Not a creature was stirring...

except maybe this newly completed mouse from Susan B. Anderson's "Itty Bitty Nursery!"



So, tonight the still-stirring mouse and I wish you a very Merry Christmas!!!

Hallelujah!

It's finished! With no more tinking or frogging.

Whew! I thought that one might do me in as a knitter...

But ain't it purty? :-)

I know my next two charity projects, but first a little one just for fun: I'm making a mouse from "Itty Bitty Nursery" for a coworker who laughed and laughed when she saw him. He's so cute!

I just hope he doesn't have any eyelets...

Oops! I Did It Again...

Yes, I screwed up on an eyelet row again. Twice. Tinked 90-odd stitches, attempted to repair, discovered another mistake 2 rows down. Frogged three rows. Again. Talk about de-ja-vu! UGH!!

I guess now I know why I have no interest in knitting lace :-)

The good news: I think I'm done with eyelet rows. Now let'e see how many ways I can mess up my decreasing...

Just Call Me Tinkerbell. Or the Frog Queen.

Here's a sneak peek at my Caps for a Cure project:



You almost didn't see this. Yesterday on my second set of eyelet rows I discovered that I was off by 2 stitches. Huh? How'd that happen? After much thought, I decided to tink to the screwup I identified. 90 stitches of tinking. Oy.

I did it! With no twisted stitches. I re-knit the row, only to discover that indeed, there was another problem. Two rows down. On the other eyelet row. I spent much of the afternoon contemplating my possible solutions.

Tink?
Are you serious? That's over 300 stitches!

Frog to the row I need to fix?
Again, are you serious? Frogging in the round? You? Might as well frog the whole darn thing and start over!

I am very happy to report that I did frog to the offending row, and when it was all said and done, I had my original 104 stitches, present and accounted for. And not one of them was twisted. Thank you, Lord!

Now let's see how many more eyelet rows I can mess up before this is finished...
:-)

Introducing Frank

So I finally got back on track. As tempted as I was to cast on another project because I despise finishing, I forced myself to finish my boy bear for the Mother Bear Project.

Everyone, meet Frank, aka Ol' Blue Eyes :-)



My original plan was to make a sister for little Frank, but I think I'm gonna let him hibernate for a while first. I have a feeling that if I actually made socks, I would suffer from second sock syndrome. I get bored, which is why I've usually only made any pattern once or twice. Not that it's a bad thing - it's made my Ravelry projects more interesting since it's not photo after photo of socks :-) (No offense if that's you.)

After reading this post on the blog "Now Norma Knits," I felt a bit guilty for only making one pair of mittens for the Soaring Eagles project. I thought about making a pair for a boy, and another for a girl. But I'd never made mittens before and didn't know how long it would take (and see the last paragraph about repeating patterns), so I only made one unisex pair.

So, to alleviate my guilt over not doing more for Soaring Eagles I cast on a chemo cap for the "Caps for a Cure" group on Ravelry and Yahoo. I'm using the pattern for an eyelet hat that's in the book "Knitting for Peace" by Betty Christiansen. Photos will follow, but right now it's dark out so my pictures would stink. And I only have a rolled brim so far. Not exactly gripping subject matter, unless you're a total knitting addict like me...

Soaring Eagles Project: Complete!

My mittens for the Soaring Eagles Project are done! Unless I decided to embellish them. Maybe a snowflake or something unisex? I'm torn. Maybe I should just put them in the mail before the deadline passes me by...

The are made from Paton's Classic Wool in black, so they should be warm on some little hands! It's the small child pattern, and looks like they would fit my 3 year old.

Chalk up another finished object (FO)!

Another Charity Grabbed My Attention :-)

So, I read this post on Ravelry about a group who is over 200 donations SHORT of the yearly goal for needy in their area. They need kids stuff, among others, and needy kids just break my heart. So, my Mother Bear project is waiting for stuffing while I whip up a pair of mittens for the Soaring Eagles Project. These are my first mittens ever.

So far so good!!

Check out the Soaring Eagles blog for more information...

Mission: Mother Bear Project

OK, here's my newest Givin' Knit Away project: a brown boy bear for the Mother Bear Project. The Mother Bear Project is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization dedicated to providing comfort and hope to children, primarily those affected by HIV/AIDS in emerging nations, by giving them a gift of love in the form of hand-knit and crocheted bears.

My little guy is brown, with an off-white seed stitch sweater and blue trousers. I hope my embroidery skills can actually produce a cute face for him! My plans are to make a little sister for him, wearing a skirt instead of pants. We'll see if all the finishing for him causes burnout and leaves him as an only child:-)

I'll keep you posted!

A Knitting Meme for Fun!

Apparently this knitting meme has been around for quite some time, but I saw it for the first time today at The Knitting Wildflower and decided to post it here just for fun.

The "official" rules say to indicate items that have been done in bold and things you want to try in italics.

So, for you knitting addicts like me, enjoy!!

Everyone else, your regularly scheduled posts will return after a brief intermission...:-)

Afghan
I-cord
Garter stitch
Knitting with metal wire
Shawl
Stockinette stitch
Socks: top-down
Socks: toe-up
Knitting with camel yarn
Mittens: Cuff-up
Mittens: Tip-down
Hat
Knitting with silk
Moebius band knitting
Participating in a KAL
Sweater
Drop stitch patterns
Knitting with recycled/secondhand yarn
Slip stitch patterns
Knitting with banana fiber yarn
Domino knitting
Twisted stitch patterns
Knitting with bamboo yarn
Two end knitting
Charity knitting
Knitting with soy yarn
Cardigan
Toy/doll clothing
Knitting with circular needles
Baby items
Knitting with your own handspun yarn
Slippers
Graffiti knitting (I don't have a clue what this is)
Continental knitting
Designing knitted garments
Cable stitch patterns
Lace patterns
Publishing a knitting book
Scarf
Teaching a child to knit
American/English knitting
Knitting to make money
Buttonholes
Knitting with alpaca
Fair Isle knitting
Norwegian knitting
Dying with plant colors
Knitting items for a wedding
Household items
Knitting socks (or other small tubular items) on one or two circulars
Knitting with someone else’s handspun yarn
Knitting with dpns
Holiday related knitting
Teaching a male how to knit
Bobbles
Knitting for a living
Knitting with cotton
Knitting smocking
Dying yarn
Steeks
Knitting art
Knitting two socks on two circulars simultaneously
Fulling/felting
Knitting with wool
Textured knitting
Kitchener stitch
Purses/bags
Knitting with beads
Swatching
Long Tail CO
Entrelac
Knitting and purling backwards
Machine knitting
Knitting with self patterning/self striping/variegated yarn
Stuffed toys
Baby items
Knitting with cashmere
Darning
Jewelry
Knitting with synthetic yarn
Writing a pattern
Gloves
Intarsia
Knitting with linen
Knitting for preemies
Tubular CO
Freeform knitting
Short rows
Cuffs/fingerless mits/armwarmers
Pillows
Knitting a pattern from an online knitting magazine
Rug
Knitting on a loom
Thrummed knitting
Knitting a gift
Knitting for pets
Shrug/bolero/poncho
Hair accessories
Knitting in public
Knitting with buffalo yarn
Knitting with pygora
Dyeing with food dye/drink mixes
Dyeing with chemical dyes (acid, etc)

Look What I Found!

I finished this last year and never mailed it! It's for Caps for Kids. This organization was featured in the book Knitting for Peace by Betty Christiansen. (This link is to Knitpicks, but Amazon and all the regular booksellers have it, too) I actually had found them from an internet search and already finished the hat when I bought the book.

I need to put this in the mail on Monday!

Football-a-long Project for October

I didn't think I would actually make it this month, but I did it! Even if it is a very plain and simple pattern.

This is a Chemotherapy Hat in Bernat's Bamboo yarn, and the pink color is called "Lotus." If you haven't tried bamboo yet, do! It is so soft you just can't believe that it's really bamboo. But, it is very fuzzy! I hope it doesn't unravel. When I added the second ball, the thread wrapped around the yarn was free and it just turned into FUZZ that kept coming off. I actually tinked a few stitches just to get some firm yarn to weave in.

Sakes Alive!

(Yes, I'm a Southern girl!)

It's over halfway through October and I haven't made anything pink for my Football-A-Long project. I'd better get movin'!

THE RED SCARF IS FINISHED!!!

Wow, and that only took me how many months???

Now, on to my next project. Something pink for my Football-a-long...

Unravelled?

Oh, little red scarf, why can't I finish you? Do you unravel yourself when I'm not looking? I've been working on you for so long, lovingly adding stitches to your length. Don't you know that you are being created for a purpose? You are to bring joy, warmth and comfort to a needy soul. Don't you want to fulfill your purpose? If you let me complete my work, then you can be bound off of my needles and find your freedom. Freedom to go, to fulfill your destiny in the life of another. Oh little red scarf, please let me finish you...



Oh, chosen child, why do you resist me? You undo the work I've done. I've spent your entire life working on you, placing you in places and situations that will grow you, mature you, enable you to fulfill your purpose. A purpose that is meant for you, and you alone. I can use you to bring joy, comfort, and peace to a needy soul. Don't you want to be free? When you stop working against me, and let Me be your strength and your guide, you will be free from the lies, the tricks, the strongholds that hold you back. Precious child, give your heart to me, and you can truly be free!

For Cryin' Out Loud!

Will I never finish this red scarf???

Completed Preseason Cubs for Kids sets

There were 25 completed sweaters/sets finished by us rockin' knitters at Football-a-Long! Awesome work, ladies!

The next project will be announced October 1. (I hope my Red Scarf is finished by then!)

OK, NOW it's finished.

Finished! Maybe...

OK, so FINALLY I finished this sweater. And the scarf. No, I didn't get fancy with a pattern or anything special. Just plain old solid blue and white. I thought I would stop there, but I am so anal that I just CAN'T! The pattern had a hat, too, and so I feel compelled to make it. Perhaps the whole Colts outfit can be completed in time, but will it push me back on my Red Scarf project?

I hope not!

Slowly, but surely...

OK, so here is my progress. The top shows my scarf, assembled front/back/neck of sweater, and one sleeve. I need one more sleeve and the hat to complete my Colts ensemble. I must say, I can't wait to finish this first project. In my rush to get started (I am a slow knitter, so deadlines are scary), I chose, ugh, ACRYLIC yarn. I couldn't find the right colors in a hurry without making another trip to another store. So,I made that dreadful decision. I am not enjoying this stuff at all. And I must say that picking up stitches along necklines is not my specialty, and it shows.

My Red Scarf project, however, is soft and YUMMY! It looks much better than that picture looks. But, it's ON THE NEEDLES! Yay!

Oh yeah...

I have finished the scarf for my preseason charity project, as well as having the most of the front and back done,with the shoulder seaming done. I don't have the right size double-points to pick up and do the neck until I grab my trusty A. C. Moore coupon and get some.

But I am working on THAT project!

Pictures later...

I'm Ba-ack...

OK, here it is: I'm using Pure Merino in this lovely shade for my Red Scarf Project donation 2007-8. But I still haven't cast on :-(

It's been a busy week. I was in Atlanta Friday and Saturday, freezing my tush off at the Phillips Arena (Turn up the thermostat, y'all!). But the Women of Faith conference was awesome.

Meet your Teacher Day was today for my very apprehensive kindergartner. Yesterday, I met with my pastor,etc. and became the general editor of our church newsletter. Or I will be, once we have one. Freshman orientation is Friday for my high schooler, and the official first day for the kindergartner. Yesterday was also stressful, and my priorities might be shifting. We'll see what happens to my blog time, knitting time, and "editor" time.

Stay tuned...

Take five...

I'm going to the Women of Faith conference this weekend with my church's women's ministry, so my computer will be cold and my blog will be "old" for a few days. I'm hoping for a new perspective when I return!

Red Scarf Project 2007-8

You'll notice a button on the right of my posts. It's for the Red Scarf Project, through the Orphan Foundation of America.

We all think of orphans as little kids living in a group home, or on the streets. Maybe you think of Oliver Twist. Fact is, orphans come in all shapes and sizes, ages and races. And finding the Red Scarf Project last year introduced me to a group that I'd never considered. Orphans who were never adopted, who have gone on to college.

Imagine moving in to the dorm. Who helped them? Who went shopping with them to get necessities? Did they get to shop at all?

Imagine that they make the dean's list. Who do they call to celebrate with?

Imagine that their roommate has a devoted and loving mom who sends care packages to them often. How do they feel, knowing that there's no one to send a package to them?

Introducing the Orphan Foundation of America, and the Red Scarf Project. The Orphan Foundation supports these young people in many ways. Their website, www.orphan.org, gives tons of information about how. Ways like mailing care packages during final exams. Providing mentors on-line. Sending hand-made scarves from everyday knitters like you and me, to brighten these kid's day and their wardrobe.

Join me, and everyone at superblog Now Norma Knits at supporting this awesome organization.

After all...

"Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world." James 1:27


This is last year's donation...a cashmere blend bamboo stitch scarf.

Do me a favor: if any of you decide to support this group, could you comment here and let me know?

Thanks!!!!

Football-a-long progress

OK, so here are some pics of my progress in the footballalong charity project, Cubs for Kids. I used a pattern set from the Cubs for Kids site, and here is what I have: a stockinette scarf in white, and the beginnings of the sweater. These are in Indianapolis Colts colors, even though my husband wants to argue with me and say that my blue yarn just isn't dark enough. Well, this is as close as I could find. And it's much darker than it looks in this photo.

My scarf is just so "blah". I may have to add fringe or an edging of some kind. We'll see. I'm still waiting for my invite to post on the Football-a-long site and flickr page, but I'm knitting anyway! And you can see it first here! (I know you guys are SO stoked about that =))

GO COLTS!

Welcome to Givin' Knit Away!

I decided that I really wanted a blog devoted just to charity knitting. Most of what I knit is for charity, and this blog is a good way to keep up with it all and share it with others.

Knitting for others is so rewarding. I hope some of you will feel inspired to give it a try!