Sheep and Wool and Stuff

In 1982 there were 22 sheep per person in New Zealand.  As of March 2016 the ratio went down to six sheep per person.  My brother-in-law, who lived in New Zealand for two years, brought me a couple of mondo skeins of baby weight grey wool yarn.  By the way, Danny is the best gift giver ever.  He knew I liked to knit and brought me yarn.  What a wonderful and thoughtful surprise!

Knowing that not-easy-to-care-for scratchy wool yarn would not be the best choice for a baby sweater, I made a baby sweater.  I guess I was ready to start a new project and the sample swatch I knit up with this yarn worked out perfectly for the bobbly sweater I had been wanting to make.  I love making bobbles and it's a good thing because there were plenty of them in the pattern.  At one point, I taught myself to knit backwards so that I wouldn't have to turn the knitting three times for each of the five thousand bobbles.  Anyway, here's the sweater.

I used a pattern from Classic Knits for Kids by Debbie Bliss.  At the time, she was my all-time favorite knit designer!  A picture of the sweater is on page 29 and the directions are on pages 65-67.

I saved the sweater forever and ever - for when Danny and his future wife would have a baby girl.  Danny eventually married and he and his wife had two boys, and it seemed that their family was complete.  Then, one day when their youngest was four or five, they surprised everyone by announcing they were having another baby - a girl this time.  I was excited to finally send the "yarn" back to Danny.  That was just a few years ago - probably at least 20 years after I had made the sweater.  Surprisingly, there were no moth holes in it.  Yeah, mission accomplished!

I'm knitting again!

I thought my knitting days were over almost five years ago, but thanks to modern medicine I'm knitting again.  I'm still s...l...o...w...l...y working on the archeological dig that I started in December.  I rediscovered all my knitting supplies, books and yarn.  I purged some books and patterns and am trying to use up my yarn stash.  Of course, I made this sweater out of a new yarn purchase.  I'll never learn, will I?

The pattern came out of this old Debbie Bliss book that I just can't part with.  Lots of the patterns look outdated, but I didn't think this one did.  Or am I wrong?  I hope not.  I wouldn't want Baby Girl Harris to be bullied by her toddler friends in a few years!

Twin Sweaters

Over two years ago I blogged about these sweaters.  Has it really been two years already?  Anyway, the twins can finally wear them.  In fact, this is an old picture and they might be close to growing out of them by now.

Aren't they cute?  The sweaters and the dresses are cute too, right?  Ann (their mom) hand-smocked (almost wrote smoked) those dresses.  I still can't figure out how she finds the time to sew with three little mischievous and energetic princesses running about the castle all day long.

These sweaters remind me of a time when I thought my knitting days were over.  My fingers would go tingly and numb while knitting them.  It was pretty scary.  I'm happy to report that after lots of different medical interventions and a long absence from knitting, I picked up my knitting needles a few months ago and was able to do it.  I had to tweak the way I do it, but I could do it.  That was a happy day.  I celebrated by having an online streaming-athon and finishing up a bunch of half-finished projects.

Olivia's Sweater

My knitting projects are anchors to my memories.  There are some projects that take me right back to a specific time and place.  Some of them bring back emotions and feelings.  This is one of those sweaters.  It's odd, but it brings back feelings of love and hope and healing.

We were waiting for a baby to be born.  We were going to call her Maya.  We had met with the birth mom a couple of times and seemed to hit it off.  We had a few baby essentials ready to go in our one-bedroom apartment, the biggest being a cleaned up crib that had already cradled the three boys of our friends.  We hadn't committed to buying too many things - still not believing that we could finally be parents after such a long and frustrating journey.

About a week before Maya's due date, we received the unthinkable news that the birth mom had backed out.  Of course, we were devastated.  That coming weekend (I think it was the very weekend that Maya was due), my work colleagues would all be off chaperoning the French trip to Quebec.  They found out about our adoption disaster and in a matter of days, maybe hours, quickly arranged for hubs and I to go on the trip with them.  They booked us a room at the amazing hotel where everyone got to stay and they arranged for a sub to cover my classes.

I can never go anywhere without a knitting project, so I ran to the knit shop and quickly purchased this bright green yarn.  Although green is my favorite color, the choice in brightness was a bit out of character.  I remember knitting on the 8-hour bus ride to and from Quebec.  I don't remember if I chatted with hubs or students or colleagues.  I don't remember what I thought about.  I just remember knitting on that bus ride.  It was just what I needed - to get away and to get lost in my knitting.

I held onto that sweater for years, not because I couldn't part with it but because I was waiting to find the perfect recipient for it.  When I've come across the sweater over the years, it has brought a smile to my face.  It brings back feelings of love and hope and healing.  For nine years, almost to the month, it has been known as Maya's sweater - even though I knew Maya was never going to wear it.

And now I want it go on record that this is Olivia's sweater.  Olivia was adopted by Shannon and Ryan less than a year ago.  Shannon is one of those people who comes into your life for a brief moment, but stays in your heart for a lifetime.  I was delighted to hear that she and Ryan had finally become a family of three.  And I was so happy to send that special sweater off to someone special.  

Sweater and Bear

This is a sweater and bear that I knit for Crystal's son.  He's a big kid now.  I think she found the pattern when we were roommates and of course I had to have a copy.  Since she found the pattern worthy to tear out of a magazine, I figured that she'd like it for her son.  

The bear pattern came from Debbie Bliss's Toy Knits, one of my all-time favorite pattern books.  I added the matching sailboat on the bear's sweater.  As I look at it, I'm not too crazy about the blue bear - it's too matchy matchy!  I think the matching bear sweater would've been enough.

In Crystal's 'thank you' note she mentions 'Lucy and Ethel' moments.  She was Lucy and I was Ethel.  The memory that comes to mind most often is when we first started rooming together.  My brother set us up as roommates - I was moving back to San Diego from San Bernardino and she was moving from Los Angeles to San Diego.  

Right off, I noticed that she really liked to cook and bake.  She would go on kicks.  I remember a muffin kick.  She made a gazillion types of muffins, all in the same week.  I don't even remember what she did with all of them.  We managed to stay slim and trim in those days so I don't know who was eating them all.

Anyway, there was the ice cream kick.  One day she was making some custard for an ice cream recipe.  Her double boiler was a glass bowl over a boiling pot of water.  I didn't think anything of it - of course now I know better.  All I remember was a loud explosion that left blobs of custard and glass shrapnel all over her and the kitchen.  I remember wondering, "What did my brother get me into!?"  She ended up being a lot of fun, very entertaining, and a great cook.  Go here to read about one of Crystal's more recent Lucy moments.  I promise you won't regret it!

Mystery Sweater

Here's a sweater that I don't remember anything about, except that I made it.  Does anyone out there know anything about this sweater?

Knitting for the Folks in Switzerland

Back when I had fewer nieces and nephews, I would make lots of stuff for them.  But now there are too many to keep up with.  Anyway, my hubby's sister's family got a lot of handmade stuff because they started having kids first (on my husband's side).  They sent me these pictures from Switzerland (that's where they live) about five or six years ago.  I rarely get to see people wear or use the stuff I send them because I don't usually live near them, so it was nice to get these pictures.

Here are the stockings I've made for them over the years, minus one for Alexandra.  I think that Amy has bequeathed her snowflake stocking to Alexandra.  Isn't that just like a mom?

Here's cute little Noah sporting a chunky gauge sweater from Sirdar's Babies in Denim pattern book.  I'm pretty sure he thought this picture wasn't going to happen if he could just keep his eyes closed.

Here he is again with his Christmas stocking.  After I made all these elaborate stockings, I realized they probably weren't very kid friendly - lots of little pieces that can fall off and not very easy to wash because of all the doodads and the wool yarn.  What was I thinking!?

Here's Sophie happily modeling her sweater and stocking.  Don't you just love her cute little smirk?

Here's Sarah in her sweater.  A lot of the things I knit hold memories for me.  I knit Sarah's sweater while I was visiting them in Switzerland.  Hubby was off in Slovakia meeting up with his parents and I stayed with Amy's family in Zurich.  I was a knitting fiend trying to finish this before we left their house.

I also remember doing lots of fun things with them while I was there.  I loved going to their big community pool with them.  We also went to some fun historic sites.  Probably the most lasting impression was the trip to Walmart in Germany.  It was an hour's drive each way.  We filled up two overflowing carts, paid for the stuff, loaded the van, and then went back and did it again.  Then we had to lug all those groceries up four flights of stairs.  It was crazy.  But, I digress.

So, I'm just realizing that there aren't any pictures of Nick (nor Alexandra because she didn't exist yet).  Nick, where were you?

Cabled Christmas Stocking

This is my Christmas stocking.  I made it for myself...three times.  I gave away the first two and made myself a third one a few years ago.  I promised myself that I wouldn't give this one away.  I love texture in knitting, especially cables and bobbles.  So this is the perfect stocking for me.

Here's a close up of the detail at the top.  The top piece is knit separately going the other direction and then attached to the stocking while making the I-cord, if I'm remembering correctly.  It was a bit tricky.

Here's a brief video on how to make I-cord, just in case you were wondering.

Musical Stocking

This is the stocking that I knit for my musical hubby early in our marriage.  It's the same pattern I used on these stockings.

The notes and treble clefs are made from crocheted chains that I sewed onto the stocking in the shapes that I wanted.

Here's a close up of the toe.

If you're a beginning knitter and want to try socks, I suggest that you start with a Christmas stocking for your first project.  You won't have to worry about the gauge (making it a specific size) and you won't have to worry about making a second one to match the first.

Knitting Projects from the Past

Part of the reason for this blog is to document stuff I've made over the years, and my sister too.  (One of these days we'll get her stuff on here!)

I made this pig sweater a looooong time ago.  A friend in Boston, Sara, fell in love with it.  The only problem was that she had three boys.  Well, she and Joe ended up having a 4th baby, a girl.  I was so excited to give this to her - mostly because she finally got "her girl".

Here's a close-up of "this little piggy's" cute porky face.

This pattern came from MinnowKnits, Too.  I think I was making it for the baby girl who we thought we were going to adopt in Boston.  When that didn't work out, I think I gave it to the Makechnies (more Boston friends) who were expecting their 3rd or 4th girl.

This is one of my all-time favorite little girl sweaters designed by my favorite knitwear designer, Debbie Bliss.  I've made this sweater four or five times.  The pattern is found in her book titled Classic Knits for Kids.  This particular sweater went to Ann, the friend who also got custom-made bolero sweaters from me.  I think we've already established that she loves the color red.

Debbie Bliss also designs amazingly intricate toy patterns.  This is actually one of the simpler patterns found in Toy Knits.  Until today, I had totally forgotten that I wanted to use this for a custom Christmas card.  Maybe next year - only 362 more days 'til Christmas!

This was another option for the Christmas card.  Hubby and I had a bare bear photo shoot that day, whenever that day was long ago.

I can't even count how many times I've made this Christmas stocking pattern with different embellishments or color patterns.  This one was for our niece, Sophie, who lives in Switzerland.  Her sister Sarah has one that is similar.  Poor Alexandra, the youngest in the family, doesn't have one yet.  It's not likely that she'll get one anytime soon because of my hand issues - which I'll post about some other day.

This is the "boy" stocking design that went to Nick and Noah in Switzerland.  Somewhere I have pictures of their parents' stockings, that weren't so elaborate.  For all the other in-laws who never got stockings like these - I learned that it's best to NOT start a tradition like this!  It's too hard to keep it up.  Just ask poor Alexandra!

Hubby and I took a gazillion close-ups of the snowman on the stocking, thinking that it would also make a cool and unique Christmas card.  Don't be surprised if this comes in the mail next December.  Actually, you should be really surprised because I think the last time that I sent out Christmas cards was in the last millennium!

Extreme Knitting

Hey knitters, you HAVE to watch these!  I want to know how they funded these extreme projects.

The giganto blanket

One thousand strands of yarn

Knitting with two backhoes

World Wide Knit in Public Day

I just thought you would all want to know that June 11th is World Wide Knit in Public Day.  This makes me laugh because in college I used to hide my knitting, especially if there were boys in the vicinity.  It was not cool back then or maybe I just wasn't cool enough to make knitting look cool.  I would have been mortified for anyone to see me knitting other than my roommates.  If I was knitting in the living room of the Garden of Eden (the name we gave our apartment - ha!) and someone knocked on the door, I would hide my knitting before answering the door.  I didn't want people to think I was a boring old lady!  

A few years ago celebrities like Julia Roberts started to knit in public, which generated more interest in knitting.  It's so unfair that you have to have a beautiful smile, great hair, and a gazillion dollars to be able to make knitting look appealing.  Anyway, grab your knitting bag and head for an event near you.

The Red Bolero

My friend, Ann, bought red yarn to knit a bolero sweater to match the cute smocked dress she had made for her daughter.  Then she had twins!  She asked if I would be willing to knit the sweater for her and I agreed.  She sent me the yarn and I discovered that there was enough yarn to make two sweaters, which I did, so that the twins could wear them some day.  Now the pressure is on for Ann to make another dress.  Here's her cute daughter sporting the dress and the sweater.

The sweater sans Ann's daughter.

Here are the details of the process if you're interested.  Ann and I both became addicted to ravelry.com while searching for the perfect free bolero pattern.  We found this one:

Click here for pattern.

Ann thought it would be nice to add a simple pattern to the sweater so I went to my 'go to' knitting book, The Harmony Guide to Knitting.

I used the All-over Eyelets pattern on page 124.

I have this long mental list of things I've always wanted to try.  'Design a sweater' is on the list.  After this experience, I've decided that designing sweaters is not my thing.  I found it frustrating just to redesign this one.  And I didn't even redesign it really, just added a different stitch to the body of the pattern.  I've been a fan of designer Debbie Bliss for decades.  My respect for her work has grown leaps and bounds after this experience and I think I'll leave the 'designing of knitwear' up to her.  I can cross another thing off my bucket list.  Thanks for the opportunity Ann!