The Fabric of Time

This project was definitely a procrastination item, so I'm entering it in the Historical Sew Monthly Procrastination challenge. What the item is: Schuylkill Arsenal Infantry Jacket The Challenge: January 2016, Procrastination Material: wool broadcloth, linsey woolsey lining, cotton lining, cotton batting interlining Pattern: County Cloth Chas. R. Childs Year: 1863? Notions: silk buttonhole thread, cotton thread, buttons, japanned steel hook and eye How historically accurate is it? Great, except I machine sewed the interior seams. The Schuylkill Arsenal contracted out these garments to individuals who rarely owned sewing machines. Hours to complete: 30 First worn: January 2016 Total cost: Maybe $100 U.S. for the materials My friend for whom I made this coat gave me this commission and one other, a sack coat, two years ago. I started making this infantry jacket last spring. It went very, very slowly as I didn't know what I was doing and kept anticipating major problems ...

...wear a beard hat. And learn how to roundhouse kick. A co-worker asked me to make a beard hat for her son right before Christmas. I didn't think I'd finish it in time for Christmas, but I told her I'd try to have it done the week after, so I've been scrambling to finish this. It turned out okay, but I'm dissatisfied because: 1. It's crappy Red Heart acrylic worsted yarn, which is awful and not pleasant to work with. 2. The hat is a little snug and not very stretchy due to the yarn. 3. The beard is a little too big and engulfs the face somewhat too much 4. I put sooooo much time and energy into this project that I really wasn't motivated about, so the money that I'm being paid is an insult when you look at the hours of labor it took; however, if I were the customer, I wouldn't want to pay much for it because it's low quality (cheap materials and meh construction).  It's not all bad, though. About a year ago, I made a few beard ...

I'm still an amateur at knitting. I learned how to do it many years ago, but never liked it until recently. I've been doing a lot of knitting over the past year and a half, slowly getting better at it. I wanted to make some mittens for my dad--he loves anything homemade and likes to show off things that I've made for him.  These intarsia mittens were his Christmas present. I specifically chose a colorwork pattern because two or more strands of yarn make the item thicker and warmer. Mom's knitted mittens are very cozy, so Dad definitely needed some as well. He loves outdoor activities, especially hiking and skiing, so these mittens will receive a lot of use.  I searched for a pattern on Ravelry, using several criteria: two colors, worsted weight yarn, in the round, and thumbs with a gusset (some mittens that I've made don't have a gusset on the thumb, making it less movable and creating stress points where holes are forming). There are so many incred...