Spring Has Sprung

I love Ravelry and the more time I spend on it the more I find. Patterns, yarns, people. Love it! I've joined a few swaps on there as well. The latest one was Spring Has Sprung. It was a secret swap so we'd know who we were sending to but we didn't know who was sending to us. We were to knit a one skein item that reminded us of spring and include a gift of some kind that cost $10. We could add more if we wanted.

My first assigned partner was a young woman from Virginia. And she was a Hokie. Yes, she was a Virginia Tech student/alum. When I read this I about fell over laughing. My sis-in-law is a Hokie and thinks there is no town that is or ever will be as great as Blacksburg. I love her but geez. So it was funny to me to get a Hokie. I figured I would have a great little story and way to connect with her when I sent her package. She had pink, blue, purple as her favorite colors. I came across the Noro Kureyon Sock yarn. Beautiful color changes! I found one that included the colors she liked. I even got a ball in colors I like and I got both balls on sale so I paid for two what one would have cost. I started a pattern and didn't get too far before I hated it. Started over on a new pattern. I liked it but not with this yarn. Finally decided to give Storm Cloud a try. This pattern is perfect for spring and summer and can be knit with any kind of yarn. I can't wait to make one for me. For those of you on Ravelry just search for Storm Cloud in the pattern section.

Another great thing about this pattern is that it disguises the unevenness of certain yarns. The Noro gets you with the color changes but then shocks you with it's roughness and unevenness. The roughness starts to smooth out the more you work with it but the unevenness! Ugh! Some sections were so thick that it would totally change the look of your knitting. Other parts were so thin that I feared they'd snap if I wrapped it around my needle. I was lucky with this yarn, I didn't come across any knots. I've read reviews of the yarn where there has been 5 knots and the new piece wouldn't even match the color section. I will knit with this yarn one more time since I have the ball for me but I don't think I'd buy it again.

The shipping date for the swap is April 9th but we could ship as soon as we were ready. Then last week I got a message from the swap moderator. My Hokie had flaked out and had not checked in with the swap nor had she responded to any messages. I was asked to let the moderator know when I was ready to ship because she may have someone new for me. I was ready to ship on Monday so I was given someone new. I was concerned though, the Storm Cloud shawlette was knit in colors specific to my first partner. I might have time to knit another before the deadline but I wasn't sure. Thankfully, my new partner, while somewhat older then my first, listed her favorite colors as pink and purple. Still, I sent out my package with trepidation. I wanted her to like it and to be able to use it! Today I got a message from her. My package arrived and she loved the shawlette! I had also included a "Knit Happy" water bottle that has an insert that you can freeze and a small glass that has the name of my town with our lighthouse etched on it and a key chain of Michigan lighthouses.

I am excitedly waiting to see who my partner is and what she has made for me. Even with my first person flaking out I really enjoyed this swap. Everyone was respectful and I would totally join another swap held by this moderator. I've signed up for a Victorian lace scarf swap that starts soon. Sign ups are still open! We all get partnered up and knit the same (easy) lace scarf. I recommend it!

Yes, Another Hat.

Yup, another hat. This one is knit using the lovely Malabrigo worsted weight yarn. I love the yarn and have all kinds of projects I'd love to knit using it. The pattern is what I call my Big Button Hat (although the button isn't that big!). The pattern starts off on straight needles. You knit the seed stitch section on the straights then join on a circular needle.

I've been knitting a lot but it has been for a springtime swap that I'm participating in on Ravelry.com. I started three different patterns before I found one I liked. Finally sent my package out yesterday. As soon as my partner gets it I will post pictures and information about it here. Of course, I forgot to take pictures of the extra goodies that I included. I'm just glad to have remembered to take pictures of the knitted item!

More to come!

That's Gap-tastic!

I have some finished projects to share with you. On my head is another hat. This is the Early Morning Beret. My hat doesn't really look like a beret because I wanted a slightly less slouchy hat that wouldn't get caught on my winter jacket. I used a brushed baby alpaca yarn from Plymouth Yarn.

I've also finished the Gap-tastic cowl. This called for Lion Brand Yarn Wool-ease chunky. The yarn was almost impossible to find! I looked in multiple stores in several towns. Finally found some at JoAnn's. Three colors only and this earthy green is the only color I liked. It is a big cowl and a warm one too.

Another hat! This one is Etta. It is supposed to be a lot more slouchy but I have not yet blocked it. It is made with Red Heart Soft. Yes, Red Heart again. Can I defend myself by telling you I am currently working on a hat with the fabulous Malabrigo?

I won a contest! Peacefully Knitting in Arizona had a book giveaway on her blog and I was lucky enough to win. Fiber Gathering by Joanne Seiff features lovely sections on Fiber Festivals across the country. There is even one in Michigan! The book also includes patterns. I was thrilled and surprised to have won.

I entered a swap on Ravelry. It is the Spring has Sprung swap. We each got assigned a person and we are to make a one skein item plus we are to include a $10 gift has a spring theme/idea. It is a secret swap so I will share all the details later.

That pretty much rounds out all the knitting news. I have a sleeping child pinning down one arm so typing is difficult. So tell me, what are you working on?

Tip of the Hat

I have been on a hat knitting kick the last week. It could have something to do with the fact that I shaved my head. What?! Yes, last weekend my husband buzzed my hair. It is not totally gone but it is darn close. One unfortunate side affect is that my head is cold! I live in Michigan and it's snowing. Brrr! This hat is the Slouchy Copy Cat Hat. I loved this pattern. It gives the look of cables without actually doing them. I used Red Heart Soft yarn. Now don't groan! Hear me out on this, I didn't have a lot of money to be purchasing yarn and I could not find any colors that were jumping out at me. I felt the swatch they had knitted up of this yarn and was surprised by how soft it actually was. Plus, I liked the color which is Vanilla Swirl.

I just want to add that it is really hard to get pictures of yourself!

This next hat is also knit in Red Heart Soft. This pattern is the Striped and Slouchy Hat. I worked as fast as possible on this one. It is a favorite of mine. The funny thing is that on the day I started this hat I received my packaged from the Secret Cupid Swap. Inside the box was this hat, made for my by my secret cupid, in black and grey. I was thrilled to get it!

The color of this hat is light grey. I really like this hat and I have gotten a lot of compliments on it :-)

This is the hat made for me by my secret cupid. I truly enjoyed this particular swap. I got a thoughtful person who checked out my profile and blogs. The extra gifts were things that summed me up. Big coffee/tea cup, tea, yarn, little gifts for the kids and a handmade necklace and stitch markers. I recommend checking out Ravelry for all the patterns, groups, swaps, and helpful, great people!

Just a Little Knit

I've been in a January funk. Too much snow and not enough sunshine. Life is in a huge upheaval and I would like to sleep until the end of the month. With that attitude I've not been knitting much. I spent the last week knitting two burp cloths and a pair of booties for a friend from my Mothers of Preschoolers group. The burp cloths were knit with Sugar 'n Cream cotton yarn. The color is Pretty Pastels. The pattern is a dishcloth pattern that I repeated twice to get the length. It's kinda hard to see but there is a heart shape that repeats twice.
The booties were a simple booties pattern that I've made a dozen times. The yarn is Bernat Softee...I think. I have the hardest time keeping ball bands. They always disappear. I need a knitter's notebook to write this stuff down in!

Gifts!

These Christmas Tree ornaments were easy to make and cute. Of course, you can personalize them with your choice of sequins. This particular one I made for my dad. I also made 6 or 7 more for gifts. Those were given to teachers and friends.

For some reason the website that I got the pattern at no longer has the pattern available.

I made Lion Brand Yarn's Easy Triangle Shawl. It is supposed to be made with two skeins of Homespun. I happen to like the feel and colors of Homespun but I made this shawl with Wool-ease thick and quick, color charcoal. Plus I wanted it to be longer then the pattern so I ended up going through the pattern rows three more times...I think. It seemed to take forever so I call this my endless shawl. My sis-in-law liked this shawl so much that we gave it to her as a Christmas gift.

I had fun doing the crochet cast off that this pattern calls for. I am thinking about learning to crochet. Right now all I can do is crochet a chain.

For the same sis-in-law I made a Little Black Clutch. Quick and fun pattern and I think it makes such a cool gift! This one has two decorative buttons. I also sewed a snap closure on the inside (I did this on the one I made with the bee pin.) One of these days I will get around to making the longer one for me in gray :-)

For a friend of mine I made this cowl. I liked the pattern because it was pretty easy and it was my first cowl. I found the pattern on Ravelry. The yarn is Patons Decor and I still cannot remember the color.

I'm knitting a couple of other things right now but it is slow going. I'm tired. The kids and I got sick again right before Christmas. I'm still fighting this cough and I don't have the energy for much. Still missing my mom like crazy and not having her around to ask questions of almost puts a damper on knitting. I'm trying to be chipper though. Through the Random Acts of Kindness group on Ravelry I made a new friend that brought to my attention a group for knitters that have lost their mothers. It has been nice to go on there and chat about my mom. I love that there are people out there that feel exactly as I feel. I miss having little knit gifts from my mom. I just miss my mom.

Okay, okay, okay. Time to stop being maudlin.

Happy New Year!

Irene's Dress

I finished the Perfect Sundress from Lion Brand Yarn for Irene. I made the size 4 dress since she has a long torso and needs a size larger in dresses. I used three balls of Lion Brand Cotton-Ease. The main color is Seaspray and the accent color is Terracotta.

She loves the pockets! She wore the dress to school and the teacher complimented her on it.

I found cute butterfly tights that had colors from the dress. I like making dresses and sweaters for the kids. I need to find some more patterns :-)