RAK makes me feel like the luckiest girl in the world! Bijouxmaster on Ravelry sent me this wonderful package of goodies this past week. There are three skeins of Caron Soft and a skein of sock yarn from her stash. And a fun little book, Things I Learned from Knitting, that I can't wait to read! Thanks again...this is so wonderful!
Through a link on One Shabby Chick, I fell upon the Kitschy Digitals Blog. It's full of "digital downloads for the kitsch lover in you." What caught my eye was the Woodland Book-Lovers Printable Kit. So cute! And I know my pal Miss Therese will love the gnomes. ;)
Now that I finished the world's largest first quilt ever, I thought I'd move onto a second more managable size. This one is going in the LR (like I said, I just keep adding) when it's done. For now, I just have the top sewn, and I bought the filler and back. Let the quilting begin.
But first, some crafting lessons I've learned with this project:
OK...here's the quilt top now:
I was going to knit an adult version of this hat for Shane, but he backed out of the idea. Still, I think it's worth sharing, because it's good for a giggle!
Yep, kids, you guessed it...another RAK gift. SWEET! Knitter08 sent this package to me after a little discussion we had on a message board about it being a long winter with a bad economy. Her advice for getting through it was by knitting. So she sent me some of her stash to help me through. It's so fun to get these little goodies in the mail. It's also lots of fun to send out. I've sent out two boxes of gifts this month, books for one person and yarn and fun little gifts for another. I highly suggest you send a surprise to someone you know. 
...but at least this chemo cap is better. It was my second stab at it, and this time it went much better. I might add a little owl or something to the front, but for now, I'm happy it's knitted. I used the scrap alpaca yarn I had from the scarflette giveaway I did. And I still have scraps left to use. Bonus!
Correction: I did make the pillow, but you saw that already. What I'm referring to is the great afghan I found this weekend at Savers, a local resale shop that benefits Easter Seals. I got this gem for $3.99 to add to the brown and orange I have going on in the living room. I know, I know, it's SO 1970s, and even a little ugly and grannyish, but I like that kind of stuff. And I think when paired with the pillows, it's a nice little mix. Then again, I have days where I hate it all and just want to start over. I wonder if that happens because changing the decor in a room really happens in stages...not in an hour like you see on TV. It was like that in our old home, for sure. Eventually I started feeling comfortable with the way room looked. I'm still not there yet with this room. I keep getting new ideas of things to add so we'll just see where that leads.
So many projects in the works, but nothing quite ready to show you yet. Let's take a little break with Amy Sedaris. Cheers.
I *heart* Boston Terriers (bulldogs are #1...but flat face pups in general are tops with me). And I love knitting...no news there. So Ravelry designed a t-shirt just for me...well, you'd think so. So I'm asking Santa for this in a size medium. The sad truth is that Santa doesn't come anymore...actually all gift exchanges are really just for the nieces and nephews now...still, a girl can dream and believe! =)
...and so does this hat. I was making another Chemo Cap...all striped and autumn pretty. But one mess up led to another...the same way cells multiply to become a cancer. I refuse to send a cap out that has so much angst knitted into it, especially to someone who needs so much more positive in her life. So this one will be frogged. Ribbit. Boo. Another better knitting day will hopefully produce better results. *sigh*
Another Ravelry group that I'm part of is the Knitters for Obama (KFO). Sure, the election is over, but the work still needs to happen to get the country back in shape. While we wait for "orders" from the big guy, we decided to do some community work as a group by knitting chemo caps for patients with cancer. We're doing this in honor of Obama's grandmother Toot, and we'll be sending them out to the University of Chicago Hospital to start with, since that's where Michelle works(ed). I think the deadline for the project is Inauguration Day, and we can knit any kind of cap we like. I thought I'd start with a Cable Knit Cap. I've done this pattern before and really liked how it turned out. And I'm using the yarn from this RAK gift. If you're interested in knitting (or crocheting) caps too, just join the KFO on Ravelry, or let me know and we can work out ways for you to contribute (because the group could always use more soft, non-wool yarn)!
Another friend is having a wee one, so I knit this little hoodie for him or her. And I used the yarn that came from this RAK gift. The pattern is called the Easy Baby Cardigan, which I found on Ravelry (of course). It was supposed to be a tie front, but I added little wooden buttons instead. Ties just seemed too complicated for a new mom to deal with.
Old Red Barn Co. is at it again... giving away three beautiful quilts, that is! The last giveaway on this blog was back in July (or I think so anyway). But the author of the blog has upped the prizes from one quilt to three. So now you have more chances to win something!
Entering is easy; it's all about leaving a comment. But there are ways to win more entries. Head over to this post and get the lowdown. And good luck!
How About Orange had a link to a cool site that allows you to search Flickr by color. And not just one color...but a whole bunch of colors together. It's such a great place for inspiration. Here's orange and light blue:
. . . the holidays are just around the corner. sigh
Oh, but here's what they looked like before they gave up on pumpkin life. Mine is on the left, Shane's is on the right.
I have a big tin of vintage buttons, but with all the scarflettes I've made, I've used up many of the cool big ones. Craft stores like JoAnn's sell big buttons, but they're so expensive and just don't have the same character as vintage buttons. So I was very excited to come across lots and lots of vintage buttons at an antique shop in town that I found....and for $0.50 a piece!!!! Wee!
After making the Baby Skull Cap for wee Ronan, his daddy asked me to make him a matching vest complete with a skull patch and skull buttons (the buttons came from this etsy shop). I think Ronan's gonna look like a little tough guy!
With the air getting chillier and even some snow on Friday, it's time to break out the knitting patterns that are going to keep me warm and cozy this winter. First up are the Amy March Slippers. I got this pattern from Ravelry and it was super easy to follow. These only took me about four hourst to make. The yarn was supposed to be for a blanket in the LR, but when I got home, I realized the colorways were not the same, so I decided to put this yarn to a different use. I also learned a new cast-on method, which is toe-up...lot of fun and no seaming!
My friend and co-worker Camela asked me to knit her a scarflette and mitten set for her mom's birthday at the end of November. She bought the yarn--Suri hand painted from KnitPicks.com. It's an alpaca blend that looks like mohair, but is SUPER soft. I was worried how it would knit up, but I think it turned out pretty nice.
Brittni over at Paper and Stitch is having a big ol' giveaway on her site...and one of my scarflettes is part of the fun! Here's the info:
How to enter: It’s simple, visit the papernstitch site (either the homepage or products page) and find a product that you love (it doesn’t have to be a product or seller from the giveway, but it be great if it was). Post the link in the comment section of this post and tell why you like it (just a sentence is fine). You can enter more than once if you like, if you have more than one favorite product. You have until Friday, November 14th at midnight EST to enter and I will announce the winner on Saturday, November 15th (the day that the second exhibition kicks off). Be sure to check back on Saturday to see if you are a winner!
Good luck to all!
On Sunday, Shane and I went out to the UW Arboretum to take advantage of the beautiful weather and capture what is left of the changing fall colors. It was absolutely goregous, even if most of the colors were seen by looking down instead of up. =)
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