Drip Drip Drop

Friday Favorites: TV Shows

2012-02-10T10:10:00.002-06:00

Today is the day I put myself out there a bit and admit that perhaps we watch too much tv in our house. Although, it's not as simple as to say we sit down and watch anything and everything. Instead, we have a group of shows we regularly stay caught up on. I thought it'd be fun to share a few.

Glee

Yes, we watch Glee. Who doesn't love a good musical number sung in the middle of a show? I've always enjoyed musicals and singing. Music has been a big part of my life for a long time. Makes sense I would enjoy Glee. Even Mr. man enjoys it. "High Schoolers" singing and dancing every day? Yes, please!

Leverage

I don't know what got us hooked on this show, but we love it. Funny with some drama and romance thrown in, there's something for everyone. My favorite characters are Hardison and Parker, Elliot coming in at a close third. You can find this group of grifters and theives on TNT.

Bones

What's not to love about Emily Deschanel and David Boreanaz? I've followed Boreanaz's career since his days as Angel in Buffy the Vampire Slayer. He's what originally drew me in to the series. Now I can't enough of Deschanel. She's beautiful and clever and quirky. As partners in solving crime, I think these two have great dynamics on screen.

New Girl

Which brings me to Emily's sister, Zooey Deschanel. This lovely lady always plays a role that's a bit different. And I love that. The role she plays as the awkward new roommate to three men is fun and fresh.

So...there are lots more than that...Gold Rush is strangely addictive...and don't even get me started on the addictive properties of Storage Wars! What shows do you like to keep up with?

Just Because I Can

2012-02-08T07:52:00.003-06:00

(Uptown Babe hat I designed awhile back.)

(And if I share one, I must share a picture of the other! :) )

Super Simple Superwash Scarf

2012-01-25T09:29:00.001-06:00

A friend of mine has her birthday mid-December. So what's better than a warm knit scarf to keep her cozy?

I had found a pattern on Ravelry a while back that I really wanted to try. It calls for bulky yarn and knits up quickly. I looked through my stash but didn't have any colors I was very happy with, so instead I went shopping. I decided on Yarn Bee's First Love in the Lovely colorway. Turquoise and dark purples and a little bit of green, with splashes of fuchsia thrown in. Perfect for this kind of scarf.

And to say scarf is really misleading. I know the pattern is called Super Simple Superwash Scarf, but it's knit in the round and intended to be a cowl. The one I knit L can be wrapped twice around your neck, being stylish but warm.This cowl is made up of 3 knit rows, then 3 purl rows, and so on. I ran out of yarn befor the pattern really ended. I needed 7 repeats but only got 5, although I don't think it detracts from the look.

The yarn is pretty squooshy and hopefully soft against L's neck. I'm always worried something will be too scratchy or irritable. I really want to make this again, except for myself. And I really want to try it in a variegated yarn. Some patterns, in my opinion, just don't mesh well with variegation. But this scarf is so simple, I think instead it will make it more visually appealing.

On a side note, now that I've had a bit of a breather since Lovebug's birth and now that we're getting back into a routine...I'm going to try and get back to some weekly posts like WIP Wednesdays and Friday Favorites. I've had a ton of Finished objects to share recently but that will start to slow down very soon. So stay tuned!

Wee Mittens

2012-01-20T11:18:00.004-06:00

A cute little pattern found in Vintage Knits for Modern Babies, these were finished in a matter of hours (well, split over 2 daysbecause I didn’t have time to do them all in one sitting). Knit with Spud and Chloe, Moonlight.(Pattern calls for DK weight but I used worsted.)

The pattern, Wee Mittens, is written to knit these flat and then seam themtogether. It’s an interestingconstruction but I hate seaming so I converted the pattern to knit it in theround. With tis in mind I cast on 30 stitches instead of 31.

Initially, I knit the length for fingers and thumbs asdirected by the pattern. But I hadto go back and take the tops of the fingers and thumbs out and lengthen thembecause they were far too short for Squishy’s hands (he gets that from hismamma….).

I dislike it when I have a pattern that requires knitting 2of something and it tells you to knit for “x” inches. I don’t trust my measuring skills to be so great that I willget the pair the same length (some might also tell me it’s my need to be aperfectionist…). So instead Ilabor over counting the rows as I go to make sure they are both the same. Not hard to do with tiny mittens!

Anyway, I ended up adding 6 more rows to the fingers and 4more rows to the thumb. That’s alot of length when you’re talking about toddler fingers! Do you see the difference between thesetwo pictures?

Now they fit...well…like a glove! Squishy loves them and keeps talking about “my new mittens.” That’s the mark of a job well done.

And to any of you out there who don’t like seaming…don’t beafraid to look at a pattern and decide whether or not it can be knit in theround. Not everything is as simpleas these mittens and would be harder to convert, but this saved me a lotof time, especially considering that if I had knit them flat, I couldn’t havefixed Squishy’s mittens and just would have had to make a whole new pair.

Cozy Thermal Mitts

2012-01-18T11:02:00.001-06:00

A year or two ago, Mom & I visited a somewhat local farmthat had advertised a selection of handspun yarn, weaving, knitting, felting,etc. While it wasn’t what we wereexpecting, and definitely not what I was hoping for, I did pick up a fewgoodies. I found a couple skeinsof handspun yarn, direct from the sheep raised on the farm. One skein was an undyed, natural color. I knit Lamb from Scratch with it, aboutthis time last year.

The other skein was a pretty, variegated purple, blue andpink skein. It also had a couplestrands of sparkly thread spun throughout.

I have been wanting to knit this yarn for a long time butcould never come up with a project I was happy with. Every time I thought I had it, I changed my mind. The yarn isn’t particularly soft so Iknew it couldn’t be a cowl or anything like that. I considered a hat, but wasn’t really thrilled about thateither.

Which left me wanting to make fingerless mitts. I found the pattern Cozy Thermal Mitts,shown in a yarn with a similar appearance to handspun. I liked how the example looked so Icast on myself.

Are you noticing a trend with the recent items I’veknit? They’re all simple. Quick. I guess instant gratification is what I need at themoment. These mitts are noexception.

Once I had them knit, I put them on to test them out. I won’t lie when I say I was a bitdisappointed when I started feeling a little irritation on my wrists. The mitts are a bit scratchy, not softlike I’m used to.

Originally, the yarn was purchased with the intention togift something to Sis. Then I neverfound a pattern. When thesewere finished I decided I would try them out, see how they looked when completeand then decide. If I wasuncomfortable, I knew she would be too. (She’s a very tactile person.)

But I decided to send them to Sis anyway. I think she may be able to wear themover another pair of gloves. Shegot glove liners from Mom & C at Christmas, and since she lives inColorado, these would be perfect to slide on over top of her gloves. Added warmth, with the ability tomanipulate her fingers. Win-win inmy opinion!

I enjoyed the pattern and the textural interest the stitchpattern created. They took a smallamount of yarn – I only had 124 yards and I didn’t even use it all (althoughthere’s only a tiny bit left). Iwould recommend this pattern to those of you who have one skein of worstedweight yarn that you just don’t know what to do with.

Darling

2012-01-17T13:20:00.006-06:00

Is anyone else reminded of Lady and the Tramp when you hear “Darling?”Maybe it’s because I watched it so much when I was little, but what’s whatcomes to mind when I hear the word.

Enough about movies, and on to the knitting. Slowly but surely I’ve been catchingyou all up on my knitting. Oncethe holiday season came to an end, personal knitting took over. I told you what my Christmas knittingwas. It wasn’t that much, it’s just that we were so busy, there wasn’t a lot ofdown time for knitting.

Almost immediately after binding off the Yoked Cardigan, Icast on for a cowl. Thepattern? Darling by Armida Joy ofFairytale Knits. A simple,knit-in-the-round pattern, I think this took me only a couple of days. It could be finished in a few hours ifyou had the time. My version wasknit from HandPaintedYarn in a reddish pink colorway. This is the same yarn as the Yoked Cardigan, just in adifferent color. It matches mycoat quite nicely.

The pattern creates eyelets every few rows and I’ve foundwhile wearing it that the eyelet portions paired with the Stockinette rowscreate something similar to horizontal ribbing. My cowl scrunches together in a way that makes it very warmand cozy and squishable.

Now is the time to admit that I have an obsession with sometypes of knitting. These include but are not limited to shawls, fingerlessmitts and cowls. I could spendcountless hours looking through different patterns. And I do, sometimes. Anyway, I have reservations about cowls. You see…shawls you can always toss around your neck like afancy scarf and away you go. Fingerless mitts and/or gloves are perfect for fall weather when the airis a bit brisk but you don’t want full mittens or gloves. They’re also great for driving becausethe mitt covers the cold steering wheel and still keeps your fingers free. But cowls? Yes, they keep your neck warm. Yes, they’re pretty. But they’re somewhat harder to wear. ONLY because I’mnever sure if I’m wearing them right. Should they be pinned a particular way? Do I need to wrap it twice? Is it too big and floppy or too small and tight? I LOVEthe way they look on other people, but I always have it in my head that I don’tlook quite right in them. But Iknit them anyway. I figure, if Ilook ridiculous, someone will tell me so (I’m counting on Mr. Man or Mom or Sisto tell enlighten me when this occurs).

So I wrote all that and you’re probably thinking, wow, whata terrible thing to say in a post about the cowl I just knit! But it’s really the opposite becausethis cowl doesn’t make me feel any of those things! I wear it under my coat and it keeps my neck warm in thatspace between the collar and chin where the coat doesn’t reach. I’ve evennapped in it.

So go forth and knit yourself one as well!

Yoked Cardigan

2012-01-16T09:05:00.005-06:00

I’ve talked before about listening to what yarn wants tobecome. More times than not, Ifind a pattern I want to knit, and then hunt down the yarn to knit itwith. More recently, I’ve beenusing stash whenever possible to fulfill the yarn requirements, although that’snot always the case.

But sometimes, when you receive lovely yarn, it speaks toyou and there’s nothing you can do but give in. I received some beautiful HandPaintedYarn from a friendduring the E is for Elephant Swap. I got 2 skeins in a reddish pink color and another in a deepblue-green. It’s probably ofno surprise that the blue-green skein was my favorite.

I had big plans for this yarn. I had been scouring cowl patterns for awhile now, havingdecided that this soft, squishy yarn would be best served around my neck. I had even settled on a pattern. I almost cast on when I stopped. Yes, this yarn would be lovely wrappedaround my neck, keeping me warm. But it wasn’t really satisfied with that. And then I realized why.

Those lovely deep shades of blue and green would be sostriking when wrapping around my little girl's arms and shoulders. I could even picture just the rightpattern. Lovebug has beautifulblue eyes, just like her brother. I doubt they’ll change in color. Squishy’s didn’t. Thiswould make them POP.

And once I made this decision, I was happy. It all felt right. The pattern is Yoked Cardigan by Hannah Fettig (she’s got some great designs). While reading some other knitter’s notes, I agreed with one who said shedoesn’t think of this as a yoked cardigan, but rather a ribbed cardigan. And that’s what it is. Hannah has you slowly increase thepurls between the knits the further down you get in the sweater.

Simple, top down construction, this is sized from baby toadult. The 4 x 1 ribbing isflattering, and especially cute on a baby! I knit the 17” bust. The next size up was a 21” bust, which I felt was just a bit too big – Iwanted Lovebug to wear it now. Knit in a heavy worsted yarn on US 8s,this took no more than 2 or 3 days, tops. If I were to knit it as a gift, I would use the 2^nd bustmeasurement just to make sure it fit the baby I was gifting it to.

I did add a few mods to the pattern. Instead of a garter button band, Ifollowed the example of another knitter and did 1 x 1 ribbing, picking up 40stitches on each side of the front.

I wasn’t sure if I had enough yarn, so I kept the sleeves abit short. I followed the pattern to a point, then went my own direction. After picking up the arm stitches, Iknit 10 inches in the 4 x 1 rib pattern. Then I purled 1 row. Then 5rows of 1 x 1 ribbing. Finally,binding off in pattern. This drawsin the bottom of the sleeves nicely and keeps the edges from rolling. I wish I had the forethought to addribbing to the bottom of the cardigan. It’s a sweet cardigan without it, but I feel as though it would havebeen more congruent with the overall look of the sweater.

And what’s better than finding perfect buttons to finish itoff! I added some buttons I’ve hadin the stash for awhile. They made me think of Paul Revere for some reason – with a man riding ahorse. Not girly, ormasculine. They stand out nicelyagainst the dark background.

So get yourself some yarn and knit your own Yoked Cardiganfor a little one you know. You won’t be disappointed!

Christmas Gifts

2012-01-13T09:47:00.002-06:00

So far most of what you’ve seen of my Christmas knitting hasbeen for the Advent Swap or for Lovebug. And that’s pretty much accurate. The last 2 years I’ve tried to knit something for everyone in myimmediate family. I didn’t thisyear because I didn’t figure I’d have time what with caring for a newborn andall. Good thing I didn’t because Ihad just enough knitting to keep me occupied and happy, and not a mad dash tofinish.

Instead, I knit a set of dishcloths for each of the women inmy family. Mom got a knitteddishcloth and a crocheted dish scrubber last spring. She uses them a lot and we’ve talked numerous times abouther getting more. I used Christmasas the opportunity to supply her with some.

The first pattern I used was the Official Pattern of Revenge of Dish Rag Tag by Emily Ivey. Iliked the open knit material these dishcloths had. These were made with Spinrite Peaches & Crème Ombres& Prints in Good Earth and Spinrite Peaches & Crème Solids inBurgundy. These colors were pickedto match Mom’s kitchen. Thispattern is quick and easy to follow. Knit diagonally, you can make it as large or as small as you want. These turned out a little bitsmall. If I made them again Iwould add another 4-5 increase rows.

The second pattern I used for Mom was the Mother’s Day Cloth by Kris Knits. It’s a bit hard to see butit says “I (heart) MOM.” This is asolid, knit dishcloth and more similar to what she already had. I’ve asked her to get back to me onwhich she prefers – the open design, or the solid knit fabric. This cloth was considerably larger thanthe previous two, and actually, larger than any other dishcloth I’ve made sofar. But I liked the size and thepattern was easy. Just a bunch ofknits and purls. This too was knitin the Spinrite Peaches & Crème Solids in Burgundy.

The final pattern I used, with Good Earth, was Granny Square Cloth, a crocheted pattern. Thiswas my first crocheted pattern to try. I’ve had some made for me and I enjoyed them, so I made one forMom. These work up in a matter ofhours!

To complete her gift, Mom also received some matchingdishtowels, a dish scrubber and some handmade soap.

For my sister, I made a set of 4 crocheted Granny Squareclothes. Two were crocheted usingSpinrite Peaches & Creams Solids in Strawberry Stripes.

One was a mixture of Lily Sugar’N’crème in White and theStrawberry Stripes, and the final cloth was striped using Spinrite Peaches& Crème Solids in Soft Blue and Lily Sugar’N’Cream white and yellow.

The last cloth was a bit different because it involvedstriping and learning how to attach and weave in the ends in crochet. A bit different from what I’m used towith knitting, but I think I caught on fairly quickly.

Sis also got 2 bars of handmade soap as well. They smelled very yummy. I really hope she enjoys them and getssome use out of them. I always getso worried about whether what I knit (or crochet in this case) is appreciatedor will be used.

Finally, I crocheted Mr. Man’s mom a couple yellow Granny Square Cloths. This was just alittle something extra for her gift as she was also getting a new picture ofSquishy. I got a lovely text fromher telling me she had used her new cloths and really likes them. I love this kind of feedback! Unfortunately, I forgot to takepictures of them beforehand, so you’ll just have to imagine them looking likethe above photos, except in yellow! (Yarn: Lily Sugar’N’Cream in Yellow)

Thank You!

2012-01-12T08:02:00.001-06:00

Recently I was blessed with a wonderful surprise!

Stefanie, from Knitspiring Odyssey honored me with

theaward!

The purpose of this award is to share 5 enjoyable blogs withunder 200 followers with the blogging world.

Very quickly, I had my own list in my head of who I wantedto nominate! (Stefanie came to mind immediately, but since she gave me the award, I needed to pick other people.) :)

1 Fairytale Knits: Raili is so inspiring. She shares her knitting, crocheting, baking and other activities withher readers. She’s not afraid towrite about her faith and readily shares both her accomplishments and herstruggles.

2 Saucy: I love reading Jill’s blog. Her knitting is amazing – she can knita sweater faster than you can blink an eye! I would love to be able to knit that fast and that well.Many of the things she knits I would love to try myself. But her blog isn’t limited to knitting,she also writes about her family, her garden, her reading list. She’s a busy woman!

3 Useful Hands & Heart: On Debby’s blog, yousee an obvious love of her family. She’s always writing about her kids and grandkids and all the things shedoes for them, as well as how God’s love strengthens and supports her. Sewing, scrapbooking, knitting andtaking care of her grandkids keeps her busy. She’s an amazing lady.

4 Knitting a Baby: Melissa has been a bit occupiedlately, as she recently welcomed her baby girl into the world in July. Although she hasn’t had the time (ababy takes a lot of work!) to blog as often as she used to, I always find herposts to be enjoyable. She’shonest and straightforward. She’sone of the first blogs I started reading consistently .

5 Lucy’s Arts & Crafts: Lucy lives in Chinaand has an interesting perspective. Her blog used to mostly encompass her knitting, but has grown to includeher love of art and culture. Shefrequently talks about differences or traditions in China, which I love to readbecause I feel like I gain a different perspective myself.

Congratulations, ladies!

Pass on the love!

Christmas Booties

2012-01-05T10:06:00.000-06:00

After shopping for Christmas clothes for the kids, I hadthis brilliant idea that I would knit Lovebug a pair of booties to match herChristmas dress (not the Little Sister’s Dress I knit, she wore that onChristmas Day – although I did have that in mind when picking thepattern.) She’d be wearing tightsand would need something to keep her tootsies warm.

I picked out the pattern a couple days before Christmas EveDay (needed them for the Candlelight Service) and got to work. They worked up very quickly, each beingcompleted in a matter of hours. And they were soo cute!.....

…..I have come to learn that my daughter has very long,narrow feet that don’t really fill booties out very well. My button/strap placement was not thebest and unfortunately they just kept falling off her feet. They have since been fixed and stay onher feet much better, but she wasn’t really able to wear them forChristmas.

The pattern is Rosy Baby Booties by Julia Noskova (you can find my version on my project page). This woman has loads of bootie patterns that I’m dying to try. I would knit them all. Anyway – I love her patterns and Iloved this pattern. I thinknormally, these booties would fit baby feet really well. And the size I chose was 0-6 months, soshe’ll be able to wear them for a little while. I’ve not knit many booties and I was a bit worried that theywouldn’t turn out. But theydid! And they looked just like thedesigner’s pictures. (That’s the best, when that happens.)

About the pattern – instructions were very easy tofollow. I never felt confusedabout where the pattern was headed. It was clearly written, a beginner could easily make these. I wish there were 0-3 and 3-6 monthsizing instead of 0-6 months. Iprobably could have figured out the mods myself but didn’t have time sinceChristmas was so close. For thepatterns that are more like boots and less like shoes, I don’t think it’s asbig of an issue.

I used Ella Rae Milky Soft in Red (dk weight) and Knit PicksComfy Sport (sport weight obviously) in Whisker as called for in thepattern. The gray strap and edgingwas to match Lovebug’s Christmas dress. The booties are knit flat and then seamed together. Although I really dislike seaming, I found this pretty easy and my seaming was decent enough.

I already have a couple other patterns picked out to trynext. Baby feet grow so fast andinstead of spending a lot of money on shoes bought in stores, I figured acouple hours and some stash yarn every now and then was a lot cheaper!

Candy Cane

2012-01-05T09:47:00.000-06:00

Some friends of ours shared the news last spring that theywere expecting their first baby in November. Mr. Man has known the husband for many, many years and wewere so excited to hear about their growing family! It was especially neat she was due the same month asme! Although we don’t liveanywhere near one another, it was fun to hear little tidbits here and thereabout how the pregnancy was going, and so forth. We even got a chance to visit when they were in Iowa thissummer.

In planning all that I wanted to knit for Lovebug, I alsoknew I needed to make something for their little baby. Originally, I had intended to knit theLil’ Pumpkin hat by Susan B. Anderson because she was due in November andwhat’s better than a pumpkin? But,I didn’t have a chance to even cast on for the hat before their babyarrived.

They chose to wait until the birth to find out sex, so allthe knits I had been looking at needed to be a bit unisex. Again, the pumpkin hat fit thatdescription, but by the time I HAD time, pumpkins were a bit out of season (orwould be very shortly).

I pulled out Susan’s trusty Itty Bitty Hats and went toit. Of course, going into theChristmas season it only seemed right to send a Candy Cane hat. (You saw one version I sent with theAdvent Swap package to Nina and her daughter.) The book calls for red and white, but I also addedgreen.

I really love the three colors together. Festive, but notoverwhelming as some hats can sometimes be. And it’s not too Christmas so itcan be worn throughout the winter. (I don’t mind the idea of a Christmas hat worn after Christmas, but whenknitting for other people, I take these factors into consideration.)

I was so happy to receive a text message from J after sheand K received the package (I sent a couple other goodies as well…) saying howmuch they loved the hat. She evenincluded a picture of their baby girl wearing the hat! If that’s not a great thank-you, Idon’t know what is. It’s so nice to know these things are appreciated.

(Lovebug modeled the hat for me before we mailed it off!)

And imagine our surprise when a couple weeks later wereceived a Christmas card from them – that adorable little girl wearing herhat! Mr. Man and I both agreed itwas so neat that out of all the things they could have chosen for a Christmascard picture, the hat we sent made the cut! (I would share the card with you,but I didn’t ask for their permission to share a photo online of theirdaughter.)

So if you’re looking for a hat that’s guaranteed to be ahit, I’d recommend this one. Itdoesn’t have to be holiday colors. You could make it any color you wanted, I promise the baby will stilllook cute!

Playing Catch Up

2012-01-05T09:33:00.005-06:00

You all have toknow that swap knitting is not all that I was doing while on maternityleave. (I’m going to take a momentand just say how much I could have used a couple more weeks at home beforereturning to work…) There werethings knit for my family as well.

Today I share with you Little Sister’s Dress by Tora Froseth Design. My friend Lyndsey knitthis awhile back, although she didn’t make it a dress, she left it at atunic. Just another reason to givethis pattern 2 thumbs up.

I wanted a knit dress for Lovebug during the holidays. We have several Christmases to attendand I wanted her to be festive. She ~~has~~ had very few dresses in her wardrobe at the time, so I chose thispattern.

I chose it because it was a top-down construction thatdidn’t require cutting the yarn and rejoining on the opposite shoulder tofinish the look. I had severalpatterns picked out at different times that were a little fancier, but eachtime I looked into the pattern, I found that it wasn’t knit in the round. This was a problem because I had a veryspecific yarn in mind. I knit thiswith Premier Yarns Serenity Garden in Hibiscus. It took two skeins for this size. (At least I think only 2 – I bought 3 skeins and can onlyfind 1 in my stash so I must have used 2…) This is a self-striping yarn. While I can appreciate variegated or striping yarns, itdoesn’t work well for patterns that divide and knit the shoulders separatelybecause it breaks up the color pattern and isn’t symmetrical. Yes, this is anissue for me. There must besymmetry (at least in color if not in the pattern).

So, again, I say, this pattern was terrific for that. Serenity Garden is a microfiber whichis a type of acrylic. I’m not ahuge fan of acrylic, but this yarn is so soft and squishy and I didn’t find itthe least bit squeaky. One of thebest features of the yarn is that it didn’t require blocking. When looking up microfiber on Google, Ifound some information saying it’s designed to not need blocking. (Now, I know some of you will say –butyou can’t block acrylic!! To that I say, yes, you can. In a couple different ways. And I had planned on blocking thisdress until I saw it finished. Theinformation proved true – no blocking needed and it STILL looked straight andeven and lovely.)

Knit in the 3 month size, this pattern went along veryquickly. Only a few days and itwas finished. (It helps that I was knitting it for a bitty baby!) I learned a new cast on called the OldNorwegian Cast On (also known as the elastic long tail cast on). I don’t remember at the moment how todo it, but it’s always good to have tried something once – the more you usesomething, the easier it gets.

Lovebug was just under 2 months at Christmas and it wasobvious (at least to me) that the dress was a little big. The armholes, especially werelarge. I think they would be largeon a 3 month old who’s a little more rotund than Lovebug even. The goodthing about this is that as she gets older, she can continue to wear the dressand eventually it will become a tunic that she can wear with leggings or over alittle pair of jeans, depending on the fit. I love the idea that she can wear it for so long. We knitters, crocheters, sewers, etc.put so much effort into the things we make, it’s nice to know they’ll be of usefor a long time.

I have to mention that I had something very specific in mindwhen I went searching for buttons. A little back story – when I was little I had a red dress withteddy bears and hearts on it. Although I don’t exactly remember what it looked like, I remember reallyliking the dress. And it had alittle white apron (is that called a frock?) that went over top. The little bears were holding heartsand just something about it made me love it so much. This dress, although wildly different than my dress,reminded me of that dress. No buttons would work unless they weresimilar to what was on MY dress.

So when I found these little teddy bear buttons and hadflashbacks to my childhood, I knew they were perfect for the job. They’re not Christmas-y or evenwinter-y, which allows this piece of clothing to be worn year round withoutlooking out of place.

I highly recommend this pattern for knitters with littlegirls in their lives. You’ll lovethe end result and how effortless it was to get there.

My only regret is that I bound off too loose. I wanted to ensure the hem on the dresswasn’t too tight, especially as Lovebug grew. I achieved that, but in my opinion, the bottom looks lessfinished than I would like.

Wrapping Up

2012-01-05T09:04:00.001-06:00

Today’s post is to share with you the remainder of theAdvent Swap package I sent to Nina. I really had fun finding little things to include and send to her!

December 9: Christmas mice. Yes, I saidmice, not mouse. This littlecouple comes from the mouse pattern in the Christmas Set of Itty Bitty Toys bySusan B. Anderson. I had hoped tomake the santa and bag to send as well but I just ran out of time.

The first mouse I made was brown. A nice reddish brown, in fact. I imagined it a him, for reasons I’ll explain in aminute. He got a little red scarfand minty green ears. He’s very“smart” looking to me. (Smart asin handsome, not as in book-smart…) Made with Cascade 220 Superwash in Cordovan,with Berroco Vintage in Kiwi for the ears and pom-poms and NaturallyCaron.comin Claret for the nose and scarf.

Before he was really a mouse, he had whispered a notion inmy ear that I couldn’t let go. Andonce he was fully whole, his idea really took hold of me. He had told me he needed acompanion. Another mousey companion. It really is better when you havesomeone to share things with. So another mousie came to life. This time, a she. A creamywhite, Miss Mousie compliments Mr. Mouse well. They have matching ears to indicate they’re companions, as well as“matching” scarves. I say matchingbecause hers is mint green with green and red pom-poms, while his are oppositethat. She’s made with Hobby LobbyI Love This Cotton in White, Berroco Vintage in Kiwi and NaturallyCaron.com inClaret.

I love these two and they were very hard to part with. Especially Mr. Mouse. Butfrom what I hear, Nina’s daughter took an instant liking to them, which is allthe thanks I need to hear!!

December 10: (something green) Pancakemix kit. I really enjoypancakes. We don’t have them veryoften which probably makes them even better. I found this little green bag with a penguin on thefront. Inside is pancake mix and atiny whisk. Certainly somethingfestive for the holidays!

December 11: Puzzles. I found a couple Christmas puzzles while shopping at Target with Squishyone day. He wanted to open them upand put them together himself, so these had to go into hiding until they couldbe mailed. A good activity to getlittle minds moving!

December 12: Reindeer salt & pepper shakers. I actually found these right after Igot my swap partner’s name. My momhas many different sets of fun salt & pepper shaker sets. They’re great for the holidays to givea little oomph to the table.

December 13: Cookie cutters for the win! I’m only speaking for our family butChristmas time usually means sweets of all kinds. Mom is the master at all things awesome and we always eatway too many cookies and chocolates, etc. But it wouldn’t be Christmas without them and they’re SO good! Sugar cookies fit right into that mix!

December 14: Spatulas. Nina mentioned inher questionnaire that she enjoys cooking. I took this to mean she also enjoys baking. I found a couple sets of spatulas withcute little pictures in silicone portion of the spatula. I’d not seen this kind of thing beforeand thought they were unique. Whoknew I could find something so neat at Kmart?

December 15: One skein of Spud & Chloe Sweater in Watermelon. I love Spud and Chloe. I would love to use it more often butunfortunately my budget doesn’t allow it. They always have such fresh, inspiring colors.

December 16: Pattern: Playful Stripes Cardigan by Alana Dakos. Alana has the most beautiful patterns available. And many of her designs are forlittle girls, which is terrific. This pattern could go either way. I’d like to make one of these for Lovebug in the future. Nina had it on her wish list – herlittle girl will look so cute in this sweater!

Photo by Alana Dakos

December 17: (knitting accessory) Stitch markers made by me. I looked for gnome stitch markers but I couldn’t find any Iwas happy with. So instead Ninagot some Christmas inspired markers. Hopefully they’re not too heavy (a couple turned out a bit large). Thereare 2 penguins, a snowman and a Christmas tree.

December 18: Gnome project bag. Nina likes and collects lawn gnomes. I had wanted to incorporate this into aprevious swap where I had her name but didn’t get the chance. This time I found a really cute, wellmade gnome project bag. I hope shegets a lot of use out of it!

December 19: So following the gnomey theme, I sent herGnomeo & Juliet. Such a cutemovie. The flamingo is the sameperson who did the voice for Ray Ray in The Princess & the Frog.

December 20: (knit/crocheted cloth) I just recently picked up on thecrocheted dishcloth bug. When Iwas working on the items for this swap I hadn’t gotten that far yet. I found a pattern set called Winter Wonder Cloths by Kris Knits on Ravelry. There are 6 patterns in the set. I had hoped to knit all 6 but only had time for 4. Nina received the snowman, Christmastrees, stocking cap and snowflake. The other 2 patterns were a mitten and a cottage. These were knit with Lily Sugar’n’Creamin White and Spinrite Peaches and Crème Solids in Soft Blue.

December 21: Tiny Elf by Susan B. Anderson. Another swap requirement. This fun fellow was knit withNaturallyCaron.com in Claret, Hobby Lobby I Love This Cotton in White and myown handdyed superwash wool in what I call Woodland Fairies. The green is my favorite part ofhim. It gives him spunk and a bitof personality. I’ve been so verypleased with how this yarn came out. The original dye job I did was not good, but when I chose to overdye mymistake, the result was wonderful!

December 22: Christmas sticky notes – you can never have toomany!

December 23: Candy Cane by Susan B. Anderson. I wanted to include one more thing forNina’s daughter so I knit this hat. Using Cascade 220 Superwash in Christmas Red Heather and Shire (forestgreen heather), this hat was a quick knit. I like the way the green and red play off each other. A little different than the traditionalcolors, but I’ve never been one to do things by the book.

December 24: Flavoredcoffee – Nina mentioned she has a French Press at work that she uses instead ofstopping off for coffee on her way to work. With that in mind, I sent her 4 small one-pot servings in 3different flavors.

December 25: The gift for Christmas was supposed to be something we thought ourpartner would really enjoy, made or gifted specifically with that person inmind. The last swap I hadNina’s name, I gifted her a coffee mug, which she apparently uses a lot. But she did mention that sometimes itgets too hot and she needed a coffee mug cozy. And as mentioned above, she has a French Press at work whichshe also mentioned needed a cozy.

I couldn’t resist knitting these items up. The mug cozy is called Plaited Coffee Cozy by Evan Straub and is areally easy pattern. I did some ofmy own modifications to ensure the cozy was big enough and followed some otherknitters’ mods. More informationon my project page.

The French Press Cozy by Derek & Lauren is very simple. So simple in fact, I needed to add in some flair. So I got out my Super Stitches KnittingDictionary and picked out a pattern that would fit well. The stitch is the daisy stitch (I'll have to look up the page number). I think it gives it alittle bit something extra.

For both patterns I used HandPaintedYarn.com in a red/pinkcolorway. This yarn isdiscontinued now, but I really enjoyed knitting with it. From what I’ve been told, it’s muchlike Malabrigo worsted, if you’re interested in something similar.

I also included a bag of flavored coffee just for goodmeasure.

Nina – I hope you enjoyed this swap as much as I did! It will certainly be something fun torepeat next Christmas!

And readers, if you've made it this far, thanks for sticking with me, I know it was a long post today and lots of pictures - but I wanted to finish up sharing all the swap details.

A Little Behind

2011-12-29T20:15:00.002-06:00

Somehow I got behind. I'm sure I had time during the day to post, but it just didn't happen. Which leaves me with a lot of stuff to share from the Advent swap. Instead of a post a day about what I sent and received, I'm going to share it all at once. Today I'll share what I received and over the next couple days I'll share what I sent (which may take a few posts since I knit several things...).

I left you with Day 8 last time, so we start here with December 9. Smarties and Kinder chocolate. Not the Smarties like what you find in the US - oh no! :) Much like M&Ms, but just a little different. They're very yummy and I've only had them twice. These didn't last too very long in our house!

December 10: A Wiggles Christmas CD which is great for traveling. Squishy loves listening to music and although he doesn't know anything about the Wiggles, he'll still enjoy the songs.

December 11: Christmas buttons! Stockings and teddy bears. These remind me of the buttons on a dress I wore as a little girl. I will smile every time I see them!!

December 12: A set of felt Christmas tree ornaments - a Santa, a star, a penguin and a reindeer. Mandie told me she found these at a country market, made by an older woman. They are beautifully handmade and fit my tree perfectly!

December 13: My day for notions! Duck stitch markers, marking pins and a retractable tape measure. These are terrific - I always love having more notions!

December 14: Two little bags made with Christmas fabric - fun and festive, one can never have too many!

December 15: 2 skeins of Rowan Handknit Cotton in two shades of pink. I've got some of this in my stash in a pretty blue - I think combining them all together will be very pretty.

December 16: A barrel of monkeys for Squishy! 'Nuff said!

December 17: A plush toy for each of the kids. Squishy received a holiday puppy and Lovebug got an Eeyore toy. :)

December 18: Baby's First Christmas bib for Lovebug and a holiday elf hat for Squishy.

December 19: A della-Q "The Que-i" needle case. I put my DyakCraft interchangeable needles in right away!

December 20: Christmas tree kitchen towels - these are pretty and practical.

December 21: An Aussie Christmas coloring book and book of sparkly Christmas stickers for Squishy. :)

December 22: The Santa Baby Ornament - one of the required swap knits. Squishy immediately found the perfect place and hung it on our tree. :)

December 23: The cutest little reindeer snow globe. Squishy played with this all day long. Unfortunately, it got dropped and the globe broke. The inside was not damaged, though, so we've save it and put it on a higher shelf where we can still admire it and remember where it came from. :)

December 24: Two pretty red stockings to decorate for the holiday season!

And the grande finale....December 25! Mandie sent me two skeins of Knit Picks Imagination in Mermaid Lagoon along with the pattern Cedar Leaf Shawlette. This is a lovely pattern and will be beautiful in this yarn!

Mandie - you made this swap so much fun! You included something for everyone and Squishy loved helping me open the gift each day.

Day 7 & 8

2011-12-12T20:10:00.005-06:00

This is going to be short and sweet...I am behind on posting for the swap and want to get it done before Little Man's bedtime and before Lovebug gets hungry again... So here goes!

Dec. 7: Nina received a set of Christmas window clings. She mentioned she has some glass at her place of work and so she was going to take them in to decorate a bit. I'm really pleased that they'll be getting use! They looked so fun!

I received a reindeer dishcloth on the 7th. :) The yarn is the softest red yarn and the cloth is beautiful. (A knitted dish/washcloth was a swap requirement.) These dishcloths I've received are so pretty it makes you not want to use them...but I love me some knitted dishcloth so they went straight into our kitchen linen drawer. :)

Dec. 8: Another requirement was "something with snowflakes." I found a fun little metal pail with a snowflake cut-out. I think it's fun to have little containers like this. Nina mentioned that her daughter has just gotten some new markers and they were trying to decide how to store them and then she received this. So perfect!

On Dec. 8 we received 2 new ornaments. A reindeer and a polar bear. They are soft and loveable and they talk and sing to you. :) Squishy really enjoys playing the music (when you push their belly). They're great because they're kid friendly - it doesn't matter one bit if he takes them off the tree and tosses them around a little bit (as he's prone to do...)

Thanks, Mandie!

Days 5 & 6

2011-12-07T14:29:00.001-06:00

I decided it was probably silly to have a separate post for each day, they're small enough I can combine them. On with the show!

Day 5 brought "something yummy" to the holiday cheer. I love looking through the Christmas candies (Easter is fun too). They always have such neat and different things that you can't get the rest of the year. I debated between a lot of things but finally settled on a hot chocolate cone, filled strawberry candies, a peppermint Christmas tree, a chocolate reindeer ornament, and some flavored hot chocolate packets.

Our day 5 brought us the Tiny Elf. He's so cute! He's still waiting for his smile...I've been meaning to do so but trying to stay caught up with some other stuff has me forgetting that it needs to be done. I was planning on keeping him for myself and maybe situating him in the tree to guard the pretties and the presents, but Squishy has already found him in my knitting bag once and inquired as to whose it was. I fear that even if this little guy WAS taking up residence in our tree, he wouldn't stay there for long!

On day 6, I sent a little gift for Nina's daughter. A cute little cup that you can shake and watch sparkles & snowflakes fall (sort of like a snow globe). She may not be ready for using the cup yet - I'm not sure if she's using open cups or still using a sippy cup, but this will remain fun for the future. Otherwise, it's hers to play with!

My day 6 brought the pattern, Jingles by Debi Birkin. I've been eying this pattern for awhile and I've even considered purchasing it in time for the holiday season. I'm glad I held off for just a little while! I can't wait to knit him - he's just so darn cute!

Day 4

2011-12-07T14:22:00.001-06:00

Day 4 gave Nina her "something red" to open. I found a neat peppermint pot holder and snowman pot holder & dish towel. :)

Day 4 on our end included a set of Holiday Greeting Cards. I haven't opened the package yet but I've seen Christmas stockings and Christmas trees...I look forward to finding out if there are more designs!

Day 3

2011-12-05T15:07:00.001-06:00

Marching forward in the Advent Swap, we have arrived at Day 3.

I hope Nina's little girl enjoys this one as much as she did her mom's knitting. Another requirement is the Santa Baby Ornament by Susan B. Anderson. Nina's daughter had adorned Ken Doll's head with the one her mom made - perhaps he'll have a new hat soon?

Knit with NaturallyCaron.com Country in Claret and Cascade 220 in White, this little hat ornament was finished in a matter of a couple hours (not even!).

For Day 3 in our house, Mandie sent the book "Happy Christmas, Spot!" A wonderful flip book that Squishy is enjoying. In fact, it went to nap with him the day it was opened!

Great pick Mandie!

Day 2

2011-12-05T15:03:00.001-06:00

I'm playing a bit of catch-up since my package was a few days delayed in arriving. So I'll be adding a couple posts a day until I've caught up.

So Day 2 you ask?

Another requirement for the swap was an ornament of some kind. Nina received a little painted Santa jingle bell. There were a couple different designs and I thought they were all neat - with a rustic look which I think looks phenomenal on a Christmas tree. :)

And for me? Well, Mandie is already showing us how much we'll be spoiled. I got an Australia magnet (oh yeah, did I mention that Mandie's from Down Under?), an Australia keychain and a package of pink baby mittens for Lovebug.

Thank you, thank you, Mandie! :)

Advent Swap 2011

2011-12-05T14:43:00.001-06:00

Yep, that's right, I'm joining in another swap. Some might think that's crazy after just having a baby, but I couldn't resist. (And can you believe that Lovebug is now 1 month old?! I am having a hard time coming to terms with that!!)

So the point of this swap was so send a package to your partner to arrive at the beginning of December. Packages are to be numbered and one package opened at a time, one for each day leading up to Christmas Day, with one big package for Christmas Day. So I figure I'll combine posts and I will share what I sent my swap partner and what my partner sent me. (No, it's not the same person.)

The package I put together went to Nina (Maegwin on Ravelry). For Day 1, I sent her a handmade Advent Calendar. I'm pretty proud of this one. I put a lot of time into replicating the Advent Calendar that my grandmother made for our family. I chose to put a different backing on it and to do the pockets differently, but I think it turned out beautifully! :)

The tree & ornaments are felt pieces. The ornaments are put on the tree one day at a time (24 ornaments) leading up to Christmas. The pieces are held on by velcro. Grandma's version had sew-on snaps but I knew sewing on 24 pairs of snaps would drive me crazy.

Most of the details on the ornaments are made with fabric paint - wonderful stuff!!

With a holiday fabric creating the back of the calendar and the pockets to hold the ornaments, I can't wait to finish my own. :)

And what did I receive on Day 1? Well, my package came all the way from Australia. Mandie (MisMoo on Ravelry) has done a spectacular job identifying things we'd all love.

Here are all the goodies wrapped and waiting to be opened.

And the card that accompanied it all. (The pooches are knit - which is awesome!)

So Day 1...the Christmas Mouse! I loved knitting mine (knitting this mouse was one of the requirements) and knew Squishy would hate parting with it.

So it was no surprise when he snatched up this one and claimed it as his. As much as I'd love to set him on the shelf with my other knit friends, watching Squishy enjoy him and play with the mouse is just a great!

Come back soon for Day 2!

Perfection

2011-11-29T15:44:00.001-06:00

Few things in life are truly perfect.

But a brand-new baby all wrapped up in a hand-knit blanket? Yep, I’d say that qualifies…

Lovebug, born November 4, 2011 at 11:43am, 8 lbs 4 oz, 20 inches

Happy Thanksgiving!

2011-11-24T09:04:00.001-06:00

Hello Everyone!I know I've been MIA for a few weeks, but hopefully you expected that. Our little girl has arrived and certainly holds a lot of our attention. :) I promise to post details soon. Anyway, just wanted to pop onand say Happy Thanksgiving to you all out there! We're having a very quiet Turkey Day this year with immediate family and my grandpa at Mom's house.I'm bringing the potatoes...our family likes a good dish of sour cream potatoes and I'm happy to oblige.Remember to take time today to stop and reflect on all those things you're thankful for. :)

Are We There Yet?

2011-11-01T12:57:00.002-05:00

It's November! And I'm in the final days of my pregnancy. Within the last week I have become increasingly uncomfortable. Everything is bearable, but knowing an end is in sight makes it easier to complain about. I'm ready to have my body back - mostly my mobility. At this point I just sort of waddle everywhere I go and it takes me at least twice as long as it would if I weren't 9 1/2 months pregnant!

As we reach the final hour, nesting has most certainly kicked in. The last month or so I've been trying to space out what I want to get done each weekend. And every week, I'm able to tick a few things off my list. But this last weekend I was in overdrive and felt like there just wasn't enough time. I probably overdid it a little bit - by Sunday evening my feet were the size of balloons and Monday I was so sore from my head to my toes. In all reality, we are ready and anything that's not done or not purchased can be done after the baby arrives.

Aside from home organization, though, I'm also feeling the countdown in my knitting & sewing. All of a sudden I feel as though there were all these things I wanted to make and, darn it, there just isn't enough time left to see them through. I've known all along what I wanted to make, or at least a rough list. But I think I was a bit delusional thinking I had more time than there really was.

So this week I'm spending time tidying up and preparing our house and lives for the arrival of the fourth member of our family, but I'm also trying to take time each night to sit and knit. Because it's relaxing and because I know I won't have time/energy/the desire to do so for a little while after we make it home.

With all that being said, I'll take this moment to mention I'm not sure when I'll blog next. Perhaps one more time this week, but I'm not making any promises. Certainly once we are home from the hospital (I'm very anxious to share her with all of you!). But beyond that, I can't even being to guess what my days will look like. So expect a bit of a blogging break and I'll talk with you all when I return!

This is MY Box

2011-10-31T09:38:00.000-05:00

I feel a bit like Squishy saying that. He's very much in a MINE stage. Everything is mine, mine, mine. We're working on the concept of sharing.

But...I don't feel bad claiming this as MY box of goodies. You saw the box I sent to Canada filled with knits and sweets and other treats. This is what came in the mail for me!

My good friend, Lyndsey, had my name for this swap! We both think this was pretty cool since we know each other outside of the Ravelry world. Although I'm sure Lyndsey felt a bit of pressure to make the box "worth it," I don't think there really was anything to worry about because she did a fantastic job.

*Just a side note - even though I'm claiming this as MY box, I have shared items within with the boys. I'll get to that in a bit.*

Starting with the main element of the swap, here is Elefante. Squishy immediately claimed this as his own and loves that he has two to play with. They get swung by the tails and frequently crash in to one another. Boys. I believe this elephant is knit with Cascade 220 so he'll be very durable and withstand Squishy's rough play. (See, I share!)

Next, there was a horse dishcloth. This is fantastic because I love horses and Lyndsey knows it. Actually, anyone who walked into our home would know it because they're everywhere. I'm glad Mr. Man doesn't mind seeing them every direction he turns...

And to top off the knits, there was a gorgeous purple and pink sweater (Lyndsey used the Coffee Beans Cardigan pattern and added an elephant motif to the bottom - awesome!) and matching cabled hat in the coziest, softest yarn ever! I had guessed it was made with Knit Picks Comfy Worsted and I was right! I've knit with their yarn enough to know it immediately upon squishing. :) This cardigan and hat are the perfect size and will likely be one of the very first sweaters Lovebug wears. (Did I forget to mention that part? These are for Lovebug...) I really appreciate Lyndsey taking the time to do some additional knitting to include something for our little girl. Didn't she do a wonderful job?

I would have been happy if the package stopped there. I mean, that's enough, right? But of course, there was plenty more to discover. On top of the knit goodies, there were also goodies for my own knitting pleasure. There were four, yes FOUR skeins of yarn. Three skeins of HPY Merino Worsted, 2 in red and 1 in a blue-green. As well as a skein of Spud & Chloe Fine in what I believe is the Wildberries colorway. I've been wanting to try Fine for awhile, now I have that chance! I also got the pattern, Meg Pinafore. This will be a sweet knit for Lovebug.

Lyndsey also sent me stitch markers - a sushi stitch marker, and a set of tiny dice stitch markers. I love them all. The dice are so tiny and light, they will be great for lace or socks (if I ever get around to knitting myself some...).

Squishy and Lovebug also got 2 children's books and Squishy has a new elephant bath toy and jungle bath book. This was the first thing he saw when I opened the box and he had it out and opened before I could even see what it was. I'm glad he enjoys these surprises as much as I do. Lovebug will also be sporting a cute pink and gray elephant sleeper after she arrives.

There were some sewing goodies for me, including elephant buttons and jungle fabric. There's also a really cute, green, reusable owl tote. I think this may become Squishy's new library bag because it's sturdy, bright and colorful.

There was a stash of candy and hot cocoa which I am sharing with Mr. Man - including gummies, dark chocolate and Twizzlers. Yum!

A wall hook for our home, flower seeds for the spring, Scrabble magnets spelling out our last time, a beautiful framed piece of dictionary art and Peanuts (as in Charlie Brown) notecards top off the remainder of the package.

Thank you, Lyndsey! You did a spectacular job and I'm enjoying it all. I can't wait to knit with my new yarn, and especially to see the little lady in her new sweater and hat!

Baby Chalice Blanket

2011-10-28T09:07:00.002-05:00

You’ve heard me talk about it, lament over the differencesin skein color and ripping out to start over, etc. Now the blanket is done and it’s even blocked! Wahoo!

Honestly, once I bound off that last stitch, I was glad notto have to think about it for a little while. I didn’t yet have blocking wires and I wasn’t going totackle it with just pins…this is for our baby girl after all. Putting it aside, recognizing it wasfinished, was enough for me. Whenthe blocking wires came in the mail I was excited to pull the blanket out againand truly finish this project.

Knit in Madelinetosh Tosh DK inFlashdance, this blanket was completed using almost an entire 3 skeins of yarn(almost 675 yards!). The patterndoesn’t call for this much, in fact, I’m sure the actual baby blanket as thepattern is written is significantly smaller. You all know I like to do things my own way. Mr. Man would call that my need tocontrol things….

I cast on 135 stitches and did a 6stitch garter border along each side. I knit somewhere between 200-300 rows, I lost count in theresomewhere. Each lace repeat is 20rows. When I was nearing the end,I took a gamble trying to decide how much yarn would be needed for the 10-rowgarter stitch edge. I was luckyand had plenty to spare – but not so much I felt the yarn was wasted.

I previously shared the Baby MittsI knit using the leftover yarn. These two items paired together will be sweet.

After discovering that my skeinswere significantly different colors, I opted to alternate skeins of yarn sothere would be a bit of a gradient to the color. I gave the skeins an order from light to dark and gotstarted, a second time. Althoughthe striping is obvious to me (I know what I’m looking for), it actually looksintentional and like it’s just a characteristic of the yarn. I’m very, very pleased with the results.

When all was said and done I gavethe blanket a good soak. I reallyneed to get myself some kind of wool soak so that my knits smell pretty, insteadof sheepy, when finished.

It took me 1.5 hours to block thissucker. I was very excited to usemy new blocking wires, which I’ve decided I should never have gonewithout. The process was so mucheasier. I’m a bit obsessive aboutstraight lines and such so I probably was more aggressive than necessary andspent a lot of time adjusting and readjusting the pins. It was worth it.

And now this blanket isfinished! It’s large enough towrap around Squishy (who at 2.5 years old is tall for his age…) and still haveplenty of wiggle room. Eventhough it’s a lacy design, I think this will keep our little girl “snug as abug in a rug.”

I also need to take a moment andadmit something to you all. Haveyou ever been so excited about a project that when it’s finished you can’t doanything but just stare and wonder how you accomplished that? That’s kind of how I feel about thisblanket. The pattern wasn’t difficult,the yarn was a pleasure to knit with, and I’ve been knitting long enough I wasconfidant I could make this blanket. So why am I so enamored by the finished product? Why can’t I stop staring at it?

It’s somewhat like when I get newclothes. They are purchased andbrought home and then I have to try everything on and wear it again ASAP. My mom will tell you I’ve done thatforever. It’s like that – you loveit so much you have to see it again and again.

So on Sunday night after it wasblocked and dried, I sat and stared, and petted the blanket, and folded andrefolded it. And draped it aroundSquishy and then squished it and folded it again. Part of my love of this blanket MUST be the anticipationthat it will soon be keeping our little girl toasty warm. I MUST have knit a lot of good juju andlove into this blanket because it just makes me so very happy.

I’m almost always satisfied withhow my knitting turns out. Sometimes I wish I’d done better and sometimes the finished product is“ok.” Hardly do I ever sit and obsessabout something. So with a week to go in this pregnancy, it’s no wonder I’m so thrilled. Please excuse my lack of humility withthis project. I hope therest of you get as much joy out of your knitting as I did with this!

I’m trying to remember if therewas anything bad about this process or pattern. My biggest gripe would be having to rip back and refigurethe order of skeins, etc. But thepattern is well written and clear. There are written instructions and a chart. The knitting wasn’t tedious – instead it felt engaging. As long as it wasn’t the only thing I was working on. And if you were to knit it in theoriginal size, it would go much quicker.

So there you have it. The longawaited baby blanket.

E is for Elephant

2011-10-26T10:37:00.002-05:00

The Itty Bitty Knitters have been working their way throughthe alphabet for swaps. (TheChristmas swap is a deviation from the alphabet and after this the letterswon’t be in order any more.) Ichose to sit out the last swap (D = Dolly) because the knitting requirementswere bigger and I didn’t think I’d have the time or energy. It was a good call on my part.

This swap was pretty easy-going. Requirements included one of three elephant patterns. I chose Elefante. Plus any other goodies we might want toinclude – theme related or otherwise. I had my Elefante started pretty early – but as I mentioned previouslyon the blog, I wasn’t observant enough and had to start over.

I had plenty of time to get everything around but with the mix-upon yarn for Elefante, I got behind. I did catch up and mailed out just a tiny bit late. (Which I still feel bad about sendinglate, but that’s how it works sometimes.)

So what did I include? Let me tell you. First,meet Lollipop. He’s a cheery,somewhat cheeky fellow. Knit frommy own hand-dyed superwash merino wool, I loved how he turned out. I striped two yarns, the semi-solidblue is Snowcone and the orange and green and blue yarn is Lollipop Guild,hence the name. The variegatedyarn on it’s own reminds me of the Lollipop Guild boys from Wizard of Oz, withtheir giant lollipops and bright colors. I think this little guy personifies exactly that. When striping, the blues from Snowconeactually blended really well with Lollipop Guild, and so it almost looks likeit’s just one yarn.

My favorite part about Lollipop are his feet. They look simple and sweet enough, butturn him on his side and there’s a surprise! He also got a little ribbon around his neck to finish himoff.

Squishy really enjoyed “testing him out” so to speak. Let me tell you – those ears and tailaren’t going anywhere anytime soon! It was good that Baby Elephant was soon to follow as I’m afraid he wouldhave been very sad to see Lollipop go. (Funny – this swap we’ve seen and heardthat a lot of the kids have gotten very attached to the elephants their mommiesare knitting. That’s one of thethings that’s so great, though…you get a package in return and along with that– an elephant of their very own!)

Usually I split FOs into separate posts so they aren’t 100pages long. Sometimes I do thatwith swap parcels if there is a lot of handmade stuff included. I should, but I’m not going to do thatthis time. PLEASE forgive me andthank you if you make it to the end!!!

Earlier this fall I picked up the magazine, Interweave Knits Holiday Issue 2011. The coverknits caught my eye. A beautifulslouchy hat and what I thought were drool-worthy fingerless mitts. They looked so crisp and clean andwintery. I had to knit them. I still haven’t gotten to the hat, butI DID finish the Ashbury Mitts. Knit from Mirasol Yarn Nuna in Warm Grey, I used just over 1 skein to complete thepair. After the fact I found mygauge was off, but with a heavy blocking, the mitts fit much better. I had a really hard time decidingwhether to include these in the swap or to keep them for myself.

The yarn is a bamboo/silk/wool blend that is so incrediblysoft you just want to squish it all day long. The yarn in the sample looks a bit sturdier than the yarn I used,but I’m very happy with the end result. More details on this project can be found on my project page!

Because this was an elephant swap I needed more elephants toinclude. I knit my firstdishcloth, the Peanut Cloth pattern. I only had white cotton on hand. It makes the design a bit hard to see unless you’re looking at just theright angle. I felt as though thecloth knit up loosely – I think that’s the fault of the cotton. Since I’ve not knit any cloths before,I wasn’t sure what to expect. Going down a needle size next time might be necessary. I also goofed and knit reversestockinette on the top and bottom instead of garter stitch. When I reread the pattern I saw mymistake, although I still feel as though the pattern wasn’t written as clearlyas it could have been.

My swap partner, Katherine (kmacmillan2003), is areader. I thought it appropriateto include a knitted bookmark. This is the Leaf Bookmark pattern by Susan Anderson from Spud Says. Using a lighter weight yarn, I got the bookmarksize, but the great thing about this pattern is you could use a bulky yarn andbigger needles and get a scarf from the exact same pattern!

I like to include knitting notions in every swap if Ican. This swap contained PuppySnips, Chibi needles and a tape measure. But not just any tape measure, a covered, initialed tape measure! I used the Apples & Oranges patternand knit a basic blue cover with a white pull tab. I then embroidered a K (for Katherine) on the top usingSusan Anderson’s Wrap Stitch tutorial. (You chain stitch a design on, and then wrap these chained stitches –genius!) I really like how thisturned out.

And then we have the fabric elephant. I had this elephant fabric on hand andthought it would make for a fun sewn something. This pattern jumped out at me from one of my pattern booksand away I went. It did becomeobvious to me, though. I am a toyknitter, not a toy sewer. Whilethis little lady is cute, I feel as though I could have done better. Want to know my favorite part abouther? Her ears and her eyes.

The handmade doesn’t stop there. I didn’t have a lot of extra to spend on this swap, so I hadto be creative. Something reallysimple and fun to make is a row counter for your knitting. I found the cutest little pink elephantcharm and voila! And there’s nothing better to decorate your knitting thanpretty stitch markers…these elephants came marching in on parade! Hopefully these are lightweight anduseful for Katherine.

That about covers all the things made by me. The rest I picked up here and therewhile out and about. A recentlycoveted knitting related object is the new KnitSimple Holiday 2011 issue. Inside you will find the MOST adorablepattern for fairies by Susan B. Anderson. These little fairies steal your heart. You want to knit a whole village. And they come with the cutest little tulip pouches/homes tocarry them in. Susan is onecreative lady! I had seriousdoubts as to whether I could part with this magazine – but I decided that Icould always go buy another.

As I mentioned before, my swap partner is a reader. She’s obviously a knitter. But she also mentioned she likes tocook. When I found this book, itwas perfect. The Knitter’s HomeCompanion is full of fun short stories from a knitter, who shares not onlylittle anecdotes about her knitting life, but also shares patterns and recipeswith the reader. I read about halfthe book before wrapping it up to ship to Canada. I wasn’t sure it was swap-worthy reading. But it is and so off it went. (The best part about the book? The author is from Iowa!)

A few other goodies included the sock blocker keychain kit,elephant buttons, and an I Heart Iowa keychain.

Because she likes chocolate and peanut butter it wasnecessary to send Reese Peanut Butter Cups and Dove Peanut Butter Chocolatepieces. Yum! There was also a paisley coffee/tea mugand some Earl Grey tea (I hope she likes Earl Grey – I don’t know anythingabout tea so that was a huge guess on my part!).

No swap is complete without some yarny goodness. Malabrigo Worsted in Verde Esperanza was a lovelyteal that will be great to knit with.

And to top It all off, a couple elephant statutes, both largeand small, that jumped off the shelves and into my arms.

So…now that you’ve made it to the end, are you tired ofreading yet? That’s all I’ve gotfor you. This was a terrific swap to participate in and I learned a lot aboutelephants, which was neat. And Igot to see lots of pictures of real elephants, which is always fun. I hope Katherine enjoys it all and Ican’t wait to get my package in the mail! J

Giveaway Winner

2011-10-25T13:48:00.002-05:00

Thank you to everyone who entered my Fall Giveaway! It was so much fun to read everyone's comments about their favorite part of fall. The changing of the leaves is in full swing here and this weekend we did our first round of raking. We will have several more before winter arrives. We only have two small trees in our front yard, but each of our neighbors have at least one large Maple tree nearby and each tree releases it's leaves at different times during the season.

Okay, so enough about that stuff right? On to the winner?

Drumroll......
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And the winner is Lyndsey!

This is what Lyndsey had to say,

"Lots of pretties and gorgeous yarn. I think that is my favorite color this season. As for what I live about fall, I'll quote my favorite little character, "It's autumn? Ah, it is. It's the first day of autumn! A time for hot chocolatety mornings, and toasting marshmallow evenings, and best of all, leaping into *leaves*!"

Congratulations, Lyndsey! I'll be mailing out your package by the end of the week!

On top of winning 2 skeins of Shelter, Long Johns and the Wood Hollow Mittens pattern, Lyndsey has also won a fall-inspired project bag (made by brownbettystyle on Etsy) and two sets of stitch markers made by yours truly.

Thanks, again, to everyone who entered. As I've mentioned, I've been wanting to host a giveaway for quite some time and you all have made this one very enjoyable!

Sweet & Demure

2011-10-24T14:11:00.002-05:00

So by now you’ve heard me talk somewhat secretly aboutelephants. You all know the reasonwhy – the E is for Elephant swap on Ravelry. I joined this swap for a couple reasons, but one ofthe top reasons was because I’ve always wanted and planned to knit Susan Anderson’s Elefante. The patternis petite and loveable.

I’ll leave all the swap details to my post about thatexperience, but wanted to share with you some unintended results fromparticipating in this swap.

Now, I have yet to receive my swap package, so I have noidea what my package contains. Ivery well could be getting my very own Elefante, but there were also 2 otherpatterns to choose from, so there really was no way to tell. Most everyone knit Elefante, so mychances are good – but really, I’d love any knit that comes my way.

I was knitting happily away on this little lady for the swappackage when I realized that half the yarn I was using was an alpacablend. Seriously, how did I NOTnotice this before. My swap partnerhad mentioned in her questionnaire that she is allergic to alpaca. As Homer Simpson would say, “DOH!” I was pretty bummed because I thoughtmy partner would really enjoy this Elefante. I picked the colors especially for her. I must have been so engrossed infinding the perfect color combination I looked over fiber content.

So with a heavy sigh, I put her away for the time being andstarted on Elefante #2. Once allthe swap knitting was done, I was able to get her back out again and finishwhat I had started.

BE (short for Baby Elephant, which is what Squishy callsher) is knit from a variety of yarns. The main bits of striping are Blue Sky Alpaca Alpaca Silk in Peacock andKnit Picks Andean Silk in Sangria. The legs have a tiny amount of Berroco Vintage in Dark Denim and thetail and ears have a splash of Berroco Vintage in Tide-Pool. I used up every last bit of yarn ofthese 4 colors, successfully utilizing my stash.

I used a 5.0mm crochet hook for the ears and crocheted asper the pattern. The proportionseemed good, so I went with that. I found that if I folded the circle with right sides together, the earlay much better against the head. With the swap Elefante, I folded the ears wrong sides together and Ifought with the ears the entire time because they didn’t want to layright.

I finished BE up when Squishy was visiting Grandma C. so Icouldn’t show him right away, but I knew she’d be a hit. Squishy hadn’t wanted to put down theother Elefante and I actually had to hide him so I could get him packaged upand mailed out. From the time BEand Squishy met, he’s kept a close eye on her. She takes up residence on his bed every night and is quiteadamant that she is HIS!

So after knitting this pattern twice, I would certainly knitit again. The construction is pretty simple. A lot of people have struggled with the ears because they’recrocheted. I’m not an avidcrocheter, but I thought the ears went fairly smooth. I know many knitters have opted for an alternate knitconstruction – which looks great too.

Hopefully you enjoy the photos. I had to promise Squishy I would return his beloved BabyElephant quickly and safely in order for him to let me take her.

On a side note – for any parents out there I would like tomention that Squishy has given this calm little lady quite a run-around. He holds her around the neck and swingsher by the tail. He pulls on herears and squishes her trunk. She’sholding up to it all. Myrecommendation would be to take several rounds with your whipstitching to makesure everything is nice and secure and then let your child run with it. The best toy is a well-loved toyand of course, very rewarding for any knitter!

Button-Up Baby Wraps

2011-10-20T14:43:00.002-05:00

There’s nothing better than snuggling up with a brand-newbaby, right? Well, okay, maybe I’mfeeling a bit biased at the moment, and perhaps a little impatient as we waitfor Lovebug’s arrival. Can youblame me?

Anywho – one of the things I remember so well about Squishyis how he loved to be swaddled up tight, held in someone’s arms or cradledagainst your chest. Mr. Man and Iagree that taking naps with him like that was the best! While we will certainly still beswaddling this little girl, I thought it would be nice to have some alternativemeans for keeping her snuggly and warm.

You’ve heard me talking for a long time about the Baby Chalice Blanket, which I PROMISE you’ll see soon. Tracking says blocking wires should arrive on Saturday(later than I hoped, but before Lovebug makes her appearance! Plenty oftime.) What you haven’t heard metalk about is the Button-Up Baby Wrap. Okay, I mentioned it once, several months ago. I even showed a picture while it was being knit.

Ravelry has a few patterns for little baby cocoons. You know, the little snuggly sacks youcan put babies in to keep them warm and toasty. There were several versions but this one really drew mein.

The original pattern just calls for a stockinette stitchsack, top to bottom. But I knew Ididn’t want that. The firstfeatured photo on the pattern page is of a chunky, ribbed wrap with a tiny babyinside. Looking through manyproject pages, I finally settled on a twisted rib pattern I was happy with. It combines a rib and an eyeletpattern, which adds a feminine touch.

I didn’t continue with the eyelets down the entire wrapbecause I didn’t want any fingers or toes getting stuck. If you’d like to see or use mymodifications, you can find them on my project page HERE.

This wrap is knit with Cascade 128 Superwash in Charcoal (abulky yarn). This is yarn I hadleftover from Mr. Man’s Big Ribs. It was the perfect yarn because it’s durable, soft, and machine-washable(always important with babies!). I liked the gray because it was different, even though I knew it wouldbe for our little girl. I addedsome blue buttons that gave it just the right touch. The original pattern didn’t include directions forbutton-holes but I think that has since been fixed. I wasn’t worried about it, though, because I was knittingeyelets that served as my button-holes.

I probably knit this longer than was necessary but I wantedto make sure that if we had a larger baby, it would still fit. The ribbing should help with that aswell. My intention is to get somenewborn photos of Lovebug all wrapped up in this.

(The color in the picture gives the appearance that the wrap has different shades - that's just the light - it's all very monochromatic.)

Since I had enjoyed this pattern so much and since it was soquick, I decided to make a second one. This one, though, was to be gifted. My friend, Ber (from Ireland), was expecting a baby inSeptember. I don’t know much aboutthe weather in Ireland, but I figured this would come in handy. She didn’t yet know if she was having aboy or a girl, so I chose something more neutral.

I had some Hobby Lobby Epais in Expresso on hand, which isreally soft and squishy. To me,there is a handspun look to this yarn and a neat color gradient. The wrap goes from light to darker tolight again. I probably usedabout ½ of the 393 yard skein. Itwas good to put this to use because I was having trouble finding just the rightpattern for it.

Although I had the wrap finished a long, long time ago – Ionly recently got it in the mail. Ber received it Monday and had a picture of her little boy happilysleeping in his wrap that same day. I really appreciate pictures of the knits I make – it’s always fun tosee the recipient wear or use what you’ve made them.

(This one does change color!)

Ber’s version has simple wood buttons that blend in a littlebit. My hope is that she and herson get a lot of use out of this in the coming months when it gets a bitchilly! I know I hope ours lastsus awhile!

I also knit this version with the eyelet pattern, as I didfor the first wrap. The Epais is abig floofier (yes, that’s a technical term) than the Cascade so it doesn’t showthe eyelets as well, but they’re there.

Other things I like about this pattern: 1) It’s fast – each wrap only took acouple days. Large needles andbulky yarn is awesome. 2) Itbuttons up. It’s not just asack. So if it’s too large/long,you just leave the top buttons undone and use it sort of like a blanket. 3) Simple. It would sound funny if you just told someone you put yourbaby in a sack, but essentially that’s what you’re doing. Wrap sounds much better. Either way, you don’t have to worryabout tucking in blanket ends, etc.

I do want to mention a word of caution. The buttons are great, and make forgreat versatility, but I do NOT recommend leaving your baby unattended while inhis or her wrap. I know I heavilysecured the buttons on both wraps, but you never know with babies. Especially as they get older. They grab on to things and put them intheir mouths. Okay – I feel betterhaving said that.

I know this was a long post, so thanks for sticking with meif you made it to the end. Hopefully the pictures helped. I hope everyone’s week has gone well. Mine is zooming by at an alarming speed. Welcome to the almost weekend!

Fall Giveaway

2011-10-18T08:30:00.002-05:00

I’ve been wanting to host a giveaway of sorts for quite some time. I’ve had one or two before and I really enjoyed them.

I thought about having one to mark my 100^th post, but I didn’t. I considered one for reaching 1 year, but that came and went before I really had time to think.

I know I will be adjusting to a new and different schedule when Lovebug arrives, sometime having extra down time, and sometimes wishing there were more hours in a day and having more than two hands.

So, with school back in swing, Fall quickly changing the scenery (my favorite time of year), my 2-year blogiversary and the quickly approaching arrival of our baby girl, I thought now would be a good time for a giveaway.

So are you ready to hear what’s up for grabs? Maybe I should postpone a bit…

…nah…just kidding.

I am going to be giving away 2 skeins of Brooklyn Tweed Shelter in the color Lohn Johns,

along with the pattern Wood Hollow Mittens by Kirstin Kapur.

(This giveaway is for the mitten pattern only, the hat pattern is not included.)

Photos by Kirsten Kapur

Both of these things remind me of Fall…the changing colors on the Maple trees, the chilling of the air, and the approach of family holidays. The perfect time of year to knit something warm and beautiful for the cool weather.

There may be a few other small goodies thrown in, but I have yet to make those decisions. The pattern will be gifted via Ravelry once the winner has been selected.

A little giveaway to mark a great time of year.

To enter please:

1. Leave a comment under this post telling me what you enjoy about the Fall. It doesn’t have to be Fall for you right now, but seeing as how I’m in the US/Midwest, it’s on the brain and I’d love to hear other stories.

2. Please include your name and email address or Ravelry ID so I have a way to contact you if you’re the winner!

3. I will return in 1 week (Tuesday, October 25, 2011) to announce a winner and share the entire goodie basket to be sent to the winner’s doorstep! (Sign-ups will close at midnight CST on Monday, October 24, 2011.)

So get to it! Leave a comment, have a wonderful week and Good Luck!

ETA: Some people are having trouble with Blogger recognizing their Blogger ID and allowing them to post. Try posting as "anonymous" and just adding your Ravelry ID or email address in your message. If you continue to have issues, message me on Ravelry and I'll add an entry for you (raelynne01 on Rav). Thanks for playing!

On to the Next Thing

2011-10-17T08:54:00.005-05:00

I know I haven't blogged as frequently as I used to, but I want to make sure there's actually something to talk about when I do post. Which then ends up being sort of a parade of Finished Objects, which I hope you don't mind seeing. If there's ever anything you're interested in hearing about, feel free to ask.

Today is mostly a recap. I've been knitting as much as possible, when time allows. I had a really crazy week at work which left me without much desire to do anything in the evenings. But I've found that if I just pick up the needles and start working, I'm always glad I did so.

Last week I accomplished a lot. I got my swap package out to my swap partner (I'll share more on that as soon as she receives her box of goodies), I finished the original Elefante, bound off the Baby Chalice Blanket, knit a pair of Baby Mitts for Lovebug, and finished a small knit for the Advent/Christmas swap. I got things done. There was a little sewing in there that relates to my swap package that I'm anxious to share with you as well.

I ordered a set of blocking wires yesterday. Now that the blanket is finished, it has to be done and although I've blocked a blanket without wires and t-pins before, I don't care to do it again. And the lace pattern is just too pretty not to do it right. My hope is the wires will arrive in a couple days and I can have the blanket blocked and photographed by the end of the weekend. Then I'll share more with you.

Original Elefante went to Squishy and he's not let her go yet, so I haven't had time to take her out in the daylight for pictures. But I will - promise!

Today I thought I'd share a few pictures of the completed Baby Mitts. I had a small amount of yarn leftover from the Chalice Blanket. Not enough for a hat, but certainly enough for a pair of mittens. Using Susan B. Anderson's Baby Mitts pattern from Spud Says, I cast on and finished in just a couple hours. They are tiny and wonderful.

The yarn is a DK weight and the pattern calls for worsted. I tried casting on 20 sts as the pattern gives you, but that was just too tiny. I figured it would be but had to try. The pattern recommends adding stitches in multiples of four to make the mitts bigger. So using those instructions and the notes of other knitters, I eventually landed on 24 stitches. I also knit straight for rows 7-20 as opposed to 7-17.

The mitts should last a little while. They'll be perfect for the colder weather while she's a little bug, but also be helpful so she doesn't scratch herself at all. The yarn is Madelinetosh Tosh DK in Flashdance. It's a machine washable yarn which is perfect for a baby.

I did go back and add a crochet chain to link the mittens together so I wouldn't lose just one mitten. This way, I'll just lose them both... haha! I haven't decided yet if I like the idea of the cord. I'll be threading the mittens through the back of her sleepers and onesies and things, but if I'm too nervous about the cord or it's not working like I want, I'll cut the cord off. But as it stands, I used every last bit of yarn I had which makes me extremely happy!

So I have much more to share with you and over the next week or two you'll see some pictures of recent FOs. (And in a little less than a month you'll see the best FO ever! Okay - perhaps that's just my opinion, but I can't wait for Lovebug to arrive and am really looking forward to her arrival!)

Have a great week!

The Box is Packed, It’s Ready to Go…

2011-10-11T14:43:00.003-05:00

Okay, not really, but I’m very close. I haven’t talked much about the swap I’mcurrently participating in. Mostlybecause for awhile I just couldn’t dedicate much time to it because I didn’thave the energy. But the lastcouple weeks I’ve been full-steam-ahead getting everything around.

Elefante Nummer Zwei (that’s Number Two in German) iscomplete. He’s adorable in myopinion. I have to keep him hiddenfrom Squishy otherwise he’s going to get too attached. Thank goodness there’s another one onthe needles waiting to be completed.

There are things being blocked as we speak. Yes, I said things…as in plural.

The package I was waiting for in the mail arrived at the endof last week and there are some things in there I’d really like to keep formyself.

Okay, I’ll admit it, many, many things in this package I’dlike to keep for myself. I justhope my swap partner is as excited about it all as I am.

This package is heavy on the handmade. I couldn’t spend as much as I may normallyspend on a swap, but I didn’t want that to keep me from making it special.

If all goes according to plan, Lollipop (that’s theelephant) will be off to his new home/destination tomorrow!

Over the Weekend

2011-10-10T11:27:00.003-05:00

It was a busy weekend. In a good way. I had a list of things I wanted to accomplish going into Friday evening...none of it got done. Most everything was a "prep for baby's arrival" sort of thing. I'm just not feeling the pressure yet to clear up those last few tasks...probably after this week I will feel the time crunch. Most of it involved clothing - washing, sorting, putting away.

Instead, I spent a lot of my time knitting. Something I thought would take me a couple hours Saturday morning ended up finished Saturday evening. I was working on Elefante for the E is for Elephant Swap I'm participating in. More details on all that later, but I forgot how much time the finishing up can be. When he woke up from his very late nap, Squishy found the Elefante and played with him a lot. Good thing I've got a 2nd one in the works because he's gotten a bit attached...

Because of a booboo I made on my first Elefante attempt, I decided to make up for the small delay by including another knit item in the package. It's ALMOST finished - I should be able to complete it tonight, do a gentle blocking and get things packaged up. I'm past the mail-out date. I hate that. I hope my swap partner feels that it's worth the wait! I know I'm not the only one waiting to mail out a package, but I just don't like missing the deadline.

While I have been furiously attempting to finish up the swap requirements, Lovebug's blanket has been put on hold. I'm anxious to get back to it and finish off the remainder of the yarn. I only have a few more weeks to go and I have promised myself it will be finished on time. Besides, one's queue never gets any shorter and there are so many other things I'd like to knit.

Friday we took Squishy out to the Corn Maze outside of town. He's really a bit too young to fully appreciate what the maze is all about. The three of us went with Mama & Papa and we enjoyed watching Squishy explore. There was a small kids hay maze that he ran around in, some tires to climb, and some animals to meet and pet.

Squishy got to talk to a very chatty turkey, pet a horse and donkey, and feed crackers to two llamas! He thought all that was pretty neat. The maze itself had 3 levels - easy, medium and hard. We only took the easy route and when Squishy was done running through the corn (on the laid-out path), we went for supper.

It was a fun, family-friendly outing for a Friday night, and from the sounds of it, the maze has seen a lot of activity, which is great. I hope they continue to do the maze because as the kids get older, it's something that could be enjoyed each Fall season.

What Fall activities have you had the pleasure of participating in? Soon we'll be raking leaves and painting pumpkins...where has the time gone?

WIP Wednesday 10/5

2011-10-05T16:20:00.000-05:00

Did you see the things I finished last week? It's nice to have something completed. For awhile, I felt like I was knitting and knitting and knitting and had nothing to show. And now it seems I'm on a roll.

This week I'm actually sharing a few pictures. I prefer posts with pictures, why wouldn't other people?

While I scramble to finish some things for the Elephant Swap, my personal projects are on hold. Sort of.

The Baby Chalice Blanket has seen no love since last week. So close to finished, but not yet. See how big it's gotten? This will block out to a beautiful size.

Elefante has no photos because...well...for one, she was meant to be a surprise. But mostly because I haven't had to time to take any. She's made progress. There are poly pellets in her feet and belly, so she's feeling a little more grounded...her head is still just filled with fluff and up in the clouds... But the real reason is because I had to put her on hold. While sewing up the body the other night I realized I was sadly mistaken if I thought I could make this sweet little lady to my swap partner. More details to be revealed in a later post as I don't want to give away who my swap partner is...but let's just say I was really bummed.

On the up side...I've started another Elefante (Take 2). His name is Lollipop. He is much different than his friend, cheery and a bit cheeky. His body is near complete (I did that part first to see if the yarn would play well together) and I'm ready to jump in and work up the legs and head/trunk. The ears will be saved for last. I love him already and will have a hard time parting with him. I just hope my swap partner finds him as wonderful as I do.

Then there are these mitts... The pattern is Ashbury Mitts and they are from the Interweave Knits Holiday 2011 issue. I fell in love with them as soon as I saw the cover of the magazine. The sample shown in the magazine is a yak/bamboo blend. They look a bit more structured than mine. My yarn is a silk/wool/bamboo blend. I've got one whole mitt finished. These came out smaller than the pattern says. Turns out my gauge was off - instead of 6.5 stitches per inch, it was 7.5 stitches per inch. So a little shorter and a bit more snug than expected. But I love them so much!

These I knit for me. Not because I wanted to keep the mitts, but because I was dying to knit the pattern. See? Process knitter. In the end, I believe these will be gifted. (Hence the "sort of" putting my own stuff on hold.) These are incredibly soft and cozy.

Finally, I'm planning to start and complete a pair of Oak Grove mitts by Alana Dakos. I had some yarn picked out, but after knitting the Ashbury MItts I think I will use the same yarn. I plan to go up a needle size. I've been hearing they run a tad small and I have big palms and long fingers. But that's the beauty of knitting them myself. I can made any modifications I need in order to make them just right.

There has been sewing in our house. Can't say what. Just that it's happening. It's been hard lately to drag myself away from the couch (naps!) or my knitting, so the machine has been a tad lonely. I always forget how much I enjoy it until I get back to my sewing corner.

So that's all for now. Did I have enough to share this week? What have you got planned for the next week or two?

Product v. Process Knitter

2011-10-04T10:38:00.000-05:00

There has been a lot of discussion in the fiber world lately about whether you (as a knitter or crocheter) are a product or a process knitter. I think I have those terms right...someone correct me if I'm wrong!

(A general disclaimer: It doesn't matter which category you find yourself under, or if you fit both. Neither is better than the other and both have their place. I find that I am a little of both depending on the time of year and how the mood strikes me. I don't want anyone to think that I think you should be one or the other or that either is better than the other!!!)

A product knitter (this applies to crochet too, but I'll be using "knitter" since that's what I do most) is someone who likes to crank out as many projects as possible. They're interested in the end product, and getting to use them or gift them. They enjoy seeing the finished object and many times, they're making these items for themselves, their family or their friends. Okay - maybe you don't feel like you need to knit as many things as fast as you can, but you revel in the finished object, the fact that it's completed. You have a specific purpose for this object. You're likely to continue knitting a pattern even if you don't like it because you want that FO and you're going to beat the pattern, dang it!

A process knitter is someone who likes to learn as many new things as they can. New techniques, new yarns, new patterns, you name it, they want to try it. It's not necessarily about how fast you get things done, but rather the process of completing the project. You may be someone who never keeps anything you make. Instead, you knit because you enjoy the process of knitting. It may be soothing, it may be your break in the day. You relish learning new things and expanding your "knitting toolbox." You may consider yourself a process knitter because although you keep most of what you knit, you don't always feel it must meet a purpose. If you don't like a pattern, get frustrated over time, or just lose interest, you're likely to frog what you're working on, or put it in hibernation for a very long time. You're not likely to knit something you don't enjoy.

Okay - I admit - these are VERY generalized descriptions of product versus process knitters. And it's my own personal interpretation. Again, neither is right or wrong, they just are.

I used to view myself as a product knitter. I wanted something, I knit it. I needed a gift, I picked a pattern and knit that object. Even if I struggled or got tired of what I was doing, I kept on keeping on. Because I wanted that end product. Everything had a bit of a purpose. Although I rarely made something just for me, everything had an intended recipient. I find this was me in my early days of knitting. I didn't peruse the patterns on Ravelry like I do now. I never used to get online just to look at pretty yarn and patterns and finished objects of other Ravelers.

So then I thought perhaps I am a process knitter. I love it when I learn something new. Especially if it's something that's intimidated me, like intarsia or stranded knitting. Boy, does colorwork scare me! Lace knitting was never intimidating, but I avoided complicated patterns. Now I find it a test of what I'm made of. If I can tackle a lace pattern, I can do anything! When a project is finished, I delight in that project, partly because I remember how much I enjoyed seeing the piece come to life. I like to take photos and put the items on display for people to ooh and ahh over (who doesn't like to hear others compliment your work?!). But it's not why I knit. I think that's one reason I've started to struggle when finding a new pattern or project. The feel of the knitting has to be just so for the moment.

And I'll be the first to admit that I get caught up in finishing things quickly. I give myself deadlines, or have hard deadlines I can't miss. So then it's a race with the clock. It's easy to lose focus on how much I enjoy the actual knitting and how soothing it is for me to sit in the evenings, while watching tv, hearing and feeling the needles click in my hands. If my hands are empty, I feel a bit unbalanced. I'm trying to remember to slow down and enjoy what I'm making. We put a lot of ourselves into our work. Although I don't really adhere to the idea of bad karma, etc. I don't think that a project knit in a big rush or a pattern you really hate can be sent off with as much love and excitement as that project that maybe languished on your needles a bit longer, but had copious amounts of love and attention knit into it.

So overall, what am I? A hybrid of sorts. Overall, I think I'm a process knitter. I want to expand my horizons. But those quick, easy, 1-2-3-off-the-needles items give me just as much joy! At the end of the year, I'll count up the number of projects I've completed and pat myself on the back, congratulating myself for all I've learned.

Now it's your turn, readers. Do you adhere to one type or the other? Or do you find yourself a mix of both? Does it bother you trying to label yourself one way or the other?

Botanic Hat

2011-10-03T10:53:00.000-05:00

Over the last few months you’ve seen and heard about several knit items made for the new baby. It’s so easy to get sucked in to small, quick projects. Babies are so little that anything you make for them can be finished in the blink of an eye.

Feeling a bit guilty that my knitting had shifted from making things for Squishy, to making things for Lovebug, I thought I should focus on Squishy a little bit. I have a couple long-term projects on the needles for him, but I needed something quick and easy.

I’ve been perusing Ravelry for a hat pattern I really liked. I wanted something more than just a basic beanie. Squishy always loves wearing Mr. Man’s hat when they’re finished, so I thought something a little more grown up would be fitting.

And every time I would pick a pattern and get ready to knit, it didn’t feel right. I picked out so many hat patterns. It shouldn’t be this hard! But you know how sometimes you have a certain look and feel for a project in mind and you can’t move past it until you get exactly what you want? That was me and my quest for the perfect hat.

In strides Botanic Hat by Stephen West. The pattern is written for adults, but several people had modified their version to fit children, specifically toddlers. Perfect! So following the notes of several other Ravelers, I cast on exactly as the pattern directed, but with US 5 needles, instead of US 6. And after the ribbing, I switched to US 6s instead of US 7s. So by only going down 1 needle size, I got great gauge for my little boy’s head. Other knitters had knit for 5.5” before starting the decreases so I followed suit. As it turns out, my little man has a somewhat large head. Although the circumference is great, the length, is not. The pattern says to knit for 6” before decreasing. Since I had left everything except needle size the same, I should have listened to Mr. West. The bottom of Squishy’s earlobes stick out so this won’t work as a winter hat. C’est la vie!

Aside from my own mistake, this hat is perfect. It’s a reversible pattern. Side A is a 2-color slip stitch pattern that looks much more complicated than it really is. Because of the construction for side A, side B is a simple 3x1 rib. I knit this with the same yarn as the Coffee Bean Cardigan for my friend’s son. Cascade 220 Superwash Wool in Cordovan and my own Woodland Fairies Superwash Wool. I have a tiny amount of brown left and enough green for another project.

Pictures of Squishy in the hat will have to wait. At the moment, he won’t leave it on his head for more than 10-15 seconds at a time. He’s always like this before the cold weather. But once those winds start blowing, I know he’ll leave it on.

I’d recommend this pattern to anyone looking for a quick gift, whether it be a child or an adult. I imagine if you have a child older than a toddler, the adult size pattern would be okay – but I suggest reading others’ notes!

Coffee Beans for a Little Boy

2011-09-29T13:36:00.000-05:00

Do you ever have a plan in mind, and everything falls into place really nicely? This is how I felt about one of my most recent knits.

Over the summer, while re-organizing my stash, I came across some yarn I had been saving. I had one skein of superwash wool that I dyed about a year or so ago. I was originally going for an amber/yellow/brown tonal yarn and instead came up with something that looked pretty pukey. Some of the color washed out too much, and other spots were too dark and concentrated. I was really bummed because I had high hopes for this yarn.

My solution was to over-dye the yarn. A lot of people over-dye commercially dyed yarn to achieve a color they prefer, instead of letting a perfectly good skein of yarn sit and collect dust. So apply the same concept, except with yarn I had dyed myself.

I overdyed the yarn with what I believe was blue-raspberry Jell-O. I think. It may have just been blue Wilton’s dye, I can’t quite remember. What I came up with was a gorgeous skein of woodsy greens. It reminded me of forests and fairies. At one point, I made Squishy a little pair of fingerless mitts for the cooler Fall days. Then I set it aside to wait for the perfect project.

So when it was pulled to the top of the yarn bin in late June, I knew exactly what I wanted to use it for. A cardigan for a little boy. I had the little boy in mind, and I had plenty of time to get it done. You see, my friend Lindsay has a son who turns one in October. And I love this pattern. The pattern is Little Coffee Beans Cardigan. It may look familiar to you because I knit the same one for Lovebug, except in pinks and brown, again with my own hand-dyed yarn.

What’s really funny is I had this green yarn picked out and even purchased the brown to coordinate before I cast on for Lovebug’s cardigan. But about 3 days after I purchased the brown, we found out we were having a girl and I couldn’t wait and cast on for her instead...using the brown I purchased for this little boy. Oops!

Anyway, to make a long story longer, I got occupied knitting for Lovebug and this plan was pushed to the back.

Enter September and the conference I just attended. We would be close to Lindsay and Jason, close enough to visit, and so close to their little boy’s birthday I couldn’t not have it finished by then. I cast on last Thursday and finished it on Saturday. Knit with Woodland Fairy (my hand-dyed) and Cascade 220 Superwash Wool in Cordovan, this sweater was a breeze.

When we got into town on Sunday evening we went shopping and Mr. Man picked out these lovely green glazed buttons that were perfect. Sized for 12 months, it appears as though it will easily fit for the cold-weather season. Instead of doing the eyelet raglan increases, I used M1s to create invisible increases. (A word to anyone who downloaded the pattern prior to August 2011, the designer has updated her pattern. I had to remove the pattern from my library and re-download it into my library to get the updated version. She has included instructions for long sleeves, as well as M1R and M1L for invisible raglan increases.)

A special yarn for a special little boy. I’m glad I could put it to use. I love knitting with hand-dyed yarn. (And even better – I had enough of both the brown and green to knit Squishy a hat! Stay tuned for pictures!)

WIP Wednesday 9/28

2011-09-28T15:03:00.000-05:00

It’s Wednesday again. The week sort of started without me! Actually, I was out of town for a conference Monday and Tuesday and now being back on Wednesday, I feel a bit behind. Today has been spent playing catch-up as tomorrow I will be out of the office in the morning.

I wish I could say I had a lot to share with you as far as that which is on my needles. And at the same time, I’ve been busy and the needles have been clicking like crazy. You see, although I have few WIPs, I HAVE finished some things. Two things, actually. But I will wait and share those another day since today is WIP Wednesday – not What Did I Finish Wednesday.

The Baby Chalice Blanket is chuggin’ along. I’m down to less than half a skein of my last Madelinetosh Tosh DK skein. It’s probably more like a quarter, but it’s hard to guesstimate because it’s in a hand-wound ball and I never seem to judge them accurately. My plan is to try and get one more full lace repeat and then knit the 10 rows of garter stitch border. I want to use up every last bit if I can, so it may mean a little ripping and re-doing if I have a surplus, or ripping back to add the border sooner in case I run out.

I’m still trying to decide where I’m going to block this blanket. I’ve got mats and I’ll have wires (hopefully) by then. But I want to give it a nice good soak and a sturdy blocking before I take the pins out. There aren’t many Squishy-free locations in the house!

(Sorry – no pictures. But really it looks just like the picture on the sidebar just longer.)

My elephant knit is still sort of stalled. I’m afraid I may run out of yarn and I REALLY don’t want to rip out and start over. But time is running out and stalling will only make it worse. If I do have to start over I’ll have to knit double-time just to get everything finished. Today I hope to get the poly pellet pouches made for the legs, body and trunk to give it a nice weight.

(And because this is a surprise elephant, I have no pictures to share here either. I know, I’m boring today!)

That’s about all I have to share that’s still on the needles. So how about What’s Next? I’d like to knit a shawl, a nursing shawl. I want it to be light enough that Lovebug doesn’t overheat, but weighty enough it feels good in my hands. Anything too lacey or airy won’t work. I’ve been perusing Stephen West patterns, and there’s a shawl in a recent magazine I picked up that I really like. We’ll see where the wind takes me, but once I get these couple things off the needles, I think that’s where I’m going next.

Or socks. Because I want to try me-sized socks. No idea of what pattern yet. I have to think on that a little more.

Mail Call!

2011-09-22T15:12:00.000-05:00

I was hoping to be better organized than it all worked out, but I won’t fret about that now. So many of my friends on Ravelry are expecting little ones. It’s amazing and fun to hear all the news and see pictures of all the little babies. It also makes me anxious to meet our little girl.

With that said, my friend, Melissa, from Knitting A Baby, just welcomed her little girl into the world this July. And now that the Canadian postal strike is over, I could send these items on their merry way to Canada. The weather is a bit warm for knitwear, but I sure hope Mamma and Baby can put this stuff to good use!

For her little girl, I knit Kate Oates’ Plaid Hatter. Hold on to your hats, folks! This was my first true attempt at stranded knitting and boy was I intimidated! So what’s the best remedy? Close your eyes and dive head first into the project. Don’t look back. This has served me well in learning new things so I just keep doing it! (Turns out, stranded work isn’t so bad afterall.)

I used my own worsted weight, hand-dyed superwash wool in Raspberry Truffle (you may recognize it from this sweater, these socks and this bag) and Cascade 220 Superwash Wool in Cordovan. Again, my instincts proved accurate and they were lovely together. I wasn’t sure if a variegated yarn would mesh well with this plaid pattern (that whole stripes and plaid combo, you know?) But to me, it couldn’t be more perfect (Yes, I’m tooting my own horn, Readers.)

I had finished the brim and about 2” of stranding when I noticed I forgot to change to larger needles AND my floats were too tight. Oh bugger… I ripped back to the brim and began again. Much better on the second go-around. My floats still felt a bit tight, but with a healthy blocking, that problem was resolved.

The pattern calls for the pom-pom to be made with the same color as the brim, but I used both. I was also using worsted weight instead of sport weight as called for, meaning I adjusted my stitch count and hoped for the best.

This little girl is a beautiful 9 pound bundle, so I hope the hat fits come the fall weather. If not, maybe Melissa can pass it on to someone who will love it just as much.

I wanted to make something else but couldn’t decide on a pattern (indecision seems to be stalking me through this pregnancy…). Finally, I arrived at the Cabled Keyhole Scarf by Anne Hanson. Knit on US 7s using Patons Angora Bamboo in Low Tide I cast on and finished this little scarf in just a few days.

I did frog my first attempt, knit with Berocco Ultra Alpaca Light in Blueberry Mix (DK weight), it seemed to light so I switched to worsted.

The scarf is small, with a little keyhole on one side to pull the opposite end through and secure in place. A perfect size for under a coat or when the weather gets chilly. Obviously, this knit is for Melissa, not baby. Moms need to be pampered, too, right?!

I knit 4 extra repeats of chart B so it wouldn’t be too snug around the neck. I opted for the large size because other knitters noted how little the smallest size was – “child-sized” was the term frequently used.

Melissa, I hope you like these knits, and I hope they work for the upcoming colder weather! I really enjoyed knitting these for the two of you!

After the Weekend

2011-09-19T14:56:00.002-05:00

It’s Monday. It feels like a Monday. These are always long days for us because Mr. Man works nights onMondays and Squishy doesn’t really get to see him until Tuesday afternoons (he’sin bed by the time Daddy gets home).

After a very dreary weekend full of cold and rain, today hasbeen a little warmer and sunnier. Allergies have attacked and taken over my body, I’m hoping they calmdown soon.

I got just a little done by way of knitting this weekend. Afew more rows on the baby blanket and the elephant saw no love. Instead of working on knitting orsewing projects this weekend I slept (on Saturday) and Sunday was spent helpingsome family move. I sort of feellike I need a vacation from my weekend! (It wasn’t bad, just tiring.)

All week at work last week was go-go-go. The further into the week we got, thebusier my days became. Friday flewby because I had another doctor’s appointment. It’s amazing how fast 2 weeks can go. Friday marked 32 weeks in thispregnancy. Little Lovebug is NOTshy about moving around and making Mamma uncomfortable. But the doctor’s appointment wasgood and for the most partunremarkable. I’m having somemuscle pain so the doctor gave me some stretches to try, as well asrecommending to apply heat or cold packs (whichever is most comfortable) andTylenol if needed. If that doesn’thelp, she’ll refer me to physical therapy.

I like the quick appointments when I can go in, take care ofbusiness and be done. The doctorsare good at listening to my concerns and questions and taking the time toanswer them. But I really preferthem to be boring and easy. Itmeans everything is going well and I just have to keep on for another fewweeks.

We’re halfway through September, but I find myself feelinglike we’re already in October. Mybrain has a way of thinking forward to the next week instead of remembering totake care of things the current week. I’m always a week ahead of myself! Very soon I think we’ll be making a trip to Kmart or Target to findSquishy a Halloween costume. Nothing fancy, but I think he’s old enough to enjoy a walk down ourneighborhood block and a stop in at Grandma’s house. :)

WIP Wednesday 9/14

2011-09-14T09:37:00.003-05:00

Anyone else notice how quiet the blog has been lately? I don’t really have any excuses for you why that is. I guess when I remember to post, Idon’t have much to tell you about. And when I do have things to share, I don’t have time to post.

I’ve found myself a lot more relaxed about the knittinglately. When I sit down in theevenings, if the needles aren’t clicking, I feel a bit as though the time iswasted. But I can’t find themotivation or desire to pick up a project. I’m blaming it on the pregnancy. I had a real “gung-ho” attitude a few months ago and I wasbusting out projects left and right. Now I’m back to not knowing what to do with my free time.

So projects languish… But I think I’m okay with it. I have several projects I’d like to make but I don’t have the yarn forany of them. I’m trying reallyhard to use stash yarn before purchasing more. It’s fun to have lovely, shiny new yarn, but it’s notnecessary.

So what HAVE I been working on? A few things. Isigned up for the next Itty Bitty Swap, E is for Elephant. I’ve started the required knit item forthis and I’m not quite half way through. I’m not sure if I’ll have enough yarn, though, so I may have to rip backand find a 3^rd color to coordinate. We’ll see. Iknit quite a bit of that this weekend. I did realize I started knitting slower the more yarn I used because Iwas afraid I’d run out...lol – obviouslyknitting slower doesn’t affect the yardage used, but my mind sure thought itdid! I like how it’s comingtogether, but I’m near the point of needing fiberfill and polypellets so thisis on hold for the moment.

The Baby Chalice Blanket is slowly and surely gettingbigger. I went over my progresswith Mom the other day and we both think I should have enough yarn to make thedimensions look right. When thisis finished it will get a VERY healthy blocking and should growconsiderably. I’m so excited tosee it done!

I have finished the first skein and ALMOST the entire 2^ndskein of yarn. I’m alternatingbetween skeins 2 & 3 at the moment, and I can’t wait until the 2^ndskein is gone. I feel like myprogress is much slower alternating yarns. I do pump out about 4-6 rows a night, at least. The only thing I DON’T have for thisproject are the blocking wires. Ican use pins and block it on a grid, but that’s not as…finished…as I’d like itto be. (I don’t mean it won’t be complete, it just won’t have quite the samelook.) I’ve heard about a few Etsysellers who have blocking wire sets for about $20, so maybe I’ll be able topurchase some before the blanket is finished. Either way, this blanket WILL be complete beforeLovebug arrives.

I’m thinking about knitting myself some earbud covers (a casing for your earbud cords). I’ve found two patterns, Untangled andBoogie Earbuds, that both seem simple enough. Not because my earbuds are always tangling, but because theylook fun and it seems like a good way to use up my sock yarn remnants. The only thing is I can’t decide if IREALLY want knitted covers.

In other news, I’m 31(almost 32) weeks along now and starting to getuncomfortable. Sleep is hard tocome by at night, which means frequent naps on the couch. Baby moves a lot and seems to sometimes do so in response to Mr. Man andSquishy talking, which is fun. Squishy wants Baby to come NOW because she’s getting big. And when he gets dressed in themorning, he wants baby to get dressed too. He’s felt Lovebug move a few times, to which he explains tome that “Baby wake up.” It’s allvery cute and I think he’ll be a fantastic big brother.

Maybe in the next week or two I’ll have more progress toreport, until then have a fantastic week!

Reviewing My Goals

2011-09-01T11:56:00.000-05:00

Back in January, I mentioned that I don’t really adhere to New Year’s resolutions. I don’t think may people do. Instead, I gave myself some goals I’d like to achieve. If I went above and beyond, that would be great, but I wouldn’t let myself be disappointed if I didn’t reach my goals. They could always continue into the next year.

I don’t think I ever wrote a formal list. I’ve had in my mind what I wanted to accomplish, but it was never put on paper. But as Christmas approaches (I know – it’s so early to think about Christmas…but you know we knitters like to try and think ahead…), I’ve been reflecting on what I’ve learned this year.

In no specific order, here are a few items that I can remember were on my list (this next year, I plan to write them down so if I forget, I have something to refer back to):

Finishing up any UFOs and WIPs lingering in my stash (I had 8, I think)

I DID finish many of these. I’d have to go back and look at how many I got through, but I did finish a large chunk. Then I ran out of steam and needed other things to knit. I still have 8. But the list has changed. Only 2 real WIPs and 5-6 UFOs. One I’m not really counting as a UFO because I never started it, I only purchased the yarn for it. I even finished a project that had been lingering for over a year and a half!!

Intarsia – I haven’t done a lot of it, but I have done a little. Little bits here and there, enough to consider myself well versed enough to do bigger projects.

Stranding/Fair Isle - I don’t know where the line is drawn as to what is true fair isle, but I have done a little of this as well. The Plaid Hatter is sort of my “wow, I did that!” project.

Shawl for myself: That project that sat for over a year? It was the Traveling Woman, for me. It’s done, blocked, worn and loved. I can’t wait for cooler weather to wear it more. I’d like to make more shawls for myself so I see this as a continuing goal mostly reminding me it’s okay to make things for me.

And lastly, socks. I’ve knit baby socks, several in fact. I think I could now handle adult socks. I know the yarn I’m going to use. I’ve been saving it. I’d love to have a pair knit before Lovebug arrives.

Those are just a few of my goals. I’m sure there were more I was aiming for, but I can’t remember them. I’m pretty proud of my accomplishments and what I’ve learned. Techniques like applied I-Cord, provisional cast-on, Judy’s Magic Cast On, intarsia, stranding, and the list goes on. My tool box gets bigger every day!

So now that we’ve marked the halfway point (and more) in the year, what goals have you achieved? What do you have left you’d like to try and learn? What’s one thing you’ve done this year you’re extremely proud of?

Noticeable Noggins

2011-08-30T11:26:00.000-05:00

After a somewhat too relaxing weekend, I have a couple FOs to share with you. I like to be busy, but I also like to make sure that we have down time at home, too, that isn’t just at the end of the workday. Sunday we didn’t have any big plans, slept in just a little (Squishy only allows us so much sleep in the mornings…), and generally just took it easy. The only problem? We got bored.

This doesn’t always happen, but this weekend was one of those times that we didn’t have anything to do and really needed something. Normally, we may have decided to go out of town, go for supper, see a movie, run unnecessary errands, just for something to do. But by the time we actually made the decision we were bored, we weren’t motivated enough to do any of that. Lazy and bored isn’t a good combination!

ANYWAY, the reason I mention this is because it left me in a quandary. What am I to do with my time? Most of you are probably reading this and thinking – well knit something! Let me tell you, I spent most of the day Sunday scouring Ravelry for a pattern or project that would get me going. I was purposely giving the baby blanket a break. I needed something different and more mindless. The blanket requires frequent references back to the chart. I’d pick a project, then realize I didn’t have the yarn. Or had the yarn and couldn’t find a project. Or I didn’t want to spend the money on the pattern.

So I finally chose to knit a couple baby hats. I had a hat picked out for Squishy, but it needed modifying to get the size right – again, not mindless enough at this point. And since Lovebug only had a couple hats, this seemed good.

The first pattern is Little Boy Blue Ribbed Baby Hat by Tonya Wagner. I knit this pattern a while back for some charity knitting hosted on the Itty Bitty forums. I remembered really liking the pattern and how quick it was. Knit from my own hand-cotton, I got to work.

I cast on 56 sts instead of 64 as recommended. The cotton isn’t as sproingy as a wool blend and the hat was turning out huge. I wanted something smaller. And because it’s cotton, it’s a little cooler than a wool hat. Because the hat isn’t as elastic as it would have been had I used a different yarn, this hat will fit for a good length of time. I’ve decided the size is about 0-3 months, which works well.

While I was knitting this, all I could think of was candy corn. It reminded me of candy corn because the colors were oranges and reds and yellows and pinks and creams. Obviously, it’s not striped exactly like the candy, but this is what stuck in my head.

But NOW, when I look at it, I see Cyclones. We are an Iowa State family, Mr. Man is a graduate of ISU. He pointed out that it looked like an Iowa State hat. And I have to agree. So she’ll be ready to sport the right colors come November.

Simple 2x2 ribbing with clever decreases makes this really cute. This was knit in a matter of hours and I recommend it as a good pattern for charity knitting or that last minute baby gift for a shower. They’re bitty so people love them no matter what.

The second hat I knit was the Basic Newborn Hat by Jennifer Jackson. Again, simple pattern, I probably could have figured out the decreases, sizing, etc. without the pattern, but I didn’t want to think. I chose to incorporate 2 colors.

Knit in Spud & Chloe Moonlight (dark teal) and Knit Picks Comfy Worsted Marmalade (burnt orange), I added a few stripes with some stranding thrown in. These colors could go either way, masculine or feminine, which I love. I would probably size this hat 3-6 months. The cast on was 64 sts, and again, I cast on 56 and still came out large. Then again, I may have used bigger needles. To be honest, I never checked the required needle size. I think this would be a bit large for a newborn, but that’s just me. I could be wrong!

These were good projects for Sunday. I wasn’t in love with the knitting but needed to do something with my hands because I felt naked without my needles clicking. The finished hats are wonderful and I look forward to using them.

I’m back to the blanket again, and it’s moving along. I adjusted the size from my initial attempt and so each skein is going a little further than I anticipated. This isn’t a problem at all, it just leaves me guessing as to how to divide the skeins when incorporating a new skein (since I’m alternating skeins to combat color differences).

I’ve got several projects lined up for Squishy, but can’t decide what to work on. I’d love to finish a sweater for him, but it requires purchasing yarn because I don’t have enough in my stash. There are a couple hats I’d like to make him but they’re sized for adults and I need to do the math for his size head. And then there’s his Lego Man….

As for me, I’d like to knit a modesty shawl but need to pick a pattern & yarn. Mr. Man may get a new hat or gloves this fall. We’ll see where the wind blows me.

Happy Knitting!

Friday Favorites 8/26

2011-08-26T12:53:00.001-05:00

Air Conditioning

Yep, central air is a must in our house. Usually, I’m the cold one in the family. Mr. Man gets overheated very quickly and doesn’t like/can’t tolerate the really high temps and energy-sucking humidity we get in Iowa.

Lately, he’s been cold and I feel like I could overheat! The weather has cooled down a lot compared to what it HAS been this summer. But at almost 30 weeks pregnant (29 weeks today), I find myself VERY warm most all the time. My office at work is a stifling 81 degrees or so. No windows, just a door to the hallway. Getting up and moving around is a must to staying cool. Then to get in a hot, humid car, pick up Squishy from Grandma’s house and drive home is terribly uncomfortable.

Evenings haven’t been too bad. We can get some time in outside after the sun has past the peak of the day. So today I herald central air! What a blessing!!

Healthy Children

Squishy was sick again this week. For whatever reason, yesterday he had some sort of stomach bug. I hate it when he’s sick. How do you explain to a 2-year-old why they don’t feel good and how it WILL get better? And if said 2-yr-old doesn’t want to sit still, how do you tell him that it’s really better if he just sits back, relaxes, and stays calm so his tummy doesn’t get upset again?

Squishy is quite good at communicating what he wants or needs or how he’s feeling. But there are still gaps, like telling Mommy “I have to throw up!”

So we had a rough morning yesterday. By suppertime, he was doing much better and I’m happy to report that he’s back to himself today. No tummy problems, lots of energy (at least there was this morning), happy, healthy child. My favorite!

Weekends

It’s the first week back to school with students (last week staff returned). I like having all the people in the building because otherwise the high school is a bit of a ghost town. But goodness has it been busy! I’m appreciating that the weekend starts this afternoon and there’s a break before we go through it all again next week. I know it will slow down into a rhythm very soon, and I look forward to that!

Devastated...

2011-08-22T14:40:00.001-05:00

You all heard me rave last week about my latest WIP, the Baby Chalice Blanket. I was zipping right along, enjoying knitting row by row, watching the lace pattern develop. (Lace is really such a magical thing. These designs that are put into strands of yarn, and how they transform with a little blocking… anyway, I digress.)

I had started the 2^nd skein of my Madelinetosh Tosh DK and was 10 rows into the skein. I look down, while watching some evening television with the family only to discover that my skeins do not match!!! Oh my goodness, the horror!! “Okay,” I thought, “maybe it’s just my imagination and the difference isn’t so bad.” Not my luck that night. Mr. Man spotted the exact place the color changed (and in poor lighting I might add). My beautiful, perfect purple was considerably lighter and the color not as deep.

My next step was to wander (okay, run if it’s possible to do so via the internet) my way over to Ravelry to ask my trusted friends on the Itty Bitty forums. They steered me right and after a very devastating evening I had a new plan.

Originally, I was planning to rip out to the end of the first skein and continue on with skein 3 still in my stash. But…I would still need an additional skein in the right color. And without dyelots for this particular yarn, there was no way to guarantee that I’d get something that would match.

I put it away for the night. Not a timeout, just…away. The next morning I pulled out my cable and needs and riiiiiiipped it all the way back to the beginning to start over.

I compared skeins and I have 3 different shades. If I do it right, by alternating skeins, I should be able to get a gradient effect by the time I’m finished. I started with the lightest (and in a way, most disappointing of the 3 skeins…although disappointing isn’t really the right adjective because the color is still beautiful and the yarn is still lovely and squishy…). I figure by the time I get to my last skein, I shall be basking in wonderful purple again and will encourage me to finish this little blanket with gusto.

It was sad to see all that work vanish. But it’s also an important reminder to myself that it’s worth the time to correct mistakes and do things right. This isn’t like leaving a purl in the middle of stockinette. This was much bigger than that. I know I’ll be happier with the blanket now that I’ve started over. Some things just take more time.

It did make me consider picking up Lego Man and putting some time into that project!

Friday Favorites 8/9: Random

2011-08-19T11:35:00.000-05:00

It’s back! After a long break over the summer, I’m ready to launch back into Friday Favorites. It’s random, so bear with me!

New Hostas

I have no idea what kind of hostas these are, but it’s wonderful to see them planted. We’ve been talking of putting these in since last summer and now it’s finally done.

We got the two on the outside and the two in the center from my parents. The other two solid green hostas are from Mr. Man’s mom.

They don’t look like much at the moment, but next year they should look terrific.

Moby Wrap

(Image from MobyWrap.com)

Knowing that come this fall we’ll be toting two children around, I’ve been looking for alternatives to a double stroller, which can be expensive and bulky. Enter the Moby Wrap. I was planning to purchase one before Lovebug arrives, but I was lucky to have a friend give me hers! That was so generous!

I have an Ergo carrier, but not the newborn insert, so it’s really not useful until she’s a bit larger. I’d like to use a wrap/carrier more this time around as I found the infant carseat carrier to be a pain. When Mr. Man and I are out together with the kids, I’m sure we’ll still use it, but I hope this will be a nice alternative when I’m by myself. We may still invest in a double stroller, but this gives me options in the meantime.

I’ve already practiced (yes I feel silly telling you that…) putting it on and placing a baby doll in it. I know it’s not the same as a real baby, but I want to feel as comfortable as possible using it once she is here. It will help that once she IS here, I won’t have a baby bump in the way.

Sassafras Creations

I’m almost hesitant to share this next one because I just found the shop this week and I like to keep finds like this to myself for a while before sharing… But…it’s not like I’m her first customer – she’s got almost 900 sales to her name!

I found this Etsy shop to be delightful and resourceful. She takes old aluminum needles and makes them into jewelry. How awesome is that?! What a great way to repurpose an item.

These earrings are my favorite of everything in her shop

(Image by Sassafrascreations)

and these keychains are really cool.

(Image by Sassafrasscreations)

I’ll be keeping an eye out for her watches as well.

(Image by Sassafrasscreations)

It might not be obvious to all who see it, but I know we fiber artists love to surround ourselves with items related to our craft. This jewelry is like a little secret between us that we’re not ever too far away from this craft we love!

WIP Wednesday 8/17

2011-08-17T11:45:00.000-05:00

As I mentioned yesterday, I'm trying to relax and enjoy the process, instead of focusing so much on cranking out the finished objects. I hope I'm not the only one who sometimes gets lost in "getting it done quickly." I think part of the problem is there are just SO many things I want to knit!

I haven't touched the Dream Catcher Baby Blanket. The intention was for that to be something I could knit when I didn't have other things that were calling my name. At the moment, that means that it's sort of left hiding in the corner. I'm glad I've got all the colors picked, though. And perhaps once the Lego Man is finished, I'll put more effort into completing it.

Lego Man still only has a head. Well, not even a head. An almost finished head. But this week I've felt it calling it me, asking me to work on it. I've been catching up on the podcasts I follow (over the summer I sort of stopped watching) and I think Erin from Mommy Needs Yarn pinned the problem on the nose. Erin is working on the Evenstar Shawl and she's talked several times about how she put it down for awhile and all of a sudden it became this big, daunting task to knit on this shawl. But when she picked it back up and just took it row by row, she found it really wan't too bad.

That's what I'm feeling with this Lego Man. I like to read other knitter's project comments ahead of time so I know where I might encounter problems, etc. This is one instance I should have just started, not bothering to listen to anyone else. I read a lot about how difficult the pattern was, etc. Now that it's been sitting for awhile, I feel as though the project has gotten to big for me. But this week, after listening to Erin, I don't feel so bad about it. I want to get this toy done for Squishy and I think if I just take it row by row it will be complete before I know it. :)

Finally, I mentioned yesterday I had cast on for a new project. I cast on the Baby Chalice Blanket by Lykkefanten. I have been browsing the baby blanket patterns for awhile now and finally settled on this one. I really liked how this pattern looks with a tonal yarn, even with the lace pattern. I chose to knit this with Madelinetosh Tosh DK in the Flashdance colorway. Flashdance is a lovely, tonal plum color that will be rich and beautiful for our little girl. :)

I don't want this to feel like it's taking forever, so I'm trying to be patient and enjoy watching the lace details reveal themselves. I've finished the first skein and gotten through 3 lace repeats and I love this.

The pictures make this look a little more blue than it really is. The color actually sits at the perfect spot between being too blue and too red. I'm a little concerned I don't have enough yarn for the size I want. I have 3 skeins, but I might need 4. I increased the cast on from 83 to 135 and I'm using US 9 needles instead of US 10s. When I get close to the end of the 3rd skein, we'll see where I sit. It's possible that blocking will solve the size problem.

What's on your needles this week?

Feeling Relaxed

2011-08-16T09:45:00.000-05:00

I have some finished objects ready to show you all, but not today. I need to get a few items in the mail yet and I need to find some buttons to truly complete a couple projects. (I really prefer to share things when I’d consider them ready to be gifted.)

I’ve been getting some really great response and feedback from the Applied I-Cord Tutorial I posted a few weeks back. I’m so glad to hear from other knitters, telling me it helped them finish their cardigan. That was my hope. Perhaps this weekend I can even get a video tutorial posted as I’ve been meaning to do!

Over the last week I feel as though I’m a bit more focused with my knitting. I’ve cast on a new pattern that I am loving! I’m knitting with gorgeous yarn and I find it all scrumptious. Truly, I am enjoying this project. It won’t be finished quickly, but I’m happy to just sit and knit and not feel rushed about it all.

I’ll save the WIP details for tomorrow’s post, but wanted to stop in and say hello on a day other than Wednesday.

WIP Wednesday 8/10: Help Me!

2011-08-10T13:23:00.000-05:00

First off, the Dream Catcher Blanket and Lego Man have gotten no love. But I did pick out the additional 2 colors for the blanket Monday night.

Now that the baby socks are done, I need help. I’m ready to knit a pair of socks for Squishy. I’m using a high variegated, multi-colored yarn, so I think a plain vanilla or ribbed sock would be wonderful. But since I’m new to the sock world, I don’t know where to start. I peruse patterns and just feel like I’m at a loss for what to choose. Any favorite patterns out there for toddler feet? Simple is best. The pattern doesn’t need to be for beginners, but it’s okay if they are. I just don’t know where to go from here.

And because I couldn’t resist (babies are so irresistible, aren’t they?), I started a baby cocoon. It’s the Button-Up Baby Wrap by Kimberly Wood. Knit on large needles with chunky yarn this project sprouts wings and flies off the needles! I finished 8” of the cocoon in about 1.5 hours and would have finished the remainder by now if I haven’t been so busy. Yes, there is a second one already planned.

I’m modifying the pattern (as I seem to do a lot these days) for a 2 x 2 twisted rib of sorts. I’ll share more about that when I’m finished.

So needles are clicking and my knitting is in motion. I’m trying to take things slow and enjoy what I’m working on, but it’s just so darn hard when I’ve got so much I want to knit before Lovebug arrives!

Do you ever find yourself in the same boat as me?

The Last Pair

2011-08-09T12:57:00.000-05:00

I cast on and bound off my last pair of baby socks. Baby socks are quick, but after this final set, I need something more. Here is my version of Better-Than-Booties Baby Socks by Ann Budd. Knit on US 1s (instead of US 0s) with Ella Rae Lace Merino, there are my least favorite of all I’ve done.

I’ve heard many knitters say many good things about this pattern and how much they enjoyed the knit. But…it’s not for me. The ruffle is too big and the short row heel/toe construction left me confused and frustrated with the pattern. When I finally figured it out, they went quickly, but I didn’t enjoy the time spent on these. Finished, the heels and toes are neat, but for me, it’s not worth my dislike of the technique.

I didn’t use the short row shaping for the toe because I was ready to be done and wanted this finished ASAP. Instead, I knit a (ssk, k(x), k2tog, k2tog, k(x), ssk) decrease until I had 16 stitches remaining. Then I kitchenered the toe shut. The toe doesn’t mesh because it’s not the same as the heel, but they’re done. I have no idea if they’ll ever fit Lovebug.

On the flip side, although this pattern isn’t for me (I much preferred the Baby Mitten Socks!!), with over 1200 projects on Ravelry, I saw some beautiful baby socks, and many knitters who loved the pattern. I would hate for someone to discount this pattern because of my opinion. So if these are on your list to knit, go for it! No one said you have to love every pattern and I’m just one knitter among a whole world of fiber artists!

I gotta say, though….I LOVE this yarn!

WIP Wednesday 8/3

2011-08-03T08:07:00.000-05:00

Just a few pictures to share with you of this week’s WIP.

Okay, so really it’s an ongoing WIP at the moment.

25 weeks, 4 days – Profile of Lovebug

3D/4D photo of Lovebug – she cooperated this time!

She’s a growing girl and likes to make her presence known. She kicks all around and was pushing back when the ultrasound tech lingered for too long in one place.

Is this any indication of her future personality? :)

Everything's So Tiny!

2011-08-02T21:31:00.001-05:00

I know, I know. I promised more posts. Usually I split my finished knits into separate posts, but these things are small and I felt the need to get some words up on the site!

First, a pumpkin hat. Little Pumpkin by Susan B. Anderson. I’ve mad this at least 3-4 times now. Always cute, always well received. Lovebug is coming in November so it’s fitting she have a pumpkin on her head for the fall weather. And Squishy’s hat still fits so they’ll match!

I cast on one pattern repeat less than called for to ensure this won’t be too big for a newborn. It better work out cause I’ve got big plans for this hat and my baby girl! Knit with Knit Picks Shine Worsted in Marmalade, Laurel and Berroco Vintage in Chocolate.

Next, another pair of baby socks – Super Quick Baby Socks. Knit with Brown Sheep Cotton Fleece in Nymp, they’re soft and sweet. But a bit too large for a newborn.

[Enter Baby Mitten Socks, Stage Left]

This pattern by Barbara Prime is designed with newborn feet in mind. Want an idea of how small they are? Poker chips are the perfect size for blocking the heels and toes. And here’s a comparison of how small little toes can really be!

With a ribbed cuff and foot, these should fit most any newborn with ease…AND stay on. The yarn is Ella Rae Lace Merino, the same yarn used for my Traveling Woman. The color easily accommodates both boys and girls, although these were certainly knit with Lovebug in mind. They will be packed in the hospital bag, ready to keep her warm.

See?? Tiny little feet!

Knit on 2.25mm (US 1) dpns, these were tiny and fast. I’m talking lightening quick. Although I didn’t modify the pattern, I did rewrite a portion to make knitting with one color easier since the pattern is written for two contrasting yarns. I’m new to socks of any kind so I stuck with one yarn, one color. The stitch counts remain the same, just reorganized. Next time, though, I would decrease the toe for at least one or two more rounds as they seemed to end a little abruptly and with a blocky look.

My baby sock fetish is almost at an end. I have one more pattern I want to try and I’ve promised Squishy a pair of socks, but rest assured there is more in my future than just warm, well-dressed feet!

Bye Bye July

2011-07-28T14:08:00.002-05:00

Did you know we’re only a handful of days away from August? Where did the last 2 months go?! This means my summer is coming to an end and I’ll be back to my regularly scheduled programming. Back to normal days and normal weeks. Teacher workshops begin August 18 and kids return on August 23.

But then it’s only 3 ½ more months after that when I’ll start maternity leave!

I wish I had more to share with you today. Life has slowed down a bit and I’ve been able to get through a really long week this week. Now I can relax. Bring on the knitting!

I’ve held off on large or complicated projects because I couldn’t them the attention needed. Now I have time.

Anyway, I know the blog has been a bit quiet over the summer, but it will pick up again soon.

Happy Knitting!

WIP Tuesday??

2011-07-19T09:49:00.002-05:00

It’s Tuesday and I don’t really have a whole lot to share with you. I’ve been preoccupied with other things that take priority and so my knitting has taken a backseat. And it seems that even when I do have time to sit down, relax and knit for the evening, I can’t find the motivation.

With that said, I have made some progress on a few things. I won’t be posting a WIP post tomorrow, so I’ll share a bit today. Lego Man remains at the same point he was last week. What’s holding me up this time? I have to go downstairs and find my fiberfill (I know right where it is) and pack a ziplock bag full of it to take back to my knitting bag. Hard, right? Just a few steps down and back up and I’d be ready to roll. Nope, still haven’t done it! After next week I’d like to put some real effort into working on that project. Now that I’ve started it, I’m feeling more confident that I have the skills necessary to make this a wonderful toy. While I’m not usually one to worry if my knits don’t look exactly like the picture, I know I’ll be disappointed if this one doesn’t, so I sort of feel as though I’ve gone into this project with too many expectations of myself. Then again, you know that saying? “Reach for the moon and you’ll fall among the stars.” That’s the mentality I’m trying to maintain here.

I’ve finished 1 more Harris Tweed Square on Squishy’s Dream Catcher blanket and have started the 4^th HT square. Once the 4^th square is done, I’ll have 20% of the blanket done. I may make it bigger than 25 squares, but I’m aiming for 25 and then I’ll wait to see what I think of the size. On a side note, and certainly something I’ll be mentioning later on… the yarn is acrylic. And I’m going to block it. Yep, you heard me. I’m going to block my acrylic squares. Then no matter how many times I put this thing through the wash, I will never have to reblock it again. I’ve found some great resources and how-tos on blocking acrylic and I think I can make it work. I’m actually really excited about this because I think it will really finish the blanket nicely.

I finished a baby hat for Lovebug. I’ll share pictures another day.

As for other WIP news…well Friday marks 24 weeks for Lovebug and me. She’s moving around quite a bit now (or rather, I feel her more now). She seems to really like chocolate milk because she always gets really active after I’ve had a glass. We went to the last Harry Potter movie the other night and I thought she’d move around a lot with all the noise, but she didn’t. (About this time, babies can hear loud noises outside the womb and recognize familiar loud noises like the vacuum and your dogs barking…like mine love to do…) Instead, it was when we got back to Mr. Man’s mom’s house that she started moving a ton. Maybe because it got so quiet?

I’ve had horrible heartburn that attacks every night. Pepcid and TUMS are my friend right now. There’s a more noticeable belly now too.

Lovebug has a good selection of clothes at the moment, ranging from 3-6 months up to 18 months. Very cute, adorable girly things that I can’t wait to dress her in.

So that’s what’s new with me this week. I think near the end of the week we’ll be heading to the Demolition Derby at the County Fair. Squishy will love it and Mr. Man actually gets to come along this year! Hooray!

WIP Wednesday 7/13

2011-07-13T14:37:00.003-05:00

Good afternoon, readers! I hope you all are keeping cool and comfortable. We’ve had an array of weather from hot and humid to rainy and a little cold. I sort of like those rainy days because it tempers the humidity, which is never lacking during an Iowa summer!

So what’s on my needles for this week you ask? Nothing to block, that’s for certain. I’ve started Squishy’s Lego Man and have almost finished the head. I just need to stuff it, kitchener some pieces together, and knit one additional part and Squishy can run around telling me his man is “broke.”

I showed you my blanket squares last week. They’ve not gotten any further. I’m okay with that – it’s not meant to be a “get it done now” project.

But since both of these items are a bit more long-term, I had to start something that was small and easy. To take the edge off, I cast on for Little Pumpkin by Susan Anderson. If you’ve been following the blog for awhile, you’ve seen this hat before, a couple times. Since the baby will be born in November, she needs a fall hat. I’m sizing it down slightly so it will be sure to have a nice fit when she arrives.

Things have slowed down with the knitting and probably won’t pick up again much until August when I’m not so occupied by other things. That’s when small projects are the best!

A Pair of Socks

2011-07-12T08:51:00.000-05:00

While procrastinating the cast on for Squishy’s Lego Man, I decided to cast on for a pair of baby socks. I’ve been watching The Expectant Knitter Podcast and currently, she has a KAL (knit-a-long) happening in her group. The KAL encompasses 4 baby sock or bootie patterns. They include the Super Quick Baby Socks (you saw mine HERE), the Spring Daffodil Baby Socks, Converse Booties, and Seamless Saartje Booties.

For every pair of baby socks or booties that you finish, you post a picture in the appropriate thread and you get an entry into a drawing for some lovely prize (it could be yarn, stitch markers, project bag – things like that). This was great timing because it’s prompted me to knit some booties that I might not have otherwise knit for the baby. And while I’m trying to make one or two things (at least) for Squishy before the baby comes, this gives me an excuse to knit some small projects that are more instant gratification than the large toy.

The second pair of socks I finished are these. The Spring Daffodil Baby Socks by Steph Mychaid. (I do believe that is Steph from the Expectant Knitter Podcast.)

These were toe-up construction, which I’ve not done before. It meant I had to learn a new cast on. So off I went to the Knit Girllls video on Judy’s Magic Cast On and after a few tries, I finally got it right. In this video, the demonstrator is using a circular needle – but I was using dpns at the time because I don’t have any circs smaller than US 4. The cast on is neat because it gives a seamless cast on that is good for the tops of hats and toes of socks and that sort of thing. It’s definitely one I’ll keep in my tool box.

I don’t know if you notice or not, it’s somewhat hidden by the variegated yarn, but there is a diagonal pattern created on the top of the foot, whereas the bottom of the foot, heel and back of the cuff are plain stockinette rows.

I thought this would be better suited for a girl’s design, but in a pair of socks like what I’ve made, I think they easily work for boys. And my first inclination was to save these socks for a little boy, but I decided to keep them for myself.

I’m not completely happy with the heel construction. I’ve only made a few pairs of baby/toddler/small child socks and they’ve all been top/cuff down. This pattern included a short row heel where the stitches for the heel are wrapped until there are 4 remaining unwrapped stitches in the middle, after which point, you go back through and pick up and knit the wraps on the stitches to decrease and increase short rows accordingly.

Personally, I feel that makes the heel just a little too deep for baby feet. I think if I were to make them again, I’d go until there were 6 unwrapped stitches in the middle (7 wrapped stitches on each side) and then increase again.

I tried the socks on a baby doll I have. Dream Baby’s got pretty stubby fat feet that are nothing like a baby’s, but they gave me a small idea of how they might fit. I think these will be okay, but the heel might have a funny dimple – kind of like when you put a sweater on a hanger and you get hanger nipples.

Overall, I think this is a really cute pattern. I don’t know if I’d knit it again. There are so many options for baby socks and booties, it sort of feels like a waste to only use one pattern. And I certainly have a few more in my queue that I want to try.

But now Lovebug has 2 pairs of hand-knit socks to keep her bitty toes nice and toasty.

Just in Case Any of You Wonder

2011-07-10T10:38:00.000-05:00

For those of you who are active members on Ravelry, you know what I'm talking about when I mention looking for patterns, talking to friends, and sharing our knits. But for those of you who aren't part of the community, I thought it might be interesting for you to read a little more about what it's all about.

Through the Due in November 2011 pregnancy group on Ravelry, another member shared a link to an article describing Ravelry. I think it sums it up nicely, so I wanted to link it for all of you to read.

Article on Raverly found here.

Have a great weekend, everyone!

Whirlwind of a Weekend

2011-07-08T09:26:00.000-05:00

For those of us in the US, this weekend had potential to be a very busy weekend, since Monday was the 4th of July. Since the 4th landed on Monday, most activities took place over the weekend. Mom & I took Squishy to Kid's Day in the park on Friday. It was terribly hot and sticky and I'm glad we were only outside for a couple hours. We spent the remainder of the day doing some shopping. But Squishy got to see the Kid's Parade and hear some of the drums play in the band, and then he got to ride the Smiley Train!

It's hard for little kids to wait in line, but Squishy did really well. He enjoyed watching the train pull kids around, although he always got upset when kids got out and he couldn't get in. When it was his turn, I thought he might get upset and not want to ride, or that he'd be uncomfortable being taken away from where Mom & I were, but to my surprise, he hardly noticed. He's getting to be such a big boy! Instead he was very intent on "driving" his car as best as he could. And he insisted on having his sunglasses on. The hardest part was probably getting him out of the train to leave…he wanted another ride!

The weekend was spent enjoying time with family. On Saturday, Mr. Man worked during the day, but that evening we dropped Squishy off at Grandma's for the night and we went to a movie. We saw X-Men: First Class. I really enjoyed the movie and since we went to the local theatre, it was only $4 for the two of us. The Charles Theater isn't fancy, but it's cheap and it's in town and when there's a movie we really want to see, it's worth it. Next up is Cars 2 and I think we might try and take Squishy.

Sunday was a low-key day. We picked Squishy up at lunchtime, ate and put him down for a nap. He took a VERY long nap and by the time he woke up, it was time to go back to Mom's house for a Low Country Boil. We had shrimp, sausage, corn on the cob and potatoes. It was so good and there wasn't a piece of it left over by the time the evening came to an end. PaPa's daughter (my stepsister) was home with her family from Colorado, so we got to enjoy their company (Squishy loves playing with his cousins and insists on trying to keep up with them!) My grandpa and great-uncle came to town, and my uncle and his wife were in town from Chicago. It was relaxing and enjoyable. As everyone settled into relaxing after supper, Mr. Man, Sis and I took Squishy for a drive in my mom's yellow convertible Mustang. Squishy LOVES this car and always wants to drive it. We actually have to keep a very close eye on him because he's prone to walk out to the garage and get in the car…

We went for a short drive through town and out on the highway. Again, the little man surprised me because he enjoyed the wind and open view of the sky. He doesn't like riding with car windows down so I thought for sure this would bug him. But he took in all in and really enjoyed himself. It was a late night for him, but good to do something out of the norm.

Then Monday was the 4th and so of course that meant the parade. Squishy ooh'ed and ahh'ed at the big trucks, the band and the horses (as well as all the dogs), but spent a majority of his time sitting next to my niece on the curb like a big boy. Even though we applied copious amounts of sunscreen, he still got a little burned on his face and neck. I think it's required that the 4th be hot and sticky!

After the parade and lunch, we were back home for some time to relax and Squishy's nap. Then back to Grandma & Grandpa's house for more good food (we grilled) and fun. Fireworks were at 10pm at the airport, preceded by the Municipal Band at 8:30pm. We loaded up the cars with snacks and drinks and headed out early.

There were sparklers and s'mores and good seats. During the fireworks, Squishy decided to sit with his cousins again. He was very absorbed in what they were doing, but you could always tell when he was watching the lights and colors because he would "WOW" and exclaim "What was that?!"
It was nice to see everyone and spend time as a family together. Squishy enjoyed all the company and excitement and makes me very excited to see him with his little sister when she arrives. I hope everyone had as enjoyable weekend as we did. I did hardly any knitting, but honestly, it was a good break for me.

Aren't They Sweet?

2011-07-07T12:28:00.001-05:00

My friend, Ber, in Ireland sent us a wonderful surprise last week. I checked the mail on Friday to find a package with a few goodies for the kids.

Squishy was thrilled to receive a new book, of tractors no less! He has really enjoyed looking through all the photos, picking out items and naming colors. Ber, you hit the nail on the head with this one. :) Monday, when were in the kitchen getting our cooler ready for fireworks, he spent his time with us flipping through the pages.

And for Lovebug, Ber sent a super soft, pretty little pink set. Tiny Shoes with iridescent white buttons are a wonderful touch. And a Swirl Hat (I've made one as well - it's a great pattern) that looks so tiny it's hard to believe a person could ever be so small!

Ber, we really appreciate the time you took to make these for our little girl and send them our way, as well as to think of sending something for Squishy! Mr. Man was surprised to see such a gift in the mail, "just because." It goes to show how wonderful, kind and generous other knitters can be! :)

WIP Wednesday 7/6

2011-07-06T19:24:00.000-05:00

I've hit a lull in my knitting, which probably makes sense if you've been reading the blog for the last week or so. I wouldn't say I burned myself out, but for a good while, I was planning what I wanted to knit, one right after another. Once I finished the last baby cardigan, I realized I didn't have anything specific lined up to knit next.

I thought I would find this a bit liberating, but what I'm coming to learn is that I fumble a bit when this happens. Every time I get the chance to knit whatever I want, with no specific project in mind, it takes me forever to pick something and knit it. And it feels as though it's because there's no drive or motivation behind any one pattern.

I've been wanting to knit Some Assembly Required for Squishy. I thought he would enjoy all the interchangeable pieces. Actually, I know he'll enjoy it. But I've procrastinated for almost a week from casting on because of the provisional cast on. I've done it before, but it was done poorly. And although I've watched a couple videos, I don't feel as though I have mastered the technique yet.

So instead, using the yarn I purchased for the toy, I started a blanket. I've knit 1.75 squares from the Dream Catcher Baby Blanket pattern on Spud Says by Susan B. Anderson. I have 3 colors - navy, gray and yellow in I Love This Yarn. It's a cheap, acrylic yarn, but it's pretty soft and not too squeaky. I don't mind working with it. I thought it would be a nice, cheap, durable yarn for a toy that's likely to get a lot of use and love. Normally I would splurge on a higher quality fiber, but with a tight budget and the need to be knitting something, Hobby Lobby is the place to go at the moment. (I would have knit from stash but I didn't have anything that really suited my needs.)

I like the blanket squares because they're mindless and give me something to do while I gather the courage to cast on for this giant Lego Man. Some time down the road I'll pick up 2 more colors to round out the blanket. Also, I feel the need to mention that I knew I would have well beyond enough of this yarn after the toy was finished, and felt obligated to find another project to use this yarn on. I thought about a crocheted blanket, but I wasn't quite ready to dive back into really thinking about crochet and Susan's pattern is so simple and lovely I couldn't pass it up.

So that's what's on the needles this week. Probably a pair of baby socks as well, seeing as how they're so quick. :) I've also got a couple gifts I need to get started so I can send them on their way.

What's on your needles or hook this week?

Coffee Beans and Baby Socks

2011-06-30T06:56:00.000-05:00

Are you tired of seeing baby sweaters yet? I hope not because I have another to show you.

Although this isn’t a set, I’m calling it one because I knit them with the purpose of Lovebug wearing them together. I’ve admired the Coffee Bean Cardigan for a long while. It’s boy and girl appropriate and offers a lot of flexibility and variety when choosing a color scheme.

We’ll start with the cardigan. Lovebug’s Coffee Bean Cardigan is knit from Cascade 220 in Cordovan (a reddish-brown) and some hand-dyed yarn I dyed with my sister last summer called Raspberry Truffle. I didn’t intend to like the results as much as I do!

The Raspberry Truffle is a variegated yarn that goes from light pink to dark pink, creams and peaches, to browns. The colorwork is 2-row striping, continued throughout the entire sweater.

For a girl, I don’t mind the open raglan increases, the eyelets that are created are pretty and feminine. If I were to do this for a boy I’d probably use kfb (knit front back) or M1L/M1R (make 1 left/make 1 right) to eliminate the eyelets at the increases.

The first sleeve gave me some trouble. I was having a hard time figuring out how to continue the stripping while carrying the yarn up the side, while knitting in the round. The back and forth flat knitting of the body was no trouble at all, but I flubbed the sleeve just a bit. The second sleeve went much better. I could have ripped the first sleeve out to redo it, but I don’t think it’s that noticeable (at least not to a non-knitter).

Watching the colors shift from one row to the next was my favorite part. Because the variegated yarn was broken up by the brown stripes, I didn’t have to worry about any funny flashing or pooling and I could just enjoy the rich colors.

And speaking of the colors, I chose more muted buttons this go-around. The buttons are pink and black (or perhaps a very dark brown). The pink has a bit of a shine to it which I like. They are simple and understated and let the yarn do all the talking in this case.

I then used the same Raspberry Truffle to make the Super Quick Baby Socks. The name of this pattern is no lie, folks. I had these socks completed in a day. It could have been an afternoon had I had the time to do them all at once.

I wish I had used the brown from the sweater for the edge of the cuff, the heel and the toe, but I’m not accustomed to knitting socks so it’s probably better I stuck with what I knew.

They’re still unbelievably cute!

So now Lovebug has a cute little sweater and sock set to wear when she’s just a couple months old. Perfect for the winter weather, where the splash of color will be much appreciated.

Applied I-Cord: A Photo Tutorial

2011-06-29T07:36:00.000-05:00

Recently, I knit a baby sweater that called for an applied i-cord edging around the front and neck. I had a really difficult time understanding the written directions, so I went in search of a video tutorial on YouTube. I found a couple that were similar to what I was looking for, but nothing that explained the technique in the same way the pattern had it written.

Since nothing was exactly like what I wanted, I did a mash-up of THIS YouTube video, the written instructions, and my own ideas on what I wanted the edging to look like.

After reading through the project pages for the pattern, it seemed like a few people struggled with this technique, so I decided a photo tutorial might be helpful as well. My technique is not the same as what was in the pattern, but I think the end result looks nice.

I hope these photos are helpful to some of you as well!

Let's get started!
There is a lot of knitting stitches onto the right-hand needle and then transferring them back to the left-hand needle. It's fiddly, but it works.

It's helpful if you read through all the steps and look at all the photos at least once before you attempt to knit at the same time. It may not make sense while reading it, but once you start knitting, it should become clearer.

1. First, slip all of the required stitches onto your designated circular needle.

(You will only need 1 circular needle to do this technique.)

2. Cast on the number of stitches instructed in the pattern onto the right-hand needle of the circular needle.

(In the above picture, the needle resting in the middle of the sweater is the right-hand needle.)

(In my case, I needed to cast on 2 sts.)

3. Move the cast on stitches from the right-hand needle onto the left-hand needle.

4. Knit the first stitch on the left-hand needle.

5. Slip the 2nd stitch as if to knit.

(You now have 2 stitches on the right-hand needle.)

6. Slip the 3rd stitch (which would be a picked up edge stitch) as if to purl.

7. There are now 3 sts on the right-hand needle. (One knit stitch and 2 slipped stitches.)

8. Move the 2 slipped stitches back to the left-hand needle and knit them together through the back loop (you have now done a SSK).

9. You now have 2 completed stitches on your right-hand needle.

10. Move these 2 completed stitches back to the left-hand needle. Wash, rinse, repeat. (In other words, you do steps 4-10 over and over again, until you either 1) reach a buttonhole or 2) have gone all the way around your project and are ready to bind off.) Your next step here would be step 4, knit the first stitch.

Applied I-Cord for Buttonholes

1. In my project, the cardigan calls for buttonholes along the applied i-cord. To prepare for this, when picking up stitches, I skipped picking up one stitch because this is where the buttonhole would be placed. At this point, you have done steps 4-10 of above until you reach your skipped stitch. Do you see the 2 garter ridge bumps in the photo below? Between those bumps is my skipped stitch.

2. Now that you've identified buttonhole placement, place the two sts from the right-hand needle onto the left-hand needle. (You've done this much lots of times before...just stick with me for a moment.)

3. Now, instead of knitting the first stitch and slipping the 2nd stitch, you are going to knit 2 sts. (So the 2 sts you just placed back on the left-hand needle will both be knit. Do NOT knit them together, just k2.)

4. Here are your two knit stitches on your right-hand needle.

5. Slip the two knit stitches back to the left-hand needle and continue as from the top with steps 4-10 (knit 1 st, slip 1 knitwise, slip 1 purlwise, k2tog tbl).

6. Do you see what this does at the buttonhole? You have knit a portion of your i-cord as you would any normal i-cord, leaving a gap for the buttonhole, and kept your knitting from puckering. Do you see my buttonhole in the photo below?

7. From this point, you continue this technique over and over. My pattern called for buttonholes every 4th stitch, so I have a total of 7 buttonholes. Your item may not have any buttonholes. Keep up the k1, s1 knitwise, s1 purlwise, k2tog tbl - move back to left-hand needle. When you reach the end, bind off as you normally would any i-cord. In the above linked video the woman uses an invisible cast-on and then does a kitchner or 3-needle bind-off to pull it all together since she's going around a blanket edge.

I hope this was helpful. It still feels clumsy and complicated to me in just written and photographed form, so I plan to try getting a video tutorial added to this as well. Until then, feel free to contact me with any questions you may have regarding the tutorial and I'll do what I can to help.

Hello, Baby!

2011-06-28T07:10:00.000-05:00

Before we knew we were having a girl, I was feeling a little lopsided in my knitting. I had just barely finished the Beyond Puerperium cardigan when I cast on for the Hello Baby Cardigan by Susan B. Anderson. Jill, on the Rav boards, mentioned she had started one and I was immediately seized with the desire to knit one myself. For a boy.

Selecting a yarn was difficult because I wanted it to be obviously boy. So instead of teals and blue-greens which I have a wonderful abundance of, I wanted a navy blue or brown. I rediscovered some wool yarn - Universal Yarn Deluxe Worsted in Atlantic Blues - that I received in a swap in 2010 from Melissa.

I was feeling like my world was tipped back to balanced again and within just a couple days I had this little sweater all knit up.....well...mostly.

I will admit that I struggled...a lot....with the applied i-cord edging around the front and collar of this cute little sweater. I picked up stitches about 5 times by the end, and watched several videos. It never worked like I wanted it to. After reading the project pages of other knitters, I found I wasn't the only one who had some trouble, but no one really explained how they ended up working themselves straight. There were several people who mentioned they had no problems. I think it was me and my ability to understand the pattern.

That being said, I decided to forge my own way. Using the instructions from the pattern, THIS YouTube video, and my own understanding of the technique, I got it worked out, and I really like this edging.

I modified the pattern to include buttonholes all the way down the front, instead of just the 3 buttons at the top. Since I was intending this to be for a boy, I thought buttons down the entire front would be better.

In the end, we found out we are having a girl (which I've yet to be shy about mentioning....I'm still so excited about it...). Hmm.... This was for a boy. I don't really know anyone with new baby boys, or anyone that knows they are having a boy. At least not yet. And since I'm not one to sit and wait and be patient, I decided this would be for a girl. (It's easier to put a girl in navy blue than a boy in bright pink!)

So from there I found some girly buttons (actually, these buttons were discovered by Mr. Man....aren't they absolutely perfect for a baby girl?! I love them and I'm super impressed with his button-finding skills). Little sunflowers to bring some sunshine to what will be increasingly cold and gray weather. I can really appreciate the bright yellow against the dark blues and grays of the yarn. I did end up taking off the 4 bottom buttons so it's like the original pattern. But I like the effect both ways.

At the suggestion of a friend, I opted to leave it at that. I had considered some duplicate stitching, but I don't think it needs it. Simple is good for little babies!

If you're interested in reading about my applied i-cord, I actually have written a photo tutorial of how I managed it. The photos aren't great and I found it's hard to write what you actually mean...it's much easier to just show someone. But I don't have a video. Yet. Check back tomorrow and it should be posted. :)

You know what else I'm learning? I'm learning that I thought being able to knit baby items would make me more patient and calm for the time little Lovebug would arrive. Yeah....that's not quite accurate... I'm actually finding that in some ways I'm MORE impatient for her to get here so I can see all these little things on her! :)