FO Friday: Baby Hats A-Go-Go!

So, a friend offered me a challenge-to come up with a stripey, toque-style baby hat for her to use as a photo prop when she photographs newborns. For all you non-Canadians, a toque is a triangular hat with a series of far-apart decreases that make the crown into an elongated shape. Think elf hat or Santa Claus. Fun times. Here are my experiments. These are all original designs, just for the record, and obviously one is not a toque. I did not look at any other patterns or closely examine any other hats. I got to use my mad Jogless Jog skills and make these hats quite seamless-looking. You can get some sense of the scale of each hat by its respective "model." The apple is a gigantic honey crisp that is larger than a grapefruit, so it is a little off, but you can hopefully imagine your average navel orange and acorn squash. Each of these is 12-13 inches around. The yarns I used were all from stash-some leftover Karabella Aurora 8 in a soft pinky lavendar from this project and a bit of Debbie Bliss Cashmerino Aran from the Cream and White Yarn Cupboard. The bright pink and white is old Caron acrylic that came to me in a bag of cast-offs. Eew. But the color was right and the baby won't mind. Unless of course she also gets to try on the lovely soft wool version. Then if she had words, she would beg her mama never to let yucky acrylic touch her perfect skin again. Sorry, I'm not normally such an obnoxious yarn snob, but what a difference between the two yarns.

FEE FIE FO Friday

Yes, it's time again for a report from the land of acronyms. I'm gradually turning my UFO's into FO's. I'm trying to rescue myself from the condition known as SABLE, and I'm very sanctimoniously avoiding any SEX, which we all know causes SABLE, among other things.

So, this week's first feature has been aging in its partially done state for approximately 3 years. It is all from stash, no new yarn was purchased or harmed in the completion of this project. It was from the beginning intended for A4A, and I'm happy to say that I'm going to make the deadline with two blankets-the red one from last week and this one. I like this one very much. It became a bit of a color study for me, and I thoroughly enjoyed playing with the combinations to form a random blanket that had a certain amount of cohesiveness. Hopefully I've avoided any offensive cultural or religious combinations, and hopefully, it will make some baby both happy and warm. What a great program. Thanks Ann, for creating something inspiring enough to get me to finish big things.

PS. I know there are wonderful charities that help people here in the States, but this is the one that gets all my wool, plus the Afghan people just hold a special place in my heart for various reasons. I promise that I do donate to other organizations when I have other yarns to spare.

Next, we have the Origami Bear, a superlative design by Merike Saarniit, who I've had the pleasure of meeting at Stitches. This is for a class I'm teaching in December at Cloverhill Yarn Shop. I used Encore Mega on size 13's and was done in about an hour. The sewing up took another 30 minutes or so. This was also stash yarn, and I can't wait to use other yarn to make bears in all sizes and colors. The way it comes together is ingenious on the order of EZ's Surprise Jacket. You would never imagine during the knitting of it or even once it is complete that it could ever be a cute, cuddly bear. It is formed completely from squares and rectangles, all knitted in one piece, then seamed up in a wonderful organic progression. What a satisfying little thing to create.

PS. I know he needs eyes, but I kinda like him with his face left to the imagination. I think after the class is over, he'll go to my new little nephew in Arizona.

Now, I've got to get back to knitting other people's things. I have a biggie for Gwen that's due in December and one to finish for class this Saturday. Wish me luck.

Finished Object Friday

Last week I was at Stitches East, which turned out great. It was fun to meet new students and see others who have been in my classes before. I had great times with the other teachers who are my pals, and came home with some more awesomely complicated yet elegant contract knitting from Gwen.
I really appreciate everyone's support and generous congratulations about my Knitter's cover. It is one of the fun things of life that I'll always remember. Really, the real congratulations go to Alexis, Rick and Natalie and everyone at Knitter's for their great eye and the amazing visual impact of the magazine. They do such a great job. I'm well aware that this is a super-lucky break for a fairly new designer, and I have no illusions about the challenges ahead for getting published. This does give me a lot of motivation to keep on going, though.

So, this week for Finished Object Friday, I celebrate two double-whammies: Both of these are done, and they are completely from stash. No new yarn was purchased or harmed in the making of these items.

First is a blanket for Afghans for Afghans. I missed the clothing campaign, but I think I'll be able to get two blankets sent in time. This one is made of some gifted Lopi. I know it won't be the softest blanket, but it might be the warmest, and babies look so nice in red. It is a basic big block design and it went very quickly once I decided to just get it done. I would estimate that this has been sitting in my bedside knitting basket for over 2 years. Confession is good for the soul. Now I'm letting it go and I'm thrilled.

Next is a vest from Stephanie Japel's excellent book Fitted Knits. She did it in a solid color, but in the spirit of stash shopping, I used two harmonizing colorways of Berocco Keltic, a nice wool blend in tweedy, subtle gradating stripes. I changed the bottom rib to corrugated rib, sacrificing the stretch, but I'm thrilled with the two-color results and got lots of complements on this while wearing it at Stitches. It was a fun, fast knit. Next time, I would work the darts even smaller to accommodate my mostly flat chest. It is warm to wear and perfect for fall and winter when a vest can make a huge difference in feeling just right-not too warm, but not chilly. This is already a favorite, and its fitted silhouette is a very strong enticement to do that weight training to keep the tummy IN!

Finished Object Friday

I know, it's Saturday, but I intended to post this yesterday and eventually I hope to make it, dare to dream with me, a regular post as I strive to shop my stash and clean out the many bags of UFO's living all around my house. In the last couple of weeks, I've finished all sorts of lingering projects due to my new-found discipline born of the excitement of contract knitting. Now the day just isn't complete without a 2-6 hour session of focused knitting, and it's amazing what you can accomplish! Of course it helps that my volunteer and teaching activity have dropped to record low levels for the last 10 years. That's the real reason I have all this time to knit. But let me blather on no longer. Here is the list!

First for this week's Stash Shopping: Angora Baby Booties

Need a quick gift for a baby? These are my favorite. I have a whole bag of gorgeous pure angora that I picked up on clearance at Cloverhill a few years back. This is now my go-to gift for premies. I've adapted the pattern from Joelle Hoverson's gorgeous Last Minute Knitted Gifts for a 4 pound baby. The sister of a dear friend recently delivered a wee set of healthy triplets, and these were my offering. Each little foot is about as long as my thumb. The whole lot took about 3 hours and came from stash.


Rescued from the UFO Zone:

The Homecoming Socks, started about 2.5 years ago on a plane ride home from Seattle. The yarn is Artyarns Merino sock yarn purchased in Port Townsend, Washington. I'm actually quite happy with how they turned out and may publish the pattern. I actually finished these a while back and even posted photos, but I count them among this group of lost projects.

















Also in the sock collection (I think I have found 3 additional sock projects in process) is this pair made from Cestari Cotton Wool Blend purchased at MD Sheep & Wool Festival probably 10 years ago, seriously. I was excited about the yarn and started the socks pretty much immediately, finished the first one and then came down with a very protracted case of SecondSockSyndrome. So, here I am in a new decade and century even, finishing them up. These are time traveling socks. I kinda like that.

(BTW, I'm aware that, as I tell these stories of lost projects found, some of you are wondering what is wrong with me. I feel no shame though. I know I'm not alone in this, so even if you think I'm weird, I'm NOT! )

Happily, the Time Traveling Socks turned out to be worth the wait-really comfy socks and even though the yarn is on the thick side, a DK weight. I knitted them tightly on 3's in a mock cable rib. The cuff is a little loose, but it is short enough that they stay up and are perfect around the house or with my Birks. I don't know how common this is with this yarn, but there was a lot of lumped up purple dye that was problematic while knitting, but has gradually faded with a couple of washings.

But wait, there's MORE! Yes, this has been a productive time. Here is the little bolero I started last spring. I am going to send it to my sister for her sweet little girl. She'll have to grow into it, but this is a fun pattern: Knitting Pure and Simple #275. I will likely make it again. I like to sometimes give baby gifts that are not in baby sizes, and this goes all the way up to size 10. It is made from a great yarn that is of course discontinued: Sunsette-a synthetic blend with some rayon that made it washable yet really soft with a unique hand.

So, that is this week's report. Now I am feverishly working on 2 projects from the UFO zone for Afghans for Afghans. Stay tuned to see if I get them done and out the door!

Stitches Midwest

I am also posting this to my other blog, so if by some strange cosmic mistake you read both, you can skip this.

This weekend I was in my element: Teaching. All weekend long, from Thursday till Sunday I got to teach and teach and teach. I went to a knitting convention (I am not making that up) called Stitches. It was in Chicago. I work for a company called XRX. They publish knitting books, a magazine called (appropriately) Knitter's Magazine, and they put on these shows. Four of them per year. I guess it is something like a Star Trek convention in that we are incredibly geeky, passionate and esoterically thrilled about knitting, but because it is more about learning than entertainment, I actually think it is more like a quilting convention or a scrapbook convention or an upholsterers' convention. There is a big market where you can buy anything and everything related to the subject at hand, and, when they aren't shopping, people take classes. That's where I come in. Over the course of the weekend, I get to teach about 15 hours of classes to knitters of all abilities. I teach about yarn and how to get it to behave the way you want, I teach about different styles of knitting, and I teach a bunch of one-hour classes in the market that allow students to try out a technique in a short amount of time.
It is so awesome. For me, teaching is transporting. I forget about everything outside the classroom, I'm completely in the moment, and I just feel so good. It totally does not feel like work and every time they hand me my paycheck I have to pinch myself.

So, that is where I was this weekend. It was awesome. Here I am with my friend and roommate, Debbie Radtke.
She is a talented designer and teacher herself and in the knitting world she is kinda famous because of this little guy. You may have heard of her.

My best news is that my design is officially published in the next issue of Knitter's mag, it was shown in the fashion show, and I got to get a photo with the actual model who showed it for the magazine photoshoot. That was cool. When I get that I'll show you. Here is me next to one of the publication photos that may show up in the magazine, and yes, it might be on the cover! The mittens that she's wearing, I designed and knit them, and there is a pair of socks to match. When it gets closer to publication I can link you to some better photos. They said that at some point they might give me this huge poster. What a hoot!

Ps. I am attributing my HUGE arms in this photo to some sort of distortion from the fact that this is my phone and not a real camera. Good Heavens.

August Knitting

I have finished all the contract knitting for the time being. I handed over one project in person on Friday and anxiously await comments from the other designer when my package finally reaches California. Both projects were really interesting, fun and rewarding to knit. Both designers are generous, respectful of my knowledge, and a treat to work for. I hope more work like this will come my way in the future. Being the adrenaline junkie that I am, deadlines really work for me and I get a lot done. I was working on a sample for the shop, but the class didn't fill, which leaves me free now to finish my Round-yoked February Lady and perhaps even my Butterfly Ribwarmer. I love the project in my newly-received Wool Gathering and am determined to make my own version of it. I have a boat-load of Harrisville and other brands of Shetland, so I'm thinking of a more earth-toned version made in yarn I already own. What a concept. I've been working on hats from my previous Wool Gathering and am enjoying them all. I resisted the urge to buy new things when my WG came, which was hard, but it is nearly September, the true time of new beginnings, and I'm freshly resolved to living without buying anything for the next month. Yes, that includes while at Stitches. We'll see how it goes. I have so many beautiful things and I must learn to love them even though they have lost the sparkle of a newly discovered treasure. Hopefully, this will be a month of several new FO's.

A Finished Object on the Three-year Plan

Here are my own Homeward Bound socks, begun about three years ago on
the way home from a trip to Seattle. They are all mine and that is a
lovely, delicious feeling.