Little Bits of This & That

Handmade Holiday

For Christmas 2011, I knitted as many gifts as I could for those special people I appreciate. I must confess that I did start making gifts back in February so that I didn't feel so crazy rushed. Of course I still felt crazy rushed and tried to knit up more gifts then I had time for the closer the holidays came. But I did get quite a few done and I'm pleased.

I made my friend Kris some cozy socks. I picked up the pattern at Coldwater Yarn Shop in Excelsior. It was one of the last minute patterns I used to do the quick-knit socks. They use bulky yarn which is a big plus when time is limited.

Here they are on Kris's feet with her kitty admiring them.

Here they are again.....

A hat was made for my good friend Lori~

Click here for the pattern.

A little beach bag I made for Lori's birthday (which is just a few days after Christmas)....it's knit using t-shirt yarn. I made this bag at a class I took at Steven Be's Yarn shop.

A hat that was made for my daughter's good friend Audrey~

Click here for the Zig-Zag hat and mitten pattern.

A hat was made for my daughter's good friend Leah~

Click here for the Lichen Moss Stitch Stripe Earflap hat.

Here are the mitten's I made for Cindy, the nice lady who works with my daughter and her horse.

Click here for the Quick Bulky Mittens. They are are made with Rasta yarn by Malabrigo.

 I made the Polly Pullover for my long-time good friend Beth~

I have already have a jump start on gifts for this Christmas. After they are blocked, I am hoarding them in the "Christmas Box". There is already 3 gifts in it~yay! I hope get knitting on gifts again as soon as I am done with all my Spring Market patterns.

When do you start your Christmas gifts?

 

Sweater Weather.....

I love cool, crisp sweater weather and now that I have learned to knit I am enjoying it even more. I have have been working on several sweaters and finally finished one for a good friend of mine. It was for her birthday and it got there a few days late but hey...I finished it! I'm kinda proud of it because there was alot of learning that went on with that sweater. I learned to pick-up stitches, knitting with more than one yarn and even make i-cord....not too bad for a newbie if I do say so myself!

I made some pom-poms for the ends of the i-cord but the first one came out a little big. The second pom-pom was just right.

It's the first project that I have blocked....boy does blocking make a BIG difference!

  
I struggled a bit with the size because she lives in another state. I couldn't have her try it on as I knitted but I think it looks super cute on her and the fit is great! 
  


Now if I can just finish all the things on my gift list before the holidays!

Until next time~Sherri

12 in 12

What is 12 in 12 you ask? Well, one of my favorite yarn shops, Darn Knit Anyway in Stillwater, Mn is doing a year long program called 12 in 12. It's 12 sweaters knitted in 12 months. You can pick and choose which month you want to do or you can do them all. I picked the August sweater. I think it's super cute and figured it was one that I could actually get done in a month. I casted on on August 1st and had it finished by August 21!

I was a crazy knitter, working on it everywhere I went...well almost everywhere. I didn't knit while I was driving but I was sure thinking about it.

The pattern was easy and well written, which is what I need since I am a newbie.

Here is the link to pattern on Ravely...it's the Effortless Cardigan.

Even though I got it done on time, I didn't get time to block it until now, so here it is while it is still drying~

Not sure if I am blocking it correctly, so I have signed up for a blocking class this fall. I figure I can always re-block it after the class right?

Until next time~ Sherri

 

 

Trying something new....

I have wanted to try knitting socks for a long time so I finally decided to take the plug and start with some simple ones for my daughter. She said she wanted orange socks but when we went to the Coldwater Collaborative Shop she decided on this funk yarn instead.

I split the skein into 2 ball so I can knit two socks at the same time on one long circular needle. It's suppose to be a great way to finish both socks at the same time....and avoids the second sock syndrome....not that I have ever experienced that, since I haven't made any yet. I will keep you posted on how it goes.

Until next time~Sherri

Bbbrrrrr......

We woke up to -28 degrees here this morning. Not to happy about the kids having to wait for the bus in that cold of weather. Don't get me wrong.... yes, we are from Minnesota and are a very hardy bunch up here but even that is alittle too cold to have your kids outside. So we drove them them to school and I still made them bundle up. Good thing I got Sara's new hat done last night so she could wear it today!

 
Yes, even -28 degrees we still wear t-shirts....well my kids do anyways. It's the second hat I have made for her this year. I love knitting hats...they are so quick!

 
Here is the first hat I made for her. It's the Bella's Eclipse Hat. She wore all the time until I got this new one done and now uses the Bella hat for the stable.

 
I love that my kids like to wear the stuff I make them!

Until next time~

Sherri

 

The Camp Hoodie......

I really love knitting and there is so much that I need to learn but when Susan B. Anderson said she is hosting a knit-along of her Camp Hoodie I knew I wanted to join in.

Susan is the designer of Spud and Chloe and I have been a huge fan of her yarn and patterns since the very beginning. I first saw the Camp Hoodie pattern when I was in Wild Fibre while traveling with my good friend.

This is the first sweater I have ever made and I am very excited to see how it turns out. I'm actually making it for my good friend....I am praying it will fit her when I'm done! She lives down south, so I am using my daughter as a model to make sure it will fit her because they are about the same size.

I chose the yarn......

Got my yarn wound and in my project bag......

  
And I started out making my very first swatch.....

 

It seemed to turned out right if I read the swatch correctly. But the class I'm taking on gauge isn't until Saturday so I'm praying I did it right!

With the swatch done and checked, I have started the sweater~

Here is how far I got last night~

It is the ribbing for the bottom. Not too bad for day one.

I have signed up for a class on gauge, a class on speed knitting and another on finishing. I figured that once I get all the classes done I will feel more confident about what I'm doing. Until then, I can at least get the body of the sweater done.

What are you working on in this new year?

Until next time~

Sherri

 

 

 

Knittin a mitten.....

I love to knit....it is a new passion for me but I must admit that I really don't know how to do much. Yes, I can cast on, cast off, knit and purl but that is about it. I have really wanted to learn how to make mittens for my kids. So I took a mini hat and mitten class at the wonderful shop in Stillwater            called Darn Knit (Anyway).

I thought it would be best to start with a tiny mitten so if I screw up (which is bound to happen!) I wouldn't have so much to take a part. Well, I got one mitten done and here is it!~

 I thought I should put a quarter next to it so you can see just how small this mitten it. Now I need to make some more...thinking gift tags for Christmas gifts....we will see just how many I get done.I have the hat almost done and will post a picture of that when I finish. I have done hats so I was really excited to make the mitten. Now that I know how to M1R and M1l, I can try a few more patterns I have been wanting to do.

If you are ever in Stillwater, MN be sure to stop in to Darn Knit and I hope you love the shop as much as I do!

Until next time.....Sherri

P.S. The pattern for the mini hats and mittens is from Pick Up Sticks.

P.S.S Don't forget to join us next week for our Mistletoe Make & Bake!

Finally done....

This summer, my friend Beth and I went to Savannah, Ga for a long weekend. I found a very cute yarn shop called Wild Fibre and had to stop in. Beth doesn't knit but she is a good friend and went with me. While in the shop she found a cute bag that she liked. So, since her birthday was only a few weeks away, I bought the yarn and told her I would make it for her. Well....I finally got the bag done! Yes her birthday was quite awhile ago but when I work on something I have a hard time considering it finished if I think it may need something more to jazz it up, especially when it's for a good friend and I want it to be great!  
 
 
So I finally I finished it and popped it in the mail today...it is on it's way to her. Now I hope she likes it. 

I have also finished a scarf for my oldest daughter using a pattern that is from my Grandma. She loves it and wears it all the time...I would love to burrow it but I'm thinking she won't let me.

 
Now her friend wants one too...almost done with that scarf also!

And don't forget about the Blog Hop coming soon!

Until next time~ Sherri