Double Knit Mat (Dog bed) by Elizabeth Zimmerman FO

Pattern: Double Knit Mat

Source: Knitter's Almanac by Elizabeth Zimmerman

Yarn: All of 8 Skeins Briggs and Little Super yielding a 40"x 30" mat

Colour: Khaki

Needles: 10mm circular

Start: June 7 Finish: November 1, 2014

Modifications: None

Not sure if this was firstly a double knitting project or demonstration on the importance of a single dye lot. What a difference between the two I had to use. Maybe its mostly a lesson in buying all the yarn you need at once rather than going back at the half way point for more.

I do find it oddly satisfying that by knitting all of the four skeins I bought each time the dye lot change appears almost planned as it cuts across the dead centre of the piece. Hudson hasn't mentioned how he feels about it one way or another!

Now I did need an insulating pad for the dog to use in cold weather on the floor at the cottage and this project, in this nifty technique, were just the ticket. 'Amazing how tough it is to remember to slip every other stitch rather than purling once the knitting gets automatic.  I made the error a few times but its of no consequence for this project and again the dog doesn't mind. You can see a couple of spots in the shot below - the stitches that appear larger than the others.

Just as EZ promises I got a remarkably light, soft and warm pad out of my double knitting efforts. But more than that he likes it! He really, really likes it. The first time I put it down after casting off Hudson marched right over and lay down across the middle of it. He likes it so much I brought it home from the cottage for him to use here over the winter. In our room at home we have a carpet on the floor. The mat sits atop the carpet and he sleeps the majority of every night on it. The same could not be said of the mat he used prior to having this one.

To produce a garter "frame" for the pad that will lie flat despite differing row gauges between the double knitting and garter stitch edging EZ instructs the knitter to work to the edge only 4 out of every 6 rows (turning back before the edging on the other other two) The result is a truly flat edge without the slightest wave to it - even without blocking the edge is as flat as the wood floor 

Not sure who finds that more satisfying - me or Hudson!

We Had a Happy (Yummy!) Easter!

It may have been c-c-c-cold outside but the spring colours inside warmed our hearts and stomachs nonetheless!

Homemade Marzipan Eggs on Chocolate Truffle Cake

Even ingredients for things at this time of year look pretty!

Piping Hot Phyllo Spinach Pie

Creamy Warm Rice Pudding with Blood Oranges looking as good as it tasted in my late Mother In Law's China

Knitted "Bunny Nuggets" filled with Cat Nip - a hostess gift for my Sister's Kitties...

...they seemed to be "yummy" too!

Embroidered rather than  pom pom tails - didn't want them to get eaten in the catnip frenzy!

We are all super tired now!

'Hope you had a great weekend too!
Thanks for dropping by!

Happy Halloween (Felted Pumpkin FO)

Pattern: Miniature Felted Pumpkin by Tracy Batchelder

Source: Ravelry

Yarn: Remnant Orange/Green/Brown Worsted

Needles: 6mm Bamboo dpn's

Start:October 20 Finish October 30, 2011

Modifications: Held Yarn Double Throughout

After puttting some of the remnant orange from my Fair Isle styled cardigan to work in my Head Band there was still a bit of the stuff left over. So when I spotted this pattern on Ravelry in the midst of my current "Use Up My Yarn" obsession I started working them up.

When I ran out of orange I decided to try a "Gourd Style" version to squeeze one more out.

I played around with the stems a bit, with what I judge, are less than satisfactory results. Mind you, I stuffed and finished them between midnight and 2:00 a.m. Sunday morning waiting for Number One Son to come home from his second Halloween function - in his second costume! - of the weekend, so perhaps my hand and eye were a bit less than optimal at the time.

Ditto the results of the felting. I would have felted them more but I was racing to finish before heading out for our fifth evening function in the last week. Things have been a bit crazed.

Nonetheless I think they still do a good job here in knitblogland illustrating my wish, to you, my knitting friends for a ...

  Happy Halloween Everybody!

Fun Stuff

I like the way my word cloud looks like a ball of yarn? Especially since the word "Yarn" is so prominent.

Have you checked out the winners and runners up of the Bob Awards on Ravelry? (There's a link on the right side of the opening page - the one you see after you sign in) Check it out the next time you're on Ravelry, its amazing how varied, beautiful,  brilliant and silly knitting can be!) My favourite piece among the ones I saw is the fair isle cardigan in "Best use of Colour".

And finally, I love knitting but not this much! (If you check them out you'll see they are nonetheless beautiful - if I had to get one of them though, it would be the second one! ;) How about you? (Or maybe you already have one!)

Thanks for dropping by!

Hot Water Bottle Cover FO

Pattern: "Gimme the Heat" Hot Water Bottle Cover

Yarn: Bernat Handicrafter Cotton

Colour: White

Needles: 5mm & 7mm straights

Start: 7:00 pm Finish:11:00 pm December 5, 2009

I've always loved hot water bottle covers. The Buttoned ones are especially cute. The cabled ones with the turtle necks, lovely Fair Isle versions and don't even get me started on "Mr. Popper"!

'Problem is, I also love and often use a hot water bottle and those beautiful knitterly covers have always frustrated me because they keep the heat in the bottle rather than letting the heat out to where my cold feet can appreciate it. And cute though buttons may be, I don't want one and really don't want several sticking into me and/or getting between me and that heat.

During our chilly summer of '09 I picked up some white Handicrafter Cotton with a mind to sort out a hot water bottle cover that protects the skin from the hot surface of the rubber but that also lets all that wonderful heat out for my comfort and enjoyment.

I chose cotton over wool so that if someone sick is using the hot water bottle its easily laundered and quickly dried and its nicer on bare skin.

I chose white because I love red and white together and with all the holes I had planned for the cover I figured I'd better use the red of the rubber as a design element of its own. (Are all hot water bottles red? I've never seen one any other colour.)

So here's what I came up with to cover a 10.5"x8" bottle with one ball of Handicrafter cotton in one evening. Its stretchy enough to allow the bottle empty or even pretty full to pass through the neck (just slightly fold the bottle lengthwise) without the need for ties or flaps, buttons or snaps.

With 7mm needles CO 41

Knit 2 rows

Row 3 *YO, k2tog* repeat from * to end of row K1

Row 4 (WS) Knit

Row 5 Increase 4 sts evenly spaced

Rows 6-11 Stocking Stitch

Repeat these last 8 rows 5x

Row 51-54 K2 P2 Ribbing

Rows 55-58 K1 P1 Ribbing

Row 59 (WS) Knit

Change to 5mm needles

Rows 60-62 (RS) K1P1 Rib

Row 63 (WS) Knit

Cast off Knitwise

Cut yarn to 18"

With right sides together sew side seam.

At bottom corner sew to match rounded corner of the bottle itself.

When sewing across the bottom, I left space for the hanging tab by passing yarn loosely through edge of one side of tab space then continued sewing bottom together. At the opposite corner I matched the curve I had already established at the previous corner.

I turned it right side out, tried it on for size, filled it up and I was done!

The next night I knit another one so now I have one for the cottage and one for here at home. I played around a bit on the second one (above) but frankly I think the first one (as outlined)has the better approach.

BTW all these photos are of unblocked and oft used (during the furnace outage!) covers. The stitching would obviously look much tidier after a bath but I kind of like the wonkiness - like a cotton wash cloth after its been used a bit rather than pressed and neatly folded for a photo shoot.

'Wee bit of a lag between the idea/yarn purchase phase in the summertime and the execution phase immediately pre Christmas but other than that I couldn't be happier with the result!

Thanks for dropping by! Its so fun to share my little ideas and hear what you think! (And if you decide to try one for yourself, do let me know - I'd love to see!)

Happy Valentine's Day!

Knit last August in the heat of the summer, filled with last year's lavender harvest and having already received an FO post these feel nonetheless also perfect for a knit blog post today!

Have a happy Valentine's Day everybody!

"Dishcloths???"

...a non knitting friend sneered when I pulled out my knitting at a recent coffee gathering
"Yes dishcloths" I said, beaming. I explained they are just the colours I want and the size I want because I was making them to my own specifications in just the pattern I want. I told her it makes me happy to see them draped over the sink, to marvel at their absorbency, to fold them out of the laundry and stack them ready for use again and again and again. She stared blankly back at me, the sneer still lingering on her face.

The poor thing, she can't understand dedicating time, energy or resources to knitting. I know her well enough to know she never will.

Tonight though is the December meeting of the Downtown Knit Collective where members show off their most prized knits of the past year in the annual "Work of Our Hands" fashion show. It'll be fun to go sit with a couple of hundred people who are total strangers to me but who nonetheless if pressed would more than understand how I could get gratification out of knitting dishcloths!

P.S. I've added a number of modelled shots of the Great Big Pullover to the original FO Post (I like to keep things tidy) - here's a little peek...

...there's lots more if you scroll down to the previous post!

Christmas Ornaments FO

I used up all the remnant yarn so I'm done with these (for the moment).

Pattern: "Knitted Ornaments" by Melanie Falick from "Handknit Holidays"

Yarn: Remnants (Patons Wool - Red, 1824 Wool - White)

Needles 4.0mm dpns

Start: November 27th Finish: December 5, 2008

Modifications: Added striping

These are fun, addictive and gratifying. The mind spins with potential for embellishing and varying the combinations of colours and patterns - never mind possible uses for the finished balls! I limited myself to using up my red and white remnants for this round but I'm sure I'll be bringing this pattern out in future to revisit more options.

P.S. Its so dark this morning - even shooting outside with white snow everywhere the camera flash wanted to come on!

'Gone Shoppin'

I'm headed out this morning before the malls get crazy and I have such high expectations of efficiency while I'm there I'm purposefully leaving behind this newest compulsion I developed Saturday night watching a movie with Number One Son...

"Knitted Ornaments" by Melanie Falick from "Handknit Holidays" Extremely addictive so 'best left at home. Have a great day - I'm off!

No Gift Knitting Here?

This year, I've planned no knitted gifts so I have no pressure on my knitting time these days beyond plain old genuine interest and amusement. I'm knitting whatever I feel like knitting.

For a day of errands with My Beloved and our Number One Son last Saturday I grabbed some needles, cotton yarn and the Ball Band dish cloth pattern. I arrived home late that afternoon with one done and a second cast on. (I now see why people crank these out - they're pretty addictive!)

My stay at home project of choice is the "Big Cabled Pullover" by Vladimir Teriokhin -VK Winter '05/'06. Its "Big" alright - big needles, big yarn, big gratification borne of almost immediate big progress. Bottom line - big knitting fun.

I am in full flight preparing for the craziness of the holidays but the quality knitting time I do have each evening is pleasant and relaxed. This is miraculous for me. Anyone who knows me will confirm I'm unencumbered by "reasonable" expectations. I live so far beyond my capacity I don't think I'd recognize it if I fell over it. I know and I've accepted that's who I am but I know its driven further by my omnipresent sense that a skeptical world wants me to prove the value of my domestic dedication (is there such a thing as a cure for post career guilt?). Knitting this season though seems to be giving me reason to be calm and restful among my family at the end of the day over chasing impossible goals into the wee hours of the night.

Hey maybe there is "gift" knitting going on around here after all but its the act of knitting that's the gift and I'm giving it to myself!

I hope you can take time to give yourself a "knitting gift" today!

Remembrance

Happy Halloween! (Jackyll & Hide FO)

Pattern: 2 Jackyll & Hide Hats by Sas Knits it Again - Knitty Fall 2007

Yarn: 2 balls Patons Canadiana White #00001 Lot#005

Needles: Aero 5mm circular & 5mm dpns

Start: September 30 Finish: October 30, 2008

Modifications: Second Hat made smaller to fit young child.

The large size knit as written uses almost all of a single ball of the Canadiana. Isn't it clever how they just look like sailor hats when rolled up?

Who would expect when a kid is wearing them like that that what is hiding underneath is this...

This is number one son modeling for me - he wasn't interested in having one of his own when I showed him the pattern (after I'd already bought the yarn) so I made the two for my nephew whose birthday is today. He will only be able to wear the small size at the moment so I'm giving him the second one to have as he grows.

Having seen the finished product number one son now thinks he would in fact like one for himself. What a shock ;)

The actual knitting time on each of these is little more than an evening - especially the smaller one. For the small version I cast on and knit everything at 75% of the size of the pattern up to the eye holes. That section I knit as written then above it knit 3" of stockinette as directed dividing the crown into four using my smaller number of stitches.

Oh and since its Halloween...

This is the transome window over our front door - I made this out of a huge piece of black felt and it hangs on the window frame with orange ties. At night when the kids are shelling out for treats the letters glow with the light from inside

Mitered Heart Sachet FO

Following my early summer flurry of sweater making I wanted to work with teeny tininess for a while and this is what I came up with...

Pattern: "Mitered Heart Sachet" by Vicki Sever
Yarn: Koigu Painter's Palette Premium Merino
Colour: 138
Needles: Clover Bamboo 2.0mm dpns
Modifications: None
Start: July 16 Finish: August 12, 2008

Its been in my cue for a long time. I discovered the pattern on line probably close to two years ago. Then it took forever to find the yarn...

Koigu is made just north of Toronto but it was impossible to find in stock around here. Eventually I landed some at Purl in NYC this past February in a colourway I thought would work. (KPPPM 138 -there's no sign of this colour ref.# on the Koigu site maybe its discontinued?)

Meanwhile for two seasons I've been planting more lavender in the garden to have enough to actually fill the "several" sachets the pattern said could be made from one skein of yarn.
Then of course came the harvesting and drying and then cleaning the lavender flowers off the stems. Comparatively speaking, the actual knitting of these was probably the smallest part of the whole project! My first attempt at miters, each sachet made of 14 interconnected squares, I made 4 sachets for a total of 56 miters.
I got faster at them as I went but also a bit bored. Coincidentally I was reading a library copy of Mason Dixon Knitting during this project (I've wanted to do a mitered blanket ever since reading about it on the January One blog). After making my 56 miters though I don't think I'll be doing a mitered blanket. Repetition on that scale - repetition that requires a bit of attention be paid -isn't what I'm looking for in my knitting time. Having said that though, I can see picking up another skein of Koigu if I ever come across it again and taking another run at the sachets since a) I now have the lavender harvest to fill them and b) they are a lovely little gift. I also think they'd be lovely knit in a pale, solid colour linen yarn which would make an utterly different effect with a pretty ribbon for contrast.

(My number one son surprisingly told me he thinks these sachets are the nicest things I've ever knit! He also shared the fact that he can't understand "shoving them in a drawer with a bunch of underwear"!)
This was also perfect summer time knitting. The wool never touches any part of you other than your fingers and its utterly portable. Its also a very good knitting value for the money. The one skein kept me and my fingers intermittently amused for the better part of three weeks. The coil less safety pins called for to hold live stitches would have been a great help but not being able to find any I made due with regular safety pins and the smallest stitch holders in my collection. I did find I had to track every line of every square with post it notes as well as mark square #1 as a reference to avoid getting lost or joining on miters in the wrong order or orientation.

I've decided to make liners for my sachets because I think there are too many holes in the knitting through which the lavender might escape. The scent of lavender is lovely on clothes, but the feeling of lavender buds in clothes is another story entirely.

My liners are made with fabric remnants hand sewn with a couple of strands of embroidery thread from my little stash. (Both remnants are fifty or sixty years old - one side from a much laundered cotton bed sheet, the other a piece of very fine tulle) I could have whipped these up on the machine much faster but I don't think the vintage tulle would have survived and I just like the idea of making the whole thing by hand. My favourite part about the sachet design paired with that colourway of Koigu is they remind me of time worn tapestry or heavy embroidery and I think they deserved a lining in keeping with that well worn aesthetic.

No one will likely ever open the sachets to replenish the lavender (other than me) but I like the idea of knowing that if they do they'll find attention to detail even in there.

Two of the sachets will be birthday gifts for my mom this week and two will stay with me. There may be one more left in the remaining yarn. I'll just have to see if the mood strikes me to start another and find out for sure.