Red for the Little Lady

One of my friends and mentors who I've known since Jr. High recently had a baby girl! I couldn't be more excited for her and her husband! I put together this layered fringe/rag quilt with fabric that had been my mom's since technically she was my mom's friend first!

I've done this kind of quilt with flannels before but this was my first time using regular quilting cotton and machine quilting a 1 inch smaller piece of batting in between the outer layers. 

 I tried a different free motion pattern on each of the blocks!

Fewer layers of fabric with batting in between made for a lighter quilt, and it still looks just as full post washing. Call me a dreamer but I imagine the little recipient of this quilt having fun learning all the different quilting designs, picking a favorite square, and studying the different fabrics in the car, or before bed. I hope she enjoys it to pieces! That is the true sign of a loved quilt!

Quilt for Faith

So I've been trying to keep up with making quilts for all of our cousins who have had babies since we've been married. Between the two of us we have a whole bunch of cousins so I confess I'm a bit behind. I made this one for sweet baby Faith!

 It's a traditional around the world pattern which I particularly enjoy and this is the second time I have machine quilted this wedding ring-esque pattern. I love the intricacy it adds to the design.

 It's backed in the same floral print that I used on the front!

 One of the highlights of making things for little ones is getting pictures of them with the project! Isn't she darling!!

Professional Knitter

I guess I've been a professional knitter for a while, but this project kind of "made it real."
I was commissioned by a woman in San Francisco, who I'd never met, to make a sweater for a baby who was going to be born. She sent me the yarn she wanted used, and a check, and we talked about what she wanted.
Size: Three Month, Cardigan, Cables would be great, She wanted to ad buttons.
Here's what I came up with!

I'm pleased as punch! I also love this making up patterns with the top down method. The only thing I have to seam is the underside of the sleeve!

Serendipity at Starbucks

Last Saturday I went to knit with my cousins Tanya and Kim at Starbucks. I started a baby hat since I seem to know tons of people having babies these days. I made a newborn version of the hat but the whole time we were not quite sure if it would actually fit a child. They get big so fast its hard to imagine their heads actually being that small.

It was just our luck though that a family came in with their new baby boy. We asked if we could just sort of look compare the hat to the babies head and explained our dilemma. They told us they had wished they had a small enough hat when he was born because all that fit him were the hospital hats. Done deal! If the hat's gonna fit,

I can make another!

Just enough yarn! Aren't they fun!

The hat pattern is called Serendipity and can be found on Ravelry.

My Cousin's Babies

They are growing in count! I've been working on some mini collections to send to them as baby gifts!
This group went to my cousin Jacquie and her not yet born baby Gracie. The yarn was hand dyed at the Keep Me in Stitches in McCall, Idaho, which is where I learned to knit. I thought this yarn would also be appropriate because they recently moved to Idaho! I'd been saving this yarn for something special! Looks like Gracie was it!  I made things in various sizes so that she could wear them at different times and not look like a grape. Also, Ill never knit anything preemie. Those kids grow too fast!

I decided this sweater needed mismatched buttons because I found ONE purple heart button that just HAD to be used. It's on the bottom, I dont know if you can tell.

My next set was for Dasch who had allready been born and I knew for a fact was growing quickly! I had seen a pattern for a dinosaur had and what else, paired with a striped sweater could scream boy more loudly?!

Im planning on putting some winter items in my Etsy shop by the beginning of November and I think a dinosaur hat will be in the mix. Theyre too fun!

tHat sMitten

Theres a baby boom. At least among our families and friends. (No we are not and do not plan to be expecting children for quite a long time.)
I have been frantically trying to catch up on special projects for these little bundles of joy.
(My appologies to those of you whose gifts are late...it just means whatever I complete will probably fit longer, as your children will have gone through their first major growth spurt by the time they get their hand knit gift/quilt.)

These little booties went downstairs to the couple living in the apartment below us. (Ravelry Pattern Details)

They're having a little girl any day now! I tied them up with ribbons that coordinated to leave them on the door knob.

These are for Luke's baby cousin Beckham who was just born last week!

They left in the mail on Wednesday!

Ravelry details here and here.

I've finally purchased "Knit Mittens: 15 Cool Mittens to Keep You Warm" and think I will find it to be a solid addition to my library. It thouroughly explains so many things and last time I checked it out of the library I had so many things I wanted to do that when I finally returned it, the book was over 2 weeks late! Oops!