Knittypants

Happy New Year!!

Happy New Year everyone!! I dropped off my blogging for a while, Christmas and family kinda got in the way, but I hope to get back to regular posting this week. I have a little bit of knitting to show, not much, took a wee break after the mad holiday knitting. Oh, and I decided to change the blog's look, this template is supposed to be easier to manipulate and plus it has little frames for the pictures which the last template didn't have, unless I added them myself, which was a pain to do. I have big, beautiful plans in my head of what I want to do blogwise in the new year! Whether they get done or not I don't know, but I will try.

This is the gift I was made for my sister. It turned out so well I almost kept it, but I forced myself to be giving and stuff and now it's perched atop her head instead of mine. Hmmph, she does look cute though, and I bought enough yarn to make myself one anyways, so I don't know why I am so covetous of hers. It's the Kittyville hat from Stitch'n Bitch, in Laines Du Nord Dolly Maxi.

Here's Kaelen after opening her drop spindle. I think her face was the best Christmas gift for me! I love it! I nailed that gift! She has told me to expect homespun yarn for all Christmas and birthday gifts from here on out.

This last picture has nothing to do with knitting, Christmas or New Years it's just both my youngest sitting in a bucket, looking at the camera at the same time, mostly smiling and looking pretty cute. I figure that makes it blogworthy!

Frogs and Light Bulbs

No pictures today. I finished Peter's scarf and it's blocking downstairs. It's huge, I did an extra two heads instead of the called for six and now I think maybe I overdid it. I asked him if he wanted me to frog it back a few heads, but he just laughed at me for saying frog so now he's stuck with the length. He wants it wrapped for Christmas though. I will get some pictures of him modeling up in the next week. I am hoping to finish my cardigan tonight, then when I go visit my family I will pick out the buttons and sew them on so I will be able to show you that when I get back, too.

I did discover something today, though, that was a bit of a light bulb moment for me. I have been wanting to respond better to comments left on my blog. I try to email or post back to their blog, but that doesn't always work, and I was wishing for a better way. Well, I was browsing Rain's blog and I noticed her replying in her comments. I think I've noticed that on other blogs, too, but didn't really register it. What a good idea! I am totally doing that. The simple things make me happy, and I like it when people reply to comments I've left on their blog.

PS I hate making up my titles. I get title block. So I apologize to my readers for my lack of creativity.

PSS I think it's dumb how blogger's spellcheck tries to correct my spelling for the word blog. Somewhere else I can see it but in blogger where I am blogging on my blog, blog should be a word.

Booga and Sophie

Here are the finished pictures I promised. In Christmas colors, too, which was totally unplanned.

Here is Booga who is very square looking. I made her in Elann's Peruvian Collection Highland Wool
which felts up great.

 

Here are the insides.

p>I just lined the bottom of both bags with 3 layers of plastic canvas cut to fit and covered with fabric. That way they are a bit sturdier. And I added a snap to both bags to keep them closed.

And here is Miss Sophie, all sweet and tiny, who I think is my favorite although Booga will probably get more use seeing as she is bigger. Made with Cascade 220, also felted great but took longer than Elann's wool.

 

And her insides.

 

I really enjoy felting. It's nice to have a finished product that looks good and covers up any knitting mistakes. They are fun and quick to knit, and make great gifts. I have a few more of the Black Sheep Bag patterns that I will work on sometime in the New Year as I enjoyed knitting these two up so much. Also, my mom saw the blue Sophie I made for my sister, liked it and now she is knitting up a bag for herself.

The Christmas Knitting Is Done!!

My sister's gift is done blocking and I will post a picture after she gets it. Now there are four items on my plate that I really want to finish before I start anything else. Two of them are simple and I will get them done today and post pics tomorrow (at least that's the plan). The other two are the husband's scarf (3-5 heads plus fringe) and my cardi (half-way seamed, crochet edges, and buttons which I still need to buy), the cardi I am realizing I don't really feel like finishing. I want these last two projects to be done by the time I leave for holidays, Dec 21. I don't think I will have time to block them as well before I leave, but that is ok, I will block at my mom's house.

So I have decided to bribe myself, I have set the following projects in a basket on the desk in my bedroom to call out to me every time I pass them and encourage me to word hard and finish the former projects so that I can get started on these new ones.

First up, I have two skeins of yummy Manos del Uruguay in Woodland.

This is a special Christmas treat to myself and with it I am going to make Sheep in the City's My So Called Scarf. I am really loving the pretty colors in this yarn. I especially like looking at it in the sunlight, so sparkly and happy. I can't wait to knit this up and so it gets to come with me on holidays.

Next is Austermann Peru which is 70% baby alpaca and 30% merino in a celery kind of green. At least I think that's what it looks like but I am not so great at describing colors. It will become the baby kimono from the Summer 2005 Interweave Knits. This is for Fiona and I need to hurry before she's too big for it. I think I had better take it on my trip, too.

This is Gjestal Naturgan No.1 in black and white to make Skully from Stitch'n Bitch for my husband. He is the one who told me to get this book cause he wanted the sweater. It's good though, I have made lots of the patterns from it and have plans for a few more. He wants me to make the largest size so that it will be really baggy on him and I am hoping that it will look ok and not ridiculous. Is 10 inches of ease on a man's baggy sweater ok, or will he look like he is swimming in it?

Last, I have some Brown Sheep Cotton Fleece in Truffle and Victorian Pink (truffle didn't make it to the photo shoot), to become 

I have swatched for this and will get started on this and Skully when I get back.

Whew! Long post. Now I need to finish up some knitting.

Little Blue Top and other stuff

This is my finished Little Blue Top. I finished this in September and am finally getting a chance to show it off.

It's the Little Black Top by Jenna Wilson from Stitch'n Bitch. I knit this in Jo Sharp Soho Summer in Cloudless. I lengthened it and knit a garter stitch hem since a rolling hem on my hips isn't a great idea. And no belt, it just looked silly on me. Although it didn't quite turn out the way I had pictured in my mind when I started, I like this top. The yarn is nice and soft and feels good on my skin and the color is pretty.

Here is a closer look at the front. Of course, it's way to cold to wear, but whatever.

Here is some of the knitting I did over the weekend. A cutie pie hat, from Last Minute Knitted Gifts. It's so darling, but ummmm....the baby's head is too big. It does fit my daughter's dolly nicely. I have frogged it and will reknit later.

A so sweet little sock. No mate because now the baby's feet are way to small. The sock does almost fit my one year old. I could have let the baby grow into this one, but the ribbing seemed to loose to hold it on a foot so I want to retry it.

I also started this, but I won't say much about it as it's a gift for Sister Snoopypants.

Lastly, I finished another pair of fingerless mitts but no pictures since I am bored of them. I am almost finished my Christmas knitting now, just my sisters gift left. I also really want to finish my husbands scarf and my sweater before we leave for the holidays. If I knit like crazy I might make it.

To Become a Hat and Sockies

I had finished two more projects bringing my list down to six. But a new baby has arrived in my world, so I thought I would whip her up a hat and some sockies. Hmmmm....

The pink yarn is for the hat and the blue for the sockies. I have finished the hat and one of the socks and I will post a picture later. I do know that I will be buying a gift for this little bundle of joy as the gifts didn't turn out quite how I planned. I had a little problem with gauge. They are cute though.

Bit of This, Bit of That

So I have been asked what I plan to make with the yarn I showed off two posts back. Right now this is what I am planning on making with it.

The Retro Prep Pullover from Interweave Knits Fall 2002. I won't be able to get to it for a while as I have a few projects in front of it and I can shop much faster than I knit. I really like the green that the sweater pictured is in, but green and I don't always mix so I figured blue was safer.

Here's another photo of the Alien Illusion Scarf. I have added two more heads, but it isn't getting knitting priority right now. I hope to have my last two Christmas gifts knitted up in the next week and then I can devote my time to finishing the scarf. It's for my husband and I would like to have it finished by Christmas, but he will understand if it's not. The pattern calls for two more heads so I am almost done but my husband is 6'2 so I want to make it longer so he can wrap it a few times around his neck.

I finished a few smaller projects last night bringing me down to eight wips left to complete. These are the second to last pair of fingerless mitts I need to have knit for Christmas.

and these are some little sachets I started in the summer and then left to molder away in the project cupboard. They are kind of cute finished and I filled them with lavender so they smell nice. Right now they are in my stash trunk warding off moths but there is a good chance they will become Christmas gifts. We will see.

Happy Birthday Sweet Cheeks!!

Just a warning, the following has zip for knitting content.

This post is for the grandparents.

Happy 1st Birthday Fiona Hope. 

Playing happily inside the box her gift came in.

Getting cheeky with the camera.

Sitting pretty with mom.

Tomorrow we'll be back to knitting.

New Yarn!!

I received so many lovely compliments on my daughter's cardi, thank you. It's so nice to be encouraged with my knitting. Really motivates me to keep going and trying new things.

New yarn came in the mail today.

Rowanspun dk in Cloud. Such a yummy color. I love blue. My stash is getting full of lots and lots of blue yarns.

And I've started seaming up my Go Everywhere cardigan. I am in a finishing mood so I had better go with it while it lasts. Although, I think I need to get into finishing up the Christmas gifts mood soon! Just three more gifts to go, but one I can't blog about and the other two are more mittens and I think it's getting boring just showing fingerless mitties all the time. I can't wait till Christmas knitting is done, I have some projects I really want to start. I will try to blog about them in one of my next posts.