My Moose is 7? How can that be? And knitting, of course!

 Last Saturday I helped Moose, my favorite big boy grandson, celebrate his 7th birthday. I can't believe he's 7 already! He is growing up so fast.

He was awarded "Celebrity of the Month" in his class at school. He is in first grade but also second grade, so his teacher, Mrs. Malinowski, commended him on his superb juggling skills between subjects. We are all so proud of him!

 Uncle Drew paid a rare visit to Pennsylvania too so he had some serious catching up time with his nephew.

 And some serious playtime with his other nephew, Leo, as Poppop joined in the game.

Dinnertime and celebration time with my favorite little boys. What could be better than that?!

 On Tuesday the Chicks and I got back to business with our knitting. Kathleen's daughter did have the perfect buttons for her cardigan from last week's post. 

 Now Kathleen is working on a sweater vest, a pattern from her archives.

 The back is almost finished. She is using a heathered yarn from Plymouth Encore.

 Kathleen's Chinook scarf from last week is finished too. She blocked it when she finished knitting and it made a world of difference. If you don't believe in blocking you should read this from Stephanie Pearl McPhee.

 

 My Olivia Cowl is ready to go into inventory. I used Cascade 220 yarn because it shows the stitch definition so nicely.

 I'm still working on a linen stitch infinity scarf. I think this is a Malabrigo yarn. It is a very soft single ply yarn and the colors are a great picker-upper.

 I am also working on a stealth project about which I can't say much other than I knitted both mittens at the same time on two sets of needles. Having only one set of size 6 DP's, I had to use 2 size 6 circs to knit the other mitten. By knitting them simultaneously I can assure they are both the exact same length and gauge. This is also a good way to avoid sockitis, or mittenitis in this case. That's when you knit one sock, or mitten, and then you suddenly realize you have to do it all over again and you don't really want to. I tried the Magic Loop method but I hate fiddling with the long cables.

 And here they are, exactly the same! Some day I'll tell you about the time I made three baby 

socks, no two the same size.

 This is the second time I made Foolproof using the last of the baby alpaca yarns I used in the first one I made months ago.

 The directions say it starts without casting on and finishes without binding off! I wasn't sure how that was done but if you want to know you'll have to try one yourself. It was a really fun pattern to knit and one that was good for TV knitting but still interesting enough to hold my attention.

 Carole added another hat to the inventory this week. Look at those beautiful cables!

 Now she is working on a baby sweater...

 in a pretty soft pink.

 Beth wore her newest creation. 

 I had a heck of a time getting a good photo of it though. It's really pretty!

 Now she is working on Brickless to add to our donations.

We should be wrapping up these projects soon and then we're all going to make baby clothes!

Button, button, who's got the button?

We start today's show and tell with some finished items from Kathleen. Her favorite child's sweater pattern is from Cabin Fever. She used extra yarn to make a matching hat. Now all she needs are buttons to complete the ensemble. We looked through my three button boxes but couldn't find what she needs. They were either the right size, wrong color or there weren't enough. Back to the store. Or maybe Kathleen could raid her daughter's button collection....hmmm...

 Kathleen's Chinook Scarf was a quick and easy knit. She enjoyed it so much that...

She has already cast on for a second one!

 Kathleen's lady's vest sweater was another quick knit. If I remember correctly, you knit a flat front and a flat back, and then you sew the pieces together. Very little shaping involved and you have a smart looking vest. If knitted in a spring or summer weight yarn, it would make a cute summer T-shirt.

 While searching through our donated stash of yarn, Beth found a Berroco yarn called "Jaspar". We had quite a few skeins of it. Do you remember her never-ending scarf from a few months ago? Well, there was so much yarn left over that Beth was able to knit this Calorimetry headband/earwarmer.

 It contours as it rounds the back of the head. She also made...

 a nice warm hat and....

 a pair of fingerless mitts. I have had to take an oath that if I find any more Jaspar yarn I am to burn it on site immediately! LOL! While she says it's a lovely yarn, I think maybe Beth is a bit tired of knitting with Jaspar. 

Ya think?

 Remember I told you Carole would have her Olivia Cowl finished this week?

 Here it is all blocked and lovely.

 And one final treat to show you. Beth is knitting a pillow cover from our friend's book,

 Knits of a Feather, by Celeste Young. The pattern is different on the back but I didn't think to get a photo of it. It's going to be gorgeous!

Well, it's back to the knitting needles for me. I need to finish something to post for next week.

Knitting til the "cowls" come home!

Carole's Olivia Cowl is growing quickly. She is almost finished with the knitting and then comes grafting the two ends together to make it an infinity scarf. There are many videos on YouTube to teach kitchener stitch or grafting live ends together. This is just one that shows grafting in garter stitch.

 Dorah regaled us with wonderful stories of her recent vacation to Israel and Prague. The worst thing to happen to her was that early on in the trip she lost her knitting! OH NO! I'd have to return home. LOL! Now that she is back home she has her pick of yarn and needles and so she continues where she left off on a ribbed hat.

 I showed you Carole's Bridger Cowl last week when it was newly finished and just needed to be blocked. Here it is all blocked and looking wonderful.

 I finished the Reversible Stripes Scarf the other day.

It never ceases to amaze me how the stripes go in opposite directions on either side! 

 I finished up a cute little cowl last week called Get to the Point. I used Berroco Quasar yarn, a bulky weight, slow changing colorway. The original pattern shows it much larger so it can be stretched down over the shoulders to be worn like a small capelet. I decided to keep it small for use as a cowl. At first I didn't really like the looks of it but now that it's finished and I see it being worn I like it!

As my late mother used to say whenever we went clothes shopping, "Try it on. Nothing looks good on a hanger!"

Listen to your inner voice!

Have you ever started a project without a pattern and right from the start you knew something just wasn't quite right? I planned on making a man's scarf using a Cascade 220 denim colored wool and wanted a reversible, warm stitch that had some interest to it. I finally decided on a Brioche stitch and cast on what I thought was a reasonable number of stitches. Too narrow! Ok! Start again! Knit a few inches...too wide! Alrighty then! Start one more time with fewer stitches. I knit happily along for 6 inches or so, all the while thinking to myself that maybe this is still a little bit too wide. Nah! It's for a man! Men need manly sized scarves! Against my better judgement I knitted blithely along to a good 12 or 13 inches long and looked back, admiringly at my work to see a blip in a row a couple of inches back. Hmmm.... I'll just tink back and fix it. NOT! Well, I did tink back without a problem but after knitting back to my original length there was now a HUGE blip across the whole row! It was the Knitting Goddesses telling me to forget this project and make something else with this yarn. So the whole week's worth of knitting was frogged and I cast on for a Mistake Stitch Scarf. When am I going to learn to listen to my inner voice?!!!

This week Carole put the finishing touches on her Bridger Cowl. The last few rows were finished before evening's end and now it just needs a gentle blocking.

 Carole and I both bookmarked the same cowl for another project and since I was feeling bored with my current projects and was itching with startitis, we both cast on for this Olivia Cowl, a freebie on Ravelry.com.

 This cowl starts with provisional cast on. Carole's favorite method casts the stitches directly on to your knitting needle. I have mastered the first two methods in this video and find that by casting the stitches directly on to an extra circular needle, I can graft the stitches at the end of the project without then having to stop to pick up the stitches from the crochet chain.

No, we are not having a race! LOL! But this is how much knitting Carole and I accomplished last night. The top cowl in green is Carole's and the bottom one is mine. You can see the two different methods of provisional cast on we used.

 I worked a bit last night after Carole left and a bit more this morning. I think I'm really going to like this cowl!

 Now I need to go back to my fingering weight reversible stripes scarf and finish it off before...

startitis strikes again!
And a quick look at my two favorite little boys who came to visit me this weekend. We took Moose and Leo to the MiSci Museum in Schenectady, NY for their temporary exhibit on butterflies. I have an unnatural fear of butterflies which stems from a childhood nightmare but I mustered up my courage and accompanied them to the museum. Much to my delight, neither of the boys wanted to see the butterflies but did offer to stop for a cute photo op.

I'll take these butterflies anytime!

Everything is white outside but inside....

 I love these frigid cold days when the sun shines so brightly that it casts sharp shadows of the bare trees against the pure white snow-covered hills. I love to wrap myself in my hand knitted scarves and hats and venture out to see the beauty in the cold.

But I know not everyone shares my sentiments. This is for all my friends who are sick of winter. My orchids brighten the inside just as the sun brightens the outside.

I hope this helped to brighten your day.

Carole and I had a few finished pieces to show you this week. I completed the fingering weight scarf with the keyhole. It is knitted with The Great Adirondack Yarn Company (the multi-colored) sock weight yarn and my friend's hand dyed yarn, Periwinkle Sheep- Mallards by the Boathouse (the dark green). The pattern is my own.

I was inspired by two different patterns to make this ear warmer. I adapted a headband pattern and then googled a crochet flower tutorial on YouTube for the adornment. It's a great way to use up those leftover balls of yarn in your stash.

My linen stitch cowl is finished too. I knitted this flat with I-cord edges and then grafted the live ends together to make it seamless. I have some of this yarn left so I'm going to have to find a solid yarn to work with it to make another scarf.

Here is my go-to pattern for a very quick knit. It's called Totally Biased and it's free on Ravelry.com. It calls for a bulky weight yarn and I think looks great if the colors are variegated. This is also knitted flat and grafted together to make it seamless. This was such a quick knit that I finished it in two days of knitting.

Carole's headband-ear warmer looks so warm and cozy! Her stitch definition is beautiful and really shows off that big cable nicely. Turban'd is a free pattern on Ravelry.com too. It doesn't take a lot of yarn so here is another use for those leftover bits of yarn that you don't know what to make.

Her next project is this lovely cowl called The Bridger Cowl, another free pattern.

The front has a pointy bandana style contour.

You can see it better from the back. I can't wait to try this one too.

But first I have to finish this Reversible Stripes Scarf, using the leftover yarn from the keyhole scarf I showed you earlier in this post.

Whether you are snowed under or enjoying warm weather, I hope my orchids helped to lift your spirits. I'm going to sneak out for another brisk walk before I settle down to finish this scarf.

Ripples and Ridges and Ribbing , Oh My!

The afternoon Chicks, Barbara, Kathleen, and me, were the only knitters today. Our evening group was otherwise occupied. But I'm sure wherever they were they were knitting, right ladies? LOL!

When Barbara started her work this afternoon she was almost done with a dorm slipper.

 By closing time she was finished and only had to seam the bottom sole and up the back. She used a sturdy acrylic yarn which will withstand lots of machine washing.

 This hat matches the scarf Kathleen brought in last week, you know, the pretty lacy scarf. The doubled brim will keep ears nice and warm.

Kathleen also brought in a finished cowl she made using a bulky yarn from Tahki Yarns. It's a lovely tweed.  

 I finished a scarf this week called Chinook. It used to be a free pattern on Ravelry but now is a purchase. I used Aslan Trends Invernal yarn. It's an angora and merino blend with a touch of nylon. Verrrry soft! Also very fluffy. You can tell by my red itchy eyes!

 After searching through my stitch pattern books I found a ripple stitch I liked to make a scarf using some stash yarn. I started it with the colorful yarn on the right, The Great Adirondack Yarn Company sock yarn. After a few inches I realized you couldn't really see the ripples so I knew I needed a contrasting yarn to highlight the pattern. Back into the stash I dove and pulled out the perfect Periwinkle Sheep Watercolors II sock yarn called Mallards by the Boathouse. I think it's a perfect blend of colors.

I love it when an idea works!