15 years ago today I married my best friend, the love of my life…
Little Things
With school resuming for the kids tomorrow, it’s time to get back to my usual routine :: crafting, blogging and otherwise.
Many of our friends are expecting babies this year and while store-bought baby stuff is adorable, I’d like to put my knitting needles (and stash) to work and churn out a bunch of pint-sized gifts. I’ve finished the Baby Sophisticate Jacket which is just waiting for some cute buttons to be totally complete.
My favorite part of this whole project was the shawl collar. It’s being blocked flat now (on my jaundiced blocking mat). Once it’s turned over, the collar is the most adorable thing ever!
Ever since Alana and Hannah published their book, Coastal Knits, I’ve had my eye on the Wildflower Cardigan. When Alana published this pattern in kids sizes as Wee Wildflower, I had to purchase it and promptly cast on with some Debbie Bliss Baby Cashmerino.
The pockets are turning out super cute with the wildflower motif and I can’t wait to finish this project to see the end result.
It really is a darling pattern even though I had to begin with 222 stitches (gasp!) for the smallest size. That’s a lot of stitches but the stitch counts decrease drastically once you are done with the edging. For me, these instant gratification projects are the right ticket to get into this year’s crafting groove!
Rathtrevor
I have one more finished object to share with you before we say goodbye to 2012. I knit a pair of fingerless mitts from Jane Richmond’s new book Island.
This pattern is named Rathtrevor after the breathtaking Rathtrevor Provincial Park on Vancouver Island. As I knit this project I was reminded of our family trip to Van Isle lastyear and I was so grateful that I was able to capture this tender moment between my kids on Rathtrevor Beach…
Knit using SweetGeorgia yarn, these mitts are so luxurious to the touch and the color is even more stunning in real life.
Rathtrevor (Ravelry notes)
Pattern: Rathtrevor by Jane Richmond
Yarn: SweetGeorgia Superwash DK in “Oceanside”
Needles: Size US 6, 7 / 4, 4.5 mm
What a year this has been! I look back with many emotions and I’m so grateful for so much… my family, my faith, my creative pursuits. I wish all of my blog readers a wonderful new year! See you after the jump 🙂
End Of The World? Nah!
First day of Winter? Yes!
Shortest day of the year? Yes again!!
And life goes on… I’ve got a pile of knitting things to keep my fingers busy.
Keeping it real with a peek into my knitting basket, folks! In the spirit of full disclosure, I should mention that this isn’t the half of it! I’ve got other projects in various stages of progress stuffed into my work-in-progress-bin. Some of them haven’t seen the light of day in two years. Whadyathink…. I should rip those out, no?
Speaking of ripping, look at how the cabled swatch that I made last year is getting a makeover of sorts. Reuse, Recycle, Renew.
A bit of holiday red in the form of a wee sweater for a friend’s baby shower. Now if I could just get some elves to wrap Christmas presents, I can get a move on these half-finished knits 😉
Finally, The Fluff
My heart goes out to all the families who lost a precious life in the horrible Newtown massacre last week. I held my kids closer and tighter all weekend because life is too fragile.
No knitting content today because I’ve been staring out at our first snow this winter. Well, technically, it is still fall for a few more days, but who’s counting!
It’s going to snow some more tonight and then of course, the rain will come and wash it all away. Until then, I’m going to enjoy the magic and stillness that SNOW brings.
I’ll have some knitting to share soon 🙂 I’ve gotten a pair of fingerless mitts done and I’m knitting crazy-fast on a baby shower gift. And… I even did some sewing… for reals!! Stay warm and safe if you have snow where you live and watch out for those sneaky patches of black ice!
Windschief The Second
Windschief seems to be my go-to hat pattern for the guys in my life. The first one I knit was for the Mister using Dream in Color Classy in a classic grey. He’s worn that hat a TON and it still looks like it was knit yesterday. Top marks for this yarn!
After knitting the Ranger sweater for Prithvi, I had a bit of yarn leftover. Although, he will never be caught wearing the matching sweater-hat combination, I knit him his own Windschief this time adding a bit of extra length for ear-coverage-slash-upping-the-coolness-factor-with-a-bit-o-slouch.
It turned out to be a winner once again and the guys have been wearing their hats everywhere. They haven’t yet realized that their hats are matchy-matchy and I ain’t volunteering that information, hehe 😉
Here’s the skinny on this project…
Windschief II (Ravelry notes)
Pattern: Windschief by Stephen West
Yarn: Malabrigo Rios in “Paris Night”
Needles: Size US 6, 7 / 4, 4.5 mm
Traditions
Yesterday was Vancouver’s annual Santa Claus Parade and we joined the masses of people to welcome Kris Kringle to our city! The rain stopped once the parade began… a Christmas miracle indeed 😉
The marchers…
The dancers…
The pipers…
The cuties…
And of course, St. Nick himself (Mrs. Klaus was missing, however, the elves were in attendance!)
December Is Here
It’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas…
I absolutely love this most wonderful time of the year…
Stormont
A quick drive-by post to point you in the direction of a lovely pattern that was recently published by my dear friend, Kelly.
Test knitting is always fun! It’s great to work alongside the designer as their pattern is tweaked and fine-tuned before making it ready for publishing. When Kelly asked me to test knit her hat pattern, Stormont, I jumped at the opportunity.
Stormont was a great pattern to knit. This pattern allowed me to indulge in the cable fix that I always crave once the mercury dips. The cable pattern is on the front as well as the back and a bit of slouch on the back makes for a chic topper for those bad hair days 😉
This pattern is a winner with the wide range of sizes offered – 6 months to large adult. Check out the many lovely versions of this pattern on Ravelry.
Stormont (Ravelry notes)
Pattern: Stormont by Kelly Ashfield
Yarn: Tosh Vintage in “Honorine”
Needles: Size US 6, 7 / 4, 5 mm
I can’t wait to see what Kelly has in store for our needles next.
I have one more test knit on the needles for another knitting buddy and this time it’s a pair of socks 🙂 Warm head, warm toes :: I’m all set for Old Man Winter!
Sea Anemone
Outside, the colored canopy is incredible. Rust, red, orange, yellow, bits of green all around . Breathtaking. Beautiful.
The colors on this skirt will remind me of the magic outside long after every leaf has floated down and the branches are bare welcoming the pause and rest that is winter.
Sea Anemone, is a skirt designed by the very talented, Elena Nodel. The cabled section on the otherwise plain skirt was a welcome twist while I was knitting this project.
The pocket is every little child’s dream, waiting to be crammed full of rocks and leaves and “treasures”.
The best part about this skirt is the ruffle at the bottom :: just perfect for twirling!
Details of this project…
Sea Anemone (Ravelry notes)
Pattern: Sea Anemone Skirt by Elena Nodel
Yarn: Tosh DK in “Alizarin”
Needles: Can’t for the life of me remember what size needles I used 🙁
