Girasole

An alternate title for this post would be: 

“And now…for something completely different.”

I use it every once in while…just to keep things interesting!

In addition to making things out of wood, I also like to make things out of yarn.  My knitting mojo has been absent for the past year or so, with only a few tiny little projects coming off the needles.  However, back in April I went into a cute yarn shop in Mt. Vernon, WA, with a friend, and it was one of those good yarn shops, you know?  One that had all sorts of sample projects out to ooh and aah over, and to fall in love with.

Well, fall I did…and I fell hard.  The shop had a sample afghan made up from Brooklyn Tweed’s Girasole pattern.  It was gorgeous, and I wanted it! 

Wanted to make it, that is!

If you’ve ever knitted, you know that good yarn doesn’t come cheap.  I bought about the cheapest good yarn I possibly good (Cascade 220), but it still cost over $80 for this project. 

I justified it by making this afghan as a gift for my mother’s birthday (she doesn’t read blogs, so I’m not spoiling anything here).

I am so pleased with how this turned out.  It took me about a month to knit, but I didn’t get bored of it because the pattern changed frequently.  It’s just over 5 feet in diameter, so a nice lap- or back-of-the-couch size.

Am I tempted to keep it for myself?  Yes, ma’am.

But I won’t.

I think!

Do you knit?  You can find me on Ravelry as RedHen6.

 

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Linking up here:

Domestically Speaking	Elizabeth & Co.
	The Scoop!
My Simple Home Life’s Simple Creations Friday	A Little Knick Knack
Funky Junk’s Saturday Night Special	The DIY Show Off
Beyond the Picket Fence	Coastal Charm
Knick of Time Mod Vintage Life	My Uncommon Slice of Suburbia
Common Ground	My Repurposed Life
From My Front Porch to Yours	All Star Block Party

Legwarmers are back??

As a child of the 80s, I am very familiar with Legwarmers. How about you? Do you remember high-top shoes, stirrup pants, and legwarmers? Or at the very least, socks pulled over your stirrup pants?

I can't say that I was particularly sad...or that I even noticed...how legwarmers gradually fell out of popularity. But not too long ago, my sister and I visited a yarn store that had a sample knit up of the CUTEST legwarmers ever.

It may be time to bring them back!

I made these for my sister using some of my "stash" yarn. The pattern calls for a bulky yarn, and I used a worsted-weight held double. If I were to do it again...I would use it triple. However, then I wouldn't have had enough yarn, so I guess it's a moot point!

The pattern is Bulky Cabled Legwarmers with Buttons.

What do you think? Should legwarmers come back or be banned forever?

One thing at a time

I can only do one thing at a time...that is, I can only be obsessed with one thing at a time!

It can be reading. Or knitting. Or furniture-refinishing & decorating. Or cooking.

This winter....it is knitting.
(Okay, there's a little bit of reading thrown in.)

Here's a cute little hat my seven-year-old picked out. (She had to have a hat, since I made her older sister a beret.)



The pattern is "I Heart Pom-Poms," and it's FREE! (my favorite price)


One skein of yarn was enough for this hat, although not enough for the pom-poms. Instead, I picked some pink and green yarn from my stash and made multi-colored pom-poms!

I think she likes it. ;-)

Owlings

I am on a fingerless gloves kick! I found a great pattern on Ravelry, and it cried out to me to make it...

This is "Owlings." The rows of cables look like rows of little owls. I used seed beeds for eyes for one owl on each row. (Where are my fingers?? Curled up in there somewhere, I hope!)


Tied up in a ribbon, they made a fun "post-Christmas" gift for a good friend!

Someday I'll make some for myself!

I am RedHen6 on Ravelry, if you're interested in seeing some of my other projects.

My other hobby

When the snow started to fly, I gave up on the furniture refinishing for a little while, and moved indoors. That gave me a chance to pick up my other hobby, which is....

knitting!!

I learned to knit about four or five years ago. I taught myself to crochet from an instructional book, but knitting was different. I just didn't get it until I could watch someone do it. I walked into a yarn store in Ogden Utah (The Needlepoint Joint, if you're in the area), and one of the nice employees sat down with me and taught me what to do with those pointy sticks! I have been a fan ever since.

So here are some of my wintertime projects!

My baby turned three years old a couple of weeks ago. I finished her sweater about 1 a.m. on the morning of! That is, if you don't count the buttons! (I don't.)

Pattern: Tuckernuck by Elinor Brown

Then there was a Dragon Scarf for one son:

Pattern: Enchanted Dragon by Mary Triplett

And a pair of fingerless gloves for another son (suitable for playing basketball!). Please notice the tough-guy poses!

No particular pattern

These last fingerless gloves are on their way to a new owner as of tomorrow. They weren't exactly a Christmas present, but I did finish them on Christmas Eve! My daughter gets to be the hand model.

Pattern: Fetching by Cheryl Niamath

If you also knit, I am RedHen6 on Ravelry!

		http://redhenhome.blogspot.com/2010/12/pajama-pants.html