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Monkeys on my Head - a FO


Pattern: Cozy Critter Cap (Ravelry Link)
Needles: US5
Yarn: Patons Decor

Comments: I don't know if it's because I've knit the Monkey socks a few times now, but I just couldn't manage to stay interested in this hat for more than 10-15 minutes at a time. I, however, love the finished product. Definitely a product over process knit for me!

Holiday FOs and Progress Photos

Today I figured I'd blog about my progress on my Holiday Knit List - especially seeing as I didn't post any photos in my last post (and now I have a few). Lets start with the "in-progress" photos that I have so far:

First we have the 9 to 9 to 9 bag:

The main body of the bag has been knit and felted (photo shows pre-felting size), and I am waiting for the yarn for the flowers to come in (which should be any day now. I have the lining fabric (black with white pin-dots), and still have to find some handles (no luck finding any online that don't come to $20+ after shipping).

Then we have the Aestlight Shawl for Julia:

The main garter triangle is done, just have to pick up the stitches around the endge, knit the lace portion, then the edging. I don't think it'll take me too long - but I haven't had the concentration for it lately.

I do have progress on other projects, I just don't have photos yet - So, onto the finished projects!

First we have socks for my Dad:


These have been done for quite some time now, and I couldn't be happier! My Dad loves plainly knit, plainly coloured socks, which are a monotonous knit. He's a hard person to shop for though, and he loves these, so they're worth it in the end!

Next we have the finished ornament set for the Ottawa Knit Nights swap:

I had been considering adding a navy blue and a variegated blue/eggplant/coppery-brown ones, but I'm happy with this colour combo, and I'm not sure that it would look like a "set" with those 2 ornaments added. I may change my mind later, but I'm happy with how these 4 look together for now :)

That's all I have for photos for now - I'll post again when I have more. Happy knitting!

Holiday Knit List '09

We all know that there's a big holiday that's 5 months (and a bit) away, and I started freaking out last month because I had absolutely *nothing* done, and by June, I'm at least 30% way finished shopping/knitting through my list. I guess you could say that it really snuck up on me this year. So, I sat down and started making a list of people that my family will gift to, and choosing which ones I think are knit-worthy - which in the end, turns out to be not that many! I think I'm safe to post my Holiday Knit List, (minus one or two projects that will be for some people who may or may not read this). So, here it is (along with project statuses):

  1. My Dad (aka the man who lit the fire under my butt to knit socks): Plain ol' socks - Status: Done!
  2. My BFF: 9 to 9 to 9 felted bag (a Noni pattern) - Status: The main part of the bag is knit and felted, and liner fabric has been chosen from my fabric stash; Waiting for the yarn for the flowers to come in, and still need to find and buy handles.
  3. Julia: Aestlight Shawl (Status: Started) and a pair or two of socks (Status: Have yarn, waiting until fall to start so she doesn't outgrow them before she gets them - like last year!)
  4. Seth: Petit Poisson Blanket (Status: 20% done) and a pair or 2 of socks (Status: Same as Julia's socks)
  5. DH: Thuja socks (Status: ordered the yarn today) and possibly a scarf to go with the hat I knit him for last winter (Status: still contemplating!)
  6. Knit night ornament swap: 5 mini-sock ornaments (Status: 2 done, 3 to go)
So, not bad progress on the list now - most of the projects are at least started, and one is done! I'll post again with photos when I have a bit more done (and actually have photos to post!).


Bye for now, and happy knitting!

Update!

I can't believe that I've gone so long without posting anything - sorry about that! While I've been away from blogging, I have managed to get a few projects done - mostly baby knitting it seems!

What I've knit (in no particular order):

1. Stash-busting Wascloths



2. Blanket for my newest nephew - Baby E (who is pictured, along with my handsome DH)



3. Soap Sock



4. Felted bowl (my first felting project)



5. Helena (from Knitty) for another Baby E (the second great-granddaughter on my DH's side) (This is actually complete - I just forgot to take a photo before sending it off. The new Mom has promised to take a photo for me when she gets a chance )



6. & 7. Daisy (from Knitty) with a matching Miss Dashwood hat (also from Knitty) for Baby K (new daughter of a family friend)


(photo with the buttons on)

8. Slipper Socks (Spa Socks from an old issue of Knit.1)



9. Lake of the Woods (while it was blocking - haven't managed to take any other photos of it yet)



I also have a few other projects on the go (mostly socks), but I don't have any photos of them - I'll post again when I do!

March is here!

Happy March everyone! It's starting to feel like this year is just zooming right by!

February seems to have seen the return of my knitting mojo - 7 completed projects in February!


In February I completed:
  • The Branching Out scarf I started back in January
  • Gathered Scarf
  • Nova Mitts
  • My first short-row heel socks (for Miss J)
  • Loop-through scarf
  • Ribbed hat
  • a very plain wash cloth
I have also started a pair of slippers, but after completing the first one - and despite getting guage - I'm thinking I might have to re-start with the next size down. I'm going to see if I can shrink/felt the first one first, so we shall see how that goes...

In other news, I recently realized that I haven't bought any yarn in over a month! Everything I've knit this year (with the exception of the Branching Out and J's socks - but J bought that yarn with her own money), has been knit with stash yarn and I'm not even on a "yarn diet". I'm just a little bit impressed with myself and can't help but wonder how long this is going to last...

Lake of the (Ninja Turtle Barf) Woods

I've wanted to knit Ilga Leja's Lake of the Woods from the moment I first saw it - same colourway (Nova Scotia) and yarn (Fleece Artist Silk Stream). When I went in search of the yarn, I was dissappointed to discover that it had been discontinued.

When looking around on Ravelry, I learned that Fleece Artist had produced a "Very Special Limited Edition" yarn for Knitty-Noddy (Merino 3/6) that would be a perfect substitution. When I went and checked it out, they had it availible in the colourway I wanted, but the photos of the yarn looked darker than those on Ilga's pattern. I went with it anyways, thinking "such is the nature of hand-dyed" and that it would still look beautiful.

Merino 3/6 in the Skein


From the time that the yarn came in, I had a bit of an uneasy feeling about this project, so I let it sit for a few months. I finally decided to get to it, and this is what I got:


3" into it - Chart A

Close-up - the blue is more vibrant/bright in person

The funny thing is, while I was knitting, all I could think was "Ninja Turtles", and when I showed this to DH...

Me: Can you come look at this? I want to see if you see the same thing I do.
*DH comes in*
Me: Is it just me, or does this look like...
DH: Yeah, it looks like Ninja Turtles

I didn't even have to say it. I don't know about you, but I don't think I want to walk around looking like the blue Ninja Turtle exploded all over me!

I will definitely knit this pattern with a different yarn, but this one is off to the frog pond!

January Knits

I really don't feel like I've knit much this month, especially when compared to how much I churned out last year. At the beginning of the month, I lost my knitting mojo - I actually went a week+ without knitting a single stitch! It was weird, but I think I just needed a bit of a break from it all to focus on some other stuff.

The break wasn't really bad - I finished unpacking the last of the boxes from our move back in July - and 7 months to unpack everything is a new record for us (by a long shot!). I also used the opportunity to go through and get rid of a lot of stuff that we weren't using and hadn't used in a looooong time! All in all, 8 large garbage bags of stuff went (or is going - there are still bags of clothes that need to be delivered to their recipients). So really, not a bad thing!

Anyways, here's what I managed to finish:


  1. The Emergency Mittens
  2. The un-blogged (before now) Selfish Socks (which, IMO, are kinda fugly, but comfy)
  3. 11 Repeats of my Branching Out scarf
  4. What was (hopefully) going to be a mini-scarf/neck warmer out of some of my handspun (but isn't long enough and needs to be frogged)
I suppose it's nothing to scoff at, but I still wish I had managed to get more done (like actually finishing Branching Out). Perhaps February will see more knitting time!

Emergency Mittens

I love mittens (and I mean REALLY love) - especially hand-knit ones. Last spring, I finally finished a pair that ended up being my favorite ones ever - my Mermaid Mitts. Oh, how I loved those mitts - and I didn't even manage to get a full winter of wear out of them! "Why?" you ask? Because my cute little monster of a boy flushed one down the toilet!

The beloved Mermaid Mittens

I had them in a bin, soaking in wool wash. I had put that bin in the bathtub, thinking that it would be a safe spot, as it has been since we moved here (seriously, neither of the kids have bothered with it before now). Plunk! Splash! Flush!

Losing my favorite.mittens.ever. is bad enough on it's own, but then there was the fact that they were my *ONLY* pair at the time (I had gotten rid of the other mittens I had at the beginning of the winter because they were ratty and old), and it was right in the middle of the ABSOLUTE FREEZING spell that we had.

I have to admit, I don't have much in the way of worsted weight yarn in my stash, so when I (somewhat frantically) went through my stash, I was lucky to find a remnant that was big enough for some mittens.

So now, I present my emergency mittens:


They're quite warm and squishy - they're rather plain, and not my Mermaids, but they'll do for now (and as a permanent back-up).

And, yes, I've learned my lesson - always have more than one pair!

Tagged

Ok, so I know that I never got around to posting about recent projects, or doing an end of year post. Quite frankly, I got quite sick in December, and wasn't up to doing much of anything (other than plurking). Then came the new year, where I haven't been able to concentrate on anything other that a massive re-organization/de-stash of our entire house (just got sick and tired of all the "stuff", ya know?). Anyways...

Today I got tagged by Michelle over at The Zen of Knitting for 5 Projects (+1), so here are my projects:

  1. Knit myself a pair of Thrummed Mittens - I have a Fleece Artist kit that I got for Christmas, so all I have to do is find the time to knit it up!
  2. Paint the rest of the rooms that I want painted - This means the bathroom, the kitchen, master bedroom, and possibly the office. This is going to take awhile!
  3. Knit a blanket for the back of the couch - Pretty self-explanitory. I think I'd like to knit a blanket from Knitting Nature (the name escapes me at the moment), possibly in Cascade 220 Superwash.
  4. Knit Stockings for the 4 of us - DH, Miss J, the Little Man and myself that is. Still trying to decide on patterns, but leaning towards the Cascade 220 SW again - I like the stuff!
  5. Knit up either the Special Limited Edition Fleece Artist or the sweater quantity of Berroco Ultra Alpaca Light - Both of these are taking up too much room in the stash container, and are the 2 largest yarn purchases I've made to date (combined total is just above $120, IIRC). I don't like that they're just sitting there!
Now, I'm supposed to tag 5 other people to do this, but the few people I can think of to do this are already doing it! So, if you're reading and would like to do this too - consider yourself tagged, and leave a message in the comments to let me know!

Considering that I haven't posted any photos for awhile, I'll end this post with a photo of my lovely Thrummed Mitten kit! Ta for now!