A Bunch of Knits

Why? Again . . . .

2010-01-10T17:11:00.000-06:00

Another dear online friend who I've known for approx 7 years lost a baby at 17 weeks today. There are just no words - only tears of sadness for them. So many losses lately it seems.

No Words

2009-12-28T01:53:00.000-06:00

An online friend I've known for about 5-7 yrs now was 31 weeks along when her blood pressure started acting up. They just posted on her facebook page tonight that at 32 weeks their precious baby boy was stillborn yesterday (day after Christmas). There are just no words, only tears. Normally I can shake the tears and sadness quite quickly and pray for the losses I hear about but tonight I keep coming back to the tears for this precious woman and her family. She is an amazing woman of God and I know that He will see her through this as the Lord always carries us through the darkest of times. For those of you who happen to read this please lift up a prayer for my friend and her family in the coming days.

To my friend and her family and her precious baby boy - you are in our hearts and prayers.

Christmas Projects

2009-12-27T00:53:00.002-06:00

What a busy but wonderful month December has been so far!

Still have not gotten pics of a few things (scrappy rag quilts for 4 of kiddos; matching PJ pants for dh and 2 boys, apron for best friend and myself, and scrappy rag quilt alphabet letters). Hope to do that tomorrow but the snow here has been crazy! We have drifts 4 1/2 to 5 feet high! I had hoped to go to JoAnns today to get some of the bias tape maker gadgets since they are 40% off this week but that is going to have to wait because we have a huge snow drift outside the garage door and my van is not 4 wheel drive LOL.

Christmas Projects:

Reversible Adjustable Doll Mei Tai carrier for Christmas

Inside

Reversible Apron for my cousin for Christmas
My cousin does not like halter ties around her neck. Modified this apron to criss cross across her back - put D rings at the sides rather than waist ties so the two straps that come from the neck criss cross across her back then through the D rings and tie either in front or in back. Created the ties incredibly long so that she could decide if she wanted to tie in back or wrap to front and tie. Figured she could always trim and hem them short after she got it and I'd rather them be too long intially than too short. The green does not look like it matches in the photos. It appears almost a neon type green but it is not. It is the same green that is in the cupcakes and the paisly print. In real life it is beautiful together. Chose the green contrasting trim color because her husband's favorite color is green.

Reverse side:

Baby's soft book of colors for our youngest and 1 yr old baby cousin for Christmas:
Front covers

pages 1 & 2

Pages 3 & 4

Pages 5 & 6

back covers

One of our DD's slippers before I dyed them and before felting. One of her favorite colors is red but I could not find red yarn that I liked so I over-dyed these.

DD's slippers aftering dyeing (before felting)

DD's slippers after felting

Another of our DD's slippers before dyeing & before felting
One of her favorite colors is purple but again I could not find a purple yarn I liked so I over-dyed this pair as well.

DD's slippers after dyeing (before felting)

DD's slippers after felting & dyeing - they are a brighter purple in real life

And being modeled by the recipient

Breast Cancer Awareness Tote for my Aunt who is a BC Survivor. Knit with Plymouth Galway yarn and then felted. The "ribbon" is a felted square then cut in the ribbon shape and appliqued on. Lines with pink ribbon fabric from JoAnns

Some of December's Projects

2009-12-26T21:52:00.004-06:00

DH's socks from ZenString "Esquire" on BFL Lotus Toes yarn knit toe up to maximize yardage of yarn.

Alligator Knits "Pumpkin Patch" longies on Cestari Superfine Merino yarn

Mosaic Moon "Birthday Girl" on Mountain Meadow Yarn

Wooden Toy Giveaway

2009-12-04T21:36:00.000-06:00

The Raising Olives blog is having a wooden toy give-away! You have to love the quality of handmade wooden toys! It's also nice to purchase from a small mom & pop operation rather than a large corporation when able to.
go check out their blog and also their store.

It's December! Already?

2009-12-02T02:24:00.003-06:00

Really? It's already December? This year has flown by. I have a suspicion that December will fly by even faster than the previous 11 months have. There is alot of knitting and sewing that needs to be done for Christmas. I've gotten a few things done but not all that I hope to (or need to) get finished.

Thanksgiving with family was wonderful!

Some November Knitting

"Winter Pear" by Mosaic Moon on Cestari Superfine Merino

"October Morning" by Mosaic Moon on Cestari Superfine Merino

"This Is How Much I Love You" (TIHMILY) by Lindsay of Family Roots on Bulky Organic Gaia

And finally some Christmas Items:
slippers pre-felting - approx 13" long before they were felted
used Bernat Felting Natural Wool - I much prefer the Paton's Soy Wool yarn! In my opinion the Paton's Soy Wool is more enjoyable to knit with. I also prefer the way the Patons SWS felts over the Bernat. Unfortunately I've got 2 more pairs of slippers to make out of the Bernat. :(

After felting - approx 7 1/2" long

Another pair of slippers for a gift - used Paton's Soy Wool Stripes - pre felting approx 15" long

felted - approx 9" long

SMSS Pinafore using Paton's Soy Wool Stripes

I also finished up my husband's socks but I've not gotten a decent picture of them. They do not want to cooperate with being photographed indoors and it's simply been too cloudy & gray & icky out here or too blustery and freezing to try to get a picture outdoors in natural lighting. Hopefully I can get a picture of them soon though and post. He seems to really enjoy them.

Wow another month gone by!

2009-11-04T03:08:00.001-06:00

Wow the time is sure sneaking by this year! Only 50 days (7 weeks) until Christmas!

This was a busy month here with various goings on. The weather was cold more like what you would see in December than October! So far November has been much more kind to us! In October we had 3 weeks straight with maybe 4-6 days of sunshine! The rest were very gloomy and cloudy and icky weather days. Very drab.

Knitting for the month of October:
Blackberry Ridge 2 ply medium gray braided longies

Arlo wearing his BBR Longies

"Talia" on cestari superfine merino by Micky of MicsKnitz
This photo does not do this yarn justice at all! This is truly a beautiful pair of longies in person. I could not capture the true colors with indoor lighting and a flash.

Laines Magnifiques "Winter Ice" on BFL

Family Roots "Chocolate Roses" on Cestari Superfine
Cestari is such a cottony warm yarn and Lindsay of Family Roots dyes some beautiful colorways!

Grace wearing her "Chocolate Rose" Longies

Western Sky Knits "Rivendell" on Cestari Superfine
The Western Sky Knits ladies are amazing! They dye some of the most amazing colorways that knit up beautifully!
"Rivendell" on Cestari Superfine Merino by Western Sky Knits

Cascade 220 Natural "Bloomies"
pattern is by Mandie of Sheepy Time Knits

Cascade 220 Heathered Longies

Zenstring "Bloom" Longies & Union Center Knits "Woodsman" Longies

2009-09-30T00:02:00.002-05:00

Zenstring "Bloom" Longies
This cuff needed to be a longer than normal cuff as the Zenstring "Bloom" was leftover from doing a soaker so I did not have a full skein to work with. This cuff was approx 1 1/2" I had tried three other cuffs and was unhappy with each of them. I'm pleased with how these turned out and my dh likes them as well so that says something LOL

Union Center Knits "Woodsman" colorway
This is by far my favorite boy colorway I've knit to date! If we had a little boy still in cloth diapers I'd be begging Joni of Union Center Knits to dye some of this colorway for me! The pictures do not do this pair of longies justice!

Hayden & Hippy Pippy "It's A Girl" Longies

2009-09-29T15:37:00.002-05:00

Somehow I overlooked posting this adorable picture of Hayden wearing her Hippy Pippy "It's A Girl" Longies on bulky gaia. Gaia is so incredibly smooth and soft to knit with! Hayden is growing so fast! Her little chubby cheeks are so sweet and her eyes are amazing!

"Girly Camo"

2009-09-25T23:02:00.002-05:00

This is the daughter of one of the sweetest mama's I've ever gotten to meet online. She is a blessed woman who the love of God shines through. She uses mostly pocket diapers so did not want wool so these are made from Hobby Lobby's Baby Bee Hush-a-bye Ombre yarn (50% cotton / 50% acrylic) in the "Girly Camo" colorway. She seems to like the little turtle also.

Mosaic Moon "Turning Leaves" shorties

2009-09-25T15:25:00.002-05:00

Gracie wearing Mosaic Moon "Turning Leaves" shorties! Gracie has the most amazing eyes!

We're Back!

2009-09-25T14:59:00.003-05:00

We traveled out of state for almost two weeks! Oh the warm weather was fantastic! I am not ready for winter! Hopefully fall will last a good long while!

Working on finishing two pairs of longies! Hope to have them done tomorrow! Dh's socks are up to the heel! I've just gotten Cat Bordhi's new book "New Pathways For Sock Knitters". The best price I've found so far is from KnitPicks. KnitPicks has many of their books 40% off right now! I've not decided what type of heel to do yet. I know that I prefer not to do a short row heel. I've barely gotten to skim through the book! Hopefully Sunday afternoon I can sit down and read while nursing the littlest one and see what all suggestions Ms. Bordhi has for sock heels (knitting toe up). I've found several patterns online that give general instructions for a couple different ways to do heel flaps. I read through them before we left so I need to read back through those as well as a few others I've come across and choose which to do. These poor socks were started last February with small hopes of them being a Valentine's gift and obviously that did not happen. It is with great hope that these will be finished for dh's birthday!

Just before we left our local LYS was going out of business. I visited twice and picked up a couple of skeins of yarn with sweater projects in mind. There was a specific skein I wanted on our 2nd visit and a lady who was in there had it in her basket already :( However, in browsing I noticed a partial skein wound into a ball and asked the shop owner if she'd sell it to me as I figured it is probably enough for an ankle pair of socks. She refused to sell it to me but very kindly gave it to me! Not sure if it'll be enough for dh socks but I think it'll be plenty for me ankle socks. I need to weigh it and compare to a pair of worsted weight socks previously knit for dh and see. If it is enough then I'll set a goal to have those finished for dh's birthday as well since worsted weight socks knit up so quickly.

Recent Knitting

2009-08-31T19:51:00.002-05:00

I've been offline for a bit - Here are the latest knits.

Longies and a toy turtle for a friend's little girl - these are knit out of Hobby Lobby's Hush-a-bye 50% cotton / 50% acrylic yarn. She uses pockets and a couple of her kids are allergic to wool so she asked for some other yarn to be used. This is a gift for her little one's first birthday.

TIG "Teague" shorties for our new little one

A smocked sun dress for our new little one - I used the stitch pattern from the Mae Day dress on the top - it's just a standard smocked knitting stitch - but added stitches under the arms, knitted it in the round and did not do increases as the pattern called for and did a lace edging. I made this slightly big and long so that it will be a long dress now but also will fit probably when she is a year old as a little top.

Mosaic Moon & Ky Baby Knits

2009-08-05T15:26:00.002-05:00

Ky Baby Knits "Papillon" colorway on Cestari Super Fine Merino

H21; R18; I11; T12
8 1/8oz

Mosaic Moon "Blooming" on 100% Merino Rambouillet
originally intended this yarn for a personal project but did not like how much gren it had.

H15-16
R14-15
I 6 1/2-7
T 8-9
3 5/8oz

Mosaic Moon "Turning Leaves" shorties

2009-07-22T19:26:00.002-05:00

Mosaic Moon "Turning Leaves" Shorties on Montana Targhee

it looks like one leg is bigger than the other but it's not. Guess I was leaning over my big ol' preggo belly and trying not to cast a shadow on the knitting LOL and the late afternoon sun didn't help with casting shadows LOL.

H20;R17;I4;T12

Last weeks projects

2009-07-21T20:18:00.000-05:00

MM Birthday Girl

Rainbow soaker - not sure what yarn this was - it had little black and white flecks throughout it that I picked out as I knit and oy was it a pain! But it turned out cute - and I have this onesie to crop and lettuce edge (I just folded it under for the pic)

Look how tiny - if you set the CD on top of the soaker there is less than an inch on each side. It's so easy to forget just how tiny babies are at first!

This is a set for a friend who is due any day now with a little boy. For some reason this did not want to photograph well at all. The shirt really matches it very nicely but the shirt wanted to photograph lighter than it is IRL and the shorts wanted to photograph darker (kinda a brighter green) than they are IRL. It was rainy here so I opened the front door to let some light in to try to get a decent pic but it didnt' work so well :( They really do match nicely in person. Maybe tomorrow I can get a better pic before I mail this off to her.

Weekend Projects

2009-07-13T16:46:00.003-05:00

This weekends projects:
Finished 1/2 of a custom.
cleaned out high boy dresser!

Knit this little top - isn't it sweet! Saw the pattern in a LYS last week. I really tweaked this to where I can't say I followed the pattern at all but I certainly enjoyed this knit and it produced such a cute little top! It is made to be a dress and much fuller than I created.

I literally barely eeked this little top out of leftover yarn from the pixie dust longies that I knit. I had to dig out approx a 24 inch scrap I had used (I think as a lifeline) and wet felt it to the end of my yarn in order to finish binding off and weave in the end! This is supposed to have 4 i-cords for ties at the shoulder but I will be adding ribbon for ties since I ran out of yarn. LOL
There is also a row of eyelets just below the smocked top for a ribbon to go through.

Also sewed up 13 mamacloth pads for a gift and for myself.

Gift Set:
This is a gift set to a special mama in Canada. Each has various soaker fabrics so she can try out various materials and also vairous shapes/sizes to see what she likes most.

from left to right:
left: 14 inch, 2 birdseye, 2 zorb, 2 flannel, hidden PUL, blue flannel back
left middle: 13inch, flannel, zorb, flannel, 2 birdseye, terry soaker, hidden PUL, coffee addict flannel back
right middle: 13 inch, 1 layer terry, 2 zorb, 1 terry for soaker, green flannel back
right: 9.75 inch, terry, zorb, flannel for soaker, flower/paisley flannel back

My Set:
ranges in size from 9.5 inches to 13 inches. All have zorb sandwiched between other materials (flannel, birdseye, terry, etc) for soaker layers and most have fleece backing.

Mosaic Moon Pixie Dust Longies & Ramblings

2009-07-10T21:29:00.004-05:00

Tricia - thank you for the fleece soaker! It was so very kind of you! This is Tricia's son, Nico. He is 3 mo old and already 17lbs! Tricia thank you for sharing this photo! and truly thank you very much for the fleece soaker!

This pair of longies were so hard to photograph. Parts of the purple wanted to turn out blue in the photo. It was overcast here today and - well these longies just did not want to be photographed LOL. This is a stunning color in person and none of these photographs do this colorway any real justice. You can see more accurate pics of the colorway at the mosaic moon gallery

I ended up having to take a picture inside with a flash and it seems that always washes out the cable and makes it far less noticeable than it is in real life.

Mosaic Moon "Pixie Dust" on 3 ply uruguay merino wool
H16;R16;I7;T8 5spi 3 5/8oz
Plymouth Galway color #89 trim

see you really can see the cable LOL

A picture of Pixie Dust from the Mosaic Moon website

I had picked up a pattern earlier in the week at the LYS to make a sweater top/dress for S. I modified it to be knit in the round rather than flat and also made it shorter to make a top instead of a dress and did fewer YO's so that it was not as full because I knew I would not have enough yarn to do as many increases as they did and I knew I wanted a top and not a dress. I used the Plymouth Galway worsted yarn scrap (2 3/8oz) leftover from the MM Pixie Dust longies. very quick knit! I used every last little bit of wool I had! Even had to wet felt a scrap that was approx 2 feet long onto the very end of the main scrap in order to finish binding off and be able to weave in the end! Didn't even have enough to make the 4 ties on it so I'll be getting some cute ribbon to use for ties. No pics yet since I have not gotten to block it! Did pick up some yarn to knit some little shorts to go with the top today while in town though.

What a sweetie!

2009-07-08T11:42:00.002-05:00

I never tire of seeing adorable baby photos! Hayden is simply precious! Those little round baby cheeks! How much sweeter could one be?
Thank you Tish for sharing your photos!

Awww - think she was tired of photos?

A Busy Ten Days!

2009-07-06T23:24:00.002-05:00

It's been a busy 10 days with the 4th of July Holiday falling in there. What a fun time of year though and a time to remember to say thank you to all of our service members for their service!

YYMN Malabrigo "Hollyhock" for Hollie's coming daughter

MYMN Cestari Superfine "Watermelon" dyed by me for Hollie's coming daughter

The onesie I found at W-Mart. Saw it and thought it would match so picked it up as a little surprise for Hollie. I chopped it off and lettuce edged it on my serger! I am pleased with how well it matches!

Peace Fleece "Tuxedo" Soaker

This started out as, I think "Father's Gray". I overdyed it with black to create something besides boring gray!

Wipes
15 flannel/flannel or flannel/terry wipes and 5 half sized wipes for carrying in the plastic sposie wipe containers for in diaper bags. This is the first time I've tried serging curves and I'm happy with how they turned out! I will definitely be making more for our coming baby and for a Canadian friend who is expecting! These were for a partial trade for some baby bottles.

Katherine was so sweet in allowing me to share these pictures of her precious daughter, Grace, modeling her ATTD Scrappy shorties.

Mamacloth swap!

2009-06-30T17:57:00.002-05:00

I'm participating in a mamacloth swap on a forum I'm on. I finished my packages to ship today! I hope that the mamas like them!

Swap person # 1

minky topped, fleece backed with 1 layer zorb inner sandwiched between either 2 layers birdseye on top and 1 layer birdseye on bottom OR 1 layer flannel top & 1 layer flannel bottom

Swap person # 2

Minky topped, fleece backed. Each of these have a different inner core so that the mom can try various fabrics. I can not recall now which snap color goes with which inner core but it is in the car to the mama so she’ll know, thus the reason that there is one pad with black snaps, one with red snaps, and one with white snaps. I had to take the snickers bar out as it was melting in the 3 min it took to take pictures :( so I added the box of tea in instead. Hope she likes it!

the inner cores are:
1. two layer birdseye, 1 layer zorb, 1 layer birdseye
2. 2 layers cotton fleece, 1 layer birdseye
3. 2 layers bamboo fleece, 1 layer birdseye

I received my two packages as well.

the first package I received was from a wahm who sells mamacloth - excellent craftsmanship! I did end up having to sell these as this wing style doesn't work for me. However, I loved my package - she did a great job with my extras! 1 lip balm from Clear Hills Honey, 3 candles, 1 tea bag and a super yummy fudgicle soap from Natural Madison on HC

My 2nd package arrived today as well.

Latest little models

2009-06-24T16:05:00.002-05:00

Matthew (Amy's son)
he has the most adorable round face! Just want to squeeze him!

Lily (Justine's daughter)
She's so sweet! She looks like a little baby doll! So delicate!

ZenString "Bloom" Shorties & Headband

2009-06-24T16:03:00.002-05:00

Knit for Tish's daughter Hayden.

Yarn is dyed by Angelina of Zenstring in her "Bloom" colorway.

Justine's "Cherry Blossom" Shorties

2009-06-09T20:41:00.002-05:00

It is such fun to knit all the differet types of yarn and various WAHM dyers!

There was enough of this yarn leftover to make another pair of small shorties or NB capris and I found a solid lavender knit fabric at JoAnns that matches perfectly to sew a little top out of.

H20.5;R17;I3;T11.5/4oz/5spi

Scrappy Cabled Capris

2009-06-07T17:39:00.002-05:00

These were fun to knit!

H22;R20;I8,T12 6.75oz

Hayden in her "Pink Flamingo" soaker

2009-06-06T19:35:00.001-05:00

Isn't she just precious! Thank you Tish for sharing this photo!

"Flamingo" Soakers & Misc.

2009-05-29T23:56:00.003-05:00

Whew it's sure been busy here! Seems that summer is always busy! We sure are enjoying the warmer days though!

Recent knits:
Two soakers - one is for Tish's listtle one with a matching headband and another for a very special little girl. "Flamingo" dyed by Tykie Knits on corriedale.

W16; H18; R16;T9
3oz 5spi

A dear friend got to visit recently! It was such a wonderful time to get to visit again. It's always so nice to laugh until your sides hurt and tears run down your cheeks. She wanted to learn to sew so that she could make herself some cloth menstrual pads (aka mamacloth). While teaching her I sewed up a few pads for her to take home with her (forgive the wonky pics - I forgot to take pics before I sent them home with her so these had been crammed in her suitcase).

3 daytime cloth pads

3 overnight/heavy flow pads

she wants to try various shapes/sizes so I drew out approx 13-16 different shapes/sizes. A few are freebie patterns on the net but others are after a sposie pad or freehand after seeing something similar or completely freehand tweaking to what she described she wanted.

Scrappy Diamond Cabled Shorties

2009-05-17T19:50:00.002-05:00

Knit using various Cestari Superfine Merino scraps. First time knitting this particular cable. I think it shows up better than some of the smaller cables.

H20.5; R17; I3.5; T12
3 7/8 oz

Western Sky Knits "Chocolate Rainbow" & "Crimson" Striped Longies

2009-05-08T17:55:00.002-05:00

Longies for baby S knit from Western Sky Knits "Chocolate Rainbow" colorway on Cestari Superfine yarn with stripes of Cestari Superfine in the "Crimson" colorway.

Avery in his scrappy shorts

2009-05-07T09:54:00.002-05:00

Stephanie was kind enough to share with me (and allow me to post) pictures of her precious son, Avery, in his scrappy shorts.

Thank you Stephanie for allowing me to knit for your handsome little fella!

Custom Capris & Soaker for new babe

2009-04-30T16:15:00.002-05:00

Custom Capris for Ashley of Crunchy Clean. Cestari Superfine Merino dyed by me - knit with a double braid.

Soaker for the new babe coming! Need to either paint a little tshirt to go with this or sew a little top - thinking I'd rather paint a T-shirt but not sure what to paint on it - not the right color for blue birds really. Any suggestions?

The soaker was knit from leftover Araucania Nature Wool Bulky Solid and Multy that I used to knit this hat 2 winter seasons ago for one of our other children. (crummy pic washed out by flash - really should take a new one)

The soaker was a great way to use up the leftovers of the multy color (color # 210) as I only had approx 1.5oz of that along with a little over 1.5oz of the Teal trim color (#120 Turquoise).

Charity Auction YYMN Slot & Yarns I dyed this week

2009-04-17T20:30:00.003-05:00

the shorties are for the mama who won the charity YYMN auction for a cloth diapering mom of 8 children who is on a forum I'm on who lost her husband suddenly approx 2 months ago.

yarns I dyed this week - I had a pair of shorties for a trade nearly finished and they got left in the vehicle window for about 2 days worth of TX sunshine and got slightly bleached so I redid it (now the yarn on the bottom) and started dyeing another skein when the colors wanted to mesh together so I overdyed that to make the middle purple/black/etc one you see and then did another green/pink one (the yarn on top) to do a set for one of my own dd's at some point.

I don't know what to call the purple/black/etc.... (see below) - any suggestions?

Recent Finished Items

2009-04-14T19:05:00.003-05:00

Finished up one tester pattern for a wahm but no pics to post as she is going to submit it to Knitty! I'm hoping the pattern makes it in! Very excited for her!

Recent Custom - the one I posted about the other day - This momma is so super sweet! This yarn on the other hand - was not so nice! However, it did finally cooperate! But it did not stretch as far as she would have liked. She had hoped for a 6" inseam and I could only get a 4" inseam. Absolutely love this colorway but the WAHM dyer is now out of biz.

I literally used almost every last inch of this yarn - here is what was leftover - less than a yard of the main colorway (6" ruler in the picture for reference)

This is the "True Love Cowl" tester pattern for Melanie of Adorabubble Knits. Knit with Bernat Satin yarn - this yarn is gray but has hints of brown in it when it hits the light just right.

Sugarbubbie Halter Tester Pattern knit from Lily Sugar'n'Cream cotton yarn. This one is for my baby cousin.

This yarn will not cooperate!

2009-04-11T12:16:00.003-05:00

I finished a custom for a very sweet mama that I've knit for once before (finished pictures later). However, completing this pair turned out to be quite an adventure. This yarn wanted to pool vertically no matter what I tried - increasing a few stitches, decreasing a few stitches, going up a needle size, going down a needle size - nothing helped! Finally I added a rope cable - still not cooperating! As a last ditch effort I tried a braid and woooohooo! My last resort would have been to have knit from both ends of the skein. This project used every last bit of yarn. There was literally less than 1 yard of yarn left over of the main colorway.

Whew what a month!

2009-04-04T21:56:00.003-05:00

Whew! We went out of state to visit family and ended up with two family emergencies and then after we got home I got a nasty cold and am finally starting to feel better again yesterday!

I have serious catching up to do now!
Customs I need to get out:
Megg's capris
Ashley's shorts (trade for laundry soap)
waiting on yarn for YYMN for Stephanie (Charity Auction winner)
trade is on hold for now (her mom is battling cancer - please keep D's mom in prayer)

I hope to finish both Megg and Ashleys' this week.

then as soon as Stephanie's yarn arrives be able to start on them the following week.

We had an unforcasted 2" of snow this week which melted by evening and left a muddy mess. They are calling for more rain/sleet/snow tonight. Don't these folks know it is April and supposed to be spring already! I'm definitely ready for some sunshine and blue skies and warm temps and for everything to turn green and not be a muddy mess!

Misc. Ramblings

2009-03-05T20:12:00.003-06:00

Nothing further on dh's socks.

Started the tester cowl pattern and realized that it was not looking quite like it should. Told dh and he asked if it was me or the pattern LOL - I was not positive so I started a 2nd cowl - it still did not look right. So I emailed Melanie and there was a tiny note I had missed by following the chart and not remembering this little note! Ack silly me! However, I might have decided to use a different yarn that I have. I had planned on doing the worsted weight version so that it would knit up quicker but I do have a skein of Aracuania Ranco Multi Sock yarn that I know I do not want to knit socks out of but it might be nice for this - but then again it might be too colorful. What do you think?

In the mean time she finished up the another tester pattern so I started test knitting it.

Also finished a custom pair of shorts for a trade out of "Good Earth" Cestari Columbia yarn dyed by Lamar of A Time To Dye. I still need to weave in the ends and make the drawsting oh and lanolize it.

Dyed this Cestari Superfine yarn for a trade for some detergent from Ashley of Crunchy Clean Laundry products. I finished the waist and am starting the body on this pair.

What's on the knitting needles . . . . Pattern Testing & Dh socks

2009-02-25T10:51:00.004-06:00

what's on the knitting needles?

I started socks for dh 2 days before Valentine's. I've not had much time to work on them though. However, I'm super excited about knitting this pair for him. The last pair was out of Dream In Color Classy worsted weight yarn using the
Knitty Thuja pattern. This pair is out of Zen String Lotus Toes BFL. I'm knitting the "Esquire" toe up (first time I've knit toe-up as the Thuja's and the other sock I've knit were top down).

When I first emailed Angelina of Zenstring - I asked her if she'd consider a colorway of navy, maroon, black or dark brown and silver/gray in sock yarn for my dh. She replied that she thought she had just the colorway that she had just created and was going to release soon. After seeing some of the other "Esquire" skeins knit up on Ravelry mine seems to have deeper colors and I'm so very glad! Some of the other skeins seem to have brighter colors and some pink to them and while dh does look very nice in pink I don't think he'd want pink in these socks LOL.

Here is a pair of socks knit out of a skein of Esquire by Angelina. The skein I'm knitting with is definitely deeper in color. Here is another skein of "Esquire" from Kingdom Knits on flickr. That skein definitely has lighter colors. I really do like the richness of the colors in the skein I received from ZS! I can't wait to see how they turn out. It's such a beautiful yarn!

Also test knitting a Cowl pattern for Melanie of Adorabubble Knits

Hand-spun Longies Action Photos

2009-02-24T22:49:00.002-06:00

"V" was kind enough to send me these action photos of her little man modeling the Amber Beck Fiber Arts "Cameron" handspun longies.

Birthday Poncho

2009-02-24T22:46:00.002-06:00

One of my dd's has wanted a poncho. She picked the yarn. While this is an easy project - it does get rather boring by the time you get to the end of this poncho!

I think baby sized ponchos are surely much more fun to knit than bigger kid sized ones.

"Eden" Braided shorties

2009-02-24T22:40:00.003-06:00

The "Eden" colorway is one of my all time favorites! It's such a nice girly color! And with spring coming it was the perfect time to knit this! The mama asked for flared legs for her little girl. "Eden" is dyed by Lamar at "A Time To Dye" who stocks on the "Tiny Lady Cooperative" on Hyena cart. You can find her yarns here: http://hyenacart.com/tinyladycooperative/ This skein was dyed on Cestari Superfine Merino. I really enjoy knitting with this yarn. It is a cottony soft type yarn. Many knitters seem to not care for the Cestari so much as they say it drags on their knitting needles but I've not found this to be the case with using Addi knitting needles. Cast-on and bound-off in the main colorway.

H19.5;R17;I4 - 4 3/8oz

Amber Beck Fiber Arts Hand-spun Longies

2009-02-15T19:24:00.002-06:00

This is the most stunning yarn! It is hand-spun by Amber Beck Fiber Arts in the "Cameron" colorway! This was such an honor to knit for this mama. I hope that she likes them and the little surprise I included (keyring longies made from this yarn - she said it was custom spun/dyed for her little boy and named after him so I thought she might like to have a mini-keepsake of her special yarn). These photos are not the best - it had been snowing the day before and we just did not have good lighting until sunset so the light was at a funny angle. The pictures of the yarn are far more accurate. Hopefully I can get a decent pic in the morning before these get mailed off.

This is the yarn when I received it in the mail! Stunning!

It was amazing to see this yarn transform - the pictures above of the completed item simply do not do the yarn justice - here is a close-up picture so that the true beauty can be seen.

7.25oz H20,R19,I11,T11; 3.5spi

Gracecody Longies with action pictures

2009-02-09T15:29:00.007-06:00

Knit with Cestari Fine Merino in the "Dusty Orchid" colorway. One of my alltime favorite colors! This yarn is so cottony to knit with! And such a pleasure to knit with such a beautiful color! This was the first time I had done the plaited cable. I was quite thrilled with how they turned out! I think my own daughter will need a sweater/pant set like this for next winter!

This mama was so sweet to knit for - she was kind enough to allow me to save off the pictures to post here and in my album. Isn't her little girl a cutie pie! She requested an extra long inseam with a longer cuff so that her little one could wear the longies next year and this year with the cuff rolled up.

Cestari Fine Merino "Dusty Orchid" colorway
used 5 7/8oz at 4spi
H22, R18, I11, T12

Scrappy Action Shots

2009-01-29T14:48:00.003-06:00

The momma that the Scrappy XO Longies were knit for was kind enough to allow me to share action photos of her little girl wearing them! Thank you K! Isn't her little girl a cutie!

XO Scrappy Longies

2009-01-23T00:38:00.002-06:00

Custom Knit with XO cable down the side of each leg.

I am quite excited with how these turned out! This is the first scrappy pair of longies I've ever knit. I wish they were staying for my dd! LOL However, they are on their way to a very cute little girl!

This was a great project as I learned what method of joining yarn I most prefer when there are so many color transitions!

W 18; H 20; R 18; I 10
used 4 3/4 oz of yarn

XO Elegante Longies

2009-01-23T00:34:00.002-06:00

Knit on 3 ply purewool "Elegante" colorway.

H 22; R 18; I 11

Varigated Blue BFL Aran Braided Cabled Longies

2008-12-12T21:03:00.003-06:00

Varigated blue BFL Aran yarn dyed by me custom knit for ProudHooahWife.

Used 6 3/4oz yarn

H 23

R 17

I 12.5

Faux Crankypants Longies

2008-11-19T00:36:00.005-06:00

Matching faux crankies for a friend of mine for her 5 yr old and 2 yr old daughters. I asked Amy of Crankypants about knitting these and she said it is fine to knit them for my children or friends as gifts as long as I'm not knitting them to sell them. These were knit using Bernat Acrylic yarn because my friend does not want to handwash wool for a 2 yr old and 5 yr old. These were some large longies! The 5 yr old pair had a 17" inseam and the 2 yr old pair had a 12 3/4" inseam! The yarn looks black on my monitor but it is really a nice deep chocolate brown, sage green, pink and cream.

Family Pendragon "End of Day"

2008-11-19T00:31:00.003-06:00

Whew it has sure been a busy week! Finished up one custom and a pair of matching faux crankypants for a friend of mine.

Family Pendragon "End of Day" colorway on Cestari Superfine Merino yarn.

hips 23"; rise 18"; inseam 9"; thigh 12"

Used 6.5oz of yarn 4-4.5 spi

Elliebelly "Pellucidly" Aran BFL Braided Hat & Longies

2008-11-03T23:11:00.009-06:00

Custom Elliebelly "Pellucidly" colorway on Aran BFL.

19; H 22; R 19; I 12 used 7 1/4 oz Aran BFL for the longies

Hat 20 inches in diameter and used 2 3/4 oz Aran BFL for the hat

Newborn "Citrus" Malabrigo Braided Hat

2008-10-23T20:47:00.003-05:00

Knit to match the "Citrus" Malabrigo NB/Small Longies for Kristy.

Gray BFL Braided Longies

2008-10-23T20:22:00.005-05:00

Custom dyed and knit for Shannon's handsome little man! Isn't he a cutie!

BFL - 5spi - Size Large - 6 5/8oz yarn

Rainbow Skirtie

2008-10-08T18:17:00.010-05:00

This skirtie was a lot of fun to knit! It turned out so girly with the ruffles at the bottom! I dyed the rainbow yarn one day when I was tinkering around dyeing yarn. The red is a 3 ply merino from a local hobby store.

"Citrus" Malabrigo Longies

2008-09-27T00:39:00.007-05:00

Size small "Citrus" Malabrigo longies for a diaperswappers mama.

This yarn is so yummy soft! Malabrigo is a fantastic yarn for newborns or small babies.

The "Citrus" colorway lent itself wonderfully to the braided cable.

The remainder of the yarn will be knit into a matching hat soon.

Longies & matching hat took approx 6oz of yarn.

A little bit of history & Information

2008-09-27T00:08:00.008-05:00

Custom Information / Policy
A $10.50 (non-refundable) deposit holds your spot of which $10 will be applied to the final total. Prices do not include shipping.

For custom pricing information I need to know the following measurements for your little one: hips, rise, inseam and thigh. I do not add anything to your measurements. If you would like additional room for growth added, please add that to whatever measurements you provide me. I will also need to know if you want basic knit or what type of cable you prefer (Rope, Open Rope, Braid, Double Braid), Chain Link, or XO. I am always open to knitting other cables if a description is provided of what you are wanting. I will let you know if I feel what you are requesting can be put on longies/shorties/soaker/skirtie and the cost.

All prices are for YYMN and you are paying only for the knitting service. If you choose a yarn I have in-stock dyed by a WAHM or a standard retail yarn the price will go up according to the cost of the yarn chosen.

All customs may choose 1x1 or 2x2 ribbing for the waistband; I-cord or Twisted cord for the drawstring; and rolled, ribbed or seed stitch cuffs. If no waistband or drawstring preference is noted I will choose what I feel looks best for your item. All legs are finished in a 1” seed stitch cuff unless otherwise specified. Other options are rolled, ribbed and garter. Ruffles and lace are options at an additional charge.

Customs take 2-3 weeks to complete from the time I begin knitting your item. The time quoted is an estimate. I strive to meet all deadlines but should an emergency or illness arise I am a wife and mother first. You will be notified before I begin your item to confirm sizing and details.

Sales are final and non-refundable on all custom knit items. Payment will be due in full prior to me starting your item. Please check your child’s measurements before ordering. Photos will be provided to you when the item is completed. I strive to please all of my customers. If there is a defect in the finished item I will do my best to correct the problem. Pooling of the yarn colors is not a defect. Shipping costs are the responsibility of the sender for returning an item for repair.

I reserve the right to refuse service to anyone for any reason. As stated above, all sales are final and non-refundable on all custom knit items. However, if a personal situation arises that I feel I will not be able to complete a custom within what I deem to be a reasonable amount of time, at my discretion, I may offer a refund to the customer and return their yarn to them at my cost.

Samples of my knitting can be seen here in the Gallery and Action Gallery

Feel free to contact me at any time with any questions! I will do my best to reply to all inquiries within 48 hours Monday – Friday (except Holidays).

History
I learned to crochet as a young child from my grandmother who taught me many skills over the years. However, I couldn't sit still long enough back then to enjoy my grandmother teaching me how to knit. Eventually I grew up LOL and realized that my grandmother was indeed a very special smart lady! I should have learned to knit from her when I had the opportunity. She lives too far away now for her to teach me. Approximately 18 months ago I decided that I wanted to learn to knit. I purchased the "Teach Yourself Visually Knitting" book by Sharon Turner and watched the videos at Knitting Help. Since then it has been a wonderful journey learning different techniques and knitting various patterns.

I've had the pleasure of test knitting for several WAHMs in the cloth diapering wool longies/shorties/soaker community. I've learned a tremendous amount from testing these patterns and chatting with these wonderful WAHMs.

It's been a blast knitting for my children and teaching them to knit as well. It is a nice activity when we travel or when watching a movie or tv together. I find knitting to be very relaxing - most of the time anyway LOL.

What else to say - I love most anything crafty. I enjoy knitting, crocheting, sewing, quilting, wood working, painting, etc....

I'm a wife to an amazing man and a mom to the most wonderful children!