The Typha scarf is supposed to be about 2-times this size. I actually saw the modeled sample that was sent to Knitscene at Christa’s (the designer) house when I stayed with her in Vancouver in 2010. She was blocking it on the living room floor. Loved the pattern and vowed to make it.  The one I made for my sister is a mini version. I really wanted to use this unique yarn (Creatively Dyed Yarns Woodbrook in “Flash”). It was only 250 yards though, so there was no more yarn for the pretty crochet border in the original pattern. Probably for the best considering that my crochet skills are sub-par.

I have had a lot of starts and stops in knitting lately. Start something new, and then rip it out. I just couldn’t find something that was simple enough to do while unwinding and enjoying my down time. My creative stores are going to my writing, cooking, and gardening. So, knitting garter and stockinette is just the kind of thing I crave right now. I cast on for a lace shawl this past weekend, and didn’t even make it 2 rows… luckily, I love the look of simplicity.

Kris and I went down to Virginia this weekend to visit my sisters – Mimi moved here at the beginning of the year from California, and I take every opportunity I can to get down to see her and the nieces.  Baby V is now Toddler V at 2.5, and Baby Lulu turns 5 months tomorrow:

Sarah and I are probably the craziest aunties ever. All we want to do is play and kiss these cuties! (We need these t-shirts, eh?)

…and of course, I want to clothe them in knits too…

Since Lulu is 2 years younger than V (and born in the same season), I am concentrating on knits for V now – that means that they will get double the wear. This little stripey pattern is a simple tunic tank for the summer.  I am using Debbie Bliss EcoBaby Fairtrade Cotton that I found at a new yarn shop in my area.

Two 12 x 12 squares, sewn together with arms and legs, eyes and mouth around a pillow form:  An anthropomorphic pillow doll!  Squarey is a gift for my niece V, who just celebrated her 2nd birthday.  V also just got a baby sister – Baby Lulu was born on Friday!  That means I am auntie 4x over, and I just love it!  Hopefully V will be willing to share Squarey doll with her sister when they cuddle up to read or watch a movie.

I used some sample yarns that I received from the good people at Red Heart -Debbie Stoller’s Stitch Nation Washable Ewe worsted weight wool, and a few worsted weight scraps of my own to make Squarey’s stripes.  Arms and legs are filled with bamboo polyfill.  Squarey is soft and comfy and after making him, I kind of want one of my own now. Would make a nice computer chair pillow!

Here’s Baby V playing with some blocks on it:

The yarn was an acrylic blend – Bernat Danish Bulky in Moss colorway – for easy washing and wear.  It is just seed stitch until I ran out of yarn (9 balls of chunky).  It was a simple project that I knit entirely while watching Battlestar Galactica episodes on Netflix Instant… I nicknamed the blanket “Helo” after one of the characters.

I have some more knits to share very soon – belated and early birthday presents and another baby knit… in the meantime:

Happy Summer!

Slouchy Gauntlets in Dream in Color Classy “Happy Forest” colorway

Have you ever had a ball of yarn that is so great, yet, each time you cast on with it, something goes wrong?  That was the case with this yarn.  I bought it nearly 4 years ago in Chicago and I have cast on for projects *at least* 4 times with it, none of them amounting to anything.  Ripped.  (Then again, the yarn cake produced one of my favorite yarn photos of all time, so for that, I am grateful.) This pattern – simple elbow-length mitts – seems to be holding tight.  It is also showing off the varied shades of green in the yarn.  Happy Forest, indeed.

Jingu cardigan

A simple top-down raglan short-sleeved cardigan for summer.  It’s off to a nice start, and is a simple project.  I hope to actually wear it this summer – when I can handle a wool blend against the skin, that is.  Maryland gets quite sticky in the summer.  I got this yarn – Berroco Vintage DK – at WEBS this past Spring and I really like the way it is knitting up.

I am hoping to finish these adult-sized knits soon, or else they will have to take a backseat to the swath of baby knits I am planning as the resident “crafty auntie.  The official news is that another baby girl is on the way this October for my sister – Baby V will have a baby sister!  Good news is that some of V’s knits can get more wear, but I am planning some more special knits for Girl #2.  My favorite baby/child knit inspiration is coming from the adorable Norwegian site, Pickles.  Looking at the site is a cute overload (I mean, right? a baby turban? adorable).  If you follow me on Ravelry, you know I have been queuing up many of their patterns…

Speaking of… I have to put some finishing touches on the Eyelet Vest for Baby V – she will be here next week for a visit!

3 squares – made up of other squares.  It’s just so meta!  Choosing the colors from my stash was just as much fun as knitting the simple garter stitch squares.  Row upon row of, building a wearable accessory.  Lolly the builder. I didn’t pull out my T-square, but I did use the tool of my trade: yarn and needles!

I choose my yarns on texture – I went for 2 or 3 ply yarns with a sheen and sproingy quality.  I wanted to play with some palettes, so I used the following yarns for each block (inside out)

Block 1: Cherry Tree Hill – Louet Gems, Louet Gems, Koigu KPPM

Block 2: Louet Gems, Cherry Tree Hill, Three Waters Farm

Block 3: Shibui Sock, Louet Gems, Claudia Hand Painted, Koigu KPPM

There will be more squares in my future.  This project refined my “picking up stitches” technique, and now I am itching for more.  A larger scale version (worsted weight on size 6 or 7 needles?) would make a great baby blanket… or even a rug…

This project was a rainbow of colors and fit well into this year’s Project Spectrum time frame.  Today is the last day for reds and oranges, and with some of the leftovers (a stashbust within a stashbust!), I whipped up this pair of orange baby booties for my as yet-to-be determined nephew/niece, due in October.  It would be great if I find the fortitude to make a color-themed pair a month for the new baby… my own personal challenge.

Better plan my GREEN pair next!

Without further ado…

Emily @ Orchard Chronicles
is the lucky winner of the extra copy of Vintage Modern Knits!

Many thanks for the comments – it is nice to know that even though I haven’t been posted that much, some of you still read with interest!

(or you just like free stuff – maybe both?)

+ +

I have been looking high and low for my knitting mojo… and for the last few weeks, it has completely eluded me.  Good news is, with the help of my friend Em, I may have found it – in the most likely of spots: my yarn stash (and a little bit of enhancement…) We have been meeting up a few times over the last few weeks at Looped Yarn Works, the new(ish) yarn shop in downtown DC for some knit time…

… and inevitably, I found some things that came home with me …

Malabrigo Twist in “Zinc” colorway (*swoon*)

… and three skeins of DB Baby Cashmerino that just HAD to be this little vest for Baby V…

It is still early to tell, but the knitting mojo may very well be back in full force my friends!

(…and in case you wonder what I have been up to instead of knitting?  check out my GoodReads account!)

Of course, I have a lot to catch you up on, so, I’ll let the photos – and a few words – tell the story:

Late October:  lots of apples – mom and dad and I did a little daytrip over to West Virginia where we bought a couple of bushels.  I did a lot of canning and baking – like these apple cider cupcakes, for instance.

More floor + painting!  The entire second floor of the house is done:  Kris’s office, my office/craft room, the master bedroom and closet, the hallway, and half the stairway to the first floor.  Lots of work and lots of reward.  It feels like a whole new place, even though we moved in 9 years ago this month.

Mimi + Baby V came to town!  It was such a joy to see them both – Baby V turned one at the end of September.  She’s the belle of the ball and seeing my sister and her was an absolutely wonderful treat.  I had a Baby Owlet sweater waiting for her arrival.  Full details about the pullover are on my Ravelry notebook page.

I turned 30.  It wasn’t all that bad.

Thanksgiving with the W family – wonderful times!  We were rocking the red this year

Haircut (bangs are back!) and a new tweedy vertical stripe scarf.  Ravelry Notebook Page for the scarf here!

House is decorated for the holidays and while still under renovation, things are pretty ordered.  More renos to come – first floor flooring, and some kitchen upgrades… but that can probably wait till 2011.

~ More knitting to share next time ~

Thanks as always for reading

While mom was there, we talked about adding a little shrug or bolero for the dress (because Monterey has those breezes off the ocean… *sigh*).  Mom was intending to buy a little something, but I decided to take matters in my own hands… I sent some photos of the possibilities and we compared notes.  I didn’t want to take away from the dress, and I wanted the colors to match well.  Mom directed me to some fabric swatches at her house, which really helped in the color-finding stage.

I settled on the sweet and simple Debbie Bliss pattern, a free pattern that also appears in her Simply Baby collection.  The simple collar would not interfere with the Peter Pan collar and lace of the dress – and it looked like a nice simple style to match.

Baby knits are fast and simple, and I mailed it off last week (after snapping a few model-less shots) – hoping to goodness that it would fit and work well with the dress.  It’s hard to fit a baby by proxy!

So, it was especially thrilling to open up my email inbox and find these photos yesterday!

The dress (!) fits her so well, and my mom’s amazing skills really shine – and the shrug pales in comparison (but is still really cute and it fits!)  I used the Kraemer Tatamy Tweed cotton/acrylic blend that I bought last summer (with intention to use for Baby V!) – it’s lavender with little green and white flecks inside.  Perfect for the dress!  I was a bit nervous about the sleeve length, but it works so well.  I changed the ribbed edging to seed stitch so that it would not take away from the dress.  The pattern was simple and sweet – and easy to construct with only a simple seam under the arms.

She is all ready for Easter and spring with this cheery little ensemble!  Mimi reports that even at six-months she is quite the fashionista   …I have more planned!

And seeing this little “thank you” video from Mimi and Baby V made this auntie SO happy!

And what makes this auntie squeal with delight this Christmas Eve?

Seeing Baby V bedecked in the knit cardi I made her before she was born!

The smile means she loves it!

…and that is the best Christmas present this year!

~~ Merry Christmas dear friends ~~

Resurrection day
Hexagon panopoly
Blankie for baby

…

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.