19 posts tagged “knitting”

So now that we're caught up on the kids, I finally get to share the fun stuff that we've been doing. Not that we haven't been having fun with Jake, of course.  But our trip to Kauai sans Jake was just what we needed! 

We were lucky enough to get away for a long weekend at the very end of March for 5 sunny days in Kauai.  This was our first tropical vacation since our honeymoon.  I think we definitely got spoiled by Fiji, but our short trip to Kauai was pretty amazing.  We stayed on the Coconut Coast near Kapa'a.  The eastern side of the island is fairly windy as they get trade winds all year long, so we didn't spend much time around the resort.  Although the beaches where we stayed aren't that great, it is a great central location from which to do day trips all over the island.  Our first full day, we went down to Poipu Beach on the south shore.  It was actually a bit windy that day, though usually the south shore is very calm. It was probably the best weather on the island that day, though, and the water was still pretty calm so that we were able to get some snorkeling in.  No reefs down there, but the fish were amazing.  The second day we headed up to Tunnels Beach on the north shore where Eric really enjoyed the snorkeling.  It can get pretty dicey up there, but luckily it was pretty calm while we were there and I was able to do some snorkeling there, as well.  The reef was pretty neat, and there were some great fish, too, but with such a big belly, the proximity of the coral made for a less than completely enjoyable snorkeling experience for me.  Of course, just sitting on the beach reading and soaking up some rays was more than enough for me!  Unfortunately, the morning we had to go to the airport, we realized we'd left our good camera in Jake's diaper bag at the in-laws', so we had to take our backup camera.  The photos didn't come out so great :(

In general, the food was nothing special.  I'll never understand why there's so much heavy fried food there.  With warm

Surf to Sunset Luau

weather, all I usually ever want is something light and refreshing, but you just don't see a whole lot of that available there.  We did have one dinner which was excellent -- at the Kauai Coast Resort at the Beachboy of all places (which is owned by the vacation club we belong to, though we weren't lucky enough to stay at that resort)!  Our dinner at the Hukilau Lanai was definitely the best one we had on the island, and probably the best dinner out I've had anywhere in quite a while.  It's run by the owners of Gaylord's in Lihue, which is supposed to be one of the best restaurants on the island.  The other stand-out meal we had was actually at the Surf to Sunset Luau at the Sheraton in Poipu, which we went to our last night on the island.  They say that you go to a luau for the show, not the food, but I actually found it to be the opposite with this one.  The show was good (here, again, I think we may have been spoiled by the meke in Fiji), but the food was surprisingly delicious for a luau!  I'll admit, I couldn't resist the poke, but I figure a little bit couldn't hurt.

A brief moment with the groomsman

We returned from Kauai late Tuesday night and it was time to get right into wedding mode as festivities for our friends' long-awaited wedding began Friday night with the rehearsal dinner.  Eric was a groomsman, so I was a "wedding party widow" for most of the wedding, but lots of people we don't get to see very often were there, and it was nice to have a chance to catch up with them.  The wedding was beautiful, though the ceremony was a bit chilly as it was outdoors at the St. Francis Yacht Club.  Luckily, it was short and sweet (and very unique and personal -- in a good way!) and held in a somewhat sheltered courtyard!  As dancing is bit difficult when you're 33 weeks pregnant and huge, the highlight for me was the food rather than the dancing (I only managed 2 dances the entire night!).  The appetizers were very yummy, though I wished I'd been able to snag a few more to quench my nearly endless appetite.  In retrospect, however, I'm glad I had some extra room for the entree, because the filet mignon they served was not only hands down the best filet I've had at any large event (at which they usually use less than ideal steaks and overcook them), but perhaps the best filet I've ever had.  OK, so I'm obsessed with food these days, but the filet really was amazing.  I also managed to finish the Ribbed Lace Bolero I was making specifically to wear to the wedding.  It came out a bit larger than I would've liked, and I had to do a bit of tweaking when seaming it, but I think it looks OK (though it isn't big enough to hide the fact that I'm a bit larger all over than I was the last time I wore that maternity cocktail dress and am consequently busting out of the damn thing!).  Maybe the real problem with the bolero was with the fiber I chose -- I used cashmere instead of cotton to make it dressier, but I think it also made it have less structure.  Oh well...

As if I needed any more! 

Breaking Bad:  This is an awesome show about a high school chem teacher who finds out he's dying of lung cancer and decides to do everything he can to secure the financial future of his growing family.  It's all Heather's fault that I'm hooked on it, because, knowing what a geek I am, she told me about it.  Yes, I'm totally geeking out on all the chemistry in the show (and fairly impressed with myself for remembering as much as I do, considering I haven't actually used any chemistry in about 7 years).  My one complaint is all the bleeping out of the swearing -- why do they even have all the swearing in there if they are going to bleep it out b/c it's on AMC???  I wish it was on HBO or Showtime for that reason.  They even have a game on the website called Chemical Code Breaker, though I'm not too impressed with it considering how easy the few rounds I've played have been.  But hey, if the show makes chemistry cool, it must be good, right?

Ravelry:  I have to blame margotinto for putting me over the edge to actually sign up for this one.  But I am loving every minute of it.  I can't believe someone didn't think of this sooner.  It's so great to have so many patterns collected in one handy place, and I especially love being able to see what different people did with them -- how different yarns look, different modifications, etc.  It's also great for searching specific yarns for project ideas.  We all have that random ball (or 10) of yarn in our stash that we're not sure what to do with, and this is a great resource for ideas on what to make with it...or to swap it for something else!  I haven't taken advantage of all of the great tools on the site yet (like the needle list/organizer or stash list, both of which I sorely need), but I am loving the project queue so that I can keep all of my planned projects organized with "due dates" and keep them in the order in which they need to be completed.  I have wasted spent hours browsing all the different patterns and projects, and I only got my invitation 2 weeks ago!

Paperback Swap:  This one's my mom's fault.  But it's pretty cool -- the concept is that you list books (they don't have to be paperbacks, despite what the name implies), CDs, and/or DVDs you'd like to swap.  You get credits for listing your initial books (when I signed up it was 3 credits for listing your first 9 books) and a credit each time a book you send is received.  You pay shipping when sending a book to another member who has requested it (usually about $2.13 for media mail) and get books sent to you for free when you request one.  In general, 1 book "costs" 1 credit.  Within the first day of posting my initial books (I posted 17), I had requests for 9 of them!  So far, I've only requested and received one, but that swap did go very smoothly.  The books do have to be in pretty excellent condition, so this isn't an option for getting rid of well-worn books, but, hey, it's getting those books that we boxed up and have been storing out in the garage out of here and new ones that we'll actually read in to us, so it's a pretty good thing, in my opinion.  They do have a referral program, so if anyone's interested, let me know :)

I knit another plastic bag, incorporating the ideas I had on improving on the last one I knit, and here it is all filled up:

Recycled Plastic Bag 2

One of my goals for the end of last year was to make as many birthday and Christmas gifts as possible.  I wasn't able to make everything I'd originally intended to make, but I did pretty darn well, especially considering the first trimester pregnancy exhaustion I ended up dealing with. 

S's Harry Potter House Scarf:
My cousin is a pretty big Harry Potter fan, so I thought this scarf would be the perfect gift.  Little did I realize as I was buying all the materials, that the entire scarf is actually knit in a 1x1 rib (thank god I'd already taught myself continental style knitting!), so it ended up taking me quite a while to make.  In fact, although it was definitely not the largest item I made, it took me the longest to knit.  We weren't there for the gift giving, so I'm not sure how this went over, but I think it turned out beautifully, and hopefully it will keep him nice and warm during those long, cold NY winters!

Gryffindor Year 3-4 Scarf

Pattern:  Year 3-4 House Scarf from Charmed Knits

Yarn:  MC = Patons Classic Merino Wool, Bright Red
          CC = Lion Wool,

Charmed Knits: Projects for Fans of Harry Potter

Goldenrod

Needles:  US 6

Notes:  I made the Year 3-4 scarf because I hoped it would look less obvious than the huge stripes of the Year 1-2 scarf; after all, S is a senior in HS!  For the same reason, I also made the thinner version of the scarf, as suggested in the pattern notes.


Aunt G's Cabled Handbag and Fingerless Gloves:
I'm especially proud of this set as it was my first handbag that I ever made and the fingerless gloves were largely my own creation (made using different elements from several different patterns).  I really wanted to carry the main cable motif of the bag over into the gloves, so I knew I'd have to wing it a bit, but I think they turned out to be the nicest fingerless gloves I've made yet!  By all accounts, this set was a huge hit, and my mom plans on making the handbag for my grandmother for next Christmas (Grandma could not, for the life of her, see why anyone would ever need fingerless gloves).

Cabled Handbag and Fingerless Gloves Set

Patterns:  Bag: Chunky Cable Handbag from Knit Picks
               Gloves:  Main cable from Chunky Cable Handbag; thumb gusset                 technique from Cabled Fingerless by Kimberly Gintar

Yarn:  Patons Shetland Chunky Tweeds, Biscuit Tweeds (doubled for bag)

Needles:  Bag:  16" circular US 13
               Gloves:  US 9 dpns

Gloves Notes:  My gauge was about 4 st/in.  CO 28 stitches, joined, and worked in 2x2 rib for 10 rows.  Row 11 did cable crossing (left hand crossing for Right glove, right hand crossing for Left glove to make them mirror images of each other).  Worked (following cable pattern from handbag pattern) until Row 18 (1 row before the 2nd cable crossing) where I placed markers for gusset (4 stitches before cable set for Left glove, 4 stitches after cable set for Right glove to make them mirror images of each other). I then worked in pattern to create a gusset that had 10 stitches.  After slipping gusset stitches onto waste yarn as described in Cabled Fingerless pattern, I worked the body of the glove in pattern until it reached approx the base of my fingers.  Then knit 3 rows of 2x2 ribbing and BO in pattern.  For the thumb, picked up stitches from waste yarn, picked up 2 more stitches, joined, and knit 2 rows, then 2 rows of 1x1 ribbing  and BO in pattern.

B's Bath Critter Set:
These were made for my niece, though I honestly can't remember if we wrapped them for her birthday or
Christmas (all gifts were sent in one package since her birthday is so close to Christmas).  I put them together with a bunch of animal shaped soaps, some of which had bath toys embedded on top of them.  I know how much Jake loves his bath toys, and since B is only a few months older than him, I figured she'd have fun with these.

Bath Critter Set

Turtle Soap Buddy:
Pattern:  Soapy the Soap Turtle
Yarn:  MC:  Sugar 'n Cream, Summer Splash
          CC:  Sugar 'n Cream, Emerald
Needles:  US 6 dpns

Wash Cloth:
Pattern:  Embossed Turtle Cloth
Yarn:  Sugar 'n Cream Emerald
Needles:  US 6

Bath Mitt:
Pattern:  Kitty Bath Mitt (free, but requires account login)
Yarn:  Sugar 'n Cream, Warm Brown (small amts of Soft Ecru and Hot Blue for embroidering face)
Needles:  US 6 and US 8

Mom's Clapotis:
I finally jumped on the bandwagon (only about 3 years late!) and made a clapotis.  When I first saw all the hoopla going around internet circles about this pattern, I just didn't get what the big fuss was.  And I swore I'd never knit one.  But somehow it just grew on me, and I finally decided that this would be the perfect gift for my mom as it could be used for about 3/4 of the year where she lives.  And I'm incredibly happy with the results.

Clapotis

Pattern:  Clapotis

Yarn:  Patons SWS, Natural Pink (6 balls)

Needles:  US 9

Notes:  I went with the needle size recommended on the yarn label rather than the smaller size called for by the pattern after starting with the smaller size and deciding it just didn't do the yarn justice; the 9s were perfect.  I've been wanting to try the SWS for quite some time, and this pattern seemed perfect for it as the drop stitch ladders would run perpendicular to the self-striping of the yarn, and I thought this would be a pretty cool effect.  And I was right, although there are a few other problems with this yarn.  First, I'm a little upset with the quality.  OK, it's just Patons, but still!  There were

Clapotis detail

several points at which the yarn was just knotted together in the middle of a ball!  At least most of the time they were joined in pattern (meaning the self-striping pattern was maintained), but once it was not and, of course, I didn't realize it until I'd gotten several rows into the joined piece.  Ripping out isn't all that easy with this pattern given all the increases and decreases at either end, so that was a very time-consuming endeavor that I could have done without.  Also, this yarn feels beautiful and is generally fun to work with, but boy does it shed!  Not the best quality for a garment meant to be warn over other clothes.  I wish I'd thought of that before starting because now I'm really not sure how many outfits she'll actually be able to wear this with.  I probably should've given her a lint brush along with the clapotis!  I was also worried about not having enough yarn, so I made the increase section a bit smaller; in the end, I had 1+ balls left over, and the finished item ended up a bit skinnier and longer than I would've liked, so I should've just followed the pattern after all!  All that aside, I fully intend to make one of these for myself...one of these days...with a different yarn...

And, of course, there were some less successful gifts :(

Heather's Felted Tote:

Felted Tote

I really wanted to try a felted project, and poor Heather ended up being my guinea pig recipient.  I think the beginning of my problems was that I didn't use a pattern.  Bad idea, especially when using a new technique for the first time.  My second problem came when I realized that my fancy-schmancy washing machine won't felt wool since it is sans agitator.  At least this problem was easily remedied since my MIL luckily has a trusty old traditional machine.  I won't even post particulars since I basically just used felting wool (doubled) and knit a big round tube that I then attempted to shape into a flat rectangular bottom (pretty unsuccessfully) before BO.  Unfortunately, I completely blew it on estimating the height vs. width of this project, and this was exacerbated by the fact that it shrunk more height-wise than width-wise when I felted it.  So the end result was an extremely wide and shallow bag with really long handles and a pathetically misshapen bottom.  Sorry Heather!  I just hope she has some really long and narrow things she needs to carry around!

Dad's Cabled Vest:
OK, this ended up even worse than Heather's disastrous bag.  So bad that I didn't even take a picture of it.  Actually, the garment itself turned out nice, and it fit really nicely...except for the length.  Poor dad.  It was just way too short.  And apparently even blocking wouldn't lengthen it enough for it to be wearable.  Not sure how this happened since I did follow the measurements in the pattern.  And, of course it's knit from the bottom up, so it's not so easy just to rip out the hem and extend it.  I'd have to take the arm and neck ribbing off, rip the front and back apart, and completely reshape the armholes and neckline.  Not worth it for this particular item.  Oh well, ya win some, ya lose some.  I guess Dad's due for an extra special Father's Day gift!

I finally finished the bag I was knitting out of some of the many plastic grocery bags we have hanging around the house that I refuse to get rid of.  And I used it for the first time yesterday, during my first of two trips to Safeway.  Yes, I had to make 2 trips because I got home only to realize I'd forgotten to pick up a few key things.  The saddest part is that I even had a list.  I'm going to blame it on pregnancy brain.  After that second trip, I decided that, apart from perishables and absolute necessities, I'm going to try to avoid going grocery shopping and use up stuff that's already in the house.  Especially all the stuff in the freezer.  But back to the bag...

Fully laden knit plastic bag

Pattern:  Reduce Reuse Recycle

Yarn:  Made using this method

Needles:  US 11 29" circular

Notes:  Since I was using "yarn" that was essentially twice as thick as what was called for, I went up to a size 11 needle and cast on only 101stitches, though I think I should've gone up a few more needle sizes and cast on even fewer stitches.  I think this bag would be better with more of a square bottom and a double handle; this would require knitting from the bottom up instead of top down.  I think for my second attempt I will use the approach that I used for my MIL's birthday string bag (knit bottom up with square base and create two handles).  This will also have the added benefit of allowing the handles to be knit directly onto the bag (with one end of each being attached with a 3 needle bind off as opposed to knit separately and sewn on) which I think will only help with durability.  I will also try using #15 needles.  Overall, I love this bag.  It may not be pretty (mostly, I think, because of the lack of variety in our plastic bag supply), but it holds a lot of stuff and is pretty darn strong!  I'd say this took about 35-40 bags to make, though I didn't keep close track.

The checker at Safeway was so impressed that I had made it out of old plastic bags that she gave me a comment card and wanted me to tell "management" in the hopes that they would ask me to make them for them!  Yeah, I don't know about that, especially considering pattern rights, time, my rather limited access to used plastic bags, etc, but it was flattering that she was so impressed.  Even if I did get the idea from somewhere else!

Although I've been really bad about Voxing for about the past 4 months, I've actually been quite productive in the knitting arena.  At the beginning of the summer, I decided that I would try to make gifts for as many upcoming birthdays (and in our family, that's quite a few since almost everyone is a fall/winter baby) as possible as well as Christmas.  So far, I've been pretty successful.

So here's an update on the gifts that have been gifted so far:

Heather's Birthday Bath Set

I actually started with the washcloth and used that as my inspiration for the other peices in the set.  These were accompanied by a set of lotions and bath supplies.

Heather's Bath Set

Washcloth:

Yarn:  Sugar 'n Cream in Ecru

Needles:  US 6

Modifications:  I made it a bit smaller by casting on only 39 stitches

Bath Mitt:

Pattern:  European Bath Mitt

Yarn:  Sugar 'n Cream in Ecru

Needles:  US 5

 Modifications:  I made it a bit more narrow by casting on only 50 stitches (5 3/4" wide x 8 3/4" long)

I did the following to make the hem into the garter eyelet design to match the washcloth:

After casting on, knit 4 rows in garter stitch
Eyelet row
Knit 4 rows in garter stitch
Knit in stockinette stitch until the peice measured about 8 3/4"
Use a 3 needle bind off to close the top.

Soap Sack:

Pattern:  "Garter Lace Soap Sack" -- my own improvisation (shown below)

Yarn:  Sugar 'n Cream in Ecru

Needles:  US 6 dpns

1. Cast on 24 stitches; join, making sure stitches aren’t twisted
2. Knit 2 rows in garter stitch
3. Knit 5 rows in stockinette stitch
4. On the next row, create eyelets:  knit two together, yarn over across, ending with a yarn over.
5. Knit 8 rows in stockinette stitch
6. Knit 5 rows in garter stitch
7. Eyelet row
8. Knit 8 rows in garter stitch
9. Eyelet row
10. Knit 5 rows in garter stitch
11. Knit two rows in stockinette stitch
12. Use 3 needle bind off to close the bottom

To finish:  Weave in both ends.  Weave a chain (made using a crochet hook) through the eyelets.  Add tassels to each end of the chain, if desired.  Insert your soap, and tie sack closed.

Dad's Birthday Scarf

My parents live in a pretty cold climate, so scarfs are always useful to them.  I really liked this scarf because it's definitely masculine and the pattern is reversible but slightly different on each side.

Dad's Reversible Tweed scarf

Pattern:  Reversible Tweed Scarf from Better Home & Gardens Hip Knits

Yarn:  Paton's Shetland Chunky in Highland Plains and Rich Burgundy

Needles:  US 13

Kris's Birthday Bag

I thought my MIL would find this expandable bag useful for her trips to the farmer's market, beach vacations, and just about any other occasion when a large bag might be needed.  I love the way it came out so much that I'd like to make one for myself...one of these days!

Empty bag

Pattern:  Turkish Stitch String Bag

Yarn:  Lion Brand Cotton-Ease in Terracotta, Lime, and Violet

Needles: US 13 16" circular, US 10

Modifications:  Instead of using 1 color, I used 3 colors in stripes of varying, random sizes.

Before my bind off row, I purled 1 row, knit 1 row, and purled the last.  I created two handles instead of one by doing the following in the bind off row:

Bind off 10 stitches, knit 7, bind off 12, knit 7, bind off 20, knit 7, bind off 12, knit 7, bind off the last 10.

Full bag

I then worked one set of live stitches on each side of the bag in garter stitch on the #10 needles until it measured about 22.5" when stretched.  I then connected this to the live stitches on the same side of the bag (connect the two sets of live stitches separated by 12 bound off stitches) using a 3 needle bind off.  Repeat for the other handle.  This causes the "seam" where your circular rows meet to be at the edge of the bag, which I thought would hide the inevitible mismatching of the stripes, but I wish I had placed the "seam" in the middle of one of the 12 stitch bind off sections so that could be the "back" of the bag (the part that faces your body and is hidden when carried).

Even though I made the straps shorter than the one in the pattern, I would make them even shorter as my MIL reports that the bag unfortunately still hangs very low when heavily laden.

Mom's Birthday Scarf

Mom's So Called Scarf

Pattern:  My So Called Scarf

Yarn:  Tahki Bunny Print in #30 (aqua, purples); Merino wool/alpaca/acrylic blend

Detail

I've actually got many more projects completed, and a few more in progress, but I can't report on those until the recipients have received them!

I've really gotten into knitting washcloths and dishcloths lately.  They're just so cute and quick.  And a great way to try out a new stitch and practice it before making a large item in that stitch.  I unfortunately forgot to take a picture of my second-ever dishcloth, a half linen stitch made using a variegated cotton yarn containing purple, violet, white, and yellow, which I made for the dishcloth, washcloth and scrubbie swap I posted about earlier.  But I've recently completed two more:

Butterfly Washcloth

Butterfly Washcloth

Pattern:  Papillon Cloth from smeriak knits

Needles:  US #5

Yarn:  Lily Sugar'n Cream (100% cotton), Violet Veil Omber #00223 (leftover from half linen stitch dishcloth)

This was for the little girl I sent a package to in the OHHH Baby! swap I recently participated in.

Grrr

2 comments

Lion Washcloth

Pattern:  Grrr from knitty.com 

Needles:  US #5

Yarn:  Lily Sugar'n Cream (100% cotton), Hot Orange #01628 and Warm Brown #01130 for face.

This is going to be for Jake for Christmas. 

Yes, I'm already starting on Christmas presents, and I'm quite proud of myself.  After all, I have so many things that I plan on making for Christmas that if I don't get going on them now, there's no way I'll get them all done in time!  In fact, I'm having so much fun with these quick projects that I plan on putting together a little animal-themed bath set for my niece either for her birthday or Christmas -- doesn't matter which since they're so close together.  I plan on knitting a washcloth, a bath mitt, and a soap buddy to put together with some fun soaps and maybe a few bath toys. 

And now for a few random updates:

1.  What we were planning on doing on Father's Day:

Wakeboarding

Waterskiiing

 This would've been Jake's first time out in the boat and our first time in almost 2 years as we didn't get out last year with Jake being so young.  It would've been perfect since our friends rented a cabin on the water where we go boating, and they were hosting a Father's Day BBQ there.  So we would've had a home base where we could've dropped Jake off if he didn't like being on the boat and to get him out of the sun.  Unfortunately, Eric sprained his ankle on Saturday working on the house -- damn house!  So we had a BBQ at the in-laws' instead.  Eric's ankle is much better now, though he's going to have to be careful with it for a while.  That means no waterskiing for him this summer, probably :(

Playin' with my bellybutton

2.  Jake constantly amazes me with what he's learned without us even realizing he's learned it.  For instance, he's obsessed with belly buttons.  His own and mine, especially, which is very unfortunate because there's almost nothing that bothers me more than having a tiny little finger poked into my navel.  At least I took out my navel ring because I don't even want to think about how much "fun" he'd have with that if it were still in (ouch!).  Well, I guess we must've been saying "belly button" a lot to him because of his obsession because the other day, without even thinking, I asked him "where's Jake's belly button?" and he showed it to me!  I couldn't believe it!  So I asked "where's Jake's nose?" and he pointed to it!  Well, his aim isn't very good so it ended up being more like his cheek right next to his nose, but he clearly meant his nose.  Those seem to be the only two body parts he knows because if you ask him where anything else is, he points in his mouth (not at, in). 

3.  Jake also exasperates me with his fits, which are unfortunately becoming more and more frequent.  There are days when he just cries (or is incredibly cranky) from the time I pick him up from daycare until he goes to bed.  I won't elaborate on this since mojitomama already did an excellent job of describing the frustration of having a child exhibit "terrible two" symptoms well before that age. But OMG, where did my little boy whose face lit up when he saw Mommy at the end of the day go?!!

You're not going anywhere!

4.  Luckily, Jake also cracks me up with some of his new habits.  Like running into his bedroom and closing the door on us.  He just laughs and laughs when we knock on the door asking "Where's Jake?  Can Jake come out and play?".  And sometimes he'll "lock" us all in his room and guard the door.  He also has a new obsession with giving raspberries which results in some hysterics from Jake, his parents and his grandparents alike.  He'll find a nice fatty spot on your body (arms and thighs seem to be his preferred locations) and just go to town.  By the time he's done, you're out of breath from laughing so hard and covered in Jacob drool.  And you have one happy boy on your hands!

Raspberries for Grandma

5.  We finally successfully got Jake into swim classes at the city pool right down the street from us.  Unfortunately, he ended up in the later session that starts at the end of July and 3 out of the 4 meetings conflict with pre-existing plans.  We're going to have to miss out on two of those activities because, after all, what's the point of taking classes if you're going to miss 75% of them?  But one thing, the Sonoma Salute to the Arts, we just can't miss -- it's a tradition.  Besides, Nana and Grandpa Tony will be here from NY, so exceptions must be made.  But I am really disappointed in the way this has all worked out, especially considering the circumstances and the crap I went through with the city Parks & Rec Program which I will spare you all from.

Jake's socks/slippers

6.  I haven't had much time for knitting lately.  I know I shouldn't complain, but it was hard when Eric wasn't able to help out at all with Jake because of his ankle, even if it was only for a few days.  I don't know how single parents do it!  Anyway, before that, I ended up knitting something I said I'd never bother with...socks.  These were just little baby socks for Jake to be used with all his new pjs that don't have feet (seems like, other than blanket sleepers which are of course too heavy for the summer, toddler pjs don't have feet).  But I may have caught the bug.  They were actually fun!  Though I definitely don't know that I'd have the patience to do adult socks on smaller needles (I did Jake's on US #3s, but I think most real sock yarns call for US0-2 needles).  But it was fun!

I've actually miraculously managed to finish quite a few projects recently, though some of these are things that were completed a while ago that I just haven't posted yet.

I finally sent out gift packages to two babies born recently to friends:

for Adam Steven

Hats
Pattern:  Take off on Rolled Brim Baby Hat with a Topknot
Needles:  US #8 circular

Mittens
Pattern:  Same method as the ones made for Jake
Needles:  US #2 DPNs, #4, #6 DPNs

Yarn for hats and mittens:  Cascade 220 100% wool
Adam Steven's:  MC Christmas Green #8894/  CC Navy #8393
Riley Robert's: MC Navy #8393/ CC Christmas Red #8895

Blanket Buddy

for Riley Robert

Needles:  US #6 
Yarn:  TLC Baby, Powder Blue #068432  

Duck
Pattern:  Duck Toy 
Hook:  G
Yarn:  Lily Sugar'n Cream (100% cotton), Yellow #00010

My First Dishcloth

Pattern:  King Charles Brocade Dishcloth

Needles:  US #7

Yarn:  Lily Sugar'n Cream (100% cotton), Yellow #00010 (leftover from duck toy)

This was my first dishcloth.  It was so quick and easy, I'm looking forward to making more.  This one will probably be part of a bridal shower gift.  I like the King Charles Brocade pattern so much that I'm thinking of making Jake a sweater in it!

Jake's birthday sweater

Jake's Birthday Sweater

Pattern:  Baby Pullover #214 from Knitting Pure and Simple

Needles:  US #6 and #9 16" circulars

Yarn:  Karabella Marble (45% alpaca, 55% wool), Blue #35364

This is the one I started back in February, and I finished it in late March so I was actually in time to give it to him for his birthday.  This was such a fun pattern to knit, I fully intend to make another sweater from this pattern. 

Unfortunately, the baby version of the pattern only goes up to size 2, which is the size I made this one.  There's also directions for ribbed cuffs and bottom instead of the rolled that I made.

Jake's birthday kitty

Jake's Birthday Kitty Toy

Pattern:  Knitted Kitty 

Needles:  US #5

Yarn:  Schachenmayr Extra (100% New Wool), Brown Tweed #3685

I made this from the yarn leftover from Jake's sweater ensemble.  I'm not entirely happy with the way it came out -- the body wouldn't really get compact enough to stand up well, and I couldn't really get the head and tail sewn on to my satisfaction, but I still think it's cute.

Too-small Vestee

Pattern:  Vestee

Needles:  US #6 16" circulars

Yarn:  Lily Sugar'n Cream, Landscape #02244  

This is the first project I've tried from Knitty.  I thought it would be a cute little top for Jake for this summer if I could finish it quickly enough.  It turned out to be a very quick knit, but unfortunately I somehow managed to make it the wrong size.  I substituted yarn (as I almost always do) and must've miscalculated the gauge and stitches needed.  When I tried to get it on over Jake's head, there was no way that neck hole was big enough!  I'm guessing it's actually more like a 6 month size instead of the 12 month size I was going for (at least in terms of the neck hole).  So I'm starting over with Lily Sugar'n Cream Hot Blue #01742 because, although I really like the colors in Landscape, I decided I don't like the multi color effect in this piece.  I guess I'll have to find a small baby (or at least a baby with a small head!) to give this one to!

Since I'm planning a knitting round-up post soon, a little something to set the mood:

Bold for stuff you’ve done, italics for stuff you plan to do one day, and normal for stuff you’re not planning on doing.

Afghan/Blanket
I-cord
Garter stitch
Knitting with metal wire
Shawl
Stockinette stitch
Socks: top-down
Socks: toe-up
Knitting with camel yarn
Mittens: Cuff-up
Mittens: Tip-down
Hat
Knitting with silk
Moebius band knitting
Participating in a KAL
Sweater
Drop stitch patterns
Knitting with recycled/secondhand yarn
Slip Stitch patterns
Knitting with banana fiber yarn
Domino knitting (modular knitting)
Twisted stitch patterns
Knitting with bamboo yarn
Two end knitting
Charity knitting
Knitting with soy yarn
Cardigan
Toy/doll clothing
Knitting with circular needles
Knitting with your own handspun ya