Leg Warmers for Claire

Claire put in a request for leg warmers because she always wears skirts to school and her legs get cold. As a good aunt- I agreed of course!

On Dec. 29th I went to Shall We Knit in New Hamburg and picked up a set of 4.5mm double pointed needles and some Cascade 9487(blue) and 7803 (fuchsia). I cast on 56 stitches and followed this pattern here. I decided to do Knit 2 Purl 2 because I just couldn't stand the thought of knit 1 and Purl 1 for two whole leg warmers! I'm not really enjoying using the double pointed needles- I bought 8" ones for this project and I am not really thrilled with them. They seem very long and keep getting in my way. I'm going to switch over to circular needles and see if I like that better.

Started: Dec. 29th, 2010
Finished: Jan. 1st, 2011

A Pile of Hats for Christmas!

I wanted to make a bunch of hats for all the kids in Andy's family. There are 5 kids- Fiona, Lexi, Own, Ryan and Joseph. I used this hat for the boys and this hat for the girls.

These hats were really quick to make up. I used size 8 circular needles for all of them, although the girls I started with double pointed needles and made a band for them. I really like that pattern.
The kids seem to really like the hats- I hope they wear them.

Eric's Pokeball Hat

Eric saw this hat on Raverly. I started the hat on Sunday Dec. 19th and finished it on Thursday Dec. 23rd.

I cast on 100 stitches on size 8 circular needles. I used pretty yucky wool- Acrylic from Walmart. It wasn't much fun to start with, but I didn't figure that Eric would wear it that much. Apparently I was wrong- he slept with it last night and has worn it all day- with his bathrobe!

Vintage Velvet Scarf

Started: June 25, 2010
Finished: July 17, 2010

During the March Break I spent a blissful hour by myself at Shall We Knit in New Hamburg. Mom had the kids and I just wandered the knitting store trying to find a new project. I picked up the book Scarf Style- wouldn't you know it, Janice has the same book.
Flipping through the book at mom's I saw many projects I wanted to try- but first on my list was the Vintage Velvet on page 77. Finding the right yarn was a bit tricky- thank goodness for the internet. I had it all shipped to dad's - which saved me a pile of money. I used the yarn recommended in the book- Muench Yarn- Touch Me colour 3630 lot number 71. I love the colour- it is going to look so great with my black coat next winter.
After the first ball, I noticed an error I made at the bottom, but I figured it would just blend in. When I finished the second ball, the error was really bugging me- I showed it to Jean Ann- and she agreed with me, that once it was finished, I wouldn't notice it. After finishing 2 and a half balls, I couldn't stand it anymore and I ripped the whole thing out! When I told Jean Ann, she admitted that the mistake was bugging her too, but she didn't want to say anything. Next time, she promises to be more honest with me!
I had to keep track of my rows on sticky notes. The tricky row was always row 6- remembering to repeat row 2 after doing a cable. Once I got going on it, it was easy and fun to make. I love how it looks after felting it!

NORO Scarf

The NORO Scarf (a.k.a. The real and maybe only reason I started to knit)

Cast on 39 stitches. Janice taught me to do a long-tailed cast on. The only problem was the stitches ended up at the wrong end of the needle. After slipping all the stitches to the other needed, we were good to go.
Knit 1 Purl 1 back and forth and back and forth. I also slipped the stitch before starting each row. It was so much fun using this wool. The variegated wool makes such a neat pattern, watching stripes develop is pretty fun.
After 2 rows, I switched to the other ball of yarn. I just brought the yarn up the side. It is pretty interesting how bringing the yarn up the side actually works. I was a bit confused about slipping purl wise- but it actually worked.
Janice told me that I needed to use up all the yarn in the 4 balls, but she stopped about 6 inches before I did. But- I love the scarf and I love the wool.
Wool Used:
NORO Silk Garden 284 x 2, 292 x 1, 272 x 1
Needles: 4.5mm bamboo needles

Started: December 22, 2008
Finished: December 31, 2008