Deck knitting!

It was a beautiful, breezy afternoon of knitting outside today. It's been so hot and humid that I really haven't used the deck as much as in the past. No humidity and a light breeze made it a delightful time spent with my Chicks.

Barbara B. made a sourdough coffee cake to top it off with a touch of sweetness.

Jan started a blue Look Out! Winter Hat because she caught the startitis bug. I know how that feels! I currently have seven projects on needles. No one ever said I was a monogamous knitter!

She has also made progress on her Wee Bean cardigan. We're all very proud of her as this is her third sweater and she matched the stripes on the sleeves! Great job Jan!

I'm working on the Leaf and Lace Cardigan from a book of eight different patterns. If I have enough yarn left I will knit the matching hat.

Maureen was bored with knitting the Totally Biased Cowl and decided to cast on for her Look Out! Winter Hat. This is a potato chip pattern, can't make just one. ;)

Nancy's Reverb Shawl looks like it's getting close to the finish line. I said it before and I'll say it again, I love those colors!

Barbara B. finished the Hill 60 hat and immediately cast on for the...

Upward Bound Hat, designed by Benjamin Matthews. He designs nice patterns for hats that could be gender neutral. There was a post about it on Facebook that it would be free for a limited time so we both grabbed a digital copy of the pattern. 

Cinzia is knitting the bonnet from the same pattern book as my Lace and Leaves sweater. She already finished the sweater.

Dorah has reached the crown portion of her sparkly hat where she now begins decreasing however,

her yarns became a tangled knot so I helped to untangle while she supervised. LOL! 

In recognition of the recent 2024 Olympics, we celebrated our victory over the knots.

 Now she can finish her hat.

I need to get back to my knitting so I can whittle down the list of projects. 

Have a great week and keep those needles clicking!

It was a laugh riot today!

I don't know what was in the air today but the energy was electrifying with my Chicks today. Dorah's entrance set the mood and we laughed for two hours straight.

Nancy, Margaret, and Barbara K shared pictures of their grandchildren, two infants and a preteen in that order. We shared stories of when our own kids were little and the challenges and fun times we had with them and how satisfying it is to watch some of them raising littles of their own.

And of course I couldn't forget Barbara B's sourdough lemon loaf! 

Another successful delicious dessert she shared with us. 

Barbara also completed two more Look Out! Winter Hats. The yellow one is a bit smaller than...

the blue one. Or maybe it's just my imagination, but the blue hat was easier to stuff with the ball filler.

I completed one also but in the largest size, possibly for a mother from the group to whom we donate.

Dorah made progress on her Leftie Scarf which she is keeping for herself. She bought a kit which contains mini skeins of all the different colors of yarn she needs to complete the scarf. It's even prettier in person. Her donation project is further down the list.

Margaret got the hang of those dang yarnovers and is showing progress with her Twig Bonnet. She was concerned about the edge curling but a thorough blocking should help it to lay flat.

Nancy's Reverb Shawl has grown a lot since last week. I love, love, love the colors!

Barbara K has been having a busy summer traveling with family members and enjoying Lake George so she needed a project that would be easy enough to unwind. Enter "The Mistake Stitch Scarf", a perfect pattern for a relaxing project.

Here is Dorah's donation project I mentioned earlier. She is using two glitter sock weight yarns held together to knit a basic beanie. The little bit of sparkle adds some flare!

Janna finished four hats and has another in progress. She's cranking them out quickly!

Maureen has finally hit a new color in her skein of yarn for the Totally Biased Cowl.

Jan was fretting over the underarm of the Wee Bean cardigan she's knitting. She didn't like the holes that were forming from picking up stitches to knit the sleeve. We all reassured her that she can go back and duplicate stitch them closed and no one will be the wiser. ;)

Barbara B just started the worsted weight version of the  Hill 60 hat. It's a freebie on Ravelry and also has the same pattern in versions for other weights of yarn.

The Benevolent Overlord is beckoning me for a meal so until next week...

keep those needles clicking!

Missing my photographer today

My husband had appointments today so we didn't get a group photo. But I did get a picture of Barbara B's homemade Brown Butter Sourdough Chocolate Chip Cookies! They were a hit! So chewy and not overly sweet while the chocolate just melted in my mouth. We are so spoiled! Thank you Barbara!

Barbara started the Isobel Bonnet which has this raised geometric border.

She is using an easy wash and dry acrylic baby yarn which was donated to the group.

It does match this Wee Anna Lynn sweater, contrary to what you see. The yarn is more buttery yellow like this sweater. One of these days I'll get the lighting right for a truer color. Both the hat pattern and sweater pattern are free on Ravelry.

Nancy didn't like the impracticality of an open lace cowl which she had started last week. So she frogged it to make this Poyeng's Cable Scarf, 

which describes itself as being a pattern every knitter can knit.

Margaret designed another hat using a raised diamond motif. She is saving the decreasing portion for when she is alone at home with no distractions.

Here are two of the FO's she brought with her this week, a Helix Hat and her own design.

Cinzia brought some FO's too. This little jumper can be worn as a dress until the wee one grows too tall and then pop a sweater under it to be worn as a tunic.

She added a pair of booties and a cute striped pullover to the inventory too.

Jan is ready to bind off the bottom edge of her Wee Bean and then pick up the sleeve stitches to complete the cute cardigan.

Janna had so much Katia Superwash yarn in this lovely magenta that she started a hat to go with...

her completed Someday Baby Blanket. 

We all ooohed and ahhhed at the beautiful job she did on this project.

The Helix bug bit me this week too so I grabbed some leftovers of Plymouth Encore DK yarn and got to work. I love how the colors play with each other.

The yellow yarn was left over from this little hat that I made up as I knitted along.

Well, you're all caught up with our projects. Check back next Tuesday when my grandson will be visiting. Maybe he'll let me sneak a photo of him. He's probably taller than me by now. My oldest grandson towers over me at over 6 feet now. 

Have a great week and keep those needles clicking!

Summer is here!

I put one foot out on the deck and made the executive decision to gather inside today. It was much too hot to expect anyone to knit with wool on a day like this. We saw pictures of Nancy's newborn granddaughter. What a precious baby! Dorah regaled us with the adventures she had with her children on their trip to London where they attended a Mets game. And then we shared our FO's.

Barbara B. finished her baby ensemble. The sweater is the Simple Toddler Cabled Cardigan. She made a hat to match using Marianna's Cabled Hat pattern which comes in multiple sizes from baby to adult. The hat is knitted flat according to the directions but Barbara didn't want to have to sew a seam so she converted the project to be knitted in the round.

Carole finished the Wee Bean and found cheerful yellow buttons for it. She's going to give it a steam blocking and sew the buttons and it will be ready for inventory.

Dorah is hooked on the LOSY hats! 

She added one to the inventory today and immediately cast on for another.

Carole finished the Totally Biased Cowl. She used James C. Brett Marble Chunky yarn to knit it flat and graft the short ends together and still has enough yarn left over to make another.

The mail was delivered while the Chicks were here and I opened the package my grandsons sent from Pennsylvania. It contained a skein of 100% Baby Alpaca yarn in my favorite colors. They know me so well! We all had a chance to pet it before I decide what to make with it.

Dorah finished one sleeve on her baby cardigan and started the second before she decided to frog it back so she can make it match the other one.

I worked on the sleeves of my Oh Baby! Cardigan.

By the end of the two hours we met, the sleeves were done. It needs a steam blocking and then I have to either look for buttons or make my own.

Barbara K. cast on stitches for a scarf. We'll have to see what pattern it is next week.

Margaret added some rounds to her original design hat using bits of yarn left from bigger projects.

Janna's Someday Baby Blanket is a slow going project but the yarn and pattern are beautiful together.

Nancy started the Slip Stitch Cowl, a free pattern on Ravelry.

She chose two lovely, soft pastel colors for it.

Barbara B. is working on Bella by KnitsDuNord, a paid pattern on Ravelry.

It has a sweet little lace front. 

She's using a Cascade superwash fingering weight yarn that is soft as a cloud.

As everyone got up to leave we noticed we had company the whole time and no one knew he was there. His bed sits in the corner of the dining room where we meet and no one saw him sneak in. I think Fozzie is finally warming up to my Chicks and likes to be a part of the action.

It only took three years! LOL! 

Stay cool while you knit and crochet, have a good week and keep those needles clicking!