Camp Loopy Progress

Making progress on the sweater for my daughter. This is my July project for Camp Loopy. I took this picture over a week ago planning to do a blog post but never got around to it.

Here it is as of Wednesday morning. First sleeve done and almost 40 rows into the second. These sleeves are working up quickly which makes me very happy. I did the collar after I was done the first sleeve. I'm thrilled with how this sweater is coming along. It is the Brick pattern which can be found here.

Of course I had to order my yarn for the third and final project to be made in August. The project needed to be a pattern that required 800 yards. I was torn between making a Brick sweater for myself or crochet an afghan for my brother's family for Christmas. 

I couldn't decide so I ordered both. The orange on the left is for the Brick sweater for me. The pink and yellow are for the afghan. I think I am going to do the afghan as my project but will probably start both. I'm a little afraid I'll suffer from sweater burnout if I attempt to do 2 sweaters in a row and there are other sweaters I should be working on, right mom?

I had some green in my stash, also from The Loopy Ewe to go with the afghan. The pattern can be found here. I plan on making it look like a big flower, yellow centre, with lots of pink and then the green border. I might need to order more yarn as I'll be making the afghan bigger than the pattern since it is baby size.

Then this magazine arrived at my door and I got tempted again.

Perhaps the orange could be used for this tunic... but I'd have to order more yarn. But I probably need to order more yarn of the afghan anyway so that's not a big deal.

Or perhaps this vest?

Think I'm still making the afghan just not sure what the orange yarn will become.

With this order I reached the first level rewards group and received these little cards to gift along with finishes. They are very nice and should get used this December.

Hats for Charity

Jen at Knitting Like Crazy held a KAL/CAL for 5 weeks in June and July for hats to be donated to Halos of Hope in honor of her father now being cancer free. You can read more about it here. I knew I had some yarn I could spare but not necessarily a lot of time so I gave myself the goal of completing 3 hats. I met my goal and mailed them to Jen a few days before the deadline. 

I first knit a plain hat. Didn't use any particular pattern. I used Caron Simply Soft yarn for all three which I've often used for hats so I knew roughly how many stitches to cast on.

Modeled by Floyd.

Floyd modeling the second hat.

Ugh. Took picture of side where ends are woven in. Oh well. This pattern is reversible and crocheted. I loved it. It's a free download on ravelry.

Here is the other side which I preferred.

Floyd modeling it again.

Got to love that face.

Third hat is the same pattern. Made in 2 and a half hours in one day. I think I see several of these as gifts in my future. And perhaps one for myself.

Floyd modeling, of course.

He didn't like wearing this one and kept taking it off.

And grabbed it when I tried to get a picture of the other side.

All 3 stacked and ready to be mailed.

One more picture. 

Surprise, surprise, here comes Floyd. For some reason he thinks the hats are for him.

"I like this one, Mama. Can I keep it?"

Reading and Writing Wednesday - Best Board Books Ever

When I saw the three books above listed as new books at the library, I requested them immediately and they didn't disappoint. Each one is illustrated with needle felted pictures and is only 12 words long. Perhaps the most perfect twelve words for each book. I, of course, love the "Pride and Prejudice" one the best. The little guy enjoyed reading them too.

Here are a couple pictures from "Moby Dick". I have never read it but my husband has - with a dictionary by his side when he was a teenager. It's his bosses favourite book. 

The art is just amazing.

Chasing the whale!

Below are some pictures from "Emma".

"Badly done, Emma. Badly done indeed!"

Happy ending.

And from "Pride and Prejudice".

Jane and Lizzie.

My older son loved the page above and the page below. He thought it was funny.

Another happy ending.

There were several other books in the series which I might have to request just to look at them. 

Getting Twiggy with it.

Saturday afternoon, my daughter and I went to a workshop taught by Anna Hrachovec of Mochimochi fame. Find her patterns on ravelry here or on her website here. The workshop we went to was about wrapping twigs in yarn and then knitting little creatures to go with it. Some of the people there knew how to knit but most spent the time wrapping twigs. My husband may have made a few jokes about taking a workshop for something so simple but it was really an excuse to spend some time with my girl and to meet the author. And to have a fun afternoon of crafting - which it was.

My daughter putting her yarn into a bobbin as instructed by Anna to make wrapping the twig easier.

My pile of yarn and twigs.

My daughter's branch and some of her yarn.

Wrapping.

Daughter wrapping. 

Finished my first twig and was able to knit a leaf and attach it. 

Daughter's finished branch. I knit her a blue leaf and she knit herself one as well.

There was a big branch in the middle for everyone to work on as a group project. I added the purple in the middle beside the blue. Anna tweeted a picture of it later, which you can see here.

Anna has written 4 books. I bought one of them.

And of course I got her to sign it.

Later that night I got out lots of needles and yarn and played around. And had a little chocolate.

Wrapped this twig I found in our yard with yellow yarn and made some leaves.

Here is my finished piece made during the workshop. Still needs a creature or something on it.

I made this Saturday night. The green is a knitted icord.

 And I may have become addicted to twig wrapping. We were out for a walk this morning and I wanted to bring almost every branch/ twig I saw on the ground home with us. This was super fun and simple and I encourage others to try it. Not sure what I am going to do with the finished pieces. Christmas presents, perhaps?

Knitting Along

I've been a little distracted by Wimbledon lately. Excited to watch fellow Canadian, Eugenie Bouchard, in the Women's final later this morning. All this tennis watching is good for the knitting but no so much for blog posting. Above is the Reading shawl I started as a gift. I was doing another shawl with the yarn but frogged it and started this one instead. Easy pattern to memorize and it will have a lace border at the end.

I have been making good progress on my Camp Loopy project for July. I'm very happy with how quickly this seems to be knitting up. I know things will slow down once I get to the sleeves but I'm hoping since I am knitting the smallest size they will work up quickly too.

I should be a better blogger once Monday gets here and Wimbledon is over. However, we'll have company so... maybe not.