The 40 Baby Hat Challenge

Remember when I made those baby hats for the Storytime Baby Dolls at work?  Well, I've been asked to make more for the Storytime Baby Dolls at the other library branches.  That's 10 branches times 4 dolls each!  So I'll be making 40 hats!  My plan is to make 4 a week.  I made 4 this week and 4 last week so if I stay on track I should be done by July 16th!  I'm taking a sock knitting class in June so that might slow me down a bit but we'll see.

I'm using Magic Loop and it is the best!  I'm never making baby hats with DPN's again.  ML is so fast and easy.

I've combined my stash of acrylic which I'll probably never use and 3 pastel skeins from work.  I'm not sure if it will be enough.  I doubt I will use the black.  Kind of dour for a baby doll.

Right now I'm using 2 patterns.  The Baby Bear Hat (without the ears) and the LCD Basic Hat Free.  I might change it up if I get super bored but I don't really wanna do anything to that might extend my project estimate.  

Below is the first set of hats that I made last week.  I really love the I Love This Yarn Stonewash line.  On the doll is the Mint Lace color.  I also have the other colors available: Coraline, Deep Violet and Denim.  They knit up so pretty and look a bit fancier then the solid color acrylic, I think.  Almost like hand-dyed yarn :)

The neon was really reflecting the light so I had to take a separate pic for fun lol.

These are the hats I made this week.  I'm sticking with my fave colors so far but I guess I better start knitting up the pastels (yuck).  

Here's Pokey at Gran's yesterday.  He really wanted her attention!  That sad stare!  LOL

I Am A Teenage Mutant Hat, Antler Toque and other FO's

I finished the orange Antler Toque for my friend Ian!  I like the way it turned out even tho it's super bright!  I made the largest size and cast on 106 stitches but I only did the cable pattern for 8 rounds instead of the recommended 9.  I think it looks better and will fit better.  I love this pattern and will probably make it again as a go to gift hat.

 

 

 

We got this amazing book at the library!

 

I immediately copied the patterns for the hats I Was A Teenage Mutant and Suture.  I used some beautiful yarn.  Malabrigo Rios in English Rose and it knits like a dream!

 

 

I've finished with the body but I need to finish the closure in kitchener stitch and I'm super worried that I'm going to screw it up!

 

I started this cute Owl Beanie while I was waiting for a flat to be fixed.  It's a free pattern on Ravelry.  It's made with Malabrigo Arroyo in Arco Iris.  

 

 

I love the little owls!  I immediately cast on 30 extra stitches because I knew 90 wouldn't be enough in a DK weight for my big ole head.  I worked the pattern till I finished the owls because I couldn't resist!  I could tell tho that it was still too small so after two false starts with 150 and 140 I settled on 130 and I'm just gonna keep going until it's done!  I think it'll fit me ok.  It sucks with a 10 stitch repeat because there isn't much room to add or subtract stitches.

 

 

I also finally finished my cousins Christian's Hats and sent them to their new homes.  The black one is extra big because my cousin Matthew claims he has an abnormally large head.  I didn't get a chance to fit it but I'm pretty confident that it will work for him.  The green one is for my Cuz Reagan.  Just in time for summer LOL.

 

I want to try and make a few coke cozys with the basketweave pattern.  I love the texture of it and I'm kind of done with Cascade 220.  It feels so coarse now after knitting with Malabrigo.  It will be a good way to use up my last few bits.

 

Here's Old Poke at the Mother's Day dinner at my Gran's.  The little kids really love him.  Some are more gentle then others.  This little boy wanted to pet him sweetly.  The other boy wanted to slap him LOL.

 

Making myself sew and finished Antler Toque and Sara's Slouch

Well, I tried to make a dirndl skirt and it looked like crap.  One pocket was a half inch too high and when I tried it on I realized that this style is not for me at all!!  I looked like Ma Joad from Grapes of Wrath.

 

So then I was like now what?  Dirndl skirts were supposed to be the foundation of my new summer wardrobe.  Why did I just spend $100 on fabric?  What does it all mean?!

I decided to go through my stash and maybe I could find some direction and/or inspiration.

 

Out of 7 boxes I kept only 2.  I wanted to take them to Goodwill that day but I was lazy and decided to wait until I could borrow a dolly from work to haul them down to my truck.  Glad I did because I remembered some scraps that I wanted to keep so I could add pockets to my green and yellow muumuus.  I'm actually really surprised that I haven't reclaimed more.  It's a sad lesson on how I tend to buy stuff spontaneously without a project in mind.  Definitely want to stop doing that.  I'm hoping to sew up my stash and then only buy enough fabric for one project at a time.  Like Diana Rupp says in her book Sew Everything Workshop.

I sorted my keepers by color.  It's all cotton.  Man fabric is it's own category LOL

Then I worked on an easy project. Curtain doors for my apartment! 

 

I'm in a really dated 80's apartment with bi-fold doors on the closets and they don't shut!  So, I finally got sick of it and watched a Youtube video on how to remove them without tearing them up, stored them in the porch storage space and made some cute curtains.  I really like them.  Brightens up the place a bunch!

 

This one is in the kitchen.

 

Entry way coat closet and bedroom closet.  Look at the pattern on the bedroom closet curtain.  It got off grain when I was squaring the ends :(  Looks like it's sliding downhill.  Easy fix but still annoying.

 

I really enjoyed sewing them up and seeing basically instant results!  I need to remember that when planning future projects.

Finished the Sara's Slouch by Wooly Wormhead and I love it!  First time knitting with two strands so that was cool.  The pattern isn't very specific about how tall to make it for a slouchy look so I decreased too soon and ended up with a beanie lol.  I still really like it.  I used Malabrigo Rios (worsted) in Ivy and Arroyo (DK) in Reflecting Pool.  It made a really dense, warm hat.  I'm not sure if I used the right combo of yarn weights. I might try a DK and fingering weight together next time. This was my first time using Malabrigo and I love it!! Cascade 220 worsted feels like twine now in comparison! LOL.

I love love love the Antler Toque by Tin Can Knits.  It was my first try at knitting cables!  This one went to my mom.  She loves brown lol.

A friend requested an orange hat so I'm working on that.  It looks a bit like a carrot but that's what he wants :/

Here's Ole Pokey lovin' some cuddles <3

My knitting fails and some easy mitts

I've been in a bit of a knitting slump.  I tried the Barley hat from Tin Can Knits and it just didn't turn out like I'd hoped.  I used some Cascade 220 that I already had and it was too fine of a gauge because the hat brim was REAL small and I made the biggest size!  I finished it but soon ripped it out.  It looked like poo poo.

 

Then I decided to make the Miss Marple Scarf.  It was a fun pattern and I really like the gold color of the yarn but I finished it and the ends were curling really bad and it super bugged me!  I tried to block it but in the end I wasn't happy so I took a pic and ripped it out!  Looking at it now, it doesn't look so bad and I feel kinda dumb for ripping it out so fast lol.

 

 

After those two fails I was feeling bummed.  So, I decided to make a super simple scarf and mitts.  The scarf is just CO 31 on size 7 needles in garter stitch but I really love it!  All the previous scarves that I made were for other people so it was nice to make a scarf just for me!  The gold yarn is so soft and I love the pop of Flamingo Cascade 220 on the ends.  Now I just have to wait for winter to come back around to wear it lol.

 

 

 

The mitts are a super easy pattern from a deck of project cards that I bought at the library used book shelf.  Hat, Mittens, and Scarves Deck: 25 Cool and Cozy Projects has lots of projects to browse and these mitts were a really cool, easy project to help me get my knitting mojo back.  They need to be blocked because the yarn that I took from the Miss Marple Scarf was a bit wavy but I really don't care.  The main thing I like about this mitt pattern is there is no thumb gusset.  So it fits my crooked thumb really well and no fingers means that my nubbin isn't floating in a too long glove :)

 

 

Right now, I'm working on Sara's Slouch by Wooly Wormhead.  It is very fun and easy and I love how the two yarns look together.  I made the largest size and used size 7 and 9 needles like the pattern recommends but I'm worried that it may be a bit too tight but if the FO is good I think I'll be making several of these.

 

 

I want to start sewing this spring after a long dry spell. Hopefully, I'll have some projects to share in a few weeks!

 

Here's Ripley all cozy on my lap.

 

 

 

And here she is on the back of the couch giving me her best resting bitch face LOL!

 

 

 

 

 

FO's: baby hats, 2 Conversationalist hats and a Mariner's Scarf

I think I've become a baby hat addict.  They are so much fun to make and such a small project that I can take them everywhere.  They take like three evenings each, if I really stretch it out, and the FO's are so tiny and cute!

I added a pom-pom to the slouchy baby beanie that I made. Its like comically oversized and totally out of proportion but whatev.  Its just for a doll lol.

 

 

I made two more hats using this really cool free pattern on Ravelry.

 

 

This pic is overexposed but I wanted to show the really cool effect of the ssk decrease stitch on the top.

 

I also made this kinda funky looking hat. Its free and called Declan.  I wanted a gnome look but its not quite there.  Looks more like an upturned funnel lol.

 

 

I finished two Conversationalist hats.  The first one went to my cousin Abigail for her 18th birthday!  I used Cascade Superwash 220 for the teal and pink.  I'm not sure what yarn I bought for the gold color.  The teal looks so pretty on her.

 

 

 

 I so obsessed over that pom-pom lol.  It still looks a little ragged to me after trimming.  I used the 3" Clover pom-pom maker and its appropriately huge but its kinda uneven and lumpy.

 I want a perfect pom-pom!

 

 

With this Conversationalist, I agonized over the top two colors.  I tried white, gold, and orange before finally settling on the pink with the blue pom-pom.  I like it but not as much as the one I made for Abigail :/  I needed a dog walking hat for my dog sitting weekend coming up so it'll do.

 

 

And lastly, a Mariner's Scarf for my Uncle Brian.  After finishing this scarf, I think I'm gonna stick to hats for awhile.  No more long projects, ugh!

 

 

I bought some more I Love This Yarn in peacock, hot rose and sungold.  It looks like the exact same colors that I used in Abigail's hat lol.  I wanna make super rad baby hats with it!

 

 

I'll cast on a new baby hat while I'm thinking about the next project I wanna start.  I promised to make two Christian's Hats for my cousins.  I've been stalking this cool and easy free hat pattern from Tin Can Knits called Barley and I still wanna make the Miss Marple Scarf.  Decisions LOL

 

Watching this week

 

Galavant Season 2 on Hulu (so dumb with occasional bits of funny, good for knitting)

Downton Season 6 (Mary's gonna find out about Marigold!)

Downton from the beginning with Gran (She can't keep the characters straight.  I've told her who Cousin Matthew is like 5 times)

Fear the Walking Dead (more like Fear the Family Drama, right! Hahaha! No really its great)

 

Reading this week

 

Secrets of a Summer Night by Lisa Kleypas (big book sigh after that one, so good)

Saga Volume 5 (just keeps getting weirder, not sure why I read it really.  I think its for 

Prince Robot IV)

 

Poke giving me the stare so I'll pet him.

 

 

The roll over and snuggle is also a popular move.

Love me!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

My luscious Conversationalist Hat and my new obsession with baby hats

I went a bit yarn happy this month.  Planning my Conversationalist Hat I really splurged at the yarn shop.  But look at the pretty colors! <3

 

I was so excited to start this pattern!  It a pretty easy knit and good for beginners like me. 

 

 

As you can see, I went back to the store and bought some gold that was just wonderful so I could match the hat on the pattern pic. It was more expensive then the Cascade, $15 a skein, and the store charged me 2 bucks to wind it!! Still pissed about that one.

 

I posted a pic of the hat on Instagram and a friend asked if I wanted to make some baby hats for February for Little Hats, Big Hearts.  I got so into it that I made five! I used this super easy and free pattern on Ravelry, Baby Bear Hat, and left off the ears.  They are the cutest! And so easy to make.  I used I Love This Yarn in Cranberry.

 

 

I used the storytime dolls at work to model them lol.

 

After I finished those hats, I decided to experiment with making my own pattern.  So I bought some more I Love This Yarn and went to town!  I used Grey Beard and Pink Neon.

 

 

Well, I just kept knitting and knitting and ended up with a super tall hat LOL.  This hat will be part of the storytime doll clothes collection so its not that big of a deal.  I'm going to add a pom pom and hopefully it will slouch perfectly and he'll look like a proper little hipster baby. I'm making 3 more hats for the storytime babies so hopefully I'll have the pattern down soon :)

 

I really enjoyed making baby hats.  I could use acrylic, which is way cheaper, and it was a fast knit so like almost instant gratification. I'm getting bored with the Baby Bear pattern, tho I'm sure it will stay in my rotation. I hope to find some new patterns soon to make and share!

 

No cute animal pics but enjoy this bit of wisdom from my personal hero Tina Belcher of Bob's Burgers.

 

 

 

 



 

Finished Mitts and McCall's 6970

Finished the Maine Morning Mitts!  I tested them out at work before sending them to their new owner.  I think they'll work :)

I need some new work clothes so I decided to work on something easy and basic.

 

 

 

Right now, I'm working on grading up View B.

 

 

 

 

I don't really know what I'm doing.  I did some internet research and this is what I came up with.  I wanted to add 4 inches overall to the width so I decided to slash and spread by 1/2" in two spots.  Then I added 3" to the length because I want it to be like a tunic and I figure I can always cut it off later. 

 

 

 

This is what I came up with.  I was super excited that it fit!  I added 1" to the regular 5/8" seam allowance just in case.  

This pattern would work.  I could make it and wear it and it would be fine but I want to make a few more adjustments so it will be more then fine.  I plan to lower the bust dart and do a full bust adjustment.  I also don't like how wide the neck hole is so I think I will take an inch out of the center, pulling in the neck hole and then add it to the seam allowance if that makes sense. 

I also want to make the slit on the front a little longer. After all those changes, I'll need to make new interfacing.  I think I can do these adjustments pretty easily and then I'll have an awesome well-fitting top that I can make over and over!