Baby Shrug

This was a super fast knit that was nice to work on when I fancied something that's a little mindless. It's Debbie Bliss's baby shrug from the 'Simply Baby' book (now available online as a free pattern). I made size 3-6mths and used some more of the Mama Blue poppy sock yarn that I'd used for Penelope, and to trim the cheerleader's dress.



I'd actually decided on the shrug thinking it would be nice to 'girly up' some of the cute onesies that Joe has been buying for BOB. When it came to taking pictures though I figured I'd match it with the cheerleaders dress and I think it is a winning combo!



I'd added the little crochet flowers to make the top a bit more interesting. Not needed of course, but to me it looked a little plain without them. (I didn't actually make these flowers -- I bought them from a scrapbooking store. I don't think I can look at another crochet hook for a while, after working on the blanket border!)

I'm thinking it's now back to the adult knits for a while... little lady should be set for her arrival!

Alphabet blanket

I'm still here. Or maybe I should say that BOB is still safely tucked indoors all cosy and warm. Joe's told me (read 'ordered' ;0) that I sit back and take it easy now. So that means lots of crafty time for me, and consequently a finished alphabet baby blanket for the nursery!



The inspiration for this baby blanket is Debbie Bliss' Alphabet Blanket from The Baby Knits book. I used her lacy alphabet charts to create the intarsia alphabet squares with Rowan 4 ply cotton, and needle size US 4.

When the blocks were completed and sewn together it looked a tad small. And a little unpolished. So I pulled out some Rowan Cotton Breeze in a lovely bright pink to add a crochet border around the entire blanket - 4 rows of double chain and then one row of scallops using a 2.5 hook (I'm a self-taught crocheter - don't inspect too closely!)



So far, so good. Except I was thinking of little baby fingers plucking at the back of the intarsia squares: it could really do with a backing. Which is all well and good except 1) I have no clue how to do that and 2) there isn't a functioning sewing machine in our house. So I trolled the Internet for adding a backing to knit fabrics, by hand. I came across various different techniques, and am thinking I might have employed them all (and a couple I'd made up too!). Whatever works I say - and it seems to.



In case you are interested in the backing details:
I washed both the knit blanket and the flannel first, to make sure that any shrinkage happened before the 2 were permanently attached. Once dry, I laid the knit fabric out, taking care not to stretch. And then measured the dimensions of the blanket minus border. I then cut and hand tacked a piece of the cotton flannel to match this size.

Next I added a blanket stitch border to the cotton flannel, using the same pink cotton yarn that I'd crocheted around the entire border - I used this as an 'anchor' to crochet the flannel and the existing border together. But before crocheting, everything was pinned in place, including the intersection of every block to the backing (later I hand tied some of the pink yarn at each intersection). After all of that was done, all that was left exposed was some of the blanket stitch border on the flannel and so I added another couple of rows double crochet to cover that up and backstitched the edge of it to the flannel backing.



It was quite the labour of love you could say! And any experienced sewer/crocheter may be shaking their head in disbelief! But it all worked out, and at this point I have nothing but time on my hands as I play the waiting game! Oooh I'm happy to have this done before the wee one makes her arrival.

Showered with gifts

This weekend my knitty friends threw a wonderful baby shower for the little lady and I, on valentines day (great was to spend a valentines morning - brunch with good friends!). I don't think anyone has ever been soooo very spoiled in the history of baby showers! And check out the fun theme -- that's right, knitty goodness!





There were soo many gorgeous, thoughtful and generous gifts I could hardly believe it. I think I spent the entire day with a massive grin plastered across my face. Thank you ladies. It means the world to me that you been supportive and excited throughout this journey. And that you'll all be there to love on BOB when she makes her debut.

Since this is primarily a knitty blog, I'll highlight some of the gorgeous handknits (but believe me I got soooo very many other fantastic goodies... they can all be seen on my flickr page):

First there's the group project -- a beautifully soft blanket made from exquisite sock yarns. I think this is going to be a favourite with the little lady. And the cute backing material is monsters! Yay! And then Kim had knit these gorgeous socks. Check it out - not 1, 2 or 3, but 4 pairs! She's been very very busy and little lady is going to be spoiled with handknit socks from the get go -- between her and her Dad I think I may have a full time job whipping out hand knit socks in the future! And in case 4 sets of socks wasn't enough, Kim also made a couple of hats. Super cute! (And perfect for this chilly weather).



Terrie had made some gorgeous booties. How adorable are they! Something I'd been meaning to do, but never quite got around to. Another treasured keepsake. And then there's Hermann Bear too. Perfect size for a (not so) wee one.



Speaking of Monsters, Jeni has also added to the collection with another danger craft monster - Sammie the sock monster. Hee hee I love these guys. He has now joined the rest of the posse in the nursery. And Jeni also made this beautiful cardigan in some deliciously soft yarn and beautiful colours. Aah I think precedents are being set that may be hard to uphold!



Stacey has also been very busy with the knits -- there's a couple of gorgeous and fun hats to go with some onesies she gave me. Loving the bright colours and fun designs on these.



And then there is the knitted papoose. I'm soo very happy to have one of these to model my newborn baby in for her first photos. Another thing I'd been meaning to get round to, but, erm, never did.



Speaking of which, it appears that BOB is on her way sooner rather than later. Was at the docs on Monday and she thinks it could be any day now... we'll see!

Thanks once again for the wonderful shower. I had such a nice time with you all and can't thank you enough. Big hugs, Sam xoxo

Check out this beauty!

I was hoping I could show this off in a finished nursery, but that's going much slower than I'd like (too much napping and other obstacles...). So this weekend I took a few photos because I was eager to share this stunning, and very generous, gift from Bea:

Bobbin' for Hourglasses Quilt:


Bea had posted about this lovely quilt on her blog a little while ago and I found myself drooling over the pics - it is gorgeous, fun, and makes me happy just looking at all those bright colours. (The back is very pretty too - go check Bea's blog for better pictures).

I couldn't believe my eyes when only a week or so later she offered it up in a blog contest. WHAT? Give that stunner away? So of course I entered, kept everything crossed and hoped for the very best.

Seems my luck was in! I still shake my head in disbelief. It couldn't be more perfect for the nursery. And I love to think how it will become a treasured keepsake.

Bea, I can't thank you enough for this gorgeous quilt. (And Bella says to tell Gus and Abby that she's keeping a good, watchful eye over it too!)

Penelope and pals

Here's the latest addition to the nursery critter collection - Penelope:


Pattern: Penelope the Empathetic monster by Rebecca Danger
Yarn: Main colour is the very lovely Mama Blue Troika Sport in colourway Poppy, with pink Berrocco comfort ears, feet and eye spot (which oddly enough matches the nursery walls perfectly).
Needle: US Size 5
Modifications: I used crochet to create the eye spot vs knitting it - just because I found it too fiddly to knit. (Lazy, yes! ;o) And then embroidered the black eye balls and white felt teeth vs glue.


Here's Penelope with her monster pals. Ooh I can't wait for the room to start taking shape...

Having fun with the nursery

I finally got started on the nursery, and I'm super excited about how this could turn out. The room in question was a spare room that was looking a little ratty and so it was nice to rip out the carpets and replace with wood floors, and to add a splash of colour to the walls.

***Updated to add a picture of how the nursery turned out***



Now I hadn't planned on this being a super girly room. The theme is a little monster's playground (hope I'm not tempting fate here ;o) I was originally thinking neutral colours for the room itself with bright accessories to add some colour and fun. The bright accessories in question are ugly dolls, knit monsters (of which I made Frances, Daphne and Delilah so far) and knitted odd-bods (of which Jessica has made us Bert Bear).

But I guess some trigger went off at the paint store because I now have pale pink walls and a peachy ceiling and skirting boards, window ledge and door frames:


Plus the accessories I've been looking at are super girly too:
- I'm thinking this might be a cute rug - 'cos little monsters need fields of flowers to play in, right?
- And this might be an awesome wall decal - a little tree under which my monsters can get shade
- And then of course I need to find some cool shelves to display all those fun monsters and critters that I'm hoping I'll magically be able to knit between now and not-so-little lady's arrival.
- Ooh yes, and of course Etsy has a whole treasure trove of goodies of which I saw these 3 cute monster pics that I think would work well in the room

Not so sure about curtains yet... if anyone out that can point me to something fun that would work with the very-loose-at-this-point theme, I'd welcome the suggestions.

So on a knitty related note, I have decided to make a blanket for the nursery. I have a pile of rowan 4-ply cotton that needed to be put to good use. I loved the alphabet blanket I'd made a while back, but wanted something brighter like the Barnaby blanket with a fun trim around the edge-- so I'm making a multi-colour alphabet blanket that I'm thinking will work well with the colours in the room. I've set myself a goal to complete 7 squares a week. That way there's a chance of getting it completed before the baby gets here. (Originally it was one square a day, but with late night work meetings and baby classes at the hospital I wasn't always making the one/night... but this way I can play 'catch up' on my nights off.)


More than you ever wanted to know? More links than you ever wanted to click in one blog post? :o)))

Please, please, if you know of any decorations for the nursery that you think would work well with the theme, please let me know. At this point I still have a fairly blank canvas!

A quick needlework update

I'm late to publicly thank Dany for the lovely gift that she sent over for the little lady. How cute is this - a hand stitched baby bib. It is gorgeous! Thank you Dany, as always you are very sweet and thoughtful xoxo


And on the topic of cross stitch, this Christmas I'd received a cross stitch project from a good friend. It's a 'Princess Palace' that I think will be perfect in the nursery. (Assuming that by the time I'm done, it's still a nursery and not a teen hang out for the little lady! - I'd forgotten how much time it takes to make seemingly small progress on cross stitch projects). But I am loving working on cross stitch again. Aaah too many crafty loves and not enough hours in the day to devote to them!



Last, but far from least, on the needlework update -- go check out Bea's blog. She has a contest posted out there for a gorgeous quilt! (And for those who prefer knitty swag there's an alternate knitty prize). Good stuff.

That's all I have this morning. Have a great weekend!

Noro Wildfell

I've been plugging away at my big Noro Wildfell cardi/coat these last couple of weeks. I was figuring that it would get good use between the super chilly weather here and my ever-expanding belly! That's right - 32 weeks now!

I'd picked up the yarn a good while ago on sale - 50% off, yay! I couldn't choose between 2 very similar colourways that were available and so bought them both. A little decadent, yes. Since I didn't have enough of either colour for this big ole coat, I chopped and changed between the 2. I think it works ok, akthough there are areas where there seems to be too much of one type of colourway - in hindsight I should have changed it up a bit more. Hey ho, hindsight is 20/20.

The details for the Cardi:

• Pattern: Wildfell by Jane Ellison from 'Noro Simply'
• Yarn: Noro Kochoran in 44C and 47C - approx 8 and a half skeins used
• Size: small - athough if I were to do again, I might make extra small. I don't think it needs to be quite this big.
• Needles: US 10

I'm loving how snuggly this cardigan is. And light too. I think it's going to see a lot of use. Especially over the next few weeks.

Bert Bear

Over the Christmas and New Year my dear step daughter Jessica came to stay with us and celebrate the holidays. I'd taught Jessica to knit a couple of years ago, and although she's not been bitten by the bug (darn it ;o) she did offer to make a whimsical toy for her little sister's nursery. Awwwww :)

Here it is - Bert Bear. It's from Donna Wilson's Knitted Odd Bods book. There's a whole host of crazy characters in there that are fun knits. I'm trying to decide which creature is next on the nursery knit list!


Jessica used 6 skeins of Jaeger Matchmaker Merino Chunky that I had stashed away and knit this on US 7 needles. It turned out rather large, and I love it! I think she too was tickled with the end result. Here's a pic of her showing it off before we had to say goodbye at the airport. :(


Bert is now all stuffed and sewn up and waiting for his new home in the nursery. I'm making slow and steady progress there... but slow and steady wins the race, right?

Happy New Year!

I can hardly believe that it is a New Year already... where does the time go? I hope you had a fun evening yesterday and wish you all the very best for 2010.

I do like the New Year: Looking back at all the blessings of the previous year, and looking forward to the possibilities of what the new year can hold. Having this blog gives me the chance to look through my projects of last year. I find it interesting to see how I've been spending my crafty time.

There was the valiant effort at NaKniSweMoDo - knit a sweater a month. I was on target until the last quarter of the year. If only baby sweaters counted! Although I didn't meet the goal, I'm happy with how it spurred me on to complete projects that might have otherwise gone into hibernation.


Gift knitting also featured high on the list this year. I do like making things for other people; it's my way of saying I care.


And of course baby knits! A couple of friends had babies this year, and with BOB's impending arrival there have been a couple of projects there. Surprising though - I always thought I'd knit a lot more for my own kiddo. However I had never really anticipated how pooped I'd be - knitting was replaced by napping for a good portion of the pregnancy so far!


The last couple of things I noticed after reviewing last year's efforts are that:

I seem to be addicted to starting blankets/throws. Wish I could say there was as much energy invested into finishing them. Maybe this should be one of my goals for 2010 -- to finish those blankets I've started. The hexagon blankets for example might be a great addition to the nursery.


I have a fair few projects that have been in WIP status for well over a year. Hmm, maybe that should be my other crafty goal for 2010.

In truth, I don't know how realistic these goals are. At the end of the day I know the next couple of months will be pretty tiring and the focus will be on staying healthy and rested. And then of course after little lady's arrival I'm trying not to kid myself that I'll have a tonne of time for craftiness. My attentions will be on loving my new little bundle of joy, and learning the ropes as a new Mum.

Hope 2010 has all good things in store for you,
Sam
xoxo

Frances the Charismatic Monster

Another monster has been completed for the nursery -- Frances the Charismatic Monster. Yay for a fun pattern from Danger Crafts.


Mum had started this when she was over on her pre-baby visit last month. I picked it up again the other morning while watching The English Patient and was able to polish off 2 legs and an arm. That gave me all the incentive I needed to just knuckle down and finish off the remaining arm and ears and sew this cutesy pie together. (That's right, I'm putting this holiday break and pre-baby time to good relaxing and crafty use!)

Here's the details:

• Yarn: Knit Picks Shine Worsted in Snapdragon. I think Mum and I may have used 4 balls between us. And that's only because we used a double strand (in hindsight not necessary, but it does make the fabric denser).

This was gifted to me by Nachaele when she moved from Colorado last year - I think she'll agree it's been put to good use :) And I think there might be enough left to make a cute cardigan wrap like this one (ravelry link).

• Needles: US 6

• Mods: I chose to handstitch eyes and teeth again since it is intended for a baby

Ooh I am looking forward to seeing how the nursery will turn out. I also painted the walls yesterday. Opted for a traditional pale pink. Nothing too bright -- I'd like the fun accessories to pop and be the feature.

Festive feet

Joe loves his handknit socks. But some of the pairs he has in the sock drawer are looking a little bit too loved... far beyond their best. So I had this grand plan to make him a new pair of socks for Christmas, as a surprise.

The surprise part didn't work out too well... or the getting them for Christmas part... but hey they are complete now, and it's still December.


A little zany aren't they! :o)))

I used Zauberball sock yarn, knitting from each end of the ball to force the striping. I think it's fun. A little Dr Seussical. I do much prefer the one that has more blue in it vs the yellowy one. But they work together well enough in an odd kind of way.  Another super simple knit. I used my basic sock pattern(which I need to modify to fix the heel shaping, btw). And a k3,p1 rib for the leg and top of foot.


He's super happy with the end results and has even worn them into work today. Wonder what his colleagues will think if they see these dazzlers peeking out!

Daphne and Delilah

I have this idea for the nursery -- that it's going to be 'monster themed'. Which of course sounds a little odd... Monsters? For a nursery?? For a little girl???
Yes that's right - monsters for a nursery for a little girl.

When the monsters in question are as cute as these guys, I think you might agree that it actually might work. And heck, be cute too. So here's Daphne and Delilah. One of many great patterns from Danger Crafts.


Daphne and Delilah are made using Lion Brand Cotton Ease, and a size US 5 needle. I didn't modify the pattern in any way but did add the following details:

• Momma monster has a handstitched heart on her belly (using some yummy Mama Blue yarn I have in my stash)
• Baby girl monster has a little knitted bow (For the bow portion I cast on approx 30 stitches and worked in the round for about 10 rows then cast off. For the knot portion I cast on approx 6 stitches and knit until it was long enough to wrap around the middle of the bow. Then simply sew together.)
• Both monsters have hand stitched felt eyes and teeth. I chose to stitch these details figuring it might be safer for baby.

Next on the nursery crafting list is Frances (ravelry link). Mum started this for us when she was over last month. Need to get cracking on that. And my dear step daughter is working on one of the Knitted Odd Bods (ravelry link) to go in the nursery for her little sister (melts my heart). (The theme has evolved a tad to include other whimsical creatures... and the patterns from the Knitted Odd Bods are perfect!)

I have high hopes for how this is going to turn out... But first job for this week is to paint the room in question.

The kindness of folks

(I know, my blog posts are like buses... you wait for ages for one to appear, and three come along at once! )

I was thinking the other day about how kind people can be. This has been especially true during the pregnancy -- the kind words, the support and advice, the surprising and thoughtful gifts. Thank you to all my dear friends who have been enjoying this journey with me.

I mention surprising because sometimes it's the little things that just pop out of the blue. Take work, for example... There's the lady that operates the coffee cart who makes sure I get my daily dose of vitamin C -- she catches me on my way to my desk and gives me a couple of clementines each day (and a little bit of English toffee on the side!). Or the colleague who, knowing this is my first child, went out and bought me a book all about pregnancy. The list goes on and on... And believe me, I certainly couldn't ask for a more supportive boss right now. I've been truly blessed there.

I wanted to show my gratitude for some of this kindness, and of course this means handknit gifties! First up is the ruffle scarf. It's nothing momentous to shout about but I do like this pattern a lot (this is the 3rd scarf I've made using this pattern now). And with the designated weight yarn it's a very quick knit - I cranked this one out in just 2 evenings. (So if you need a very last minute gift, you could always plop yourself in front of the telly today and tomorrow and whip one of these out).



I made this one using some Kathmandu Aran that I had in my stash. I think it was probably close to 3 balls that I used (it was odds and ends of a couple of balls so hard to be sure on the yardage -- but that guidance will be in the pattern). With this tweedy yarn, this one feels a little more rustic than the other two. But I'm thinking that it should be super cosy. I hope she likes it.

Oh yes and that's a pic of me modelling it with my 28week belly. B.O.B. is certainly growing in leaps and bounds now!

Handmade goodies for the little lady

I mentioned in the last post that Mum came from the UK to see me over Thanksgiving. What I didn't note was that she was hauling a suitcase full of goodies for the little lady, from friends and family back home. I was blown away. Christmas had come early :o)

I won't post everything now - you'll be seeing plenty of modelled shots in only a matter of months. But I did want to share some of the handmade goodies:

First up are some more hand made gifts from Mum. Knowing that Joe is a huge sports fan she made little lady's first baseball outfit, complete with Cleveland Indian's logos:


How cute is that handknit sweater! And I love that she has matching jeans and socks. She'll be all ready for the opening of the 2010 baseball season!

And Mum also made a cute rag doll that's kitted out in Miami Dolphins colours and logo. (When I was a little girl I had a Raggedy Ann and Mum tells me that I loved my rag doll. There's other stories too, to do with the dolls red hair and my nostrils... ;o) Anyhoo she thought my little lady might also like her own rag doll. I agree.)


Mum is probably going to tell me off for posting it here. You see she's not that fond of the end result and has been referring to the rag doll as Ugly Betty! (I think she was even thinking of not gifting it... crazy!) I LOVE it!

The other handmade goodies came from my Mum and Dad's neighbour, Barbara. Barbara has been a dear family friend and seen us all grow up over the years. She loves to knit and even owned her own yarn stall at our local market for a while. You can only imagine how giddy I was when Mum pulled out not 1, but 4 knitted outfits from Barbara. Whoa! Little lady is going to be decked out in nothing but the finest handknit goodness!




Mum and I also worked on some projects while she was here. I want to finish them up before I share them... maybe over the Christmas break. They will form part of the nursery decor. My plan is to work on the nursery too between Christmas and New Year. It feels like the countdown is on as I'm into my third trimester and have a lot of prep to do... More to come in the next couple of weeks...

Meanwhile, I'll leave you with this -- we went for a 3D scan while Mum was over. It was amazing! So wonderful to see the little lady in all her 3D glory. She's either a little shy, or a feisty soul - she does not like her picture to be taken! But after much prodding and poking the sonographer was able to get a couple of good shots. What cracked me up the most though was when she raised her little fists at the end as if she was ready to take on the sonographer if he didn't stop! :o)))






If I don't blog again between now and then, I wish you a Merry Christmas. Only 3 more sleeps...