Show and Tell some FO's

Maureen finished her "March Hat" which uses a stitch pattern based on the Seersucker stitch. I think she said the designer named her patterns for the months of the year, hence "March".

We added another dish cloth to the inventory for the Grassroots Givers.

And the Helix Hat from Dorah is ready too.

Barbara K. did a fancy little cable stitch on her dish cloth.

And Cinzia made a fancy big cable on her hooded vest which is folded and hiding behind the vest. We decided to save this one for our future donation inventory which will be going to Knit the Rainbow in NYC to help homeless LGBTQ youth.

She also knitted the Basket Weave Cowl with a fingering weight yarn which beautifully shows off the woven design of the knitted fabric.

Maureen is currently working on a Sunnyside Cardigan with the lace option for a baby gift.

Barbara B.'s Zomboni (not Zamboni like the ice rink cleaner) by Casapinka looks lovely as it grows from a lace weight yarn.

And Barbara K.'s Present Cowl has grown quite a lot since she started it last week.

Carole's Rhode Trip Hat is far enough along now to see those great cables. The pattern is free on Ravelry and there is a matching cowl however, it states the pattern is no longer available. But if you can make the hat, just knit the pattern longer and add a matching ribbed edge and you have a cowl.

My Basket Weave Cowl is quite a bit larger in stitch gauge than Cinzia's since I'm using somewhere between an Aran/Bulky weight yarn. 

Dorah found some colorful yarn in her stash and could picture only a child's hat so that's what she's making.

By the end of our two hour meeting, she already reached the portion of the hat where she can begin decreasing for the crown.
 

That's the great thing about bulky weight yarns. They knit up quickly so you can move on to a new project before boredom sets in.

I'm sitting in my kitchen, admiring the beautiful autumn colors outside my window and thinking I should walk around the block while it's still unusually warm. 

How long should I sit until the feeling passes?😆

Keep those needles clicking!

 

Starting a new cycle

While not every one of my Chicks was in attendance today, we still had a full house. We talked a little about the yarn bombing last Friday and then moved on to our next rotation of donations.

Our next recipients will be the clients who are served by Grassroots Givers. They requested dish cloths but we can do so much more and we've got a good start. Barbara K. started us off with a warm hat made with Vanna's Choice acrylic yarn so it's soft and machine washable.

Maureen finished her Helix Hat and it's also a machine washable hat made with Berroco Vintage.

My contribution this week is a superwash merino cowl. I watched a video on YouTube which was in a foreign language but I slowed the video so I could write the pattern as it was being knitted. I've seen some great stitches in video format so I'll be translating a few more in the next few weeks. After I write them up, I share them with my Chicks. If you'd like a copy, private message me and I'll email one.

This set that I'm making is almost finished. The cowl is the Glacier and the hat is my go-to Soldier's Watchcap. This is actually for my other charity knitting group which has been asked to knit a bunch to be donated to Street Soldiers of Albany. It's "fun" juggling two charity groups at once...notice the quotation marks.😉

Dorah has chosen her next project to be a Helix Hat and her color choices are yummy!

Maureen's hat is another machine washable fiber, also Berroco Vintage. The texture of this pattern is beginning to show nicely.

Barbara K. found a nice variegated fingering weight yarn to make a cowl.

It will become the Present Cowl, a freebie on Ravelry.

Jan was gifted her sister's stash of yarn and she has already started using it. The Squarshy Hat is an easy hat with a line of stitching to keep it interesting. If you choose this pattern, be forewarned...it has spicy language in the directions which make it kind of funny to read.

Margaret made up this hat pattern while riding in the car. It's a basic stockinette stitch in the round but every 5th stitch is a purl stitch to give it that spiral all the way up. Good job!

Janna is making the Ribbed Watchcap too. She's just about to the point where she can start decreasing for the crown.

Barbara B. is using this lovely sport weight yarn for a Fresco Simply Slouchy hat.

And last but not least, Dorah wore her beautiful Bella Shawl with yarn she bought online. If I could remember the name I'd tell you but for some reason, I have a mental block and can never remember it!

I've unearthed some pretty yarns from my stash that are calling my name so I better say good-bye and get back to the projects so I can start something new. Until next time, keep those needles clicking!

Delivery Day and a yarn bombing

Today was the day we prepared our donations items for delivery. My combined knitting groups, Chicks with Sticks and The Delaware Avenue Stitch Angels, met at the library to attach labels that said the items are free for whomever needs them.

Left to right: Barbara K., Dorah, Barbara B., Maria, and Jan. Seated in back is Gail.

Maria and Gail are from the library group and Barbara B. belongs to both groups. Barbara K., Dorah, and Jan are some of my Chicks.

The ladies worked efficiently together to get things organized. From the left: Ceil, a Stitch Angel, Barbara B. seated, is in both groups, Dorah is a Chick, Nancy, Maria, and the back of Gail are Angels.

Barbara K. on the far left in green kept a tally of everything for me. That's Jan A. in the red and black jacket.

Left to right: Nancy, Maria, Gail, and Ceil made sure the laundering instructions were 

included with the labels.

And there were many pieces of clothing to organize.

All in all, between the items being delivered to the South End Children's Cafe and the items that were hung at the library for the yarn bombing, we donated a total of 138 items, some of which were pairs so they really should count for double of some of the items.

We lucked out this year with a gorgeous day, unlike some of the past years that were rainy and raw.

This is the front parking lot of the Children's Cafe with cheerful paintings on the wall.

 

Tracy Killar, on the right, runs the cafe and gave us a tour of this wonderful facility. They address food security, food equality, food justice, and address academic success while also influencing physical and mental health of children ages 5 through 14. There is one professional chef and other staff members who love to cook who make wonderful meals. They serve about 40 dinners each night and even have some kids who have aged out come back to participate. 

That says a lot considering this is a "No Technology" setting for the children.

The living room just inside the entrance is a cozy gathering place for the children when they arrive.

The area where the children have their meals is set up like a regular restaurant, although the setup is moved for cleaning when they're not there.

They celebrate birthdays and holidays with colorful decorations.

The kitchen setup is suitable for the children to help too. 

They are provided healthy, balanced meals with fruit for dessert.

Every wall is covered with cheerful, positive messages.

Games and Legos are everywhere.

And there's even a homework center for academic enrichment.

Back row, left to right: Barbara B. Maggie, Barbara K., Tracy Killar of the South End Children's Cafe, Jan A., Dorah, Gail, Nancy

In front from the left: Ceil, Maria, and Miss Pearl of the Cafe

Once we returned to the library it was time to tie up the hats, scarves, cowls, mittens, etc. from the trees and railings in front of the building.

Our first customer took a warm hat and asked if we had a doggie coat for her pup. LOL!

The trees looked like they were decorated for Christmas.

Left to right: Stitch Angel Ceil, Chick Jan, Stitch Angel and Chick Barbara B., Stitch Angels Nancy and Maggie, Chicks Dorah and Barbara K. , and Stitch Angel Gail. And just some of the hats that were hung on the railing.

The ladies insisted we take one more picture so I could get in the shot too. I'm third in from the right.

After all that excitement, the ladies ( those who could join me) and I enjoyed some ice cream as a treat for all our work.

If you ever find yourself on Delaware Avenue in Albany stop by for a fabulous selection of desserts.

So there is another yarn bombing and donation for the books. A great big thank you to my Chicks and Angels. We've already begun the next cycle of knitting projects which will be hats and scarves for the Grassroots Givers. So have a good week and keep those needles clicking.