Through the Woods

One day my mom texted me, and then called--somewhat frantic, as she was out running her morning route along the river--and asked me if I could look something up.  She wanted to know if I would make her "the hood of her dreams."

And you guys, when your mama calls and asks you to make something that is that important to her, you just do it.  Consider that your life lesson for the day.

She sent me a package of some really soft, laceweight mink, which I paired with some Cascade Eco Wool.  I held them "double" and it came out somewhat mottled, in a pretty pattern.  While visiting Jes at his office one day, I stopped into So Much Yarn and pored through all their pretty buttons, ultimately deciding on the pewter flowers (and maybe some extras, you know, just in case...)

Unlike my usual style, I actually only spent about two months on this.  I didn't waffle between projects, and only worked on this (well, except for a small pair of fingerless mitts for an upcoming swap...)  I sent it to her last week and she has informed me that it is perfect.  So yay!  Just in time for Mother's Day, too!

In case anyone was wondering, I am the favorite daughter.

For this week.  HAHA!

Ravelry notes.

FO: Baby Bear Hat

So, this happened.  It took about an hour.  BUT LOOK A BABY IN A BEAR HAT.  I die of cute.

This also happened (to my sister, not me.)  Took a little more than an hour (not much; super fast labor!  I didn't even have a chance to get there before she was born!)  Baby Daliha (you say it like the flower) is here.  Didn't my sister make a cute baby?  Again, I die of cute.  I'm heading over that way this weekend to get a little baby fix.  I might be knitting a carrot hat for her for Halloween.  And I might have lots of sewing plans for her (look!  A baby girl to make for!  AACK!)

FO: Age of Brass and Steam Kerchief

A few months ago, we visited my mother-in-law in Port Townsend, WA.  My MIL watched the kids while Jes and I went out for a bit, and we stopped at a lovely yarn store called Bazaar Girls.  I fell in love with a skein of hand dyed yarn, which I had to have.  While I was having it wound, I stepped outside for a minute, and my sweet husband also purchased a beautiful yarn bowl that I'd been admiring.  (It's the little things, you guys.  I love this man so much.)

I also love my Age of Brass and Steam Kerchief so much!  I wear it constantly.  It's small, even after adding an extra repeat at the bottom, so I wrap it around my neck like a lumpy scarf.  Well, like a lumpy scarf that I've arranged artfully.  You know.  Ahem.

FO: Guernsey Wrap

I loved knitting my Guernsey Wrap (by Jared Flood.)  It was so fun and simple to make.  It's huge, so it'll be perfect to wear to Cyclocross races--when it's early morning in the fall, or just, you know, walking outside.  Or sitting on the couch.  Because I'm always cold.

I knit this with Cascade 220, which is not the softest, but it'll soften up every time I soak it.  (I use Soak--have you tried it??  It smells so good!  I use it on all my super delicate hand-washables, as well as all my hand-knits.  My favorite scent is celebration!)

I've worked on this everywhere--the coffee shop, the school pickup line, Cyclocross races...I finished it up Monday, while we were at the hospital waiting for Fini's surgery to be done.  Which is the most stressed I've been in awhile.  He had tubes placed in his ears, and a laryngoscopy to see if there was a physical reason he keeps getting croup (there's not.)  His surgery went well, and he's back to being a crazy little boy!

And now I've moved onto my Follow Your Arrow!  I'm only on the first clue, but it is so fun so far!!! And my yarn is SPARKLY!!!

Blessingway

My dear friend is having her fourth baby in just a few weeks.  I've been her doula for the second and third, and am crossing my fingers and toes that even though they are moving shortly it will all work out for me to be there this time as well.  I've thrown her a baby shower the past two times (we didn't know each other when she had her first baby) and this time I figured a Blessingway was more appropriate since they already have everything they need.

She's in love with all things pirate and kraken, so I quickly decided on a baby kraken theme.  I made all the food gluten free as she's fighting low blood platelets.  The cake recipe can be found here, though I doubled it, and baked it in two 9 inch springform round pans to make layers.  I used this ganache recipe.  It was really good!  The cake toppers were purchased from ThroughThickandThin on Etsy.

I knitted the new baby a sweater--details are on Ravelry!

I did henna for the first time ever!  I've been interested in it, and even have a kit, but decided to go all out and make sure I had the safest henna possible for my pregnant friend, so I purchased this dye from a doula friend who is internationally certified as a henna artist.  She was so sweet to give me a few pointers when I picked it up.  Typical to me, I didn't have time to practice first, so I was super brave and decided to wing it.  Thankfully, it turned out really well!

SockSack (Pattern Review)***

I met Ramona at Sewing Summit last year.  She is super fun and of course talented, and she makes patterns which can be purchased from Craftsy!  I decided to make a SockSack after seeing Amanda's pop up on her Instagram feed.  (I just love everything Amanda makes!)

Basically, the SockSack is a drawstring bag that knitters can use to keep socks separate as they are being knitted.  The bag is divided into two halves by a fabric panel and two guides to keep your yarn straight.  It measures about 6" wide by 6" long x 7" high.  It costs $4 (Only FOUR DOLLARS.  That's a steal!)

The pattern is a pdf so you can download it and get started right away.  I love instant gratification projects!  It took me about 45 minutes from the time I downloaded the pattern to when I had my finished bag.  And that was with Finian (literally at one point) hanging off my arm.  Seriously fast, people!

The pattern is very well-written.  The directions are super clear, and there are lots of pictures illustrating exactly what to do.  The hardest part was choosing fabric!

You can't sell your finished bags, but Ramona does offer the option to purchase a cottage license so you can sell these (maybe I should hit up my local yarn shops!)

***Just to be up-front, any opinions I'm sharing are my own; I'm not receiving anything in exchange for them.  I just like to talk.  And maybe you want to make a SockSack and need a review.

March

March was a really short month for me--Jes was out of town for two weeks, which left me with the kiddos and not a whole lot of time for much of anything else.  Here's hoping April is a bit kinder!

Blarney O'Callaghan visited, but alas, we didn't catch him!

Birthy Stuff

Haircut

Date Night

The Great Wheel, Seattle

Best Pod Skeleton, Ever

Spring Flowers from the Garden

Finished Handwarmers for a Friend

Renal Sleeve for my Dad

I've been losing weight!

Knitting

Sick--yep, that happened right as Jes left to go out of town.

Riding Bikes

I received an AWESOME purse from Chris!

I finally finished sewing my infinity scarf!

Fini's Winter Hat

Ravelry Link

Fini's first winter hat, made by Mama. It's a tiny bit big, but he's so cute, and it's so soft and warm. Baby hats are so fun to knit, since they're fast and easy. It's hard for me to lose interest in these projects!

My Summer Shawl!

I finally finished this shawl. I started two months ago, so it was a long time coming!

Textured Shawl Recipe (Ravelry link!)
Malabrigo Silky and Silk and Merino from Yarns Northwest

Stripy Scarf/Cowl

I finished this awhile ago, but haven't taken pictures until now. :O)



2 skeins Noro, knit in a 2 by 2 rib pattern, alternating skeins every two rows. Not an original idea by any means, but I love it! The button is from Wild and Wooly in Lexington, MA, from our visit earlier this year. The yarn was a gift from Shona.