Keeping warm on a frigid day

In spite of the 15 degrees/feels like 5 degrees, these hale and hardy women showed up ready to get those needles clicking! I received a request from a friend for chemo caps so we put our current projects aside to whip up a few for immediate distribution.

Barbara B used a bamboo and merino blend yarn for this very soft Fresco Simply Slouchy hat. The fabric is good for sensitive scalps that are easily irritated.

There was enough yarn to make the Race for Life 2011 hat too.

Then she knitted the Running in Circles hat with the pretty wave motif.

Margaret used a cotton and bamboo blend fiber to knit the Blustery Beanie. Margaret is our Queen of the Bulky Knits so this pattern was right up her alley. 

The free pattern includes sizes from infant to adult.

Tina made a chemo cap called Bobcat Beanie but when I looked it up, a different pattern popped up so I don't have a link for it. I think she used a cotton and bamboo blend for extra softness.

I found some baby alpaca in my stash which was just enough to knit the Ribbons of Hope. The offset cables are easy to knit and it actually took only three days to knit.

Barbara B is also making the same hat.

I'm back to my regular projects and working on a twisted headband pattern that I found on YouTube. The original pattern called for DK weight yarn but I had this soft merino in fingering weight calling my name so I took size 2 needles and magic loop technique to add to the inventory. The blue yarn on the left is the provisional cast on so that the ends can be grafted together for a seamless headband.

Dorah's Sophie Scarf is almost finished. The yarn which was giving her second thoughts on the previous project looks great for this scarf!

Nancy said she is really enjoying her Moss Hill Beanie. Those Benjamin Matthews patterns are so well designed and written that it is a pleasure to make them.

Maureen's baby blanket that she's knitting for a gift is at a point where you can see the trucks emerging from the stitches.

Tina started another chemo cap but do you think I remembered to get the name of the pattern?!?!

Nor did I get the name of Barbara K's hat either! But both are very soft fibers.

Margaret, The Queen of Bulky Knits, finished a hat and...

added a pompom. She wasn't sure if she would like a big pompom but once we put the hat on the head form, the pompom was a perfect addition!

Our sourdough treat from Barbara B today was peanut butter cookies. It amazes me how versatile sourdough starter and discards are in a variety of recipes! And so far, they're all good!!!

It's going to be a three dog night so bundle up, add another log to the fire and 

keep those needles clicking!

Yummy Sourdough Cinnamon Crunch Banana Bread today!

Dorah led the head of the table this week with Barbara B, Tina, and Maureen to the right and Barbara K, me, and Nancy to the left. A lively discussion ensued even before anyone sat down. There is so much going on these days that I am forever grateful to have my flock to keep me grounded and sane.

And Barbara B's Sourdough Cinnamon Crunch Banana Bread helps too! Banana bread is one of my favorite treats but this was beyond tasty. And as I've read, sourdough is good for your health. 

That's my story and I'm stickin' to it! 😉

We added three FOs to the inventory for the Albany High School Falcon Boutique. We are getting an early start so we can collect even more than last year's gift.
The store which is run by the students, is where anyone can come and pick what they need for no cost. This year we will add smaller sizes too for younger siblings.

Barbara B made a helix hat using a new to us technique for jogless stripes. She also used a provisional cast on using barber cord, (that silicone tubing that makes holding stitches so convenient) using this technique. You can't even tell where the stripes change!

She added an 1898 Hat to the inventory too. This is the hat that starts by knitting the ear flaps and cuff flat and then joining the short ends using either a 3 needle bind off or kitchener stitch. Once joined, stitches are picked up along the edge and the crown is completed. It comes down low on the face with that double thick cuff to keep you nice and warm.

This is Maureen's version of the same hat. She was working on it last week when she thought she was running out of purple yarn. She had the clever idea to add some stripes to make the purple last. Today she told me she found another skein of the purple yarn! LOL! Now she can make a twin hat!

Nancy is continuing work on her Moss Hill Beanie. She admitted she had to muster up some courage to follow the directions to drop the stitch in the middle of the motif and then pick it back up on the next round. I have to admit, it gave me heart palpitations when she said she let it just hang out but since it was a double wrapped stitch, it wasn't going anywhere until she returned to pick it up. The pattern is coming along nicely!

I found a video tutorial on YouTube that showed how to knit this cabled headband. It looks much more complicated than it is to make. The first time I knitted it I think I used DK weight yarn but I had this heavenly soft yarn left from another project. It's fingering weight so I'm using a size 2 needle to make a dense enough fabric to keep ears warm. To say it's a bit tedious would not be an overstatement but I keep reminding myself how nice it will be when completed. That blue yarn on the bottom edge is the provisional cast on which will be grafted to the other end to become an invisible seam at the back of the head.

Barbara K's striped scarf has grown in length since we last met. Those colors are stunning!

Dorah started the TV knitting scarf using a beautifully dyed sock weight yarn but she just wasn't "feeling it". The pattern of the scarf had sections of lace which the short bursts of color in the yarn seemed to swallow and make disappear. So I dipped into my files and came up with my version of the Sophie Scarf which lends itself to this yarn perfectly! This is also a great tv knitting project.

Maureen is knitting a Car Blanket for a baby gift. The combination of knit and purl stitches will eventually show up as little cars, or maybe it was trucks. You'll have to check back for that one.

Tina's honeycomb scarf is growing slowly but steadily. 

The colors are so gentle and the yarn is very soft.

Barbara B is working on a lacy shawl called Summer Net Shawl. It will require blocking to open up those lovely lace stitches.

After everyone left for home, I turned my back for one second and guess who hopped on to his favorite spot. He thinks I don't see him. I guess it's time to bring out the vacuum cleaner and replace the newspapers on the seats. 

As soon as he sees me get up from the chair, I guarantee Fozzie will be begging for another meal so it won't be hard to remove him from the furniture. I decided a long time ago that this is his house too and it's easier for me to clean the chairs than it is to discipline a cat. And the love and peacefulness he brings to our lives is worth every strand of fur he leaves around the house.

It's time for me to prepare dinner so have a great week and keep those needle clicking!

A tableful of knitters

We had almost a full house of 9 Chicks today. Somehow we started reminiscing about schooldays and mean nuns in Catholic school and the teachers who were on the verge of nervous breakdowns because the kids in the class who were undiagnosed with ADHD would drive them bonkers. I began to name the "trouble makers" in my fourth grade class who would push poor, old Mrs. Kelly to her breaking point and Dorah was impressed I knew their names from 1958! Just don't ask me what I ate for breakfast! 😉 

Speaking of eating, Barbara B made sourdough chocolate-chocolate chip brownies for today's treat.

I was so busy knitting, I forgot to eat one so when the house was quiet, I poured myself a glass of eggnog and savored a yummy brownie. Soooo Good!!!

 Last week Dorah mentioned that one of her cowls she made a few years ago was coming apart, would I be able to fix it for her. This is The Shift which was a very popular Andrea Mowry pattern from 2018. For some unknown reason it had come apart right where the back seam is sewn. Some of the stitches were unraveling and we needed to catch it before it was completely ruined. Luckily, Dorah left a long tail from the end of a row which, after I caught the stitches with a crochet hook, I was able to anchor and knot using that strand of yarn. Saved just in the nick of time!

Dorah is working her second sock using the Knitting Pure and Simple pattern for a basic, vanilla sock. It is a well written pattern and makes a nice sturdy sock.

                                         

Nancy wore her Floatini today. The designer is very creative with her short row designs and Nancy loves knitting patterns which include short rows. Beautiful!

She is currently working on the Moss Hill Beanie which starts with a long cuff that folds up to make a warm, double thick brim. 

This hat is another pattern from our favorite hat designer, Benjamin Matthews.

Tina is working on a scarf using the honeycomb stitch. I didn't get a photo of the ball of yarn from which she is working but I have a hunch she could knit scarves for a small village and still have yarn left over.😂

Barbara B is making a DK weight, single stripe helix hat using the technique for jogless stripes from Grace O'Neill on YouTube. She is using another technique for the provisional cast on which uses a barber cord so she can fold the fabric to the inside and knit the provisional stitches together with the live stitches on the needle to create a double thick cuff.

Jan is working on the Be Simple Variations Shawl. 

She saw puffins on vacation and brought back souvenir yarn dyed the colors of the birds. 

It's going to be so pretty!

Maureen is working the ear flaps and cuff of the 1898 Hat and is planning on making stripes for the crown portion of the hat.

Do you remember the fingerless mitts with caps that Margaret was knitting last week? She was afraid she would run out of yarn before she could finish the second mitt so I suggested she stop knitting the first one and knit the second mitt to the same point as the first so she would have an idea of how far she could knit with each color. You can see on the right mitt that she has picked up stitches to knit the removable top.

She is working on a hat which requires less attention paid to it. Some projects lend themselves more to social knitting than others.

Carole has the last of the James C. Brett Marble yarn and is making a Mistake Stitch Scarf.

She has a neck lamp with an integrated magnifying glass to make knitting easier on her eyes. We all have noticed that we require better lighting when we knit than we used to. 

I found some bright red yarn in the stash with no label and started the Fifi Cowl for a donation project. The pattern is very easily memorized and works up quickly. The white yarn on the edge is my provisional cast on because I was too lazy to use the barber cord. LOL!

Now that the sun is setting, my hands and feet are feeling cold so I'm going to make a cup of tea and start cooking dinner. Have a great week and keep those needles clicking!

Back in the saddle again!

The Chicks are back from our holiday break and working diligently on our projects. We were all so serious until...

Barbara B brought out the sourdough chocolate chunk cookies!

They were delicious and put a big smile on our faces!

Barbara B was busy during our break and knitted up a storm of goodies. This is her Fifi Cowl which is knitted lengthwise, flat, with reversible cables and then the short ends are either seamed or finished with a 3 needle bind off to create a mobius effect so there is no wrong side to the fabric.

Even though it's red, this is the White Frost Hat she knitted with beautiful stitch definition. She made four more hats which I was very careful to get the names of the patterns. Unfortunately, I was distracted and forgot to take pictures of them. 😖

This lovely yarn is currently on her needles to create the...

Y.A.S. Hat which starts at the top of the crown with a pinhole cast on similar to the start of the Mussleburgh Hat but this is a single layer hat with double brim.

I am combining a light worsted weight superwash merino with a kid silk mohair to knit the Sophie Scarf. This was the fourth or fifth try with this yarn but all the previous patterns just didn't work out well. The yarn was either too fuzzy or too busy to show off cables so I decided to stick to something simple. BTW, if you look at YouTube video tutorials on how to proceed with the steps to knitting the Sophie scarf, you don't really need to buy the pattern. Or just knit Jan's scarf which is later in the post.

Dorah is planning to use this beautiful yarn for an easy project called TV Knitting Scarf. The pattern is perfect for showcasing such a pretty yarn.

But first she has to finish a pair of socks for her daughter's friend. She calls sock knitting a palate cleanser and can probably knit them in her sleep.

Nancy started her Grid Gambit cowl and was initially using the variegated yarn as the dominant color but wasn't pleased with the result. So she frogged it and reversed the order of dominance and is much happier with the way it looks. It's funny how different a knitted fabric can appear depending on which color sits up front and center!

Margaret is almost finished with the first of her Tuiki tuiki fingerless mitts but she is having second thoughts about how to proceed. Since she has a limited amount of yarn and the pattern calls for a large portion of the convertible section to be knitted with the lesser amount of yarn, she is worried she will run out, so she is going to start the second mitt and complete it to the same size and determine then how to proceed based on the remaining amount of yarn.

Tina started a cowl with a pretty variegated yarn.

 

The Journey Through Time Cowl is a freebie on Ravelry.

Barbara K had a lovely self striping yarn that came in a kit she picked up for a song at a garage sale. The pattern in the kit was for a cowl which she knew she would never wear so she decided on a scarf and it's coming along beautifully!

Jan was working with this yarn before the break and didn't like the way it was knitting up so she changed the pattern to The Simple Thing which is frighteningly similar to the Sophie scarf and it's free! 

She is much happier with these results!

In addition to her Grid Gambit, Nancy is starting a Benjamin Matthews design called Moss Hill Beanie.

His designs always have a nice texture and pattern to them. Nancy's yarn choice will make a nice stitch definition and a beautiful hat.

I was admiring Jan's scarf and asked her if she made it and she did! It's a linen stitch scarf which started with something like 600 stitches! It was knitted sideways which is why it required so many stitches cast on. It is beautiful as is Jan! And it looks woven!

That's all for now. Fozzie wanted me to be sure to wish you all a Happy New Year and happy knitting through 2026! Be well and keep those needles clicking!