Socks and a scarf.

 My husband had surgery last week. While waited for him I took the opportunity to work on these socks. His surgery was a lot longer than either of us expected, so I got a lot done. I think I started them in November. The pattern is called Jaywalker and is available here for free. I used Knit Picks Felici sock yarn in Minty. They are kind of hard to get on and off, but they are really warm and comfy and I love they way they look.

 This scarf was for my neighbors 18th birthday. She said she loves bright pink and bright green. This is just a  simple single rib knit scarf. It's made out of Vickie Howell Sheep(ish).

While I was knitting away last Friday, CNN was on in the waiting room. I watched in horror as the news unfolded of the tragedy at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Connecticut. I feel a great sadness over this incident. Two of my children attend our local elementary school in our quiet commuter town. I feel like it could have been us, and wish there was something I could do to make a difference for those who survived. While listening to the radio I heard about this request from the Sandy Hook PTA. It's for snowflakes, to turn the school into a winter wonderland for the students. I'm sure they hope it will help with the healing, as they return to school after the Christmas break. I plan on making some with my kids over the break and I hope you will too.
Happy Christmas to you all.

Hermione hats, big and small.

 My sister's birthday present finally arrived, so here is a picture of me wearing her hat. It another Hermione Cable and Eyelet hat. this time I made it in Lion Brands Wool-Ease in Oxford Grey. It should have probably been a tad bit lighter in colour to be authentic. I like to think of this particular sister as being the real Hermione Granger. When I first read the Harry Potter books I pictured her. She even ended up marrying a red headed fellow with the initials R.W.

I accidentally made a small version of the hat first. I guess I wasn't paying much attention. I think it looks pretty good on my little one. I'm not sure how much she will wear it though, since it's not purple or pink.

 Here is the lovely Emma Watson, wearing the original in the 'Half Blood Prince'. I love the pretty cables that you can't see too well in my pictures.

Global Warming

 I had wanted to share with you something I made for one of my sister's birthday. I posted/mailed it three weeks ago, but I'm getting worried it got lost with all the troubles that Hurricane Sandy brought. I really hope it will turn up soon, but in the mean time I will share this sweater, I made for myself.

The pattern is called 'Global Warming', and is available as a free download on Ravelry. I knit it up in Knit Picks Wool of the Andes Tweed in the colour Brass Heather. The sweater is ment to have a pocket on the front like the kind you find on a hoodie. For me it just didn't feel right, so I just didn't add it. I made it slightly bigger than the pattern by casting on 12 extra stitches and knitting it 4 inches longer. I fell in love with the puff sleeves. I think they are so cute.

It's really warm, when I first wore it I had to put a jacket over it, because my arm were too cold. Then I found this shirt on sale, and knew it would work perfectly underneath the sweater. I plan on making more of these, perhaps with a slightly lower neckline, and maybe in a cotton blend yarn for the Spring. This one is just perfect for the Autumn though.

Flower Fairy

I just made one costume this year for Halloween. My crafting time and budget has been slashed. Little Miss I has decided she is done with napping, and I don't really have the financial backing to make whatever I like. So this costume was made entirely from my stash. I even already had the pattern. It's the McCalls Flower Fairy Friends Pattern. It was supposed to have a waistcoat/vest with it, but I didn't have any contrasting fabric on hand that I cared to use. I found this tutorial on making fabric flowers. I made two, one bigger than the other and joined them together, then sewed them onto some elastic to make a hair band. She already had the wand and wings. My son said she looked a lot like the Little Princess from the Tony Ross books that we are loving right now, and I have to agree.

What do you think? Hope your Halloween is all treats and no tricks.

Lavender lap quilt and pillow case.

 Little Miss I. knew that as soon as I finished Miss C's quilt it was her turn. I have been collecting fabric for this one almost as long as for Miss C's. I had a very clear idea of the colours I wanted, and it wasn't available at Joann's. I did find two fat quarters there actually. I got two more at PurlSoho when I was there last December. The rest came form a quilt show I went to in March in Lancaster, PA. There, I really hit the jackpot. They had a great bunch of vendors along with lot's of inspirational quilts. Oh, the quilt pattern is one I've used twice before. It's from the book Bend the rules of sewing by Amy Carol.

Now that my oldest is back to school and my middle one is in school in the afternoons, I managed to find the time to finish this quilt and also whip up a matching pillow case that saw on pinterest that I highly recommend.

Little Miss I. is pleased as punch. Now I just need to get on with painting the toddler bed white, so I can get her out of her cot/crib. Little Mr M. is next in line for a new quilt and has just today approved my fabric choices. So you all have that to look forward to, I guess!

Tiny Tea Leaves Cardi

 A little while back my library knitting group had a yarn swap. The members were eager to do some stash busting. I didn't really have a stash to bust. I did bring along a book I managed to have two of, and came home with a wonderfully large bag of free yarn. I decided it was time to buy some patterns, since I didn't have to pay for the yarn, why not!?! I love this little cardi pattern. The yarn is called Katia Arc En Ciel. It's discontinued, so if you want some I don't know how you would find any, sorry. Because I only had the two skeins of yarn I had to make the sleeves shorter than the pattern called for. I don't mind though. I think my Little Miss I. looks so cute in it. I got  the buttons for the grand total of 6 cents. I know, I'm a big spender. I found them at a local thrift shop that has a little room dedicated to craft supplies. I'm always inspired by my friend over at Enjoy The Simple Things. She's been know to pick up a bargain at that same spot.

Little Miss I., just before Church on Sunday in her new cardi.

Tiny Grrlfriend Market Bag

 I already made one of these market bags for my mother. This one is for my mother-in-law. The pattern is available for free here. This time I used 2nd Time Cotton by Knit One Crochet Too. I also went with smaller needles, US size 6. Here is a tutorial on YouTube for the beginning that I found helpful.

I love it in it's tiny form. I'm sure I will be using this pattern many more times. Is there a pattern that you go back to again and again?

Eternal Summer Quilt

 A few years ago my other half had me make him a quilt. It was made of old U2 t-shirts and brushed cotton/flannel. It was a pain in the butt to make. The whole time I was doing it my son was begging me to make him one too, then little miss M wanted one as well. The kids ones were small and therefore much easier and funner to make. I swore off quilts after that though. That is until my sister, Miss C, said she wanted one. I laughed at the time and told her that even if I was going to make a quilt for her it would have to be a wedding or a 30th birthday present!. She told me it was her 30th in three years and smiled. So that thought stuck in the back of my mind until I saw this quilt over at the Purl Bee Blog. I thought of Miss C at once. It became my inspiration and I started to buy a quarter of a yard of fabric here and there. I ended up with 11 different fabrics. I then saw this quilt at the Retro Mummy Blog. I loved the look of this one too. I kind of combined the idea of both of them and came up with this design.

This is a picture of the quilt top, spread out on my bed. I didn't want to machine quilt it and I didn't really want to make binding, so I found this tutorial on the Cicada Daydream Blog. I went ahead and tied it with embroidery thread. Then folded the backing over to make a simple binding.

 Here it is drying out after I gave it a wash.

 And here it is on Miss C's bed looking very summery.

I had various problems a long the way making this quilt. I learnt that you get more fabric when you buy a quarter of a yard of fabric than you do if you buy a fat quarter. I ended up having to sew scraps of fabric together to make some of my squares. When my sewing machine stopped functioning properly, I discovered that you can put you needle in the wrong way! Ha, I felt pretty dumb when I found that out. The last thing I realized is even when you buy new safety pins to hold the quilt layers together, they can still leave rust marks on your fabric. So it didn't turn out to be perfect, but then if it did it wouldn't have been a true handmade gift! Happy 30th Miss C!

Knock yer socks off!

 Here is my second attempt at making socks. You'll remember the 'manly socks' I made for my other half for valentines. I wasn't totally happy with them. They were a little too slouchy, so I knew the pattern would never work for me. This pattern is from Susan B. Anderson's tutorial of how she makes socks. I bought a bunch of yarn from Knit Picks last month. This was the only skein I bought that was not on sale. I couldn't resist. I just fell in love with the colours. It's stroll hand painted sock yarn in 'Retro'. The only change I made to the pattern was to knit the cuff for seven inches instead of six. I love the pattern. I'm really happy with how well they fit, feel and look on my feet. I can't wait to knit another pair.

It's a Boy! It's a Girl!

The other week I was invited to a double baby shower for two ladies from my church who are due soon. One is having a boy and the other a girl. The great think about this baby shower was that they asked for recycled gifts. I got to get rid of a few baby item that are collecting dust around my house. I took the opportunity to make a couple of baby bibs for each of them also. I knit a baby bib for my sister last year, but I went with a different pattern this time. I came across this pattern for the Easy Stay-On Bib and I knew it was what I would make. I'm hoping they will work out for size and won't shrink too much when they are washed.

Hot Head!

 This is Meret.

I made it out of Berrocco Vintage for my sister Mrs. M's birthday. I've had this pattern in my Ravelry queue for quite sometime. I do love a beret, and my sister does love pink. I really couldn't go wrong. What I love about this pattern is that there are so many possibilities. I wanted mine to look like the picture with the pattern though, so I followed the directions to make it just that way. I found the pattern was nice and easy for me to understand. I didn't have to look anything up, so it made it a really quick and easy project. I needed it to get done fast because I had to take a two week break from knitting and so this was left until the very last minuet. It still arrived a day late. In true British fashion, they are going through a heat wave right now. It seems to always do this. As soon as school gets out for summer the temperature will drop and the rain will arrive. Don't say I didn't warn you.

 So Mrs. M. has put it safely away for now. She will be sure to enjoy it once the winter comes though.

Mums Arm Warmers/ Finger-less mitts

 My Mum payed us a visit in March and we had some fun knitting together in the evenings. We visited the Lancaster Quilt show and got inspired too. It made me a little sad that I don't get to knit with my Mum more often. She picked out some pretty pink cotton when we went to my local yarn shop. She plans on making a lovely lace shrug from this pattern.

 I decided to ask her what she would like for her birthday this year, and she requested some arm warmers. I showed her the ones I made for myself last year. She liked them, but pink is her favorite colour. So pink is what she got! I found some pink sock yarn with a little sparkle in it at AC Moore. I can't find the label to tell you the brand right now. I'll have to go on a hunt to put it up on Ravelry. And used up some leftover knitpicks superwash sock yarn in bare.

I cast on 52 sts in the mc and did a K2, K2 rib for eight rounds instead of the K1, P1 stated in the pattern. On the thumb, I picked up 5 stitches instead of 3 and went straight into K2, P2 for eight rows. I like the way they turned out. I don't think you can really go wrong with arm warmer/finger-less mitts. They are a fun accessory.

Two Who?

 I said there would be more cables in my future, well here they are. Quite different from the ones in my Hermione cable and eyelet hat. I hope you can see the cute owls on these hats I made for my little girls. The pattern is called Who and comes from here. I used Lion Brands Baby Wool in the colour Bouquet. It took three skeins to knit the two hats. I have seen a pattern for mittens with the same owl cable on them. I'd like to make them for them before winter comes around again.

I've been working on a gift for my Mum's birthday, so I'll be able to share that with you soon. But there is not much knitting going on for me right now because I'm suffering with some rather painful RSI right now. I'm hoping I'll get over it soon. It is something I have lived with on and off for over eight years now. I'm not willing to give up knitting though, so I'll just have to get through it:)

Knit like you mean it!

 The first thing I have to share are these mittens, knitted for my sister, Mrs. B, birthday. They are to go with the hat I sent her last year. The pattern, 'house mittens', is from my trusty Charmed Knits book. I managed to figure out the joggless jump on the second mitten. This is for when you are knitting stripes in the round. It makes for a much better looking stripe. It was definitely something I needed to learn, because stripes are fun to wear!

Next is this hat made for my sister, Miss C. She was over for Christmas and asked me to knit her this hat. I just didn't have the time. There is never enough time to make all the things I want to. I have over 70 patterns on my queue on Ravelry. But I digress, I found the time and the yarn left over from the manly socks was enough to make it. The pattern is from Stitch 'n Bitch though you can find the pattern for free from here. I've made this hat for both of my little girls. It's a fun and simple knit. Sorry about the rubbish photo. I'm no photographer!

The third thing I'm sharing is what I'm most excited about. I've had this pattern bookmarked for such a long time, but I wasn't sure about knitting cables. I decided it was time to go for it. It is based of a hat worn by Hermione in 'Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince'. I was going to knit it up in a heather grey, just like the original, but then I saw the colour of this yarn, and decided I had to have it. It's Berroco Vintage, like the manly socks and the kitty hat. I like this stuff. The pattern was really great, the only thing I would say is if I knit it up again, I would decrease the amount of rows between each cable as it is a little deep for my head. It just wants to slide over my eyes. But other than that, I love it. I love knitting cables, so there will be more of them to come.

What are you knitting/crafting right now? And what has been in your queue for way too long. I hope you will give it a try and find yourself suprised at how easy it is:)

Manly Socks.

 So when I first moved to the States and married Mr. H, I did not have a job. I got pretty bored. We lived on the outskirts of a small town in Idaho, and we only had one car. This is when I started to knit. At the time I could pretty much only make squares and rectangles, so scarfs were pretty much all I made for years. I made scarfs for all my family, except my other half. He has always told me not to make him one. Even when I started branching out to other knitted items a few years back, he didn't want me to knit him anything. For me giving hand knitted items as gifts is really my way of saying I love you. The fact that my own husband had none of that love was pretty weird! Now we live in a great house, which my husband works out of his home office in our bacement. It gets pretty cold down there in the winter and he is always complaining that his feet are cold. So I decided it was time I tackled hand knit socks. For the first time in our life together, he agreed to me knitting him something. Horay!

I used this pattern called Thuja from http://www.knitty.com/. They are knitted up in Berroco Vintage in boring, manly, black. I got a little help with my sock knitting by reading Getting Started knitting Socks by Ann Budd. I was at my local library and I got chatting with a lady knitting socks, she recomended this book to me. I'm so glad she did. If you are thinking of knitting your first pair of socks I would check it out. I also had a friend from my knitting group to show me how to knit majic loop. So this was a project of firsts for me.

 I finished them up on Valentines day, and I'm so glad I did. I'd been afraid of knitting socks for so long. My Mum had kind of put me off by telling me turning the heal would be too hard. I think I'm going to have to get her to try socks now. I'm looking forward to knitting more socks soon.

This and that.

 I still haven't got round to posting these two pictures of things I worked on during the crazy holiday period of Oct/Nov/Dec 2011. These were not Christmas presents though. The picture below is of a knitted patchwork blanket and baby. She had spent the first five or so months of her life in hospital. I've been sporadically attending a knitting group at my local library and one of the members came up with the idea of us all contributing a few squares toward this. One of our group members crochet them all together and put a lovely crochet edge around it too. The great news is the little girl got to finally go home just before Christmas wrapped up in a little bit of love from us. I've been knitting up more squares for a future blanket that we may well raffle off to raise money for our library.

The other picture is of a bib, hat and slippers that I knit for my sister, Mrs W., new baby. I wrongly predicted that she was having a girl, and lo and behold a boy was born. I sent the hat and bib, but I will save the slippers for any future baby girl that comes along. My sister told me the hat was the only one she has that does not slip down and cover her little ones eyes when they are out and about. So I will have to use this pattern again.

I haven't been completely hibernating during the first few weeks of 2012. I've worked on a couple of hats, and got one of my sisters Birthday presents done already. I took a trip to a great yarn store called Yarn Love and picked up all I needed to knit my first pair of socks. So I'm still keeping busy with my little projects after my kids have been tucked into bed. I'm looking forward to sharing the finished results with you here soon.

Manly Apron

 My husband might kill me for this first picture. He hates it, but I don't care. I do pretty much all the cooking in our home, and I'm pretty cool with that. But there are some things, being a vegetarian, I won't handle. So around all the major Holidays, and whenever he wants bacon, my other half is forced to don an apron and get to work in the kitchen.

I finally got sick of him wearing my apron and decided it was time for him to have his own. I picked up another apron pattern from JoAnns when they were on sale for a dollar and got to work.

I think he had already put the lamb to cook when he opened this on Christmas, but there will always be another opportunity to put it to use.

Fairy Bunting

 I made Miss C an apron for her birthday last year. When she said she was going to come and visit us for Christmas this year I thought I needed to make her something with the leftover scraps. I decided on some bunting. I imagine her throwing tea party at her flat with her bunting hanging up and her serving scones in her apron.

I had to buy a 1/4 yard more of two complimenting fabrics and some bias tape binding. I have made bunting before for little Miss M's room, but it was very time consuming, although very cute. I went with a quicker but equally cute version this time.

There are lots of tutorials out there for bunting, but if you have done any sewing before you can figure this out for yourself. It was quick and easy.

I started to worry about here not liking it at the last moment. She kept saying things she liked, but never once mentioned bunting. I needn't have feared though. Her reaction when she opened it was all I needed to know I had made a good choice.