More little sweaters!

Here are the other two sweaters I made from the Yankee Knitter pattern.  This first one is 3-6 months size and I made it in Berrocco Comfort Yarn.  I loved working with this yarn and really like the way it looks when it's knit.

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This sweater was knit in the preemie size by mistake. It is the perfect size for an 18" doll. I didn't make a hat. It was knit from Vanna's Choice yarn. I find the Vanna's Choice to be a nice acrylic yarn to use.

And here is yet another Concentric Stripes sweater. This time I made it in Vanna's Choice Dusty Rose and Linen. Too darn cute!

What happened to Spring?

The weather certainly has been crazy lately. It's either barely above freezing or in the 80's. Today it's in the 80's and tomorrow is supposed to be even hotter. Sheesh!

 So here are a few of the latest baby items that I've knit. First up is another Concentric Stripes sweater and hat. The yarn is Plymouth Encore Worsted in lime green and white. Matching hat is the pattern Kim's Hats from Last Minute Knitted Gifts. I put it in my booth and it sold within a week or two.
I love the cute little sailboat buttons.

 Since that sweater set sold so quickly, I immediately made another one. The yarn I used for this one is Rozetti Lollipop which is unfortunately discontinued. I love this yarn! So soft and squishy. And it knits like a dream especially for an acrylic. Why do they always discontinue the good yarns?

This little hat is a test knit I did for CedarBoxKnits. I made the smallest size and her numbers worked beautifully. The yarns are all Patons Classic Wool. You can find her pattern on Ravelry under Coleus Hat. There are several sizes. I will definitely made more of these little hats.  

This cardigan is from Yankee Knitter Designs #31. Great little top down cardigan pattern. I made it in Patons Decor. I like this pattern so much that I have two more in progress right now. One is a preemie size and just needs the sleeve seams sewn and buttons. The other one is the 0-3 month size and I'm almost to the sleeve section. The pattern works up very quickly and easily. It also includes a hat and a couple of baby blankets.

 And finally we have a cute ruffled hat. It's a free pattern from Bernat and was very easy to knit. The pattern has you start from the top and work down but I always have trouble doing the cast-on for a top down hat so I reversed it and started with the ruffle and worked up. The yarn is Bernat Baby Jacquards. Love the self-striping yarn! Well, that's all for now. Keep on knitting!

So, almost a year later...

Funny how life likes to throw curve balls, isn't it? Changes things up and gets you all discombobulated. That's what happened to me since I last posted here. Scott had to retire on medical disability and we are both completely out of the plumbing/heating business. And neither of us miss it in the least. I now work for a local business that sells bottled water and Green Mountain K-cups for Keurig coffee makers. There are two locations and I work in both of them at different times. Mostly I sell coffee and water, stock shelves, answer phones, and do office work. I like the people I work with and I like the job so all is good there. Scott has taken over the household duties - laundry, cleaning and cooking. He likes to cleand and loves the cooking part. And he's good at it. So that's good, too. And through it all, I am still knitting. Mostly it's been hats, mittens,and baby items. We rented a small space in a local antiques/craft co-op where we sell small antiques and my knitted items. We only started in the middle of November so it's a little hard to tell how well it's going to go. We have sold several items, though. These mittens are in the shop right now but haven't sold yet. The yarn is Plymouth Encore and the pattern is just a basic mitten pattern.

This is a Cupcake Cutie Cap from the book "Grammy's Favorite Knits for Baby" by Doreen Marquart. It's a fast, easy pattern and people love it. The yarn is King Cole Merino Blend DK which is machine washable wool. It was one of the first things I sold.

I'm also still making Concentric Striped Cardigans. This first one is made from Vanna's Choice yarn. The hat is just a basic hat pattern. This set sold fairly quickly.

This one is made from Plymouth Encore and Vanna's Choice. I thought it would sell for Christmas but it hasn't yet. I'll mark it down and see if it sells before the middle of January.

And this is an Elf Hat by Celina Garrels. It's an Ann Norling pattern. The yarn is Plymouth Encore. This didn't sell for Christmas either. It might be because it's a newborn size or because I didn't get it in the shop until right before Christmas. I'll mark it down and if it doesn't sell, I'll keep it until next year.

So, now I'm working on other things to put in the shop. Baby items seem to be a good seller but I'm going to do a few adult things, too. Hats, fingerless gloves, and cowls are some of the things I have in mind. I'll keep you updated.

A little bit of knitting going on

Here are a couple of things I finished recently. First up is a toddler hat made in Vanna's Choice yarn in Olive and White. The pattern is the Pilot Hat by Darlene Dale. It's found on the Caron website.



This is actually the second hat I made from this pattern. The first one was the baby size and was made in the exact same yarn. The pattern has you knitting the hat flat with a seam up the back but I did mine in the round.

Next up is a pair of baby booties for charity. The pattern is from Creative Knitting May 2009 and is called the Buttercup Baby Set. I have only made the bootie pattern so far. Some day I'll try the sweater and bonnet.



The yarn is Patons Canadiana in Tealorama. This was a partial skein left from a zip-up-the-back baby sweater I made several years ago. I still have a little bit of the skein left but not enough for another pair of booties.

I have finished some other items but I haven't taken pictures of them yet. Right now I'm working on another pair of the booties. One is knit and needs to be seamed and then I'll do the other one. Pictures to follow at some point.

Still making hats

I joined a new charity group on Ravelry called Hearts for Warmth. One of the campaigns right now is a hat blitz to send to the African country of Lesotho. So I'm still making hats.

This first hat is a pattern is the Waffle Hat by Gail Bable. I used Lion Brand Wool in cocoa and Brown Sheep Lamb's Pride in rust.



The pattern keeps it interesting and it knits up quite quickly. I made most of this hat sitting in the hospital waiting room while Scott was having a bone scan done. We were there from 10 a.m. until 1:30 p.m. The bone scan showed no sign of the infection they were checking for so it was a good day.

I actually started the hat for Scott but he didn't like the stitch pattern so I finished it for the hat blitz. If he had liked it, it would have been solid cocoa but once he didn't want it, I jazzed it up with the rust stripe.

This next hat is an earflap hat made from Brown Sheep Lamb's Pride worsted in wild oak and rust. The pattern is "Kim's Hats" from "Last Minute Knitted Gifts" by Joelle Hoverson. (You can click on the pictures to see them close up.)



This last hat is not for charity. I made it for the 3 month old son of one of Ariane's friends.

The pattern is the Pilot Hat and it was knit in Vanna's Choice worsted in olive and Vanna's Choice Baby in lamb.



I made the baby size since Ariane tells me that Mark is a little peanut. I sent it back with Ariane and haven't heard if she gave it to Kate yet.

As soon as I finished the baby size, I cast on a toddler size hat in the same yarns. That hat was finished tonight but I haven't had a chance to take a picture of it yet. Not sure who will get that one. It's too small for the Lesotho campaign. It's also made from acrylic yarn and not wool so it wouldn't be appropriate even if it were the right size.

I haven't been able to get a picture of Scott's fair isle hats yet. He always has one of them on and the other one tucked away somewhere. I am going to make him another brown hat because he doesn't like the ribbed one. It stretches out too much and doesn't stay on his head. As soon as I find a brown yarn he likes, I'll make him a beanie style hat. So, on to more hats!

It's hat season!

So my son, Alek, sent me a text message that prompted a conversation that went like this:

Alek: WB is jealous of my winter hat and wants you to make him one.

Me: Really. Does he deserve one?

Alek: That question made me laugh. A lot. And prompted his response of "your mom is awesome."

Alek: So I'd say he deserves one.

So I looked in my Ravelry projects to see what pattern I used for Alek's hat, searched the stash for some appropriate yarn and made this hat for WB.



The pattern is the "Nothing but Ribbing Beanie" from "Knit a Dozen Beanies" by American School of Needlework. The yarn is Universal Yarns "Moods". Unfortunately, this yarn is discontinued. I liked working with it.

After I finished this hat, Scott decided he really liked it and wanted one in brown. So I dug through the stash again and found a skein of Patons Classic Wool in chestnut tweed and made one for him. It was a little large for him so I threw it in the washer and then into the dryer for 10 minutes. It shrunk just enough to fit him the way he wanted. But now he wants one made on smaller needles so it's a little tighter on his head.



Now you have to realize, I already made Scott two fair isle hats. After his surgery in October, he complained his head was cold and he wanted a hat to wear inside. So I made him a hat in green and tan. Then he wanted another in blue and cream. He wears them all the time so how can I refuse to make them for him?

Next time I will post pictures of his fair isle hats. I took pictures of them but they are on my laptop which currently has a virus that needs eliminating. I'll have to take more pictures and put them onto my netbook which I am using now.

Super Quick Post!

This is a super quick post! Here are the items I sent to Warm Hats, Warm Hearts for the victims of Hurricane Irene in northern Vermont and central NY.



Most of these things have been in my "finished basket" for a long time. It feels good to send them to a good cause. Warm Hats, Warm Hearts is a group on Ravelry.

The reason for the short, quick post is that Scott and I are heading to the Cleveland Clinic in OH tomorrow. He is having a second bypass operation on October 20th and we are hoping that it fixes lots of things! Prayers and good thoughts are most welcome!