Socks and a Hat

Hello there,

So I've been on a bit of a finishing kick these last couple of days.  Over in the Itty-Bitty Group on Ravelry there's a thread for working though your WIPs and I thought that since I was beginning to feel a bit of stress regarding my current pile of WIPs, and they were kinda getting up there in number, I might as well join in.  It's always nice to have some extra support and encouragement as well as motivation.  I got three things finished yesterday, one was the February socks I shared yesterday.  Here are the other two:

Started: January 22, 2012
Finished: February 27, 2012
Pattern: Ribbed Socks for Bigger Feet by Susan B. Anderson
Yarn: Online Supersocke 100 Sportive Color #1165 - This yarn was a Christmas gift from from my cousin TL. Thanks so much TL, this yarn was awesome to knit with!!
Needles: 2.75mm Clover Bamboo DPNs

These were my on-the-go socks.  I started them when I went to a Anniversary dinner and they have traveled around with me in the car.  This yarn was great to knit with, I enjoyed watching the colourx change all the time, and the rib pattern was a nice break from the plain vanilla socks I had been knitting lately.  Although I have to admit that my fingers are itching to cast on a new plain vanilla sock....there's just something about them.  I still have some things to finish up first though before that can happen.

Started: November 2009
Finished: February 27, 2012
Pattern: 04 Cabled Beret by Debbie Bliss
Yarn: Cascade Eco Alpaca #1517
Needles: US 5 & US 8

As you can see I started this one a long time ago.  It was knit flat and I got tired of all the purling.  I picked it back up last year and finished the knitting part, but it just needed the seam sewed up.  I dislike sewing seams, so I bribed my Mom into doing it for me last night.  It turned out quite cute, and I'm very happy to have it done.

Now I am on to working on the Granny Stripes Blanket.  It's coming along really well and I'm enjoying it immensely.  I'm so excited with the prospect of having it finished soon so I can snuggle under all those colourful stripes each night.  Makes me happy just thinking about it!

xoxo

February's Socks

Hello,

I hope you all had a lovely weekend.  Mine spent with my sister was very fun.  We had a lot of laughs and even got some knitting done, although not nearly as I needed to.  I spent too much time enjoying all the high-speed Internet and looking up pattern ideas on Ravelry instead of knitting, but that's alright.  On Friday evening, my Auntie R came over to learn how to knit scarves using the Frill Seeker yarn and Patons Pirouette.  The three of us had such a good time laughing, chatting, catching up and knitting that I think we should make it a monthly get-together, and add my Auntie M and my Mom.  We could have our very own family knit night.  Wouldn't that be fun?  I did knit a scarf along with my Aunt, but I didn't get it finished, so no pictures yet.  I'm working on finishing up a sock first, and then maybe I will get back to it.  I didn't think I would be a fan of knitting with these types of fancy/novelty yarns, but I actually was really enjoying working on mine.  I am a Continental knitter, but for these yarns, I found I had to knit the English way, which me and my Aunt both had to learn on the spot.  It was fun though and who knows, I may even knit a few more.

On another note, I finished February's socks today.  I'm so glad to have them done because the end of the month is coming up fast.  I made this pair for my Mom as a belated Valentine's gift.  The pattern uses a slip stitch and is supposed to break up pooling, but I found that the yarn still pooled quite a bit.  That's okay though because Mom likes them just as they are.  They were a very easy knit, and great for being simple but still having a little patterning to keep things interesting.

Started: February 1st, 2012
Finished: February 27th, 2012
Pattern: Lava Flow by Sockbug
Yarn: Knit Picks Stroll Multi in Hard Candy
Needles: Harmony DPN's size 2.75mm

Now I'm excited to see what March's pair is going to be!

xoxo

Hannah Hen

Presenting Miss Hannah Hen!!

Pattern: Dotted Chickens by Susan B. Anderson
Yarn: Knit Picks Shine Worsted

xoxo

Long Weekend Projects

Hello!!

I hope you all had a lovely long weekend!  We had a quiet one here, which was good because I had a bit of knitting I needed to catch up on.  I finished the bunny Hop up above for the Itty-Bitty Group's Easter swap. I named her Beatrice.  Her sweater is more purple-ish than the picture is showing so that's why I thought she looked like a girl.  I think she turned out quite cute and I really hope my swap partner likes her too.

I also started a Dotted Chicken, which was what I shared a picture of yesterday.  Sad to say, it hasn't gotten any farther than that yet.  But that's because I had a sudden case of strartitis and cast on these:

Two little baby sweaters.  I'm working on the front band of the ivory one right now, and I hope to have it done very soon.  All I have left are the sleeves and then I need to go for a little search in the button box for some suitable buttons.  The blue one is on hold until I get the chicken done, then I think I'll finish it up too.  I have a lot of things that I need to finish, so I may have a "Finishing Weekend" this coming weekend.  I'm going to stay at my sister's house, so with all our chatting and catching up, I should have tons of knitting time!!  Well, I'm off to get back to work, have a great evening.

xoxo

On My Needles

Hello,

This is what's been on my needles over the weekend:

Now for the dots!!

xoxo

♥Happy Valentine's Day♥

Wishing you all a very Happy Valentine's Day!!

xoxo

Weekend Moments

The beautiful sun/cloud sky we had on Sunday.

Hello!

I thought I'd share a little peek at what my weekend was like.

I did some baking on Saturday.  A raspberry pie for my Dad's early Valentine gift

The birds having a nibble outside the kitchen window.

Mittens having a Sunday afternoon nap.

And I made some good hooky progress :)

xoxo

Weekend Plans

Hello,

It's a lovely sunny day here today which is making me feel motivated to finish up some much needed cleaning and laundry that I started yesterday.  I'm also planning on doing a little baking this afternoon and hopefully I can sneak in some crochet this evening.  It sounds like a wonderful day to me.  I'm getting closer to finishing my Granny Stripes Blanket, so I've been trying to focus on it over the last couple of days.  I think I have about a foot or so to go before I can start the boarder.  I can honestly say that I am enjoying each little cluster of every row.  I find it soothing to cluster across the row and then back again, and all the bright cheery colours make me happy just to look at them.  I have to admit, I'm already working on plans for a new blanket once this one is finished.  Since learning to crochet I seem to always have a blanket on the go.  It's comforting in some sort of way.  This time I'm thinking of doing granny squares.  I was contemplating a ripple blanket, but after doing the Granny Stripes, I thought changing it up a bit would be fun.  I'm thinking I'll do more of a throw than a bed-sized blanket, and maybe use it for my window bench in my room.  I also really would like to crochet up some pillow covers to add to the window bench so it's more comfortable to sit there.  I see it becoming the perfect place to knit/crochet and have some tea.

So enough babbling, here is the mitten picture I promised:

I'm doing Polska by SpillyJane.  These caught my eye the first time I seen her patterns, and I think they are simply gorgeous.  Of course it just adds to the appeal that she was inspired by the pattern on her hand-painted mug - and if you read yesterday's post, you may remember I mentioned about my mug fetish, especially polka dot ones.  I haven't been working on them that much right now due to trying to finish up the blanket and I've been starting some Easter projects, but I look forward to getting back to them soon.

Well, I should go put another load in the washer and then get on to the baking.  Have a great weekend everyone!!

xoxo

The Versatile Blogger - Part 2

Happy Friday All!!

What a lovely surprise I got in the comments today!  Stefanie from Knitspiring Odyssey has awarded me with the Versatile Blogger Award Part 2.  Thank you so much Stefanie!!  You are such a sweetheart and I enjoy reading your blog all the time!  You are a wonderful writer and I always go away with a smile on my face after a visit to your blog!

This time I am to share 7 random things about myself.  So here it goes:

1. I was a cheerleader in high school.  We were the last cheerleaders in our entire school district before they turned them into dance squads.  We got to wear the real cheerleader outfits, twirly skirts and all, and had these HUGE, ancient pompoms that made your arms ache after using them!  Our performance song we did in front of the whole school was to "Hey Micky" and we made up the routine and learned it in 3 days, after one of our co-captains changed her mind on the routine she had made for us (which was a good idea because I thought it wasn't very good).  Those three days were the only time I'd ever been at school when they still had the front doors locked.  We were all so tired I was surprised we did so well and didn't drop my sister!  But all the hard work was totally worth it, and I have some of the best memories from that time. 
2. I can play (not extremely well, but that's not the point!) the piano, violin, and flute.  I cannot read music, but I play by ear.  This always frustrated my music teachers because I would be playing the song how I thought it should be played, not how it was written.  
3. My favourite piece of clothing (if you can call them that) growing up were rubber boots.  I would have worn them all year, every year, and everywhere if I could have!  And I won't say I didn't try!
4. I was a ballerina when I was younger.  I gave up though before I got to the point shoe stage because it was taking to long....I also wasn't the most patient child....looking back though, I wish I would have stuck it out.  I really did enjoy it.
5. I wanted to be an astronaut when I grew up.  I would dream about what it would be like to see earth from outer space and to see all the stars and planets, and maybe even discover some myself.  I would always stay up for the meteor showers, and it still takes my breath away to see the night sky full of brilliant stars.  
6. I have a thing for mugs.  I'm always buying neat ones when I'm out shopping and I think polka dot ones are by far my favourites.  My Mom keeps telling me I have enough, but I know she enjoys having her morning coffee in them!  It's a dream of mine to hand-paint a few some day.
7. When we were little, my sister and I (and our two cousins T and L when they would come to visit) used to dance around our house making up dance routines to all my Mom's old records that we'd play on this really old record player.  Songs like Venus in Blue Jeans, Sea Cruise, It's My Party, and The Lion Sleeps Tonight hold many of those special memories and are still favourites of mine.

The Rules:

1. Add the award to your blog.

2. Thank the blogger who gave it to you.

3. Mention 7 random things about yourself.

4. List the rules.

5. Award to 15 bloggers.

6. Inform each of those 15 by leaving a comment on their blog.

Okay, so I'm going to bend the rules a bit here because I read most of the blogs Stefanie listed and I know that Rae Lynne and I read most of the same blogs too, and I can't come up with a list of 15 that won't overlap, so instead I'm going to link over to my "Good Reads" page that lists all the blogs I enjoy reading that you might also like too and I'm going to choose not to pass this on.  I hope that's alright. 

I should be back tomorrow with a sneak peek of those mittens I mentioned the other day.  Until then, sleep well!

xoxo

National Sweater Day

Mini sweater I knit to celebrate the day :)

Hello!

Just popping in quickly to say "Happy National Sweater Day"!!  If you haven't heard about it, check out this link here.  It's such a great idea!

Be back soon,
xoxo

  

Wordless Monday

Fairy I knit for my Itty-Bitty Garden Swap partner

xoxo

February Socks - The Beginning

Happy Friday!

Wow, it's February already!  January seemed to go by quickly and slowly at the same time, if that makes any sense.  Either way, I was still surprised to see February pop up on my calendar Wednesday.  I wasn't even prepared for Groundhog day, so there were no special celebrations at our house this year.  I remember one year where I made cupcakes with cute little groundhogs (which we mini Snicker's bars, I think) peeking out of the tops.  They were really cute and fun.  I enjoy doing holiday baking and crafts when I can, so I was a little sad not to have done any this time.  Oh well, there's always next year, and Valentine's Day is practically right around the corner.  Which probably means I should start making some plans....

I cast on this month's socks on the 1st.  Those are them up above.  I didn't do the random pick this month because I knew I had this red, pink, and white yarn in one of the bags and it seemed like the perfect pair of socks to knit during the Valentine's season.  It's the Lava Flow pattern by Sockbug, and they are just flying right along.  The slip stitch pattern is easy to memorize and adds a bit more interest and fun texture to the socks, which is a bonus in my books.  I think I'm going to knit these for my Mom.  She lovingly wears the socks I've knit her regularly, so I thought she could use another pair.  Nothing says I love you like hand-knit socks, right?

Just to give you a little update on my Grandma:  She is back at the Rest-Home now and is doing really well.  She is still on oxygen, but it is making her feel better, so that's great.  I'm just so happy to see her looking and feeling better, and it's wonderful to know she is back in her familiar surroundings where she is comfortable.  I'm looking forward to going in to see her in a couple of days.  I'm going to bring the new pair of SpillyJane mittens I'm working on to show her.  Wait, what's that?  A new pair of mittens??  Yep, I just can't help myself when it comes to those patterns.  More to come on them soon.  In the meantime, have a great start to your weekend!

xoxo