Amy Knits

And finally!

2011-09-06T11:10:00.000-07:00

And, finally, my last post for the day.

This is a test knit I finished up over the weekend. This tank turned out beautifully. The design and shaping was effortless to knit. None of this, "...bo 2 sts at each end over the next 6 rows..." business. The result is a classic, tailored tank that is so heavenly soft against the skin. I am truly amazed at the beauty of this design! I will definitely be looking forward to more designs by Amanda Bell. The pattern hasn't been published yet so I don't have a link to a pattern yet.

Castanea Sativa by Amanda Bell
Yarn: Sunshine Yarns - Silk Cashmere 2 ply
Color: Feather
Ravelry

If you've been keep up with today's post, you will notice that all these projects have been knit with Sunshine Yarns. Yes...my current obsession. It does hurt that Dani lives here in town so her yarn is so easily accessible. And it doesn't hurt that she delivers it to me at knit night on Tuesdays. And it doesn't hurt that she's one of the sweetest people you'll ever meet. If you haven't used her yarn, do it! The colors are so beautiful and that Silk Cashmere is the softest yarn I have ever knit with!

Stitches Midwest 2011

2011-09-06T10:41:00.000-07:00

I WENT TO STITCHES MIDWEST!!!! It was so fun! My first Stitches event. It was such a quick trip. I was in on Saturday morning and out Sunday morning. I met up with some awesome people and bought lots of yarn! My only disappointment...I didn't run into Jared Flood or Stephen West, both of whom were in attendance on Friday night (so I heard).

It all started when my friend, Lynna, asked if I was going. She said she'd be taking the bus down for the day with some people from her neck of the woods. Well, that was all I needed to get the ball rolling. Next thing I knew, I had a room booked and an airplane ticket purchased! And the next thing Lynna knew, she was driving herself in for the two days, shuffling me back and forth from the airport, and shacking up with me in my hotel room! :-)

While I was there I met up with a designer, Sarah Burghardt from Sarah Bear Crafts and a good friend from here in Colorado, Bich-Thu. Unfortunately, I forgot to get a pic of Sarah and I together...but we did buy yarn together. :-)

This is Bich-Thu and I standing at the entrance of Stitches. Not a great pic because it's from my phone.

While I was there, I just had to stop by the Malabrigo Yarn booth. I was hoping to check out the new bases that I've heard about but no such luck. They didn't have any samples for me to fondle and oggle over. But to my surprise and delight, the sweater that I knit as a sample almost two years ago, was hanging in their booth!!! Can you say, "Squeeee!" I know, I normally don't like that word but I was just so excited!

The blue sweater just to the left of my head is the sample I knit.

And last, but definitely not least, this is a picture of Lynna modeling the cowl I knit for her as a thank you gift for schlepping me to and from the airport. Of course, I forgot to get a pic of us together, at Stitches, but she was kind enough to take photos and send them to me for sharing on my project page (and blog). This cowl is so, so heavenly in this yarn. I will definitely be making another one for me. :-)

Here Comes the Sun by Melissa Kelenske

Yarn: Sunshine Yarns - Silk Cashmere 2 ply

Color: Feather

Ravelry

It was really nice to finally be able to attend a Stitches event. Though I wasn't able to take any classes this time out, I will definitely plan on it next time. I was fortunate to be able to meet up with Lynna, a woman I've been friends with for almost two years now. She found my blog and we've been friends from then on. This was our first opportunity to meet in person. We vowed we will get our families together, eventually. And to be able to meet up with Sarah was a treat because she's famous to me. :-) She's as sweet in person as she is online.

ETA: Ooops! I forgot to show off the loot I purchased!

1. Marisol Yarn - Sulka - Truffle (206)
2. Miss Babs - Yummy Superwash Sport 3-ply - The Gothic Queen
3. Ella Rae - Lace Merino - no colorway given

As promised...

2011-09-06T09:40:00.000-07:00

As promised, I have a few knits to blog about. I think I'm gonna just post about them all separately.

I'll start with my Stephen West, Westknits Mystery Shawl, aka Earth & Sky. I was so excited to start this. But I had issues from the get-go. I am awful, absolutely awful about choosing colors to go together. So after much deliberation, I sought advice from an expert...Dani from Sunshine Yarns. I've received so many compliments on the colors of this shawl but I can not take credit.

Earth & Sky by Stephen West

Yarn: Sunshine Yarns - Single Ply Merino Fine

Colors: (a) Rose Garden; (b) Plum Wine; (c) Jungle Green

Ravelry

If you know my project history, you know that I do not, often, choose patterns with intarsia or stranded knitting. This pattern had both. The intarsia I didn't know about until I was well into the second clue of this mystery knit. But the stranded knitting I knew about and opted for the challenge. I love the final result of the shawl but I will have to admit that I wasn't fond of knitting it...for the reasons I just stated. Had I known ahead of time, I would have preferred to end the shawl's larger stripes with the Plum Wine versus the Rose Garden. As a result, I changed up the color variation on the border. All-in-all, I am happy with my shawl and will definitely use/wear it. I've decided, recently, that I prefer semi-circular shawls or shawls that arc versus a triangular shape. The wing span of this shawl makes up for the triangular shape making it much more functional.

Summer is over...

2011-08-19T08:02:00.000-07:00

Summer is over...for us that is to say. They boys started back to school and are now in 1st grade. I can hardly believe that they are actually full grown kids and no longer babies! There are lots of firsts this year. First year they will be at their new school, first year not in the same class, and of course, 1st grade. They both did fine on their first day of school yesterday and were very excited about the day's events. We'll see what the second day brings. :-) This is them posing in front of their new school on their first day. They've got goofy expressions on their faces because the sun was in their eyes and by the time I had taken this picture, they were at their wits end with posing for me. :-)

Now that school has started, I will, again, have two whole free days to myself, a week. That means more time for knitting, cleaning, and...blogging! Yes, it's been awhile and I've been quite lax in my efforts. I have a lot of projects on the needles (quite unlike me to do so) so I should have plenty to blog about in upcoming weeks.

Funny for the day

2011-08-17T09:42:00.001-07:00

My friend sent this to me today. I just had to share. It made me smile (and laugh out loud).

Kindergarten Graduation

2011-05-24T11:47:00.000-07:00

Yes, there's a graduation ceremony for that, too. At least we didn't have to have one for pre-school. I say that, not because I think they're silly, but because these things wreak havoc on my emotions! Last night I attended the first school program for my children. It was so sweet. They sang, performed...and graduated. They are now officially grade schoolers. I have to admit...I did cry...but I didn't blubber. :-)

Their before and after.

(Can you tell my gauge on Seamus's vest was a little tighter than Ronan's?)

6 Year Olds in the House!!!

2011-05-24T10:54:00.000-07:00

I now officially have two six year olds living in my house! The boys turned six on May 19th. People say it all the time, but I really cannot believe how the time has flown. I just love watching them grown and become their own little selves. The future holds a lot of changes for them. As first graders, they will be going to school all day, attending a new school, be in separate classrooms, and wear uniforms. Wow! I hope I can do a good job of easing them into it all (at once). Here are some pics of them before and after (becoming six year olds).

Before...their last night as five year olds...getting into bed.

After...the night of their birthday...finally getting to blow out candles...before bed.

In the past we've typically had a week long (or so) of celebrations and activities surrounding their birthday. This year is a bit low key. But fear not..there will be more to follow!

Happy Easter

2011-04-24T22:34:00.000-07:00

Happy Easter! I can't help but share a pic of my boys in their first hand knit garments, by me. I was so excited for Easter to arrive so that I can see my guys wearing their vests all day...together. I couldn't stop looking at them and saying, "You're so handsome!" I'm such a (corny) mom! :-)

Basic Vest for Children by Diane Soucy
Yarn: Malabrigo Yarn - Merino Worsted
Color: Verde Adriana - 117; Continental - 26; Pale Khaki - 602
Ravelry: Seamus's vest; Ronan's vest

Notice the picture in the upper right hand corner of the blog page? That was the boys three years ago on Easter. I tried to replicate their poses (unsuccessfully). I wasn't a very good knitter back then. Those vests were given to the boys for their two year birthday from a friend of mine. They are not hand knit but I still loved them none the less.

Let the Madness begin!

2011-03-01T08:02:00.000-08:00

It's March! And that means it's time for Malabrigo March Madness!!! Yes, it's a crazy month for me and I"m already off to a bad start. I started swatching at midnight last night and was unsuccessful at getting gauge. I may have to change my thoughts on this. Last year I finished ten Malabrigo projects and one non-Malabrigo project. I'm not confident I can do that this year as I have two (maybe three) sweaters on the list, two pairs of socks, and two vests for the boys. Acht! Now that I've just typed that out, there is no way!!!! One can hope, huh? Well, that's the plan for now, we'll see how I fare at the end of the month. Oh, I'm co-leading another KAL this year, General Accessory group. Good luck to all you Malabrigo Marchers!!! Happy knitting!

Salsa

2011-02-20T00:04:00.000-08:00

I cooked! It's a rare occurrence for me. I typically only cook (or prepare) the simplest of recipes. This recipe has four ingredients...yeah...that's it...so I figured I could handle it. The ingredients are jalapeños, garlic, lime juice, and oil. It actually turned out pretty darn good! My birthday and two others (on my husband's side) are February birthdays and they were all celebrated today. Fish tacos were on the menu for today's fête. This recipe has been on my radar so I decided to give it a try. I think I added too much lime juice because it was kind of watery. Regardless, it turned out to be a huge hit and the bowl was empty at the end of the night. Recipe can be found here.

Mandel

2011-02-15T13:21:00.000-08:00

I'm so excited about my latest knit! This was a test knit for a fellow Raveler in Germany, Anke (fallmasche). Mine didn't turn out quite as refined as her's nor some of the other test knitters' but I'm still in love with it, none the less. I love everything about this sweater. The saddle shoulders and pleats on the side make for a really flattering fit...which is the case for every test knit I've seen thus far. It did end up big under the arms and above the bust line and the sleeves were a bit too long. Though not pictured here, I did remedy most of that by dampening the sweater with water and throwing it in the dryer on high heat. Normally, I wouldn't recommend this but the yarn does say machine washable. I know, typically, that doesn't equate to mean really washable but in this case, it worked out just fine. I'm definitely going to knit this again in a short sleeve version and/or at a tighter gauge. I'm sorry the pattern is not yet published so I can't share a link with you but as soon as it is published, I will update this post. (eta 02.19.11 - pattern is published and links added)

Mandel by fallmasche

Yarn: Rowan - Felted Tweed DK

Color: Clay - 177

Ravelry

A few more...

2011-02-11T14:39:00.000-08:00

Keeping up with a theme, today's post will show off a few hats that I knit recently. And from these two knits, I've realized that adding cables to a hat provides added thickness and warmth making 'em that much cozier.

The most recent hat I finished was a test knit for Breean Elyse. And since knitting it, I've fallen in love with cabled hats. I can't stop looking at them or for them. This one was a special treat because it was for me. Zinc is one of my favorite Malabrigo colorways. And the hint of taupe really helped make the cables pop!

Obstacles Hat by Breean Elyse

Yarn: Malabrigo Yarn - Twist

Color: Zinc - 613

Ravelry

Now this hat was knit on a whim. This was for a friend's mother that recently had brain surgery and as a result needed hats to help protect her from the cold Minnesota winter. I wasn't even looking to knit a hat but when I saw the pattern and noticed it called for some yarn in my stash, I cast on! I didn't do the best job paying attention to the plain knit rounds so it isn't as slouchy as the pattern called for but I'm not so sure that's a bad thing. Because of the chunky yarn and the cables, the hat ended up being fairly heavy so a slouchy hat may have resulted in a hat that wouldn't stay on the head (at least that's what I'm tellin' myself). :-) I hope this does the trick and helps keep her head warm!

Slouchy Braid Hat by Cheryl Beckerich

Yarn: Berroco - Vintage Chunky

Color: Lilacs - 6183

Ravelry

I Don't Know Why

2011-02-01T17:25:00.000-08:00

I don't know why I haven't blogged in awhile. When I think maybe I will, my next thought is, "I could be knitting." I always seem to place these self imposed deadlines on myself and then the thought of blogging instead of knitting gets me all stressed out. Ach! There could be worse things, huh?

Well, I have a lot to share since my last post. I'll start with a few shawls that I finished up recently....

This first one is a (belated) test knit I did for Debbie O'Neill. I am really please with the end result of this shawl. I wasn't so sure about the color as I was knitting it, but after blocking, I'm in love. The bamboo in this yarn resulted in such a light airy feel and the silk gives it such a nice sheen. This will be perfect for those spring/summer evenings when a sweater would be just too much. The stitch pattern transitions nicely from one section to the next without getting too long. I enjoyed this knit, very much.

Arielle Shawlette by Debbie O'Neill

Yarn: Araucania Itata Solid

Color: 2009

Ravelry

My next knit flew off the needles. Unlike the last shawl, this one has more of a crescent shape. The colors of this shawl are absolutely gorgeous! I just love pink and brown together. For those of you heading out to Stitches West, stop by Sunshine Yarns - booth 1139, as Dani will have this on display at the booth for all to touch. :-) When I finally received the much anticipated Malabrigo Book 3 booklet, I was (pleasantly) surprised to find that Stephen West has three patterns in the book! He did not mention a peep about it. Though the shawl is crescent shaped, per his usual style, it still has nice angles and symmetry.

Lakedale Shawl - Stephen West

Yarn: Sunshine Yarns - Classic Superwash Sock

Color: Badlands (pink) & Coal Creek (brown)

Ravelry

Instant Gratification

2011-01-03T19:27:00.000-08:00

Ah...isn't it nice when you can get an FO in less than an hour from start to finish? These little gems are instant gratification. I busted out 6 of them in less than 5 hours of knitting time. These are my final FOs for 2010.

Café by Miss T (page 42)

Yarn: Dream in Color - Classy & Malabrigo - Rios

Ravelry

I've been off the grid for a while because I was working on a sample knit. That sample knit was the biggest knitting project I've ever worked on...ever! And the longest thing I've ever knitted on a consecutive basis. I can't post any pics until the pattern is published but I'm very excited to share it!

Happy New Year and here's to many happy FOs this year!

Sea Princess

2010-11-21T21:39:00.000-08:00

...and how...isn't she!

This was, by far, the most challenging and rewarding test knit I've ever done. I really love how this little sweater turned out. And I had a hard time parting with it. This pattern gives you a lot of bang for your buck. It comes in sizes 6 months to 14 years (depending on the yarn you choose)! The pattern is very comprehensive so nothing is left to guessing. I finished this test knit back in October but waited to blog about it until it was gifted. This was a late birthday gift for a friend's daughter. It's a perfect fit and I couldn't be happier that she has it.

Sea Princess by Anadiomena

Yarn: Rowan Felted Tweed

Color: Angel Delight - 168

Ravelry

Christmas Knitting...

2010-11-18T07:08:00.000-08:00

Now that Thanksgiving is just one week away, I think most of us have lined up what we'll be knitting for gifts and started knitting or planning. A friend of mine shared this with me this morning and I just had to share it with my fellow knitters.

Christmas Knitting

Yo! Yo!

2010-11-11T09:46:00.000-08:00

Our first accumulation of snow this morning. Perfect timing for Ronan and Seamus's winter hats that I finished sewing the buttons on last night. Every year it's a struggle to find a hat pattern that all of us (me, my husband, and the boys) like. For me, it's a struggle finding a pattern that I really want to knit. For my husband, it's finding a hat that won't look too crafty. And for the boys, it's finding a hat that they will actually wear. After (only) one evening of searching and deliberating, I settled on Stephen West's Piece Out hat pattern. I always want to cross my arms in front of my chest and holla "Yo, yo!" when I say the pattern name. :-) Anyway.... This is my first project in Malabrigo Rios. Heavenly! It's really soft and the colors are so rich! I have the same colors in the Malabrigo's Merino Worsted base and it's just not as vibrant. Ha! Not like that will get me to stop using it, though.

Piece Out by Stephen West

Yarn: Malabrigo Yarn - Rios

Color: Paris Night - 52, Lettuce - 37

Ravelry

And on to other knitting news. I'm really frustrated with the number of WIPs I've got going on right now. I'm hoping to get two more finished up before the weekend starts...because I'm gonna be adding two more WIPs! :-) These hats were a nice reprieve from all the test knitting that I've been doing. I do love test knitting...it gives me the opportunity to knit something I otherwise probably would not knit. (How's that for sounding passive?) :-) But I do enjoy it...and hopefully, I'll be blogging more about those in the upcoming month.

Happy Halloween!!

2010-10-31T17:36:00.000-07:00

Happy Halloween! Only one of my boys was able to trick or treat tonight because the other one is home sick with a fever and cough. He's so sick he doesn't even care that he's missing out on trick or treating...poor guy.

Ronan (Anakin Skywalker - Jedi) with his neighborhood buddies.

Anderson Farms - 2010

2010-10-08T21:05:00.000-07:00

Fall is officially here. Today was our annual trip to Anderson Farms with lots of friends. But this year was different. This year's trip included a new BFF from the boys' kindergarten class.

Mermaid Dreams

2010-10-08T16:07:00.000-07:00

The pattern is live! This was a test knit that I finished a few weeks back but didn't have a modeled pic of it until now. I finally got around to shipping it off to the recipient and her mom took some beautiful pics of Pria and the top. Speaking from a test knitter's point of view, there was a lot of hard work and consideration, by the designer, to make this a well fitting top. Taking a look at the number of test knitted FOs is a testament to this. In fact, I would say this tank fits better than any other child's top pattern I've ever seen. As knit, this top should fit a child ranging from 6-8 years old and took less than 300 yards in a worsted weight yarn. The pattern is quite comprehensive in that it offers sizing from newborn to 6 years, in three different yarn weights, several length options, and finally, many hem alternatives.

Mermaid Dreams by Anne McCrea

Yarn: Stacy Charles - Mosaic

Color: Magenta

Ravelry

Doesn't Pria's mom, Lynna, take beautiful pictures? I could never do this top justice. And it fits Pria perfectly!

Testing, testing...

2010-09-24T13:38:00.000-07:00

...yes, I've been doing a lot of test knitting. All this test knitting has give me the opportunity to stock up on hand knits for my twenty year high school reunion fund raiser. It's still undecided if I can go but it looks like it probably won't happen. Not only is that disappointing in itself, but that gives me less knitting time as I need to account for shipping.

This test knit was for a fellow Malabrigo Junkie, Kristen Hanley Cardozo. The Maple Leaf Rag Hat isn't published yet but I know a lot of people have been chomping at the bit for the pattern. The hat can be knit in two different styles, cloche or slouchy. The first time knitting this pattern I knit the slouchy version. I fell in love with it...this hat will be hard to part with. My only consolation is that it's such a fast and easy knit, I know I can whip out another one in no time.

Maple Leaf Rag Hat by Kristen Hanley Cardozo

Yarn: Dream in Color - Classy

Color: In Vino Veritas - VM250

Ravelry

Since it was such a quick knit, I decided to work up the cloche version in a navy.

Maple Leaf Rag Hat (cloche version) by Kristen Hanley Cardozo

Yarn: Malabrigo - Merino Worsted

Color: Paris Night - 52

Ravelry

And, oh my goodness...take a look at this little thing. This test knit is not for the auction, instead will be gifted to a friend's daughter. I just love this little top. This can be knit in several styles as well. I opted for the tank version. This was a quick knit using a worsted weight yarn and can easily be knit up in just a few days (if you felt so inclined). :-)

Mermaid Dream by Anne McCrea

Yarn: Stacy Charles - Mosaic

Color: Magenta - 113

Ravelry

(pattern not yet published - I'll update links when available)

And...I can't forget to share a sample knit I finished up a little bit ago. These samples are for Debbie O'Neill. With the pattern being on the back of the leg only, these knit up really quick, too. I just love how this colorway knit up.

Cascading Leaves Socks by Debbie O'Neill

Yarn: Pagewood Farm - Yukon

Color: Forest Camo

Ravelry

Some lace...

2010-08-28T23:37:00.000-07:00

I've recently finished some lace projects...not to be confused with lace weight. I love lace patterns because they are so forgiving. Lace stitch patterns tend to hide changes in my tension much better than garter stitch and and even more so than stockinette stitch.

I was fortunate enough to do another test knit for Kirsten Kapur of Through the Loops. The Snow Drops & Snap Peas patterns can be purchased individually or as an e-book set. This set is a great gift giving knit because they're such quick and easy patterns. I finished each mitt in one evening and the hat only took a few more. I will be donating this set to the Salinas High School 20 year reunion's auction to benefit the Mr. Getris Scholarship Memorial Fund.

Snow Drops & Snap Peas Slouch by Kirsten Kapur

Yarn: Dream in Color - Classy

Color: Blue Lagoon - VM160

Ravelry

Snow Drops & Snap Peas Mitts by Kirsten Kapur

Yarn: Dream in Color - Classy

Color: Blue Lagoon - VM160
Ravelry

This next lace pattern was just something fun for me. After a summer of test and sample knitting, I wanted to knit something just because and just for me. This vest is perfect! It will still be warm for more than a month so I'll get to enjoy it without long sleeves for a little longer and it will help keep me warm in the cold office at my new job! :-) Oh...and have I mentioned how wonderfully soft this madelinetosh yarn is...heavenly!

(Yes...another crummy self portrait, but look at that sky and those Rocky Mountains!)

Crystal by Mel Clark

Yarn: madelinetosh - pashmina

Color: Rose
Ravelry

2010 Rockies Stitch 'n Pitch

2010-08-14T22:32:00.000-07:00

Last night marked the annual Colorado Rockies Stitch 'n Pitch. A group of us from a local knitting group carpooled down to participate in the festivities. I didn't actually get much knitting done as I ended up messing it all up shortly after the game started. All was well in the end...it just allowed me to watch more of the game. The Rockies pulled thru with an exciting win!

That's me (in the pink) working on Crystal.
Photo courtesy of Emmy

Curatio!

2010-08-04T16:17:00.000-07:00

When I say that in my head I feel like Harry Potter. :-)

This is a test knit I did for Through the Loops - Kirsten Kapur. It's a beautiful triangular shawl with such fantastic texture...the wrong side is just as beautiful as the right side. My gauge, of course, was much smaller than the pattern. I'm such a tight knitter and should know better but I always think I can block it out. When will I ever learn that blocking is not a cure-all? :-) Anyway, regardless, this is still the largest shawl I've knit to date. It's so beautiful! I know I keep using that word but I can't think of a better adjective. It's the pattern, the texture, the color, and of course...the yarn. The yarn was so soft and wonderful to knit with and only increased exponentially after washing.

Ravelry: Curatio

Pattern: Curatio Shawl by Kirsten Kapur

Yarn: madelinetosh - Prairie

Color: Winter Wheat

Not for lack of...

2010-07-14T11:11:00.000-07:00

Though I haven't blogged in a bit, it's not for lack of knitting. I've actually been pretty busy...most recently with test knitting...and sock knitting. In this post I'll show off the socks that I test knit for Cookie A's upcoming book, Knit.Sock.Love. The patterns I test knit had all been previously released but she wanted all the patterns test knit in the new book format. Here they are in order of completion.

Ravelry: Monkey

Pattern: Monkey by Cookie A

Yarn: Malabrigo Yarn - Sock

Color: Arbol - 858

Ravelry - Hedera

Pattern: Hedera by Cookie A

Yarn: Sunshine Yarns - Classic Sock Yarn

Color: Split Pea

So these...are not done. I've only completed one sock so far.

Ravelry - Lissajous Stockings

Pattern: Lissajous Socks by Cookie A

Yarn: Louet - Gems Fingering Weight

Color: Cloud Grey - 21

The Monkey and Hedera patterns were surprisingly easy and fast! I loved knitting those patterns. The Lissajous Stockings turned out beautiful...but they were hard. Hard on my hands and hard to knit. The heel flap has cable crosses on the right and wrong sides...not an easy feat for me.

Pink Dandelion - Samothrace Shawl

2010-06-14T12:04:00.000-07:00

Last year, a couple of my friends, Kristi and Debbie, launched their own yarn line, Pink Dandelion Yarns. I was lucky enough to snag a skein from their first release! Pink Dandelion offers great colors and their Nylon Sock is a good value for an indie yarn at 420 yards per hank. Mine actually had over 475 yards!

Recently, I saw Kristi knitting a prototype of a soon-to-be self published shawl pattern. And every since then, I've been bugging her to let me test knit the shawl. She was finally ready for me to start last week and this is the result! I love it! Don't you just love those points...so cool.

Ravelry: Pink Dandelion Shawl
Pattern: Samothrace by Kristi Geraci

Yarn: Pink Dandelion - Nylon Sock

Color: Money (That's What I Want)

This is a great shawl for those that are either intimidated by lace or don't like lace shawls. I also like this shawl because it is not just a plain garter stitch. Believe it or not, this is an instant gratification shawl. The stitch pattern is so quick and easy, paired with the garter stitch, it really makes for a speedy knit!

Estes Park Wool Market - 2010

2010-06-14T11:31:00.000-07:00

This past weekend marked the 20th Annual Estes Park Wool Market. Unfortunately, it was a wet and soggy weekend so I didn't take the time to see any animals or shows. I did, however, shop the wool market! Look at the pretties I found.

Lower left-hand corner: Creatively Dyed Yarn - Calypso - Gentle colorway

Remaining pics: Plain & Fancy - Sport - Banboo, Bamboo/Dk Brown, Brown

For the Plain & Fancy, I will be making the Colonnade Shawl by Stephen West. And I've already started knitting a pair of socks out of the Creatively Dyed. My first try at 2-at-a-time!

(You'd never know they were coming from the same skein of yarn.)

We've had a lot of precipitation this year and many of our bike paths and pedestrian bridges are flooded from all the rain fall and snow melt. After the Wool Market, we all headed into town and warmed up at Kind Coffee. The coffee shop has a little patio along the Big Thompson River (I believe) and it was running fast! The picture really doesn't do it justice. The little video clip I shot gives you a better idea of how fast it was running and how loud it was. All in all, it was a great day, despite the weather, and fun to be in the company of knitters for a day.

Peony

2010-06-11T10:18:00.000-07:00

Fresh cut from my yard. So pretty. In a house full of boys, I don't often get pretty.

Herbivore

2010-06-10T11:24:00.000-07:00

Oooh...my latest knit! And I love it. I love the drape and weight of this shawl. This yarn is a wool/silk blend that gives this shawl beautiful sheen and drape. The weekend is going to cool off considerably around here so it will be the perfect occasion to wear it at the Estes Park Wool Market. The colorway is a bit funky and typically not something I'd pick for myself. But Mew Mew's was having their 4th Anniversary Sale and I was intrigued by it, I figured it would be a good time to try it. This is my first Stephen West knit and I'm really happy with the result. The design is interesting and classic...not to frilly or funky for me. I've been dying to knit his Daybreak and Colonnade patterns, too.

Ravelry: Herbivore

Pattern: Herbivore by Stephen West

Yarn: ShibuiKnits - Staccato

Color: 50's Kitchen - 151

So far today...

2010-06-10T11:00:00.000-07:00

This is where I've been sitting most of the morning, admiring the beautiful weather we've had the last couple of days. It's so nice being outside before it gets so hot...and the boys love to be outside so it's much more peaceful for me. :-)

I have my knitting, my coffee, and my computer...bliss!

The girls enjoying the outdoors with us.

Our peony bush is in full bloom...it's beautiful.

The latest

2010-06-06T20:16:00.000-07:00

Gosh...it seems like it's been forever since I've blogged. I know what people mean about the summer getting so busy. My niece graduated from high school last week so we've had two weekends in a row of functions in her honor. And now that the birthday festivities are over and done with, I actually got some knitting done.

This is going to be Part II of my great unveiling since I had a Part I. Though the shower was for three pregnant woman, you will notice that there are only two in the pictures. That's because I didn't have any of Kristi's gifts done by the time the shower rolled around. Alas, I still do not have any pics of her but I do have pics of the items that were gifted to her. The first project is a WIP that was started back in January for Kristi who's baby shower was back in August and who's baby was born back in November. So needless to say...this is a little belated.

Ravelry: Log Cabin III
Pattern: How to Build a Log Cabin by Cara Davis

Yarn: Dream in Color - Classy

Colors: Flamingo Pie (VM410), Cinnamon Girl (VM11S), Good Luck Jade (VM410)

This sweater was finished shortly after the baby shower. I had a hard time finding a pattern that I thought would do this yarn justice. What so special about the yarn you ask? It's Kristi's own handspun!

Ravelry: Garter Yoke Baby Cardi
Pattern: Garter Yoke Baby Cardi by Jennifer Hoel

Yarn: Handspun by Kristi

Ok - now on to stuff for me. :-)

I finished a test knit for a fellow Malabrigo Junkie, Tori Gurbisz. I knitted my first shrug back in April and fell in love with them. This shrug was knitted in lace weight and has such a great feel against my skin. My first garment in lace weight and I can't wait to knit another. I'm now on the hunt for a lace weight cardigan.

Ravelry: Dulcet

Pattern: Dulcet by Tori Gurbisz

Yarn: Malabrigo - Lace

Color: Apple Green - 11

I'm waiting for the pattern to start another test knit. I can't wait! In the mean time, I'm keeping myself busy knitting a shawl. I was hoping to have it done by tonight...but I guess I can give myself a few more days to knit it. :-) Ta ta for now!

The grand finale!

2010-05-25T10:16:00.000-07:00

This post is a little tardy...it took me a while to recover. The last day of birthday celebrations was on Sunday. We spent the day at Grandma and Grandpa's...probably the most relaxing of all the birthday festivities. The boys opened up the last of their birthday gifts, from the family. It seems the overwhelming favorite this year was anything Star Wars...and anything Star Wars with a light saber...and anything Playmobil came in as a close second. Here they are anxiously waiting to open gifts.

Yesterday they were playing outside wearing one of the gifts they received on Sunday, knight cape and helmet.

According to the boys, they were showing their mean faces.

And now that the birthday festivities are over and done with, I can get back to knitting. With all the season finales on t.v. right now, I have almost finished my log cabin blanket! I'm hoping to have pics up over the weekend.

Day 3: Build-a-Bear

2010-05-21T20:00:00.000-07:00

Day 3 of birthday festivities consisted of cupcakes in the mall food court followed by a Build-a-Bear party. This year's birthday party was on a much smaller scale versus previous years. We decided to invite just a few of the boys' schoolmates. This was probably the most fun the boys have ever had at a birthday party. It was really neat to see the kids interacting with each other, to see the excitement in their faces and eyes, the anticipation of each of them as they viewed each others' bear. They were delighted! Yes...it can get pricey. But the joy that a child gets from making every decision to bring his/her bear to life is well worth it! The store did a really great job with the kids and party, too. I didn't get a picture of them with their final versions but here they are after the stuffing was added. (BaB calls all of the animals bears.)

Why yes, that blossom covered bunny does look familiar. Here...

Day 2: Downtown Aquarium - Denver

2010-05-20T23:10:00.000-07:00

Downtown Aquarium - Denver: We were treated to a day at the aquarium. The boys had a great time. I just love this place. It's definitely worth the money if you've got the time. We ran into some friends while we were there which made the experience even more fun for the boys. Then...drama ensued! At the end of the tour, there's a pool for viewing, petting, and feeding the sting rays. My father-in-law was bit by one of the sting rays and bleeding pretty good! He was escorted down to first-aid and his wound attended to by a medic. Talk about excitement! Word to the wise (aka - tip)...keep your hand against the wall when feeding the sting rays. This prevents the sting ray from being able to wrap their body/mouth around your hand to get a better grip. A ton of pics and video on flickr!

Let the festivities begin!

2010-05-19T20:54:00.000-07:00

Day 1...typically marked by their actual birthday or school birthday party...depending on which comes first. And depending on which day of the week their birthday falls, it could go on for almost a week. I feel like it will this year, though it's only day one. So the next few blogs will probably be full of birthday festivities. Today, their actual birthday, started with a birthday party at school. Then presents at home tonight, then almost two hours of assembling Playmobil, then dinner, then bed. I'm tired...and it's only day one. Along with a lot of birthday blogging, you're also going to get a lot of pictures of the boys. (Can you blame me?) :-)

Eve

2010-05-18T19:14:00.000-07:00

Today is the eve of Ronan and Seamus's five year birthday.

Going to bed as four year olds for the last time.

Brothers?

2010-05-16T19:15:00.000-07:00

Unequivocally.

Seamus and Ronan - their new haircuts make them look so much alike!

Today...

2010-05-10T09:34:00.000-07:00

You've seen this picture, or I should say, a picture of this spot many times this "Spring". The forecast for Tuesday night, into Wednesday, is up to two feet of snow. Seriously? It's almost the middle of May!

Look...the trees are starting to bloom...the grass is green. This is really going to wreak havoc on all of our plants! If this snow does happen, that will be my next post!

Catch up...

2010-05-10T09:14:00.000-07:00

Time for a little catch up. It seems that I've been lax in blogging since Malabrigo March, but really, it was just that I had a lot more to share during that month. So, you may see a few posts from me today.

First and foremost, I have finally finished my Gansey Girl socks by Debbie O'Neill! I've had these on the needles since December. This was a test knit for the designer. Lucky for me both socks were the same so I only needed to test the pattern for the first sock. These were knit ShibuiKnits Sock, Wasabi colorway. I don't know why these took me so long to finish...it's not like I didn't enjoy knitting them...second sock syndrome. In fact, I finished the leg and foot of the second sock in less than 2 days. I love this pattern but am really disappointed with how the yarn striped and pooled. I totally expected this colorway to be semisolid but looking at Ravelry reviews, it seems to be the norm. Oh - and though the dye lots were the same, you can see that one sock is lighter than the other.

Now my next FO was my first attempt at an all crochet project. For the past two years I have knit my mother-in-law slippers for her birthday. I didn't this year. Not because she doesn't appreciate them...but quite the opposite. She wears the out so quickly! And it really disappointed me that the slippers that I've knit her have not held up well. And with recent blow outs on my hand knit socks, I've become a bit disenchanted with hand knit foot wear. (Note: I started the socks above before the aforementioned blow outs.) What to do? When I was browsing slipper patterns, I saw several crochet patterns that I really liked...but alas, I did not know how to crochet. But the idea of crocheted slippers really excited me! My rationale was that crocheted slippers would be thicker than knitted slippers and therefore last longer (?). We'll see. I found a pattern that consisted of single and double crochet stitches, only, and decided to give it go. SO! My first (real) crochet attempt, Mary Jane Slippers by Lisa Gutierrez knit in Shelridge Farm - Soft Touch W4, Wedgewood and Pink Lemonade colorways. Granted they aren't exactly symmetrical but I think they turned out pretty cute, nonetheless. These were gifted for Mother's Day and she loved them!

Happy Mother's Day

2010-05-09T19:37:00.000-07:00

Mother's day among the Healy clan.

Top: kelly (sil), shannon (sil), me, cathy (sil)

Bottom: kelly, shannon, Grandma (mil), cathy, me

Spring!!!

2010-05-02T20:22:00.000-07:00

It's finally spring! And it's finally feeling like it...lot's of rain and sunshine. I love it! I've had my eye on this shrug for a while but was waiting for my local yarn store to get the right color of Malabrigo Chunky in stock. Finally! It came in last week. But once I got it home, I realized it was Worsted instead of Chunky. Ugh! I was dying to start this shrug...what was I going to do? :-) I broke down and decided to knit it in Malabrigo Twist. I know I've said this (twice) before, but I LOVE this yarn! It's so soft and I love the drape of everything I've knit with it. Here it is, Quick Shawl-Collared Shrug by SweaterBabe.

For the next one I knit, I will do a provisional cast on to get rid of the seam in the back. It doesn't really bother me but I'd rather pick out the provisional cast on than pick up stitches and make sure the pattern lines up correctly. That's the only thing I would change about this pattern. I really enjoyed knitting it and I absolutely LOVE the results. The tank top I'm wearing under this shrug I purchased three years ago and have never worn because I just wasn't comfortable with all that skin showing. But now, this shrug has changed all that. Don't the two just look so cute together? :-) The ribbed stitch pattern makes the resulting fabric very stretchy so it's very comfortable to wear. I don't understand why this pattern hasn't been knit by more people on Ravelry. This is my first shrug and I am now in love with them!

Denver Roller Dolls

2010-04-19T09:57:00.000-07:00

This posting is a little late as all of this happened on Saturday night. I'm a bit technically challenged when it comes to all this fancy "posting" stuff. I didn't know I could send a pic from my phone to my email. I just needed to push that little button that changed the type from symbol/numeric to alpha. Anyway...I'm here now. :-)

Denver Roller Dolls! Awesome! These women rock! Roller derby is not for the faint of heart...at least not for participants. But watching? That's another story. I thought roller derby would be totally hard core. There are two things that really surprised me. First, I totally expected these women to be out for blood! Not true. There are three teams in the Denver Roller Dolls league and they all practice and travel together so there's a strong camaraderie out there on the track. It's actually pretty tame and very family friendly. Though one woman blew out her knee and another, Disco, landed really hard on her face. And yes, I saw her later that night, it did leave a mark. Second...that track is small! I thought it would be a lot bigger. All those skaters have to whip around that track at a pretty high rpm. All in all, it was a really fun night. We arrivede early enough to get seats on the floor so we were pretty close to the action...but not close enough to smell sweat like the people on the floor in front of us. People watching at the derby is almost as fun as watching the derby itself!

Malabrigo March: FO #10

2010-04-14T19:55:00.000-07:00

It's done! My final Malabrigo March project is done! I finally went by my LYS and picked out some buttons. It feels so good to have this in the FO bucket and out of the WIPs category! I really do love this cardigan. It's the Shalom Cardigan by Meghan McFarlane. I made quite a few modifications to my version. For starters, I knit mine in a worsted weight yarn versus the pattern's chunky. All my notes are on my Ravelry project page. This is knit in Malabrigo Twist, Terron colorway. I mentioned in an earlier post that Twist is my new favorite base for Malabrigo and this cardigan only reinforces that sentiment. I don't have a great picture as I had my four year old taking shots of me again. :-) (Oh! I had mentioned in an earlier post that this would be my 7th sweater of the year but I was mistaken...it's only my 6th.)

I'm new at this...

2010-04-10T19:57:00.000-07:00

I'm not a big fan of cooking blogs and I don't typically enjoy reading about cooking. Maybe because I don't cook and I'm not good at it. But since my recent unemployed status, I've been testing the waters. My first attempt was pretty mediocre, not even worthy enough to mention. My second attempt the week before last was a big hit. Tonight, I decided to try a little something that I read on JCasa *handmade. My local market didn't have yukon golds so I went with new potatoes. I think I would have liked the yukon golds better but the new potatoes worked out just fine. Don't they look almost as pretty as Jennifer's? Oh! Jennifer's tip to rest the potato on a wooden spoon before slicing...genius!! Works like a charm.

::sigh::

2010-04-07T20:07:00.000-07:00

It snowed again last night and this morning. Nothing major...just a dusting...but enough to make the start of our day very unwelcoming. Hopefully that will be it for spring snow. ::sigh::

I wanted to post a pic of the boys from Easter morning. We went to Build a Bear for the first time over the weekend. It was quite a treat for all of us. Fun to see the boys choosing their pets and then the accessories. Seamus went with a floral covered bunny and named her Blossom. Ronan went with an owl and name him Moon Flash. Quite original...I'm actually very proud of the name Ronan chose because it means he knows that owls are nocturnal and often times seen as a silhouette against the moon. He is my deep one. The kicker! The outfits/costumes. Seamus - for his Blossom...Obi-Wan-Kenobi. Ronan - Darth Vader for his owl. :-) Very cute!

I can (almost) finally breath a sigh of relief. ::sigh:: Malabrigo March is now over and I think I churned out more FOs in one month, ever! I have yet to post my 10th but I'm hoping I can get that done this week. And my 10th FO will also mark my seventh (!) sweater of the year. I know! I'm really excited about that. I'm having a hard time storing all these sweaters (yet another reminder that I need to go through my closets and purge). I have one more deadline and then I can dive in to my Apres Surf Hoodie that I'm working on with the Boulder Knitting Collective KAL.

Aaahhh...this is the life!

2010-03-30T15:07:00.000-07:00

Spring is finally here...

Malabrigo March: FO #8 & #9

2010-03-30T09:25:00.000-07:00

After I finished the shawl I was going through Malabrigo March withdrawals. I needed a Mal March project on the needles. With three more days left I had to knit something!

I had been planning to knit another Phoebe Hat and had yarn for it but I just wasn't sure about the colorway. In my moment of need I caved...wound the yarn and started knitting. This is The Phoebe Hat by Terri Kruse using Malabrigo Worsted in the Noviembre colorway. Here's a picture as knitted. This hat is shallow so I think I'm going to frog down to below the first garter section and add one more four row bee stitch pattern repeat to each section.

My next project came out of sheer desperation to have Mal March project on the needles. I decided to browse my Ravelry favorites and found Sweaters for Purse Sized Tissue Packets by kmkat. This is a really quick project and uses up all those sock yarn remnants. I knitted mine from leftover Malabrigo Sock yarn that I had from my War of the Roses Shawl. And...I think I may have enough to knit a second one!

My Shalom is done and I think it's big. ::sigh:: I do still need to find buttons for it. I think I'm just gonna sew on buttons and suck it up.

Malabrigo March: FO #7

2010-03-27T12:21:00.000-07:00

Malabrigo March coming to an end. I'm winding down on my projects for this event.

This is my next to last FO for Mal March (hopefully). War of the Roses shawl by Debbie O'Neill was knit with Malabrigo Sock in the Archangel colorway (one of my favorite!). This dye lot had very little variegation which I was a little disappointed with but worked out well for the shawl. This shawl is so light and airy...perfect for spring and summer - if it ever gets here. But I think my favorite thing about this shawl is the flower design! It's truly amazing how designers can come up with these kind of things.

I'm still plugging away at my Shalom. The Terron colorway pooled really bad so I decided to rip out the sleeves and make the sweater short sleeved. I would have liked to have knit a pair of socks for Mal March but I guess that will have to wait.

I give up!

2010-03-24T09:32:00.000-07:00

Here's what our backyard looked like one week ago. This is what the backyard looked like this morning.

I started shoveling the driveway and after about twenty minutes I gave up. The snow was just too wet and heavy. I decided to move on to the compulsory shoveling and just do the sidewalk. This is the first time this winter I wished we had a snow blower. Have I mentioned that I can't wait for the real Spring to get here?

Malabrigo March: FO #6

2010-03-19T09:56:00.000-07:00

Yay! Another Mal March project off the needles! I am so in love with this one! Maybe because it just snowed a couple of inches between last night and today. Though the snow will probably all be gone before Sunday, it will still be cold enough for me to get some good wear out of this shawl(ette). This is another test knit for a fellow Malabrigo Junkie, Belmondo (no link since it's still in test mode), by Tori Gurbisz. This is her first (soon-to-be) published pattern. My Belmondo was knit with Malabrigo Twist (my new favorite Mal) in Zinc. How can something so simple be so feminine? I think that's what I love about this shawl.

Remember this?

2010-03-19T06:55:00.000-07:00

Remember this from exactly one week ago? This morning's view is this...

Is nothing sacred?

2010-03-17T20:06:00.000-07:00

Even my to-go cup cozy has been commandeered...

Malabrigo March: FO #5

2010-03-15T14:18:00.000-07:00

One more Malabrigo March project finished! I love these little mitts. These are Susie's Reading Mitts by Janelle Masters, knit using Malabrigo Silky Merino in the Atardecer colorway. The great thing about these mitts is that it takes just over 100 yards for the small size. These are also nice because though these are colors I would not typically wear...they suit me just fine for an accessory item.

Seamus was kind enough to model the mitts for me, even without coercion. :-)

Believe it or not, I have another Shalom Cardigan on the needles! This one will be for me. I'm modifying this one for worsted weight yarn. I'll post FOs when it's all done. And...I have some exciting news but I'll have to write about that later. Maybe when those are done, too. ;-)

Malabrigo March: FO #3 & #4

2010-03-12T14:40:00.000-08:00

The needles are still on fire for Malabrigo March and I still can't get enough of it. These are the latest finished knits.

Shalom Cardigan by Meghan McFarLane: This will be a sample at my LYS, Mew Mew's Yarn Shop. I was in the store one day and the owner, Sue, mentioned the Malabrigo Chunky was not selling well. I told her she needs to have a sample knit out of one of the variegated yarns. The variegated colorways are so intimidating when they are in their skeins but less so when they are viewed caked or knitted up. So, she asked if I would knit something and we decided on a quick, free pattern. This is Malabrigo Worsted in Col China colorway.

And these fun things are slippers, Bigfoot / Ogre Slippers by Cheryl Andrews knit in Malabrigo Worsted, Marron oscurro colorway. Take note...your toes do not go inside of the knitted toes. :-) And the best thing about them...they're for me!

That's it for now. I do have my fifth Malabrigo March project on the needles and I picked up some yarn, just today at Mew Mew's, for another Phoebe Hat.

Are you there, Spring? It's me, Amy.

2010-03-12T14:05:00.000-08:00

This has been one of the coldest and longest winters that I can remember. Today was such a nice reprieve with temperatures in the 50s (Fahrenheit). And the snow has finally melted off the flagstone patio out back. To celebrate this reprieve, the boys (and girls) and I took a nice long walk on the path behind our house.

Soon we will be able to enjoy this area every morning.

The girls posing after a nice dip in the creek.

The boys making discoveries as we plod along on our adventure.

And finally, a picnic in the back yard.

Malabrigo March: FO #1 & #2

2010-03-04T14:31:00.000-08:00

Though it's Malabrigo March, I always want to call it March Madness. Can you tell I live with an avid NCAA basketball fan? One year I made all my picks by the length of the team's name. I had San Antonio going to the Final Four. They didn't even make it to the Sweet 16, so needless to say, I didn't get far in the pool...but I digress. :-)

This is my first year participating in Malabrigo March. It's intimidating. In fact, the whole Malabrigo Junkies group, on Ravelry, can be intimidating. They're very organized and have hard and fast rules regarding their threads and KALs. I think I've got the hang of it all now. :-) And I'm actually co-leading one of the KALs this year, the Saroyan. I finished my first two Malabrigo March projects in three days! The needles have been on fire! They're small projects but done, none the less.

This is Saroyan by Liz Abinante knit in Malabrigo Alpaca Merino, Velvet Grapes. Heavenly soft is the best way to describe this knit. The yarn felt so nice on the hands while I was knitting and the variegation worked out just lovely. I'm not a fan of knitting scarves at all. But it didn't even dawn on me, until I was blocking it, that I actually just knit a scarf. This scarf will be loved and get much use.

The second finished project is the Phoebe Hat. This is a test knit for a fellow Junkie so I don't have a link for it as of yet. This is a shallow beret/slouchy hat knit in Malabrigo Worsted, Brisa. This hat will be gifted to friend's aunt with cancer. I hope it fits and she likes the colors.

Edited to add pattern and author links: The Phoebe Hat by Terri Kruse

Neighborly

2010-03-04T11:07:00.000-08:00

One of my favorite blogs to read is JCasa*handmade. I first stumbled on her blog when I saw pictures of her twin girls in the Twins group on Flickr. I find her stuff (not just knitting) so inspiring. My latest hand knit is one of Jennifer Casa's patterns, Neighborly with a Twist. I started this little number the Saturday before the Olympic closing ceremonies and was hoping I could finish it up in order to include it in my Ravelympics FOs...but alas...I fretted about a contrasting color. The color I ended up with was the one I wanted to use from the very beginning but was afraid it would bleed on to the undyed yarn. With some testing and a dash of vinegar...all ended well. I can't believe I actually finished a present before the actual birthday party! This is for my friend's daughter (who also knits and appreciates all hand knits received). The button is perfect! It came from my late grandmother's vintage button stash.

Ravelympics - Winter 2010

2010-03-01T20:03:00.000-08:00

As with the official Olympic events, the closing ceremonies marks the end of Ravelympics. I started the Winter 2010 Ravelympics with low expectations. I just wanted to finish two WIPs that were languishing on the needles for a year. I didn't want the stress of trying to finish multiple projects or even one complicated pattern. But of course, as one project comes off the needles, another one is itching to get on. I did challenge myself with each of the projects finished and entered in this year's Ravelympics.

The picture below is just a quick collage of the projects that were finished...

Clockwise from the top left: Sedum by Jane Richmond, Nola's Mitts (Pitts' Mitts) by Brittany Tyler, Olympic Storm (Storm Cloud Shawlette) by Hanna Breetz , Orchids and Fairy Lights by tiny owl knits

Sedum - Challenge: finish it!

Nola's Mitts - Challenge: fair isle or stranded knitting

Olympic Storm - Challenge: knitting a project with that yarn (!)

Orchids and Fairy Lights - Challenge: bobbles and cables

And look how cute the medals are that they give out!

Now the fun begins! Malabrigo March is here and I've already got FOUR projects slated for the month.

"Martha My Dear"

2010-02-17T22:06:00.000-08:00

...don't forget [us] Martha my dear.

(flickr)

This was a gathering to wish our friend and member of the Boulder Knitting Collective a fond farewell back to her home state of Washington.

Can you believe the picture above and the group picture below were taken by the same person and the same camera? It helps to know how to use it. :-)

Let the games begin!

2010-02-13T00:19:00.000-08:00

In honor of the 2010 Winter Ravelympics, one of the local SnBs I attend had a cast-on party. It was a potluck...and one of the finest potlucks I've ever been a part of, for example, glazed carrots, butternut squash soup, asparagus wrapped in phyllo dough (yeah, that's what I said), mustard-crusted salmon, tamales...need I go on. And that doesn't even include desserts and other sides! It was all sooo good! Everyone was busy casting-on and frogging! By the night's end I was no closer to my Ravelympics goal because of the frogging.

My plan was to work on a few WIPs during Ravelympics because I just didn't want any stress. When I was gathering everything for the party tonight, I realized that I do not want to knit the scarf that my mom had picked out. So, I made an executive decision to frog the whole thing and start anew! This is definitely more exciting for me! :-)

Shroom

2010-02-11T09:02:00.000-08:00

Mmmmm...what's better than knitting with one skein of Malabrigo - Worsted at one time? Knitting with three skeins of Malabrigo - Worsted at one time!

I have, for so long, been searching for a hat pattern. I vowed to myself, at the new year, that I would make myself one hat this winter and be happy about it. This was tough for me because I've never felt like I look good in hats. I don't know why...sometimes I think it's because I'm Korean/Asian though I think other Asians look perfectly fine in hats. Those in the Boulder Knitting Collective (Snb) know that I've tried on many and ask for many opinions. Well - yesterday I finally committed and finished my first hat for me. This is the Shroom by Lee Wood Juvan from the Winter 2009 issue of Knitty. I decided to triple strand with Malabrigo - Worsted (color - Marron oscuro) because I just couldn't find the right yarn that I felt had a similar weight as the Spud & Chloe - Outer...without cotton. Here's the hat (no pics of me in it...remember...I don't like how I look in them).

I've figured it out!

2010-02-10T14:25:00.000-08:00

I've finally figured out how to knit a neater i-cord! I've always hated knitting i-cords because mine always turned out bumpy, lumpy, and twisty. I know for most knitters knitting an i-cord is pretty elementary...hence the name. I turned to one of my friends, Emmy Lou, and she passed on a quick but vital tip...tug on your first stitch. After trial and error, I finally got a method down that resulted in a consistent and neat(er) i-cord. This is how I did it:

Step 1 - work your first stitch but before you drop it off the left needle, give the working yarn a good tug
Step 2 - insert your right needle into the first stitch on the left needle and give the working yarn another good tug, finish stitch as prescribed
Step 3 - before you start your next row of i-cord, give your whole i-cord a quick little tug

Easy enough, huh? Elementary, my dear! Now I'm sure I won't cringe ~~so much~~ at the thought of knitting a yard of i-cord (or more). :-) And like a proud momma, I leave you with my i-cord.

10 in 2010: FO1 & FO2

2010-01-28T23:45:00.000-08:00

There's a group on Ravelry, 10 in 2010, that is dedicated to getting you to finish ten FOs in 2010 (with some variety). I have two (knitting) goals this year: (1) knit more projects for me and (2) use up some of my stash and this group is helping me do this. I just finished my second FO this year and they're both for me! Yay...woot, woot!

First, Mondo Cable Cardi by Bonne Marie Burns. I had originally planned to knit this back in November with the Boulder Knitting Collective KAL but didn't. I knit this with Dream in Color Classy, Grey Tabby. The fit is perfect. I've used this yarn many times but always gifted the finished project. So this is my first Dream in Color for me. (Not a great pic of me but a good one of the sweater!)

Second, Nimbus by the Berroco Design Team. I think this was supposed to be a KAL with Bich-Thu but she's having a hard time nailing down a yarn that she wants to use so I went solo on this. I had some issues with my bind off on the shoulder for the front panels, which made the shoulders narrower than I would have liked, but it's still comfortable. Yarn used on this sweater is Berroco Peruvia Quick in Saddle Brown. This sweater is warm, light and comfortable. I lengthened the body by four inches and the sleeves by five inches.

Now on to a belated baby shower gift. I was hoping to have three FOs in January but I'm having issues with the doily I'm working on. More details on both later.

Bella Bomber

2009-12-23T13:13:00.000-08:00

This year I have less Christmas knitting than last year. This is good in more than one way. Other than being crazy this time of year, it gave me more time to (try and) be creative. So my attempt at being more creative...

My niece requested an ear flap hat for Christmas. I debated about buying a super cute Target version that was $12 or struggle with finding a pattern that I was happy with. So! For her birthday (which is the week after Christmas) I wanted to knit Bella's Mittens for her. Finally, it occurred to me that I should knit a matching hat but the only Bella hat pattern I'd seen on Ravelry did not have ear flaps. This is where I got creative! I decided to try my hand at designing one. A fellow Raveler, AmberGale, named it...Bella's Bomber. I've attached a link for notes. I wasn't able to attach a .pdf file (I'm not so html inclined). :-) This is in no way a pattern! I just don't want anyone to be disappointed. You'll still need to refer to Bella's Hat pattern by Holly Easely while knitting Bella's Bomber.

I blocked the heck out of this because I thought it was going to be too small (that's why the cables flattened out so much). It's a hair big now but Malabrigo tends to bounce back a bit so I think it will end up being a perfect fit. Now, I gotta figure out how to make a cord and attach it. I'm so bad at i-cords, mine always are so bumpy. (Not a great pic because it was cloudy and snowing.)

flickr pics
Ravelry project page

'Tis the season

2009-12-17T10:58:00.000-08:00

...for parties and lots of holiday fun! So, Tuesday was my annual neighborhood Bunco ornament exchange. Wednesday I attended the Boulder Knitting Collective Christmas Gift Exchange Party, and tonight will be my annual book club gift exchange. Phew!

Last night's party was a hoot! It was so fun to be surrounded by knitters in the holiday spirit. The gift exchange got a bit heated at times but a good time was had by all. Alas, I did not get pics of the buffet spread that everyone contributed to. Here's a pic of all the great women in attendance. Thanks everyone for such a great time!

In this photo: (top) - Javalulu, Andrea, Jerusha, Bich-thu, Stephanie, JoAnn
(middle) - Aja (pink & white striped top), Marty, Becky, Pip (hostess), Cathy
(front) - Kristen, Emmy Lou, Katy, Amy (me)

Happy Thanksgiving

2009-11-26T23:52:00.001-08:00

Happy Thanksgiving! Just a quick note to share my great day.

It started with this.... How cool is that? Not just a beautiful sight because of the balloon but look at that view! That's out my backyard. I love living out of "town".

Next...my contribution to Thanksgiving dinner at my in-laws. That there is the sight of 20 lbs of mashed potatoes which includes 3 lbs of butter and almost 2 pints of heavy whipping cream. Mmmm.... Just for scale - that is a regular 11 x 17 cookie sheet (yes...that bowl is HUGE!).

I never...

2009-10-30T12:56:00.000-07:00

...win anything! But my luck has changed. A blogger/Ravelry friend, Leslie, was having a contest on her blog and the prize was this beautiful shawl. And guess what? I won! So now that our sidewalks are dry, from the recent snow storm, I finally made it down to the mailbox and found that my prize was awaiting my retrieval. How lucky am I? These colors are perfect for the fall season. I know this shawl will get much wear. Thank you so much, Leslie. Know that this will be loved!

(This pic of me wearing the shawl was taken by my four year old son, so it's a little shaky - and he had me laughing.)

Rib-A-Roni

2009-10-04T16:49:00.000-07:00

I needed a break from sample knitting. So I whipped these hats out in one day! The boys did not wear the hats I made for them last year because they were too scratchy. So when picking out yarn for this year's hats, I decided, first and foremost, it needs to be soft. On a recent yarn crawl to northern Colorado LYS, I found some Berroco Vintage Wool at Woolen Treasures in Loveland. The colors were right and the yarn was soft. The only downside to the yarn was the acrylic/wool content of 50/40. I would have been happier if it were the other way around (which is a me issue, not a "boys" issue). I had been scouring Ravelry for just the right hat pattern. When the father is involved in the choosing of a pattern, it always seems to be ten times as hard.

We finally agreed on the Rib-A-Roni, by Jane Turner (Ravelry link). This pattern was super quick, really easy to knit, and a well written pattern. I love how the crown decreases turned out...such nice clean lines! We'll have to see how the yarn holds up but I'm very happy with the colors and how well they look together. I knit the Youth size for the boys' 20" heads, started the stripe at two inches from cast-on row, and started the crown decreases at five inches from cast-on row.

Speaking of poop...

2009-09-07T18:44:00.000-07:00

I let a friend borrow our little potties a while back ago and when we saw her yesterday, she gave them back to us. The boys were so excited when they saw the potties. They said, "Now our teddy can have a potty!" When I saw the boys putting their teddy bears on their old potties, I couldn't resist knitting them these little fake poops. :-) Needless to say, they are delighted and tickled to have their own play poop!

Teddy on his potty.

Teddy's fake poop.

Close up...

ETA: I have been remiss in not linking the pattern. I'm sorry. Fake Poop pattern...
etsy link Ravelry link

Pooped!

2009-08-29T21:34:00.000-07:00

My brain is tired from knitting...

Sayago

2009-08-23T19:56:00.000-07:00

It's done...it fits...and I love it! This is the test knit that I did for Malabrigo Yarns. This was my first adult sized garment knit in pieces. I definitely learned a lot during this process. At the end of it all, I really enjoyed it. I will be knitting another of these in a different colorway, as mentioned in an earlier post. But before I begin that, I want to work on a few leisurely projects.

Sayago - Silky Merino Pullover by Melissa Leapman for Malabrigo Yarns from Book 2

flickr
ravelry

The Great Unveiling - Part I

2009-08-16T18:24:00.000-07:00

The baby shower that I've been knitting furiously for has finally come and gone! I'm calling this Part I because I only finished Carrie and Becky's gifts - I still need to finish Kristi's. I felt really bad about Kristi not being able to take anything home from me but no so much now that the shower is over (she knows she'll get her gift soon enough). They all received some really great hand knitted gifts. It was really fun to see all the gifts knitted up by all the women in this SnB.

These are the items I knit up for Carrie:

Fiona Top by Sanne Bjerregaand

Log Cabin Blanket

And these are the items I knit up for Becky:

Avery Sweater by Kristi Geraci

Log Cabin Blanket

Celeste did a great job planning the shower and we all had fun participating in the shower activity! She had all these templates cut out and fabric paint for painting on Onesies. Check it! I can be creative with a little direction!

Squirrel for Kristi

Robin for Carrie

Owl for Becky

Because I don't already have enough on my plate!

2009-07-24T13:12:00.000-07:00

I cannot contain myself! I just have to show off pictures of yarn that arrived today! I signed up to do test and sample knitting for Malabrigo and I was chosen! I'm SOOO EXCITED! So, amidst all the baby knitting that needs to get done by mid-August, I have the test knit to finish by then also! I'll blog more about the details later...here are pictures for now!
And Malabrigo threw these in...just because!

Another first...and another!

2009-07-19T19:10:00.000-07:00

I have been so busy! There are three women that are pregnant in my knitting group. Though their due dates are from September to December, the baby shower for all three is mid-August. That means, I have to knit everything for all three by then! I have been knitting like crazy and I still don't know if I'm gonna get it all done.

But today...? Today was a treat! I attended my very first knitting class, ever! A Cookie A. class at Shuttles, Spindles and Skeins - Sock Innovation: Top Down Sock Design. I don't have anything to compare to, but this class was fun! I found Cookie to be pretty laid back and easy to follow and understand. After a few false alarms, I found a stitch pattern that worked for sock knitting and started my first sock design! So...my plan is to knit a few repeats of the pattern on the leg and then decide if I like the yarn enough to continue. I chose a stitch out of a Japanese stitch pattern book but, unfortunately, do not have a pic of what it's supposed to look like. I've included a picture of what I have so far (one row repeat). It's not the best picture (but can you tell Cookie helped with the ribbing). I'm really anxious to work on this and get my the first sock done but I won't really have time until after the shower. I'm hoping I won't have forgotten all that I've learned by then!

Estes Park Wool Market

2009-06-14T11:37:00.000-07:00

This is the weekend of the annual Estes Park Wool Market. I went up on Saturday with some women from two of my knitting groups. This was the first year I've been able to attend. In previous years the event was always on Father's Day weekend and I could never get away but this year it was held a week earlier. It was amazing! I had so much fun. It wasn't fun just because of all the yarn, fiber, and animals, but because I really enjoyed being able to experience this with fellow knitters. That's what really made it for me! Here's a couple of pics from the day. Unfortunately, I didn't get a picture of the Paco-Vicunas which was my favorite animal.

All of us with our loot!

This is a Wensleydale sheep. Isn't it pretty!

Knitting updates

2009-06-14T10:06:00.000-07:00

It's been a little while since I've blogged about knitting. I've done a little of this and a little of that. But the biggest difference is that I've knit (almost) three pairs of socks! A while back ago, I told one of my knitting friends that I was not (yet) a sock knitter and that I was hoping that the new book by Cookie A, Sock Innovation would change that. I even broke down and invested in some sock blockers!

The first pattern from the book was Glynis. I loved knitting these socks. The pattern is asymmetrical but still intuitive and quick to memorize. Unfortunately, I didn't get to keep these socks as they were a birthday gift for a friend. (Not the greatest pic but they have since been gifted.)
The next pattern I knit was not a Sock Innovation pattern but still a Cookie A design. The Pomatomus is for the Purl Knit Cafe KAL. I have to be honest, I wasn't a big fan of the pattern but I agreed to do the KAL before the pattern was picked. After the pattern was picked I thought I might be pleasantly surprised and end up liking it. Well - the latter might have been true if I had picked a different yarn. One good thing has come from this...Lynn told me that she liked them well enough - so she'll be the lucky recipient of this pair (when the other sock is done).

And finally! I am MOST excited about the last sock knit! This was my first test knit and I loved it. It was challenging for me as I'm a newbie to sock knitting and I found it a bit intimidating. The end result...I loved it...test knitting and the finished socks! I love the pattern and how the sock design mirrors each other.

The Loretto Sock, designed by Kristi Geraci

more Ravelry pics

more Flickr pics

Hermit Park

2009-06-14T09:05:00.000-07:00

In front of our cabin at Hermit Park
Ronan, Tim, Amy, Seamus

Last weekend we camped at Hermit Park again. We stayed in the same cabin and camped with the same family. This time the weather was nice enough to actually sit by the campfire and enjoy cooking without freezing and huddling in the cabin. Seamus and Ronan actually had plenty of time to "explore" the surrounding area and do lots of climbing. There was one incident that was pretty scary. Seamus was climbing on a log up on a rock and all of the sudden started screaming. After having to scale the rock I found Seamus standing on the log with giant red ants covering his feet and ankles! It was like something out of a horror movie! Seamus was screaming, I was holding him under the armpits, trying to get his shoes off, and swipe all the ants off of him, and Tim was trying to get both of us off the rock. All ended well but shook us all up.

When I was a kid, on some camping trip - Girl Scouts or 6th grade camp - I remember baking cookies on the campfire. Keep in mind I've camped maybe five times since said camping trip. So I thought the kids would enjoy the same experience of baking cookies on the campfire. We started with a tube of Toll House chocolate chip cookie dough, a box, and aluminum foil.I cut the box top flaps off, covered the outside and lined the inside of the box with foil, and finally, added dollops of cookie dough to the inside of the box. The first batch went fairly quickly and tasted ok. The second batch took forever! And then something started to come back to me. I could vaguely remember covering the opening of the box with another foil covered flap. Wow! After that it was like a real oven! The cookies baked in the recommended 7-10 minutes. There was some technical difficulty. Apparently, I left a crack in the foil which was enough for the box to catch on fire - under the foil!So, though the cookies had a hint of smoke flavoring - they were enjoyed by all!

Catching up

2009-06-14T09:01:00.000-07:00

Where to start? This past week has been a whirlwind of activity. I guess the easiest way to organize it all is to blog about them all separately. Here goes!

He's a maniac, maniac...

2009-05-31T23:20:00.000-07:00

I just couldn't resist posting this pic! The boys have been wanting me to knit them sweatbands for a while now. So, we went to the yarn store and picked out some yarn and I finally knit them up on Saturday night.
I guess I could have knit a few more rows to make the bands wider. I'm not sure if it's the color or the narrowness of the sweatbands that make me think Flashdance! (Ronan on left and Seamus on right)

Bat-MAN!

2009-05-19T21:03:00.001-07:00

This was the overwhelming theme of this year's birthday celebrations. Ronan & Seamus turned four years old today. Can you believe it? Their birthday cakes, decorations, and toys all reiterated their current enthusiasm...Batman. There was a family birthday party on Sunday and today was the birthday party that consisted mostly of our friends and their kids at The Hop.

Their birthday is always bittersweet for me. For those of you that don't know, all three of us almost died on their birthday. So it is on their birthday that I always feel especially grateful for my family and our good health. I leave you with the last picture of them on their birthday before bed.

Struttin' his stuff

2009-05-13T21:04:00.000-07:00

We have family in town from Minnesota. The boys have been really looking forward to this visit because their cousin Haley, whom they have not seen since July 2007, is one of the visitors. We went to the Denver Zoo today. We were treated to quite a display by the male peacocks. There were four males vying for the affection of two females. Beautiful...

Super Seamy...

2009-04-30T20:43:00.000-07:00

...to the RESCUE!

(pronounced Shamey)
...a couple more pics here

My First

2009-03-29T15:32:00.000-07:00

B.O.B - Button on Sweater by Jackie Pawlowski

My first real sweater, and knit for me, to boot! I'm so in love with it. :-) I'm really proud of it because...it's practical, it's attractive, and it fits! The pattern is very easy to follow and the knitting grew fast with chunky yarn. Picking up stitches (for the button band) on size 10.5 US needles is SO MUCH faster and easier than with sock yarn on size 1.5 US needles! There's nothing about this sweater that I wish I had changed. It fits around the waist and chest just fine without adding too much pressure on the buttons and the sleeve length is perfect. I love the high collar that keeps the breeze off my neck and the cables that follow it all the way up. I did add quite a bit of length to the arms and body in addition to spreading out the decreases for the raglan arm shaping to give more room at the armpits. (The raglan shaping was a challenge that my friend Emily helped me hurdle. Emily - you're so smart!) The only part of this sweater that I didn't like doing was sewing on the buttons - all EIGHT of them. I guess it was well worth it. The yarn that I knit this in has to be the softest wool I have ever touched and felt against my skin - Malabrigo Chunky. Even the Malabrigo Worsted is not as soft as this!

Hi Ho, Hi Ho...

2009-03-10T14:29:00.000-07:00

So we went camping this past weekend at Hermit Park! It was fun. Lynn said that she and her family were thinking of going and I invited myself (and my family) along. What? Camping in March? Well... cabin camping. The cabins were really nice but still lacked running water and electricity. Thank goodness it had heat and a propane stove. Even the port-o-potty was decent! There were 2 bunk beds but each bunk had 2 twin mattresses so the cabin could sleep a total of 8 adults (or many more kids). Seamus was doing a good job of pulling his own weight.
This is Seamus climbing up the ladder of the bunk beds with his sleeping bag and tent on his back.When we were pulling out of the driveway, Tim looked at me and said, "Look at how much crap we have for one night!" True, true, but most of it was needed regardless of how many nights we stayed. The boys wanted to sleep on the top bunks so Tim and I slept on the outside with one of the boys on the inside. It got soooo hot! Poor Seamus ended up moving down to the bottom bunk in the middle of the night because he just couldn't stand it. The weather was decent but it was windy at night so campfires weren't much fun. But all in all, a good time was had by all. One more pic to end it on. This is of all the kids hunkered down to watch Max & Ruby on portable DVD players (my kind of camping). ;-)

more pics of our camping trip here...

Pretty, Shiny, Lovely

2009-02-22T12:59:00.000-08:00

Look at these! Aren't they wonderful? These stich markers were a birthday gift from my friend, Lynn. I just love handmade gifts. I love the variety of the beads and the colors!

In addition to the stitch markers, Lynn gave me a skein of Araucania - Azapa. It's so soft and silky to the touch. The silk gives this yarn such a great sheen. I've already started a shawl. I just hope it's enough. I'm also using the stitch markers for this (since I need so many!). And the markers are so nice. The weight of them keeps them out of the way and the jump rings are nice and big which makes the transfer from needle to needle easy.

Another green Christine

2009-02-17T14:10:00.000-08:00

And this one's for me!

So about a month ago Michaels was having a sale on Lion Brand Wool-Ease Thick & Quick - normally over $6.50 a skein and - on sale for $5 a skein. I had some projects in the queue that called for super chunky weight yarn so I stocked up! I bought over 10 balls of this stuff! I am kind of a yarn snob but I really like this yarn. For a super chunky yarn, this yarn is soft, affordable, comes in a good variety of colors, and has good yardage per skein. If you look at my Ravelry projects, I have knit over five of my last ten finished projects with this yarn. Actually, now that I think about it, I may have blown through the whole wad! Wow!

Ok - on topic. From this yarn I knitted up two Christine Bags, one for me and one for my friend's birthday gift - same color - different lining. Why does lining handbags prove to be such a feat for me? I have yet to just whip one out! In fact, I still have not finished another gift because of the lining. And yet, I still continue to choose projects that require a lining...but I digress. My friend, Bridgett, has knit about ten of these bags and raves about what a cinch this bag is to put together. I think my next one will be. Oh! Note - when you purchase your purse handles, make sure they are symmetrical. The handles I used for my bag were not - it looks a bit wonky but still works.

This is Frankie's Christine Bag...

He's not a girl...

2009-02-10T13:45:00.000-08:00

...but he still looks darn cute in it. This is the Baby Girl Brimmed Hat modified to fit a 4 year old girl. Generally speaking, I'm not a big fan of crochet (1) because I don't know how and (2) it's just so nubby. But sometimes I do like it and wish I could do it (like amigurumi - so cute!). That's what I love about this hat - though it's knit, it looks like crochet! I gifted the hat on Sunday and saw Francess wearing it to school today. Ugh! The flower looked aweful! I secured the petals with the same yarn that the flower was knit out of and it just pulled at the stitches. I asked if I could take the hat back and fix the flower. So...pictures of Francess in the hat are pre-mending and pictures with Seamus in the hat are post-mending. (Umm - how long do you think he'll keep trying on my hand knits for M&Ms?)

Cute as an Eskimo

2009-02-03T09:53:00.000-08:00

This poncho pattern, Eskimo Poncho w/ Hood, was one of the easiest kid knits ever. The only seaming involved was for the hood which took less than ten minutes. This pattern is also easily modified by just adding on more repeats to make it longer and wider. The Lion Brand Wool Ease Thick & Quick made the ponchos quite substantial and I was able to knit two in less than two weeks. The ponchos were well received and I hear they're getting well used already. AND...they look adorable on Sylvia & Natalie!

Poncho & Mikey

2009-01-28T18:06:00.000-08:00

From the loving hands and needles of a dear friend, Lynn.Ronan loves his Mikey and Seamus loves his Poncho.

mad-faced mikey

Isn't she lovely...

2009-01-11T19:22:00.000-08:00

...isn't she wonderful...isn't she precious... Cabled Baby Hat

Almost done!

2008-12-30T14:30:00.000-08:00

Well the holidays are almost done and over. Tim, Ronan, Seamus and I spent the Christmas holiday visting my side of the family in Las Vegas. My brother, Dwight Jr. and his family, drove up from Barstow, CA. There was quite a household of people and animals - Nancy (my dad's wife - aka - step mom) had some of her family up at the house. So...there were TEN of us staying at my dad's with their 2 yellow labs, my brother's 3 long haired weiner dogs, and Nancy's sister's 2 mini Dobermans! Ugh! Though it was crowded and overwhelming for Ronan and Seamus, it was fun to be around the chaos - and now - nice to be home. So, Tim and I did Christmas with the boys the second we walked in the door from Vegas - because Santa had come while we were in Vegas (wink, wink) and we will be doing (another) Christmas with Tim's family tomorrow night! It really is so much harder when you have children and have to spread it out. So while in Vegas, we had breakfast at a lodge at Mount Charleston. I was quite surprised at the amount of snow that was up there and the elevation. The lodge we were eating at was at a little over 7k feet but Mount Charleston reaches almost 12k feet. Who knew? After Mount Charleston we drove to Red Rocks Canyon. I wanted to visit the site where Tim and I had gotten married back in May 2001. We couldn't actually get to the site because the meadow we were married in is now a preserve but it meant a lot to me to be able to be there with the boys. Tim and I argued about the actual location of the ceremony. We took pictures of the area and then compared the pics to our wedding photos last night...sure enough - he was right! :-)

Mount Charleston

Red Rocks Canyon, Las Vegas, Nevada

...and look at this one...I couldn't resist posting this...Seamus Patrick

And at the end of it all - I was able to finally get pictures of some of the gifts I made with their recipients. Both hats were very well recieved. Success!

Stella Cloche

Cowboy Hat

Kelly, Kelly...Stella

2008-12-01T17:11:00.000-08:00

I've been on a felting kick lately - four out of the last ten projects I've finished have been felted. I'm especially excited about the Kelly bags I knit! I initially chose this project for my book club gift exchange. After finishing, I agonized over the decision to keep it or stick with the plan and gift it. Well - the end decision, I knit another one for myself! So I have two to show off today. :-) I knit the the first Kelly bag as written in the pattern. I knit Kelly Bag II with some modifications. I made the bag shorter in width, the flap longer, and tried to add a ruffle (but that didn't turn out so great). I just love the lining I found for both the bags - so cute!

The Kelly Bag I

The Kelly Bag II

Ok - now for Stella. I knitted a cloche hat - all the rage now :-) - for my Dad's wife as her Christmas gift. It turned out cute. I have not yet added the embellishments and haven't decided what I'm going to do either. But here's a picture for now. I still need to shave it. The old sweater shaver I bought from Fingerhut fifteen years ago isn't quite cutting it on this yarn.

Stella Cloche

more pics here

Ummm -what other things do I have to share? I'm going to try and make a felted cowboy hat for my neice to go with the cowboy boots that I got her for Christmas. Oh - I'm also going to give my dad's wife two dish towels that I knit towel toppers on - you know the kind - the kind you see at grandma's house - yes, those are the ones. I think that's it for my Christmas list knitting.

Ava Tee

2008-11-20T15:47:00.000-08:00

Ah, par for the course, another belated birthday gift. This is for my friend's daughter, Ava. This was a super quick knit and easy as pie. I even modified some - details on my Ravelry project page. I wasn't able to get the best picture because it was windy and the hanger kept moving (and it was freezing out!). This Girl's cap sleeve spring top pattern was well written and easy to read.

Winter Warmth

2008-11-14T10:09:00.001-08:00

It's my sister-in-laws birthday this weekend so I knitted her a few things to help keep her warm this winter. She is always complaining about her neck being cold so I thought a neck warmer would be a quick, easy gift.

FOURTEEN - when I saw this pattern I fell in love with it. But I couldn't figure out how to do the 'knit 1 below'. I knit the first one (green) using a brioche stitch I found on the web. I didn't like the result - it looked like a rib (before it was blocked). So I set out to try and figure out the k1b again and finally came across video instructions on knittinghelp.com (which is abbreviated k-b). After figuring out the k1b I knitted another neck warmer in periwinkle. I LOVE IT! It came out much closer to the pattern picture.

I also knit these fingerless hand warmers for her.

"There is a season - turn, turn, turn..."

2008-11-11T11:47:00.000-08:00

Yes...it's been quite a while. I've been busy knitting, knitting, away. I just wanted to share the latest of my finished projects. It has started to get cold, especially in the mornings, here in Colorado and the boys needed new hats for the season. So I whipped these out over a few days. I'm in love with how they turned out. Unfortunately, Ronan and Seamus refuse to wear them..."too scratchy" they say. What to do? I'm sick about it. I just love the hats and have not resigned to having to give them away yet. Can I line the hats? What can I line them with? The yarn I used is wool and mohair so I don't want the lining to make the hats unbearabley hot. Anyone?

Turn a Square, by Jared Flood.

more pics here

Druid Mittens

2008-08-27T22:31:00.000-07:00

I participated in Ravelry's Ravelympics. The point of Ravelympics was to choose something to knit that would challenge the knitter. With that in mind, I decided on these mittens...for me! These are truly my most favorite knit. The detail in these mittens are so amazing! I was actually a little nervous knitting them - I just wasn't sure I could do the pattern justice (that still up to one's own interpretation). Someone once said to me (after showing her something I had knit), "Oh, Amy, you are so prolific!" Hmph! :-) Anyway, my response was, "It's not original, I did use a pattern." So as amazing as I think that these mittens turned out, I am exponentially more amazed that one could design such a pattern. So, without further ado, I proudly present my Ravelympics entry, Druid Mittens (Green Autumn) by Jared Flood (brooklyntweed).

Cheese!

2008-08-12T23:09:00.001-07:00

Say 'cheeeeze'!

Accomplished?

2008-08-02T21:51:00.000-07:00

The Anisette Shawl is done! Having finished this shawl, I have come to realize that I have never before experienced such a sense of accomplishment as a project came off the needles. It was really neat to see it all come together as I was blocking it.

And I whipped up two Barn Bags for belated birthday gifts for twin girls. After finishing the bags I thought they needed a little something to spruce it up (they were so plain). So I thought, first things first, I'll line 'em. While I was looking for fabric I found the little flowers. The bags turned out cute.

Lastly, a picture of my WIP - Aurora Bag. I'm almost done with the second side.

Just because...

2008-07-22T22:47:00.000-07:00

Just because I have nothing else to post about - I will show off a lovely picture of little Emily in the hat I knit. I decided to knit her brother, Josh, a hat also (twins - must match). The pattern for Emily's hat is Butterfly Hat. I had a hard time finding a pattern for Josh's hat and finally decided on the Nottingham Hat. Josh's hat, however, still needs to be knit since (so no pictures to post yet).

I ended up giving the bunny I knit to someone I used to work with. She loved it.

I'm still plugging away on the Anisette shawl. I'm almost 70% done - just finished my 13th pattern repeat. On Saturday, Lynn and I went down to the LambShoppe in Denver for their monthly Pajama Jam. We bought yarn for the Aurora Bag. I've already finished one side! The bag will only be for knitting when I can't concentrate on the Anisette shawl as I would like to have it done by the end of July.

Stuff...

2008-07-15T23:00:00.000-07:00

Here's a picture of the Rusted Root top I knit for Julie's birthday. She looks great it in. I was thinking about knitting one for myself but who am I kidding. :-)

I've been working on a lace shawl for my friend, Bridgett. Her birthday is today and I thought I would have it done for her birthday, but...alas, once again - another belated birthday gift. The pattern is Anisette. I don't have very good pictures but I'll throw one in just to give you an idea of what it looks like.

Last but not least, I'm knitting a little bunny for a birthday gift for a 3 year old boy. I hope this turns out ok. My last attempt at knitting a toy did not go well at all. For his sister, I have a Butterfly Hat that I had knit last fall and didn't fit the recipient so I had to reknit a bigger version. This is a picture of the (first) small version.