Teeny tiny thimble purse

I hate standard thimbles. There, I said it. I hate them so much, I used to tape my fingers with masking tape instead of using them. They never seem to fit properly my fingers. They fall off or at least are really unstable.

A couple of months ago, something awesome happened. I discovered open thimbles. They work just like regular thimble. You simply wear them on the tip of the finger you use to push the needle. But what's wonderful about them is, they are adjustable! The front side is a full metal plate with texture to help you push the needle but the back! The back is made of metal bands, that you can squeeze to adjust to the exact size of you finger! I'm done with jiggling thimbles. I've also read that some people like them because they allow you to keep long nails.

The thing is, a thimble is a really small object and as I love mine, I'm afraid to get it lost. It's not worth a lot of money, but I would be disappointed if I had to replace it.
So to protect it, and help me always know where it is, I knitted a tiny bag to tuck it into. It's actually a design from Tiny Owl Knits, with some modifications. Instead of Aran yarn, I used fingering yarn on 2.25mm needles and cut in half all the stitches and row counts. After felting, the tiny purse is only two inches tall (this is without the tassel, that is added later). Finally, I added a drawstring and a glass bead to close it safely.

Teeny tiny purse

Really, this project is a cute and quick knit. I'm happy with the result and even a bit tempted to make the purse in it's original size.

An old clock's cozy time

  Today I want to share with you my most recent decor project. It's something I wanted to do for at least a year and never really put my needles to it. For a couple of years, we had a basic Ikea clock on our kitchen wall. I say basic because it was really plain looking, white background, blue plastic frame... but it was functional so I kept it where it was. With time, the plastic-paperish white background started to fall apart. I guess it was the result of long term sun exposure... Anyway, I took it down, thinking I would do a little makeover sometime.

More than a year later, I stumble across this pattern for a Clockwork Cozy on Ravelry: http://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/colorful-clockwork-cozy   A really simple yet colorful and funny pattern, perfect for my old clock.


My clock wasn't in good shape and needed a bit of preparation before receiving it's cozy. I started by peeling off the remaining pieces of background. I painted the frame white so it wouldn't show to much through the knitted fabric. I printed a damask pattern on a thick white paper and cut it to fit perfectly in the clock (usually you can easily take out the hands by pulling). I drew numbers on the circle and filled them using a black marker. Then, I simply inserted the disk in the clock and put back the hands. The paper disk fitted so perfectly that it didn't need any glue.

As for the knitted part, I used some Palette fingering yarn that I already had on hand (Clarity, Sky, Clover, Green Tea Heather, Sweet Potato and semolina). The pattern called for worsted weight yarn but I wanted a different look, a little less texture. I cast on 20 stitches on 2,75 mm needles and it was large enough to cover the frame. I knitted in garter stitch, changing colors irregularly until it was long enough to cover the whole thing. If you want to make one yourself,  you can find details on how to finish it and different examples of finished projects on the pattern page. It really is a nice way to give a second life to an old clock.