Knits For Sanity

Last FO of 2005

So I'm back, again.  I've spent the last two weeks on a couple different projects for The Preemie Project.  We've been lucky enough to have assistance from the Cedar Rapids Iowa Embroidery Guild.  They are working on Mother's Tears Hankie's as well as adding the faces to stuffed bears and bunnies.  I would like to have at least 35 stuffed animals for our 2/24/2006 bereavement donation.  So I've been cutting, sewing, turning, clipping, pinning, pressing, stuffing and sewing up bears and bunnies.

After all of that work I think I ended up with between 50-60 animals ready to send to the embroidery guild.  Unfortunately I didn't get a chance to take a picture of them before they were picked up.  To show what they look like, here is some that were made by Preemie Project volunteer Tracy Batchelder.  (Mine are in pastels.)

Next I finally have a picture of my last Finished Object of 2005.  Yea!  It is a sweater I made for my baby cousin, Emma.  I just adore her!  She'll be a year old in April.  So I made the 12-24 month size.  That way she'll be able to wear it next year too.  (She is a tiny thing.) 

Once I had sewn all of the seams and weaved in the stragglers I was pretty unhappy with the way it turned out.  It just wasn't what I had pictured in my head.  I decided to block it to see if it would improve.  I had NEVER blocked a FO before and had NO idea what I was doing.  So my mom helped me.  We washed it in the kitchen sink, wrapped it in a towel, squeezed the water out and spread it out on the ironing board.  A little light stretching and many pins later, the sweater looked much better.  I left it to dry:

Pattern: Debbie Bliss- Special Knits: Ribbed Jacket

Yarn: Debbie Bliss Cotton Angora (3-4 balls)

On the Needles:
Thanksgiving-Christmas

I really enjoyed knitting this sweater.  It was a quick easy knit that turned out really cute.  I'm trying to decide what to add as a closure.  Help me!  Do I add a flower, ribbon on each end to tie in a bow or two?  Any suggestions?

Now I'm off to prepare for a Preemie Project event on Friday.  We've been invited to attend the University of Iowa, Day of Action event and the Iowa Memorial Union.  I'm really excited!  I hope that we gain a lot of interest and spread the word about premature birth and neonatal death.

Next time I'll have my first FO of 2006 to show as well as everything that is currently on the needles.  I have SO much to finish up!  Yes, my mom's Clapotis is STILL on the needles!  SORRY MOM!  It's next on the list.

2005 Wrap Up Part 2

I did a lot of knitting in 2005.  I'm sure that I would have done more if I could.  I learned something new with each item.

#1 The first item I finished after starting my blog on 1/28/2005:
Fiber Trends Felted Clogs
Lesson Learned: Learned how to knit in the round.  This was also my first experience with felting.

I LOVE these clogs.  They really helped to keep my feet warm last winter.  My bad foot was SOOO cold b/c of the the nerve damage.  Sometimes it would get 3-4 degrees colder than my good foot.  To warm it up I would put on 2 pairs of socks and my clogs.  Then I would wrap a heating pad around it and sit for an hour while it warmed up.  These clogs helped SO much.  I'm not having such a problem with my foot being cold this winter.  It is more of a nuisance now.  I still wear my clogs around the house everyday.  I'm wearing them right now!

Item #2:
Black Scarf
Lesson Learned: I really hate fun fur and most novelty yarn.

I tried to sell this scarf on ebay but it never sold.  It was nearly impossible to make a profit anyway.  I ended up giving it to a friend who liked it.  I'm glad that someone did!

Item #3:
Sirdar Raglan Sweater
Lesson Learned: This was my second sweater and my first attempt at raglan sleeves.  I learned that I don't like to wear scratchy sweaters much.  Even though, I still really love this sweater.  I probably won't ever use Lopi again.

Item #4:
Laines Plassard Sweater
Lesson Learned: How to pick up stitches and frog an item OVER and OVER and OVER.  I can't believe that I actually got this finished.

I love this sweater just b/c I actually finished it.  I can't believe that I stuck with it and ripped it out SO many times.  It is so warm and cozy.

Item #5:
Emma's Baby Blanket
Lesson Learned: Hmmmm, Sometimes it is okay to leave a flaw in an item if you're the only one who will notice it.  Oh well!

Item #6:
Emma's Baby Set
Lesson Learned: I discovered Plymouth Dreambaby.  It is SOO soft!

Item #7:
Gift Sachets
Lesson Learned: How to change colors.  It's easier than I thought it would be.  What was I SO scared of?!

Item #8:
My First Pair of Socks
Lesson Learned:  This one is obvious...how to knit a pair of socks.  I was really hooked.  I was so proud of my very first sock that I walked around all day with just one sock on.  I couldn't knit fast enough!  Sometime last year I somehow placed these socks in the back of a drawer in my dresser.  Thankfully I discovered them this week and put them on right away.  I like them even better now!

Item #9:
Rainbow Bear
Lesson Learned: I didn't learn any lessons about knitting, except how to knit a teddy bear.  I did learn about a little girl who had just lost her leg in a lawn mower accident.  I felt for her so much that I gave this bear to my brother to give to her.  I later learned that it is the only teddy bear she owns and that she carries it everywhere with her.  Makes me want to cry my eyes out.  I pray that she is doing well.

Items #10 and #11:
Emma's Bonnet and Booties
No lessons learned here.  I was just really missing my baby cousin and wanted to send her a gift.  She is just gorgeous.

Item #12:
The Softest Baby Blanket
This was a gift for my boyfriend's newborn nephew, Will.  It was a very simple pattern

Item #13:
Purple Felted Tote
LOVE this!

Item #14:
Sockapal-2-za Socks
Lesson Learned: How to turn a heel properly.  I also learned how important a gauge swatch is.  I had to frog the first one b/c of that mistake.  Hopefully I won't ever forget this one.

Item #15:
Pink BamBoo Scarf
Lesson Learned: I discovered reversible mistake rib stitches.  I love the way this scarf looks and I wear it all the time.  I just wish that it was longer.

Item #16:
Last Finished item of 2005.  I am going to save this item for tomorrow's post.

Thank you for sharing the past year with me.  This year is going to be a lot of fun.  I have a lot of new project's to share very soon. 

2005 Preemie Project Items Wrap Up

With a few exceptions, 2005 really was a good year for me.  It pretty much consisted of starting The Preemie Project and watching it grow.  Actually the best thing about the past year is the success of the project.  I still can't believe it.  TPP was just a thought I had at this time last year.  I never would have dreamed that it would get this big.  The yahoo group actually has 80 members!!  Plus I have a list of 50 local volunteers and most of them are not a part of the yahoo group.  Craziness!!!

Here are most of the items that I made and donated to the project in 2005:

3 burial gown sets (SEPT '05)       


30 Hat and Bootie Sets. (SEPT '05) Some of these were knit by my mom.  We also donated 27 fleece and flannel sewn blankets.  We forgot to get a picture of those.

Pumpkin Push Items 
Booties to be paired up with misc hats donated by other volunteers. Pumpkin hat and bootie sets.  Halloween themed blankets.

Blankets for the 12-5-05 UIHC Donation (4 not pictured)


Some bereavement Items donated in November '05


Finally, the items for Winter Holiday 2005 Donation: 20 Blankets that mom and I sewed together on her vacation.  !5 Santa Hats, some with booties and some without.

Mom's Santa Hat Sets:

I believe that those are all of the items I made and donated in 2005.  It was really a lot of fun.  I learned a lot about knitting this past year.  I also learned how to use a sewing machine.  I can even sew a straight line now!

After all of those santa hats I have become a little sick of hats and booties.  Because of that, I've decided to spend the first months of 2006 knitting misc booties to pair of with hats.  I also want to put some time into sewing bereavement mementos, like teddy bears.  I'm just finishing up some pink ones and plan to cut out some blue bears this evening.

Part of the reason I stopped blogging in October was due to a feeling that my blog was getting boring.  I was spending so much time working on administrative duties for TPP that I didn't have a lot of time to knit.  What knitting time I did have was spent on hats and booties and sewn blankets.  I felt like I kept showing and talking about the same thing over and over.  It seemed like posting wasn't even worth it anymore.  I really want that to change this year.

Don't get me wrong, TPP IS my life.  I definitely won't stop talking about it.  I just want to make room in my life, and my blog for other knitting projects.  That's the plan!  I suppose you could call that a New Years resolution.  Hopefully I will remember that one in a couple of months.

Never Ending Socks

Today I have a finished object to share.  Yes, I know it's Unbelievable!  I have finally finished the socks for my sockapal-2-za pal.  I feel so bad that they are now over 2 weeks late.  Having to rip the first one out completely totally messed up my knitting schedule.  Yep, I actually have a knitting schedule.    In my defense, it's not written down on paper...usually.  I keep it in my mind in order to finish certain projects on time.  Now my "knitting schedule" is completely thrown off.

Anyway, here they are in all of their glory.

I took this picture before blocking, which makes them look horrible.  Then after blocking I wanted to take another picture, but my camera died.  I also think that these socks look much cuter on.  I so hope that my pal likes them.  She is being so graceous about them being late.  I'll reveal who she is once they make their way to her.

I've also been working on some hat and bootie sets for the 11/1 Preemie Project Iowa Chapter Hospital Donation.  Also, now that the socks are finished I've started a bereavement gown set.  I'm using the Preemie Baby Kimono Pattern.  It is so gorgeous knitted up.  This gown will be used as an example for our Senior Center Presentation in late October, before it is donated to the UIHC.

In between preemie items I will be working on finishing up my Mom's Clapotis.  I have to get it finished before it begins to get cold.  I'm also going to be starting my Christmas gifts.  There will be lots of knitting going on!

The Softest Baby Blanket - FINISHED!

I love finished objects.  Finally after all those hours of of knitting there is something to show for it.  I finished The Softest Baby Blanket yesterday afternoon.

It's not as big as I thought it would be.  It's about 28" x 32".  I thought about frogging and making it bigger,  I just can't bring myself to do it.  It's going to be a baby gift for my boyfriend's brother.  I'm sure they'll get a number of blankets.  I am positive that this one will be the softest!

Yarn: Plymouth, Geisha in white (5 skeins)

On The Needles: 5/28/05 to 6/8/05

I'm happy with how it turned out.  oh so soft!  I did find a couple Diet Pepsi spots on it though.  So I'm going to hand wash it before gifting it away.  I hope they like it!

The Jaeger yarn washed very well.  I re-casted on the Jaeger Vest yesterday.  It's slow going.  Hopefully I'll have something to show in a couple of days.

Tiny and Cute FO

A little over a month ago I made some booties for my newborn cousin, Emma.  I was supposed to travel to visit her a week ago.  Unfortunately I wasn't in good enough shape for a six hour car ride.  So except for pictures, I haven't even seen her yet!  It makes me sad.  I hope to see her sometime this summer though. 

Anyway, my mom did travel to visit the family even though I didn't come along.  She even got to see Emma wearing a pair of the booties I made for her.  I was so happy to hear that my aunt and uncle were touched by the little knitted items I sent.  It's always nice when you put a lot of thought and time into a gift and it's appreciated. 

So, back to the knitting part of this story.  My mom said that the little booties Emma was wearing looked a bit tight.  I only sent three pairs of the newborn size after she was born.  I didn't know if they would be functional or just slip right off her feet. 

Since my aunt and uncle enjoyed them I decided to send a couple of pairs in the next largest size. 

Yarn: Bernat Softee Baby Sparkle

I really love this white yarn.  I was surprised that it knitted up so well.  I like the Bernat Softee Baby Sparkle better than the regular BSB.

I thought the purple ribbon was really cute with these too.

I happy that these turned out so cute.  I love knitting little baby items.  (Wow I state the obvious a lot, don't I?!) 

I also knitted up this matching bonnet.  It's my favorite baby item so far.  It's so precious.  I told my boyfriend that I hope his brother and sister in law have a little girl this July.  I want to make this set for another baby I know.  I'm no sure that it would work so well for a boy.  I guess i could try blue ribbon?

So now it's obvious that I've fallen in love with this little set.  I decided not to knit the matching mittens.  I think it's getting a bit warm for them.  I'm definently going to knit up a couple of these sets for The Preemie Project.

Speaking of The Preemie Project.  I got a package of donations today from Jan.  So exciting!  Jan, thank you so much for the knitted items and the yarn.  Here's a peak at the items sent:

Aren't they cute?!  Jan you did a wonderful job. My mom and I were fawning over them this afternoon.  I think that she was as excited to open the package as I was.  =0) 

Now if I could just get her out of her garden and sitting down with some knitting needles.  Knitting may be my sanity, but gardening is definently her sanity.

Here's a peak at the yarn Jan donated:

The baby clouds is going to make some very soft preemie blankets.  Jan, thanks again!

I started the Jaeger vest for my boyfriend today.  I'll post a WIP pic tomorrow.    

Rainbow Bear Finished! FYI-SALE and DISCOUNT

I just put the finishing touches on my first Baby Bobbi Bear.  (Blue Sky Alpacas pattern)

-Pattern: Blue Sky Alpacas, Baby Bobbi Bear

-Yarn: Caron Simply Soft

-On the needles: May 1-5

I'm not thrilled with how it turned out.  The ears don't look right and I did a lousy job on the eyes, and nose.  The ears should be up higher on the outside of the head.  I'm not willing to change it now.  The way that I put them on they're never coming off.  I wanted to make sure they could withstand being pulled on by a child. 

  I think I'll keep this one for myself.  I can't stand to give something away that isn't good enough.

  I am going to order the Blue Sky Alapcas yarn and see if it'll turn out better using that.

Now I'm off to work on sewing those squares together.  I am going to take breaks in between that and work on my Sirdar Cardigan.  It's about time that I finish that. 

FYI- Knitwerx is having a mothers day promotion at their online store.  They are offering a special 10% discount on EVERYTHING from May6th-May8th.  When you check out enter promotional code "mom2005" to get the discount.  They have some great Debbie Bliss yarns on sale.  Go check it out.  I'm going to!

They're Finished!

  Thanks you to everyone who commented on the picture of my very first sock.  I am so proud.  A very special thank you goes out to Carrie for giving my sock a special shout-out on her blog.  You're too kind!

  So, without further ado I give you the complete pair:

Sorry but the only pic I was willing to take was with them on my feet.  I'm not taking them off for anyone.  Have I said that I'm proud?

Now I can proudly display the "Real Women Knit Socks" sticker on my blog.  I knitted these with Bernat Sox yarn but now I say, "Bring on the Koigu, Lorna's Laces and Mountain Colors Bearfoot!"  Thank you Susan for the tips and recommendations.  I can't wait to start Branching Out.  The pattern is just beautiful!

Oh boy am I addicted to socks now!  I just want to keep knitting more pairs and push everything else aside. 

It took me much longer than expected to complete this first pair.  By the orders of my physical therapist, I had to (gasp!) cut down on my usual knitting time. 

I have to say how wonderful my PT is.  She is really quite wonderful.  She takes the time to be sure that I'm doing alright not only physically but also mentally.  It's nice to know that someone is looking out for you even if you don't need it.  The exaple she sets makes me want to go to physical therapy school once I can go back and finish undergrad.  (sorry for the tangent!)   

Back to why it took so long to finish my socks.  I've had major back pain this past week. It's due to not being able to exercise or strengthen my body.  (B/c of my leg nerve injury)  This week I had to come to the realization that it wasn't going to get better until I quit doing things with my hands all day.  As you can all imagine it has been really difficult to not knit.  I admittedly have still been knitting more than I should.  I can't help it.  It's my sanity!  (I realize that's probably stating the obvious.)  I also had to cut down on my computer time, which kept me from posting for a couple of days.   

  Now to get back on track.  My Baby Bobbi Bear pattern, from Blue Sky Alpacas, arrived last Friday along with some Bamboo Us9 dps. 

It's such a cute pattern! I'm going to make one for my cousin Emma, who was born a couple of weeks ago.  I want to make a pink one to match the blanket I knitted her.  I wanted to give the bear to her with the blanket but I didn't get the pattern for nearly five weeks after placing an online order.

Since I'm already late for getting it to her I figured that another week or so wouldn't really matter.  So, I'm making one first for a local 3 year old girl who was injured badly in a riding lawn mower accident this weekend. It's a horrible story.  She lost one of her feet and one leg is also badly injured.  My younger brother Andrew has an acquaintance who is friends with the little girls family.  Andrew came to my parents for our weekly Sunday dinner this evening.  Knowing about my charity project, The Preemie Project, he asked me if there was anything that I could do to help the little girl and her family.  I'm still brainstorming and I don't know exactly what to do.  I thought that a pretty teddy bear would be a start.

Here is what I've done so far. It doesn't look like a bear yet.  I just wanted to show the colors.  I'm hoping that the little girl will like these pretty colors.  I started the bear this evening and I hope to finish it within a day or two.   

I know that neither I nor any of you know this little girl.  I'm sure everyone can agree that this story is heartbreaking.  I can't imagine being the parents in this situation.  If anyone would like to help me cheer up this little girl please let me know.  If you have any suggestions as to something I/we could do, please leave a comment or send me an email.  I know that a teddy bear won't take back what has happened, I just want to try to make her smile.

  Speaking of The Preemie Project, I've been working on the website lately.  I've also been elated to have a couple more volunteers join.  The website's traffic is increasing each day.  I'm so happy to see this tiny project starting to grow. 

  I've put my preemie knitting on hold for a week or two.  I hope to knit a couple pairs of booties between other projects.  Unfortunately I had to put the Warm up America afghans for Kelly on hold this week.  Sewing those squares together aggravated my back worse than knitting.  I'm going to get back to it tomorrow if all goes well.  Here is the rest of my knitting list:

1. Warm Up America afghans
2. Preemie Project knits
3. Emma's Bear
4. Sirdar Cardigan
5. Boyfriend's Vest (the backordered yarn has been shipped.) 
6. Baby Blanket and Booties for baby gift (Need to purchase the yarn.)
7. Branching Out (Knitty.com)
8. Tartelette Shawl   
9. Broadripple Socks (Knitty.com)
10. Shawl for mom's birthday (August)

That's one LONG list and there'e more than that.  I didn't add in all of the various gifts for this year.  I hope I get all of this done and more before I need to start my christmas gifts.  I'm planning on making two afghans for christmas gifts.  I know...that's probably pushing it unless I start by June.

That's it for knitting news.  Hopefully I'll post pics of the WUA afghans mid-week.  One last thing.  I now have a complete, and peaceful home.  All three of my kitties are back together.  It took them a couple of days to get used to the new situation.  There was A LOT of hissing and other awful noises that came out of my otherwise very friendly cats.

Here's Toby, making his very first appearance on the "Knits for Sanity" blog.  He's relaxing on the couch with my boyfriend.  It's about time that I got a picture of him.  He's been sleeping and cuddling with his two brothers.  (Toby, not my boyfriend) =0)

 

Emma's Projects Almost Completely Finished!!!

  I've been working like mad to get the projects done for my new cousin who is due in mid-April.  I really want to get them to my aunt and uncle before she is born.  I finished her baby blanketthis evening and breathed a sigh of relief:

I actually like how it turned out.  It needs to be pressed so the edges won't curl over and then it will look better. 

  It does have a minor flaw.  I made a small error at one point in the pattern.  I am hoping that it remains undetected.  I hope you can keep a secret...it is located in the middle of the blanket.  I found it 3 days ago and it made me depressed!  After much thought and pouting, I decided that I had gotten to far along to rip it out and fix it.  It wouldn't be perfect. =0(      I had fixed way to many mistakes in this blanket already.  Plus there's no way I could get it to my aunt and uncle in time if I ripped half of it out.

I decided to try to knit a bear that matches the blanket.  I found a pattern on this website.  I have knitted up the bear and now I just need to put it together.  I am still unsure if I am going to like it.  The pattern says to knit it in one piece, fold it over and stitch up the sides. 

Here is what I have so far.  Doesn't look to cute yet huh?  I am going to have to do some major work on this one.  I may end up throwing it away but I''m keeping my fingers crossed.  It may look much better once it has ears and a face.

 

  Yesterday I needed ribbon and a button to finish Emma's baby set. So my mom took me to Hobby Lobby to look for a button for the hat and ribbon for the booties and mittens.  They looked so cute once I put them together.  I really like how these turned out:

   

So precious huh?!  I can't wait to see her in these!  Here is a picture of the little flower button that we found. ( click on the pictures to see full-sized versions) We thought that it was pretty cute:

 

Picture of Finished Sweater

  So, the digital camera is no longer MIA.  Now I finally have a picture of my finished Laines Plassard Sweater!

I do not always like the way that my sweaters turn out.  Sometimes the picture from the pattern looks way cuter than it actually is.  I do think that this one turned out cute.  I think that it is probably the best one that I've knitted so far.  It's good to have a knitting success!  After all the problems I had with this one, it had better be cute!

  My cats Oilver and Miller just happened to be playing in the room when I took a picture of my sweater.  I really cannot resist taking pictures of them.  They're so beautiful that I just have to show them off.  I'm such a nerd!

Here is Oliver.  He is almost 4...he is a BIG cat.  He's my shadow.

This is Miller.  He is my baby. My boyfriend gave him to me for my birthday last June.  So he is not quite 1 yet.  He's Oliver's shadow. 

They decided to calm down and take a nap while I was writing this post. so I had to take one more picture.  They love each other.

 

So was this overkill or what?!  I can't help it. I'm just crazy about them. 

  I have another cat named Toby.  He is a barky black 2 year old.  He lives with my boyfriend right now.  I had to move home with my parents due to my current physical condition.  (Or lack there of)  So I asked Tom (the boyfriend) to take care of him.  My parents already have a dog and I didn't want to create a zoo in their house.  Plus Tom is particularly fond of Toby.  They have a special bond.  Everytime Tom would come over to my place, Toby would look for the highest chair to jump onto.  That way he was at the perfect height to leap onto Tom's shoulders as he walked by.  It's pretty cute.  He's kind of like a huge parrot.  Toby used to also get on my shoulders, until he got older and was too big to fit.