A cotton hat and a new project.

I have a fo to show! And you all thought that I abandoned my knitting to play with my cute puppy instead. It's the Children's Cotton Hats from Last Minute Knitted Gifts. I made it in the toddler size for a friend's baby because he has (ahem) a huge head. Well, he does! I used Mission Falls 1824 Cotton in Lemongrass, which I have heard is no longer available. I bought it long time ago for this project, but never got around to it. I still have one ball of it in Golden. The Lemongrass color is so pretty. This was definitely another quick knit.

The wip on the needles is the infamous Anthropologie-inspired capelet from Craftster.org. I read about it on Amy's blog and was instantly overcome with the desire to make it. Thanks for another neat pattern, Amy! She is always spotting the coolest things.

I am using a chunky weight yarn called Berella Whistler, a Canadian Yarn. I was so glad to be able to do a little stash busting. I have 20 balls of this color. I bought it at the Manhattan Yarn Riot last year. It's 100% Merino wool and it's machine washable. Since this yarn is not the same gauge, a little math had to be done. This yarn turned out to be 3.75 stitches per inch, so I cast on 60 stitches and added 1 to make it 61. The pattern writer said to be make it an odd number of cast on stitches by adding one if needed. I have frogged this piece about a billion times. Yes, a billion! I keep making stupid mistakes here and there. I finally ripped it back to the 1 x 1 ribbing last night and started from there. Everything seems to be going okay now, but I am keeping an eye on it. Hopefully, I will have more progress to show in a few days.

Airy Scarf & Int'l Secret Scarf Exchange

I needed a quick gift for a friend, so I decided to make the Airy Scarf from Last-Minute Knitted Gifts. She gave me the book a while ago and I never got a chance to make anything from it. (Thanks for the idea,Amy!) I am a slow knitter and so I was quite surprised that I was able to finish this scarf in about 2 days. The only problem I encountered was that the pattern fell short and you need to repeat the eyelet pattern a few more times to reach the 32 inch mark. Other than that, it's a really easy pattern. This is my first attempt at lace knitting.

I used 5.5mm needles and the yarn is Lane Cervinia "Softer". My friend likes blue and this yarn is a very nice light blue with some shine to it, but I can't take a decent photo of the scarf. Maybe all that fuzzy mohair is getting in the way. It's 50% mohair and 50% acrylic. The scarf is so light and soft. It's feels great. I blocked it last night and now I just have to wrap it up and slap a bow on it.








International Secret Scarf Exchange


I have never joined a knitting exchange before and it was too tempting to pass up. I love knitting for people and it seems like I never get to knit anything for myself, so this exchange is perfect. It's a win win situation. This is round 2. It is going to start in November and end in February. There are two groups to join, one for a scarf only, the other for your choice of scarf and hat, or scarf and mittens. I picked scarf only because I don't want to overwhelm myself.

You know you want to join! Go ahead and click on the button above or here. Then scroll down to the first post for joining instructions.

My So Called Scarf

I have a FO to show! I stopped knitting when I got Napoleon in September and I was finally able to pick up my needles again a few weeks ago. I started this during my jury duty in the beginning of September. I still have to weave in the ends, but it's done! (Click on the photo to enlarge the pic) The pattern can be found here.

Here are a couple of new pics of Napoleon. He is getting bigger. I just took him to the Vet on Friday for another round of shots and he now weighs 3lbs and 12ounces. He is cuter than ever and it's so much fun watching him develop and learn new things each week.

Sneak peek

The humidity is back full force in NYC for the last few days. The electricity has been a little wonky today and the lights are dim, so I hope that nothing blows. We had a beautiful Saturday and Sunday, but all good things must come to an end. I managed to whip this cute little bootie up the other night. Hopefully, it's mate will make an appearance soon.

TA-DA!

I completed something! The Crocheted Baby Cardigan is done. Isn't it cute? Now, I can send it to Baby Timothy. (If anybody is interested, here is the pattern.)


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Neglected

I have neglected this project for so long. I just checked the archives and I apparently started this crochet blanket in November 2004. Yikes! It was suppose to be for my friend Sam's birthday. But between the holidays and my trip to Asia, it got set aside and forgotten. It has been an eyesore for me every time I go into my closet. It looks at me accusingly and makes me feel guilty.

I was itching to start a new project today, but decided to just finish the blanket to clear my conscience. This crochet blanket pattern is one giant Granny Square. Pretty easy once you make the granny square and then it's just double crochet all the way. The pattern is from Lion Brand yarns. I used Lion Brand Chunky USA and made up my own color scheme. Since, it is for a guy, I stuck to blues and greys and added an off-white. So far I have added 3 more rounds to the blanket. I still have ways to go, but at least I picked it up again. Now, if only I can finish it before another projects lures me away. Hopefully, Sam will get his present on time this year.

ETA: This was finished and gifted.

Haiku

Emily wearing her Haiku with her Aunt Lisa. 

I know, I know! I am a little late in posting about Haiku. I finally gave it to Little Emily in November 2004, during their annual Thanksgiving feast. This was my first garment that I have ever knitted. She turned 2 years old in July and I intentionally made it a size 3-4, so she can grow into it. This is why it looks huge on her right now. The poor thing was so shy and frightened of us! She wouldn't smile and looked like she would cry at any moment. Then after playing with her, she begun to warm up to us and by the end of the night, she never left our side. When that cutie pie smiles, she lights up the room. Her mother is pregnant again and this time it will be a boy. Yeah!!!More baby knitting.

I used Plymouth Encore DK in Butterscotch Tweed. I pretty much stuck to the pattern, except that I added a double crochet edge to the bottom of the cardigan. It gave it a more finished look.






Close up of Bee buttons. 

I bought these cute bee buttons at Michaels (craft store). There isn't one locally here in NYC. I got them when I went home to visit my family in Boston.

Welcome Home

I have been away for a long time. My mother, husband and I traveled to Hong Kong, Japan and China. And what a trip that was! I am so glad to be home in my own bed and surroundings.

I brought a knitting project along and was surprised that it didn't get confiscated by the airport police. We flew out of Newark airport(New Jersey)because Continental has a direct flight to Hong Kong. 15 hours!!! So, I risked it and brought my knitting on board in my carry-on. I had heard that Japan was very cold this time of year(Actually, they have similar weather to ours here in New York), so I wanted to have a new scarf to wear, but couldn't finish it before I left for my trip.

I have never done any cable knitting before and was inspired by Fluffa and her amazing knitting skills. She had given me a couple of tutorial links on cable knitting and off I went with needles and yarn in hand. I chose to make Toddle from KNITTY, but I made it longer to fit me (the pattern is for a child's size). I love it. The scarf is warm and cushy (sorry, that's the only way I could describe it). The lattice pattern makes the scarf very thick and all you want to do is touch it and squish it. The yarn I used came from the Manhatten Yarn Riot 2 years ago. It's called Mexico Merino Superfine by Filatura Cervinia (100% Merino Wool). It's grey and it has a nubbly texture.



The actual color is more like this. I didn't use the flash on the above photos because the lattice pattern didn't show up in the picture.