Ah, Fall!

Thanks to some cool weather and blogless Erin's request for some pumpkin colored yarn...I came out of my knitting slump! When I turned to my stash I found that I had lots of pumpkin colored yarn, as well as some green and brown (although not the right gauge for Erin). I found a simple pumpkin pattern on ravelry and now I have my first Autumn decoration of the year.



Finn holding it to give you an idea of size...



I only got one quick shot of the lone pumpkin before my assistant lay claim to the squash and would not allow me to continue, so I guess he likes it despite the look he's giving me in the photo. My yarn was bulky, which worked just fine for the chunky pumpkin, though the pattern did call for worsted. If I make more of these for myself, I'll probably do them in different sizes and try some light green and/or cream to make them more Fall and less Halloween-y. Now...I just may cast on my gray yarn and have another go at that sweater.

knitting?

I think I know what that is...something about using needles with yarn to make loops. Oh, yes - I did some of that a few months ago and was well on my way to a soft and beautiful, knit cardigan for myself to wear this fall. I had even made a gauge swatch or two for the project (that's a big deal, here). And then I realized it was not going to be for me to wear at all unless frumpy is "in" or I gained lots of weight. I DO love doughnuts and ice cream, but I wasn't gonna go there. So after ignoring it and all other yarn in my bag for a long while, I got up the courage to deconstruct.



And this is where I am now. Unraveled, having second thoughts about continuing the project (darn you, new, enticing patterns attempting to steer me from my path). And I'm afraid it will take some cool weather to bring back the knitting mojo. Which means it probably won't be finished in time for me to wear this Fall.

Pop the cork...

my Bubbly is done! Started over a year ago, but neglected for the majority of that time...now I don't know why I didn't just finish it sooner. Once you get past the first half of the pattern it becomes much easier since it is much less random.

Here it is blocking...


There are two problems with the final product.
1) I ran out of yarn about 80% of the way through. I ordered more and while it's barely noticeably while hanging on my door, there is definitely a color shift that became apparent when I blocked it. I'm really not concerned with this.

2) The entire curtain used 8 balls of yarn, which means lots of ends to weave in. Since this is a rather sheer knit being held up to the light, that means that the woven in ends become visible when light streams through from behind. Ooops. So, if you're going to attempt a curtain that will be sheer, either get a large enough skein or cone of yarn with no ends, or perhaps switch balls at the end of a row and weave in ends up and down the edges. Since it is already starched, I think I'm going to let it go, but if I ever wash it again, I'll consider trying to weave them in less noticeably.




Despite these little issues...I LOVE it! The photo is a little sucky...it looks awesome live. I starched it like mad and it does hang pretty flat, but there is a little drape and I probably should have made it just a tad wider to accommodate that. Still deciding on the rod to hang it...the makeshift rod in my photos is actually a plant support - that's how eager I was to get it up on the door.

Okay, Erin...your turn! ;)

Yay, Fabric!

Nothing like a little (or lots of) fabric to bring the blog out of hibernation. I'd been looking forward to making my inaugural trip to an annual, thrifty fabric fair for a long time and was lucky enough to attend with some like-minded friends. Indeed, the fair did not disappoint and we were happy to hand over a little money for a lot of fiber. While there were a lot of people, we were definitely outnumbered by the goods being offered and it was a polite crowd, so making your way through the yardages was not an unpleasant task. Alright, onto the goods...

Some basic cotton with a little seersucker thrown in (I see blue summer jammies in the tot's future)...



a few cotton canvas pieces...



some lovely florals (yum!)



a few small bits (perhaps with a future as doll dresses?)...



some yarn thrown in for good measure...



and this lovely quilt top that pulled me in with its crisp white and bright colors...



Are you noticing a trend with the blue, green, and purple? I've always been purple and green's biggest fan, but the blue is a bit of a surprise to me. Perhaps a little influence from the tot who is rather blue-obsessed?

I also picked up some great fabrics for baby-wrapping (business expense, right?), a bit of wool, and several packs of bias tape. Sadly, I somehow missed the buttons - I'm thinking there was a crowd around them when I was in the area and so I just never got a peek. Grand total...34.90.

Now...there's just that little issue of my sewing machine having decided to give up on me last month. Where there are good friends, there are loaner sewing machines (did you all know how cool Michelle is? Very cool.), but I'm determined to resolve my machine issues for good later this month. Until then...I'll either be knitting that yarn or planning some fun new sewing projects. I'm looking forward to having the fabric determine the projects as opposed to the project driving the fabric selection as is usually the case.

Holiday Recap

A few quick tidbits:

The holidays were lovely. Finn was definitely into Christmas more this year, but was still a little overwhelmed, I think. Understandable, considering the magnitude of Christmas morning in our family can be overwhelming for an adult. We do "our" Christmas morning at my parents separately, before everyone converges for the big family Christmas morning . We set up at one of the smaller trees that my mom decorates. This year Santa brought Finn a new tricycle. He doesn't quite have the hang of it, but some of his older cousins gave him a demonstration.



He's sporting his Christmas jammies that I made.

Additional handmade gifts included two scarflets. One for my mom...



and one for my sister-in-law...



details on ravelry, folks.

I also made some lovely ornaments for the girls, details and photos to come.

And, I haven't forgotten the "share your treasured ornament" request from the Spice lady. I didn't do a full size tree this year, so I didn't have all of my ornaments out. There is one from my childhood, a Paddington Bear glass ball, that was always special because it made me feel special. Most of the ornaments on our tree growing up were my mom's, but this one was mine and none of my siblings had a similar ornament to claim as their own. It needed to be hung at the top of the tree so that it wouldn't get broken and this required my dad to hold me up so that I could hang it. I felt sooo honored to have my ornament displayed at the top near the star. I guess when you're the baby of 8 kids, it's these little things that make you feel special.

As an adult, I think some of my favorite ornaments are the ones that have been made by my sisters or mom. Here are a few from recent years:


this one made by my sister from an artwork postcard...



this one received from another sister this Christmas, made from a vintage paper spoon that came from the grocery store that my grandparents used to own...


and here's a little birdhouse made by my sister-in-law a few years back...
and the first of what I'm sure will become great memories, a puzzle ball ornament that I made for Finn this year.



It was made using the fabric from last year's Christmas pajamas and this year's Christmas pajamas. I plan to make one each year using his pajama fabric and he'll have ornaments on our tree that he can play with as well as a set of balls to take with him when he sets out on his own... a long, long, long, long time from now : ).

Me too, me too!

Well, it would seem there is a post explosion amidst some of my blogging friends today, so I feel obligated to say something. Not to mention it's been for-ev-er.

The tot and I are sick and it sucks, but at least it's happening now rather than next week during Thanksgiving and the tot's 2nd birthday. He was sick for his first. I am rather unprepared for the event. Well, I am mentally prepared, just not physically prepared, so I guess I'm half way there.

Here are some tot tidbits:

- He says "yarn" and "knitting" and likes to select knitting needles from my case to use as drumsticks. He's most fond of the long, metal, pointy ones - good 'cause I rarely use those inherited suckers and bad 'cause they're long, metal, and pointy. Despite his interest in yarn while I'm knitting, if he sees a piece of yarn or thread or anything similar on the floor or couch...he says "Eeew!" and has even resorted to getting a tissue to pick it up and dispose of it. Must work on fiber friendliness.

- I think one of his favorite words is "nice". It's really nice when he says it when we are snuggled up on the couch or in bed.

- He is in LOVE with Olivia...as in the porcine heroine in Ian Falconer's children's books. He cannot get enough. He can even say "Olivia". We only have two Olivia books, so I'm pretty sure that he will be getting more for his birthday and/or Christmas so that we don't go too insane with Olivia and her band which seems to be his favorite.

- This is more about me, but I've come to the conclusion that his haircut is really bad. I've been cutting it myself and I think it gets worse with each cut. Part of me thinks I should just take him to a pro so he doesn't look like a dork and part of me is reluctant 'cause I'm just a DIY kind of gal/mom. Hmmm...where would I even take him? Thoughts? I don't know if I can do it. Maybe I'll just get some real haircutting tools and keep at it.

That's all she wrote. Taking the rest of the night offline for once. Sorry, no pics - it feels wrong, but I think we'll all get over it. :)

Baby gifties

My latest knitting endeavor involved making my very first pair of baby booties. I am not exactly a fan of dpns (although I have a feeling I'd like bamboo better than my slippery, little, metal skewers) and that is part of the reason I shy away from tiny little knits. The Saartje bootees, however...totally addicting. After running out of the leftover yarn I was using on the initial pair, I started this second pair.



These went to my friend's new baby along with this receiving blanket that I made.



I know one other person expecting a baby this year (a boy), so I think I'll be adapting the pattern to make some boy friendly booties (have you browsed through these things on ravelry?!). And I have no doubt that any future babe of mine will be lucky enough to wear handknit booties. Sorry, Tot - I hope your baby feet weren't chilly in their store bought, ill-fitting socks.

The latest in knitting...

is this set of toys for Baby Andrew.


A little rattle and ball. Both quick knits, luckily for me since it seems I have noooo time for this activity lately. The ball pattern is something free I found online - a simple pattern but I had to improvise to do the three colors since their instructions didn't make sense to me. I found the rattle pattern on ravelry...you can get it here. I thought I made the large size, but it doesn't seem as large as the one shown in the author's photo. Both ball and rattle were done in KnitPicks Shine. I personally adore the rattle, though if I don't have much time for knitting, I guess I don't have time to sit around shaking a rattle either.

Craft Event Alert

If you're looking for something to do this weekend, check out the 4th Annual Handmade Arcade, taking place at Construction Junction in Point Breeze. The event features the crafty goods of some of our area's most creative minds. If you've never been to the arcade before, it's a fun place to find unique gifts as well as inspiration for your own projects.

ETA: Since many of my readers are knitters, perhaps I should highlight that Stacey from Knit One will be doing a yarn dyeing demo on Saturday at 1:30. Check the site for a full schedule of crafty demos.

my lover, Sean

This is going to be pretty photo-intensive...just 'cause.
Here is the giant sock, all knitted up:


I was trying to get a shot of the babe with the stocking as a size comparison. This was last week, pre-crawling, but he kept getting away from me, even when I stuck him inside it.

Is that baby bottom in handknit not the cutest thing? I really should have him in wool soakers all the time.

Now for the detail. The loop that I added:



The heal:


The toe:



And the end result after felting:



Most importantly, it's big enough to hold all the loot I expect Santa to drag down the chimney. Happy, happy!

We've got mobility!

I've been so busy chasing baby that I feel like I am way overdue in posting about this momentous occasion! Last weekend, Finn started crawling...and at the same time...pulling up to stand wherever he can. Here he is trying to get his new stocking!



The babe's already got a fondness for the handknits! And I must say that I am very happy for BabyLegs - his poor little legs get all red without them.

So, we're pretty unprepared for this mobile creature. There really should be some kind of warning. It didn't take too long before I decided to put up a baby gate, which we just happened to have gotten on Saturday morning, pre-mobility. Maybe that's it...buy a gate and the kid starts to move. In any case, he loves being a caged animal:

Finished Object

Yeah...so these weren't finished when I wanted them to be, but that's okay. They got to the intended recipient soon enough. The pattern was as simple as suggested, so I'm sure I'll do more at some point. I do like the idea of ballband bibs, so maybe I'll try that. I ended up just using size 8 needles because it turns out I don't have sevens. The second one came out tighter than the first, I think because I was consciously keeping it tight. Not bad, but I do think the sevens would have led to a neater looking finished product.

The Ballbandwagon

I'm on it. Yesterday I picked up some cotton, cast on last night and knitted just enough to see the first band. I can tell these are going to be fun. I started with size 8s and it does look a bit loosey goosey, so I think I'll probably start over with 7s.

I'm using hot pink and hot green, quite wild, but I hope to include them with a wedding gift on Saturday and I think the bride will appreciate the colors...if I get them done.

Absorba!

I'm pleased to announce that I have completed Absorba the Great Bathmat! I used 4 strands of worsted weight cotton, 2 each in cream and ecru. The cream is actually a buttery color.

Overall, I am pleased with the result, particularly its squishiness. I wasn't expecting that before I started. The final shape is a bit wonky, as you can see below - not sure if it's something I did or just the nature of it.


I have quite a bit of yarn left and am wondering if it will be enough to make a second, square Absorba, leaving off the last two strips. That will be a project for a later date.

Mmmmm....alpaca

First things first. The Sophie Bag. The simplest knitting project, yet I started it over a year ago and just recently finished it. Here is the pre-felt bag...

and post felting...


The pink color is actually mulled wine, not so pinky pink. I think my shaping is a bit off, but it's still cute. And I'm still considering some sort of closure. Maybe this time next year?

In other felting news...I just received a package of luscious Ultra Alpaca to make Finn's Christmas stocking...the Sean Stocking from Berroco. I love the colors of this yarn and I can't wait to start this project! But...must finish a belated knitted gift for R first.