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Resurrection day
Hexagon panopoly
Blankie for baby

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Komb Hexagon Blanket
Pattern: Komb, Berroco book #249 (Keltic)
Yarn: Jojoland Rhythm in M01 and M20
Needles: size US 7

Okay, maybe it was never *dead* enough to warrant a “resurrection”, but it was definitely forgotten and put away out of sight… and all it needed was a resurfacing and a little attention before it had a whole new life and new purpose. 

Started in December 2007, it was intended as a wedding gift for a friend.  Luckily, I anticipated how long this might take to complete, so we got her and her new husband a regular wedding gift as well…  It became clear early on that this was not going to be an enjoyable knit… I tried to practice all of my mindfulness and happy thoughts, but at the end of the day, it just wasn’t pleasant.  Perhaps it was the picking up stitches or the weaving in ends… the yarn was fun because it was a complete mixed bag – I never knew what I was going to get. 

I pulled it out last fall and winter and did a few more hexagons and then remembered why I had stuck it in the closet in the first place… and it went back in, about 1/3 of the way finished.  The blanket calls for 60 hexagons of a larger gauge, and I have 30 here, but I was planning to make 90 for a full afghan. 

The it occured to me that my knitting life would be much happier if I were to just “call it” with the hexagons and repurpose the blanket for a certain new baby in my life – my niece due next month! 

Hexagon blanket will now go to Baby V!  The fun bright colors seem perfect for a baby, and I thought the shape of it would be great for a stroller or car seat blanket. 

The yarn amazed me with each new ball – it is a nice light worsted weight wool – with so much variation.  I only used 2 colorways of the yarn!  Would you have guessed that?  The borders are a blue/taupe/tan mixture, while the hexagons themselves are pink, purple, green, and yellows.  Because I was planning a much bigger project, I have a decent amount left for some other fun things; it seems like a great yarn for winter accessories.  Mitts and a hat, perhaps?

I feel much happier knowing that this knit is no longer hanging over my head, and that it will keep my new niece all cozy.

Good news on the family front:  I am going to be an auntie (again!)  However, this time, it is my own sister, Mimi, who is pregnant.  She is due in early October and just found out last week that it is a girl!   Mimi and Daniel have lots of life changes happening right now:  they are moving to central California next month and then baby comes in the fall.   Kris and I are quite excited to get another west coast trip in this year to go meet baby (and to explore more of the central coast!) 

…as you can imagine, any time a knitter hears about a baby – and in my case, many babies, as several friends are also “with child” – the mind wanders to all the possibilities for little knits.  I have not ventured deeply into baby knit territory yet.  My knitting resumé includes two baby blankets, a bib, and a pair of booties. 

…I can add one more baby blanket to the list now…

Cotton Ball Baby Blanket – cuddly and snuggly in every way.  I got some cones of undyed unmercerized cotton at WEBS awhile back.  Initially, I intended to do some weaving with them, but instead, I decided to make a nice gender-neutral baby blanket with two strands knit together.  Simplest of the simple – stockinette with garter ridge edging.  Luckily, I have some more of this yarn for another one – it was such a simple and enjoyable knit that I already want to make another one!

Baby knits seem like the ideal way for me to do some major stashbusting.  This blanket was a great stashbuster (perfect for the Ravelry Stanley Cup Stashbusting KAL) and I have several skeins of yarn that fit well in the category of baby knits:

Do you have a “go to” baby knit?  Any ideas for the yarns I show here?  I have a lot of baby knits queued up over on Ravelry (and I received some emails and private messages asking me if *I* was going to be making a big announcement… nope… other than the fact that I will be an auntie!) but I would love to hear from you if you have a favorite – specifically little and quick things for small amounts of yarn – booties, hats, or toys!

I don’t have too many babies in my life, so the need for a baby knit rarely arises. I have seen many sweet patterns – booties, sweaters, baby pants – but when I saw the Mason-Dixon Knitting Baby Bib o’ Love, I knew that would be a knit to make. It’s the simplest of shapes and patterns, it can be customized with embellishments and fun yarns, and it is garter stitch. Easy, sweet, and a perfect gift.

…and now that I am confident enough in my knitting to actually give it away to people (it took me awhile), I thought this would be a really cute pattern for my co-worker’s baby-to-be. We are having her baby shower at work today, and I finished this right in time.

Baby Bib o’ Love
Pattern: Mason Dixon Knitting
Yarn: Cascade Luna (cotton)
Needles: Size US8

She chose not to know the sex of the baby before birth, so I just took a chance with some greens and blues. I used this same yarn for the scarf I made for my International Scarf pal last spring. It is a great cotton that I bought in NYC at Purl Soho.

I actually chose a different button that the one pictured here. I didn’t get the chance to sew it on until this morning (cutting it close!) I went with a wooden button like the ones used on my Sesame Cardigan.

I hope my co-worker likes this one!

…now I get to work on some socks…