washcloths?

This post has been edited to acknowledge the authors of the patterns and their Ravelry links.
My sincere apologies to all four who share their patterns for free.

What do you knit the grandson who seems to have more clothes than he could possibly need? Who already has socks and singlets and nappies (diapers) and blankets and wraps galore?

Washcloths, of course. But these are not for washing, oh no! These are burp cloths - so much more interesting to look at than a nappy hanging round mum's neck or over dad's shoulder.

And so, I present for your viewing pleasure: Ben's burp cloths. All are knitted in Cleckheaton Fiddle De Dee 100% cotton which is both machine washable and dryable. All took less than two hours to complete and all used less than one 50g skein of yarn. None have yet been blocked.

Above is Quacking Up by Elaine Fitzpatrick. There is a pattern for a matching bib too.
Below is Airplane, Free by Susan Mrenna and Giddy-up by Amy-lynne Mitchell.

The final two are Knitted "B" dishcloth and Knitted Musical Notes by Rhonda White

double knitting workshop

Today I tutored a workshop on double knitting at our Guild meeting. DD, of course, was not there - seems she found something more important to do!! LOL

My first article for the workshop was a sock I knitting in the round on straight needles for the sock workshop I tutored last year because double knitting in one colour results in a tube and that, after all, is what a sock is - a tube with a closed end.

So, in further preparation for the workshop I started this:

It began life as a scarf, just like the pattern on Ravelry. But it soon became obvious that this knit, in 5ply acrylic, was too firm to be a scarf. And it was way too slow to knit a scarf in thin yarn in this technique - so what you see will shortly become GS#1's first knitted bib. Thanks to Laurita who is encouraging me to knit a bib from her scarf pattern.

Wanting to show an article that would be interesting enough for the participants to want to know how it was done, I knitted this pot holder / heat pad. The pattern can be found on Ravelry.

Then it was time to design an article of my own for the workshop and write up the pattern. Here it is. Next time I would make it four inches wider but it is just big enough to be used as a coaster and if knitted in thinner yarns and repeating the motif it could be a bookmark.

 I had many nice comments about the workshop and people were amazed that something that looks so complicated could actually be so easy. Thanks to all the participants and to Merrin, our group convenor and Vicki, the workshop  coordinator, for continuing to have faith in me and allowing me the joy of tutoring in a hobby I love.

It's a boy!

Welcome to this crazy world, Benjamin Alexander.

Born 17 February 2010 at 12:21pm after a 4 hour 21 minute labour (for a first baby?!)

weight: 3.7kg  (8lb 3oz)

length: 49.5cm (19.5 inches)

You look a lot like your daddy and only a little like your mummy. 

P.S. Happy 76th birthday, Gran. You couldn't ask for a better present!!

humbled

For someone who has only been on Ravelry a few short months and wishes I'd joined sooner (there, I've said it), I had a great compliment paid to me the other day. Well, really, WM had a great compliment paid because he took the photos of the baby blankets. I received this Rav message:

We’d like to feature your photo on the Ravelry page for Tyler by Melissa Leapman.

Humbled and honoured as I was, of course I said yes.

a quick knit, a not-so-quick knit and The Friday Night Knitting Club

I cast on for Grandbubby's Pilchers (Soakers) last night using 8ply (DK) yarn hand-painted by DD in her first attempt at dyeing in a workshop in December 2007. She is not really a green person but since we don't know whether she is having a girl or a boy, green was a safe choice. The pattern I used was Flowerpot Tots DK Shorties and Longies (Rav link). They were designed to be knit on two needles - I started that way but soon changed to circular needles after completing the gusset. 100 stitches on 4dpns to complete the waistband was a bit tricky and I'm not 100% happy with the cast off at the waistband (perhaps I should have gone up another needle size or two). I also eliminated the cord that was threaded through the waistband - I don't know if this was a big mistake or not! We shall see how these go on Grandbubby before making any further modifications.


And for my not-so-quick knit, here is my Twisted Slipped Stitch Scarf (folded in half for the photo).

I modified the pattern called "Harris" in Jan Eaton's 100 Knitted Blocks to create this scarf which I began on 12 January. I should know to check that I have all the materials and/or tools I need before embarking on a project, and I was convinced that I had another 100g ball of the green yarn in the cupboard. I did, but it was not the same green! Consequently my knitting came to a screaming halt on 26 January. I was going to rip it all out but DD and WM wouldn't let me. Luckily I listened to them because while we were away last week, we went to a discount store in Corrimal that focuses on art and craft materials and they had the same brand of yarn in their stock and several balls of the same colour.

Unfortunately, the scarf was not one of the four projects I packed for the week away so I had to wait until we got home on Friday to check the colour and compare the dyelot. Fortunately, it is the right colour (I call it bottle green) and the dyelot may or may not be the same (I have long since lost the original ball band) but I can't see any variation in colour.

I finished the scarf on 5 February but didn’t get any photos until today. The finished scarf is 2m (80 inches) long and 12cm (4.5 inches) wide in keeping with the current fashion for long skinny scarves.

As for TFNKC, I asked people to leave a comment if they wanted me to pass the book on to them. WM drew the lucky "winner" out of a hat, oops, sorry, a recycled ice-cream container. The new soon-to-be owner is ...

Marcia.     Please contact me with your mailing address so I can get it in the post to you.

Lynne's Lacy Summer October 2009 - January 2010

Now when I say "lace" dear readers, do you think lightweight yarn knitted into frothy light-as-a feather confections?

What is lace knitting but a combination of increases (usually in the form of yarn-overs) and decreases? And so I bring, for your viewing pleasure and my contribution to Bells' Long Lacy Summer KAL, three baby blankets.

First there was Diamond and Smock Cover (Rav link) knitted in Spotlight 8ply cotton and destined to be used by Grandbubby the First. Don’t jump to conclusions about the colour: this was all I had to hand when I got the urge to knit a baby blanket. DD loves blue and she thinks this teal is suitable for girls and boys!

BTW, the cradle was used by SIL and his three siblings (two older) and has been lovingly restored by WM.

As a knitter I love trying new things and that “smocking” around a group of ten stitches was certainly a new technique for me – it’s very easy but very effective. Not so easy was the "purl five stitches together" – cotton is not the easiest yarn to work with when faced with directions like these; especially when the cotton is 8ply (DK).

Then, when my Ebay purchases of Fiddle-De-Dee cotton (10ply/worsted weight) arrived I started this: the Tilting Block Blanket (scroll down if you are looking for the pattern). I modified the pattern so that the tilting blocks covered the whole blanket - no stocking (stockinette) centre panel as in the original pattern.

You may remember that I have knitted this one before, for my niece whose baby was born in March 2009. This new one was to have been for DB and SIL’s daughter (due late March 2010) before I knew they were having a girl. DD was quick to claim it after the news was broken – I have so much Fiddle-De-Dee with pink in it that she thought it only right that I knit something pink for my new niece!

So, as a Christmas present for DB and SIL’s daughter (to replace the “pre-claimed” lemon blanket above and to use up some of the "pink" in my stash), I knitted "Tyler" from Fiddle-De-Dee cotton. This pattern is from Quick Knit Keepsakes Book 2 [front cover].

This was the first of the three blankets that I blocked. DD, now living half a city away from us, used to be my blocking partner. I tried to block this blanket on my own but the job is much more easily done with two people, especially when crawling around on the floor. And WM turned out to be a natural! Once he realised that one can’t just grab an edge of wet knitting and pull but must ease the knitting into its finished shape and size, he was a wiz!

So there you have it, my contributions so far to Long Lacy Summer KAL – it may not be light and frothy but it is lace knitting!

She's back!

We left our little beach cabin at 10am today - only three and a half hours ago but it already seems ages! It seems so quiet here now that I can't hear the pounding of the surf. *sigh* I will add photos when WM has had time to download some.


WM is back to work on Monday but I have all this term off; that is, I don't go back to work until after Easter - the doctor is still concerned about my health and wants to avoid a relapse of Chronic Fatigue Syndrome so he's not taking any chances! Therefore, I still have eight more weeks off work - how will I survive? LOL