Creamy Cables

I saw a pattern on Ravelry a few weeks ago that I instantly fell in love with and had to make. It's called "Cranberry Sauce" (the original was made with red yarn). I love the look, the chunky yarn, and I love knitting cables. I just had to make it...even though it required the purchase of two new pairs of circular needles in sizes I didn't have!


I'm not in love with the results though. The yarn I used worked fine but it smells awful and it's really itchy...even on my head! It was Bernat Alpaca. The color was just what I wanted and the price was great but I'll never use this yarn again! I might make the hat again though...but, definitely, with a different yarn!

More Hugs for Mary

Last year, just before Christmas, my friend Mary found out that she had a brain tumor and that it was cancer. It's been an up and down year for her, her family, and her friends. I got to see her when I was in Colorado this last October. I'm so glad I did. Since then, she has gone into hospice care. It's a wonderful place...I just wish she didn't have to go there.

I recently started knitting her another chemo hat with a matching cowl and, now that she's in hospice, I've been in a rush to get it done and in the mail. Here's a peek before I box it up and send it to her...


The set is made with Cotton Ease in the color "Lake 110". It was hard to get a picture that shows the true color but these are sort of close. I used size 7 needles. The hat pattern is one that I've used many times. But, I added this adorable rose that was inspired from "The Elusive Blue Rose Hat" pattern that I found on Ravelry. I made the rose separately by casting on 35 and knitting stockinette stitch for 13 rows, binding off, twirling it around, stitching it together, and then stitching it onto the hat. I really like how it turned out.


The cowl is made with the Knitpicks "Georgian Lace Cap" pattern, minus the crown shaping. I made one a few months ago and loved it so much that I decided to make another. I bet I'll make even more of them in the future.

Mary is the mom of my good friend, Tammi. We met in high school over 30 years ago. I instantly felt comfortable with them and have thought of them as family ever since. Mary is a wonderful person...strong, inspiring, positive, intelligent, fun and she has a big heart. I love her so much! I hope this small gift will help her to know that. It's a hug for you, Mary!

P.S. I just steam blocked the cowl and it looks even better. No time for pictures though. I need to get it packed up and in the mail.

Sick One, Knit Two

I hate being sick. But, I always try to look on the bright side of things. So, sick means lots of knitting time. Here's the second knit project I've started and completed this week...


I really wanted to make a new hat for a friend of mine that's going through chemo. And, I really wanted to use a ball of the Knitpicks Comfy yarn that I recently purchased. I had trouble finding a pattern that only needs 110 yards or less of yarn. So, the last project became a cowl...which I love and you can see in the previous post. I kept searching and found the "Button-Tab Hat" pattern on Ravelry. I wasn't sure if I had enough yarn but I decided to go for it. I really like it's simple, clean lines, wide band/brim, the button(s), and lack of holes (important when you have a lack of hair). I wasn't crazy about the tab though. So, I made my own version. I used just under one ball of Comfy yarn in Sea Foam, 16" circular needles in size 7, size 7 dpns, and one stitch marker. Here's how I did it...

CO 84, place marker and join in the round, knit one row, do 12 rows (or about 2”) of k2/p2 ribbing for the brim, purl one row, knit 25 rows or until it measures about 6” from co edge and then decrease…
Round 1: k2tog, k3, rep from (70 sts)
Rounds 2,4,6,8: Knit
Round 3: k2tog, k2, rep from (56 sts)
Round 5: k2tog, k1, rep from (42 sts)
Round 7: k2tog rep from (28 sts)
Round 9: k2tog rep from (14 sts)
Round 10: k2tog seven times (7 sts)

Cut yarn and weave tail through the remaining seven stitches, fasten off, weave in the ends and attach button(s).

I think it worked out pretty well. And, I had enough yarn! Yay! It's super soft. I hope she likes it.

This seems to be a stubborn flu/cold...whatever it is. So...hmmmmm?...what will I knit next??

Knitt'n Again

A little break from knitting may be just what I needed. I've been so into it for so long and I spend so much time knitting, thinking about knitting, looking at patterns, hanging out with knitting friends, going to knit shops, etc., etc. A little break now and then can be refreshing. Not to mention, great for getting some of the things done that have been neglected because of my yarny obsession.

It felt weird, maybe like withdrawals, to not knit for several days. But, I stuck with it because it also felt kind of good and I new it would be good for me. When I started knitting again this week, I finished up another helmet hat for some troops in Iraq. These are simple hats but I think they'll be appreciated. They can wear them under their helmets or just to stay warm. Here's one of them...


The owner of the coffee shop, where we meet weekly to knit, mentioned that he was going to put a box of goodies together for a young man that was just deployed to Iraq. Several of us made some things and donated goodies. As of yesterday, the box was overflowing so much that it's probably going to become two big boxes instead of one. I bet it's going to be so much fun for him and his buddies to recieve it. It has candies, snacks, little Easter toys, magazines, and all kinds of little things they may need. It's interesting how such a simple thing to put together can mean so much and I hope it does. It must be really hard to be there and be so far from home and everyone they love.

I was able to work on my lace shawl yesterday too. Yay! I was able to focus again and, so far, it's been going really well. It's hard to see how it will look when it's in the knitting stage but, here's a little glimpse as I tried to stretch it out and hold the camera at the same time...


This is the only thing I have in progress right now and that feels a little strange. I've been trying to match patterns with stash yarns but I'm not having a lot of luck. I'll keep trying though. I really want to have more to work on and make a big dent in my stash this year.

Tiny Hats for Tiny Heads

Every Wednesday morning I meet up with a group of ladies at a local coffee shop for a little stitching and girl time. Last week, one of the ladies told us that her cousin had just lost her baby at 23 weeks and that she wanted to make some preemie hats for her cousin to donate to a hospital in Chicago. Without hesitation, we all wanted to help out. So, this Wednesday's meeting will be all about preemie hats. However, knowing how I don't always get a whole lot of knitting done when we get together, I decided to get a head start. So, here are two hats I've made...


They're a lot of fun to make and take very little yarn. Both of them are made from stash yarns. I don't remember what the white yarn is called but has tiny little loops that remind me of terry cloth and it's super soft. The pink, eyelet one is made from Bernat Satin and it's my favorite. I followed a pattern that I found on Ravelry. It's great because it has five different preemie hat patterns on one. I hope these hats are the right size. It's been so long since my daughter was a baby that I don't remember how small baby heads are to know if these are smaller still. But, each one will fit a special little someone. And, each one is made with love and a prayer for a healthy, wonderful life!