Proof that I've actually been knitting

I finished the Fishtail Hat that I made for the Dempsey Center! It used almost exactly one ball of Debbie Bliss Pure Cotton. It is soooo soft. And shamelessly modeled by my unsuspecting six-year-old's head :-)

See? I really have been knitting! And you all just thought I was a slacker...

A New Charity

My newest charity venture is Stitching for Hope & Healing. It's a group both on Blogger and Ravelry that is dedicated to knitting for The Patrick Dempsey Center for Cancer Hope & Healing. I'm a big Grey's Anatomy fan, and a McDreamy fan :-), so how could I not sign up?

Right now the Center is asking for cool, lacy summer chemo hats for the patients.

If anyone is interested in participating, contact Ashley through the Ravelry group or on the Stitching for Hope & Healing blog.

They need quilters too!

A Few New Completions

Just a quick note to share...

Here's my goldfish buddy all finished, complete with jingle bells to make him into a rattle.



I want to make maybe two more in different colors for Lab Baby.

Then, there's this Ribble hat. Frankly, I'm glad this project is done. I didn't much care for it. It looks funny unless it's stretched out.



So, that's two hats for the February Itty Bitty Knits KAL.

Next, I think I'm casting on for a chemo turban pattern I saw a long time ago for the Caps for a Cure group.

Now though,it's time for a dose of the sniffling,sneezing....medicine because the crud has found me and sent me home form work today. Yuk. :-(

Here's hoping the crud misses you!!

A Whole Lotta Knittin' Goin' On

Let's just say that the contest from Skeins Her Way motivated my inner knitter. Since I finished the starfish for the contest, I have cast on for Squiddy:



All of his pieces are made, and just need to be attached. Felt him, and Viola! He will be finished. A cute buddy for Mr. Starfish.

I also cast on a goldfish, who is waiting for a bell or noisemaker of some sort to transform him into a rattle. Then I can sew his tailfins closed and Viola! He will be finished. Another cute buddy for Mr. Starfish.




I think I'll take a wee break from the Lab Baby sea nursery toys and go back to hats. Or maybe, FINALLY, start my first pair of adult socks.

But first, I need to go through this pile



to see what is going to TeresaS and Stitches from the Heart, her chosen charity this month for our Ravelry Itty Bitty Group knitalong. Can someone please tell me why I still have all these hats?

Well, it doesn't matter because I'm decluttering and that means my knitting stuff too! Hopefully, just by knitting and giving away more FO's faster than I can add to my stash :-)

I Have a FO, But You Can't See It.

Well, I did it: I finished a project that I modified. It's for the Ravelry group "Itty Bitty Knits" charity knit-a-long. I started with the hat from the "Pure and Sweet Layette" in Susan B. Anderson's Itty Bitty Nursery, and shrank the pattern for a preemie. Sort of. I guess.

I'd show a photo, but right now my camera is in Durham, probably forgotten during a Duke Blue Devils men's basketball game. I'll post a photo when my camera makes it safely home, with my boys :-)

Next...

I saw this in my Pattern-A-Day calendar this week, while I was still stewing over the Stupid Hat. It's like it was a sign or something! So, I just have to make one of each :-)



This is in newborn or preemie size. Perfect for my "Itty Bitty Knits" knitalong on Ravelry! I spoiled myself (just because they were having a sale. I swear.) at one of my favorite LYS's, Yarn Paradise. I bought two balls of Debbie Bliss Cashmerino Aran: one in Dusty Pink and the other in Light Blue. Check out the poll and answer this: How many cables should the pink hat have in this pattern: 5 or 10? The other one will be blue, as I plan on making one of each...

Ahhh, sweet redemption. So far. This yarn is so yummy, and it just glides over my Knitpicks Harmony circular needle. I may actually enjoy my first ever cables project.

Yes, you read that correctly: my first cables project. Wish me luck...

Just a side note: I have no idea why I'm so link-happy today...

Well, it's done. Stupid hat.

This was supposed to be a chemo cap for a child: a donation to the Jan./Feb. Caps for a Cure group. It was great, or so I thought. No tinking. No frogging. I cast on 104 stitches, like the pattern said. I did K2P2 rib, like the pattern said. I knit for 3.5 inches to the decrease, like the pattern said. I followed the pattern, to the best of my knowledge, to a T.

And this stupid thing is so small, it won't even fit my three year old. It looks like a stinkin' yamulkah.

Oy.

I won't even bore you with my complete and total inadequacy in color work. Half of my carried yarn was somehow carried up the outside of the hat. I had to creatively engineer it with a reasonable facsimilie of duplicate stitch to hide it.

Stupid hat.

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...

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!

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.

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!)

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!

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...

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!