Vest + Vest = Cowl

Once upon a time I started to knit this stranded vest from a Kaffe Fassett pattern.  Unfortunately the pattern was written for flat vs. in-the-round knitting, and I soon gave up.  Oh, and then there was the 3-color stranded knitting...I was out of my league.
 

I saved this piece of knitting because there was no way I would rip out something I'd sweated over so much.  Plus, I love this Persian Poppies pattern, which is very typical of Kaffe Fassett's style.
 

Recently, I ran across my aborted project, and feeling inspired, I felted this holey thrift store cashmere vest, and then carefully cut some pieces the same dimension as my knitted piece.
 

 

I then slip stitched the two pieces together and voila: 

 

a cowl!  I promise, my expression notwithstanding, I'm very pleased with the outcome.

Knitted Reusable Produce Bags

The free pattern for this reusable produce bag, Julie Tarsha's Weightless Produce Bag,  is currently popular on Ravelry.  It only takes 60-80 yards of Aunt Lydia's crochet cotton size 10, and knits up quickly. 

Like many other folks, I'm concerned about the amount of plastic trash that ends up in our landfills and oceans. Up to now, I've washed and reused my plastic produce bags, but I'm going to make a supply of these cotton bags and transition away from plastic bags. 
 

The finished bag looks small, but it definintly expands, as you can see in the first photo.  The short handles make for a small opening, which some people says keeps your produce from tumbling out, but I'm going to start making the handles longer for a bigger opening that can be tied shut.  

In the project notes by kniters who made this project, several also noted the number of stitches they used to make a larger bag.
 

Crochet cotton is often available in thrift stores and garage sales, and I have several balls that have made their way into my stash.  I like to use it for weaving rag rugs and table runners.
 

I also have a stash of partial balls, and so I knitted my first bag from double stranded thinner cotton.  

I expect to make bags for myself and for friends and family.  Clearly I've got enough thread to make this my own environmental crusade.