A few Christmas gifts...

Admittedly, these are not the best photos...in the rush to wrap them for Christmas and to finish them they got no proper picture taken. Isaiah snapped these as they were being opened. The penguin PJs for my niece have nice red buttons. Mom seemed to like the apron.

Branching Out

Here is a Christmas present for my mother. It is made of a wool/cashmere blend from the pattern Branching Out on knitty.com. I knit it on two plane rides--to and from Minnesota...quick and satisfying.

A Couple more finished projects....

I have used up most of my kitchen cotton on these coffee cup sleeves (I made 5 of them!) and on the kitchen towel (pattern from the second Mason-Dixon knitting book). These will be gifts, of course.

1. Finish Hailey's knucks.DONE
2. Finish my Dogwood Blossom Shawl.
3. Twirly Girl apron.
4. One other apron.
5. 24 party bags. DONE
6. Yoga socks. DONE (pictures to be taken and posted soon)
7. Golightly gloves and ballband washcloth. DONE
8. Coffee cup sleeves. DONE
9. Kitchen towel. DONE
10.

Golightly gloves and the Ballband washcloth

These are from Mason-Dixon Knitting (the washcloth from their first book and the gloves from their second). Perhaps the gloves are a bit frivolous, but Mark's mom uses rubber gloves all the time and I thought she might like them. A quick, unique knit and I do think she liked them.

So, here is my running total of projects now:

1. Finish Hailey's knucks.DONE
2. Finish my Dogwood Blossom Shawl.
3. Twirly Girl apron.
4. One other apron.
5. 24 party bags. DONE
6. Yoga socks. DONE (pictures to be taken and posted soon)
7. Golightly gloves and ballband washcloth. DONE
8. Coffee cup sleeves
9.
10.

Hailey's Knucks

So, I am done with Hailey's knucks and relieved, I would have to say. I am not very confident about the embroidery aspect of this project, but here it is. She looks happy with them! One more thing on my list that is done! Look for yoga socks in the next couple of days.

1. Finish Hailey's knucks.DONE
2. Finish my Dogwood Blossom Shawl.
3. Twirly Girl apron.
4. One other apron.
5. 24 party bags. DONE
6. Yoga socks.
7.
8.
9.
10.

Progress....

I have something to add to my project list....24 party bags for Isaiah's birthday. I don't have a photo, but they are simple squares of fabric (samples from SCRAP--precut and everything) sewn into little bags, filled with candy and tied shut. I think they count for one of my ten projects to be done before purchasing any books or magazines.

1. Finish Hailey's knucks.
2. Finish my Dogwood Blossom Shawl.
3. Twirly Girl apron.
4. One other apron.
5. Sew 24 party bags for Isaiah's birthday party. DONE
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.

1 down, 9 to go....

Another project...

Introducing the Koolhaas Hat. This pattern is from the 2007 Interweave Knits Gifts. I've eyed the pattern for most of the year, so when a friend emailed and asked for a hat to keep his head warm in Minnesota, I decided to make this. I used some random wool from New Mexico. Fun pattern and a nice way to experiment with a new stitch pattern a bit.

This year's holiday edition of Interweave Knit Gifts is out now and I am tempted by it. Nice shiny new ideas. Never mind that I have hundreds of "old" ideas that I have never executed yet. I seem to collect books and ideas instead of executing the ideas I already have. In order to combat this, I think it is time for another little game with myself. I, Lisa, do solemnly swear that I will not buy the latest edition of Interweave Knit Gifts until I have executed at least 10 of the ideas that I currently have. Here is a beginning list:

1. Finish Hailey's knucks.
2. Finish my Dogwood Blossom Shawl.
3. Twirly Girl apron.
4. One other apron.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.

I'll need to fill in the list as I go along, but this will definitely be a beginning! It should take me through the next month or the end of the year, depending on how many projects I get to. Wish me luck!

My Owlish fascination...

I have been enamored of owls lately. Thus, I decided to indulge myself by making this owl apron. It was inspired by a pattern I saw while at Stone Mountain and Daughters in Berkeley. I did not buy the pattern, but I did make up my own owl pockets for my very own apron. I'm pleased with the results.

Completed: Shetland Shorty!

This is the Shetland Shorty from Knitty. I used some cashmere that I had in my stash. Hailey had asked specifically for this sweater to wear with this dress. The browns match perfectly. We're both pleased!

Donut making, part 2

This is the eating part of the donut making. It was a nice way for us to end a week of work well done, to sit down and have donuts and cider together.

Donut making

Each October, when I was a little girl, as the weather cooled and the fall chill hit the air, my mom would make home made donuts. I would watch and anticipate the yummy goodness. She'd give them to us with cider or hot cocoa. I'm not sure if she intended to make such a memory, but every fall I think of donuts. This year, I've been thinking of them incessantly, even though it is only September. I decided the only cure was to make some. I've only made them one other time, but they were really quite easy and very yummy. I think they could become a fall tradition around the Scandrette home. In fact, I think they might show up at a yearly Halloween party we attend....

Our culinary adventures this week...

The kids were each in charge of a meal this week. On Monday Isaiah made pasta and sausages. On Thursday Hailey made a Thai coconut soup. On Tuesday, Noah made this....a beef potpie. He sauted beef, carrots, potatoes and onions and then cooked it in a mushroom soup. It all went into the crust and then into the oven for a while to brown the crust. It was wonderful! We'll be making that again.

Sock Monkey blanket

I have been gone from my blog for a while. I am working on a couple of lace projects that are taking me quite some time. Here is a blanket and matching hat I finished just yesterday for a baby shower. The pattern is from Stitch n Bitch Crochet: The Happy Hooker and was quite quick.

We vacationed in Palm Springs in August and while there, I made my usual stop at "Tuesday Morning". Eight balls of Angora found their way home with me, as well as two balls of a merino, alpaca, silk blend. The price was just too good and the yarn too lovely. Altogether it was 300 g. of yarn, cancelling out the yarn progress made by the sock monkey blanket. Well worth it, though, I think.

Drifting pleats finished

I am loving this book! It is full of unique techniques and I have lots of yarn that if just enough for a scarf, so I plan to work through lots of these designs. Here is my first--the Drifting Pleats scarf. It took 130 grams of Horstia Maulbeerseide-Schurwolle in 50% silk/50% wool. I love the sheen and the buttery softness. The pattern was fun to work and easy to remember after the first little bit.

Coming soon: Look for a sock monkey blanket!

A Flirty Ribbon Purse

This was a quick little number that I hope to line, fill with girly little purse items, and give to a niece for Christmas. I'm happy because (a) I think she'll really like it and (b) I finally figured out what to do with my "great deal" on ribbon yarn!

My first swap!

I participated in my very first swap on Ravelry (kinda like Facebook for fiber junkies for you uninitiated). For this particular swap, we were only supposed to swap from what was in our stashes and a homemade item. I feel overwhelmed with the beautiful things sent to me by my swap partner. A felted bag personalized with my name held a sachet, a soap, some lotion and homemade stitch markers. In addition, there were 3 skeins of alpaca yarn and 1 skein of linen/rayon yarn AND and knitted scarf. My swap partner went way above and beyond the call of duty!

Quick scarf

This is a scarf made from 100g of Feza Fanatic. No pattern, I just cast on 150 stitches and knit end to end until I ran out. I ended with about 4 inches of yarn left! If I did it again, I might cast on a few more stitches for a longer, narrower scarf. Regardless, I like it.

Swap Partner knitting

I knit these for a stash-only-swap that I participated in. They are the Anklets pattern from The Ultimate Sock Book by Vogue Knitting. I used 1 50 g. ball of Lana Grossa Meilenweit Cotton Fun. They were quick, easy and used only 1 ball! They were also a hit with my swap partner! I also decreased my stash by 56 grams of cashmere, given to my stash partner.

New way to play...

After attending the Maker Faire in May and trying my hand with handheld looms, I thought that I would see about ordering one for myself. Well, it turned out that they were more cash than I wanted to part with right now, so I turned to more resourceful means, and with Mark's help, fashioned a functional (though less beautiful) loom for $1. The loom makes 4" self finishing squares like you see above. Though I could stitch them together to make something larger, right now I am content just to admire the resourcefulness of these little squares in using up last little bits of yarn. They are acting as coasters right now...

A gift from the fabric stash

So, introducing an apron that I designed and made for my niece, Corrie, for her 6th birthday. She loves all things "princess-like" and she loves to cook. When we were visiting in February, she kept asking, "Aunt Lisa, did you make this for me?" as she brought things to me from her room. I decided I had better make the girl something as I had to keep answering "no." So, happy birthday to Corrie. I hope she enjoys many hours in the kitchen with her new, girly apron by Aunt Lisa.

My first skein of completed yarn!

So, this is my first full skein of handspun yarn, done on a drop spindle. The fleece type is unknown, but I washed the fleece, carded it and spun it myself! The yarn is its natural colors. It turned out to be worsted weight (about 10 wraps per inch), 48 grams, and 78 yards. So now I am anxious to knit with it! I am not sure what I can make with this amount, but stay tuned and you will soon see : ).

Double Cable Scarf

So, I really loved working with this Rio de Plata yarn. It is soft and I love the color variations. This scarf is from "One Skein" by Leigh Radford. I have made so many things from that book. The scarf ended up measuring 4 X 39", just about the size to wrap around your neck and tuck inside your coat. It will go in the gift stash for now until it finds a home.

Sunflower Tam

This is the Sunflower Tam from "Knitting Nature" by Norah Gaughan. I love this book, but this is the first project I've actually knit from it. I used Rio de Plata yarn in Autumn color. The hat took about 90 g of yarn. It was one of those great projects that is quick to knit, but fairly impressive looking. I love the fractal design on the top...I am working on a little scarf with the rest of the yarn. It is beautiful stuff to knit with and has some gorgeous depth of color. Stay tuned...

Presenting the pink elephant....

With the pink leftovers from the baby sweater, I made this little guy. I think it's cute in an odd sort of way. It took about 50 grams of yarn and now that pink is all gone--Yay! It gives me a sense of satisfaction to use things up.

Yarn Stash Depletion!

So, I just finished assembling a box to send to a middle school class in New York. I was able to usefully part with 567 grams of yarn, all in the time it took me to pack a box. I enjoy doing this from time to time and letting some avid young knitters access to materials that I have way too much of! I am spending the day back in my studio, relaxing after a busy week and tidying my studio and moving some things out so that it again feels like the room I love to spend time in! Happy Saturday.

Judy's Grandmother's Baby Sweater

The baby sweater is completed! This was a fairly quick and easy knit and made a 170 g dent in my stash. The recipient is yet unknown, so it will rest in the gift basket waiting for it's new owner! With the rest of the yarn, I am working on a garter stitch elephant. Perhaps it will accompany the sweater....

Easter treats

These little Eastery goods were made of little scraps from the scrap bag. Hailey will get the owlet and I'm not sure who the bunnies are for yet. I may still give one to each of the kids. I have one left to sew up. All of these are quick, easy and take very little yarn.

Fire Queen

Meet Fire Queen. She was a fun knit, made from Crystal Palace Kid Merino (1 ball) and red beads. I really enjoyed placing the beads. You'll have to look closely at the picture to see them. Look for the pattern at Knitty.com winter 2007/2008 issue.