Baby R is coming!

I finished these ADORABLE onesies this afternoon. My niece K is due mid-November and her M family shower is in two weeks. I am completely in love with this project and will most likely make more as our niece's and nephew's families grow.

I bought Gerber onesies in 4 different sizes, trimming them with three strands of DMC Color Variations. Tossed them in the dryer for a few minutes to unwrinkle them, folded them in thirds and boxed them up. 

SO. FUN!

Orange Chicken Feet

I have no idea where this yarn came from. I found it, without a label, in my Mom's infinite basement shash. I used Janet Prater's Chicken Feet pattern as a guide, knitting them up quickly on a size 1 circular needle, magic loop style.

My modifications:
1. I used one color of yarn
2. I prefer a slip st heel

I wasn't thrilled with how pointy the toe looked before I put it on, but they fit really well. I had planned on giving these away, but decided to keep them for myself! Ha!

Later!
M

Baby Girl Socks

My daughter picked out this Three Irish Girls yarn in the Everlasting Gobstopper colorway at the WI Craft Market on my last trip to Madison. She is a very brave sock wearer that loves bright colors and lots of contrast. I knit these without a pattern. Just straight-up plain, 54 stitch stockinette socks on size 2 needles with a heel flap and kitchner stitch toe. I can't wait to see them on HER feet!

Later!
M

And a hat to boot!

I had (barely) enouhh yatn to make a hat/beanie to match my mittens. I used Brean Miller's Kiwi Hat pattern and modified it to my liking. I knit 20 rows of k2, p2 rib, then followed the remainder of the pattern. I had 6oz of yarn left and the hat fits me perfectly!.

Paintball mittens

I bought a one of a kind skein from Bohemia Fibers called Paint Ball Greens & Blues in the worsted weight base. I felt the need to knit up some mittens as the weather here in MN is beginning to change. I love the basic feel of Susan B Anderson's Waiting For Winter Mittens and make a few changes to make them perfect for me. I make the cuff ribbing longer, the thumb tighter and the overall mitten one size smaller so the whole mitten is tighter. That's the way I like 'em!

I also have a new phone and tgis is my first attempt at blogging from it. I'll log on to my computer after my husband is done babysitting his Fantasy Football team today and see how it looks. Tell me what you think.

Later,
M

Dee's Birthday Socks

My Super-Friend Dee turned 30 In July.

I made her two pairs of socks for this very special occasion.

First came a pair of TreeBeard Socks. She has been salivating over this pattern for years and I have been working on dying the yarn myself, looking for just the right color. I finally found it online and got the socks going. Sheesh.

 

 I love, love love the Heritage Silk Paints by Cascade. A pleasure to knit with. The pattern was a little busy for me, but easy to knit once I found a way to keep track of where I was.

The other pair of socks I knit for Dee's Special Day was a pair of Hermione's Every Day Socks in Koigu KPPPM. Absolutely fantastic yarn to knit with and this pattern knit up in a flash. Easy to memorize, I knit these up quickly in 2-3 days while on vacation in July.

Koigu KPPPM is Dee's most favorite yarn. She is slowly but surely converting me into a high-twist yarn lover!

Later,

M

Holy Crap

Long time, no blog.

My partner in knitting has berated me for not posting in so long. My apologies.

Its been a busy Spring and Summer here in MN. My daughter has graduated from high school, we planned and hosted a graduation party, she selected a college, we moved her to Wisconsin, and she started school last week. In the middle there somewhere our son was Confirmed and passed his drivers test. My Mom went though chemo & radiation for anal cancer, at week five of her six week treatment she ended up in the hospital for 2 weeks, then a nursing home for 2 weeks, and just returned from 6 weeks of recuperation at her sister's in SD. All this while holding down a full time job and trying to maintain my sanity.

At this point in my life I think I can handle ANYTHING! (I'm usually not this confident.)

<<<taking a breath>>>

Lets move on to some knitting. Why? Because its what helped me "keep it together" during this very stressful year.


I finished this Trinity Scarf in late March and wore the heck out of it all Spring.

I found a stash of Debbie Bliss yarn that my Mom had bought and it screamed for a Honey Cowl. Yummy, Yummy, Yummy!

I think that's it for now. I have several more FO's to post but I need to organize the photos and get everything logged on my Ravelry page first.

More soon! Later!

M

Two Little Things

I made a quick pair of baby booties for my cousin Jenny's new baby daughter, Sydney.

They were super easy, and took less than an hour to make. Syd's Mom Jenny loved them.

In my Mom's UnderTheBed (hidden?) storage bin I found a skein of Dream in Color laceweight yarn (Sour Pear colorway). In the same bag was the pattern she must have received with it, Flyaway vest.

Truth: I started the vest and hated it, so I changed it a little, and I still hated it. So I frogged it.

This is a photo of what I had started.

I didn't like that the edge was a P3K1 rib and that the purl side faces out. I'm a KNITTER because I like the way KNIT stitches look. I'm not a PURLER. Purl stitches on the outside of a project is not my favorite.

I will keep looking for something to make with this yarn. The color is unexpected, but fantastic.

Later Knitters!

M

Hawaiin Twist Socks

I mentioned these Hawaiian Twist Socks in a previous blog entry. Dee bought me the yarn at her Madison Knitters Guild meeting after listening to Sharon of Three Irish Girls speak. She thought the colors were right up my alley. Oh, girl. You were SO right.

I started the socks the same day she gave it to me. I had fallen in love.

As you can see in my Ravelry project I worked on them at home, in the car, on my lunch hour at work (which is never really an HOUR), etc.

They are my new favorite socks to wear. They fit perfectly, and I love them.

I'm not big on hand knit socks that match perfectly. I prefer them to be a little different. It keeps people intrigued when I wear them in public. They ask.."where did you buy those?". (After I am finished being completely satisfied with myself) I politely answer,"I knit them." Most people are shocked.

My most favorite part of these socks is the faux cable cuff, uber girly and super pretty.

Later Knitters!

M

Decision Made!

In my previous post I was indecisive...

This is not like me. I normally have NO time for people who can't make decisions.

After some deep thought, and little math, I decided to finish a WIDER cowl with the yarn I had left and forego the idea of matching mitts.

I've blocked and worn this a couple times and am very, very happy with it.The Madelinetosh Pashmina Worsted is an absolute dream to knit with thus, this flew off the needles once I decided to finish it. I actually weighed the yarn, in grams, after each row, so I could maximize the yardage.

I had less than ONE. YARD. LEFT. It was freaking awesome. Yes, I did a Happy Dance once I made it to the end.

I wrap it around twice and it sits on my upper chest just like I wanted it. I am not yet proficient with taking pictures of myself with my phone (blech). Truth: I'm not very photogenic and this photo proves it. BUT, I love the cowl and how the high-end yarn drapes. This pattern was a great choice.

More to come soon! I have several FO's to talk about and have several WIP's to share.

Later Knitters!

M

Decisions Decisions...

I fell in love with and bought two skeins of this Madelinetosh Pashmina Worsted in the Mansfield Garden Party colorway at my LYS last December. The bright shots of pink & gold, and subtle transitions of lavender, blue and sage was something I just could not resist.

This yarn screamed Spring Cowl to me. I hemmed and hawed, printed and swatched, over and over again. I finally settled on this Tiny Flowers Cowl. Funky stitches like this Risotto Stitch blend all of the colors into a calm, non-stripey product. Several projects I started looked like clown barf where some colors pooled while others striped. Not. Cool.

Now the decision making part: I bought TWO skeins, remember?

I have used slightly more than half the yarn. I added the second skein about three rounds ago. Should I stop here, add the edging and pray I have enough for a pair of fingerless mitts to match? Or, do I continue in pattern and make the cowl much wider?

 I slipped all the stitches onto waste yarn and tried it on. I LOVE IT. And decided to continue in pattern for the wider cowl. Oh my gosh I love this cowl.

I have another project close to completion that I plan to finish first, but will hopefully get back to this today. We have more snow coming here in bright, sun-shiney MN so I should have some time on my hands before shoveling later today.

Later Knitters!

M