How to Sew a Button: And Other Nifty Things Your Grandmother Knew by Erin Bried
Authors: Erin Bried
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(You’ll now have a new loop on your right needle.) Repeat until you reach the end of the row. Check your work by counting the number of stitches now on your right needle. If you get the same number of stitches that you cast on, you’ve done it right. Move the needle with your finished stitches to your left hand and repeat until your scarf reaches the desired length.
Step 5:
To finish your scarf (or to bind off), you’ll play a game of leapfrog with your yarn. After you knit the first two stitches of your last row, use the tip of your left needle (or your fingers) to pick up the first stitch off your right needle, leap it over your second, and pull it off the tip. Then knit one more stitch, pick up the first, leap over your most recent stitch, and slip it off the end. Repeat until you bind off the entire row.
Step 6:
Using a large yarn needle, hide the dangling tails at both ends of your scarf by weaving them through your stitches.
Step 7:
Roll the scarf up, wrap it in paper, attach a big bow, and give it to a loved one. There may be no better gift in the world than a hand-knit scarf!
More Nifty Tips
Use thick-and-thin yarn for your first project. Its varied texture helps hide any mistakes.
Go slow to start. It’ll become second nature in no time!
If you poop out early, either set aside your project for later or cast off and congratulate yourself for making one amazing pot holder.
Be a Material Girl
“My grandmother handed down a couple of quilts that we wore to shreds. They just got handed down until they were threadbare, and even then, we’d use them in the summertime.”
—A LICE L OFT
H OW TO M AKE A C RAZY Q UILT
Step 1:
Gather your supplies: a basket’s worth of fabric scraps (of any size or material), a stack of 12-inch squares of muslin (you’ll need 12 blocks for a 3-foot by 4-foot baby quilt, 40 for a 5-foot by 8-foot twin quilt, 72 for an 8-foot by 9-foot full or queen-sized quilt), backing and batting the size of your quilt, a measuring tape, straight pins, a quilting needle, quilting thread, a thimble, an embroidery needle, embroidery thread, crocheting thread, and scissors.
Step 2:
Thread your needle, matching the ends of your thread at the bottom. Knot off the thread end-to-end at the bottom, and then start building your quilt, block by block. Crazy quilts are insanely beautiful because they follow no pattern. You can just make it up as you go! Start by placing one fabric scrap, right side up, in the center of a muslin block. Then place a second scrap, right side down, on top of the first, lining them up along one edge, and pin. (The fabrics can be different sizes and shapes, so long as they share one border.) Sew along this common edge (through both pieces of fabric and the muslin). Snip and knot your thread, and flip the top piece of fabric over. Next, take a third piece of fabric, big enough to connect to the first two pieces along a common edge, and place it, right side down,on top of the other pieces. Sew the common edge, trim off any excess (more than ¼ inch), and flip. Repeat until you have the whole square covered. As you work, you’ll notice that each square will become easier to complete. Be patient. It may take you days (or even weeks) to finish all of your squares, so have fun with it. Put on some music, invite some friends over to help you, pour some wine (or put the crazy in crazy quilt and make margaritas). Whatever floats your boat!
Step 3:
Make it last and make it fancy. Now that your fabric is attached to the muslin squares with simple stitches, it’s time to really secure it and add a bit of flair. Thread an embroidery needle with whatever color of embroidery thread you like, and stitch over each seam. For a basic cross-stitch, sew diagonally along the seam in one direction and then return in the opposite direction to “x” each stitch. Once you master that, you can get creative. Some crazy quilters embroider flowers, leaves, feathers, you name it, to secure their
Step 5:
To finish your scarf (or to bind off), you’ll play a game of leapfrog with your yarn. After you knit the first two stitches of your last row, use the tip of your left needle (or your fingers) to pick up the first stitch off your right needle, leap it over your second, and pull it off the tip. Then knit one more stitch, pick up the first, leap over your most recent stitch, and slip it off the end. Repeat until you bind off the entire row.
Step 6:
Using a large yarn needle, hide the dangling tails at both ends of your scarf by weaving them through your stitches.
Step 7:
Roll the scarf up, wrap it in paper, attach a big bow, and give it to a loved one. There may be no better gift in the world than a hand-knit scarf!
More Nifty Tips
Use thick-and-thin yarn for your first project. Its varied texture helps hide any mistakes.
Go slow to start. It’ll become second nature in no time!
If you poop out early, either set aside your project for later or cast off and congratulate yourself for making one amazing pot holder.
Be a Material Girl
“My grandmother handed down a couple of quilts that we wore to shreds. They just got handed down until they were threadbare, and even then, we’d use them in the summertime.”
—A LICE L OFT
H OW TO M AKE A C RAZY Q UILT
Step 1:
Gather your supplies: a basket’s worth of fabric scraps (of any size or material), a stack of 12-inch squares of muslin (you’ll need 12 blocks for a 3-foot by 4-foot baby quilt, 40 for a 5-foot by 8-foot twin quilt, 72 for an 8-foot by 9-foot full or queen-sized quilt), backing and batting the size of your quilt, a measuring tape, straight pins, a quilting needle, quilting thread, a thimble, an embroidery needle, embroidery thread, crocheting thread, and scissors.
Step 2:
Thread your needle, matching the ends of your thread at the bottom. Knot off the thread end-to-end at the bottom, and then start building your quilt, block by block. Crazy quilts are insanely beautiful because they follow no pattern. You can just make it up as you go! Start by placing one fabric scrap, right side up, in the center of a muslin block. Then place a second scrap, right side down, on top of the first, lining them up along one edge, and pin. (The fabrics can be different sizes and shapes, so long as they share one border.) Sew along this common edge (through both pieces of fabric and the muslin). Snip and knot your thread, and flip the top piece of fabric over. Next, take a third piece of fabric, big enough to connect to the first two pieces along a common edge, and place it, right side down,on top of the other pieces. Sew the common edge, trim off any excess (more than ¼ inch), and flip. Repeat until you have the whole square covered. As you work, you’ll notice that each square will become easier to complete. Be patient. It may take you days (or even weeks) to finish all of your squares, so have fun with it. Put on some music, invite some friends over to help you, pour some wine (or put the crazy in crazy quilt and make margaritas). Whatever floats your boat!
Step 3:
Make it last and make it fancy. Now that your fabric is attached to the muslin squares with simple stitches, it’s time to really secure it and add a bit of flair. Thread an embroidery needle with whatever color of embroidery thread you like, and stitch over each seam. For a basic cross-stitch, sew diagonally along the seam in one direction and then return in the opposite direction to “x” each stitch. Once you master that, you can get creative. Some crazy quilters embroider flowers, leaves, feathers, you name it, to secure their
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