Jennie's Birthday Hat

I wanted to whip up a birthday present for my sister while my parents were visiting, and this was the result. It's Couvercle, from Knitty, summer 08.
The yarn is nothing special, but it was from my stash and was looking for a project to knit itself into. It was the right gauge, was soft and will be easy-care. It was the right yarn to do the job!
Drew says I should knit one for me too :)
On another note, I hit a knitting slump hard this summer. It took having a solid deadline to complete this project, plus another small gift that I will share in another post, to get me out of it.
While I'm knitting again on a daily basis, this blog will most likely not see a whole lot of activity. I will share my finished projects, but that's about it.

Hope everyone is enjoying the end of summer!

Little Rabbit's Hat and Mitts

One of my favorite picture books is "Shall I knit you a hat: a Christmas yarn" by Kate Klise.
To summarize:
When Mother Rabbit knits a warm winter hat for Little Rabbit, he likes it so much that he suggests they make hats for all of their friends as Christmas gifts.
At the end of the book, there's a pattern for making Little Rabbit's hat. I couldn't resist the temptation! You can read more about that book HERE.
I thought Little Rabbit's paws might get a wee bit cold too, so I whipped up a pair of the Angelina Cable Mitts in the same yarn (Cascade 220 Quatro), and stuck them in his boot for St. Nick's Day. We have been getting a lot of use out of them this past week and they stay on his hands way better than the mittens I made for him last year.
The result: One cute and toasty warm Little Rabbit :)

Cranberry Cap

My MIL commissioned me to make this hat for my SIL, Amy. I made up the pattern as I went along. Amy took a liking to one of the hats I'd knit for Silas that had three i-cord tails so I added those to this hat as well.

Here are the basics:
Yarn: Cascade 220
Needles: size 8 USA
Cast on 80 st. k1 p1 ribbing for about an inch and a half. Spiral purling every 10th stitch for about 20 rows or until ready to decrease. Decrease while keeping the spiral purling as much as possible... Perhaps someday, I'll be organized enough to write out the pattern, though I'm sure similar and more refined patterns abound.

I am happy with the outcome and have told my MIL that if Amy likes it, I'll make her a matching scarf for Christmas.

Barb's hat

I can take no credit for this hat. Barb, a friend from work, made it for another kiddo, and asked me to try it on Silas to see how it fit. I'd call it a success, Barb!
I just got Barb set up with a Ravelry account, where you can find her as grandmax, so this hat may just be the first project she posts...

Choo-Choo Cap

Thus named because I think it resembles a conductor's hat. This is the way-cute "Kiddie Cadet Cap" available free through Ravelry. I used Rowan All Seasons Cotton in a denim-like colorway. This was yarn from my stash, left over from the Eyelet Skirt I made about 4 years ago. The All Season's Cotton is perfect for Pacific Northwest weather. He literally can wear this all year round, but really, I made it so that he'd have something hand-knit to wear during the summer months. It will be a great hiking hat. I made the toddler size, which, surprise surprise, since he is a toddler, fits him very nicely. I was convinced it would be too small, however. Then, when I was just a few inches in, I thought it would be too big. I did take a gauge. I did, I really did! But it wasn't until I could plunk the partially finished hat on Si's head that I realized my fears were groundless and I could stop doubting both my gauge and the pattern. The garter stitch rim is a bit wider than the stockinette portion and were I to do this again, I'd go down a needle size for that part.

Other than that one minor thing, this was a great quick project. I love the short rows and the doubled over brim, and the overall look is great. He'll be a stylish young chap this summer.
Oh yes, and Silas also loves his Choo-Choo Cap. He even insisted on wearing it at the breakfast table this morning. (Man I love that misty-eyed, tousled-hair, just woke up look).
You know, I always feared that since I love to knit, I'd have the kind of kid who refused to wear what I made for him, especially hats. Another ungrounded fear, as you can see :)

Something for the April (or May) baby

It seems that when the economy tanks, people stay home and make babies. Maybe that explains why I've got four babies to knit for this year. Three of them, including my sister's, are due in September, but my friend Anna's baby is up first, and is due this spring. The baby shower is on Saturday, and I just finished the above pictured hat and sweater set.

Silas is modeling the (way too small for him but isn't it still cute) Baby's cabled milk-silk cap from Luxury Yarn One-Skein Wonders. Instead of the milk yarn, I chose a luscious cotton/Tensel yarn from my stash. It is wonderfully soft and I'm so happy with the f/o. Cables. Gotta love 'em.


Below is the finished Baby's Pure and Simple Pullover from Weekend Knitting. This is a garter stitch sweater, but is constructed from side to side. In order to create the rolled edges, the pattern switches to a smaller needle and the last 4 stitches on the rs are purled. I found it a bit awkward to switch to the smaller needle every single row. I often forgot and damned if I could keep the smaller needle from sliding out all of the time. The effort was worth it though, as the effect is quite nice. Unfortunately, there is seaming involved in this sweater, but I really enjoyed the design otherwise, so I will overlook it. Oh, and lest I forget to mention it, the yarn used in the sweater is from my birthday gift stash. I almost went with the Hemp for Knitting yarn called for in the pattern. I had it in my hands and it was a lovely blue similar to the yarn I ended up with. Alas, it just didn't feel right. I know from all of those macrame hemp bracelets and necklaces I used to make "back in the day" that hemp gets much softer after repeated washes. And I wanted to use hemp, really I did. But I'm not going to wash this sweater 20 times before I give it as a gift this Saturday. I just can't imagine knitting something as a gift for someone else's baby that doesn't feel soft. So, regrettably, I put the hemp yarn down and found instead Sirdar Snuggly Baby Bamboo DK, which is a cotton bamboo blend. It's a good color, knit up nicely, and most importantly, feels soft to the touch.

Hopefully, once Anna's baby makes his way into the world, and grows a bit, I'll be able to post a picture of him wearing this outfit.

One baby down...three more to go!