Pretty in Pink Baby Cardigan

I cant even begin to tell you how much I love this project! It started with the yarn...  this pigeonroof studios gradient yarn is soo beautiful.  I had an idea in my mind of what I was aiming for, and used my 'go to' pattern for baby girl sweaters - Elizabeth Zimmerman February Baby Sweater - as the basis for the project.  It turned out exactly as I had envisioned... don't you love it when that happens!



Here are the modifications that I made to EZ's pattern:

• EZ calls out a number of stitches to cast on.  Instead of casting on this amount, cast on the number that it recommends that you should have after the first round of increases.  
• Follow the pattern for the garter stitch neck band and spacing of buttons
• Instead of using the lace pattern that EZ recommends, knit a simple stocking stitch, retaining the garter stitch edging and button spacing.  (I love the lace pattern, but really wanted the color gradient to stand out with a simpler stitch pattern)
• When starting a new color mini skein, work the first row as *Knit 1, Slip 1* repeated across the stocking stitch portion of the pattern - this results in a subtle zigzag between the 2 colors (vs a hard line shift from one color to the next)
• For the sleeves, work 4 ridges of garter stitch and cast off.

It's very simple, but I think quite effective as a result of the beautiful yarn.



The final touch was to add buttons.  These are a simple transparent, pale pink, gem-like bead from Joanns Fabrics.  Aside from being a gorgeous button, I liked that the transparency picked up on the color of the yarn that it was placed on.



All in all, it was a really enjoyable knit, and I am excited to gift it next month.  Ooh and who doesnt love buying dresses for little girls?  I found this super cute ballet pump design dress which picks up on some of the pinks in the cardigan.

I hope you are having a great weekend.  It finally turned into summer here, so I've been enjoying time outdoors.  Take care,

Love,
Sam
xxx

See-me-coming Socks

I have been travelling a bit with work again, this time to the east coast.  That's a good 4 hours of knitting time right there! (Well knitting, napping and trying to catch up with emails :))

I do attribute some of that flight time to being able to finish a pair of socks in a couple of weeks (it has to be a record for me!):



The yarn is a handspun and hand dyed fiber from Sereknitty, in colourway 'Wild Side'. These bright colours make me happy. As does handspun in general. There's something very special about a handspun yarn, and the fabric it creates.  It has such an allure that there have been a number of times I have considered taking a class in spinning to see if it is something that I'd enjoy. Truly though, I really don't need another crafty hobby, or to build up more stash and tools to support another crafty hobby. Still there's that allure... ;o)
I digress.



The pattern is a basic vanilla sock, on my new size 2s. I really enjoyed working with my new signature needles - gotta be careful with those points though (super sharp). So onto the next pair of socks. This time some man socks for Joe:



Hope you are enjoying a lovely father's day with loved ones.
Sam xxx

Pink Pop Socks

The weather in Colorado has finally turned from a rather unusual gloomy and wet few weeks, to summer! (Well summer interspersed with hail storms, tornado warnings and some crazy rain!). On the sunny weekend days I've been enjoying some R&R in our back garden, which has included knitting on these 'pink pop socks' while our little water baby runs through the garden sprinklers, or wallows in the inflatable pool.



The socks started out with a really fun pattern, but I was simply too frazzled from work to do anything but a plain vanilla sock. So I ripped them back and reverted to my old faithful pattern. The yarn is from Creatively Dyed and is a lovely mix of cream, brown, burnt orange, hot pink and navy. 





As I was knitting, the dominant colors appeared to be the burnt orange and brown. Which is nice, except I was really hoping the hot pink would pop out. It was at that point I decided to add a heel and toe in a similar hot pink handspun yarn to really make that pink pop... it did the trick! Love how this turned out.

In other yarny news, I've been shopping! I should know to avoid my local yarn store because there is always something to tempt me. And sure enough there was this lovely Anzula Nebula yarn in shades of olive, some fun hot pink Madeleine Tosh, and this gorgeous gradient yarn from the Neighbourhood Fiber Co.







Lastly, I've picked up knitting squares for the Bertie's Blankets - the hospice blankets. These are a really simple square to knit from the Kraft Tanken Patches pattern - free Ravelry download. A couple of you had asked if I was still collecting squares... I'd really love it if you could donate one of these sock yarns squares for the next Bertie's Blanket. Thank you.



Wishing you a wonderful week ahead and fun summer plans.
Love, Sam xxx

Feel good projects

Instant gratification has been the name of the game over here.
One of my (many) quirks is that I like to feel productive, or that I have achieved something each day. If that isn't happening elsewhere then I look to my crafts to meet that need... and it has been meeting that need these last few weeks, with a stream of small, instant gratification, feel-good projects:





First up is a fabric storage bucket that is perfect for a knitted sock project, or other small portable project. This bucket uses some cute bunting fabric that I picked up on my last trip to the UK, together with the hot pink mochi dot linen fabric for the inside. I followed the instructions for the small fabric bin from the birch blog. The only mod was using batting instead of interfacing. I highly recommend this project if you are looking for some super cute storage bins.



Next up, Joe asked if I would make a something to carry his glasses in, instead of the bulky hard case. I had to dig around for some manly fabric from my stash, and I think the brown and olive Kaffe Fassett fabrics fit the bill. No real pattern on these - just a simple pouch that I quilted to add a little protection. I love how this has a wood grain vibe to it.





The next few items are for an end of season soccer celebration. There are these lovely headbands using the directions from alice and lois. These are ridiculously simple to make, and extremely comfortable to wear. We made a batch for the soccer girls using a selection of fun fabric scraps.



I also received some amazing crafty goodies from my brother and sister for my birthday last week: These fabulous sock knitting needles from my brother (who has coined them the 'Ferrari of knitting needles'). I hope to take them for a spin this weekend.



And my sister sent me this gorgeous bundle of Liberty fabrics. Droool! So as my Uncle often told me: Cast your bread upon the water and it will be returned tenfold. That certainly seems to be the case this week.

Wishing you all a happy mother's day. Love, Sam xxx

Happy Valentines Day!

Hello Friends,
Are you having a good Valentines day? Any fun plans?

We'll be driving down to Colorado Springs today - that's where Joe and I met, 14 years ago. Its just a short drive down from Denver and we always enjoy spending a day in Old Colorado City and seeing Garden of the Gods.

But first, I wanted to quickly share the socks that I finished for Joe.



These were completed just in the nick of time yesterday evening.



The yarn is Crazy Zauberball (the Black/grey/white) and Shibui sock (red). I like that they both appear to be the same from the cuff down to the heel, but that one foot has the darker yarn and the other foot the lighter yarn. I hadn't planned them to work out that way... but for me that's part of the fun of working with these types of yarn.



The pattern is one that I made up as I went along. I share it here in case you might be interested:
The socks are worked from cuff to toe, using size 2 needles.

Cuff:

• Cast on 70 stitches and join for knitting in the round, place a stitch marker at the beginning of the round to help you keep track of where each round starts and stops
• Work 10 rounds in a K1, P1 rib

Leg:

• Work 5 rows in K9, P1 pattern
• Then work the heart pattern below (retaining the K9, P1 pattern as illustrated in the heart chart), using your contrast yarn for the hearts

• Once the heart chart is completed, continue working in K9, P1 pattern until leg is desired length (for my socks this was approx. 8.5 inches)

Add in waste yarn for a provisional heel:

• Using a waste yarn of a contrast colour, knit 35 stitches
• Now, reknit these stitches with your working yarn (in my case the zauberball) retaining the K9, P1 pattern around
• Here's a good resource for how to do this, from the Knit Purl Hunter:

Foot:

• Continue knitting in K9, P1 pattern until the foot is the desired length (for my socks, this was approx. 6 inches)

Toe:

• Arrange the stitches so that you have 35 stitches on needle 1, and the other 35 stitches split fairly evenly between needles 2 and 3
• Switch to the contrast yarn
• Knit 1 complete round
• Then knit a decrease round:  On needle 1: K1, SSK.  K until there are 3 stitches left on the needle.  K2 tog, K1.  On needle 2: K1, SSK, K to end of needle.  On needle 3: K until there are 3 stitches left on the needle.  K2 tog, K1.
• Work a knit round, and then work a decrease round and keep alternating between these rounds until there are 30 stitches left
• Using Kitchener stitch, graft the live stitches together

The afterthought heel:

• Go back to the waste yarn and place these stitches on your needle, while removing the waste yarn
• Follow the instructions for the toe, to complete the heel
• Again, for a great resource, the Knit Purl Hunter has the following instructional video

Darn in all ends and then repeat for the second sock. :)
That's all there is to it.



For the folks in the US, wishing you a lovely long weekend!
Happy Valentines to all,
Sam
xxx

Zauberball Man Socks

Between road trips and work trips I've been able to whip out another pair of socks. This time for Joe (although the pic below is modeled on my feet):

Quite the dazzlers aren't they :)))
The yarn is Zauberball and is dyed to gradually progress through the colours.

While this is a really nice effect, I thought I'd make them stripey by knitting one row from one end of the skein and the following row from the other end of the skein. Typically I make my stripes thicker. But this has a fun effect with the single rows of each colour. For the cuff, heels and toes, I stick with working from one end of the skein so that they appear as a solid(ish) colour, instead of continuing the stripes.


I like that the socks don't match exactly... but clearly belong together.
Another pair to tuck away in the Winter Woollies box.

Oh yes, I didn't follow a published pattern for these. Just winging it using my basic sock approach and a size 2 needle. I like the simplicity of the basic sock for travel projects - my hands can stay busy, while I can zone out and relax.

Have you been taking any fun trips?
What are your projects of choice when you are travelling?

Wishing you a lovely summer,
Sam x

Puerperium Cardigan

The folks at work are throwing a baby shower for one of the ladies in our group I hear 'baby shower' and my mind immediately starts thinking about all the cute itty bitty knits that I could make. The lady in question has decided not to find out whether she'll be welcoming a little boy, or a little girl. So that helps narrow the choices down to a unisex cardigan. As always I go to the Ravelry pattern search and start flicking through the baby patterns. That's where I found the Puerperium cardigan by Kelly Brooker.  Look how precious this is, and it is free.  Bonus!  The cardigan is a very easy knit and the pattern is well  written. Perfect for a beginner.  It is knit top down, with practically no seaming (except the underarms).  I used size US6 needle.

Here are a couple on Ravelry that caught my attention:

- Bethmarian's version with icord edging

- Babysnakes version - it tickled me seeing a cat wearing this!

- Possum version with an embroidered turtle

I chose to work this in Zitron Unisono.  I recently picked up this yarn at Mountain Valley Weavers in Glenwood Springs (if you are in the area, I recommend that you visit the store.  This is a not for profit that offers developmentally challenged adults the opportunity to explore and develop their creativity through the art of weaving - we were lucky enough to see some of the weavers happily working on beautiful scarves).  Any hoo the Unisono is lovely.  It is machine washable and is soft enough for babies skin (it has aloe in it).  Yes, this would do the trick.



I often think it is the little details that make a project.  The cardigan is lovely, but I wanted to add a little something to it.  First, the buttons.  These are some that I had picked up from Stampin Up a while back - I like that they work well with the colours in the yarn.  That was a good start, but it needed something else... a pocket.  (I simply cast on 15 stitches, knit in stocking stitch for approx 1-2 inches and then finished with 4 rows of garter stitch to match the garter stitch on the hem and neck band).  I love the pocket, and it makes me giggle thinking how throughly useless it is for a baby - pure decoration only. 

The pocket was good, but hmm it still needed something else... that's right an over stitched heart.  I think it did the trick!

I still had yarn left and made a little umbilical cord hat to go with the cardigan.



Using US 6 needles cast on 75 stitches.  The hat is knit in the round.  First 4 rounds are garter stitch.
After the garter stitch, knit about 3-4 inches in stocking stitch.  Then comes the decreasing:
- *K3, K2tog* all the way around
- Knit a row
- *K2, K2tog* all the way around
- Knit a row
- *K1, K2tog* all the way around
- Knit a row
- *K2tog* all the way around
- Knit a row
- *K2 tog, K1* all the way around
- Knit an icord to the desired length, break yarn and thread through remaining stitches, pull tight and weave in. 

Of course this needed a heart too!

I still had more yarn left!  So I worked on my first 'Project of Love' hat.  I used the same instructions as above, but just knit the icord for about 4 inches and tied the icord in a knot.

It feels good to have that done.  I've also been working on more + squares for Mum's curio quilt.  I have passed the 300 mark so I am making good progress.  I've also been shopping... check out these beauties that have made their way into my stash over the last couple of weeks:

More Fee laceweight yarn from Phydeaux Designs (I really enjoyed making the Citron shawl out of the Alpha Centauri colorway - this is extremely soft yarn with wonderful yardage and colours):

Holly



Aubergine



Today we attended a local craft fair and there was a stand with alpaca yarn from a local alpaca farm - Amazing fibers.  I was thrilled to bits :)  Alpaca is such a lovely light and soft yarn.  The ladies said I should come visit their farm - they have 100+ alpaca.  You know I'll be taking them up on that offer and I know a little someone who will love it too! 

Fingering weight handspun:



Worsted weight:



Now, if only my output matched my intake of yarn!
Hope you had a great weekend,
Sam

FO Friday: Halloween Toddler Shrug

I don't normally make a big fuss out of Halloween.  Maybe because it's not an event that we really recognized, growing up in the UK.  But this year I seem to have been bitten by the halloween bug!

I've picked up a few decorations already and these adorable skeleton pajamas for Naomi (the pjs glow in the dark - how cool is that!).  Also, when I was in Glenwood Springs a couple of weeks ago I found some cotton yarn on sale that just screamed Halloween to me.  It is a Viking of Norway yarn made from cotton and milk (of all things!).  I knew I could make a little something for Naomi out of it.

Last year I made Naomi a little shrug, and figured that I'd do the same again this year.  It turned out to be really handy when she needed just a little something on top of her t-shirt to help take the chill off.




Here's the approach I took this year:

• US 3 needles
• Cast on 60 stitches
• Join to knit in the round
• K2,P2 rib for 10 rounds
• Continue knitting in the round in stocking stitch until sleeve is desired length
• Once sleeve is desired length, then you change from knitting in the round to knitting flat for the back of the shrug
• Knit flat until the back is the desired size
• Join back and knit in the round again until 2nd sleeve matches the 1st
• I also added a crochet edge around the opening of the back (if I'd had more yarn left I would have picked up stitches and done a k2,p2 rib)

Super simple!  My only watch for:  If in doubt, err on the side of caution and make the back size just a touch bigger than you think might be needed.  Don't want the wee ones to be constricted if the sleeves go right up into their armpits (ouch!)



Little miss was quite happy to model this today.  She's also wearing the skirt that I made for her last year.  I'd spent the night before Halloween creating this based on another skirt she had in her closet.... but the little miss decided that she didn't like it!  Since I'd put in the work I was determined that it was going to be worn... and so poor Bella got the short straw and wore it as a ruffle collar!!  (Oh, if only I had  a picture!) This year thankfully Naomi seems to like it and it still fits... maybe we'll get some wear out of these items this October.  Although probably not all in one go as I have here ha ha!

Enjoy the weekend,
Sam xxx

Man socks, toddler socks

Did you watch the Olympic opening ceremony?  I was glued to the tv and really enjoyed the event.  Made me long for home :)

But onto knitting:  I finished Joe's socks.  They were a nice simple knit, and I really enjoyed working with this yarn - Claudia hand painted in colourway John B.  Check out that model foot pose!  :o)))  Oooh my husband is a good man for humoring me! 



No particular pattern... just my standard approach.  This time with 75 stitches to account for the slightly smaller needles - US 2. 

Since these knit up really quickly and I get a kick out of completing projects, I decided I'd make a pair for Naomi.  These are a little different because they use a short row heel.  I had leftovers of koigu sock yarn and thought it was would be fun to make her a mismatched pair of socks.  US 2 needles.  Cast on 45 stitches.



Look how happy the little Miss is with them.  Can see more mini socks on the horizon. :)





Have a fabulous weekend,
Sam
xxx

Wedding Shrug

Last weekend my brother married the woman of his dreams. It was a beautiful day filled with many fond memories.

On the knitting front, I wanted to make a little shrug to go with the sleeveless dress that I'd picked out for the occasion. I had some kid silk haze in my stash that just so happened to be the perfect colour.



After seeing the lovely dream in colour shrug that Stacey had made I decided I wanted to do something similiar - just in this lighter weight yarn. I saw that the dream in colour shrug was a simple rectangle shape, and figured it would be fairly easy to replicate -- just needed to find a lace pattern that I liked and figure out the number of stitches to cast on.



After some fiddling with needle size and gauge etc I cast on 80 stitches using a US2 needle and knit in rib for about 10 rows. I then followed the lace pattern from 'Waving Lace Socks' by Evelyn A Clark from the Interweave Favourite Socks book. I worked using the US 2 needle for 1 pattern repeat and then upped my needle size to US4 so that the back would have a little extra width than the sleeves. Worked a bunch more repeats in the 4, before switching back to the 2 for the last set of repeat and 10 rib rows. At the end I simply sewed the sleeves together (If I were smarter I should have just knit the beginning and end rows in the round to save the seaming). And that was it. Simple.



I really like how it turned out, although truth be told I opted not to wear it on the day. Instead I found a sparkly scarf that was perfect and a bit more razzly dazzly than my knitted shrug. In hindsight I wished I'd added some seed beads to the shrug... I think that would have been the cherry on the cake. But, as they say, hindsight is 20/20!



And of course Naomi had her whirligig on. Aside from the bride, I think she might have been the most oohed and aahed over! ha ha ;o)