Something To Keep Little Feet Warm



Size 2-4 socks

 I've had these finished for a few weeks now, but just never got around to posting a pic.

I used the flash in the picture, so the colours don't like quite right. They are deeper and darker in "real life".

The yearn is Patons Kroy Socks (stripes) in the "Mulberry Stripes" colourway. I was unsure at first if I would like this colour combination (well, at least with the brown thrown into the mix), but I think they look quite nice.

The stripes don't match up - they are fraternal twins, but that's OK too. I just hope whoever gets them doesn't mind! I will be adding these to my collection of knits that will go on the church mitten tree at Christmas.

I've started in on another pair of socks (same pattern and size). I'm only on the first sock yet, and I'm just about to start on the heel flap. I haven't really been in the knitting mood much, but from time to time I will knit a couple of rows. I've been feeling like knitting something else though - not sure what though. I've thought of doing yet another hat, but haven't started it. Thought using larger needles and bigger yarn would be nice after working on the socks.

I've also been thinking about knitting a shawl, but to be honest, that scares me. It would be small yarn again and lace - which I wouldn't be able to work on in front of the TV (which is where I tend to do most of my knitting). I've marked a few patterns on Ravelry that I'd like to try, so maybe I'll at least attempt it. I was thinking of making a shawl as a gift, and of course, one for me. I'd also be scared that I wouldn't get it finished for a long time. I don't know. I see so many beautiful shawls on Ravelry and on blogs, and I would like to try one...maybe I should just bite the bullet and start one and see how it goes.

What are you currently working on? Let me know in the comments!

Knitting With Julia Roberts

Saw this on Facebook (via Knit Picks) and just had to share!

Head Coverings

I was getting tired of writing "Hats" or "More Hats" for titles, so I switched it up a little and went with Head Coverings...because that's what hats are!

The one on the right is the same pattern I used for one in the previous post - the Vyridia Fair Isle Hat. I switched the colours around so that pink was the main colour and used the navy for the pattern.

When I finished that hat Saturday night, I still had yarn left over for both colours and decided to make a third hat. This one is just a simple navy and pink striped hat with both colours used in the pompom. For both hats I cast on 80 stitches and used a 4.5mm circular needle (switching to DPNs when it got smaller near the crown (from decreasing).

I still have some of each colour left, but not enough for a hat. Might be enough to add a few rows to a multi-coloured hat. I should look up my left over Astra yarn and see if there if the colours would work together. I don't think I have a lot of this yarn though, and I don't want to buy any more yarn until I use up more of my stash...and besides, I need to save my money since I'm not getting a lot of work.

I don't know what I'll work on next. This seems to be the year of the hat for me, but I want to work at something else as well. I've got lots of patterns queued up in Ravelry, so I might check that and see if anything speaks to me. 

Some of the things I might work on are:

socks (children's)
baby blanket
baby sweater
more hats ;o)
mittens
stuffed toys

It's hard to say what I'll work on next. I think I might start a pair of children's socks, as I had thought while working on my first Vyridia Fair Isle hat that I would do the socks next. I guess you'll have to tune in to the next post to see what the chosen next project turned out to be!

What do you have planned to knit in the future?

More Knitting & Crocheting

In my last post, I showed you a photo of the baby blanket (and wash cloths and bibs) I had made for my friend, Colleen, in Australia.

She has since received the package, and I'm happy to report that she loved the blanket (though she didn't mention anything about the bibs and wash cloths) and said that anyone who sees it loves it as well! That made me feel good!

Since then, I've finished some more items. As you can see in the photo to the left, there are three hats (knitted) and two wash cloths (crocheted). The link for the washcloths is in the previous post.

The hat in the middle was actually finished when I had done the previous post, as was one of the wash cloths, but I forgot to take a photo of it and mention it in the blog.

The hat to the left is the Vyridia Fair Isle Hat by Tina Edgar. The link to the Ravelry pattern can be found here. This is a very easy and quick knit, and I will definitely be making it again, only I will reverse the colours. In the hat I made, I used Patons Astra in navy (main colour) and dark pink. I'll use the pink as the main colour in the next one.

The other two hats used Bernat Mosaic, but I have thrown out the ballband so I don't remember the colourway.

What have you been working on lately?

Dedicated To Krissy

My best friend gave me heck this past Sunday for not updating this knitting blog for awhile, so Krissy, this post is dedicated to you!

Ok, so since the time of my last post, I have been busy making some baby items for a friend's first baby. She had the baby a couple of weeks ago, but I've just been slow in finishing things up and mailing it off.

I wanted to make a baby blanket, so I started crocheting (my favourite way of doing baby blankets) a giant granny square blanket in yellow and green. It looked fine (I need to photograph it and post it to show you), but I thought afterwards that I'd like something a little different than that.  So, I proceeded to do another one, also with yellow and green. At the time I she was still pregnant and I didn't know what she was having, so I wanted to play it safe with the colour choice.  Unfortunately, that blanket didn't turn out.

Oh, I should mention that I had also started knitting a blanket first (pictured a post or so ago...the one with the book in it), but I somehow ended up knitting it backwards - don't ask me how that happened! I figured it would have taken too long for me to start knitting a new one with this particular yarn as it was a light worsted weight. The yarn I chose for the other blankets was a lot thicker, and was easier to work up.

Above is a photo of the completed blanket I finished crocheting using Bernat Baby Bubbles yarn (from my stash, and I haven't seen it on shelves for awhile so I don't know if it's even available anymore), in the Pretty Bubbles colourway. I used a 5.5mm hook. The pattern is pretty easy and uses double crochet for the entire blanket.

I also decided to knit up a few bibs (to the left) using the Grandmother's Favourite Baby Bib pattern (on Ravelry). It's pretty  much the dishcloth pattern and then you bind off until there are five stitches left, and then do the strap. Very easy!

The bib in the middle (yellow one) is made with Cotton Tots, and the other two are made with Bernat Cotton that's used for dishcloths.


The last pattern (below) I made was the Oh So Soft Baby Washcloths found on Ravelry as well. These were made with Cottontots, and is done in crochet. Again, this is a very easy pattern and crochets up quickly!

I'll try to get a photo up soon of the granny square blanket I mentioned earlier. Aside from all these baby items I've been working on, I haven't done much else in knitting. I do have another bib on the needles, and I'll make more of those as well. These will go with the items I make for the mitten tree at church.

Ok, well, that's all for now. Happy knitting!

Yarn Along Wednesday

So I finally remembered to do a post for the Yarn Along (after visiting Kelly's blog).

The link to yarn along can be found by clicking HERE.

The book in the photo is called 90 Minutes In Heaven by Don Piper. I haven't actually started reading this book just yet, but I will be in the next couple of days.

This book is "a true story of death and life". Don was on his way home from a conference for pastors when he was in a serious car accident - his car was crushed by a semi truck! Medical personnel declared that he died instantly. While he was dead, he "experienced the glories of heaven, awed by its beauty and music."

Here's part of what the back of the book says:

"Ninety minutes after the wreck, while a minister prayed for him, Piper miraculously returned to life on earth with only the memory of inexpressible heavenly bliss. His faith in God was severely tested as he faced an uncertain and grueling recovery. Now he shares his life-changing story with you."

Don Piper spoke at the Christian university here last fall, as well as at a local church. My BFF was in the audience at the university and said it was an awesome talk. She said Mr. Piper focused more on what happened before and after his heavenly experience, and chose to not focus on Heaven. I had friends who heard him speak at the church, and they were in awe. The book actually belongs to my BFF, and she has read it and enjoyed it. I'm really looking forward to reading this - will try to let you know how it is!

As for the knitting, I'm working on a baby blanket for a friend who is expecting her first baby this month. I need to get cracking on it, as I'm not even 1/3 of the way through! The pattern I'm using is on the yarn label, so there is no real name for it. I'm using Bernat Baby Coordinates yarn in the "natural" colourway.  The pattern is easy - 4 rows repeated for the entire blanket. The pattern is knit on the first and third rows, the second row is purled, and the fourth is knit. No doubt I'll have better photos of the finished product posted on here at a later date!

Well, must go work on the blanket now. Happy knitting!

Plain Jane Vanilla

Are you surprised? I've knit 3 more hats since the last post!

First off, let me say (again) that this picture was taken using the flash because it's kind of a dark and dreary day today. We're getting rain, instead of snow...but that's a story for another time.

The hat in the middle was made with leftover purple yarn from one of the purple hats I made previously (shown a couple of posts ago). The hat on the left and right was made from the same skein of Bernat Mosaic in the Ninja colourway. This yarn reminded me a little of Noro Kuryeon, where there are pieces of the strand that weren't tightly spun.

I didn't mind using this yarn, but there were a couple of times when I was casting on where the yarn pulled apart because it wasn't spun in that particular area. The second hat I had cast on 90 stitches and decided that it would be too loose. I unraveled the yarn to cast on 80 stitches instead. As I was unravelling, I got to a spot that had one of those areas that isn't spun (I know there is a name for that, but I can't think of it), and it pulled apart on me. Thankfully, it didn't waste much yarn.  Aside from that, I didn't mind this yarn.

Since the picture was taken, I added a pompom to the hat with the rolled brim (the one on the right). My mom expressed an interest in it to use when she goes out to shovel the walk (and no, she doesn't do this much, but when I'm sick or my back is acting up, she will shovel; otherwise I shovel the walk. We have someone plow out our driveway, so neither of us has to shovel the driveway, thankfully). Previously she would use a hood from a coat, but she didn't like it as it was too big and came down around her face too much (when it was tied). So, I told her if she wanted the hat she could have it. She tried it on and thought it looked OK but thought maybe it should have a pompom so it wouldn't look so flat on her head.

I'm debating on what to knit next, but I think it might be...surprise!!!....another hat. I just find they knit up quickly and I don't have to pay too much attention to the knitting - it's mindless really. I might do up some more kids socks or a scarf soon though...no promises though, LOL!

Do you have a favourite hat pattern to knit or crochet?

Little Swags Hat

Little Swags Hat

I did it! I created my own hat pattern...well, one of two.

This is the first one I finished. I knit up the white one first a little while back, and just finished the pink and white one today.

The white hat is quite large and loose on my head. I suppose someone with a bigger head, or lots of hair would be able to use it. I was following another hat pattern for sizing and for the yarn I used (Bernat Satin), I probably should have either used smaller needles or knit less rows.

The pink and white one fits my head better as I made adjustments from the white one. I knit less rows, and with the decreasing I started with a different number of stitches at the beginning.

At first I wasn't sure if I was going to like the way the white swags were going to look with the pink background, but as I continued knitting and finished, it grew on me and I think I like it. So, this hat can be knit in a solid colour, or two colours.

Close up of the Little Swags Hat

The stitch pattern I used is from "400 Knitting Stitches" fro mPotter Craft. It's called the Stamen Stitch, and is on page 142. It was written for using two needles, so I had to play with it a bit to rework it for circular needles. It took a few times because, quite frankly, I'm not all that great at those sorts of things (or creating patterns). I can't look at a pattern and immediately know what to do or how to change it.

I did enjoy coming up with this, and figuring out how to make the adjustments. The pattern itself is very easy, and doesn't take too long to make.

I've decided to post the pattern here on my blog, for anyone wishing to make the hat. I don't have sizes for kids, but I'm sure a more experienced knitter will know what to do to adjust for that. I'm more than willing to accept help in that sort of thing...though really, I'm sure if you just use the sizing for other patterns (kind of like what I did for this one), it would work out OK.

Also, if you try this pattern, I would love to hear back if there are any errors, etc. Also, if you use different yarns you will probably have to adjust the amount to cast on, etc. I created this pattern using ther Bernat Satin, and have not tested it in other brands or thicknesses.


Edited to add needle sizes in the pattern.
I would also love to see any hats you make, so please feel free to leave a link in the comments so I can see. So, without further ado, here is the pattern for the hat:

Little Swags

Cast on 90 stitches with smaller needles (4mm)


Knit 10 rows of K2, P2 ribbing

Switch to larger needles (5mm) and follow the stitch pattern:

Stitch Pattern:

Row 1: K all stitches using MC

Row 2: sl 1 purlwise with yarn in front, P1; repeat around

Row 3: K all stitches using MC

Row 4: P1, sl 1 plurwise with yarn in front; repeat around


Continue the above stitch pattern for 40 rows

Row 41: K2, K2tog around. There should be about 68 stitches left.

Start decreases as following, with all decreases done on knitted rows:

1. K9, K2tog; repeat around. There will be extra stitches at the end, just knit those.

2. Follow Row 2 of the stitch pattern

3. K8, K2tog; repeat around. Again, there will be extra stitches at the end to knit

4. Follow Row 4 of the stitch pattern

Continue in this manner, decreasing one more stitch on each knitted row, making sure to follow the pattern with row 2 & 4 alternating. Do this until there are about 12 stitches left; snip yarn and pull through remaining stitches.

Honeycomb Hat

I finally finished the purple hat I was working on (see previous post). It's not difficult, but the particular stitch I did took longer for me to work at. It's an easy stitch, but for some reason I was just slow at knitting it.


The picture isn't the best, and I had to use the flash on the camera. I've adjusted the photo some in Photo Shop Elements, but the colour of yarn in the photo is pretty close to the actual colour.

Honeycomb Hat



As previously mentioned, I used Patons Classic Merino in Royal Purple. The needles were 5.0 mm circs. In all honesty, I don't really know what the sizing would be, other than to say the hat doesn't fit my head - and I don't think my head is big...maybe average sized.  I suppose this hat could fit an older child, I don't really know. I'll have to take this with me to church on Sunday and get my BFF's daughter (who is a month away from being 11 years old), and see if it fits her.

I got a gift certificate to Chapters for Christmas, and used it to buy the book "400 knitting stitches, A Complete Dictionary of Essential Stitch Patterns" by Potter Craft. The stitch for my Honeycomb Hat is found in there.  I haven't typed up the pattern yet, and in all honesty it's probably not the best pattern. I just sort of made it up as I went along.

For starters, the number of stitches I cast on may not have been the correct amount, as there "left overs" as I began my decreasing rows for the crown. For example, if I was decreasing 8 stitches and then knitting 2 together, I might end up with 5 stitches left over. I would just knit those with no decreases. I don't know if that made a difference or anything, but it may have been camoflauged because they were done only every other row (in between patterned rows). Hopefully the way I worded it makes sense. At any rate, by the time I got to k4, k2tog, I was OK with the number of stitches matching up to the decreasing.



Close-up of Pattern

 I've never created my own hat pattern before, so I took some measurements from another "established" pattern. I cast on what I thought would be the right amount (I wanted to make it a little larger than the other hats I made, so I cast on more than those ones (but not by much). The type of decrease I used was the same as in the other pattern, but I didn't know how many to start decreasing with. I think it turned out OK in the end though, but maybe if someone else looks at the pattern (when I get it posted), she might be able to tell and help make proper adjustments - even if it's just casting on a different amount of stitches instead of what I used.

I'm going to attempt to make another hat of the other pattern I mentioned in a previous post and see if it works out again as well. It's a quicker knit so it shouldn't take me too long to knit up another one. I'm going to try it using two colours and see how that looks. I'll post pics when I get the other one done, and possible share the pattern as well.

Until then, happy knitting!

Yarn Along

I just discovered this "along", and thought I would take part. Ginny, over at Small Things is hosting the yarn along, and you still have time to take part as well. Click the title of her blog to check it out. She's offering a skein of yarn as a prize!

So, for the yarn along, we have to post a photo of our current knitting project and book that we are reading. Here is mine:

The knitting project is a hat I am currently working on (designing it myself...or attempting to). I'm using Patons Classic Wool Merino in the Royal Purple colourway. I hope, if it turns out (might have to do another one just to make sure the pattern works) I just may share the pattern.

The book I'm currently reading, as you can see, is Someone to Blame by C. S. Lakin. Click the name of the book to read a review.

Scroll down for the first post I made today, showcasing my latest knitted FOs I've made since the beginning of 2011.

Happy New Year!

Ok, so I've been AWOL since before New Year's. The reason is because of problems with an outlet that wasn't working (which the computer and router were plugged into), and my laptop hard drive decided to die on me.

So, since I didn't have computer access for awhile (about a month), I was busy catching up on my knitting! All photos on this post are of items completed since January 1st.

The first photo of 5 hats are a variety of patterns. The blue hat with pompom and the pink hat beside it were pretty much the same pattern (adapted from a child's hat pattern using the measurements from one pattern), the third hat on the top row is another Fixie Hat, and the two on the bottom are the same hat ("54") in two different sizes. After I finished the green one, I wondered why it was so small. I realized after looking over the pattern, I had used 4mm needles instead of the required 5mm. The blue hat is using 5mm needles and is adult sized.

The second photo is the pattern (the Two Colour Infant Hat) I used the measurements from for the hats mentioned above (the blue pompom and the pink). I made a hat using this pattern the Christmas before last (for the church mitten tree). I love this pattern - easy and quick to make! I decided to add a pompom on the blue/black hat, and used both colours of yarn for it. I must admit that I'm not the best at making pompoms, but then I'm just learning. They turned out OK, but I'm sure they'll get better with practice.

These two hats, to the left, are creations of my own, based on the hat above. I admit the patterns aren't all that great or interesting, but I was mostly just playing around.

I used a bright blue and navy Paton's Astra yarn for these two hats, and sized 4mm circs.

I think I'd like to try to come up with some interesting patterns to make hats like these - better designs than the ones in the photo, but that probably won't happen for awhile. I think I need to be in the mood for that. For now, I'll probably stick to patterns/designs I find online.

Though I've mostly been knitting hats (I have another one I created that I have to test again before posting the photo and possibly pattern, and a second pattern I'm working on, and will probably do another testing for that as well), I also managed to get a couple pair of kids socks knit.

These will probably fit a 2 year old, maybe a 3 or 4 year old...not totally sure. The green pair of socks was made with some sock yarn in my stash. I lost the band for it, and all I remember was that I had won it in a contest a few years ago. It was nice to work with, and I have enough left that I might be able to get another pair the same size made with it - either that or a pair or two of baby socks.

The other pair of socks (same size as the green ones) was made with some Patons Kroy Socks Stripes yarn that I got on sale not too long ago. The colourway is mexicala stripes, and I must say I like the colours used! I would never have though of putting orange and pink and purple together, but I think they look great. I'm not sure if I have enough left for a pair of baby socks, but I might be able to get one baby sock made that could be used as an ornament on the Christmas tree next year. For now, that left over yarn will probably just stay in my stash. I've been thinking of making one of those mitred sock yarn blankets, but that would take a long time to make so I don't know if it's something that will get done just yet. Hard to say.

Well, that's all the knitting I've done for now. As I mentioned above, I've got a couple of other "in progress" hats that I'm working on and hope to post about soon. I also may or may not have patterns to go with them! Maybe if someone is interested in the pattern, I may post it. We'll see.

What have you been up to with your knitting?