Yarn and Crafting Along

I rarely post customer work here, because it's my job and kind of boring.
But I am kind of in love with this sweater I just finished and I'm a little sad that I have to give it to the customer.

This is the Collegiate Cardigan from Men's Knits by Erika Knight. 

It's such a cozy relatively quick knit, I could see myself making this again for me.

All that needs to be done is find the perfect buttons.

What's on your needles today? 

Joining Ginny and Nicole for crafty pursuits.

4/52 2014

Week 4 of 52, joining Jodi
The Elder after a particularly snowy trip down the sledding hill.
The Youngest trying out her new hat
The Younger expressing how much he loves sledding (and the ensuing hot chocolate)

Crafting On

The hat I made last week for The Youngest didn't quite fit her little noggin, so I made some adjustments this week.

The yarn I used is from the Aurora colorway of the Malabrigo Linen Stitch Scarf from The Yarnery.

The back of the hat was a little short and it stuck out, so I added a band around the base and gathered the very back to shape it.

 Then I sewed down the fringe (not all that beautifully, it must be admitted) to insulate the band. I also added a button to eliminate the need for ties.

It fits her better, and dang if it's not cute. 

Crafting along with Nicole this morning.

3/52 2014

The Elder and The Youngest on our weekly visit to the sledding hill.
The Youngest giggling at her siblings at breakfast.
The Younger at the bottom of the hill, walking up for another run.
Joining Jodi for another week of 52 portraits.

New Hat

My bosses at The Yarnery have designed a fun collection of scarves using Malabrigo Worsted yarn.
I was inspired to use their new colorway for a little something for The Youngest.
The original scarf pattern uses linen stitch, but I didn't think The Youngest would keep a scarf on, so I made it into a hat.
After I knitted a rectangle that was half as wide as it was long, I folded it in half and used a 3-needle bind-off to close it up.
Then I added a tassel and ties.
I'm semi-happy with it as is, but I think I'll do some further modifications. It gaps a little in the back, so I plan to pick up a band along the bottom to pull it in, and then I'll add a button and remove the ties.

It did stay on through sledding today, so that is a bonus.
I totally missed all of the yarning and crafting alongs this week, but better late than never...
Joining Ginny and Nicole

2/52 2014

After living through the Polar Vortex this week, today's high temp of 30 degrees Farenheit seemed like heaven.

The Youngest, enjoying a walk outside.
The Elder, thrilled about the weather, enough to have the car window down on the way home from school.
The Younger, about to sled the Big Hill by school.
Joining Jodi for year 2 of 52 portraits.

8 Years Old

Look who turned 8 yesterday.
We had an unexpected day off from school, the temperatures are dangerously low around these parts, so The Younger enjoyed a leisurely day at home on his birthday.
My sweet, funny little man is more of a joy as each day passes.
One of our Christmas presents this year was a model of a man with removable organs.
This morning he had a riot of a time singing Wham's Christmas epic "Last Christmas" using different parts of our little plastic friend.
We had a great time rhyming different organs.
Liver - shiver
Intestines - suggestions
This year, I gave you my ear...
Happy Birthday, my little man.

1/52 2014 Edition

Still recovering from last night's performances we're all a little groggy this morning.
Joining Jodi for year 2 of 52 portraits.

A (Day and ) Night at the Opera

The past 24 hours have been operatic in scope and theme.
We began yesterday with a plaintive number from The Elder at breakfast.
Her tears mingling with her pancake syrup we heard the perennial favorite -
"I Don't Need to Go Back to Bed"
I'm not tired, I don't know why I am crying, He's looking at me...

This was closely followed by a rousing duet -
"I Touched it First!"
The tale of a towel nigh rent in twain
By kids folding clothes for mone'try gain.

After a short intermission spent alone in quarters we were favored with the 2-hour Wagnerian ensemble hit -
"But I Hate Doing the Dishes!"
He's sending the dishes back!
It's the job of the dryer to do quality control.
I already washed it!
There's still egg on it.
But I Hate Doing the Dishes!!!

That was the big finish for that particular show. I laughed, I cried, it was a moment to be sure.

Then, in an experimental new theatre project we had a two-fer from The Youngest.

First the one-woman, one-act, one-AM show "Hug" about a plucky toddler who just wants to share her parents' bed.
Highlights included -
"Boo Boo" or Have you seen my bear?
"Clack" or Let's Read a Book, even though it's 2:00AM and there is no light.
and the tearjerker "Muk" let's nurse.
All of which was performed through the bars of her baby jail while the steely-eyed warden looked on.

After an hour intermission where everyone slept we had the big finale of the night -
"TEEEEETH!!!!!
A tender duet which included a visit from the orajel fairy.

The performances were full of passion, and commitment to the craft. It was a sight to behold.
I will say, that while I have the utmost respect for the performers, and indeed deep love, I have been sated for the time being, and really we don't need another visit to the opera for some time.

Knitting in the New Year

The big kids made a goal to stay up until midnight last night. So, to keep myself awake, I cast on a pair of mittens for The Younger.

I have had my eye on these mittens for years, and since I have a toddler to put in them, now seemed like the time. This one took all of Wreck-It Ralph and about a third of The Hobbit.
The Younger lasted until 11 or so, but The Elder made it until 12.
I was very impressed with her stamina, given that I needed a 10 minute cat nap at 11:30.

How was your New Year's Eve?
A friend just posted a goal for herself that she wanted to knit 10,000 yards in the new year, which got me wondering how many yards I knitted in the past year.
I went over to my long-neglected knitmeter.com account and put in the projects that I knitted for the family this year (I don't keep track of what I knit for customers) and the results show that I knitted a lot.
This is somewhat of a happy surprise, since I was feeling not all that productive this year.