FO: Baby Swoon

My mom asked for a quilt to be used at her house, for her new grandson. I think I have always wanted to make another version of Swoon, and this seemed like a perfect opportunity.

So, I made four blocks (they are a great size, at about 24" each!), using mints and maroons, with a light gray background. With my first swoon, it took me forever to finish the blocks, but I skated through this set.

I backed it in a variety of prints to coordinate (my favorite kind of backing, always!).

I love the dotty medium gray binding, too.

You can find the pattern here.

FO: Ron Burgundy

Did I tell you I have a new nephew? It's true.
He is my sister's first child, and it is really awesome to see her in this new role.

This was taken at her baby shower a few months ago, when Jill opened this knitted sweater that I made for her.

I used the free pattern Baby Sophisticate, which I would definitely knit again. I chose to knit the 6-12 month size, since you never know how big a baby will be!

The yarn was intended for some felted slippers last year, but it seemed like the perfect color (Malabrigo Worsted in marron oscuro).

I especially love these buttons, which I found on etsy (here!)

As much as I would love to share pictures of my nephew, my sister has decided not to post any online photos of him for the time being. If that changes, I'll be sure to share!

My project is here on ravelry. Oh, and obviously, I named this sweater for the famous anchorman.

Fi and her twins

My friend Fi is amazing. I met her through the Houston MQG, and I just adore her. When she shared that she was pregnant with twins, I wanted to do something special for her. During her shower, I asked guests to sign fabric squares, and I added them to another pile of 8" squares, cut from Fi's favorite colors (which she used to decorate the nursery).

It's a simple quilt, and it's big enough for the family to share as the girls grow.

The back is scrappy as per my usual. I really love making quilt backs (I can't believe I just said that). I don't entirely love sewing long seams, but I do love choosing fabrics to match the front. That counts, I guess.

I also gave Fi two knitted sweaters for her girls. You already saw Hoot, and I finished a Yoked Cardigan last week.

The pattern is by Knitbot, and I knit the 6 month size on smaller needles. I'm hoping the girls can wear them at least a few times before they grow.

They are super adorable little ones. I know I will love them as much as I love Fi.

FO: Hoot

Oh, this sweater is cute.

I mean, aren't all baby sweaters? I think the owls make it extra cute, though. I can count four friends who have babies in the oven, so I decided to knit a few wee sweaters. Here's the first:

Olias is shown for scale (and added cuteness).

I knit the free Hoot Cardigan by Brenda Lotar, and used some stash KnitPicks Wool of the Andes (color is Iris Heather). I knit the 3 month size, and although ravelry tells me it took 3 months, the knitting went pretty quickly; I just procrastinated on the sleeves. Yes, even baby sleeves are boring to knit.

Up next, the Yoked Cardigan, by Knitbot.

A winner and some Geraniums

First thing is first! The winner of the RJR Cotton Supreme Solids fat quarter bundle is, #18, Amy!

Congrats, and thanks to everyone that entered!

I'm not sure if you've tried the Geranium dress pattern by Rae, but you should if you have a little girl to sew for. I've made several of these dresses, and I recently finished a few more. My friend, Rue, just had her second child. I thought her oldest, lovingly referred to as Tadpole, might like a dress.

I used this favorite Garden Party print, with a fun orange print for the yoke lining.

My grandmother has shared a collection of buttons with me, and I found these in her stash.

I also made a few that were intended for a craft show last fall. I wasn't able to participate, but decided to add the dresses to my etsy shop.

This is such a great pattern for baby shower gifts, and for big sisters, too!

FO: Earthy Strips

Baby quilts are always fun to make.

This one, for Bill and Meena, was no exception. Starting with Elizabeth Hartman's Xylophone quilt from her second book, I used Kona Stone, along with green and brown strips to make some (slightly) wonky wedged blocks. I decided to only use these two colors (although I considered yellow as well), mostly to avoid having a lot of wasted cuts. I do have a small pile of waste, but I intend to use them up as scrappy bits in some improv blocks.

The quilt finishes at approximately 48" x 52". I like to size baby quilts generously, so they can grow with the baby.

I'm remind of last January's baby quilt, for Wyatt. More green and brown, there!

As part of my ongoing free motion practice, I tried the meander stitch this time. Full disclosure: I started quilting this twice before landing on the meander. First, I tried pebbling, but it looked all wrong with the strips. Then, I started straight-line quilting, but I didn't think that worked here either.

So, the meander, which I did only on the Kona Stone.

For the back, I used a long ago stashed Deer Valley cut, which I love. I think the yellow/brown print works perfectly! I broke it up with some white Kona and a lonely leftover block. I left an unquilted area for my mom and I to sign.

And that's it! Another quilty finish, and another one I wish I could keep.

Monday

I'm glad you guys agree with my choice of the word 'focus'! In terms of craft, I felt pretty confident that I nailed it this past week.

With one project exception, I was able to finish a few smaller things, but mostly worked to get the shoo-fly do.Good Stitches project quilted. It will be bound this week, and the first quilty finish of the year will be done!

I'm using a Dear Stella dot for the binding. It's against my beliefs to stick to such a limited palette, but it's good to challenge yourself, yes? I really wanted to throw in some yellow, or green, but I resisted!

I finished my next Wonky Bee assignment, some gradient strips (with pops of accent) for Melissa's project. I owe you guys a full post on round three of the wonky bee.

I also knocked out eleven more X & + blocks, thanks to a full afternoon of cutting scraps. It really is fun to sort through a stack all at once, and then sew them at my leisure.

A couple of wonky stars in the happiest of colors was also on my to-do list. Not a chore at all, no sirree.

I got to give the scrappy trip around the world block a run, for Sharon, as part of BaMS.

I also worked on a new baby quilt project, for my (?) step-sister (?), I guess you would call her? Whatever. She's family, and she's having a kid. This is actually a finished quilt top now. Picture to come!

So, whew. That's a lot, but like I said, it was a very productive week.We won't talk about the project that stumped me thrice, and still isn't finished. Because I will get it finished, and like it.
Ha.

Wishing you a very productive and fun week!

Weekend happenings

I don't know about you, but I was not ready for the weekend to be over. E and I drove down to Galveston (just about an hour away) to visit with his family. They rented a beach house for the weekend, and it was wonderful to see them all.

We returned home Saturday afternoon, and I spent most of the day in the sewing room. I finished a big project, and then Jill came over for another little sewing adventure. She wanted to make some bibs for a good friend. This friend is adopting a baby in the upcoming weeks, and Jill really wanted to give her a handmade gift.

Here's her first bib, in an adorable Laurie Wisbrun print. We used a template found here. We made pizza, too, using my favorite dough recipe!

Sunday, I woke up early, got some errands done, and finished bee blocks for Sara, wonky houses.

I don't know why, but house blocks always intimidate me. I think the finished quilt will be very fun!

After making some tortilla soup to enjoy this week, I quilted a little project I finished a few weeks ago and Olias promptly tested it for me.

This will be a baby gift for someone in the next few months.

I finished the evening with some knitting and a little Mad Men. I was able to finish this first sock, and I'm determined to cast on the second very soon. Pattern and yarn info here.

So, how was YOUR weekend?

FO: Fenced Foxes

I seriously love this quilt. The pattern, from Elizabeth Hartman's book, is called Fenced In.

It was very easy to size this down for a baby quilt, but I skipped adding the outside border. I used only Lizzy House Outfoxed prints, purchased from Pink Castle.

I also used stash solids, including Kona Corn Yellow (back), Kona Stone and three greens (not sure which ones) for the binding. I used an emerald green Gutermann thread for the quilting.

I think Jessica really loved the new quilt, and it was so much fun seeing old friends at the shower yesterday. From left to right, Kristen, Jessica, me, Julie and Laurie. I've known all but Laurie since elementary school, where we were all girl scouts together! Laurie went to our high school, too.

I know baby Wyatt will enjoy his quilt!

Hello, 2012

Well, hello! I hope 2012 is treating you well so far. I have a lot of things to share with you. First up, I met a blog friend last week.

Rue was in Texas last week, so I made the drive up to New Braunfels to meet her in person! We agreed that after talking online for so long, it was a little weird to be sitting across from one another. She's so sweet, and her little Tadpole is even cuter in person. And look at that completed Stripe Study she's wearing! Mine still isn't finished, but I am working on the border, so it shouldn't be too much longer!

I'm so glad I got the chance to meet her!

I've been working on a baby gift. My first best friend ever is having a baby this month. Her shower is this weekend, so I finally started on her present last week.

I'm making her a Fenced In quilt from Elizabeth Hartman's book. And of course, I am using the adorable Outfoxed prints by Lizzy House. Love!

I finished the quilting this weekend, and the binding has been pinned. I should be able to finish in time!

I'm also moving ahead with some wedding plans! I found a venue this weekend, which is really setting things into place! I'll share more on that soon.

Have a great week, everyone!

You know what they say

I named the test-knit project (for Rue) "Put a baby in it", and my first best friend ever just let me know she is having a boy early next year. So all of a sudden, this sweater has a recipient.

I'm much further along than the picture shows (which is good, because my deadline is fast approaching!). I finished the body up to the armhole joining this weekend, and cast on for the second sleeve. I'm hoping to get some more quality knitting time this weekend, and I should be able to wrap this up next week. Rue is releasing the free pattern very soon, so stay tuned for that on her blog!

Also on the to-do list?

A pair of foxy pajama pants, of course! I bought some Monaluna Anika to make myself a pair of fun PJ pants for the Sewing Summit. Let's just see if I can whip those up in time. I sure hope so!

I'd also love to make a laptop case like Jeni's, but that may be pushing it.

And don't even get me started on the rest of the to-do list. There is always too much to do, but I like it that way.

I was able to resist the Pretty Little Pouch sign-ups, but it was hard! If you have never done a swap, it's a great way to get your feet wet!

Oliver makes me happy when skies are gray

I was lucky enough to see Oliver again this weekend, and, good news!

He, along with his awesome parents, Beth and Kyle, are moving back to Texas next year. Hopefully, this means Elliott and I can see them more often.

Oliver is seven months old now, crawling and teething.

He's a very animated baby, and I had to delete many blurry photos from my camera, as his action was sometimes difficult to capture. I'm not complaining.

I enjoy being in his company, and seeing him grow, each time we visit.

FO: Pebble Forecast

My plan was to have this finished in time for Oliver's Texas visit last month. As I was nearing the end of the knitting, I started thinking it might not be big enough for him. While he was here, I put it around him to check. Although it won't fit him for very long, I hope it will be a good transition piece for the cool fall in D.C.

If you remember, the yarn was some handspun I purchased from whimsyknits on Etsy. I found the perfect little blue buttons (I still need to sew on the top buttons). The pattern, Pebble, is so easy to follow, and I've already cast on for a second in Malabrigo Worsted, also for Oliver.

The only modification I made was to add twelve extra rows before binding off the buttonhole and edging rows. It's no wonder this is such a popular pattern on ravelry. It's darling!

I love knitting with handspun. It makes me want to get a wheel, which I've been trying to avoid (only because I already have to split my crafting time between sewing and knitting!). I have less than half an ounce of the handspun left, so this is a good one-skein project.

In other handspun news, I was able to snag a skein of Sam's (aquaknits) handspun from her etsy shop, GLBLF. I just love her style. I truly feel my stash always needs at least one skein of handspun!

Raveled

Progress: Pebble

This handspun, purchased from Whimsy Knits, didn't stay in the stash very long. I bought it originally for a hat or scarf, but after seeing the Pebble vest (inspired by Cobblestone), I knew it would be my next gift to Oliver, Elliott's nephew. He's about four months old now, and he'll be visiting Texas for the first time this month. I'm excited to see him again. I'm hoping he hasn't grown too much, so that he can fit into this vest! This is a DK weight yarn, which is what the pattern calls for. I didn't add any width, but I added about 12 rows to the length.

I'm a few inches past this picture, and I plan to start the straps tonight. This yarn has Shetland in it, and my plan, should I run out, is to purchase a skein of Jamieson's yarn to finish. At this point, I'm pretty sure that won't be necessary, but it never hurts to be prepared.

If it doesn't fit the little guy, I'll knit another in worsted weight while he's in Texas, and I'll save this one for another baby gift.

Buttons have not been selected yet. Any suggestions?

DC Sojourn

How can you not love baby feet? They're so wrinkly; an old man's feet, really.

His name is Oliver, and he has a full head of hair. It was great to meet him, and we had a great trip.

I'm not done going through my pictures (I took more than four hundred in three and a half days!), but here are a few of my favorites so far:

The Willows are so beautiful, but I was hoping to see some Cherry Blossoms. It's a little too early for them.

The National Museum of the American Indian

This was such a beautiful building. We enjoyed wandering through the exhibits.

I'll have more pictures of the monuments next time.

FO: Squirrelly Baby Sweater

Is squirrelly even a word?

Well, whether it is or not, these buttons are definitely squirrelly, or squirrel-ly, if you prefer.

This is the baby sweater for my fella's sister, who was induced last night, and has probably had the little guy or gal by now.

I get to hand-deliver the sweater to the new addition in the next few days, and I couldn't be more thrilled with how it turned out. Since the parents chose not to discover the sex ahead of time, I tried to knit something that could work for either gender. When I found the squirrel buttons on etsy, they just fit. The yellow and brown yarn is Elsebeth Lavold Cotton Patine. The blue is Cotton-Ease. I used less about half a skein of each.

The pattern is easy to follow, and the variations I've seen on Ravelry are just lovely. Several people chose to do applique, and I considered it, but I felt that the stripes + applique would be too busy. The knitting went quickly, but the total duration for the sweater was about 2 months. This was mostly because I knew my deadline, and I procrastinated on the finishing. Story of my life. Plus, finding the perfect buttons took some searching. The only trouble I had was due to these very buttons. They were a bit too big for the buttonholes, but I was able to stretch them enough to fit.