Children's Cotton Hat Redux - a failed attempt

So after knitting two children's cotton hats (the blue one for Tiny Dancer and a red for Little Buddha), I realized the boys really needed hats without bows. So I tried substituting a stripe instead. I was somewhat pleased with how it turned out, only this time I followed the toddler size directions instead of the children's size, and the darn thing was too small. Tiny Dancer couldn't even get it on his head!




Then I made another red one for Little Buddha, this time going back to the children's size directions. I don't know what the heck happened, but it still didn't fit. As you can see, it is not so much a winter hat as a ridiculous looking bowler.

And I finally realized that Manos Cotton Stria was not the perfect substitute for the (discontinued) Mission Falls Cotton - for one thing, I should've knit it on smaller needles. For another, I should've checked my gauge (of course). And finally, what the heck was I thinking knitting cotton hats for winter time anyway?

The Knitting Olympics

http://www.yarnharlot.ca/blog/olympics2006.html

I'm in! I'll be doing my first pair of socks. I'm so excited!

Do vegans wear wool?

My first adult hat. I did this as a Christmas gift for My Old Man's older son. Halfway into the hat, I suddenly realized that if vegans don't drink milk, eat eggs, or eat honey, they might not wear wool either! Thankfully, it depends on the vegan, and it depends on the source (of the wool). He seemed to like the hat, and he even wears it. Yay!

The specs: knit in Manos del Uruguay wool, lava, one skein. Took about 3 nights.

My first hat.

This is the first FO I ever took a picture of. Believe me, you wouldn't want to see pictures of the other ones.

Unfortunately, it's a bit girly for my Tiny Dancer, but he still looks adorable in it, doesn't he?

The specs:
Manos del Uruguay Cotton Stria, in Sky
Children's Cotton Hat pattern from Last Minute Knitted Gifts

Prayer Shawl

This project right here is what lured me back into knitting. My desire to knit a prayer shawl for my sister-in-law, whose husband (My Old Man's older brother) died 5 years ago this coming December 18th, which is also my sister-in-law's birthday. I think anniversaries are important and can be very difficult; I wanted her to feel held in love and prayer in the midst of grief. What makes a prayer shawl different from a regular shawl is that the knitter intentionally prays for the intentended recipient while knitting (see http://www.shawlministry.com).

The specs: started in September, finished on Thanksgiving day. Knit in Knit Picks Suri Dream, blueberry, 4 balls.

The Knitting Obsession begins.

I taught myself to knit in May 2002 from a book. Learning this way leaves something to be desired. I couldn't always tell from looking at 2-dimensional pictures exactly what was going on. Suffice it to say that I ended up with some idiosyncracies in my knitting style. I'm a continental knitter (I thread the yarn through my left hand), but I don't do it "right." I use my left thumb a *lot* and my left index finger and middle finger a little to wrap the yarn around the right needle (as opposed to "picking" the yarn with the right needle). I only recently realized this is not the way most continental knitters knit.

My first project was a tote bag. Yes, that is a stupid project for a beginner knitter. Dishcloth. Scarf. These are normal beginner projects. Square things that don't require anything but garter stitch. But Debbie Bliss had other things in mind for me, in her How to Knit - The Definitive Knitting Course. So I began the stupid tote bag. 3 years, 3 months later, I finished it. Well, sort of. I never did seam it up. Stupid tote bag.

For those first 3 years, I didn't knit very consistently at all. The tote bag project was frustrating, and I had other (non-knitting) projects going on. Buying a house, having babies, and the like. I did try valiantly to knit a baby blanket from a Suss Knits Kit. What a mess. A simple garter stitch blanket, but it took me 15 months to complete it (working very sporadically) and when I finished it, it looked just awful. And in November/December 2004 and January 2005, I briefly worked with intensity and attention on four scarves in a row. My first scarves and my first knitted gifts. Unfortunately, there was a lot I didn't really know about finishing - like weaving in ends. If I remember correctly, I just sort of knotted things and snipped. To Julie, Carol, Marcia, and Hillary - I'm sorry if the scarves unraveled. I'm betting they did.

August 2005. Enter knittinghelp.com. Amazing site. There are not enough words to praise it and its creator, Amy Findlay. Over 150 instructional videos to help a person learn to knit. Plus fabulous forums for asking questions and talking shop. Overnight, I became a real knitter. And a fanatic. Six months later, I'm still a freak about all things knit. Thanks, Amy! Thanks, KH!

Okay. I'm going to do this blog thing. Really. I am.

I'm gonna get serious about it from here on out. I'll post pictures, progress reports, yarn finds, and the like. Because I really, really want to keep a photo journal of my knitting life. And because you really, really want to read it, right?

So, starting today I am going to do some backposting of old FOs (Finished Objects) and then start discussing some WIPs (Works in Progress). I'll begin adding buttons for my favorite blogs and sites and just generally be a better blogger all around.

I won't talk exclusively about knitting, because I do think about other things, I promise. Like my husband. And my boys. And my church. And this gorgeous messed-up world we live in.

Like many bloggers, I choose not to name my family by their real names - since they are not the ones choosing to blog. So from now on, you will read of My Old Man (my husband, fondly named for a favorite Joni Mitchell song) and my twin sons Little Buddha and Tiny Dancer. Other family members may occasionally appear, at which time I will give them suitable monikers as well.

Let the games begin!