Major Knitter

Alpaca with a Twist

I had three random skeins of Alpaca with a Twist in a purple, green and yellow.  I purchased them a few years ago while in Maine, thinking that they would make something soft and cuddly for a baby.

Wrongly thinking this was a worsted weight yarn, I didn't make a gauge.  The yarn is a DK weight, so the first baby hat - the green one - turned out to be the size of a medium-to-large preemie hat.  So for the next two hats, I cast on 70 sts and knit a 1x1 rib before continuing with the hat.  Same number of sts for the purple and yellow hats, but I was apparently more relaxed with the yellow hat because it turned out slightly larger than the purple hat.  Funny how all that works.  At any rate, I have three new hats for babies.  That's a good thing.

Judy! Judy! Judy!

Last night BF and I trekked into the city to the Apple Store at Fifth Avenue to see our friend Judy give a presentation on animal photography at the Central Park Zoo.

We haven't seen Judy in several months, so it was the first opportunity I had to present her with her birthday scarf.  It's an orange palindrome scarf to keep her warm this winter (although if our winter thus far is any indication, I should have bought her some sunscreen, instead).  This scarf is a throwback to the first scarf I knit for Judy during the Gates Project in Central Park where she volunteered in February 2005.  Remember the Gates Scarf?

Anyway, Judy gave a fabulous presentation on her animal photography and you can catch her at the Central Park Zoo most days taking pictures of the animals and their myriad antics.  If you don't see her in person, you can catch her animal photos here  Congratulations Judy on a job well-done!.

It's a Cultural Revolution

I'm finally getting on board with an e-reader.  It took me several years, but for the holidays, we received a Kindle from BF's grandmother.

You might be laughing at me for posting a picture of my Kindle with my yarn.  But I'm not.  This Kindle is for the family, and Secundogeniture downloaded a book for school in the audible book department - so we can listen and do other things at the same time.  This could be a fabulous thing for all of us!

So everyone will get their own category to download books.  I foresee the boys using it when they have homework and have forgotten their book at school.  (Does this happen a lot at your home?)  I already downloaded my book club selection for next month (in the text version) and also all my favorite classics by Jane Austen, Charles Dickens and the Bronte sisters.  The classics are free - so it was an easy decision.

How about you?  Are you hooked on your Kindle, too?

New Favorite Portable Knitting

For some reason, I've out of sorts with my sock knitting.  It's not calling to me.  What's a girl to do?  I must have my portable knitting.

I think that baby hats are my new portable knitting.  They're quick and easy and have the added benefit of knitting up on US Size 7 needles which is definitely a good thing for my body.  The cotton yard is somewhat harder on my hands and shoulders (do you find that, too?) - but I do love the instant gratification of being able to knit up a hat in an hour or so - and then having it to pass along to a good cause.  What could be better? 

Progress on the Bird House

...or, a meeting of the minds.

Today, Michelle, Joanne, Lynn, and Kristin and I met to decide how best to display our knit miniature birds with the birdhouse (from Iowa)

Here are my hens - desperately in need of a coop or fence to keep them safe.

Take a look at Joanne's mini ducks.  Aren't they adorable?  She's going to make a pond for them to swim in on our birdhouse diorama.

Michelle knit this itty bitty bird which is sitting on the birdhouse perch.

And finally, Michelle also made the cutest felted nest with knit eggs and a proud mother bird.

Now we need to assemble and decorate our bird house entry and hope that someone bids lots of money to help young adolescent girls at Project Return.

Boy Scout Popcorn for the Troops

This weekend I delivered Boy Scout popcorn from the Connecticut Yankee Council to the 500+ Marines and Sailors at 6th Communication Battalion in Brooklyn, NY.  Here's a picture of some of the younger Marines posing with the wall of popcorn.  Marines don't smile, but let me tell you - they were so thrilled with all this tasty popcorn.

I even had one of the Marines ask me how to find a Cub Scout pack in Bay Ridge Brooklyn for his son.

My favorite part of delivering the popcorn is seeing the Marines' reaction.  Marines are a very humble lot when it comes to donations.  I set the popcorn out - spread the word that it was a "Thank the Military" gift from the Boy Scouts - and even then, they all asked 'How much is this?" - when I told them it was free to thank them for their service - their faces really lit up.  

How do you thank the men and women of our armed forces for the work they do? 

Hello My Little Chickadees

I bought some mini googly eyes today (I just love saying "googly eyes" - don't you?) and knit up two more mini chickens.  These are really so much fun.

I also learned something interesting about a chicken's coxcomb.  They are red because of blood and were genetically a source of cooling down for the chicken.  Interesting, no?

I also googled chicken images and decided to knit mine in the truer colors of the birds.  I like yellow and orange, but chickens are not really those colors.  So here you have my white, red, black, tan and brown hens.

I think the black chicken is my favorite.

So, there you have it!  My chicken clutch is ready for the auction!

 

It's a Hen Party

Or the return of the chicken craze.

My friends and I are helping knit birds for the Westport Young Woman's League entry for the Project Return Bird House auction.  Today I knit four mini chicken egg cozies - but this time I used fingering weight yarn (Knit Picks Palette) and US Size 1 needles.  Take a look at this year's blind chickens compared to last year's chickens.  I don't have any mini googly eyes - so until tomorrow, my birds are sightless.

I can't guarantee that I'll stop at just four chickadees.  They're like potato chips.  It's hard to eat just one.

Baby Hats for Charity

I decided to start the new year off on the right foot by knitting up some newborn caps for charity.  I have so much yarn for baby projects that this seemed like a good idea.  I designed some patterns for baby caps four years ago, but haven't made any new baby caps since.  I thought now was as good as any time to revive these favorites.

The first hat is my Basic Newborn Baby Hat in 2x2 ribbing

The second is the same Basic Newborn Baby Hat - but this time in 1x1 ribbing

Third in line is the Basic Newborn Baby Hat - Rolled Brim

The fourth and final hat is the Basic Newborn Hat - Garter Stitch Brim.

 You can click on the links above for the Ravelry links and patterns, or you can find these, and all my free knitting patterns HERE.

Happy New Year!

BF and I wrapped up 2011 doing what we like best - having a quiet evening at home (because it's absolutely crazy to be out on the streets on a night like tonight!) and enjoying our time together.

I managed to finish my final FO of 2011.

And I also finished my first FO of 2012.

Not bad for a night's work.  

These are Let It Snowman by Lisa Wilt.

Details - Knit Picks Palette (white and orange); US Size 1 needles and some unlabeled leftover mohair for the hat & scarf.  I used some black beads for the eyes; and some random colored beads to top the end of the hat.  These are too cute and I'll definitely make more for next year's Christmas tree.

Happy New Year to all!