Dear Blog, It's Me, Haley

Dear Blog,
It's me, Haley, the person who used to write in you on a regular basis. So sorry to neglect you. I can't believe it's been almost a month since I last visited. All I can say is that life has been busy. Will you ever forgive me? Are your readers still out there or have they moved on to greener pastures (aka blogs that are actually updated on a regular basis)?

I have done some traveling. We spent a week in Ohio for Thanksgiving and had fun with friends and family. I took pics, but none of them have even made it on my computer yet. We spent a crazy, busy 21 hours in San Francisco for an amazing 40th birthday party for my sister-in-law and brother-in-law. I didn't really slow down long enough to take any pictures, but great times were had by all. Now we're prepping for Christmas travel including a 20 hour drive with both boys and our dog Pepper.

I have been busy sewing. I finished all seven dolls.

I made a Yoda doll for my oldest nephew,
a Zorro doll for my next oldest nephew,
and a "handyman" doll for my youngest nephew.

I have also been knitting. I finished the doll sweaters for my niece's presents. I did about four different styles, but these two are the favorites for now. Still working on a shrug that I think will turn out cute with more time. I'm not thrilled with the sweaters (they probably would have been better in a lighter weight yarn), but will write up the patterns when I get a moment.


My nephew Oscar requested a "caterpillar hat" and as I still hadn't figured out how to make a pilot doll for him, I decided to make the hat as part of his Christmas gift.

I found an adorable little caterpillar toy pattern by Sarah Gasson and adapted it to make the hat. I will try to blog more details when I get a chance.

I also knit up this hat for my niece Lizzie. She needed a new hat and this one was too cute to resist. Need to blog details when I get a chance, but for now details can be found on Ravelry. J was nice enough to wear it for the picture.
I also finished this:
It's the Swallowtail Shawl made in it's smallest shawlette form. It's a gift for my sister-in-law Kristin, but as she is too busy to ready my blog I think it's safe to post a pic now. More details to be found on Ravelry.

In other life news, I've been busy getting ready for Christmas other fun things arriving at the end of December including B's move to Houston. He got a job there and starts the 28th. He's very excited to be returning to the beer industry and we're happy that his new job involves zero travel. Unfortunately, this means that I need to get my house ready to sell. It's a wonderful home, but we have let it get taken over by stuff and I am busy reclaiming it. Even as I type this I am thinking of all the stuff I have yet to tackle. This is the main reason I have not been blogging. I've been cleaning out closets and discovering that most of my storage space is filled with stuff we no longer need. It's cleansing, but time consuming. Must go get back to work. Will do my very best to not desert you again in the chaos and cleaning.

So if anyone has any advice on good areas of Houston or good suburbs of Houston, please post a comment. We can use as much advice as possible.

And since it looks like Christmas cards are going to be lost in the shuffle, please know that I am thinking of everyone this holiday season and wishing you a joyous holiday filled with love and laughter!

Cuteness Overload!

I finished my first Daphne and Delilah and I really enjoyed this pattern by Rebecca Danger.


This set is for my newest niece Isla. These were a pretty quick knit which I would have finished sooner if the boys hadn't been sick for over a week. I like how they were knit in the round and how they are designed to have very little seaming :). That's my kind of knitting.


The stripes were nice too because they made it so I didn't have to use a row counter--I just counted stripes. This was my first time using the magic loop method and I really enjoyed it. I did yarn eyes and mouth so I didn't have to worry about my little five month old niece pulling them off and eating them. I'm not great at embroidering so I'm not thrilled at the way my eyes turned out, but I think they are okay.

Pattern: Daphne and Delilah the Mommy and Baby Monster by Rebecca Danger
Yarn: Caron Simply Soft Eco (80% Acrylic and 20% NatureSpun--made from recycled plastic bottles/5 oz./249 yds) About 1/2 skein each of Baby Blush and Chocolate.
Needles: Size 5 doublepoints and 29" circulars
Modifications: Embroidered eyes and mouth with black and white Caron Simply Soft from stash
Finished size: Daphne is approximately 6" wide and 9" tall. Delilah is approximately 3" wide and 4" tall.

To put size into perspective, here's Pepper posing cutely with Daphne and Delilah.


And since I can't just show up with a gift for Isla and nothing for her older brother Oscar, I made two Monster Chunks for Oscar.



This is one of Rebecca Danger's free patterns that can be found on her blog. These are a REALLY quick and simple knit. I made both of them in a few hours. I will probably make a few more soon as both J and N had fun playing with these little guys.

Pattern: Monster Chunks by Rebecca Danger (free pattern--pdf)
Yarn: Caron Simply Soft (small amounts from leftover yarn in stash)
Needles: Size 5 doublepoint
Modifications: Did embroidered yarn eyes and mouth. I need to work on my embroidering, but I think the faces turned out okay.


Don't these just look like fun. I think I need to have a whole gaggle of them to play with all in different bright colors. So cute!

Definitely Dangerous

So I'm sorry for never letting you know which Danger Crafts patterns I decided to buy. It was a hard decision, but I finally narrowed it down to my top six. Yes, six. In the end, five was not enough. I've already started on my first one:

That little bit of stripey goodness is going to be Daphne of Daphne and Delilah (I love the pocket!):
I also bought patterns for Penelope the Empathetic Monster (I just want to hug her):
Frances the Charismatic Monster (I love his long legs and arms):


Robbie the Radiant Robot (who can resist a robot?):
Tofu the Gentle Dachshund (This one really grew on me the more I looked at him):
and...

Greta the Captivating Cat (she's just too sweet to resist):
I have A LOT of knitting to do. In addition to all these cuties, I really want to knit this and this. So much to knit, so little time to do it. [SIGH]

In Danger, Need Help

I first discovered Rebecca Danger and her adorable knit patterns at Easter when I knit her first free pattern, The Bunny Nugget. Ever since I have been contemplating buying one of her adorable knit softie patterns, but had managed to resist. Until now. Rebecca's newest pattern is this adorable mommy and baby monster pair. All photos property of Rebecca Danger. Used with her permission.

I just can't resist Daphne and Delilah. Don't you just love the pocket! Both of them are so adorable! So I went to Rebecca's etsy shop all set to buy Daphne and Delilah when I noticed Rebecca's 5 Pattern Deal. Well, there were so many adorable patterns that I decided I really should go for the deal. She also has a 6 Monster Deal and an All 12 Patterns Deal, but I'm going to try to limit myself to 5. Try being the key word. The problem is...I can't decide which patterns to buy.

I think I've decided on 4 of the 5:
Daphne and Delilah:

Penelope the Empathetic Monster:

Frances the Charismatic Monster:

Robbie the Radiant Robot:

I can't decide on the 5th one. I like the inherent flexibility in color choices for the monsters. Really, you can use any yarn in your stash and they will look cute. But I also like the idea of getting a larger variety by choosing a non-monster. Here are some of my current front runners for my 5th pattern:

Albert the Absent-Minded Monster:

Maddox the Mischievous Monster:

Wasabi the Gregarious Pug:


Then there are also these little cuties:
Tofu the Gentle Dachshund:

Olivia the Audacious Monster:



Chester the Bashful Bunny:

Herman the Enigmatic Bear:

Beatrice and Bernard the Inseparable Bunny and Bear:I know the choices are overwhelming. I just can't decide. I need your help! Please, knitters and non-knitters, can you please leave a comment and let me know which pattern(s) are your favorites. I want to buy them as soon as possible because they are SO adorable and they must be knit soon. And make sure you check out Rebecca's blog and etsy shop.

Happy Monday, everyone! Thanks for your help.

All photos property of Rebecca Danger. Used with her permission.

Oh Yeah, and I Knit Too

I finished putting the buttons on Oscar's sweater. I did end up redoing the button band to make tighter button holes. More details on the sweater here. I followed the pattern for a size 2, but it seems a little on the short side. Oscar's a little on the short side so hopefully that will be okay.


I'm getting closer to finishing my pinwheel blanket, but I ran out of blue yarn so it's on hold momentarily. I'm doing it on circular needles and it looks like a giant beret.


So I had to be silly and try it on for B. He thought it was very Rastafarian.


While I'm waiting for a chance to run back to the knit shop for the blanket yarn, I started on my second Ike-a-saurus for Ike's older brother.


That's all the news for now. Happy Knitting, everyone!

Tales of a KNITTING mom

Oh yeah, knitting. I've been doing that too...between all the mommying, I have been knitting. Here are a few knitted items to prove it:


Shedir Hat (FREE pattern here. PDF. Scroll down--Shedir is the second pattern.)
Yarn: Rowan Calmer (one skein) (This was the recommended yarn and I'm glad I used it. It's really soft and stretchy which is necessary for this hat to fit properly. Nice to work with.)
Needles: Size 3 (16" circular and doublepoints)
Modifications: None

I made this hat for my cousin Christie because her latest cocktail for chemo has made ALL of her hair fall out. The first cocktail she tried made some of it fall out so she was shaving her head, but this new mix made the rest fall out and she mentioned her head was cold. So I, of course, had to knit her a new hat.


This pattern was mentioned to me a while ago and I've seen tons of them on Ravelry, but I was always a little overwhelmed by it and avoided it because it looked so tedious. 128 stitches on size 3 needles with LOTS of cables and twisted stitches just didn't sound like fun. But I actually really enjoyed knitting this hat. The cables and twisted stitches have a nice symmetry and rhythm to them which make the pattern easy to remember and thus fun to knit. I am happy to report that as far as I know there are no mistakes on this hat--and I only had to rip out and redo part of one row after I apparently hallucinated while reading the pattern and made up my own stitch for one of the chart abbreviations. I guess I was up a little too late that night.


Anyway, thanks to all of you who have been keeping Christie in your prayers. She could use a few extra right now as she's having a lot of respiratory issues (related to one of the drugs in her chemo cocktail). Unfortunately, chemo attacks the good stuff as well as the bad in your body. So if you have a little extra prayer time, please send some her way. Thanks!



Ike-a-saurus
Pattern: Knitted Stegosaurus by Jacob Haller (FREE pattern here.)
Yarn: Red--Caron Simply Soft (less than one skein), Yellow--Baby Bee Pitter Patter in babygold (a very small amount)
Needles: Size 5 doublepoint
Modifications: I knit this entirely in the round on doublepoints instead of knitting it flat and then seaming. I also picked up stitches and knit the legs directly onto the body. I totally changed the pattern for the legs to accommodate this. I also knit the scales in the round by doing a figure 8 cast on and then knitting both sides at once. Because of this, my scales are in stockinette stitch instead of garter stitch. I only did one row of scales instead of the two in the pattern. I put more details about both of these on Ravelry.


I knit the Ike-a-saurus for baby Ike. I plan on making two more (one for his brother and one for his sister). Baby Ike is doing better these days (he's out of the hospital), but he still has a lot of struggles that he's dealing with including a lot of feeding issues so please keep him and his family in your prayers.

In other knitting (no prayers needed) news, I'm knitting this sweater for my nephew. It's a topdown raglan crewneck cardigan.


I need to get busy or it will be too hot to wear it by the time it is finished. I'm hoping I'm making the sweater large enough that Oscar will be able to wear it next year too.

I also finished another little knit, but I will have to blog about that later as it's a surprise for someone who reads this blog. Hee hee.

Happy Monday, everyone!

The Itsy Bitsy Spider is Done

Well, in that picture, it is almost done. And here:



It is done.

It's actually my Socktopus, but J keeps calling it a spider. He loves it. I love it too. It's got to be one of the cutest things I have ever knit. I had lots of fun planning out each sock. I have to say I'm a bit anal. I know that comes as a shock to some of you, but it is true. If I wasn't so anal, then this project would have been a LOT faster, but I had to make sure each sock was just the right sock style and length and that I arranged them in the right order. I ended up making two multi-colored kneesocks (one self-striping, one striped by me), two calf-length athletic socks, one thigh high rainbow sock, one midlength dress sock, one slipper sock and one santa sock. I enjoyed learning a few new techniques (backward loop cast on, a new way to do and hide wrap and turns, a short row heel). Although I forgot to hide a few wraps, I generally feel this one turned out pretty close to perfect. I'm sure the Socktopus, or spider, will be well loved. J is already having lots of fun playing with it.


Pattern: Socktopus by Laura Edwards (FREE pattern here)
Yarn: Main color--Plymouth Encore Worsted in Pale Yellow; Socks--various odds and ends.
Needles: Size 5 doublepoint (except for ribbing on dress sock--Size 3 doublepoint)
Modifications: None
On Ravelry here.

Ding Dong, the Witch is Dead...

I finished leg/sock #2 of my Socktopus. This is actually taking a lot longer to knit than I thought it would. I am enjoying this project as a whole, but so far it was more fun to plan than to knit. Knitting the legs/socks (8 stitches on 3 doublepoint needles) isn't a lot of fun--kind of tangly and awkward. But I think it is turning out really cute so far. The body of my socktopus is smaller (thinner yarn, smaller needles), but my legs are the same length as the pattern--so my socktopus is going to be a little extra leggy. Hopefully, it will still look okay. Anyway, that's my update. Isn't this latest sock really cute?

Socktopus: A Work in Progress

I found this adorable softie pattern on knitty.com (click here for the free pattern). I just thought is was SO adorable and a fun way to use up lots of little bits of yarn leftover from other projects. Anyway, my friend Carol decided to make one too so we are having a little knitalong. Here is a picture of my progress so far:


Mine is a little smaller than the one in the pattern pictures because I am using worsted weight yarn instead of chuny yarn. Each leg will have a different sock knitted on. My first one is a knee sock made out of self-striping yarn. My next sock will be a calf-height white and green athletic sock. It's been fun trying to make plan out each sock so it is unique yet goes with the rest of the socktopus. Wish me luck!

In other news, I met with my knitters last night but only two of them ended up coming as we were having severe thunderstorm warnings. The two that came were just learning how to purl when the tornado sirens went off in the distance because the thunderstorms were leading to tornados. So they rushed home and we kept an eye on the tv and internet for weather updates. I hated that our night was cut short as both of my friends were doing a great job and were really excited about learning how to purl.

Anyway, about 20 minutes later the tornado siren at the end of our street went off, we grabbed the boys and the dogs and spent about 25 minutes hanging out in the closet. Good times! Luckily, no tornados touched down in our area. I am NOT looking forward to tornado season. I was wishing I was back safe in Cleveland with the snow and ice and freezing weather. However, today was sunny and beautiful and I began to forgive Texas for its stupid tornados. We'll see how I feel next time I hear that siren.