FO no. 34: save yer bags!

Unstuffed. This is the only project I've ever enjoyed this colorway knit in. It stripes!!

 
2011 Knit Challenge: 34 knit, 26 to go!!!!!! woo hoo!!









Fancy side by side, huh? :) Left, unstuffed. Right, stuffed.

I modified the pattern I linked a few days ago, but it looks like I can still make some more mods.

For one, it only holds 15 plastic grocery bags. I don't know about you, but we certainly have waaay more than that. Although to be honest, those 15 are among the ones that we've accumulated since living in this house. (We try our hardest to use reusable fabric bags.) The others are in a laundry hamper, and are from Scott's previous life. To be fair, they were a great help protecting dishes and glassware when we moved.

close up!

This is one of the mods I made.... a little loopy to hang it!! I would like to make the loop wider and bigger, especially if the entire bag holder is going to be bigger.

Eee!! I am so excited to use this!! Growing up, we used a bag holder that grandma made out of fabric and elastic ends. It was HUGE. My parents still have it. And now I have one of my own :)

FO no. 33! Starfish Hat

This pattern is from 60 Quick Knits, designed by Anne Farnham. It was also a KAL on Ravelry. Even though I've been wanting to knit this hat since I bought the book, I probably wouldn't have knit it without the push from the KAL. Things are always easier when you have support, aren't they?

Thanks to Scott for taking these pictures

2011 Knit Challenge: 33 Knit, 27 to go!!


I used Cascade 220 in a pale yellow. I did not make any modifications.

There's a lot going on in the side photo, but it's hard to see. Bobbles, ribbing, reverse ribbing...

The starfish on top is so cool! And it was formed all by decreases. Amazing.

FO no. 32: Harriet the Haberdashery Hippo

Squeee!! She is too cute!

2011 Knit Challenge: 32 Knit and 28 To Go!!

I used Cascade 220 in orange. I bought it in Helena on the Shop Hop. And this is a pattern by Rebecca Danger!

I am very pleased with how this hippo turned out! Even though she does have her imperfections... mainly being I knit her legs on wrong so she has saddlebags, and her left arm is longer than her right. And I used buttons instead of safety eyes (the gal at Jo Ann's said they didn't carry them, but they really do) so her eyes stick out a bit.

And I've decided it looks better to close up each arm hole/ ear hole/ tail before sewing them on to the body. I loved stuffing her! (that sounds dirty, doesn't it?) And putting the eyes and embroidery one was fun too.

But she seems to get along well with Berny.

Let's get regular!!

There were a lot of poo jokes to be had this morning...

...as we pitted and quartered and arranged plums.

We have a bucket with probably 25 pounds of plums, and I'm not sure we're even a quarter of the way through it. The plums came from a tree Grandma Jeann gave us years ago. It's an Italian Plum tree, I believe.

DIY zomg!

I am definitely making one, or three, of these!!

Just as soon as I figure out how to serge on my sewing machine...

ETA:

On second thought, this one might be more up my alley. I could probably knit it in a day or so.

And the Crochet Dude had this one that looks more like the image in my head, but I'm not sure I want to crochet. If you would have asked me a year and a half ago, I would have jumped on this one! But since I am much more comfortable with knitting, I'd rather knit. Weird, isn't it?

Day 15: shopping list

I am pretty specific about where I buy my food, and I will definitely drive to a different store in order to buy exactly what I want (although, sometimes if the traffic is heavy or I'm tired, I won't). For instance, ever since trying freshly ground peanut butter from the Good Food Store, I cannot eat already processed peanut butter. It's also cheaper to buy it in bulk AND you can watch the peanuts being ground!

Day 14... All about Berny!!

and because you can never take just one picture of her:

She likes to EAT paper too

The story of the broken toy: 
It was one of those kitty wands with a string of detachable feathers on a ball chain. One day I came home and Scott told me it was broken. Now the end of the wand has a string attached to the ball chain... and no way to attach the feathers to it. She LOVES the chain! She bites it and drags it around with her. I would cut the string and chain off of the wand, but I'm afraid she would try to eat it. At any rate, when we aren't playing with her with it, we put it out of Bern's reach. The end.

Day 13: DIYs I Want to Try:

I haven't been keeping up with the 30 Days. It's actually kind of difficult. Instead of limiting myself to everyday for one month, I'll post a list when I write one, even if it's not everyday (otherwise I end up posting like five in one day). Which might defeat the purpose of a 30 day challenge. I will try harder :)

Meanwhile, in this household, we've had a few health issues recently. The most serious is Scott's staph infection, which we thought was MRSA. We only just found out yesterday (when I went to the doctor) that it's not MRSA, thank goodness. But I think he received the wrong antibiotics so he needs to get his infection rechecked.

Lately it's been foggy mornings but sunny afternoons, a little bizarre. And it makes for a slow day.

FO no. 31: Summit

2011 Knit Challenge: 31 Knit, 29 to go!
Man, it feels great to be on the downhill count!

This cute hat was designed by Jen LaCroix. It's called Summit.
I knit it with Berroco Ultra Alpaca and I didn't make any modifications to the pattern.

It's perhaps a little less slouchy than the one Jen knitted, I think that's because my head is larger. I love the texture!!

FO no. 30!!! Fawn II

2011 Knit Challenge: 30 knit!!! 30 to go! I'M HALFWAY!!

I loved mom's hat so much that she bought me yarn to make my own :) It's the Fawn Earflap Hat again by Laura Irwin.
In Debbie Bliss Como. Still looooove this yarn!!!

Day 12: Weekly Rituals

Day 11: Date Night Ideas

Scott and I don't really go on "dates" anymore. I find whenever we are able to spend quality time together, we don't need to do anything extra to make it special... because I am already enjoying myself :) But I definitely won't say no to a nice dinner out!

Day 10: On my Wishlist

Sorry for the delay on lists, it has been a little crazy over here.

When Scott and I went to Yellowstone, my mom agreed to look after Berny. When we arrived home, we found this (sickly) cow wine holder and a bottle of wine. The cow is cute... in it's own way (you should see it's face!) But, we've been putting a puzzle together and it has cows in it too! And they are so cute. So now, looking at this cow figurine, I feel a cow fetish coming on.

FO no. 29: Herringbone Mittens for Robyn

2011 Knit Challenge: 29 Knit, 31 To go!

Ravelry pattern by Elli Stubenrauch and I loooooove it!
Yarn is Patons Classic in Royal Purple and Aran

The pattern was actually knit for slightly larger hands than my own, so I had to go down several needle sizes in order for these to be more snug. I think I decided on US 3 for ribbing and US 4 for the body. Also, since it's Fair Isle, the mittens are double thick and warm!

P.S. Robyn loved them! Hooray!

Day Nine: Most Frequented Websites & Blogs

(not in any sort of order)

Blogs:

1. not martha
2. SpillyJane Knits
3. Yarn Harlot
4. The Crimson Owl
5. North of 49
6. Susan B. Anderson
7. Rebecca Danger 
8. do you mind if i knit

I just realized that ALL of the above listed blogs have yarn content! No wonder they're my favorites!

Websites:

1. eBay
2. Ravelry
3. Perptual Kid
4. Amazon
5. Knit Picks

I can pretty much spend hours browsing the above websites.

Day 8: It's in the bag!

This is what's normally in my bag

Yes, my bag IS super heavy

FO: Dafna

2011 Knit Challenge: 28 Knit, 32 to go!

This is one of the patterns I won in a contest from Nervy Twig and I LOVE it!

The yarn is Knit Picks Wool of the Andes, which isn't the best yarn for this pattern. Not enough drape, I think. I'm going to knit this hat again on Berroco Ultra Alpaca :)

And I knit the entire hat on US 8. It would be helpful for me to cast on more stitches for extra slouch, I think.

FO no. 27: Fawn Fappity

2011 Knit Challenge: 27 knit, 33 to go!

From Boutique Knits by Laura Irwin
Debbie Bliss Como in bluish gray
Needles US 15

Mom has been wanting a hat for such a long time, and this one is for her! To tell the truth, I want one too :)

This hat can easily be knit in just one day, but I started it one evening and finished it the next morning. The pattern suggests ribbon but I made I-cords. Mom didn't want ribbon and I sort of like the I-cords anyway. I like the pretzel tie they make at the top.

Have I mentioned how delicious this yarn is?? Sooooooo wonderful. Soft and squishy ... and I love the color. Debbie Bliss...you might be onto something.

FO no. 26: Mock Cable Wristers, again

2011 Knit Challenge: 26 down, 34 to go! (I'm really slacking)

This may be my last pair of Mock Cables ever again. It's my third pair and I think it's time to try some real cables. But I do LOVE this pattern! It's still one of my favorites.

Patons Classic Wool, it's leftover from when I knit KayCee's Griz colored ones. And there's still a lot of the skein left.

I can only imagine what my grandma will say when she sees I made these for Aunt Linda! The other day we were all together and mom showed grandma some fingerless mittens in a book. Grandma said, "I don't understand why people would wear those" (meaning, what's the functionality of them? They're not keeping your fingers warm!) But mom interjected that they're "driving gloves" which is how I'll present them to Aunt Linda. lol (note to self, never make grandma fingerless mittens!)

Oh yes, third time is a charm, because I finally got the cable on the right hand to be centered!! Perhaps it is the pattern, or the way I am misreading it, but the first two pairs I made, the right hand cable was a little skewed to the right. I remedied this by starting the thumb increases about three or four stitches from when the pattern says to.

Day Seven: Blog Goals

Day Six: Least Favorite Animals

I've decided this list needs a little elaboration. Partly because the photo is a bit smaller (that's because the rat is so much bigger than my other lists!) and because I sense there are controversial animals up there. So I do apologize if you actually do like shih tzus, because I don't mean to offend you.

Least Favorite Animals: 

* Hairless anything (including hairless mice/rats, hairless cats, naked mole rats). They're just too wrinkly. And why would you want to pet a HAIRLESS cat when you can pet a HAIRY one? It doesn't make sense to me.

*Shih Tzus. Squashed up face anything turns me off. I have seen puppy shih tzus and I have seen old shih tzus, and they are never cute. Especially when they're older. I don't think I'll ever jump on this train.

*Monkeys. Some are cannibalistic.

*Eyeless fish (err...the fish who have evolved to not have a need for eyes). Creepy!

*Snails, Slugs, Centipedes. They're slimy and sticky, and I still haven't gotten over the video I saw in 8th grade about snails with eye defects. And centipedes have too many legs.

*Ferrets are smelly and are like really long rats.

*Squirrels, but only the one that bounced on our tent when we were camping. That was scary!

*Crows, because no matter where you go, they are loud and annoying. And I think there are plenty of other quiet scavengers out there.

Day Five: Weekend Goals

Day Four: My Perfect Playlist

Day Three: I'm Looking Forward To

Day Two: Things I Like To Do

Day One: Things I Love

First day of Lists. I hope I can keep up with this everyday! I am excited to add a little paper creativity to my daily life. Although I am modifying the original 30 Days of Lists to better fit myself.

Here we go!

Berny

On second thought, this one IS kind of creepy...