Peaceful Knitter

At long last, it’s the last day of Blogtoberfest!  Overall, I enjoyed the challenge of blogging every day for a month.  It pushed me to keep knitting, buying yarn, and thinking of post ideas.  While I didn’t venture as far outside my blogging box as I thought I might, I’m satisfied with this month’s content.  There were a lot of fun new experiences, plenty of knitting, and a few silly posts thrown in for good measure.  I’m sure that now it’s over I’ll crash a bit and have a period of silence.  The next post will come when I feel like I have something to say or show, not when I feel I should.

Thank you for joining me on this experiment.  I hope you’ll stick around to see what’s comes next in knitting and in life!

For now, I’ll leave you with a photo of our first fire of the season.

Have a great weekend!

Friday Fill Ins, The Day Before Halloween Edition!

1. It was a dark and stormy night, and the motion-detector lights kept turning on outside.

2. No one wanted an entire stack of knitting books, so I offered to take the books myself.

3. Rushing out, I almost forgot to grab something hand-knit to keep me warm.

4. Yikes…I think I heard a howl from my craft room!

5. Shhhh… Big Martha is sleeping, and you know what they say about letting sleeping dogs lie.

6. I haven’t had any candy all day… give me something good to eat!

7. And as for the weekend, tonight I’m looking forward to a Halloween Party, tomorrow my plans include watching a scary movie and handing out treats and Sunday, I want to go to Stitch ‘n Bitch!

I almost forgot: I have another finished object to show you!   This one has been finished for at least a week now, but got lost in the shuffle somewhere along the way.  I’m not crazy about how it turned out, and consumer reviews are mixed.

• Pattern: Alpaca Comfort Blankie from Natural Knits for Babies and Toddlers (ravelled here)
• Yarn: Rowan Purelife British Sheep Breeds in Ecru & Brown, approx 130 and 30 yards each
• Needles: US 5/3.75 mm
• Mods: Omitted ribbon edging and cast on 2 extra stitches so I could do a 3-stitch garter edge up the sides instead.  Knit a 6-inch icord and attached it with the head.

This is one of those patterns that caught my eye because it was cute and seemed like a practical plaything for baby.  As a knitter, the fact that the pattern called for alpaca yarn didn’t really phase me.  I chose some nice undyed yarn, thinking that would be healthier for a baby to ingest if things got wild.  What I didn’t bargain for was the texture of such yarn in the mouth of a baby.  While it’s soft to the touch, it’s not as soft to the palate. My nephew promptly put the sheep’s head in his mouth and made the Yuck Face.   He played with it a little bit after that, but never again did it go near his mouth!

This was another lightning fast baby knit, until I got to the finishing.  The little head knit up quickly, and I stuffed it with wool yarn scraps.  Then it sat around looking more like a sheep’s testicle than a cute toy for a while until I mustered up the courage to whip up some French knots.  And even after I embellished the face and attached it to the blanket, it sort of just bobs around…  Not something I think I’ll make again, but it’s a decent addition to the toy box.

You may recall I mentioned getting a goody bag at the Ravelry party last weekend.  Inside were some great samples, including an entire skein of Knit Picks Gloss. Striped Socks and I promptly traded skeins, as we each had a color better suited to the other.  something about this deep purple yarn told me that it wanted to be a baby hat immediately, and so I obliged.

• Pattern: Modern Baby Hat from Vintage Knits for Modern Babies, 3-6 month size (Ravelled here)
• Yarn: Knit Picks Gloss DK in Admiral, about 90 yards
• Needles: US 6/ 4mm
• Mods: I knit an extra row or two after making the button hole.

This was a fun, fast project to knit.  Once the knitting was done, there was a little bit of seaming to do which is usually a little less fun for me.  This is such a small project though, it was done in no time.

Fortunately for me, I happen to have a real life babe in staying in the house this week.  I’m used to taking pictures of my knitting on a table or draped across something immobile.  It is a whole lot more challenging to take a good picture of your knits when in motion!  Hence the blur…

Something about seeing this hat on my nephew elicited laughter.  Some say he looks like a peasant baby, a young extra on Star Trek, or perhaps a synchronized swimmer.  My sister just kept saying “I bet it will be cute on your baby…”

I think it’s cute now, dang it, not to mention intensely practical.  There’s no wind or chilly air getting to those ears or head!

The pattern came from a new book I just picked up, Vintage Knits for Modern Babies.  This is a very pretty book that takes inspiration from vintage patterns and updates them for use with today’s yarn and aesthetic in mind.  There are a couple more projects from this book I have in mind to make, but they’re both distinctly feminine.  Guess I’ll have to wait and see….  In the meantime, maybe I’ll make another wool swim cap bonnet in the next size up.

A knitter’s baby shower brings out the generosity of other crafters, I tell you.  There were handmade gifts all over the place exhibiting the mad skills of sewers and knitters alike.  I am overwhelmed with the thought and time that went into these gifts and would like to express my heartfelt thanks to all of you.  I can’t wait to put these to good use!

And lets not forget about our friends with sewing machines:

There is something so special about wrapping the ones you love in something handmade.  I feel great comfort and satisfaction knowing that what I’ve knit will be keeping someone warm and cozy.  And while I’ve received hand knits and sewing creations before, these baby items are overwhelming me.  Maybe it’s the hormones, or the fact that I understand what goes into making these things, but I am truly at a loss for words.  Wow.  Again, thank you so much!

Over the weekend my mom and sister threw us a baby shower!  A great collection of friends old and new turned out for the event to share in our celebration of the impending arrival.  Instead of traditional shower games (melted chocolate bars in diapers, anyone?) I thought it would be fun to set up a crafty activity and see what happened.  Fortunately my friends are all creative, fun people who dove right in!

The craft was painting onesies.  We gathered up some brushes, fabric paint, fabric markers and freezer paper for stencils and just watched what happened.  I jokingly said that participation was mandatory, but I think it was something most people were keen to try.  Everyone was so creative, adding personal touches to their work, like my college logo, a Superman insignia for Sweetie, and of course a cute sheep. I think Peaceful Baby is going to be one stylish, original kid!

After everyone left, we jumped in and started painting onto the leftover onesies as well.  It is super fun!  If you’re interested in trying freezer paper stencils, check out this website for a tutorial.  It would be a great way to refashion some clothes in your wardrobe, dress up a knitting bag, or personalize a gift.  There are still a couple of shirts left that need decorating…  Off I go!

My Week in Photos

Today Peaceful Knitter….

is overwhelmed by the kindness and generosity of friends.

is thankful for her family, especially Mom & Sister.

is tired from having so much fun today.

is excited to put Peaceful Baby in his/her new handknit gifts.

I promise to share all the details (and photos) of today’s baby shower later.  For now I’m wiped out, can’t find my camera, and need to get into my jammies asap.  Peace out!

Friday Fill Ins

1. The crickets sing, and in the morning they start coming into the house because it’s cold outside!  Along with a large number of ladybugs and spiders!

2. Be kind and leave things better than you found them, wherever you are.

3. I want to get far away from the inconsiderate people in my daily life.

4. We sailed around the world as a family; this was a dream.

5. But as for me I get seasick, so this will probably remain a dream!

6. The small town I come from is known as the Trout Capitol of the World!

7. And as for the weekend, tonight I’m looking forward to going to the movies with Sweetie and my sister, tomorrow my plans include a celebration with family & friends, and Sunday, I want to make pumpkin pancakes!

Have a great weekend!

I spotted this sweet baby bonnet in a booth at Rhinebeck, casually mixed in among a bunch of handknits.  There was no identifying information with the hat to indicate what pattern (if any) it came from.  So I ask you, fellow knitters:

What hat is this?

The red heart goes on the back, there are ties, and the whole thing is garter stitch… Help!  I want to make this!