Michelle's Birthday Giveaway

Fellow blogger, knitter, and mama extraordinaire is having a fabulous giveaway in honor of her birthday. If you have a chance, head over to her blog, and add a comment to this post for a chance to win. The deadline is tonight, so don't delay!

Happy Birthday, Michelle!

Halfway there!

I just finished my 32nd square for Si's knitted farmland. Woo-hoo! I'm at the halfway point with exactly 2 months to go till his second birthday. I've gotta work fast as it's going to take me a while to get the thing pieced together. I'm pretty determined to meet the deadline and it helps that I'm an extremely monogamous knitter. I'm working on the farmland, and nothing else. Since each square is different, I've yet to get bored. I will, however, be happy to move onto something different, come March 16th.

A pond for Si's farmland

I decided Silas needed a pond for his knitted farmland. It took a while to complete because it meant 9 squares (well, more like rectangles) had to be planned out in order to give the pond a natural shape. I used loop stitch to create tall foliage around the pond and create what hopefully comes across as an organic transition between water and whatever crop/grass/plant is growing beyond the water. I still have to embroider flowers on the three lily pads. And a felted frog or two might be a welcome addition as well...

The pictures don't really do justice to the pond, especially since the pieces aren't sewn together yet. Still, I wanted to share the progress I've been making. It's exciting to see it come together a bit. As of this evening, I've completed 27 squares. Pretty soon I'll be at the half-way mark!

Crafting Resolutions

(Pictured: Silas on New Year's Day, wearing bruiser hat, roll-neck giraffe sweater, and stripy mittens.)

I'm not really the resolution making type, but thought it worth the effort this time. Perhaps actually having a list, seeing it in print on the blog, and being able to cross items off it it will be motivating. It's worth a shot. So, without further ado, here are my crafting resolutions for 2009:

1. Finish Silas' Knitted Farmland by his birthday in mid March. This is doable, as long as I stay motivated and use my time wisely.

2. Complete at least 1 largish crochet project. I love crochet. I really do. But my default tends to be to pick up two needles rather than the hook. I dream more in knitting, than in crochet. Still, crochet has an important place in my crafting world, and so finishing a sizable crochet project this year is a must, in order to keep those skills honed.

3. Spin more. I'm always putting this off in favor of other projects, so I need to figure out how to make this a part of my regular routine. I have some wool I dyed with coffee way back in September. I'd like to have that all spun up by the spring.

4. Steek something. It seems that everyone is steeking these days, and I'd like to jump on that bandwagon too. I actually have a sweater sitting in my cedar chest that I'd like to convert to a cardigan. It's no big loss to me if I ruin it in the attempt. After all, it's just sitting there, too big and shapeless for me to actually wear. It really is the perfect candidate with which to practice this skill on. So what's stopping me?

5. Knit Sylvi for myself! I'm a little bit a lot smitten with Twist Collective. I love just about everything I see in it. Sylvi would make a great coat which would work basically throughout the fall, winter, and spring here. This is a huge project though, and I am already in the middle of a big project. That doesn't mean it can't be done, though.

6. Get my Roaring 20's cloche hat pattern up and available in Ravelry. This is one of the things I've been meaning to do for forever. I've had several requests for it, and still, it remains undone.

7. Knit something extra nice for Drew. Drew is the neglected one in the family. Whenever anyone remarks about all of the sweaters and hats and whatnot that I've made for Silas, Drew proudly shows them his socks...and that's about it. He has a few hats, a scarf, but he's not really the hat or scarf type, so the only thing he really wears that I've made for him are his socks. I really need to make him at least one other pair. I'd like to say that I promise to make him a sweater, but...perhaps that will be at the top of the list of crafting resolutions for 2010 instead :)

8. Keep my stash in check and organized. That one probably goes without saying, but as most of you know, it's easier said than done.

Mud and Meadows

More squares for Si's knitted farmland:What's a farm without some mud?...and the pigs seem to love it!

There will be several different kinds of meadows on the farm. The square above, I've decided, is a field of golden bell heather. I used loop, or elongated, stitch to create texture and the illusion of raised plants. I'm also using this same technique for squares of different grains.

I needed to choose a yarn for the grassy areas and meadows of the Farmland. Although there were several different green yarns in my stash with which to choose from, when I recalled that I had a few extra skeins of Debbie Bliss Donegal Luxury Tweed, I realized that the flecks of color inherant to the tweed would make lovely meadow flowers. The color in the photo isn't exactly true, but it's as close as I could get.

More Farmland squares, coming soon.

Season's Greetings

Happy Holidays to you all!

Stripy Mittens

He's got a cardigan, a hat, and socks in this ginger and blue yarn, so why not some mittens, too! With all of the snow we've been having, he really did need a pair to keep his hands warm.

Here they are, in action:
Whoever thought of putting mittens on a string to keep them from getting lost was a genius.
This is the Bold Banded Mitten pattern from Zoe Mellor's Adorable Knits for Tots. Just a slight variation: 4 extra rows added before decreasing, to make them a bit longer. I'm hoping he'll still be able to wear them next winter.

Carrots anyone?

Uh-oh. Looks like a rabbit's gotten into the carrot patch. Where's Mr. McGregor when you need him.
This is one of the first squares knitted for Silas' Knitted Farmland. I'm most likely going to have 64 squares total, and with only 10 or so completed, I have a long way to go. It's a lot of fun, though, as each square is unique. --So fun, in fact, that I had to needle-felt a little bunny to cause some trouble...
I'm basically making this up as I go along and am hoping it all comes together in the end.

I will post pictures of more squares as I make them.

The stockings were hung...

Our little holiday nook...Silas can turn the lights on and off with the switch on his right. It has fast become a favorite game.

I finally finished the third stocking. Till today, it's been sitting in my basket, all done except for about 3 rows on the heel. I ran out of green, unfortunately, and was feeling too stingy to go buy an entire skein just for 3 rows. Finally today, I looked through my stash and found another skein of Lamb's Pride in a dark green. Not the same dark green, mind you, but close enough. I guess I didn't feel like being picky, and at any rate, I'm the only one who will ever notice, most likely.

Anyways, the are all done, hung, and ready to go!
Making these stockings was an incredibly joyful experience. Here's a slightly closer look at my stocking, Stocking #3, with two different snowflake motifs. Very appropriate, given today's weather (see this post on my family blog).
Now that the stockings are completed, I've moved on to Silas' knitted farmland. This is a BIG project. I've already completed about 10 squares, but I intend on having at least 48, but most likely 64 (8 x 8), so I have a long way to go!

I'll post pictures of a few after I've blocked them.

Meet the Sheep

It occurred to me recently that it might be nice to post a picture of the sheep on the blog and talk briefly about each one. These four Romney sheep belong to Shannon, who owns the property I live on. The sheep's "house" is only about 20 feet from the southeast corner of our home.

Here's the rundown.

Bart is the sheep in front. He's got more black wool than the other sheep and we really have no way of knowing if he's pure breed. Shannon bought him at a garage sale and he was her first sheep. Bart is by far the tamest of the four. He's the only one who will let you pet him. This is probably due to the fact that Shannon led him around the neighborhood on a leash when she first got him. Bart and I have a love/hate relationship. One time, when I was trying to get into their pen for something, he pushed me over in order to run out of the gate. I am not a fan of being knocked down into sheep poo and mud and I made sure to tell Bart that as I chased him around the yard. That was a trying day for us. Most of the time though, we're cool.

Blu, the sheep on the right, was bought as a companion for Bart, and that's all I really know about his origins. I call him the split personality sheep because he can never seem to make up his mind about things. Do you want the treat, Blu? Yes. Do you want to get close to the human in order to get it? No. Will you go for the treat? Yes. Will you really go for the treat? Yes, yes...no, wait! maybe no, maybe I like it better back here. I want that treat though, but no I don't, maybe. Clearly, he has very complex emotions. Blu's absolute favorite thing in the world is the swing hanging from our big oak tree. When we let the sheep out of their pasture into the yard, he'll go stand by the swing, gently rubbing his head on it. He'll stay by that swing for hours.

Next to Blu is our little girl, Audrey. We named her Audrey because she resembled Audrey Hepburn when she was a lamb (must have been the eyes). If I had to describe Audrey in two words, it would be "trouble maker." "Escape artist" would likewise be appropriate. The two phrases go hand-in-hand. Each time she is sheered, we have to prepare for several weeks of Audrey-corralling. She's tiny enough to find spots in the fencing where she can squeeze through. Luckily, her wool grows fast and before long, she fluffs up and can no longer get out. One time, when she was not yet fully grown, she got her head stuck in the gate. It took us 45 minutes to get her to turn her head and move back so that we could slide her out. Sheep, apparently, (or at least this one) only want to move forward.

And last but not least, in the background is our young alpha male, the incomparable Azure. I should say, that Audrey and Azure are both from the same flock, so I think of them as siblings, even though they are not. They were given to Shannon only a month or two after we moved to the farm. They were considered too runty for the flock, or some such nonsense. Given the fate of most livestock, especially those considered not up to par, these sheep really lucked out. Anyways, back to Azure. He is the most beautiful of the sheep. I love the coloring of his coat. A few years ago, he broke a leg, which in the olden days would have meant a trip out to the field with Pa's shotgun. But, he survived. I cannot express to you how much it sucks trying to keep a splint on a sheep. Despite this injury, Azure still became the alpha sheep. Whenever dogs or coyotes come into the pen to threaten the sheep, Azure always stands in front as the other three huddle behind him. I'm not playing favorites, but, well okay, Azure is kind of my favorite.

That's about all. Drew still can't tell them apart, even though we've lived right next to them for over 5 years and they don't look identical. Sheep have individual personalities, just like any other sentient being, but their personalities may be admittedly subtle. And I won't lie. They're not the brightest bulbs on our little blue marble, but they are endearing. And they make wool, and lots of it, lest we forget :)

The Prepster (Fall/Winter fashion shoot #2)

Here's another sweater I made for Silas while I was pregnant with him, and which finally fits him. This basic v-neck pullover is "The Prepster" from The Yarn Girls' Guide to Kid Knits by Julia Carles and Jordana Jacobs. It certainly lives up to it's name! I feel like I should be enrolling him in Ivy League Pre-school. It was a perfect show-off outfit for Thankgiving.

I used Cascade 220, which is an incredibly reliable yarn, in my opinion, and works well to give this sweater a consistent and polished appearance. I remember being very pleased when I finished this project, ever so long ago (though that's about all I remember about it). I'm glad it finally fits!

And then there were two, two and a half, three...

Two down...one more to go! I rather like the look of Drew's stocking --all green and white except for the red toe and heel. My stocking will be the opposite --all red and white with a green toe and heal.

A lot of people seem interested in what the inside, or wrongside, of this sort of colorwork looks like, so here's a picture:
You can really see how thick these are. They would keep feet nice and toasty even on the coldest of nights.

Here's a look at my stocking, which is on my needles right now.
That metal thing around my finger is a Norwegian knitting thimble. I decided to try it out to see if it helped keep the two colors separated, since I prefer to hold the two strands in the same hand, rather than one in each hand. I haven't quite gotten used to it yet, so the jury's still out. It does keep the colors in order, but I find it a bit awkward, and I have to wrap something inside it so that it doesn't slide around (or off) my finger constantly. I'm not so sure I'll continue to use it or not, but I can see it's potential as a handy little do-dad.

Tricot Machine

Another knitter had this video posted on her blog and I just had to share. It's an animated music video unlike any you've ever seen --the entire thing is knitted, believe it or not. More info about the project is on youtube. Enjoy!

Christmas stocking for Si

Christmas stockings are fun to make. Really! This was a very satisfying project; so much so that I'm going to make one for myself and one for dh too. After all, one stocking hanging by its lonesome just won't do. Here's the pattern I used. It's very versatile, with several motifs to choose from, which should keep things interesting as I begin stockings # 2 and 3.

We are not really into decking the halls for Christmas, but I am into the idea of homemade holidays, so making this stocking for Silas was a first step in that endeavor. I will not be making gifts for everyone because that's just crazy and stress inducing, but Mr. Silas will be getting something special, and there will be a few more handmade decorations too.

Pumpkin Sprite Costume

Better late than never, here are pictures of my son's Halloween costume.
The hat ended up being a pretty tedious project. It was first knit, then felted, and then the pumpkin segments were needle felted onto it. My goal was that the needle felting would make the hat plump and ridiculously cute.

Knowing that he would never keep the hat on otherwise, I made ear flaps. And since he hated how it felt and tore it off of his head within 2 seconds, I had no choice but to line it with a soft flannel. That seemed to do the trick as he wore it for 4 hours straight on Halloween without trying to take it off once.

To complete his costume, he wore his pumpkin longies, which I had completed in early October...
...and I crocheted him a quiver to hold Chinese lanterns. He wasn't too thrilled about the quiver but luckily soon forgot that it was on.
Good little pumpkin sprite that he was, I had him pass out mini pumpkins to people we know during trick-or-treat.

This was Silas' second Halloween and the second time I've made him a costume. I love doing it, but I may have to tone it down in the future and opt for something less time consuming (I saw a toddler "mummy" wrapped in strips of old sheeting--now there's an idea that wouldn't take over a month to render!). Then again, he wears both the pants and the hat all of the time, so it's not as though I went through the effort just for a one-time deal. Well, who knows. During trick-or-treat, Silas eyed some boys who had made themselves cardboard cars and seemed really interested in them. Hmmm. Maybe next year, it will be Drew's turn to make the costume :)