Baby Hats

I have found a favorite baby hat pattern! I have made 3 so far, and will continue to do more. It is a fun and fast knit that makes an adorable little hat. There always seems to be another baby to make the hat for, but I wish that I found this pattern when T was young enough, well actually had a small enough head, to wear it!

Pattern: Sweet Norwegian Baby Hat

Yarn: Dale Baby Ull (assorted colors - but I always lose the ball bands!)

Fabric Baskets

Sweet little fabric baskets to keep things organized - love it! Fun fabrics and organization :)

Pattern: http://ayumills.blogspot.com/2008/05/tutorial-fabric-basket.html

(thanks to www.sewmamasew.com)

Fabric: can't remember the patchwork, the tan is a linen-cotton blend, and it is all lined with a lime green gingham. It is all about stash-busting right now!

There are more of these in my future!

Sunrise Circle Sweater

So much more done than I ever post! So here is an attempt to catch up ...

Pattern: Sunrise Circle Sweater

Yarn: Elann Donegal Tweed

Love this sweater! The shape is so unusual, and yet is so comfortable to wear. I do need to add a pin to keep the front lined up, but that is fine. Very warm and toasty! And maybe someday I will get a picture of ME in it :)

Monster Shirt

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Originally uploaded by KikiBaby2008

After seeing the adorable monster shirts that mini boden has, my monster-obsessed son decided he needed a shirt with HIS monster on it. Here it is! A sheet of craft felt, some fabric paint, a little embroidery, and googly eyes. The face says it all!

Fall Pajamas

Now that the cooler weather is here, the boys are nice and cozy in flannel pants and knit LS t-shirts that I finished a while ago, but haven't gotten to the pictures yet. So here are 2 of the pairs (more to follow).

I love to have them in matching PJ's! They will probably roll their eyes at me someday, but it entertains me now :)

Blankets for Sale, Part 2

Blankets for Sale, continued ...

Hot Pink Chenille / Pink Floral - $35

Leopard Flannel / Creme Flannel - $25

Silky Black / Leopard Flannel - $30

Blankets for Sale

For lack of a better place to do this right now, the following blankets are for sale. I will post a note here once I get this all better organized! Thanks for your understanding :)

All prices include shipping a U.S. address (lower-48 only) and tax (for Minnesotans). Please allow 2 weeks for delivery. Handmade in a smoke-free home and a pet-free sewing room (we do have a dog in the house). Seams are all sewn twice. Please comment if you have any questions!

Pink Silky Dot/Floral Flannel - $30

Yellow wavy chenille / pink and yellow floral - $35

Floral Brite Flannel / Orange Flannel (this is a really bright color!) - $25

Tropical Waves Flannel / Green Flannel (another REALLY bright color!) - $25

Floral Brite Flannel / BRIGHT Pink Flannel - $25

The 3 BRITE flannel blankets all coordinate with each other

(and I mean BRIGHT colors - very fun and cheery!)

For the twins ...

A baby shower gift for a friends having twin boys this fall.

Sweater Pattern: Child's Neck Placket Sweater from Last-Minute Knitted Gifts

Hat Pattern: based off of a couple of different ones

Yarn: Superwash worsted from elann.com

(Calypso Blue and Russet which I overdyed dark brown)

Mom's Birthday Hat

Pattern: Belliveau Cove & Gulf Shores

Yarn: Malabrigo worsted in Autumn Forest

Crocheted - a pattern I have used before and will use again!

It is a quick project and so cozy in wool.

Pumpkin Hats

Pumpkin Hats for Titus, Thor, and Vanya

Pattern: Pumpkin Hat

Yarn: Lion Wool (in "pumpkin" - haha) and Dale Heilo

No matter how cute they are, they still don't stay on!

Nephew Birthday Socks

Marcus: Birthdays are for giving toys, not clothes. No one is allowed to give me clothes for my birthday.

Auntie KK: Well then I guess I can't give you any handknit socks this year.

Marcus: Oh no, YOU and give me CLOTHES if they are more SOCKS. I love the socks you make me!

Ahhhh, how can you resist that from a 5 year old???

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Originally uploaded by KikiBaby2008

Pattern: 2x2 ribbing, 7 stisches per inch, using Ann Budd's Getting Started Knitting Socks
Yarn: Lion Brand Sock Ease
Needles: US 1-1/2 (Darn Pretty DPNs)

Oh yah, have I mentioned how much I LOVELOVE LOVE these needles? They have the best point (nice and pointy) in a wooden needle that is good and short (4" long). Love them. I never want to use another needle for socks again!

Finished Ravelympics Sweater!

Finished the sweater! As others mentioned, it does seem to run small. This is the size 2-4 sweater on my size skinny 3T boy. The arms are short on him, but the body is fine (I lengthened it unintentionally, but it is a good thing). Guess the younger brother gets this one!

IMG_2479
Originally uploaded by KikiBaby2008

Pattern: Child's Placket Neck Sweater by Joelle Hoverson
Yarn: Elsebeth Lavold Silky Wool (navy)
Needles: Size 6 (Addi Turbos)

Will definately do this sweater again, with added length to sleeves and body ... and some pattern in the yarn or some stripes. Solid colored circular knitting bores me!

Socks

These are socks I made for my Dad for his birthday.

Wool socks are not something to really like in July, but we will see come fall.

Yarn: Knit Picks Bare Superwash Merino, Worsted Weight (1-1/2 skeins)

Dye: Lanaset/Sabraset Dye in Rust Brown and Black

Pattern: Underwater Basketweaving Socks from Gardiner Yarn Works

Socks are definately one of my favorite things to knit ... I currently have 5 pairs on the needles. But they aren't the fastest, so they don't make good gifts when I just plan ahead a week or two. Except these! I love this pattern - it is quick, the yarns are easy to find, and they are toasty warm, Dave says, in our Minnesota winters. I bought the pattern online last year because I loved the name :)

Baby Leggings

One-month old nephew has some skinny little legs! The BabyLegs that he has just won't stay up. Kool-aid dyed yarn to the rescue! These are still a bit big, but better.

Yarn: Knit Picks Bare Yarn in DK weight, dyed with Kool-Aid

Pattern: Based off of Legwarmies by Never Not Knitting

Using #3 DPN's, I cast on 36 stitches, ribbed for about 10 rows, then stockinette for 6", then ribbing again for 10 rows. Bind off. Repeat for the other leg.

Bags!

I have been busy knitting (well, starting and planning, and less on the finishing lately!) and then decided to sew a few bags to keep it all straight in.

Pattern: Pleated Beauty Handbag from Bend the Rules Sewing

Fabric: cotton/linen blend from Sew Mama Sew and sheep fabric from Crafty Planet

Pattern: Amy Butler's Chelsea Bag

Fabric: Summer in the City by Urban Chiks for Moda

Both bags have projects in them, and I am thinking that I need more bags! I love how the Chelsea bag comes together (sewable during a good afternoon naptime) and think that I might make another only smaller (for one of my many socks-in-progress). Our new van has a "purse hook" on the passenger side (ha!) that I want a bag a bag to fit to hold my "car sock".

New Pajamas

New pajamas for the boys ... round 1!

The bottoms are cotton prints (with puppies, of course!) and the tops are knit. I used Fold-over-elastic for the necks, and like how Thor's turned out better than Vanya's. The double-layer overlapping front on Thor's didn't need the pulling in that Vanya's scoopneck did. But good time to find that out on pajamas! Thor's has the painted on dog bone and Vanya's has a applique on it from a coordinating print.

Patterns: Shorts - Simplicity 3584 (modified pants to shorts), Thor's t-Shirt -Baby Essentials by New Conceptions Sewing Patterns , Vanya's t-shirt - "Octopus" tshirt (modified) from Ottobre Summer 3/2008

Cotton prints fabrics from JoAnn's, Light blu knit fabric from stash (Mill End, I would guess. I have a lot of it!). FOE from Sewzanne's.

Knitting Completed!

I have gotten a few projects done ... I look at my basket sometimes and decide that I just CANNOT start something new until I get something done! So that is the current goal (with newly dyed yarn drying to cast on the Apres Surf Hoodie ). It makes a difference, too, that sis will have her baby anytime now and mom is preparing to lose her hair now due to the chemo (hopefully I will get her hat done by the end of the weekend).

Sweet Baby's Hat
yarn: Paton's Grace

pattern: Norwegian Sweet Baby Hat

I am not a big fan of cotton yarn, but Grace was fine. I used less than half a skein of each color. No ties right now ... we will wait and see if baby needs them. I wish I had found this pattern when my baby was still a baby!

Cozy Capelet

Yarn: Plymough Baby Alpaca Grande

Pattern: Anthropologie-Inspired Capelet by Julia Allen

Now I want a whole sweater of this yarn! But I think a capelet will be good for over-air-conditioned buildings and chilly Minnesota evenings. Still need to find the right pin for a closure. Used every bit of 2 skeins ... finished the sleeves before the bottom so I wouldn't run out, and even then had to rip back a few rows so I had enough to cast off. This yarn was a scarf for my sister, but I think she would rather borrow a capelet then wear a scarf :)

D's New Socks

Yarn: Austermann Step

Pattern: simple ribbed sock, done in 3x1 ribbing

(I use the book Getting Started Knitting Socks by Ann Budd)

Love love LOVE this yarn! It was great to work with, and now I am jealous that D gets them rather than me! But there are so many other colors to choose from (and I do have other yummy yarn for me). He won't wear them until fall, probaby, but it is nice to get another pair done.

Diaper Case

In an effort to keep my bag more organized (purse/diaper bag), and not have to pull out diapers every time I need to pay for something, I made a case just big enough for wipes and a diaper for each kid. Even though we primarily cloth diaper Thor, I carry a disposable for when we need a change on the go. The outside is laminated cotton, so slides nicely in and out when I need it. And it is easy to find!

My Blog

Now that we are settling into life here, I have some time to make a few things and have creative fun again. And since I no longer work at the yarn store (sigh), I am having fun sewing again (yay!). As sporadic as it will be, I want document the things I do other than clean, cook, and chase the munchkins around. After all, I can only play trucks for so long!