Shared today on Twitter

@koconder We’re going to host a @yow_oz YOW Night in St. Leonard’s in February! I’m trying to find out where to promote. Any ideas?


“In a coffeehouse… a group of women discuss how to knit, purl and dismantle white supremacy.” https://t.co/oT1KOfJugq


@unixbigot Awwww, right back at ya! Happy 2017. 🙂


Shared today on Twitter

@troyhunt Just read your post on things conf org’s do to piss off speakers. 🙂 Agree on pretty much all of it.


@troyhunt Any ideas how org’s can reduce risk of bad presos/slide decks without imposing deadlines or templates?


RT @yow_oz: Searching for devs & engineers willing to share their stories & lessons learned at @yowwest17. CFP now open! https://t.co/IJID…


@rosepowell @DDsD I use Tweetdeck on desktop and Tweetbot on phone. I never see them, ever.


@rosepowell @DDsD iOS only, I believe. 🙁 But I’m sure someone has an equivalent/knockoff.


@catehstn Salome, I’m guessing?


@catehstn Which, duh, everyone else has already mentioned. I need more coffee.


@NicoleWill100 @rosepowell @DDsD Complicated question. Refer to https://t.co/1M4vM8HrvI


@DDsD @rosepowell Interestingly, Twitter actually bought Tweetdeck. It’s owned by them now. I have no idea why it doesn’t have ads.


Wow. A “coworking” space with only one hour’s wifi. I guess I’ll go over to Broadway, @CentralParkSyd. https://t.co/IeOvD1YU9T


@troyhunt I agree – there’s a lot more onus on the PC to pick good talks and speakers.


Just sittin’ in the food court, approving my own PRs and merging branches. 💅


@gilmae Honestly, it’s because I couldn’t figure out how to merge my branch otherwise. 😂 #gitnoob


@gilmae I can’t remember your arcane incantations, not with this headache. I’m playing with the gui. 🙂


@gilmae Mostly Github Desktop. Ever used it? I’ve used cli too, but I’m rusty and it helps me to visualise.


Successfully debugged a mothereffin’ regular expression ALL BY MYSELF. https://t.co/IbI5Nn6e0H


@gilmae Oh cool – got it! Much simpler. Thanks for that. Somehow missed the “Merge into…” item before. 🙂


@mage0r @stibbons @linuxconfau I’m keen – but what level of hardware experience do you need to have?


@mage0r Done! I submitted. 🙂 Might put in for a lightning talk too. Could do a bit of my knitting talk from WOOTConf. 😀


@gilmae Incidentally, if you feel like doing any critiquing… https://t.co/TafJ0JSwuk


@recompilermag Dr. Brian Little’s talk on Personalities at Work from @yow_oz #yow16. https://t.co/UIjxpB8Uat


@mage0r @chixors I was just tweet stalking the both of you. Very cool. I’m hand knitter; haven’t ventured into machines… yet.


@chixors @mage0r The 5min version from TEDx Melbourne is online: https://t.co/fbqlOFEXnn


@WearyMonkey You use Twitter so little, getting a Like from you always makes my day. 😊


HOLY CRAP. Netflix has a 4hr+ long Slow TV show about Norwegian knitting! This + rosé = MY FRIDAY NIGHT. (Thanks @knitterjp.) https://t.co/uUE5VNh5jT


The sheep is so chill this is amaaaaazing. https://t.co/H4ZZO0BQYb


“It smells great in here,” she says. I BET. (PS I want her jumper.) https://t.co/l2eCHatydf


Rolf is explaining the finer points of staple length. Marry me, Rolf. https://t.co/Kv7HOvtt3N


@stibbons Haha, they also used #knittv, apparently.


She’s interviewing Guri the sheep. 😂 #knittv https://t.co/KSfZ4a8Hiv


“The inferior part of the wool.” I suspect that’s the part with poo on it. #knittv


The microphone cover is knitted! 😳 Yes, life is indeed good. #knittv https://t.co/VuWtAUg8KK


Now they’re trash-talking the Aussies (who held the world record). WATCH IT, VIGDIS. #knittv 🇦🇺🐑 https://t.co/YBXbys9q2L


Just occurred to me – this video is basically like the ones Twin Galaxies uses to verify video game records. Except with knitting. #knittv


HEY SHE HAS MY BALL WINDER #knittv https://t.co/DAcOwnJJtd


Torunn came to chew gum and knit like the wind. And she’s almost out of gum. #knittv https://t.co/O24CnB4teZ


@gilmae LOL. I’m actually going to a workshop on it at @linuxconfau in a few weeks. Maybe this time it’ll stick.


@MeetupAPI Just hit a brick wall with my app. API calls work great locally, but getting throttled running from host. Exact same command?!


One of these Norwegian badasses is wearing LEATHER PANTS in a speed spinning event. #knittv https://t.co/1XhPP4ZVbZ


I call BULLSHIT Rolf. Even at a butchery, there’s no way you sheared 400 sheep in a work day! #knittv https://t.co/94u6Dao35k


@jagarcia1919 There are actually 8 ppl on the team, including 1 man!


@NicoleWill100 That ain’t no 8 hour day.


@the_nathanjones @knitterjp I’m all out of rosé. I’m on to the proper red now.


@the_nathanjones @knitterjp Oh, I’m not *knitting* at the moment! I’m WATCHING people knit while I drink wine and write bad PHP.


@joannejacobs +100


@the_nathanjones @knitterjp HA! 👏 Nicely done. That was a Dad-pun worthy of @FakeSamRitchie himself.


@essjayeff Yep. Search for “Slow TV” 😀


@stringy Search for “Slow TV” on Netflix. 🙂


@clepetit They’re real and they’re mesmerising. (The winder is the gizmo on the left; the umbrella thing is s “swift.”) https://t.co/HJeQzXeUUl


@nxdnz @kcarruthers As a Yank – HEYYYYYYY! 😡


@slace @parkrunAU Wow, great job!


@slace I did a couple when it started at Sydney Park, but then I hurt my knees. 🙁


RT @ThatWeissGuy: 2016: The year “why don’t you move to Russia, traitor” flipped from a right-wing insult to a left-wing one.


Shared today on Twitter

RT @yow_oz: The official hashtag for YOW! Lambda Jam 2017 is #ylj17. And yes, the rumours are true: it’ll be in Sydney. https://t.co/pjXLx0…


Goddamit. Time to watch Singin’ in the Rain again.


@mattallen I just tried. I’m not sure I know how to do it correctly.


@mattallen @neil_killick It wouldn’t let me type random crap in the box! Only approved things. 🙁


Anyone else hear a couple REALLY LOUD booms in Sydney’s Inner West in the last 10 minutes?!


And there’s a third bang. WTF.


TIL Debbie Reynolds was the voice of Charlotte A. Cavatica. “How very special are we, for just a moment to be…” 😢 🕷


Shared today on Twitter

RT @TheWonkaTonka: @web_goddess @unlikelylibrary @randomknits @knitterjp And your cuz, too! https://t.co/7Om5oaeZ9K


@kosamari Nicely done!!


RT @yow_oz: Our 1st #yownight for 2017 is already in the works. Sign up for email updates https://t.co/C19wAu4J2e https://t.co/bPNuMOWO3B


@lemon_lime @unlikelylibrary @randomknits @knitterjp I’d never forget! Twitter just limited me to 4 pics. 😀 https://t.co/3N4fePl9Ix


Lovely impromptu dinner in Glebe! https://t.co/lIIppDwfDN https://t.co/CXy7OhWBmQ


@Notionalseams It’s great! What’s the pattern?!


Him: “We got a stock dividend paid into the bank account.”

Me: “Nice! … Sexytalk sure changes after you hit 40.”


Shared today on Twitter

Christmas sewing part 3: Saltbox sleeveless top with cheeky foxes. @blueprintsforsewing https://t.co/0J8D3RBIzj https://t.co/fDW2qHn581


Detail: side split with continuous hem https://t.co/d01tbCLSWN https://t.co/fRjT5AIJvE


Christmas sewing part 4: Dr. Who/Union Jack tank (based on Sorbetto). Phew! That’s enough … https://t.co/QxkJ1XQCnG https://t.co/jU0ceKuaEW


@malynmawby I got it at my Mom’s local craft store in the US – probably JoAnn’s?


Holiday sewing – 4 new tops! Blog post with links: https://t.co/uZ0VrkwaFi https://t.co/sPrV2yvtfr


@StokesXandra The foxes has proved very popular!


RT @emd3737: Rest in peace you gorgeous legend @carrieffisher https://t.co/BmRo1Tit6G


RT @osheamobile: Be Princess Leia in 2017.

Fight on the front lines. Strangle fascists with the chains they would have you wear. Be a moth…


@ninedigital Whoops! Sorry about that. 🙂


I think it reflects well on my friends that we have all dressed up as #carriefisher. ❤️ to @unlikelylibrary, @randomknits, and @knitterjp https://t.co/w2dls5Fqey


Holiday sewing – 4 new tops!

I’d been feeling the itch to do some more sewing this holiday break, and I decided that I needed some more tops. (Let’s be honest. I have more than enough dresses.) I’d also bought some fun novelty fabric when I was home in the seven months ago – Wonder Woman and Dr. Who! So last week I washed and prepped everything, and I quickly realised I was going to have a problem. For some reason, I only bought a meter each of those fabrics. What?!! That’s not enough to do anything meaningful with. So very quickly I realised I was going to have to piece them and use contrast fabrics.

Wonder Woman Sorbetto

For the Wonder Woman, I had an idea to mimic her bustier with a sort of sweetheart neckline. I found this tutorial on adding a sweetheart yoke to a t-shirt and realised I could mimic that technique. I decided to base it off the Colette Sorbetto tank, which I’ve made a couple of times in the past. I traced a new version and removed the pleat from the front. Then I drew in the bust curve and cut the piece in two. I used the top piece to determine where to make the cut across the back piece. (I drew that line straight.) I added some extra paper so I could extend the 5/8″ seam allowance on all four pieces. Then I cut out my pieces, and I was ready to sew!

Honestly, I didn’t really have any idea how to sew those pieces together. The tutorial kind of glosses over it (and it uses knits anyway). Just imagine flipping that white bit over… You end up sewing a convex curve to a concave. In the end I did it in two passes, from the edge to the center each time. The very middle is a little bodgey, but mostly it worked!

The rest of the construction was straightforward. I did run into one issue on the sides – when I’d measured where to put the seam across the back, I hadn’t taken the seam allowance into account. I also cut WAY too large a size, but I was able to pinch out an inch in the center of the back and that worked great. For the binding, I wanted something shiny and gold like Wonder Woman’s lasso. I ended up getting a perfect shiny satin bias ribbon binding at Tessuti. It turned out great!

Grey Kate

For my second project, I unearthed some grey linen I’d bought last year along with the Kate Top pattern from Tessuti. I decided to do View B with the higher neck and the keyhole at the back. The sizing looked a bit small, so I lengthened by 1.5″ and sized up a little bit. The instructions were fairly clear, and the only problem I had was that the three pieces of bias binding I cut weren’t nearly long enough. (Luckily I had plenty of fabric to cut more.) This was my first time using tearaway Vilene shields to stabilise the neck and sleeve openings, and it definitely felt more stable than just staystitching. I loved the method for creating the mitered split hem! I also was pleased to find in my stash the perfect button for the back opening. My only complaint about the project – and I should’ve realised from the picture – is that it’s designed for a much smaller bust. (Next time I’ll do an FBA.)

Foxy Saltbox

For my third project, I really wanted to use the Dr. Who fabric to make the Saltbox top. (I bought that pattern a few years back as part of the Sew Independent Bundle.) Unfortunately I just didn’t have enough fabric. Then I remembered a really cute fox print I bought at Spotlight in Auburn last weekend and realised it would look great with the white I had left over from the Wonder Woman top. I checked my size and the pattern helpfully recommended that I do an FBA. It’s the first one I ever did, and it went really well! It helped that the pattern had the cut lines printed on it, and they gave you exact instructions for what to do. The whole thing came together very quickly! I also really liked the instructions for doing a continuous hem around the side splits. Next time I’ll have to do the version with sleeves!

Dr. Who Sorbetto

For my final project, I was determined to use up that damn Dr. Who fabric. Back I went to the Sorbetto, this time cutting a straight line across the bust. Even then, I still didn’t have quite enough to cut the front and back pieces. I ended up piecing the back down the middle. (I did an awesome job matching it up though so you can barely tell!) I’m still annoyed I couldn’t line up the TARDISes perfectly from front to back, but it’s so busy you can barely tell. This was the fastest project of all and I had it done in less than 4 hours, including the time it took me to make my own bias binding.

And that’s it! Four new tops. I’m actually really pleased with how it all went. The more I sew, the better things look. I didn’t sew anything back-to-front or have to do any major unpicking. On several occasions I said out loud, “I FRIGGIN’ LOVE MY OVERLOCKER.” It makes everything look so much more professional. I also got to do some serious 3-D geometry, from sewing curves together to doing my first FBA.