Thee little Owls

I made these little guys for the daughter of a friend of mine. It was part of a trade where I provided the material and got a gorgeous floor length double sided fleece hooded cape and I made her daughters anything they wanted, as long as it was knitted. Hence, three little owls sitting in a tree:

Another Foray into Baby Blankets

Over the past few years I have started to design baby blankets. First came ducks, then came platypuses/platypi (the debate of the correct plural rages on :) ). Now come the owls.

For this one, I've teamed up with Dena Designs to create this:

Please excuse the bad blocking (couldn't find my blocking wires). It will get another blocking very shortly.  I just finished having it test knit by a group of fabulous women over on the Test Knitters board on Ravelry. And... it is now ready to be released into the wild.


I was inspired to the Owl and Tree decals that my sister had put on my new niece's nursery wall. I tracked done the designer, Dena Designs, and contacted them. I asked if I could use the owl motif as inspiration for a baby blanket pattern and then donate the pattern to charity. She was thrilled and the rest is history, as they say.

Instead of charging directly for the pattern, we have decided to offer this pattern as a free download with the express wish that people donate what they think it is worth to one of four charities:

• Heifer International - http://www.heifer.org/ - Heifer International’s mission is to work with communities to end hunger and poverty and care for the earth. Empowers people by giving animals.
  
• Junior Diabetes Research Fund - http://jdrf.org/#donate - JDRF is the leader of the type 1 diabetes (T1D) community—unifying global efforts to cure, treat, and prevent T1D. Through a transformative vision, breakthrough innovations, and effective operations, JDRF is working to remove the impact of T1D from people’s lives until we achieve a world without T1D.
  
• Autism Speaks - http://www.autismspeaks.org/ways-give - Autism Speaks is the world’s leading autism science and advocacy organization, dedicated to funding research into the causes, prevention, treatments and a cure for autism.
  
• Project Linus - Providing blankets to children and adults in need. About Project Linus - http://www.projectlinus.org/about/ Donate to Project Linus - https://secure.acceptiva.com/?cst=5acf60
  

The pattern comes with a full color chart (done two ways) and written instructions for the boarder and finishing. It also comes with tips for applying a backing to the blanket. We believe the pattern is worth at least a donation of $4.00. However it is ultimately up to you. :)
 

Skin of my teeth

Like a lot of people, NOTHING motivates me like a deadline. The latest case in point. I have known for 7 MONTHS that my son's teacher was having a baby in early April. However it wasn't until about a month ago I kicked myself into gear to start working on her baby's present(s).

Sheldon/Shellie and her blanket

So, what to knit? I am a pragmatic knitter and am always searching for that practical yet cute knitted baby present that stands a really good chance of getting used. I've knitted countless hats. I've done custom blankets for all my sisters' kids (four and counting) as well as lace and sampler blankets for my own two.

My go to gift of late has been this toy dragon byZaryffa Sandan. It's quick, very cute and sturdy. And it will be at least a few years until the child truly outgrows having a dragon around. :)

However for the current baby in question, I decided to go for a car capsule friendly baby blanket with accompanying turtle. It would be made out of washing machine friendly yarn and in the colors that the parents had decorated the nursery in. I wanted something that was baby/bomb proof. No manner of baby produced fluid was going to be too much for this blanket. Need something to put on the floor as an emergency diaper changing area? No problem. Want a barrier between the floor/ground and the squirming 6mth old that needs some tummy time? Sorted.

The blanket, as per the pattern, would have a pocket to fit in the turtle in. So, out of my raverly queue came: Sheldon's Baby Blanket and Sheldon. I have been wanting to make these two for a LONG time. I think the date I originally queued the Sheldon pattern  was sometime in 2008.

There was one "small" snag in my execution. I didn't have the colors I wanted in DK weight in my stash. So, I used the left over yarn from the blanket, which was worsted weight. Sheldon came out bigger (as expected). However I didn't have time to redo the pocket on the blanket. So, Sheldon will just have to ride along in the diaper bag. :)

Purple Sheldon

I finished the blanket with 8 minutes to spare before I had to walk out the door to deliver it. The baby, a little girl,  arrived two weeks early on Monday. Mum and baby are doing really well. I won't get to see the Mum's face as she gets to see the blanket and Sheldon/Shellie. However, I truly hope she likes it.

It's all gone

I endeavor to keep this blog primarily about my knitting exploits. However sometimes life and knitting meet in such a way that leaving out one half of the story does not make sense.

In my previous post about the hats I made myself, I failed to mention that I had a specific purpose in mind. Yesterday, I had my head shaved by a lovely lady named Alison. She spent the morning helping to shave about 20 people along with myself. We were shedding our locks for Saint Baldricks - a charity dedicated to raising money for childhood cancer research. My team mates and I have currently raised over $15,000 and are hoping to raise a bit more.

So, the hats are now in constant rotation. However there is a downside to knitted hats on a freshly shaven head - they stick like velcroe. :)

So, I know you wanna see what it looks like.... So here you go....

My kids and I immediately after the shearing.

Here is the link for our St Baldricks Team, Team Thompson. It was such a blast.

Three and counting

Like many crafters, I tend to give away most of what I make. Before my latest endeavor, of the 79 projects that I had on ravelry, I had made for myself, and kept, a grand total of two. A hat and a pair of fingerless gloves. I still have the gloves, however I promptly lost the hat a month after I made it.

I decided that after Christmas, I would start on something for myself. I live in Colorado and didn't have a warm winter hat. So, that seemed like the obvious place to start.

Inspired by the quick knit hat that the Yarn Harlot made for her daughter for Christmas, I decided to make one for myself with yarn that had been sitting, waiting to be used for four years. It had been part of an ambitious sweater project that never got off the ground.

 

Knit Night Hat by Judy Marples

This got me thinking. What stop at one? So, I promptly went through my Ravelry queue and made myself another two hats. One with yarn I had been given for Christmas, from Australia, and the other with yarn I bought from the new and gorgeous yarn store in town. 

Molly by Erin Ruth

Scott Pilgrim Hat (original costume pattern from the movie) by Lulu Bee

The first hat (presently) gets the most use. The other two are currently sitting in my "finished objects draw".

The Rise of the Unicorn (hat)

Two weeks before Christmas, my 4yo daughter, sitting on Santa's knee, looks me squarely in the eye and asked for a unicorn hat. I will have sit her down and tell her that Santa organizes his knitting list MONTHS before the big day.

I didn't know how I was going to get it done, considering the amount of Christmas knitting I had taken on last year and how I was supposed to get it done without her seeing it. So, I devised a little white lie. I told the 4yo that Santa has sent me an email asking me to make it for him, considering the late notice. Luckily for me, she bought it.

Little did I know that this one hat would quickly lead to the creation of two more. After seeing his sister's hat come into being, the 6yo wanted one (without the horn) in orange and blue (Denver Bronco colors - we live in Colorado). I managed to get both done before Christmas day! YAY! Within a week of school going back, the 4yo's preschool teacher asked for her own. How could I refuse. So, may I present the three unicorn hats:

6yo and I modelling the first two hats. 4yo didn't want to be in the photo. :)

Not quite finished. Have to finish the sewing on the wears. Want to leave it undone until I confer with the new owner on whether she likes the placement of the ears.

Thanks to the author of the pattern, Brittany Tyler who published the Unicorn Hat. My two kids thank you!

Christmas Knitting Rehash

Yep, it's been too long since I last posted. So, in an effort to rectify that, here is a rehash of my Christmas Knitting exploits.

In the past I have knitted hats and scarves for the kids or the occasional hat etc for a visiting relative for Christmas. However, I have avoided doing a lot of knitting for Christmas, as I don't need the stress. I found out in April that my Brother, his girlfriend and her parents were coming for Christmas. And what better way of showing how happy we were that they were here (from Australia) than to make hat and scarf/cowl sets for everyone. So, this is what I came up with:

 For my brother: Purl Ridge Cowl & Custom Man-hat.

 For the lovely Miss Emily: Basic Tam by Ann Budd crossed with "Noo" & Shawl Collared Cowl

For Louise and Tony, I made (left to right): Meret Mystery Beret, Gemstone Cowl, Medowbrook & Dave's Hat

It was a truly lovely Christmas. Filled with family, both chosen and given.