i want this

 

 Sometime a while ago (November of 2007, apparently), I was browsing in The Gap and saw this cute cape/poncho thing.  I tried it on and asked my friend to take a picture.  I was thinking, "I could knit that!!"  And then I forgot about it until today, for some reason.  I'm so happy I still had the picture.  I think it's going to go into my queue for stuff to try to knit in 2010.  I wish I could remember more about the construction but I'm thinking maybe doing it top-down would work.  I'm not at all sure how to put the pocket on there but that shouldn't be too hard to figure out ... will it?  I do remember that it was knitted in a bulky/chunky yarn, and I think the Fair Isle section will be easy enough, even for an inexperienced Fair Isle knitter like me!

I'd be happy for any tips and tricks that anyone is willing to share, though :-)

Enjoy what's left of the weekend ...

~mz

scarf progress -- on hold

that's how the XOXO cabled scarf is turning out ... much better than the previous version.  i decided to combine elements of 2 different patterns to get the effect i wanted.  but as much fun as this pattern is, i need to put it on hold for 2 reasons.

1.  there's still quite a bit of holiday-related knitting to work on (dishcloths, socks).  but more importantly:
2.  I NEED THRUMMED MITTENS.

folks,  the temp right now is about 19F with a high of 21F and it is very windy ... yesterday i think we had winds up to 60mph.  a few weeks ago i knitted myself a pair of regular mittens and generally they are fine ... except when it's this cold and this windy.  so this morning i pawed through my stash to find some wool yarn and roving that i can use and decided on noro kureyon and the roving is not merino, maybe it's shetland, i don't remember.  and i don't really care, so long as i end up with some mittens that will keep my fingers warm.  perhaps if i'd knitted my mittens at a tighter gauge, and if they were more than 50% wool they'd be better.  they will do for now since it's all i have but i need something warmer.  PDQ. 

and i also need to go get lunch before my 1:30pm meeting.  ciao for now.  stay warm!!!

~mz

I have an FO!!!

Ok, well sort of.

You know those Treads socks that I've been knitting?  Well I finally finished the first one!!  WHEW!  I finished it over the Thanksgiving holiday weekend, and guess what else?  I immediately cast on for the second one.  Yup, no Second Sock Syndrome for me!!  The first sock fits great and I'm so excited.  There is a slim chance that the second sock will be finished in time for Christmas ... but I'm not holding my breath for that one.  Good thing my honey isn't totally dependent on me to keep his feet warm :-)

And I bought yarn this week.  LOTS of yarn. But I bought it for a specific reason.  I live in a big ol' farm house and it's been a bit chilly at home, even with the furnace on and the fireplace going.  We tend to keep the heat on the low side because who wants to spend an outrageous amount of money to heat the home when we could just put on an extra layer?  So the other night I asked Eric if he was cold. He says, "Nope, I'm wearing this wool sweater."  I'm like, well DUH.  I have enough wool sock yarn to knit maybe 40-50 pairs of socks but not enough heavier wool to knit a sweater!!  So ... I went to KnitPicks.com and bought 23 balls of their Wool of the Andes yarn (worsted weight) in a color called Black Cherry Heather (http://bit.ly/66uTy7).  I love it and think it will look good on me :-)

I should also say that this will be my first time knitting an adult size sweater.  I'm using the Incredible Custom-Fit Raglan Sweater pattern  and I hope to make it with a V-neck.   I'm pretty excited and a little nervous.  I hope you sweater knitters won't mind my asking a million questions as I go along.  The yarn has shipped and should arrive sometime next week.  Yay!

In other news, one of my best friends asked me to knit her a scarf with an XOXO pattern.  She asked for it to be knitted in red, and it turns out I have "plenty" of red (acrylic) yarn in my stash.  I'd like to knit it with something a little more luxurious than acrylic but I also have to be mindful of spending.  Oh, I'm using the pattern that's on the center of the Staghorn sweater, which is in a book called A Fine Fleece. I have finished nearly a full pattern repeat (just enough for the XOXO pattern to be established and it's turning out quite nicely!  I warned her that the last scarf I knitted in a similar pattern took me about 6 months to knit, so as long as she doesn't mind waiting, I don't mind knitting it for her. 

I would like to get back on the ball with my charity knitting as well.  I am thinking of knitting helmet liners for our troops  I know that lots of people are contributing to the effort and I want to join in!  It's my understanding that hats/helmet liners etc should be made with 100% wool, and that black, charcoal, brown, tan, olive drab are the only military-approved colors.  I found TONS of patterns on Ravelry for helmet liners (or balaclavas) ... so if you're interested in participating you can find lots of inspiration there.  Completed items can be mailed (year round!) to:

Citizen SAM
PO Box 10565
Peoria, IL 61612

I hope that you all will consider knitting even one hat for a soldier! I would like to find a local charity to knit for as well.  More details on that later. 

For now though ... Good night!

~mz

thinking ... just thinking ... about getting organized

so.

i have a yarn stash.  i know, you're like, well DUH.

but as you can imagine or might have seen, it is a fairly substantial stash.  not as huge as others i've seen, for sure, but i think i have enough yarn to comfortably knit for several years -- decades, maybe -- without buying a single ball, skein or hank more AND without spinning any additional yarn from the fiber that's in my stash.

at one point i tried, however half-heartedly, to photograph my yarn and post the photos and deets to my ravelry stash.  that was a pathetic attempt.  then i thought maybe it would work better if i photographed and posted the yarn as i used it.  neat idea but that didn't work too well either.  so what's a girl to do when she has a nice stash but not a good way to quickly know what's in it ... besides going in the craft room and pawing through all the bins?

so, i'm totally stealing this idea from cory and start a weekly "stash appreciation" day.  the idea is that every week on stash appreciation day, i will take a yarn from my stash, take a photo, post to rav and then blog about it.  so the goal here is not only to catalog what i own, but to be able to more easily "shop" from my own stash before considering buying more!  although i have to admit, i have over $300 worth of goodies on my knitpicks wishlist and i'm just DYING to buy it all.  it's not all yarn though; i need a swift (which is the most expensive single item on the list), some blocking mats and other tools (like split ring stitch markers and a darning egg).  the rest is yarn, though, and reflects my ongoing obsession with sock yarn and lace weight yarn :-)  seriously, i don't think i've knitted with anything heavier than sock yarn (and size 2 needles) all year long.  my current projects are both on size 0!!). 

unfortunately, none of this photographing can take place until i get my camera back.  i had to send it off to canon for servicing (the image sensor went bad -- again!) and hope to get it back soon.  meantime, i'll keep thinking about my stash organization, and of course i'll keep on knitting!

~mz
 

anyone want to test knit a pattern for me?

a couple years ago, i designed a neat scarf pattern (http://bit.ly/chained_hearts).  while i do like this stockinette version, it has an annoying tendency to curl, thus the pretty heart lace pattern doesn't show up very well.  i've been meaning to test knit a garter stitch version for, like, EVER and still haven't gotten 'round to it, so i thought i'd enlist some help from fellow knitters.  i recently revised the pattern and i am pretty sure that i did it right, but it would help me a lot to have another set of eyes (and needles) to test this out and let me know how it works.  if you're interested please leave me a comment, and i'll send you the pattern! of course you won't have to knit the whole thing ... just a few pattern repeats would be plenty.  and if you'd be kind enough to email me a photo, too, i will include it in the .pdf pattern that will be posted on ravelry.  how cool is that?

thanks so much for considering this request, even in the midst of preparing for the upcoming winter holidays.  i, like you, am busy making lists of gifts that i'd like to give to family and friends ... some will be knitted, some will be baked, some may be bought.  but all will be given with lots of love and that's what counts, right?

enjoy the rest of this beautiful mid-november weather!

~mz

sock frustration!

so. i have reknitted this sock heel for the 3rd time i think, but it's still not quite right. see, when i finished the leg and divided the stitches for the heel/foot, i had to do so in such a way that i ended up with 52 stitches on needle 1 and 48 stitches on needle 2. no big deal. but the heel was supposed to be knitted on the 52 needle 1 stitches. what did i do? i didn't read the pattern and i did them on the 48 needle 2 stitches. grrrrrrr ... i flat-out refuse to rip and reknit this stupid heel, especially since i had to spend a lot of time untangling the yarn from the other 2 times i ripped it out. so, i'm just going to get on with it as-freakin'-is, and do the same thing for the second sock ... IF i can ever get to that point -sigh- i would REALLY like to have these socks done in time to gift to my honey for christmas, but lately i've been thinking of other holiday knitting i would like to do:

• a set of dishcloths for my momma
• a set of washcloths and/or a set of hand towels for my grandmother
• hats for my nephews
• a handmade gift for a white elephant exchange with my knitty friends
• maybe a nice set of dish/wash cloths for my honey's mom 
• and of course a bunch of holiday baking for friends and family. 

the baking is the sort of thing that i would ordinarily do the week or so before christmas.  this year, though,  i'm heading out to tucson on december 20 so that will severely abbreviate my baking time.  i guess i COULD bake before i leave and mail out the gifts before vacation.  or i could wait and have a more leisurely time of it once i get back.  i figure if gifts are received before the new year then they're TECHnically not late :-)  wonder if the gift receivers will see it that way!


well, dear readers, mz really must get back to this pile of stuff on my desk that needs to be handled before the end of business today.  here's hopinig y'all are having a wonderful friday and are gearing up for a fun weekend.  if you're in northeast or north central ohio like i am, be ready for more unseasonably warm temperatures ... get out there and enjoy!!


~mz

no knitting today

:-(

HOW SAD ... a day with no knitting!!! Maybe I can squeeze in a bit of knitting tomorrow.

~mz

Gotta keep going

Thanks to PatchworkGirl for encouraging me to keep going with the daily (or almost daily) blogging. I only wish I had something interesting to say today. Oh, well here's one thing: I ordered a copy of the "Warm Me Up" pattern (see the post for "Day 5" listed below). I went to a yarn shop in Columbus over the weekend, and it wasn't there but they will order and mail it to me ... Yay! I was hoping to buy the yarn for the pattern too, but they didn't have that either.

Oh well. I can't keep my eyes open so ... goodnight!

~mz

I blew it already!

Well, hell.

I managed to post every day for 7 days, and totally forgot day 8. Whoops! Yesterday I was busy wrapping up a totally fun weekend visit with family and friends by the time I had a moment to blog it was after midnight. So while I'm out of the running for a prize for completing NaBloPoMo, it was a fun week and I am totally inspired to write more often, if not every day. I should have known that daily blogging would only last so long!

~mz

Day 7

Unfortunately, I had to rip out that sock heel. It just didn't look or feel right ... It was a little too narrow and the corners were kinda pointy and just ugh. So I ripped it and started reknitting. I think I can fix the problem by leaving more "live" stitches unworked before I start the 2nd half of the short row heel. The pattern called for 17 wrapped stitches on either side of 18 live stitches. But another short row heel pattern that I've made before called for leaving 20% of the total stitches unworked. So since I have 100 stitches around, that means 20 stitches unworked for the heel. I am not sure that 2 stitches will make that big a difference in the way the heel turns out but I won't know until I try, right? If it doesn't quite work I am NOT going to rip and re-knit. Maybe I can block it into submission! I have a little time to work on it a bit more before I meet up with my sister-in-law for lunch and maybe a little shopping. Wish me luck!

~mz

Day 6

Guess what? I've finished the sock heel ... yay!! It's all downhill from here. I just have to knit down the foot, do a nice short-row toe and it'll be finished. Then on to sock #2. I wish I could post a picture here but I have to send my camera off for repair.

But first ... a nap!!

~mz

Day 5

Today was my "Friday" at work ... yay! I am taking a vacation day tomorrow, and am spending the weekend in Columbus visiting family and friends. Tomorrow night I'm getting together with my knitting group for Friday Night Knitties. I STILL haven't finished that sock heel so that is priority #1! The only other knitting project I have is my laceweight Clapotis. I hope to make a stop at a LYS in search of a pattern from Claudia Hand Painted Yarns called "Warm Me Up" (scroll down about halfway down the page). It's a lovely long-sleeved tee shirt knitted in laceweight silk yarn. Isn't it lovely? I don't even have any laceweight silk yarn in my stash but I want the pattern anyway :-)

That's it for tonight, amigos. I'm settling in for a bit of TV and maybe some knitting. Have a good night!

~mz

Day 4

Late last night/early this morning before I went to sleep I checked my email and was shocked to see that a dear internet friend, Ronnie Graudins, had passed away earlier in the evening. The email message came from her son, who sent the message to everyone in her email address book. Ronnie was such a wonderfully warm, caring spirit. I never got to meet her in person, but we kept in touch frequently through email ... most recently just about a week ago. She always had a kind word or bit of wisdom when I needed it, and there certainly were times when I needed it! I loved her positive outlook on life, and how she was always giving of herself, to family, friends (even if she never met them) and other loved ones. I'm so happy and proud to have gotten to know her over the past several years and will really miss her.

I wish I could post a photo of the note my honey left me this morning, but my cell phone is acting ignorant today. Anyway, he left it for me in the bathroom closet (where I keep towels, jewelry, toiletries, etc). After my shower I opened the closet to get my lotion I saw the note there on the shelf. A man of few words, he is. The note simply said, "Eboni, I love you!!! -Eric" How sweet is that? I blush a little every time I think of it or look at the photo I took of it :-)

~mz

Day 3

I had so much fun with a group of knitting friends from work today! On Tuesday nights we meet up in Azariah's, the library cafe, after work for an hour or so of knitting. I made so much progress on Eric's sock #1 ... almost finished with the heel. Yay!! Another woman in the group was knitting a long sleeved t-shirt out of laceweight silk. It was turning out to be a beautiful fabric. I'd love to try knitting one myself. Next week I'll try to remember to ask her where she found the pattern. There was also a new knitter there who was knitting her first scarf. The rest of us are so excited to enable her as much as possible! I think her next project will be a hat in the round on circular needles. How exciting ... I'm proud to be a pretty good enabler. Just ask my friends!

Well now. It's taken me forever to write this post. I've been writing between folding loads of laundry and watching some of my shows that were recorded in the DVR. That's enough housework for one night. It's high time I turn of the computer, go get a midnight snack and cozy up with this sock and finish the heel already. I'm happy that I'm working the late shift tomorrow and can sleep in a bit in the morning.

Talk to y'all again tomorrow!

~mz

Day 2

Yeah. So.

Well, this evening after work I had to go to a neighboring town to run an errand and stopped off at Michaels before coming home. I found some 12mm split rings that I can use for various things, including the stitch marker project I mentioned yesterday. I also bought some headpins. And some beads that I bought from a friend on Etsy arrived today too. Yay! So later this week while I'm waiting for my camera to be repaired, I will get busy creating more stitch markers, and printing little cards to get packaged with each one:


So once I get the markers made that I'm donating, I can work on making stuff to populate my Etsy shop, which is now embarrassingly empty!

But right now, it's time for me to get to bed. I have a 9am meeting in the morning. God willing and the creek don't rise, I'll go vote BEFORE work. We'll see how that turns out but it definitely won't happen unless I get some shut-eye right now.

See y'all tomorrow for episode 3 :-)

~mz

NaBloPoMo: National Blog Posting Month

So yesterday I got hip to NaBloPoMo: National Blog Posting Month. The idea is simple: blog every day for one month. I just signed up today. I found out that some months have a theme but November doesn't. What November DOES have that other months don't are PRIZES!!! Anyway, I'm going to give it a shot to see if I can do it. I've tried NaNoWriMo a couple of times but couldn't manage to finish a 50k word novel!!

Anyway, my goal for the weekend was to post some handmade goods for sale in my Etsy shop. Friday evening I set out to take photos of some stitch markers to post, only to find out that my camera doesn't work (never mind that it worked fine last week). Canon customer support says it sounds like an issue with the image sensor, so I have to send it in for repair. So instead of selling those stitch markers, I'm going to donate them to the goody bags that will be distributed at the Sticks N Stitches event in January!!! How cool is that? As my Momma says, I have enough beads to sink a battleship, so I can make stitch markers to sell once I get my camera back and can actually take photos to post to Etsy. I've committed to make one lovely stitch marker for every goody bag (right now there will be at least 100 but could be as many as 150). I have 80 of them made up now, and this week I will work on making nice cards to include with each one. How exciting is that? Take a look at my post from Oct. 22 to see examples of what some of the stitch markers will look like :-)

That's all for now. I gotta go get some dinner, iron some work clothes for the week and settle in for a bit of knitting. Post one is done ... 29 more to go!!

~mz

newest creations

so i'm still having trouble getting the lighting right in the craft room for taking pictures but anyway here are the pretty flower stitch markers i made last night.





whaddya think?

craft room pics

as promised, here are a couple pics of my craft room, which is FINALLY looking decent:



see the bins behind the chair? the top 4 are all sock yarn. seriously. it's a sickness, i know! the ones on the bottom are various things, including roving for spinning ... wheeeeee! the bins along the wall on the left are (mostly) organized by fiber and weight, though i had to make some exceptions for lack of space.




yup, all of my knitting/crochet books and patterns are in the bookcase on the right, and magazines are in the cabinet below. on top of the bookcases are some scrapbooking kits. inside the cabinets of the bookcase on the left side are DVD movies and exercise videos, all of which may find a new home at some point. the cabinets of the bookcase on the right contain magazines; mostly knitting and crocheting, but some women's health and weight watchers issues too.

wanna see what i made on saturday night?








sorry for the darkness of the photos, i had trouble getting the lighting just right. anyway, i bought some blank cards & envelopes and decided to experiment with my clear stamps and glitter to make some nice card sets. i'm thinking about offering stuff like this for sale on etsy at some point, once i improve my skills and whatnot. whaddya think?

i better get back to what i was doing. thanks for stopping by to see what i'm up to!

~mz

quick check-in

hi everyone!

it's been a long time since i've blogged but a LOT has happened in the past couple of months. i got a new job at Oberlin College, my alma mater, where i am the newest reference librarian. incidentally, i worked here as a student (back in the dark ages, it seems), and it is kinda neat to work here as a "grown-up." so i interviewed for the position near the end of july, the position was offered to me 6 days after that, and set my official start date for 3 weeks after THAT. needless to say, there was a lot of stuff to take care of, between resigning my former position, finding a place to live, getting packed and moved, and getting unpacked and settled in ... all in a very short time frame. not only that, but my honey (and his 2 cats) moved with me (and my cat) and it's been interesting to merge households and stuff.

but all is well! work is great, home is great and i am really loving life. i finally got all my yarn unpacked this week and my "craft room" is starting to shape up. it really looks like a yarn shop in there, with all the wire cubes set up and full. i recently got into scrapbooking (gasp -- another hobby!) and this weekend i hope to set up a table with folding leaves in there. that way, when i'm using the table it can be opened up, and when i'm not i'll push it into a corner or something.

anyway, it's october and you know what that means: SOCKTOBERFEST 2009!! who's in? i have 2 pairs of socks on my needles right now, both of which i have been working on since this past june. seriously. it's time to finish up! one pair is SO CLOSE to being finished. i'm planning to work on it while i wait at the doctor's office later this afternoon. the other pair is for my honey, which i *intended* to give him for his birthday (which was this past monday) ... that SO didn't happen. i'm making him Treads (Rav link), and with 100 stitches on size 0 needles, and a leg that is to be 10" long, these are truly a labor of love. wanna see?



won't they just be lovely? i'm aiming to make a lot more progress during Socktoberfest ... oh, did i mention that i'm still on the first sock? oy.

one more thing before i go. i've already started thinking about what to get myself for christmas!! i have, oh, about $300 worth of sock yarn, books and tools in my cart over at knitpicks, and i'm kinda thinking about splurging on that, especially if santa brings me a knitpicks gift card :-) but since i recently got hooked on scrapbooking, i'm considering joining one of those kit-of-the-month clubs such as:

Little Red Scrapbook
Paper Posies
ScrapScription

if you are into scrapbooking, too, and if you are in such a club, let me know if you like it and if i should do it too.

that's it for now, folks. talk to ya later!

~mz

my first handspun

I DID IT!!! i can spin! to make a long story short ... i already told y'all about my intense desire to spin lately, which kinda came outta the blue. yesterday i went to a LYS -- the one closest to work -- and started to practice some more. amy, who was working there at the time, got me going and gave me some tips. she even pulled out one of her spindles and spun for a while too! i only had about an hour but before i left she helped me wind my yarn into a skein and told me what i needed to do in order to "set the twist." i went home after work and did what she said and today i have a wee little skein of my own handspun yarn. YAY!!!!

interestingly, she noted that i spin my spindle counterclockwise. that's good to know so that when i get up to plying i'll be sure to spin clockwise so that my plies twist together properly. i'm so stoked about this new "obsession!"

that's all for now, just wanted to share :-) happy friday, everyone...

~mz

back from the abyss

i have so many things that i want to talk about right now, i hardly know where to begin. so i will start with the fact that one morning earlier this week, i woke up with a crazy urge to pick up spinning again. nevermind that it's been AGES since i even -thought- about my spindles, or that the last time i looked at roving was to make thrums for mittens. the urge to spin was kinda strong so i decided that i'm gonna just go with it. last night my plan for today was to come home from work, give myself a much-needed and long-overdue pedicure then practice spinning for 15-20 mins. THAT didn't work out, only because I ended up hanging out with a friend of mine, who, after i told her my plan to learn to spin, said that she had some fiber that i could have. so i high-tailed it over to her place! i didn't intend to stay long, but i ended up staying for 3 hours. we had some good, quality chit-chat and knitting and i'm very happy for an impromptu mid-week gathering with a friend.

so, i came home and went pawing through my stash to find my spindle and some roving. lo and behold! i found that there was still some yarn -- if you can call it that -- on my spindle from the last time i tried spinning [i'd post a photo here but the camera batteries are dead]. i also have about 1oz of undyed merino that i can use for practice. SCORE!! i read somewhere that it takes about 1lb of fiber to really get the hang of spinning, so i will have to add to my fiber stash for sure.

i've been listening to podcasts lately, especially while doing housework -- dishes, ironing, cooking etc. nevermind that i have over 800 un-listened-to podcast episodes in my ipod!! my current favorite knitting-related podcasts are:

CraftLit
Knitmore Girls
Lime & Violet

feel free to share some of your favorite podcasts -- i'm always looking for something new to listen to!

ZOINKS!!! it's past midnight and i best get to bed. i will update soon with my spinning progress ... can't wait!

ciao for now...
~mz

a few updates

GEEZ!!! i didn't realize it had been so long since i posted! i'm back now, with a few updates to share.

1: i've been keeping my promise to knit/crochet for charity every week. i think i mentioned back in january that i chose to knit for the bridge project, which provides warm items for homeless people living under bridges in central ohio. i've sent a few hat & scarf sets to them. but if you go to the site you will see all the generous donations that have come in from around the country and around the world ... hand-made goods, socks, flannel jackets, money, etc. i'm really happy to be a part of the effort and look forward to sending more in the coming months. if you're so inclined, you might consider pitching in, too!

2: i found out that one of my local yarn shops accepts donations for babies at the OSU medical center, so i've been making hats for that effort too. i think that later this afternoon, i'll drop off the hats i've made so far. i have an errand to run that's right near the yarn shop!

3: i finally finished those mittens for my friend melody. it seems that as of a couple weeks ago, anyway, spring hadn't yet arrived in chicago. i'm happy to do what little i could to make sure my girl's hands don't freeze while chicago waits to thaw out :-)



don't those look great! i GOTTA make some for myself. but not until after i make some for my brother. he's a delivery guy and in the winter, his hands get cold. but big sis will fix that for this coming winter, i promise!

4: okay so some of y'all might know that i've been absolutely JONESIN' for some laceweight malabrigo yarn. i finally got some on thursday, and last night (after i finished a baby hat for charity) i finally cast on and started knitting myself a clapotis!! i'm using a color called "little lovely" and trust me, it is lovely, indeed. i'm using what feel like teeny tiny needles, around size 1 i think. seems like it will take me forever to knit this but i swear it will be worth every single stitch! see for yourself:




sorry for the bit of blurriness but that's the best i could do! the yarn is freakin' fantastically soft and light but tiny! guess it's not a laceweight yarn for nothin'! when i get a bit more finished i'll measure and let y'all know my gauge. some of my knitting pals were teasing me last night that i'll be an old lady before it's finished but in the spirit of "finding nemo" i'm gonna "just keep knitting, just keep knitting" and i'll have a lovely scarf soon enough. they'll all be jealous!!!

5: i totally forgot to post about the very fun sticks -n- stitches event i attended a couple months ago with some of my friends. so much fun! here's a photo of us:



okay, i think that's about all i got for now. it's time to head out and enjoy the sunshine. temps will be near 90 and sunny today so i'm gonna channel my girl sheryl crow and go "soak up the sun." ciao for now!!

~mz

the mittens so far

okey dokey. so today i had a nice chunk of time to work on melody's mittens and look!!!




this is what mitten #1 looks like on the outside. almost finished, just have a few more inches to knit for the hand, and then pick up stitches and knit the thumb.




dude. these bad boys are going to be freakishly warm. even in chicago's bitter cold, melody will feel like she is wearing little hand furnaces. i can't wait to finish them and mail them off to her!

for melody's mittens

a friend of mine has asked me to knit her a pair of mittens. she lives in chicago and reported temperatures of -17 degrees ... yikes. it's been cold here, but not THAT cold. anyway, i found some yarn in my stash that i think she will like! this is a good opportunity to learn how to knit thrummed mittens. squeeeeeeeee!

Free Pattern: Erich's A&F Knockoff Hat

My brother Erich has a skull cap from Abercrombie & Fitch that I’m sure cost a small fortune … for a hat, anyway.

I saw him recently, and being the knitter that I am, I inspected the hat and said, “Hmph. I could make that!!” After all, I’d rather take his money than see him give it away to A&F. So he says, “Okay then, I want a gray one.” Your wish is my command, baby brother. And I’ll even do it for free!

WHAT YOU NEED:

Yarn: Plymouth Encore Mega (less than 1 skein)
Gauge: 2 sts = 1 in (stockinette stitch)
Needles: Size 15 US (10.0 mm)

WHAT TO DO:

1. Cast on 40 stitches. You may use your preferred method for circular knitting; I used 2 circular needles.

Note: You may wish to adjust the hat size by adjusting the number of cast-on stitches (in multiples of 4) and/or adjusting needle size.

2. Knit 2 x 2 ribbing for about 8 inches, depending on how much coverage you want on your ears or whether you want a fold-up brim/cuff.

3. Decrease as follows:
- K2tog, P2tog all the way around
- K1, P1 all around
- K2tog all around

4. Finish off:
- Cut yarn, leaving 12 inch tail
- using tapestry needle, thread through the remaining 10 stitches, pull tight and weave in ends.


© 2009 Eboni A. Francis

january update

hi everyone,

charity knitting for the bridge project is going well so far. last weekend i completed hat & scarf set and started another. the scarf is plain garter stitch and i will design a matching hat. once i finish the 2nd set i will send them off to be distributed accordingly. i have also decided i would knit for 2 other charity efforts as well ... making afghan squares for warm up america and making preemie/baby hats for OSU medical center. it feels good to use my talents to help others.

i designed a hat for my brother last week. he has a pretty basic ribbed hat from abercrombie. i'm like, really ... i could MAKE that!! so he said, "okay i want one." i happened to have some encore mega (2 sts = 1") in my stash and couldn't figure out what to do with it ... making a hat was just the perfect thing. i gave him the hat and it fits perfectly. he loves it! i'm going to knit a hat for another brother, and when i do that i will write down the directions and post the pattern to ravelry, and here on the blog as well.

it's time for bed. i've declared today "selfish sunday" and am going to spend lots of quality time with myself today. i've got some books i want to read, tv to watch and knitting to do!! i need some serious "me" time. last night i had a dream that i was being held hostage. that sounds like i need to give myself some attention and do all the things that make me happy. it's not that i mind doing things for/with other people, but i have a lot of stuff in my brain to sort out and sometimes the best way for me to deal with it all is to just zone out and focus on myself. so that's precisely what i intend to do. i'll start "selfish sunday" by getting a good night's sleep!

sleep tight, friends.

~mz