Christmas Stocking - Finally!

All the siblings in my family have handknit stockings, made for us by Nanny, my Dad's mom.  They are awesome, and now that all the siblings are all grown up, we each have them at our homes.  I have always loved my stocking, so when I had Evy, I naturally wanted her to have a handknit stocking as well.  My stocking was always the biggest of the five, (benefit of being the youngest I think), and so I made Evy a ginormous stocking too.  Her's is definitely bigger and shares the same mottled color look, but is unique enough to stand on its own.  You can check it out here and here if you are so inclined.

Well after I had completed Evy's stocking, I realized that Kev needed one too.  He is always asking for cabled knits, so I decided the Aran Stocking from Handknit Holidays was perfect.  So here it is, Kev's Christmas Stocking.

I started this a little before last Christmas, and then promptly realized it would never be finished in time.  So it sat in a box for a year.  But as the holiday season drew near this year, I was determined to finish it!

I think it's fabulous.

I used Debbie Stoller's Full O' Sheep, which I can't seem to find in the stores anymore.  Good thing I bought a gazillion balls of it when I made Evy's stocking.  For the trim, I held one strand of Full O' Sheep, and one strand of Enchantress together.  It's the perfect amount of contrast, and matches Evy's stocking nicely.

This was a real step up in my cable knitting abilities   I feel like I might actually be able to knit that Aran sweater Kev has been requesting since I started knitting garter stitch scarves.

I've come to realize that my gift knits will never be ready in time for Christmas.  But as they are for my parents, I'm pretty sure it will be ok!

The Perfect Hat

For several seasons now, I have wanted a slouchy hat.  I made this cabled hat and this coin stitch hat, and for some reason didn't ravel the details for either of them.  By "some reason" I mean I had a wee baby and was working outside the home.  Which I used as my excuse for not being on top of things.  Judge that as you will.

At any rate, this year I found myself with a skein of Malabrigo Sock (thank you, Mom) that I thought would be perfect for a slouchy hat.  I spent way too may hours searching for just the right pattern, and finally settled on Felicity by Wanett Clyde.  I used Followtheyarn's modifications for the lace weight version, and voila!  My own Felicity Slouchy Hat!

This is just the slouchy hat I was looking for.  It's perfect for those days when you don't want to fuss with your hair but don't want to wear a bandanna   So for me, pretty much everyday.

The yarn is, of course, squishy and lovely and full of beautiful, soft color variations.  This was my first time using Malabrigo Sock, and I loved it!

I've also made a wee baby hat for some friends, details to come.  Right now I am feverishly working on Kev's Christmas stocking.  It's the Aran Stocking from Holiday Knits.  I was trucking along just fine, and then I misread the directions late last night and didn't begin the decreases for the instep correctly.  Sigh.  So tonight there will be frogging.  And then on to Christmas knits!

Hoodsie

About a year after I bought the pattern, I finally made Hoodsie for Evy.  This was a great little pattern, I got to use up some stash yarn, and it's a nice practical hand-knit for the colder months.  All around win.

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I used Knit Picks Swish in Indigo Heather, which is really a nice little yarn.  It's soft and squishy, and affordable.  The colors are pretty, and I think it knits up nicely too.

The only downside is that it tends a pill a bit.  However, I must admit that I have only ever used Swish for Evy's sweaters.  And as any toddler would, she wears her clothes out!  I should use Swish to make myself something to see how it holds up to normal wear and tear.  Did I just create another reason to buy more yarn?

Hoodsie in action.

I love hoods, and Evy seems to like them too.  She has fun lifting them up and down over her head.  Kev thought the sweater vest looked a little like chainmail, so where better to wear it to than the Renaissance Festival?

It was a bit colder that day than we thought it would be, and poor Evy already had a cold coming on (commence mother guilt trip now).  So Kev helped her out.

Evy inside Kev's sweater.

I would love to say that I knit both this amazing sweater and his most favorite hat in the whole world, but I did not.  The sweater was a souvenir from his parents' trip to Ireland (hand knit by some lovely Irish person), and the hat was a Christmas gift from my mom years ago (hand knit by some lovely Peruvian person).  So no, I didn't knit them, but somebody did!

Allons-y Scarf

I've finished my Allons-y scarf!  I know, a scarf in the middle of summer - what am I thinking?  I'm thinking that I'm not the hugest fan of cotton, and I am a sucker for both themed things and sequins yarn.  I based the scarf off Lisa Gentry's Sparkle Scarf pattern, published in Knit Simple.

My scarf is a bit skinnier than the original (details on ravelry).  The lace pattern was nice and simple, nothing too daunting but still an interesting knit.

I love the sequins on the yarn, and I love the way the colors gently change as the scarf progresses.

I called it my Allons-y scarf because I am still obsessively watching Doctor Who.  So this scarf is my take on the quintessential Doctor Who scarf: tonal color instead of stripes, 6 feet instead of....10 (12?), and lace instead of garter stitch.  And of course, it's blue.

I love it.  And now, come Fall, when my doctor says, "Should we take Little Miss to the park?" I can grab my blue scarf and say, "Allons-y!"

Spring Softie

Psst...I've finished Iced.  But we have to wait for photos for that post.  Here instead is Granny Bunny:

Granny Bunny is one of Nana's Bunnies from Vintage Knits for Modern Babies, one of my favorite books for baby knits.  Evy calls her Granny Bunny to distinguish her from the two other bunnies we have in the house (all stuffed).  Turns out, Evy has a thing for bunnies.

I used some left over Frog Tree Alpaca yarn and knit this cutie up in an evening.  She looked lovely and refined in the Easter basket next to the wooden eggs and hand kite we bought from apple n amos.

First FO of 2012

Some dear friends of ours are having a baby in February, so of course it was time to bust out the baby knitting!  I started this cardigan in August, as soon as I found out it was baby time.  After hours of searching through baby patterns, I chose Puerperium because of the side buttons.  The sweater is designed for newborns, and the side buttons make dressing baby so much easier.  The sleeves were supposed to be knit using the magic loop method.  I didn't have the needles required to pull off magic loop, so I stashed the sweater in my works-in-progress box, thinking that I would buy the needles at a later date.  Then of course, it was baby shower time and I was without a finished sweater!  I took another look at the pattern and realized that I could easily complete the sleeves using two circulars. 

 I actually had 6 shank buttons that fit the button holes.  Amazing.

Now back to Iced!

Goals...Old & New

Just ignore our red eyes!

Wow.  2012.  Time for my annual New Year's goal setting post.  I set five goals last year, so I'll stick with five this year.

Goal #1: Knit myself a sweater.  I've already started this lovely sweater, so I think I could succeed at this in 2012.

Goal #2:  Be happier.  This will be a goal every year I think.

Goal #3:  Be a more patient mom, and a more patient partner.  This will also most likely reappear next year.

Goal #4:  Knit myself a lace shawl.  I already know which one!  This gorgeous piece from Jane Austen Knits 2011.  Perfect.

Goal #5:  Get fit.  Which for me means being able to do 5 pull-ups, 50 squats, 20 push-ups, and a 2 minute plank.  Phew!

Wondering how I did on last year's goals?  Well, I made two out of five.  I knit a pair of socks, and I knit Kev something (the aforementioned socks).  Two out of five....hmm... 

Here's to five out of five this year!  And I hope all of your goals and dreams come true in this new year :)

Something New...

Why is there a picture of jewelry here?

Let me explain.  The other day was my birthday, and I decided to do something I've thought about for about 3 years.  I opened an Etsy shop.  I'm taking Kev's advice and just having some fun (i.e., not stressing about it, or having expectations, etc).  I know you may be thinking that I'll be selling hand knits, but not so.  At least not right now.  I love, love, love knitting, but I've only dabbled in designing my own hand knits.  However, I do have another craft love but just don't blog about.  I've been making jewelry since I was in grade school. 

As previously stated, I celebrated a birthday recently.  My 29th to be exact.  So if you add up the years...you get a whole lot of jewelry.  Add to that the fact that my Little Miss still likes to grab and yank at any jewelry I wear (including earrings...ouch), and you get a whole lot of jewelry not being used.  Instead of letting it sit, or not making jewelry anymore, I thought I'd share it.  So that's my little story.  The shop will also be a place for me to share other crafty things that I love.  Right now, it's got some Christmas ornaments that I think are kinda neat.  So check it out if you feel like it.  It's called bhuey designs, and it's wee and fledgling.  But you never know...stranger things have happened.

After much debate, I decided on the Matinee Jacket for Evy's Fall sweater.  I actually finished this months ago, but I just couldn't get around to blogging about it.  So without further ado, the Matinee Jacket:

My friend Rachel gave me the glass buttons, which were here grandmother's (ok, maybe great-grandmother's - sorry, I can't remember!).  The buttons totally make the sweater!

The sweater is knit in Swish DK, because washable really is important at this age.  Evy's has worn this this down already!  I'm a little sad about the amount of pills on the sweater already, but she is pretty tough on her clothes.

I've also made her a had and a pair of mittens, but I probably won't get around to blogging about them.  Still to come are Kev's birthday socks and my cabled hat.  On my needles right now:  Kev's Christmas stocking and Christmas log cabin throw.  One's got cables and the other is nice and easy garter stitch!

Heartwarmer....for me?

Yep.  I found Heartwarmer on ravelry, and immediately wanted to make it for Evy.  It's such a wonderfully old-fashioned looking piece, and I thought it would be perfect for early Fall wear.  So I picked out a lovely pink color of Knit Picks Andean Silk, which is a blend of alpaca, merino wool, and silk (note: pretty sure this yarn has since been discontinued).

Ok so long story short, I knit the thing up in the bigger size, blocked it using my kookaburra wool wash, sewed the buttons on, and tried it on Evy.  Who promptly refused to wear it.  She emphatically told me, "No! No!" and then pointed to me, "Mommy, Mommy."  Which is Evy speak for, "You do it."  So after taking a deep breath and reminding myself that Evy is all of 18 months and cannot be expected to appreciate hand knits, I tried on the shawl.  And you know what?  It's itchy.  This yarn of merino wool, alpaca, and silk is itchy.  Maybe the girls in my little family are just uber-sensitive.  So I'm using it, as a scarf neck warmer type thing.

Better Late Than Never

I actually have been knitting since February, I just haven’t posted about it.  Can I take a moment to blame my computer?  It’s a wee bit out of memory right now, so uploading pictures takes for-ev-er.  And with Little Miss Evelyn walking/running/climbing everywhere all the time (I swear the girl does not stop), it’s hard to wait for pictures to load at the end of a long night.  More often than not I look at my computer, glance at my finished projects, and then flop into bed.  But enough complaining, let’s get to the point of this here post – the finished project!

Citron – finally!!  I started this just after Evy was born (in March of 2010), and it became my pick-up-when-I-have-a-moment project.  For an entire year…

I know the pictures are not the best, so bear with me here.  I live in the basement and it's been raining forever.  We've actually started work on our ark.  This project was a great first shawl.  It was also my first use of lace weight yarn.  I used Knit Picks Shadow – 100% merino wool.  And this shawl is for me, thank you very much ;-)

Although I do think it looks much better on Evy.

I'll update Ravelry and links sometime...maybe.

Goals

It’s still January, so I feel like I can still post some goals for 2011.

Goal #1:  Be happier.  My default state of mind seems to be “stressed.”  I would like to change this to “happy.”  It might take me all year, or the rest of my life, but I’m really going to renew my efforts this year.

Goal #2:  Be more organized.  I’ve got myself a mommy planner, I’ve updated my ravelry queue, and I’ve started an account on Mint.  Surely this is my year for organizational success.  I used to be organized.  But then I graduated, and slowly began to unravel all the organizational skills I had picked up over the years.  So 2011 is my year to change my lens from “student” to “mommy” and get my home and my mind into shape (organizationally speaking).

Goal #3:  Knit myself a sweater.  Seriously, 2011 is my year.

Goal #4:  Knit a pair of socks.  I’m thinking I might tie this in with Goal #5.

Goal #5:  Knit Kev something.  Sorry Kev, baby knits are just so tempting.  But this year, you’ll get one too, I promise.

Goal #6:  Be a nicer, more patient momma.  This is directly connected to Goal #1.  Don’t get me wrong, I’m no terror, but patience has never been a strong suit of mine.  Maybe this year, I will learn patience.  Hey, it worked for Luke Skywalker, the learning patience part I mean.



And now let’s check in on my goals from last year:

Goal #1:  Success!
Goal #2:  Well...almost.  No projects for me, but one is in the works!  And no projects for Kev.  See Goal #5 above ;-)
Goal #3:  Ha!  I've just deleted the list entirely.  I think I read about 3 books, maybe.  It's read or knit.  We all know what wins.

Updates

And it's about time.  No apologies, life moves on as quickly as a river in spring.

A few finished projects to round out last year!

I made a hat for Evy some time ago.  It kinda turned out not so great...

Winging out a little, isn't it?  But I do like the fleece lining I sewed in.  I just wung it pattern-wise.  Wung it?  As in "wing it" but past tense.  Anyways, I wound up buying Evy a fleece hat from Old Navy, which is working out nicely.

Evy's Christmas stocking came out great!  After a few false starts, I wound up with this:

(I know, bad picture.  We don't have a fireplace, so the bookshelf is our mantle.)

It's made of two lovely yarns - Stitch Nation's Full O Sheep and Hobby Lobby's Enchantress.  The Enchantress is the red yarn, and it has tiny little sequins in it :)

The only trouble is that it doesn't come in green, so I shall have to find a different yarn for Kev's stocking (next year).  The pattern is loosely based on the Striped Christmas Stocking in Holiday Knits.  Mostly I looked at the stocking my Grandmother made for me years and years ago and went from there.  Holiday Knits helped with some of the more math orientated sizing stuff.

Last but not least, I made Evy's First Christmas ornament.  No pictures yet, but they're coming soon!

Christmas Stocking #1

I've finished something!  I love finishing projects.  Since baby girl came along, my rate of finishing projects has declined dramatically.  But that is perfectly ok, as my time is now taken up with other very pleasant things like learning how to crawl (yep!) and pull ourselves up (brilliant!).

I have in my queue no less than three Christmas stockings.  I finish a project, on average, every one to two months.  As it is now October, I'm not really sure how I'm going to be completing all three stockings.  But Christmas deadlines are all a part of knitting!

Christmas Stocking #1:

And yes, I know this is a horrible picture.  Becoming a fantastic photographer is on my to-do list.  After learning how to sew, grow my ownfood, and raise chickens.  Someday.

Right, back to the knitting.  This stocking is for my sister's little girl.  I made stockings for her two sons, and so this little one needed a matching stocking too.  An odd note about these stockings - they're not blocked.  That's right, I didn't block any of them.  I know, I know, but I have a good reason.  Ok so the first two stockings were made when I was new to knitting.  I hadn't yet grasped what blocking can do for you, how it smooths everything out and really "finishes" a project.  I was in college and a little bit lazy and I didn't want to make the extra effort.  Now this stocking I would block, but then it wouldn't match the others in their lumpy imperfection.  Plus, and this is really more to the point, the product I use for blocking (Kookaburra, which is very nice), contains nut oil, and one of my sister's sons is allergic.  So long story short, I'm committing some knitting sacrelege and not blocking this stocking either!  That's right, I'm a crazy lady!

Project Details

Pattern:  Striped Christmas Stocking
Yarn:  Frog Tree Alpaca that I bought from Kaleidoscope Yarns (love this store)

Patience

Mine seems to be all used up, for today at least.  Interrupted nights, no naps, and too much house work with too little time makes me feel like I have no patience left.  But, as I like to remind myself, tomorrow is another day.

But enough complaining.  Kev made me a super smoothie tonight with homemade whip cream on top, just to make me feel better.  *Beam*

So I totally geeked out over this book.  A knitting book about vampires that mentions Edward, Angel, Spike, and Oz?  Love it.  And yes, I am that geeky.  I've decided to make the Lore Hoodie first.  It looks like the kind of sweater I could live in.  Course, this project is waaay down the line in my queue.  I still have several Christmas stockings to finish, my Citron shawl that has gone into semi-hibernation through no fault of its own, and a sweater for to make Little Miss.  But that's why I love Ravelry.  I can log on very occasionally and look at my lovely list of projects that are, not forgotten, but saved.

Almost finished with Anna's stocking.  Pictures to come!

September Morn

September already?  Well alright then.

So about a month later, I can actually post an update about a finished project!  Let's not kid ourselves that I will actually get around to updating things on ravelry.  Maybe later.

But for now, here they are:

I know, I know, not the best picture.  But hey, at least I remembered to take pictures of this project.  These adorable little booties are from this book.  I made them for a friend's baby.  And as she finally has them in her hands, I can post about them.  They were very fun to knit.  I used knit picks swish, which I love.  The yarn is a lovely wool, but it's very soft - perfect for babies.  My Little Miss has pretty much outgrown her sweater made from this wool, so I'll have to make her another.  Of course, by the time I get around to that...

Change

Our apartment gets many visitors, it just so happens that not many of them are human.  Take the change in our toilet. Yep, I said change in our toilet. A previous resident must have dropped some  change in the toilet at some point (we’re going with that explanation), and—for better or for worse—I am not the type of person to reach in there and get it out. At any rate, the change gets flushed farther down for a while, and then inevitably reappears. It’s this strange little loose change toilet dance that we do. I would post a picture but really, does anyone need to see my toilet? No.

I’ve started a stocking! It’s looking good so far, don’t you think?

I’m using Frog Tree yarn, which is very lovely. Perhaps a little too lovely for a stocking, but then it had to match the others.

Unrelated, but very important—Little Miss is five months old today!

And It Only Took 10 Years

I've been exercising.  I know, right?  I've been doing this work out video, and I actually really like it.  If you know me, you know that I don't really do the work out thing.  And guess what?  I have so much more energy!  I know I'm sounding like an advertisement right now, but really, I feel good these days.  Even with Little Miss randomly waking up in the middle of the night.  My husband, who works here and blogs here, has been telling me how much better I'd feel if I worked out for the past 10 years now.

Let us take a moment now.  Ten years?  Wow.

Ok back to my advertisement for working out.  I was all excited about it last night, and Kev says to me, "Ah.  Another convert.  And it only took 10 years."

Guess what else?  I got some new yarn in the mail yesterday!  I'm making a Christmas stocking for Anna, and I ordered some Frog Tree yarn from Kaleidoscope Yarns.  I love this store (well, the online store anyway, I've never been to Vermont).  They always send a tea bag with your purchase.  Nice.  I'll post some pictures of the yarn and the stocking soon.

I'd Rather Be...

But we all have things that take up our time, so I'll stop complaining.  And no, Little Miss is not the time consumer that I'm referring to.  Ok, I was up every hour last night, so I'm going to stop trying to be cryptic and witty and just show you this:

A trick she learned from one of her cousins!  I do have another finished project to share, but this is also a gift, so I'll wait to post details and pictures.  And yes, by golly I will take pictures of this project!

Too Many Things

Too many updates I'm afraid, and definitely not enough time.  I did finish a project recently.  But I forgot to take pictures of the thing!  Argh!  I'm just going to go ahead and chalk that up to still being a new mom.  I just can't remember everything.  But I figure, I remember to feed and clothe Little Miss, so that counts for a lot, right?  I promise (to myself mostly) that I will snag the gifty knit back for a few moments to take a picture so I can share it, at some point.  Anywho...this is what I knit.  Specifications to come.

Evy had her first dip in the pool over the holiday weekend.  She was...concerned, but not unhappy.

Hope your July is going great!