Baby Hat

This is my new nephew, Wyatt, wearing the hat I made for him. He is 2 days old in the pics.

Try, Try Again...

I've been wanting to try a pullover sweater for some time...so I picked a pattern and some orange-ey yarn and started. I even talked 2 of my aunts into knitting one too, all at the same time...a "Knit-A-Long" type thing. But unfortunate things happened with our first attempts, AND we decided we didn't like that pattern after all. SO, here is the start of attempt #2. I started with the orange-ey color again, then switched to a creamy kind of color....I'll switch back to the orange later. I'm just using good ol' Red Heart worsted weight acrylic yarn. This being my first attempt at said sweater (along with the fact that I already pulled it all out once) made me shy away from more expensive yarns. Once I get a few of these under my belt, then perhaps I will venture to something a little more ritzy.

Not Another Blanket

After the whole frogging incident, I decided to take a couple days off from blanket-making. Here is what I made! It's a shrug. Just enough to warm your shoulders on those cooler spring days. I made it hot pink to go with a dress I'm having made. The dress is black with hot pink polka-dots. I really like the yarn I used- it's very soft and drapey. (Is that a word?) I don't know what it is though, it was one of those 5.99 mill ends packs at AC Moore.

Ribbit

Oh, the sadness of it all! I was working on my current project and suddenly came to the realization that there was an unfixable and unacceptable error. At the very beginning. So I had to frog it. I ripped out all 20, 596 stitches of it. Yes, I calculated it out...I just had to know. I was surprisingly calm about the whole thing, and I started over last night...

One Down, Four to Go...

In my knitting gusto, I decided in January that I would knit a blanket for each one of my nieces and nephews this year. The first was finished yesterday. This one is for Delilah...her birthday is Thursday, so I finished it just in time! I used the Log Cabin Knitting idea from "Mason-Dixon Knitting" (did I mention that's my FAVORITE knitting book?) I think the blanket turned out wonderful! Delilah is turning four on Thursday, so I didn't have to worry about her checking this blog and seeing the pic ahead of time. I'll have to keep the rest under wraps until the birthdays are gone by though- all in August, September and October. Needless to say, I will be knitting like a mad-woman all summer long! I've already started the next one and have gone gung-ho into it, because it's gonna look really cool and I can't wait to see the finished product. That is great motivation! If only the house would clean itself, so I'd have more time to knit.....*sigh*

Washcloths

These are the washcloths I have made lately (minus the ones I've given away). Two of these are granny squares, and the rest are made from a pattern in the "Mason-Dixon Knitting" book. That is my favorite knitting book so far.

COMING SOON!!!

Just an update- I've been knitting my little fingers off lately! I've been working on making some washcloths to sell at the Alliance Women's Retreat. Also, I have been working on an afghan in the log cabin style...I have a few pics of the start of it below. I am currently putting the border on that and then it will be done! I'll post a picture when it is. I'll put one up of the washcloths too- they are very cool.
And now....I am also promising a picture of the SOON TO BE FINISHED never-ending shawl that I started about a year ago. I worked on it off and on all year- it was a doozy! I finally finished it on New Year's Eve in St.Louis, but have been neglecting the weaving in of all the little ends- and there's a lot of them. I actually weaved in half of them in the car ride home from St.Louis, but haven't touched it since. Now that I have posted this here, I will be forced to finish it! So, I will weave in those ends this week and get a picture up, along with the story of the inspiration for said shawl. Woohoo!

The "MANE" Attraction

Sorry, couldn't resist the pun! I knitted up this little lion the other day, and this morning I finally located some orange fun fur for his mane. Isn't he the cutest?? I'm working on making some other animals too, but they are still in preliminary stages. The lion was easy, as all he needed was a tail and some ears. No, he doesn't have legs....that's just the way he is. He's meant to be a simple, toddler-friendly toy.

Not a Good Picture....

I should have taken the picture on a solid background, but you get the idea. I got a wild hair one day and decided to learn how to crochet a granny square (well, again...learned when I was like 12, but I'd forgotten...). So, I got out my Complete Idiot's Guide to Knitting and Crocheting and here I am! It's about a foot wide just now...I guess I'll make it into an afghan. I like this yarn- the colors are so pretty! I haven't given up my knitting though, I've been alternating between this and the log cabin blanket...keeps me from getting bored with one or the other and then it sits there half-finished for months, like the striped Homespun afghan in that bag in my closet.....

Progress

Ain't it Purty? This is the progress on my Log Cabin blanket. I'm liking it more and more as it grows!

Current Project...

This is what I am working on these days.... it's going to be a blanket one day. This is using the Log Cabin Knitting method from the Mason-Dixon Knitting book. I'm going to have to switch to circular needles pretty soon I guess as the number of stitches grows. It's going to be pretty I think.
I'm getting psyched up for knitting the Warm Up America squares again during the Superbowl! Hope ya'll are too!

I Haven't Not Been Knitting!

Well, that title sounds pretty redneck-ish, doesn't it? Ha ha ha But it is true! I have been knitting all sorts of things since the last post, I just haven't taken pics and posted them. These are 2 little sweaters I made using the 5-hour Baby Sweater pattern, only I made them bigger so they would fit a toddler. I used size 11 needles and bulky yarn instead of whatever the pattern calls for. These are actually the second 2 of these I made...the first two were for my cousin Christa's new baby girl. They were much smaller than these. One was pink and one was a cool variegated purple. ALSO, after many months of working (and avoiding, and then working again) I finally finished the Never-ending shawl! I'll post a pic as soon as I finish tucking in all those stupid little ends. It was worth it though- the shawl is beautiful!

Finally, I tried it...

Yes, I finally broke down and created my own pattern. It is just a washcloth, but it's a start. It's a very simple pattern- some of you may recognize it as the "Triforce" from the Zelda Nintendo games. I used Excel to draw out the pattern and then wrote the instructions from that. Then of course, I had to try it out, so here it is in all its glory! Ha ha ha. If you are interested in a copy of the pattern, send me an email with "zelda pattern" in the subject line. I know, I know, the picture is not great...but you get the idea.

11 Balls of Yarn

Yesterday, I knitted this afghan on the size 50 needles. I used up a bunch of yarn- 11 skeins- that had been bought because it was on sale or because I had a purpose for it (at the time). Anyway, I thought it would turn out really ugly because I was just hodge-podgin', but it actually looks kind of nice. It's a good little size for covering up while you're watching a movie from the couch, or curled up in a chair with a good book....etc. I mostly made it to get rid of some of that yarn that I would probably never use for anything else so that I didn't have quite so much to move when I move the yarn over into its new home in the "remodeled" closet.

On the Needles Again...

OK, I haven't really been off the needles, but I have been working on this shawl that is taking me forever because the rows are really long now and they get even longer every fourth one and my shoulders have been bothering me, so I can only sit and do about 4 rows at a time. The good news is there are only 31 rows left...so maybe I'll have it done by the end of August. I have to put on the decorative edging too. It's going to be the purtiest shawl ever when it's done. Anyway, in the meantime, I took a break from the shawl and knitted this cute little round pillow. It turned out very nice. It is a combination of Bernat Softee Chunky and somebody's fun fur stuff that I got for $1 at Big Lots. It's a rather small pillow, just for decoaration. I think I might add a tassel onto each side to spruce it up.

Turtles and Kittens

Here is a little basket-bed that I just made yesterday for my cousin's new little kitten. I put "Fat-Fat" in there to model it! It turned out really cute, and it's nice and thick because I used two super-bulky yarns together.
This is Soapy the Turtle. I got the pattern from Knitting Pattern Central. He was fun to make, and I stuffed him with one of my homemade soaps (that's the plastic wrapper sticking out under his head) and sent it off to my turtle-loving cousin (not the one with the kitten).

Knitting Again...

I've sort of been in a knitting slump (hence the lack of posts)...it's not that I haven't been knitting, it's just that I haven't exactly completed anything I've been knitting. I made a shrug-and have yet to sew it together. I started a baby blanket. Started a bolero vest. Those are still on the needles. But meanwhile, here are 2 washcloths I made using the Log Cabin Knitting technique I learned from the new book I got, Mason-Dixon Knitting. There is a lot of good stuff in that book, so I recommend it. The other book I got, Last-Minute Knitted Gifts, was somewhat of a disappointment. Probably only one or two things in it I would ever consider making. Oh well.

Not your ordinary hat...

Here is little Oliver in the hat I made him for Christmas. Innit cute? Saw the pattern in adult size and smalled it down for him. He just had to have THAT hat. That's his Grandma holding him.

Warm Up America

Last night during the Superbowl, DIY Network had a "Knit-In". They showed Knitty Gritty episodes from 5-11, and encouraged watchers to knit squares to be donated to Warm Up America. Between myself, Mom and Aunt Sandy, we came up with 8 squares! Aren't they lovely? I think this is a really great use for those acrylic yarns that seem to pile up- you know, they get used for one little thing and then sit there. Well, here ya go. If you have an hour or two, you can have a square! Warm Up America puts them together into blankets, which they then donate to people who need them. "These afghans have been donated to victims of natural disasters, battered women's shelters, the homeless, and others in need. These items provide warmth and comfort to people who have lost their homes, fled abusive relations, or are being cared for in hospices, shelters, hospitals, and nursing homes. Agencies to which the Foundation has donated afghans include:
Women's shelters
Nursing homes
Children's hospitals
Hospitals and hospices
Daycare centers
Veterans' homes
Churches
AIDS facilities
Homeless shelters
American Red Cross chapters "

Fifty-Cent Slippers

Delilah was over today, and SINCE I always make her take her shoes off to get on the couch, and SINCE I just got a new tiny-people's slipper pattern, I decided to make her up a pair. So, I knitted while she played on the computer, watched cartoons, ate her lunch and played with some scrap yarn. I got the skein of yarn in the Target Dollar Spot quite some time ago, and I used about half the skein for the slippers- hence the title. They turned out really cute, and she wore them around after they were made until she had to leave. I think I will have to figure out how to adapt this pattern to my size.