6th June 2010

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LOTR Knitting Adventure

So now that everything has reached its final destination I feel it is safe to write about my LOTR Ravelry swap. Oh boy have I been itching to!

So, for those of you unaware, I love the Lord of the Rings almost as much as I love the Hobbit. Therefore, when there way the option to participate in a swap with this theme I had to. My partner, however, put me to shame with her LOTR/Middle Earth love and lore so I had to really work to make something that would be just right.

I decided it was time to learn to sew!

Wait, sewing is not knitting… but all crafting is allowed and with my partner’s love of maps I figured a knitting needle case that looked like a parchment map of Middle Earth would be just right. This involved several stages:

1. Finding fabric that I thought would both look great and that my partner would like. (Thanks for helping Kristen!)
2. Making some sort of game plan with measurements for how the thing should go together.
3. Getting a good image of the Middle Earth map to flip and print on iron on transfer paper. I got it here… and it is awesome.
4. Figure out how to wind a friggin’ bobbin on my sewing machine. (Thanks Mom & Grandma for always keeping the book with the sewing machine!)
5. Putting the whole darn thing together.

Miraculously I managed to make a plan, cut out fabric, and even wind 2 bobbins thanks to the instruction book (last copyright: 1947) with the machine. (Favorite part from the book: Machine can be plugged into either an alternating current or direct current outlet.)

I had some trouble, but in the end was very pleased with my results.

Of course, it took me a while to get all this together… and to work up my courage to actually try this whole sewing thing. Like it took my 2.5 months total to get the whole swap ready to mail, and I bought the fabric before the end of the first month. Sewing (and courage) is HARD.

So in the mean time I decided that I needed to make a second item for my partner. I mean, she mentioned several times, in several places, that her favorite thing ever is Grond. How could I let her down! She is like my LOTR Australian Sister! (Note: I have a real sister who loves LOTR and is likely to want appropriate gifts after this.) So, I downloaded some cross stitch charting software and started to scheme. And how I schemed. I was disappointed that I was using the design concept from the movie for Grond, but since there is only some descriptions of this giant metal battering ram in the shape of a wolf and filled with fire I figured I would be forgiven. So I charted out a pattern, ordered some knitpicks pallette yarns, and waited.

Finally it was time!

It was the most colors I have knit with in an intarsia to date, and it was crazy and challenging and fun! I ended up having to cut off the edges of the pattern so with a reasonable gauge it would still fit around a mug as a mug cozy (since it was WAY too big for going around wrists). After a month of hard work I ended up with:

I did eventually get the whole thing mailed out, and I think my fella was really sad to see it all go. He often would remark on the coolness of Grond and how great the map looked on the fabric. We may end up with some LOTR crafting at home, but I was just so excited to send these things off to whom I designed them for.

Now I’m just waiting to see what my sister requests, since her birthday is in a whopping 10 days (and I see her in 13 when we have a family D&D adventure for her party)! Good thing I love knitting, my family and LOTR… in a particular order that is no one’s business but mine.

Tags knittingsewingLOTRRavelry