Gleeful Tweed Baby Blanket

Last Wednesday night I cast on a "Gleeful Tweed Baby Blanket" (the pattern is on the Lion Brand Yarn website) using Stylecraft Life Chunky yarn I'd ordered from WEBS. I only knit a few rows on it that evening because I was really tired, but I wanted to see how it was going to work up. I was very happy with both the feel of the yarn and the simplicity of the pattern. It was fairly mindless knitting, and with the week I had, mindless was just what I needed! This afternoon I finished it, and am delighted with the results. I think I have enough of the yarn left over to knit myself a mobius cowl. I think I'll cast that on next. It's been a good weekend. Hope yours was, too!

Shawl Update and a Bunny

The shawl/shawlette is progressing nicely. I'm really happy with the way the colors are developing and am anxious now to finish it so I can block it and see what it REALLY looks like. That's the only thing I don't care for with knitting lace....I never know what it's going to look like until it comes off the blocking pads!

Last Sunday, though, I needed a brief respite from the shawl and decided to use some of the yarn I'd found at Hobby Lobby (more about that in a moment) and knit a toy for my great-niece. I'd found a pattern on Ravelry several months ago for a "Bunny Blanket Buddy". Say that fast five times! Even though I'm a slow knitter, it worked up in just 3 or 4 hours and is cute as ... a bunny! *LOL*

Now, about my trip to Hobby Lobby for yarn. I'd had lunch with a friend Saturday and was very near Hobby Lobby, so I decided to drop in to check out their supply of yarn. I was very disappointed to find that it was down to HALF of what it had been the last time I was there. I managed to find some sock yarn and some baby yarn for toys, but all in all I was just plain disheartened.

Trips to my LYS result in my spending MUCH too much money, so I guess I'll have to resort to my old standby, KnitPicks, even though I've read some less-than-great reviews recently on the web about their quality. The good news is that their customer service has always been great, so I'm sure if I order something I'm unhappy with that they will be helpful in getting it replaced.

It would just be so lovely to be able to go to a local shop to buy good yarn at discount prices. I've never understood why Wal-Mart doesn't understand that some of us need more choices than Red Heart and Peaches 'n Cream. *mournful sigh*

Oh, well. I guess I'll just have to content myself with finding projects to use up some of my stash. But let's face it, even if we HAVE plenty of yarn on hand, sometimes it's fun to just go shopping for MORE YARN!!

A Good Weekend to Be Indoors

It's awfully hot in my corner of the world, so I've elected to stay indoors and enjoy the air conditioning today! A little while ago I finished another pair of baby socks made with the leftovers from my latest pair of Dragonfly Socks. Aren't they cute?

This afternoon I'm going to work some more on the Baby Surprise Jacket. Since this is my first BSJ, I like to be near my computer while working on it in case I need to check out something on the Ravelry group.

I'm hoping the next one will be easier. *LOL*

Camping and Knitting

Last weekend I had another great camping adventure with lots of relaxing and knitting time. I finished my second pair of Dragonfly Socks (see my sock-knitting blog for photo), and knitted a bit on a Purly Lace Swiffer Cover.

Not only is the Swiffer cover a pretty simple project to work on, but I think it will make good small Christmas gifts, too. I'll let you know later how the pattern works up. I'm doing this first one in Peaches 'n Creme dishcloth cotton in the Juanita Rose colorway. It's looking pretty good so far.

I've also started a Baby Surprise Jacket. It's my first Elizabeth Zimmerman pattern, and all I can say is "Thank goodness for Ravelry!" If not for their BSJ group, I'd be completely lost! Zimmerman is a knitting icon and no doubt was a genius, but her pattern writing style assumes that I know a lot more than I know. *LOL*

I didn't work much on the baby jacket while I camped; I knew that I'd probably need to consult with Ravelry and had plenty to work on with my socks and Swiffer cover anyway. I just took it along in case I got bored with my other projects. Much like my habit of carrying more than one book on a trip.

Now I've started another pair of baby socks with my leftover yarn from my Dragonfly socks. I think everyone who's learning to knit socks should start with baby socks. You can learn the basics of sock construction without getting into mind-numbing stretches of knitting the same pattern for rows and rows and rows while working your way up the leg.

Speaking of which, I'll close for now (on my lunch break) so I can knit a bit before having to get back to work. *LOL*

STILL Knitting Dishcloths

Okay, how bored am I with knitting dishcloths? VERY. I am kicking myself for promising a dozen and then waiting so long to get started. Even knitting them two at a time in varied hues isn't helping.

I got so bored with them over the weekend that I laid them aside and knitting a bit on baby socks (see my sock-knitting blog, link at right). But even while enjoying that little respite, the dishcloths were looming over my head like a cloud of doom.

Okay, maybe it wasn't quite THAT bad, but let's just say I'll be really glad to finish them up. I have cloths 9 and 10 nearly finished, so that'll leave just one more pair. I'm going to try to finish them up this week in the evenings after work so I can work on something FUN over the weekend.

I don't even want to think about the fact that it's nearly time to start Christmas knitting. I still haven't finished my last pair of summer socks!! And it's JULY for cryin' out loud!

It's time like these that I have to sit back, take a deep breath and remind myself that I knit for fun and relaxation. After all, I'll have another camping trip coming up soon, and that should provide enough knitting time to finish up that last pair of summer socks. I might even have time to knit up some more baby socks while I'm in the tent.

So.....next on the agenda is to decide what I'm knitting for Christmas, make sure the yarn is either in the stash basket or ordered in a timely fashion, and give myself plenty of time to work on the projects without putting myself in a bind.

Yeah. Right. ;-)

Socks Are Addictive

Here's what I just finished for my friend's grandson:


The hat, not the Raggedy Andy. *LOL* It's the "Simple Baby Hat" by Alison Williams, available for FREE at Ravelry. *here comes a shameless Ravelry plug* If you're a knitter and you've not joined Ravelry, you should. They have lots of wonderful helpful folks in groups who share just about any interest you might have. Not only that, but there are TONS of patterns. Back to the hat. My friend's grandson is growing so quickly that I wanted to find something I could knit up in a hurry. Since he'll outgrow it in no time at all, I didn't want to spend weeks on it, y'know? So, using Ravelry's helpful pattern search engine, I found this nifty little pattern and knitted it up last night.

The proud grandma isn't sure the hat is big enough, so I told her that's no problem. I'll just knit up another one in a slightly larger size tonight.

Now, let's see....what do I have on the needles currently?

1. Mom's cushion cover. The boucle she chose makes me knit a few rows on the cover, then I grab up a sock or something else I'm knitting from more comforting yarn. The fabric formed from the boucle looks lovely....all soft and plushy. But it's devilish to work with. If we're choosing yarn for another project in the future, I'm going to steer her away from boucle, for sure!
2. Socks 101 - fourth pair. I've had this pair of socks on DPNs forever! I'm not sure when I started them. I keep them at the office to work on during lunch breaks, so it's taking a loooong time to finish them. I'm fairly sick of looking at them, so I might take them home this weekend and finish them just so I can move onto something else. I'm about 3 inches down the leg of the second sock, so it shouldn't take long to polish them off and get them out of my hair.
3. My first pair of two-at-a-time, toe-up Magic Loop socks. There's nothing fancy about these....just vanilla colored k3p1 ribbed socks. But, OH, how I've enjoyed working on them. These socks gave me not only my first experience with Magic Loop, but my first experience with toe-up socks and knitting socks two at a time as well. Such fun! I call these my "waiting room" socks. I've been spending a lot of time in doctors' waiting rooms lately, and these socks are so simple that I can work on them without having to watch a pattern. Perfect for the waiting room!
4. Wendy D. Johnson's Diagonal Lace Socks. I found these in her wonderful book, Socks from the Toe Up, but just learned that you can find the pattern online free. Just click HERE. You're welcome. I have a small error in them, just as I was finishing the first set of the lace pattern. I keep debating over whether or not to go back and fix it. The more I think about it, the more I think I'm going to have to. It'll bug me if I don't. I'm knitting them from Knit Picks' yummy Stroll Tweed sock yarn in Ash. These are my "I'm tired...I need something to help me relax" socks. It's a simple pattern, and it makes me happy to watch the diagonal lace form in my hands. I'm a person of simple pleasures.

I think that's it. I guess that's enough, don't you? *LOL* Okay, lunch break's over, so I'd better get back to it.

Progress, Finally

This week I've made more progress, thank goodness. I've worked more on my 2-at-a-time socks, and absolutely LOVE working in Magic Loop. As you can see in this photo, I've worked the heel (which was much, much easier than I'd feared it might be) and am now working my way up the leg. From time to time I stop working on the socks and knit a few more rows on Mom's cushion cover. This is a holiday weekend (hooray!) so I hope to put in some serious knitting time. I also have checked a new audiobook out of the library and have it my Zune, ready and waiting!

I also made time this week to knit a pair of socks for my friend's new grandson from the leftovers I had after knitting a pair of socks for myself. They actually turned out really cute! The neat thing about knitting baby socks is that it doesn't take long. I think people who are knitting socks for the first time might want to consider knitting baby socks first to learn the basics. Less time and yarn involved in the learning process this way. Of course, unless you know someone with a baby, it might be a little pointless. Who am I kidding? Knitting socks is NEVER pointless. Addicted, you see. *LOL*

Well, household drudgery awaits me, so I'll close for now. Have to get the vacuuming done so I can knit without guilt. *LOL* Have a safe holiday weekend, everyone!

Baby Blankie

This is the small blanket I knitted for my friend's grandbaby-to-be....it's an oversized version of the "Idiot Dishcloth" pattern. I like it because it has a nice little border and I can practically knit it in my sleep. *LOL* I made it small enough to be very portable and knit tightly enough to be good and warm. Have to keep the little guy comfy!

I'm teaching myself Magic Loop knitting with the help of YouTube and various websites. You gotta love the internet! I'm trying to learn how to knit socks toe-up, two at a time. Knitting socks two at a time is the only reason I'm trying to learn Magic Loop to tell the truth. I'm actually quite comfortable working with DPNs. Right now Magic Loop feels awkward to me, but so did DPNs at first. So, I'm hopeful. :-)

Cute Teensy Little Socks

These are the baby socks I knitted for my friend's grandchild, which is due very soon.

They are teensy and cute and knitted up quickly. Now that I've done my first set of baby socks, I wish I'd done several sets of those before knitting my first pair of grown-up socks. That way I could have learned the techniques involved without a huge time commitment.

But.....I also wouldn't have already finished as many pairs of socks for myself as I have. *LOL*

Baby Socks

A friend of mine is anticipating the arrival of her first grandchild in the next couple of weeks, and I'm working on a baby blanket as a shower gift. It suddenly occurred to me the other night that a pair of booties might be a nice item to enclose as well. I went to Ravelry (my home away from home) to look for a quick-and-easy bootie pattern and found a wonderful baby sock pattern. I finished one that very evening and have nearly finished the second one. Photos to come, I promise. *LOL*

I have a doctor appointment tomorrow and another doctor appointment on Monday, so I'm hoping to finish up the baby blanket during waiting room time.

As soon as I've finished those, I want to work on the cushion cover I promised Mom. She'd chosen an acrylic boucle which just isn't working up as well as I'd hoped it would. Maybe I'm just spoiled by all the lovely sweater and sock yarn I've been working in lately. (Am I becoming a yarn snob???) Anyway, I thought I'd try double-stranding it with another less lumpy yarn to see what effect I get from that.

I also need to decide what holiday knitting I need to do and get started on that. Now there's a scary thought....I NEED TO START MY HOLIDAY KNITTING.

*sigh*