A year later - 2nd sock completed - bedrest project #12

I woke up this morning with the idea to complete something that had been suffering at the bottom of my WIP bins....So - I cast on and cranked out this sock. I decided to take the risk. First of all - I have a lot of 1/2 made socks - not because i dont' want to finish them but because I used to knit twisted :( and these socks are all made with a twisted knit stitch. you can really tell when you put the sock on - it makes this very tight ridges. This sock is in this vein. But I thought with it being worsted weight - and probalby just my around the house socks - it doesn't matter. And I'm not enough of a perfectionist in this instance to do the other sock over.

So - 9p or so today it's done. 2 socks. One twisted, one not. The non-twisted looks a lot better to me. But they are both warm and comfy. They are knitted in Stahl Big Print sock yarn. My own pattern - 44 stitches with a short (10 row) ankle and a 2X2 ribbing which goes into the instep.

Now to get my next worsted socks on the needles...... I'm going to make the Elizabeth Zimmerman's woodman's socks. I got another one of her books - Knitting Around and I also found the pattern in her newsletters books. It's a pretty basic pattern, but I wanted to see now the garter stitch in the heel works out. Also - it's a longer sock than I usually make. Maybe this will be the pattern I make for dad.

SWTC karaoke triple cable muffler - bedrest project #11

More stash busting! I had this 1/2 way knitted as a felted bag, but I like it much better as this muffler. You can really see the striping in the yarn, subtle but nice. This yarn is soft and springy as well. Very nice. I can see a nice shell or sweater in this, my sister used it for a project and her project turned out nice. I like it in this muffler. Once again w/ skiens left over. What to do with them......

Bly Sky Alpacas Triple Cable Muffler - Bedrest Project #10

Another muffler. This is a quick satifying project. The Bly Sky Alpaca organic cotton is so soft and lovely to work with. This is like a lemongrass color - green and yellow almost golden. I have 2 skeins left, wonder what to make a matching hat or socks......

More to come...

For the following Bestrest Projects - still on the needles. I switch them around so I don't get bored!! :)

- Shepherd's Sport Socks in Aslan - using the Oak Ribbed pattern in Knitting vintage socks - I'm on the heel on the first sock. Knitted on Size 1s.
- After Bertha Socks knitted with a handpainted purple yarn from Red Barn Farms (I think) found them on eBay a while ago. Completed one sock, started the 2nd. These are being knitted on size 1s.
- After Bertha Socks in Liisu sock yarn. 80% done with the first sock. On size 0s. Can do this one too much, strains the eyes and fingers!
- Triple Cable Muffler in BS Organic Cotton on Size 6 needles. The pattern calls for size 9s, but this must be a misprint. I got the perfect gauge on both scarves with 6 needles.
- Dug out a Feather and Fan shawl I had stopped making in Jaegar Trinity. It's a future gift shawl, might finish it now if I'm so motivated. Size 7 needles.
- Jada tubies in LB Magic Strip yarn, some scraps I had left over from a shawl I made. Just make up another baby tube sock pattern. After jada arrives, if these all work well, I'll have to write these patterns up...Making them on Size 2 needles.
- Ribbed socks made with a Lana Grossa striped yarn. Found this in the bottom of a bin. Had one sock done, and had for some reason stopped on the heel with the second sock. I've picked them back up and knitted down to the gusset, I guess about 1/2 way.
- Grandma's Checkered lace shawl in KnitPicks laceweight alpaca/silk yarn. I want this baby for me - so it's the one I'm spending the least time on right now. I really want to enjoy this shawl when completed. The yarn is lovely and it will be so soft and light. I'm taking my time with her. :)
- Need to start some socks for dad...

I guess that's enough. How many will I complete before Jada arrives:) How many will I start... Most of these are just stocking up on Christmas gifts. I'll be well stocked this year, no last minute rushing for me. The only item I'm procrastinating on starting is a baby blanket as a shower gift for a coworker. The blankets are a bit tedious for me. So I'm pausing before I tackle this one. I think it may have to be an after Jada project - when she's not sleeping at night!! :)

Triple Cable Muffler - Bedrest Project #9

So I got a little tired making socks and found this pattern in the book One Skein. It is for a short little, cute muffler that they recommend you make out of Blue Sky Alpaca's Organic Cotton yarn. I started one with that yarn, some I had in Lemongrass (I think is the color, a yellowy green) but then I started another one in some Mission Falls 1824 cotton I had and for some reason this is the one I finished first. I like the nubby, boucle type feel of the yarn. I didn't think I'd like knitting with it at first because it wasn't as soft as the BS Organic Cotton, but it is soft and I like it a lot. Too bad, I thought these would be gifts, but I think I like both of them for me. :)

Ignore the braids and the yucky t-shirt. I am on bedrest after all!!!!!

Janeen Afterthought Heel Socks - Bedrest Project #8

So - I had never made Janeen socks. I had made her house slippers but not socks. So I took a Lorna's Laces Shepherd Worsted in Bittersweet and made these. It is my first socks with an afterthought heel and boy is it fast to make with worsted weight! I like the afterthought heel, although I had to redo the first one a few times to get it right. I just followed Elizabeth Zimmerman's instructions, no pattern, and it worked out. The socks are a bit big, but I wanted to err on the side of being generous so she can grow into them.

Again - sort of my own pattern. I started with 40 stiches on size 5 needles. Ribbed for a while, made a small ankle area - then I put in the waste yarn. then I knitted for 8", and then put in a toe. I went for a shaped toe instead of a round toe like I normally do and I actually completed the Kitchner's stitch!!! I found a visual on kitty.com b/c I was too dense to figure out insert the need in "knit" wise or "purl" wise. Didn't make any sense to me until I saw the step by step on knitty. Then it made perfect sense!! Know I can graft along with the best. Although it's going to have to grown on me. I likes my round toe!!

Jada's Cream Tube Socks - Bedrest Project #7

This was one of the one skein of sock yarn I had that I had picked up on clearance. Not enought for adult socks, but makes a perfect baby set. With enough to make bigger ones when she is older!

It's my own made up pattern - noting special, just ribbing, stockenette and a toe!!

Jada's Basketweave Baby Blanket - Bedrest Project #6

So I have been working on this for a while - it's a simple Basketweave pattern I found on the internet but I made it with Zarina Print yarn. The yarn is a superwash merino, and very, very, very soft and springy. It wasn't a long project - but I managed to string it out. I made it not too long so that it would be a good size for the stroller and car seat - and it folds up fairly small.

Jada's "Classy Baby Blanket" - Bedrest Project #5

This is a pattern called 'Classy Baby Blanket' from Morehouse Knits. And while I have the yarn from the company too and started it - the yarn had a LOT of straw and materials in it. It made it so slow to knit. Plus - it's not superwash. SO I got some Cascade superwash and made this one, it went really fast and I just love the colors and softness. I need to find some satin to hem the sides since it curls as it is all done in stockenette. In the pure wool, it would be less of an issue b/c after washing it it would slightly felt, at least that's what I will do with it when I get around to that version.

Liisu Sock in progress - Bedrest project #4

So - still on the bedsock craze I started two with real sock-weight yarn versus worsted. much slower going.....but faster than socks with a heel :)

This one is with a really nice wook/mohair yarn made by Liisu. I love the colors - soft blues, lavendars, yellows and greens. Handpainted, nice mix of colors I haven't seen in any other handpainted yarns. And handpainted yarns are a major weakness for me. I also started one in a purple handpainted yarn (see a major weakness) made by Red Barn Farms - a yarn I found on ebay. I had made a crochet shawl with it but it turned out to be too small. So I frogged it and it is now becoming lovely socks. It's mostly made of purple colors (various shades) but every once in a while there is a suprise of royal blue. I need to get a pic of the sock in progress - but I doubt you will see the blue show up. That's a shame, I need to get better pics of these yarns, they are just so lovely.

Jada Tubies - Bedrest project #3

So knitting tube socks for mom and as a gift got me thinking about small tubies for Jada. I have lots of clearance 1 skein of sock yarn balls that I got for kids socks, since it's too little for adult socks. But hadn't use them. So I got some of the balls out and started experimenting. I found a pattern for a feather and fan sock with a heel on the internet. So I used the leg pattern and turned it into a tube sock with a round toe.

More gift bedsocks - Bedrest project #2

And so I started another set of bed socks with some Shepard's Worsted I had. Another super soft worsted, superwash wool. It's fuzzyier and thicker than Supermerino. But just as yummy. I'm not sure I like the color mix as much, but it made very comfortable socks!

Mom's Bed Socs - Bedrest Project #1

While on bedrest - I have been working on my knitting! So one project was socks that I promised my mom since Christmas last year. I knitted one, but one was really, really smaller than the other so they needed to be reknitted. Plus - I had discovered my twisting the knit stitch, and I wasn't about to knit the smaller one again with a twisted stich. So I reknitted them in a bed sock pattern. Basically a tub sock with a twisted rib stitch, and NO HEEL. Nice and fast, especially with worsted Super Merino. The twisted rib helps it stay on the heel properly. They knitted up fast and are oh so soft. The Artyarns Supermerino is a super wonderful yarn for worsted, it's so smooth it doesn't feel like wool but sort of like cotton actually. But with the springyness of wool - hard to explain if you haven't experienced it. Nice and warm too, but not too hot. Pricy, but I guess you get what you pay for.

How do you spell boring.....B.E.D.R.E.S.T

Well there isn't much better to do while on best rest than to knit and crochet. So stay tunned for lots of knitting & crochet pics. Then of course.....baby Jada will be here and I'll be on a happy break. But I will definately get my fill before she arrives.

36 weeks and counting!!!

On a roll.....

More pins!!

More gift pins......

Here are the full set of pins I completed today. I have a bit of trouble getting some of the beads I bought to fit on the pins :( I need to find a way to use them b/c some of them I really like. But these turned out better than I thought!

Gift Scarf/Shawl Pins

I finally got the beads to start working on my scarf/shawl pins. This year I want to have a handmade pin for each scarf/shawl that I give. Here are my first two experiements!


This is a purple pin, for my purple crochet scarf.









This is a green and turquoise pin that goes with the Caribbean scarf.

Making the most of it

I have had a yucky cold since Thursday. And on top of being 8 months pregnant - I'm not a happy camper. But I decided to make the most of it and wrap up some Christmas gifts. I am trying to get done before Jada Cherie arrives because she will take priority over knitting and crochet after her arrival!

I also had to change strategy. I wanted to make shawls this year, but shawls take too long. So - I decided to knock out some lace scarves. Lighter and prettier than a "normal" scarf, I thought the giftees may appreciate something that while still functional will be able to be worn longer in the year and dressier as well.

This scarf is made with 100% Cashmire yarn that I had been looking at for over a year. It finally was on clearance and I got 2 balls (all I wanted to spend) so I really couldn't do anything else with it except make a scarf. this one, while short, still took 2 balls! It's very, very soft and lovely. But I just can't afford to work with the stuff very much at those prices.










This scarf is a quick crochet project - started and completed while down with the cold. It is a chrochet lace pattern by Jan Eaton I love. I made a shawl with this patter earlier this year. It's quick and pretty. The yarn is Jaeger Matchmaker 4-ply. It's nice and soft merino. Easy to work with.











This is a tweed fingering weight yarn I ordered from yarn.com. I absolutely love the color. It's 2 ply yarn, a little cruncy but not overly so. I need to soak and block the scarf and see if it softens up some. I want to make a shawl with the yarn I think. I just love the vibrancy of the color.

Grandma's Checkerboard Lace - My latest obsession

I found this pattern in the book "Best of Knitters: Shawls and Scarves" called "Grandma's Checkboard Lace". And I guess b/c it's easy and rather mindless, easy to rip out and correct - I've fallen in love with it. I made a lace scarf and shawl. And I have 2 more shawls in progress. It works nice with both sportweight and lace weight yarn.

The Scarf is made out of Knit Picks Lace yarn Glossamer, color is Caribbean.It was nice to work with - easy and faster than I thought. I made it with size 6 needles. Th e orignal pattern calls for Size 7 needs and sportweight yarn. The merino in the yarn looks like it might pill eventually, so I don't think I would make it in a shawl. I am making a shawl now using KnitPicks Shimmer. The silk added to the yarn makes it seem less likely to pill over time.



The shawl is made with Koigu, one of the yummiest yarns imaginable! It is so soft. I made it with size 7 needles. I made it a bit shorter than the pattern calls for - and it took 6 hanks of Koigu. Boy is it nice. This is a gift shawl, but I promptly started one with pinks, purples and greens for me!

Shawls, Shawls, Shawls

I'm posting some items I've completed a while a go. The first is a crochet ripple shawl made with Brown Sheep Nature Spun Fingering. It was nice to work with and a smooth yarn. I worked it from a cone so no ends to have to work in except the beginning and end of the shawl. Lots of yarn left over too!



The second is a shawl made from yummy, soft Blue Sky Alpaca's Cotton yarn. It's a simple stockenette stich with a seed stich border, but is so soft. Quick to knit too. This has become our church shawl. My daughter and I are always cold, and this is perfect for wrapping up against the chill! I made it pink because I expect to use it as an emergency blanket as well with Jada when she arrives and when nursing.



I have some more pics to upload, but am trying to get caught up on the blog!