Completions

I have been VERY productive this semester, as mentioned previously. Here are a few of the things I have finished. (This is not a complete rundown, since some of the projects were commissions, which I will talk about tomorrow, or are Christmas gifts, which I will show you after the holiday!)

Three Towers:
A few months ago I was ordering yarn from KnitPicks and needed to spend another $3 in order to get free shipping...so I ordered a ball of Swish DK Yarn in Merriwether...a color they don't seem to have anymore. When it arrived, I realized that it was almost the same color as Sister's eyes, and decided use it to make a beret for her. I had come across a stitch pattern that looked like the Eiffel Tower. Since Sister and I visited Paris together, I thought it would be fun to try and incorporate that into my standard beret. The result? The Three Towers.

Grimm Scarf:
I had initially hoped to submit the pattern for my blood and shadows scarf to KnitPicks. Who knows? I still might. In order to do so, I needed to knit a version of it out of one of their yarns. I bought a skein of the Imagination Hand Painted Sock Yarn in Wicked Witch. I also decided that the scarf pattern needed a new name. Since the original scarf was made as an homage to vampire literature, I knew I wanted a name that was dark. At the same time, I wanted to tie the name into the fantasy nature of the yarn colourways. How handy that some of the best fairy tales were written by the Brothers Grimm. I finished the scarf while I was in Kentucky a few weeks ago.

Shrug:
I made myself a shrug out of KnitPicks Shamrock yarn in Campbell. I LOVED working with this yarn. The color changes in it kept the knitting interesting, even though the pattern was the single most brainless project I think I have ever done! The pattern was the free Lion Brand Stockinette Shrug. I've linked to it, but it may require a membership to view. It is a REALLY easy pattern. You knit a really long rectangle with ribbing at each end, and then seam up the sides. It is crazy. And I think it is very flattering. (Also, it is very warm...being Shetland wool and all...)

Clementine Cardi:
I sort of almost finished this one. But I am still mad at it. No pictures until I get to Washington.

Colton Scarf:
After I finished the Baby^3 Blanket, I had odd amounts of the various yarns left over. What to do? What to do? And then it hit me...make a version of the scarf that goes with everything! I did a 2x2 ribbed scarf, changing yarns at random points throughout. It came out beautifully. I'm giving it to BFF for Christmas so that she can match the baby! (I'm pretty sure she doesn't read the blog, so I feel perfectly safe posting it here...)I think that this is a really great way to use up the stash as well. I have lots of little teeny tiny scrap balls that are just begging to be scarfed up!

C is here!

BFF had her baby! Isn't he adorable?(She did not have him on my birthday like she initially promised...but I suppose that I can forgive her!)

It was an adorable little boy, which they named "C". (If you list all of the family's first initials they are ABCDE. Pretty clever.)

However, since she was so rude as to give birth early, the lovely Baby^3 Blanket that I was making for her wasn't quite finished. I would feel bad, except I feel that it truly wasn't my fault. (Besides, she got it in the mail about a week later.)

I really did love making this blanket. You may remember that it is a very loose interpretation of a Mason-Dixon design. I had a few hiccups...I started one section with the wrong color and didn't realize it till I was halfway through the patch, for example. Luckily it was meant to be freeform, so in the end it all worked out.

I really want to make another one. Maybe a more adult version for me. Or a more planned version. It was great travel knitting. All the yarns fit into one bag, the garter stitch allowed me to look at scenery/chat with people, and it impressed people.

Another Episode of Cuteness!

I went to Preach and Psych's house for a bible study last Monday.

Before class started, I was sitting on the floor knitting a coffee cup cozy.

Angel walked in, and asked if she could help. She wanted to knit, too.

Angel is only three years old. Barely three, in fact. Three years and 17 days.

Even I think that is a wee bit young to be entrusted with sharp pointy objects.

Still, who was I to crush her little creative instincts?

I invited her to sit in my lap and "help" me.

JoNo was there, and took this video for me, and texted it to my iPhone. I would have posted it sooner, but it took me this long to figure out how to get it off the phone and onto the computer...



The cutest 14 seconds ever! (She actually "helped" for quite a while.)

Bad Guesstimator

Apparently I am VERY bad about guesstimating head sizes.

I took the on-the-fly Nordic style beanie to Brother's house with me. The one I was sure would be way too big for Nephew...and while it is a little roomy, it actually fit him!

So, guess who has yet another hat from his Auntie?

Nephew's Baby Shower

I drove to Brother and Sis-in-Law's house on Tuesday to attend Nephew's baby shower. In a fairly predictable and possibly boring move, I took burp rags.

Seeing as how Nephew is family...he got 3 burp rags instead of my standard 2. (I had every intention of making 4, but can't seem to find the skein of blue yarn anywhere...and since I know I bought it, I refuse to just buy another. I guess I will just owe him one till it shows up.)

Also, I gave him the off-the-top-of-my-head-no-fore-thought toy. It is a baby block. Sort of. Once I stuffed it it morphed into more of a ball.

I had actually seen patterns for baby blocks, but they all seemed to involve knitting the 6 sides separately, and then seaming them up. I hate seaming up.

Then I remembered back to my elementary school days, when I used to make paper dice with my friends by cutting cross shapes out of construction paper. So, I knit a cross, and then seamed and stuffed it. (Yes, seaming up was required, but not nearly to the same extent.)

It came out pretty cute. Maybe I will type up the pattern and post it. (And maybe if I used foam instead of stuffing it would stay a cube...)

Ornament Exchange

The ladies at my church had an ornament exchange tonight.

I hate ornament shopping, especially this time of year. The ornament shop at the mall is always crowded, dark, and claustrophobic making. The mall in general is to be avoided at all costs.

So instead of buying my ornament...I made two!

I used the same mitten pattern I used for my mitten storytime. I used red and green dk wool, and embroidered the snowflakes on in white. (Actually, the yarn is all from my stash...the red is leftover from Twilight's beret...cream is from my beret...green is from Hawaii's wrist warmers...)

I think they really turned out cute.

And, Blondie seemed very pleased to take them home! (She stole for them!)

We Interrupt Our Regularly Scheduled Postings

For a brief moment of extreme cuteness:



Psych texted me the above photo of Angel yesterday morning...she is all decked out in her Envy Hat and carrying her Birthday Bangle Bag. I had an appropriate moment of reveling in the cuteness, and then went on with my day.

My day included redeeming my birthday pedicure gift certificate from Psych's family. I went to the nail salon, which was surprisingly busy for a Friday at 3! There were 6 other customers there. I sat awkwardly in the chair, wondering what I was supposed to be doing while my feet were being mucked about with. My choices appeared limited to watching a Vietnamese soap opera or reading trashy gossip magazines. I decided to do neither. I reached in my purse and pulled out a blue Envy Hat to work on. Knitting while getting my feet massaged is my new definition of bliss. (Also, since this hat is being commissioned, and the pedicure was free...I was essentially getting paid to have my toes painted...just saying.)

Anyway, by the end of the day I had hats on the brain. It has FINALLY gotten slightly chilly. It even sprinkled a bit yesterday. So I pulled out the tub-o-scarves (which also contains my hats), and started rummaging. I found my alpaca beret and decided on a whim to wear it to church. (We are having a gospel meeting this weekend.)

When I got to services, I was greeted by Angel. She started giggling and announcing that we matched. (This announcement was accompanied by her pounding herself on her head, in case I hadn't seen she was still wearing her hat.) Yet another moment of extreme cuteness:

Hat Envy

There is a very cute little girl, Bounce, at church who came to services in a crocheted beanie a couple weeks ago.

The beanie was adorable, very 1920's flapper or 1960's Biba. Psych saw Bounce's beanie and suffered from...hat envy.

Angel had a head, so it followed that Angel also needed a cute beanie. Psych commissioned one the following Monday night. (And since Angel has a tiny head, I went ahead and took it on.) However, lest we be considered copy cats, the beanie needed to be slightly different.

The differences are:
1. I knit the beanie, I did not crochet it.
2. Bounce's beanie was pink, Angel's beanie is cream.
3. Bounce's beanie had a sparkly lame flower, Angel's has a cream knit flower.

Essentially, it is a very very sized down version of what I made for my cousins and I, out of a white merino/alpaca blend from the stash, on size 4 needles. The flower pattern is one I found online here. I started the beanie on Halloween, and worked on it while hanging out at Brother's house. (It was small...and so was portable... with an easily memorized stitch pattern...and therefore a really good travel project!)

I delivered it last night when I was at Preach and Psych's for a bible study. (Poor thing was pretty sleepy when I got there...hence the bleary eyed photo!)

Interesting side note: one case of hat envy has spawned another. I finished up Angel's hat in the break room yesterday...and one of my co-workers decided her granddaughter would REALLY look cute in a blue version...

SOOO Cute!

As you may recall, I made a baby sweater for my friend Macchiato's baby Single Shot.

Well, she finally fits into it, so Macchiato sent me a photo:



Isn't she adorable?

Sweet Sunday

When I got to services yesterday morning, I had a sweet surprise awaiting me. Blossom was wearing the sweater I knit for her! I have knit a lot of baby gifts over the years...normally hats or burp rags. This, however, was the first time I had ever seen one in use! Most of my friends with babies live far away. Also, since this was the first real sweater I had knit for an infant, I had been concerned about whether or not it would fit...and it did!



To make the day EVEN better...at the grad party last night, Belle let me hold Blossom...TWICE. Since she was still in the sweater, I had Matador take a few quick pics of the event. This was the best one.



I was one happy knitter!

Yet Another One Bites The Dust

Yet another completed baby gift to cross off the project queue:



This one is for Red. She doesn't know what she is having, which kind of limits me. She was on the burp rag list. I had the yarn cast on and everything. Then while surfing around for patterns for Niece or Nephew, I came across one for the Bunny Blanket Buddy. (I would link to it, but you have to be a member of the Lion Brand club to access it.)

It was an incredibly speedy knit, and a little cuter than a burp rag...although it can serve the same purpose. It is also knit from Scoubi Du, only this time in the yellow stone wash.

As we speak it wings its way to the Midwest, where Red is NOT awaiting it, since she doesn't know it is coming!

Her oldest daughter Twilight, on the other hand, is expecting something in the mail...I should probably go work on finishing that, too!

(By the way...did I mention that a week or so ago I recieved news that yet ANOTHER friend is expecting? Or rather, his wife is? As a guy friend he can just take the burp rags and deal with it!)

So Cute It Hurts

One of the seemingly zillion pregnant friends I have is Macchiato. She is an interesting friend in that we have only actually met in person twice. However, we get along splendidly and keep in touch online. Also, I taught her how to knit...and she really took off. (There is a special place in my heart for each and every one of my "disciples"!)

Anyway...Macchiato needed a baby gift. (Go figure.) And I was all prepared to do the sensible thing and make her burp rags. Burp rags are fast. Burp rags are brainless. Burp rags are what I do.

Then I found a pattern. A cute pattern. A pattern so cute it hurts. Not only is it a sweater, it is very definitely a girl sweater. I had to make it, but I had to make it for someone who would a. appreciate the work that went into it, b. like the style, and most importantly c. be having a baby GIRL.

Macchiato fit all three! So, when Single Shot is born...in June I believe...she will be able to wear this:



I used one of my favorite yarns in a purple stonewash, and lucked out with the buttons (found them on clearance at Joann's of all places). It actually looks to me like a miniature short sleeved version almost of my February Lady sweater.

Anyway...I got it packaged up and sent off this morning. With any luck it will reach Macchiato by Mother's Day or shortly thereafter!

Angel's Birthday

Angel turned 2 today. I generally give kids books rather than hand knits on their birthdays. (Partially because I want to encourage literacy, and partially because, when you are small, hand knits are not exactly exciting to get.)

I made an exception for Angel.



I made her a felted bracelet purse in hot pink. The pattern is from the book Drunk, Divorced, and Covered In Cat Hair. It was very cute (the purse, not the book, although the book is funny...but I digress.). I put in pink kleenex, a mirror, and sparkly lip gloss.

However...even cuter than the purse was the bodysuit I ordered for her:



I LOVE IT!

(Confession: I also got her a book...she loves Fancy Nancy, and they just released a book called Fancy Nancy and the Dazzling Book Report in which Fancy Nancy goes to THE LIBRARY!!!! Honestly, how could I pass it up?I mean, it WAS on sale...)

Why I Have A Tub-O-Scarves

Sometimes our house is cold...

It's a big house and it takes a lot of energy to heat it. This is a waste since normally, by midday, it is warm enough outside that the house heats up.

However, mornings and nights it is CHILLY!!!

My tub-o-scarves (and hats), is currently residing in Berkeley's room while we go through the process of room swapping. I went in there the other morning and discovered this:



A very chilly Berkeley bundled up in my seed-stitch gnome hat and neon Shaft scarf. (She wasn't actually dancing around at the time, more hunched over shivering. The dance was for the benefit of the camera.)

Had the tub-o-scarves not been there, I might have instead stumbled upon Berkeley, curled up on the floor, dead from frost-bite or exposure.

Instead, by providing the tub-o-scarves, I have enabled us to be a green, energy-saving, happy, and living family!

...btw I am going to make her her own version of the gnome hat to take to Brazil when she moves there. Since the seasons in South America are backward, it will be useful summer knitting for me and useful winter wearing for her.

Gifts Given

Belle's baby shower was today.
(For which I made oodles of petits fours...not knitted, but still crafty!)

I gave her the sweater for Blossom.

She loved it.

I also delivered the first completed set of baby burp rags...for Baby Peaches.

They were appreciated as well.

Itty Bitty Knitty

I am apparently over at Preach and Psych's house often enough that their kids (Wiz, Spaz, and Angel) are totally over me. I am there so often that I even have an assigned seat on their living room floor. It doesn't matter whether I am there for Idol Night, Monday night Bible Study, the Oscars, or just cause, I always sit on the floor to the left of the fireplace, with my back against the wall. And I am almost always knitting. Angel doesn't even come look at me anymore, she just toddles around and occasionally throws a ball at my head.

A few weeks ago I noticed Wiz staring at me. Actually, to be more correct, he was staring at my hands. I could just tell what he was thinking. It was something along the lines of, "Hey, that doesn't look too hard. I bet I could do that!" So, I offered to show him how. I was working on Broseph's scarf at the time. Seeing as how he is their cousin and lives with them, I figured he wouldn't mind. Wiz ended up knitting a few stitches, proving to himself that he could do it, then he lost interest and went back to whatever tv show we had on at the time.

Well, last night was American Idol night, and so I found myself in my spot on the floor working on B1's birthday beret. Psych took Angel upstairs to bed, but Wiz and Spaz were allowed to stay downstairs for a while. (Which was good since I had brought ice cream cake over for them!)This time it was Spaz that was staring at me. All of a sudden he scooted over next to me and just kind of looked at me. I asked him if he wanted to try knitting. He nodded, and I had him crawl into my lap. With great concentration, he knit a stitch. The beret is seed stitch, and I was not about to teach him the difference between knitting and purling. We ended up knitting for a while, him in my lap, and alternating stitches. He did the knits, and I did the purls. It was, I kid you not, one of the sweetest things I have ever done. Blondie even snapped a couple pictures for me.

Eventually he lost interest and went back to his pillow. Still, several times throughout the night he came back to do a couple more stitches. At one point he rummaged around in my bag trying to find something he could do by himself. Unfortunately, I didn't have anything to give him. All I had on me was a lace scarf and my sweater.

After a few minutes of him rummaging, and Wiz watching us knit, I asked the boys if they would like me to bring them stuff to make their own scarves. They both nodded. Wiz, to be exact, actually said "That would be cool." So, next Tuesday I will bring 2 sets of small needles (I think I have some red heart kid's 8's and 9's somewhere), and a skein of blue yarn for Spaz, and a skein of green yarn for Wiz. I will probably go ahead and cast on for them both, and maybe even knit the first two rows or so, before I get there. Then, before we turn idol on, I will show them the knit stitch and set them free. Between Jester, Blondie, and I (all who will by that point be able to knit), we should be able to help them out. Even if they never finish the scarves, or if they only work on them when I am there, its OK. I am just excited that they were excited about it.