A Picture is Worth A Thousand Words

 

I continue to be a selfish knitter with random acts of gift knitting. I'm not changing my ways. However, when I knit gifts for special little loved ones and receive these pictures back,

well, how can my heart not just melt. I knit this little guy the Top This! Frog Hat.

DMC Top This!

 You can't see the top of the hat, so here is how the yarn comes. 

This young lady wanted an infinity scarf that was purple, pink, and blue. Très Chic at this tender age. The pattern is the Honey Cowl and it was knit with Prism Symphony (Worsted: 80% Merino, 10% Cashmere, 10% Nylon, 118 yards). 

It does give me great joy to knit things for these little people. As they say, "a picture is worth a thousand words".

Alright, enough said. Back to my own knitting....

Practice what you preach

This is a tale of three blankets and knitting impulsively. 

I mailed off a deadline design yesterday which frees me up for knitting a baby blanket in Wonderland Yarns March Hare (Worsted: 100% Merino, 184 yards).

© John Lloyd/Cardigan Row

Initially I had intended to knit Tregaron, a reversible blanket that looks really cool.  I peaked behind the curtain, read the pattern, and swatched. I realized that this blanket was going to require a serious level of attention.  It is stunning and I would like to knit it...just not now.

I decided to knit Waffles.  My sister knit this blanket for our cousin and we liked how it looked.

Relieved of the intensity of Tregaron and riding high on my enthusiasm of meeting my deadline I threw caution to the wind and cast on without swatching. Wild, I know.

Big mistake, huge even (points for knowing what movie that line is from).  I chose to knit continental for extra speed and went down two needle sizes as I usually do since I knit loosely this way.

After casting on three times (errant cast on stitches), I finally knit a couple of inches.  I sat back and reviewed the blanket.

I liked the pattern. Unfortunately, it was coming out much smaller at 22" wide verses the 25" it is supposed to be AND my stitches were not as tidy as I would like. I was knitting with Eileen and Lois at the time.  As I lamented whether or not it was too small and if I should start over, Eileen said "If it makes you feel any better, I would start over".  It did make me feel better.  Eileen is not one for starting over if she can avoid it.

I went home and decided to swatch.  I blamed the blanket pattern.  What else could I do?

Indecision hit me.  Do I still want to knit Waffles?  Am I hungry thinking about Waffles?  I remembered that Michelle knit the Collina Blanket recently and it was a quick knit.

Well, if I'm swatching for one, I might as well swatch for the other and compare.

Which do you like better? Waffles...

or the Collina Blanket?

Please post a comment with your pattern preference. Time is of the essence. 

The baby is due in two months!

I just can't help myself

I am an Eleventh hour person.  No matter how much I work on being ahead of the game, I work better in the eleventh hour. I feel like there should be a 12- step program, or maybe an 11-step program

When I found out there was going to be a baby shower for a family friend's daughter, I quickly picked up my needles.

I am a self proclaimed selfish knitter, it's true.  However, there is something special about knitting a gift.

First I knit the Garter Yoke Cardi in Debbie Bliss Cashmerino (Sport: 55% Wool, 33% Microfiber, 12% Cashmere, 137 yards).

When I still had yarn and time to spare, I knit up a pair of Comfy Baby Socks.

After that, I still had yarn and time to spare (although at this point, we are talking days till the shower). I began my Baby's First Hat.  I started out striping it and didn't like that. 

Instead, I knit until I ran out of white, then switched to silver. With one day left and no time to spare, I power knit a baby hat and literally used up every bit of the yarn I bought for the sweater project.

I finished the knitting at 9:30 pm the night before the shower.  I soaked it in Dreft and laid it out to dry using a whisk in the hat and a fan to ensure it dried over night.

I'm happy to say that the mom-to-be was delighted with the gift. She made very rewarding ooh and ahh sounds. 

The ensemble. Next, I'll knit her a blanket for when the baby's born.

Just call me the 11th hour knitter

Thing #2  stopped by to see me at the shop and wanted to make a date. Otherwise known as "take me, bring me, buy me".  I know I'm being a little harsh. In her defense, she's worked hard all summer and wants to spend time together before going back to school. At an age when kids often want no part of their parents, I'm happy she likes me. Today.

We decided to get pedicures together. While catching up, we had the following conversation:

Me: "Do you want a knitted something for Hanukkah or are you knitted out? (Foolishly thinking I'd be ahead of the holiday game.)  Oh, wait! You wanted a sock monkey. You can pick the yarn."
Her: Eyes wide, "I want that for school."
Me: Eyes wider, "ok (thinking, great, I'll make that for Hanukkah)."
Her: "I want that for starting school, I told you that"
Me: Eyes wider still with a sinking feeling in my stomach. Silence.

 She leaves for school in 10 days.

So there you have it, with design projects and sample knitting lining up like planes at a busy airport, I will be making a sock monkey in week's time.

All those expressions come to mind:
"The 11th hour"
"Best laid plans of mice and men often go awry."
"We Plan, God Laughs."

"If you want something done, ask a busy person to do it. The more things you do, the more you can do."

I'm sure I could find more, but you get my drift.  Also, who has time to surf the web for quotes when there is a sock monkey to make?

.

© IraRott Inc

Say Hello to my Little Friend

The only teddy bear toy I ever knit came out cute, but was a huge pain to knit.  Two ears, two arms, two legs, a nose, the body. So many bits and pieces.  Then stuffing and sewing them all on, and evenly? Annoying. Cute bear though.

Then I became aware of Otto the Polar Bear. Otto is knit all in one piece, stuffed as you knit, no seams. I knit these two little Otto bears for my friend's children. The one on the left was knit in Berroco Comfort (Worsted: 50% Nylon, 50% Acrylic, 210 yards).

The rainbow bear was knit with Noro Matsuri (DK: 87% Cotton, 13% Wool, 159 yards). At the shop today, one of my co-workers taught me how to do the satin stitch.  She suggested eyelashes.  It looks like she's got false eyelashes. I like it though, totally adds character. Each bear took less than one skein.

And this picture makes it all worth while.  It doesn't get any better than this.

I remembered the head band I knit while taking a class with Mary Jane Mucklestone.  It made a perfect sash for Daisy (now named).

I don't often knit for others.  Having something I knit so clearly loved and appreciated right away is a rewarding, wonderful feeling. Almost makes me want to make more things for other people.  Almost. At least for this little girl.

This is one of the reasons why we knit (crochet).

 

Diane knit several baby things in anticipation of her first grandchild.   This is called Old Shale Blanket, a lovely feather and fan design.

 

 This was a pattern she found online.  How adorable is this baby!  

 

Here is the capper, this is a sweater Diane's mom knit 34 years ago.  What an incredibly special family heirloom.

Creating something for special people and occasions is one of the most rewarding things about our craft.

Sprinkles

 My little girly girl loved her pink and rainbows 

scarf and hat. 

 Furby especially liked the hat.  I can't believe these things are still around.  There is no off switch!!!!

 

Like any child she also enjoyed the ribbons that wrapped her hat/scarf.

She even played "make believe" that she was a sleepy reindeer.  It must've been a reindeer with pink/rainbow horns.

Her dad came up with the name Sprinkles.  The scarf pattern is a free ravelry download. For the hat, I used my Simple & Easy Hat for the Whole Family and added a few stripes of the novelty yarns.

It is so fulfilling when what you make for someone is happily received.

You've got the cutest little baby face

I'm mostly a selfish knitter.  However receiving pictures like this one makes it all worth while.  This is the perfect thank you for the Chloe Sweater I knit Megg's daughter.  I love this top down sweater, in sizes from 3 months through size 10.

Who Knew Mittens Could Be So Much Fun

 I made my little friend a pair of pink mittens.  I added a variegated yarn because I just couldn't knit solid color mittens.  They needed a little pizzazz.  The yarn is Zara Plus.

 I was really worried that they would be too big. 

 I have no concept of baby sizes and just winged it.

 This picture looks like she's waving off the paparazzi.

 This one is my favorite.

Seeing her enjoy the mittens gives me great joy.  That's what knitting for someone else is all about.

Baby's Birthday Gift

Baby had her first birthday this weekend and I finished her gifts just in time. This is the Minnow Knits China Doll Jacket. I knit it in Minnow Merino, yellow was her mom's choice. The buttons are by Zecca. I like double seed stitch more than regular seed stitch.  With regular seed stitch I tend to slip into k1p1 ribbing when my mind wanders.

Here are 2 more Amigurumi crocheted toys. One is clearly a pear. The other one was supposed to be a strawberry, but I couldn't find the right color in time. I went with what I had. She's one and it's a cute toy.

 

Yay!

Baby shower gifts

On Sunday I co-hosted a baby shower for our family's au pair from when my kids were really little. She is a special member of our family. I have a feeling I'm going to have something for her baby on my hooks/needles from now on.

The baby bunting is from Design's by Louise (knit in Tahki Torino Bulky), the hat is from Sublime book #617 (knit in Berroco Comfort DK), I improvised the mittens (knit in Tahki Torino Bulky), and the baby booties (knit in Rowan Calmer) are from Baby Crochet: 20 Hand-Crochet Designs for Babies 0--24 Months

I've got the blanket below on the needles now; I'm knitting it in Berroco Comfort DK. It's Lion Brand's Spiral throw. The pattern is free when you sign up for their newsletter.