow |
| blueroses |
Posted - Feb 21 2006 : 2:27:06 PM
Brenda,
You did a beautiful job on the apron! I've never used a knitting machine. I'm pretty impressed with the workmanship. Wow.
Debbie
"You cannot find peace...by avoiding life."
Virginia Woolfe |
| brightmeadow |
Posted - Feb 21 2006 : 04:11:45 AM
Thank you both for the compliments!
I'm not so interesting...just ask my teenagers! I am just interested in a lot of stuff.
I'll never forget taking my kids with me to "take your daughter to work day" they said, "Gee, mom, I'll never get a job like yours, it's really boring..."
Isn't Watkins vanilla just the absolute best!??!!? Once you've had it, the store-bought kinds just aren't good enough any more! Same goes for their cinnamon.
P.S. Aunt Jenny, I just love your tag line!
quote:
Originally posted by Aunt Jenny
Pretty!! I would love to machine knit some day....one of my "someday" goals. YOu sure do nice work!!! I liked your website alot too..you are really interesting!! I will be shopping for some Watkins stuff at some point too!! LOVE their vanilla!
Jenny in Utah
Inside me there is a skinny woman crying to get out...but I can usually shut her up with cookies
http://www.auntjennysworld.blogspot.com/ visit my little online shop at www.auntjenny.etsy.com
You shall eat the fruit of the labor of your hands - You shall be happy and it shall be well with you. -Psalm 128.2
Visit my web site store at http://www.watkinsonline.com/fish or my homepage at http://home.earthlink.net/~brightmeadow |
| Aunt Jenny |
Posted - Feb 20 2006 : 8:20:57 PM
Pretty!! I would love to machine knit some day....one of my "someday" goals. YOu sure do nice work!!! I liked your website alot too..you are really interesting!! I will be shopping for some Watkins stuff at some point too!! LOVE their vanilla!
Jenny in Utah
Inside me there is a skinny woman crying to get out...but I can usually shut her up with cookies
http://www.auntjennysworld.blogspot.com/ visit my little online shop at www.auntjenny.etsy.com |
| happymama58 |
Posted - Feb 20 2006 : 8:19:13 PM
That's a gorgeous apron, Brenda. Thanks for sharing -- it makes me more motivated to get some stitching done.
Some people search for happiness; others create it. |
| brightmeadow |
Posted - Feb 20 2006 : 6:44:16 PM
Sakuyo got excited when she saw my modifications to her pattern. Since she didn't have any photos of her original aprons, she sat down and knit one up today to take photos!
I have posted them on my web site at http://home.earthlink.net/~brightmeadow I have also placed a link to her pattern there.
You shall eat the fruit of the labor of your hands - You shall be happy and it shall be well with you. -Psalm 128.2
Visit my web site store at http://www.watkinsonline.com/fish or my homepage at http://home.earthlink.net/~brightmeadow |
| brightmeadow |
Posted - Feb 20 2006 : 04:27:06 AM
Thanks, Jenny, it's so nice of you to go out and look at it and take the time to write. I wrote to the Machine Knit email list about aprons coming back, and someone pointed out that Sakuyo had posted her pattern online, so I used it, along with some yarn I got in a closeout sale that was in my stash. I love using my stash instead of having to go buy supplies!
I am going to make it again- this was more of a sample to see how the pattern would come out. It turned out a little small for me (I'm an "ample" lady) so I will be making it again with three panels in the skirt and a bigger bib. I think I will make the front panel flat and gather the two side panels. (That is one problem with knitting on the machine, you can't use more than 200 needles at once..) Probably I will make the waistband and ties wider also.
Does anyone else on this board do machine-knitting?
You shall eat the fruit of the labor of your hands - You shall be happy and it shall be well with you. -Psalm 128.2
Visit my web site store at http://www.watkinsonline.com/fish or my homepage at http://home.earthlink.net/~brightmeadow |
| Aunt Jenny |
Posted - Feb 19 2006 : 9:52:28 PM
It is beautiful Brenda!! wow!!
Jenny in Utah
Inside me there is a skinny woman crying to get out...but I can usually shut her up with cookies
http://www.auntjennysworld.blogspot.com/ visit my little online shop at www.auntjenny.etsy.com |
