Baby Knits...

Oh my, I do enjoy knitting for little ones! It has been a while since I've done so, until Grandbaby arrived last year. It is nice to have an excuse to knit little things again!

This hat is the same pattern I used for the blue hat I knitted last year. I made her dad hats using the same pattern a few decades ago...

And a pair of the most adorable booties. These were from a library book and I cannot find where I made a note of the title. Sure hope I'll be able to track it down again as these were super cute and very quick to knit! Will definitely have to go hunting for that book!

And finally a cardigan, which I think was from the same book as the booties. Also a quick knit (worsted weight yarn) and she looked adorable in her pink gear LOL

I need to go hunting....for the pattern book and the yarn I used! Ugh! I left this too long, I don't remember all the details...

Knitting Socks

Time to finally knit up the yarn (wool) I dyed last year. Only took a year to get to this stage...LOL
This is what it looked like after the first session...then I decided I wanted more blue and definitely darker, so I dyed it again. I used food colouring and basically used all the blue I had and was much happier with the result.

I used Sock-Ease by Lion Brand. Colour way 'Marshmallow' which is near white.

Doing my version of TAAT (TwoAtATime)- two sets of needles, two balls of yarn. Works for me...

Also I divided the fresh skein of yarn into two, by weighing it, and then dyed the yarn side by side by dipping the strings together. So although the 2 balls are similar, they are not the same and that is exactly what I was going for. It is interesting to see how it is striping and how different it looks.

After about 1.5" of k2p2 ribbing I did about 3.5" of double moss stitch. I wanted a texture, without a pattern and I am very happy with the way it is looking.

Turning the heels

I like the look of the gusset and the reinforced heel area. It also makes a bit of a cushion under the heel.

Unfortunately my camera panics at the sight of all this blue...

I am very pleased with how these turned out and how the fit so well. I think I'll keep to the same formula for the next pair, maybe just changing up the pattern stitch area.

This last picture is also pretty close to accurate on the colour.

I knitted along with Jana from Purl Together, following her on YouTube.

Knitting - Socks

Finally - the socks are done. In the end I knitted more than 2 socks what with taking out, changing the plans etc and decided to stay with the 2.25mm needles.

I ended up going with The Moccasin Toe by Donna Druchunas on Craftsy.
Craftsy had a time of free access to their classes, which I took advantage of, in early March. I don't know what the alternate name for this style of toe would be. So far I have not been able to find another example of it. I definitely like knitting it, and assume that it will wear just fine.

And here is the toe, side and top view, on the finished socks.

The heel I did in German short rows. I like the way Arne (Arne & Carlos) explained how he knits them. Personally I like his no fuss, no nonsense approach to knitting. Here is the video

For the leg bit I decided on a k4, p2 rib. I like the look better than the k1,p1. I made the ribbed area quite long and with the right side showing. On the picture I folded the cuff over but in real life I never do that, so knitted the rib accordingly.

All done and ready to be worn. With spring taking it's good time to show up, I will be getting use out of these before long!

I think one should be careful with knitting socks. It is the sort of thing that could become a bit of a habit. Fortunately, like a good pair of mittens, they will make great gifts!

I'm looking forward to knitting my next pair!

Knitting - Socks

It's been decades, literally, since I've knitted socks. It just never seemed important enough to take the time to knit those when one can buy then and I figured I'd rather spend the time knitting for the boys when they were little and lately knitting scarves and mittens and goodies like that, but the wanting to knit socks again has been lurking in the background so at the end of last year I bought some yarn from Michael (Sock-Ease) and figured I'd give it a go again. Never got to it though until February!

First time doing toe-up. I like the idea of simply dividing a skein of yarn in 2, then start knitting and stop when the yarn runs out at the leg. I hate the idea of knitting a sock only to run out of yarn a few rows from finishing the toes.

I used a pattern for a basic sock. Nothing fancy while I figure out the sizing. I used this pattern on Ravelry as my starting point and am pleased with how it turned out. However it is too big for me so I did not cast off at the leg. The yarn did not turn out looking as nice as I had hoped. But it isn't exactly ugly either.

Next I decided to knit a 12 sts swatch just to see how that would look and what the gauge difference is. I do like the resulting weave I got so am thinking of changing the needle size first.

Here is the swatch on top of the sock, The yarn wrapper calls for 2.75mm needles. The sock was knitted with 2.25mm and the swatch with 2mm. That is quite a difference!

Anyhow, I'll make comparisons and careful measurements and see how it goes. I do have a ball of beautiful purple sock yarn waiting for me too...

Warm Winter Feet

These are the snuggliest socks!

I found the pattern here : Bulky Yarn Booty, (the pattern is free btw!)and admittedly, they don't look like much at first glance, but when you slip them on, they are just perfect!

See what a nice shape they have? Also  although the ankle rib fits snuggly, it is not tight and slips over the heel very easily. I was concerned that it might be a bit awkward to pull over, so I was very relieved about that.

The yarn I used is Bernat 'Roving' which I found at my local Walmart. It's a lovely yarn, soft, silky and warm. I bought 3 colours for the main 'boots' (1 skein each) and a neutral grey for the finishing. It worked out really well and with 3 colours, the recipients will have no problem knowing which is theirs when these come out of the wash!

Best of all - with the bulky yarn and the easy pattern, these are super super quick to knit.

Go ahead and give them a try! Bulky Yarn Booty

Fun Gift Bag For Knitting

I'm not sure whether I get more pleasure from making gifts or from wrapping them!

After finishing the knitting - a lovely hat, the pattern for which you can find HERE

Next I stamped a piece of kraft paper, using Penny Black stamps, from the 'Nine Lives' set. This set is a favourite of mine...the heart is from another unrelated set.

Next I folded a gift bag using an empty cereal box that was a good size for the hat.

I folded it flat so that it looks like a gift bag

And in went the hat, wrapped in tissue paper

Some holes in the top of the bag allowed me to tie ribbon through and attach a gift tag to.

For the gift tag I used an image from the Penny Black set 12 Days Of Christmas. This set cracks me up! I could not find it on the Penny Black site, so I think it may be discontinued. The link is to Amazon.

Seeing as the project features knitting, I thought the 'Turtle Dove' perfect for my gift!

I sure hope my friend likes and enjoys her gift!

Snowmen Snuggle

Somehow a snuggle from a snowman just doesn't sound like the best idea, does it?

Fortunately these little fellas really are very cozy as they snuggle up to a colourful pair of mittens!

I used the 'Build A Snowman' stamp set by Stampendous. The sentiment is from the 'Happy Messages' set also by Stampendous. Both sets were purchased at my local Michaels store

The papers are from the Mosaic memories Paper Pad by Recollections which I picked up at my local Michaels. I paper pieced the hats and scarves and added puffy dimensional fabric paint by 'Tulip' A bit of glitter glue and a few sequins finished it all off.

Double sided tape lifts the sentiment so the twisted easel card stays propped up nicely.

I'm sorry to see them go...but they need to travel with the mittens to carry a big hug to my friend!

For the mittens I used Red Heart 'Unforgettable' yarn (colourway 'Stained Glass') and the pattern 'Spring Is Coming' is available HERE on Ravelry

It Must Be Autumn....

When I start reaching for the knitting...it must be getting cooler! Now I will gladly knit all year round, only this past summer was so hot and dry (nope not complaining, just saying ;-) ) that knitting was not on my schedule at all...

But the moment the weather changed and the air turned crisp I broke out the needles. I've done 2 projects, but the other was a test knit, so I'll post that as soon as the pattern goes live.

Here is the first project : finger less mittens for a friend's birthday. I used the same pattern I used for these beauties HERE. It was a bit of a hum and aaaahhh to decide which pattern to use, but in the end this one got the most votes.

I'm so pleased with the result. I think they are beautiful and hope my friend likes them too! I used Red Heart 'Unforgettable' in the Stained Glass colourway. I might try and get another pair out of the same ball of yarn. Even if I have to leave off a few rows at the end!

The pattern for these mittens are available HERE, on Ravelry

Year of Projects - May 2015

As far as knitting and crochet work goes, May has been a quiet month indeed!

I bordered the afghan blocks with the light colour and joined the blocks, but having the large knitted piece on my lap is too hot for this time of year, so I'v packed that away for the next few months at which point I will decide on the final size (do I add more blocks?) and do the edging.

It is pulled all out of shape here, but you get the idea.

I did manage to get a bit of sewing done, and would have finished, but for the planting/gardening that just had to be done first. Hopefully I can finish this this week - really not much to do now. I made the top from quilt room scraps gleaned from a place we were at where folks made quilts to give to people in need of a bit of warmth. The scarps were too small for quilt blocks and it took me a long time to piece this together, but it was interesting. I added stamping to tie it all together. I'll add more detailed pictures when it's done and I have better light for a clearer picture. (yes, I've never been scared of a bit of colour LOL)

I also unpacked the cross stitch project that I started many years ago. One thing after another had caused this to stay on the shelf for many years. (like the pet parakeet that would sit on the frame and grab the needle every time it pokes out the top. And if she couldn't get that...well any other part of the piece is fair game. I liked her company so I didn't want to shoo her away. I know...pathetic but true hehehehe) Maybe I'll make progress on it this year? I think it's a nice project for a Sunday afternoon.

Finally I got a few balls of yarn to work on mittens for gifts and I did make the May 3D crochet snowflake :

Queen Anne - it's a pretty one and so far one of the larger flakes. So far so good on this monthly challenge!

Recap of the list and I do confess that I had forgotten about that 'smile' project...ugh! how COULD I?

My Year Of Projects  To Do list
My list is very flexible I’m ‘afraid’ I’m forever changing my mind mid-stride ;)

• I would like to finish the afghan started early in December (that's the one featured above) Coming along with 12 blocks done. 12-15 for the final count with some borders also to be added. Put to rest until the weather turns cool again. The finished blocks are joined and bordered.

• I want to knit 2 pairs of socks -yarn bought for first pair, just need to decide on pattern. Undecided on the pattern. I was hoping for something to knit without too much concentration. I might have found the pattern...

• At least 3 pairs of flip-top mittens (2 will be gifts) I changed this to 2 pairs of mittens and one scarf (done)  Yarn bought for the first pair of flip tops (yay)
• Completed 4 pairs of fingerless mittens (all test knits)
• Set of 12 3D snowflakes, from the book 'Dimensional Snowflakes' Making them 1 per month at least. (5 done)
• Smile project (mystery ;-) ) hoping the new pattern will work! - haven't tried the new pattern yet.

Year Of Projects - April

Well I was doing the weekly posting for YOP, but that just seemed unnecessarily tedious to me, so I decided, after 3 months, to change over to a once-a-month update. Besides, some days/weeks I don't get much done anyway LOL

And then this month was busy with other important family 'things'. I hope May will be 'better'

During the month of April I...

Started adding a single 'log' of light around the blocks on the afghan. By April 10th I had run out of yarn (with 7 blocks done)

I finally got more yarn (after finding empty shelves on one occasion! Ugh.) But by the end of April I had gotten this far with those lighter strips. 4 more blocks need a single light coloured 'log' each still, then I can join them and start on the border. Slightly blurry picture...hmmmm.

and while there was tennis to watch (Miami Open) I knitted a scarf from an 'odd' ball of yarn I had hanging around. This will make a fine gift I think! This is the 'Quilted Lattice Ascot'  This knits up super quick though...not nearly enough for the tennis LOL

The light washed this picture out a bit, but I do like the details of the stitches!

I also finally boxed up the gift scarf:

And did make the 3D Snowflake for the month Prince Charming 

I wonder why I suddenly have blurry pictures? I'm not happy about that!

So let me recap my list :

My Year Of Projects  To Do list
My list is very flexible I’m ‘afraid’ I’m forever changing my mind mid-stride ;)

• I would like to finish the afghan started early in December (that's the one featured above) Coming along with 12 blocks done. 12-15 for the final count with some borders also to be added. This will take  while yet, as I need more yarn to make more blocks. I got more yarn and the afghan is 'growing' once more.

• I want to knit 2 pairs of socks -yarn bought for first pair, just need to decide on pattern. Decided on the pattern, was waiting for the new reading glasses. These finally arrived yesterday, so maybe I can finally make a start on these!

• At least 3 pairs of flip-top mittens (2 will be gifts) I changed this to 2 pairs of mittens and one scarf (which is crocheted and I have finished it - needs to be blocked), Yarn bought for the first pair of flip tops (yay)
• Completed 4 pairs of fingerless mittens (all test knits)
• Set of 12 3D snowflakes, from the book 'Dimensional Snowflakes' Making them 1 per month at least. (4 done)
• Smile project (mystery ;-) ) hoping the new pattern will work! - haven't tried the new pattern yet.