Professor Meow

At the end of July I suddenly felt the need to knit Irene a sweater for school picture day. School picture day was August 15th. Yeah, I don't know why I think I am superwoman and can knit something so quickly. But, I did finish it so I guess in this one instance I am super....or something.

This adorable sweater is the Professor Meow pattern by Claire Slade. Knit Picks sells a kit which includes the yarn and pattern. It is adult sizing and I made Irene the smallest size. The yarn is Knit Picks' Wonderfluff and is so very fluffy and soft.The Pattern is easy to read and follow with the back and front being knit separately, the sleeve and neck edging picked up and knit in the round. When I purchased Irene's they only had the grey/dark grey kit available. They have since restocked and all three color combos are ready to buy.

Once I stopped whining about having to knit quickly, as well as having to seam, and knit intarsia it was actually a fast project. I highly recommend it!

You can check out the pattern on Ravelry by clicking Here!

You can find the kit from Knit Picks by clicking Here!

You can find a very helpful video on Intarsia Knitting by clicking Here!

This Knitter has been Crocheting!

 At the end of 2017/beginning of 2018, I crocheted each of my kids a big blanket out of Bernat Blanket yarn. I followed a Youtube video because I cannot crochet. Just reading a crochet pattern sends my head into a spin. I need to see it and ask questions about it. Still, I wanted my kids to have blankets that would be big enough for them to use until the yarn fell apart. Turns out...I kinda liked crochet.

Still, I didn't crochet another thing until May. Then I made the shawl above as a gift for MamaC. MamaC has been in my life since I became friends with her daughter way back when I was in like second grade. So many moons ago.

I saw the Youtube tutorial (by Mikey of The Crochet Crowd) for this shawl and decided I could do it. Well, I did it, but I am shocked that it worked. The tutorial assumed that you were a crocheter of some experience and left you to work large sections on your own without stitch counts, etc.

The beautiful lace at the edging was actually the easiest part of this shawl. It was the large "easy" rows at the beginning that were hardest for me because of the expectation of crochet experience.

I thought the end product was pretty. However, I wasn't thrilled with the color placement. I think I should have done the lace in the cream, but by the time I got to it there was no way I was ripping out. Plus, if MamaC didn't like it I thought it would be lovely on the back of a chair, or over a table.

The shawl is Crochet Comfort Shawl by Yarnspirations. I used the recommend yarn of Caron Simply Soft in the colors Victorian Rose, Off White, and Grey Heather.

 Next up on this crazy crochet-ness is the Seaside Shawl by PurpleIguana. I followed the fantastic video tutorial on Youtube by Fiber Spider. For this one I used Bernat Pop! yarn in the Lipstick on Your Collar colorway.

I made this for my sister-in-law, Ashley. There was no special reason. We were getting together for Irene's birthday and I was giving things to my dad and brother (her husband) and I didn't want to leave her out. She seemed to really like it, or at least was pleased to be getting a gift. I thought it would be great for walking the dog when it's a bit chilly out. And it's machine washable so muddy paw prints are easily dealt with.

 Back at Easter my dad mentioned that he needed coasters. He was using one of a set that I had knit him years ago for his dining table. I came across a video on Youtube by Jayda InStitches for these cute and quick coasters. They were easy, didn't take up much time, and very intuitive to follow. I ended up making coasters and coasters and coasters until I was out of Lily's Sugar and Cream yarn. The crochet pattern on Youtube is called Crochet Drink Coasters. I couldn't find a pattern listing for it on Ravelry.

Without going into too much personal information of his, my brother has a chronic immune disorder. The treatment of which makes him cold. Usually I knit him all the socks because he is very knit worthy, but during an episode socks and shoes hurt his feet. Instead I felt he needed a blanket that he could completely cover himself with during treatments. My brother is six foot four. The blanket I made is long enough to cover him from toes to teeth...and quite possibly to the top of his head. When I tried to photograph it I could lay on it and be completely wrapped in it like a candy with twists at both ends. And, as you can see in my pictures, I has two furry helpers. I never did get a pic with out one of them in it. Darn dogs! This blanket is not for you!

My brother was rather surprised by the blanket. I didn't tell him I was making it and he seemed genuinely touched by the gift.

This blanket is the Hibernate Blanket by Yarnspriations. And I did follow another Youtube video from The Crochet Crowd.

Now for all the links to patterns and Youtube!!

Crochet Comfort Shawl Pattern is HERE!
The Crochet Crowd Youtube Channel is HERE!

Seaside Shawl Pattern is HERE!
Fiber Spider Youtube channel is HERE!

Jayda InStitches Youtube channel is HERE! (Crochet Coasters)

Hibernate Blanket pattern is HERE!
The Crochet Crowd Youtube is HERE!

*GASP* She knit more socks?!

 I knit these socks for my dad for Father's Day. Same basic sock recipe with the fish lips kiss heel. The yarn is West Yorkshire Spinners Signature 4 Ply. It's 75% wool (35% is Bluefaced Leicester) and 25% nylon. There is no colorway or even a color number on the ball band. I purchased the yarn online from Simply Sock Yarn Company.

 This pair of socks I knit for myself. It's basic recipe again with the fish lips kiss heel. The yarn is Schachenmayr Regia Tweed Color 4-Ply. 437 yards. 70% wool, 25% polyamide, 5% viscose. This yarn also came from Simply Sock Yarn Company during their anniversary sale.

And these socks! Aren't they cute? Same basic pattern with the fish lips kiss heel. The yarn is from Brenda and Heather Yarns. The sock yarn is their Tuff Toes base which is 80% superwash merino, 20% nylon and is approximately 380 yards. The color is Slice of Summer Remix. The heels and toes were knit with an 80 yard mini skein of Watermelon Rind in the same base as the sock yarn.

You can find the Brenda and Heather Yarn (they have a lot of awesome colorways!) by clicking HERE! They will also be at the Michigan Fiber Festival in Allegan on August 18-19.

West Yorkshire Spinners can be found HERE!

Schachenmayr can be found HERE!

And Simply Sock Yarn Company can be found by clicking HERE! They carry a wide variety of yarn and ship out quickly.

General Clucks and Kylo Hen

While scrolling through Tumblr I came across a post about someone's backyard chickens that they named General Clucks, Kylo Hen, and Hen Solo. I loved it and immediately wanted backyard chickens, too.

And then I wised up. No way am I taking care of backyard chickens. Nope. Not happening no matter how cute their names. Instead I found a knitting pattern on Ravelry so I could knit some chickens.

The pattern is Ester, Ernie & Enid Easter Chickens. There is a small amount of crochet involved. Basically just making a chain. The rest is knitting the pieces and putting them together. Only used scrap, worsted weight yarn. It took me about a day to make each one, so a pretty fast project depending on how many you need/want.

My need for cutely named chickens has been met and the only animals I have to deal with are my kids.

You can find the pattern for the chickens (whatever you name them) by clicking HERE.