FO: The newt's vest

Baby knits are so quick! Especially when you don't have to knit sleeves.

Pattern: Vest by Debbie Bliss
Source: Essential Baby by Debbie Bliss
Materials: 1.5 skeins of Debbie Bliss Baby Cashmerino in Sea green
Needles: US 4/3.5mm
Started: June 12, 2009
Finished: June 17, 2009
Raveled here

I love a nice sweater vest. I love them on kids, women and especially on men. Nothing is cuter than a grown man in a sweater vest. Give him a beard and I melt. Speaking of beards, I had a dream that I gave birth to the newt and it was a boy who looked exactly like Jesse except he was blonde. Sounds kind of cute, but instead of looking like baby Jesse, the newt looked like a teeny version of grown-up Jesse, complete with a beard. I also had a dream that Jesse met a couple who had been trying to conceive for ages so he decided to sign away our rights to the newt and give him/her to this couple . . . without asking me! I was pissed.

More baby knits are in the works. I am over the moon about knitting for the newt!

More spinning

This alpaca/silk/merino blend from FreckleFaceFibers . . .

turned into this . . .

and then into this!

I'm getting better at this spinning business!

I'm thinking of knitting something for the newt with my handspun. I don't think I have enough for a sweater, so it might become some booties and a hat. This kid's going to be born in December so he or she will need lots of warm woollies!

Oh! And you can keep track of my weekly belly bump pics over here!

FO: Gooseberry Hat

Just a little FO to show you.

Pattern: Gooseberry Hat by Suvi S.
Materials: bits of leftover Louet Gems Sport in Chickadee
Needles: US 4/3.5mm
Started: April 20, 2009
Finished: May 22, 2009
Raveled here

I knit this up for my friend Ashley's baby, Isac. It's a little big on him now, so I'm hoping he'll get some use out of it this fall.

And you'll be seeing some more baby knits here in the near future because I'm working on building my own little person!

The newt is due to arrive in early December!

I'm a winner!

A lovely prize arrived in my mailbox yesterday! Weekend Sewing by Heather Ross. Ooooh!

I won the book in a contest on the the craft blog, Make+Do. Austen is doing regular giveaways, so you'd be smart to subscribe to her blog and try your luck at winning a crafty book too.

Seriously, this book is incredible. It's got a wide variety of patterns (not just your regular placemat, handbag, napkin, remote control holder and tissue box cover) and I kind of want to make everything in here. Sherrie had her heart set on winning this book, so I've agreed to share custody. :)

I seems that I won't have a whole lot of time to craft over the next 34 days. A provincial election was called today, so I'll be managing a campaign and working my butt off! Sherrie: the book is yours for a month!

Thanks again, Austen, for the lovely book!

FO: Ishbel

All the cool kids were doing it, so I jumped on the bandwagon.

Pattern: Ishbel by Ysolda Teague
Materials: 1 entire skein of Handmaiden Double Sea Silk in Midnight (?) plus a little tiny bit of Fleece Artist Nova Sock in a similar colourway to bind off
Needles: US 6/4mm
Started: April 3, 2009
Finished: April 7, 2009
Raveled here

Verdict: Love it. First, the yarn is really, really beautiful. It's soft, silky and has a lovely drape. It's ideal for a shawl/scarf/neckerchief/whatever Ishbel is supposed to be. The pattern is easy and well-written and the finished object is classy. I love everything about it.

Now that Blogless Annie (who, incidentally, now has a blog) has moved to Brooklyn, NY, I've lost my old blocking space! I used to block shawls in her attic because the old wood floor was the ideal spot to quietly leave a damp handknit where no kitties or husbands could disturb it. I decided to pin Ishbel down on the linoleum kitchen floor by the patio door in hopes that no one would step on it/wrestle it away from the pins and it was a success! Moustache didn't even look at it.

I ran out of yarn just before casting off, so I hauled out some bits of Fleece Artist Nova Sock in a similar colouway (leftover from this cowl) and bound off. It's blends pretty well and is hardly noticeable. It's actually kind of satisfying to use an entire skein on a project and not have any bits leftover.

Foray into a new craft

This thing of beauty showed up in my living room one evening after I went to knitting group. A guild member who says she hasn't touched her spinning wheel in months offered to loan me her lonely wheel for a bit. I, of course, jumped at the chance of being able to spin in the comfort of my own home.

I fiddled around with the wheel a bit to familiarize myself with it and then jumped right into spinning with both feet. I got this braid of 3.7 ounces of merino combed top in "Lunamoth" from Freckle Face Fibers, drafted it a bit and started making some yarn.

And I came up with this gorgeous skein of handspun.

Sure, it's not perfect, but I love it. It's approximately 166 yards and 100 grams of worsted weight yarn in shades of purple, brown and grey. I have no idea what I'm going to knit with it yet, but I've got enough for some mitts or a cowl or a beret.

Right now I'm happy wearing the lone skein on my head. Fashionable, no?

Porom for Mum

Mum asked me to knit her a tam or a beret, so I went to Ravelry right away to show her some patterns. At my insistence, she chose Porom. She wanted it in green, so I was excited to pick out some new yarn. I went to the Loop last weekend and found a gorgeous skein of Tanis Fiber Arts Green Label yarn -- a light worsted merino dyed in a semi-solid green. Perfect.

Pattern: Porom by Jared Flood
Materials: 1 skein Tanis Fiber Arts Green Label in Moss
Needles: US 6/4mm and US 8/5mm needles
Started: January 26, 2009
Finished: January 28, 2009
Raveled here

I didn't do any modifications -- the pattern is perfect the way it is. I did, however, run out of yarn on the last row and had to use less than one yard of Brown Sheep Cotton Fleece in a similar colour to finish off. It's not noticeable at all. In fact, even when I pointed it out to Dad he couldn't see it.

Mum loves her Porom and it looks even better on her than it does on me!