Knitting FO # 44

FINALLY

I finished my one and only A Touch of Whimsy Scarf!!! CAN YOU BELIEVE?! Okay, the knitting world knows the problems I have with having multiple WIPs....This lovely scarf never got it's independent knitting time that it SO DESERVED - all because it was the one that I put aside more times than I can count!

Gosh, do you even remember back when I bought 4 hanks of Malabrigo in the lovely colorway, "Molly," many months ago in Oct of 2006, it is, afterall, the same Malabrigo that I used for both the Whimsy Hat and Fingerless Gloves, it is the color that I chose for my ensemble, a perfect pink if ever I saw one!!

Well, this December I decided to get these WIPs DONE! And this beauty was one of them! Oh yeah, I used around 1 3/4 hanks of Malabrigo for my scarf, I had to have longer, I love long scarves! I also enjoyed being outside taking photos in the grayness of winter, so I played a bit with Photoshop....took ALL of the color out of this photo, then painted the pink back on the scarf ... it was fun, both being outside with my new camera (I so need to get "Digital Photography for Dummies" - I love the "Dummies" books! That's how I learned to knit, "Knitting for Dummies"...just a bit of trivia.). After being indoors for so many months being outside for just a little while taking pictures is quite rewarding! I got to look around and see the many, many blessings that God has given me, us, everyone!
And check it...I waxed poetic about a scarf and a tree, LOL!

And, I gotta tell ya, I've never been so happy to get a project done as I was with this scarf! Please know that it doesn't take long to knit in actual knitting time, but because it was for me, it was oh...so easy to put down to do a project for others (LOL, that's why it took over a year for me to knit it....LOL) Don't get me wrong, I LOVE, LOVE to knit for others, but I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE to finish the projects that I have OTN 1st...have ya'll heard me say that before, LOL?!
Oh yeah, I finished these back in Oct, 2006...I'm happy to finally have the entire ensemble together!
I say that over and over, but I am SO HAPPY that I've learned to knit and have met an EXTRAORIDNARY group of people - knitters, the greatest people around! Even though it seems that the majority of them have to have 27 - 57 projects OTN to be happy in their knitty lives, that's okay because they are WONDERFUL people!

GOD BLESS

&

HAPPY KNITTING

one and all!

Stuff FOs #38 - 43

I decided to make several stitch markers for different size needles (socks - size 11) and row counters to go with a couple.
These are made out of a variety of semi-precious and precious stones and all of the findings are sterling silver.
Sock stitch markers:
Stitch Markers and Row Counter for needles up to size 6 or 7
Row Marker & Stitch Markers for needles size 8 or 9
These lampwork stitch markers are for size 10.5 or 11 needles:

Like I said...FUN FUN FUN to make and work like a charm!

Knitting FOs # 36 & 37

Okay, way back in Jan, 2007 I finished the Vogue Lacy Wrap #15 (winter 2005 issue, I think) that I talked about so much....but, I wouldn't wear it without the hat & gloves to go with...well, fingerless gloves, as usual. Anyway, I knit the wrap, hat (looks spooky without a head, don't ya think?!) which I derived from the stitches in the wrap) and the gauntlets with Brown Sheep's Lamb's Pride, blue flannel colorway. The pattern for the gauntlets are from Knitty Gritty and can be found here and I gotta tell ya, they are fun to knit and warm, warm, warm!
FYI, it was a VERY WINDY day!

FO # 35

Mystery Project

Sorry, but that is all that I can say at this point. More info will be revealed at a later date. But, since it's an FO for 2007 I had to include it along with my other 2007 Knitting & Stuff.

Stuff FOs #33 & 34

I changed the name of this "finished objects" album for 2007 from 2007 Knitting FOs to 2007 Knitting and Stuff FOs because I decided to start making stitch markers...which I SO LOVE! I can easily see this becoming as addicting as knitting and leading into making wire jewelry most definitely!
Okay, the 1st sets of stitch markers went to one of my Pay It Forward girls, Jacquie as a "pre-gift."
These are made using sterling silver findings; saudered closed jump rings (so they don't snag your yarn) and eye pins. I used Czech glass for each set. I made 2 different sets, 2 sizes; one for socknitting and the blue set for knitting size 8 or 9 needles & smaller.
socknitting markers: and the other set are for larger needles:
FUN FUN FUN to make!

Knitting FOs # 31 & 32

Our daughter , Shannon's best friend Sarah (Christmas @ Shan's house) asked that I knit a set of BRIGHT pink & green fuzzy dice. Another friend of Shan's (sorry, don't know her) asked for the pink & black fuzzy dice They are easy to knit, I saw them being made on an episode of Knitty Gritty, the pattern is found here....FYI, I will tell you that gluing the dice, "pom poms" on this fuzzy, pain in the butt novelty yarn is a bit hmmmmm - taxing, yeah, that's a nice word for it...the glue goes everywhere, the pieces of that horrible yarn sticks everywhere, etc., etc.! Yes, you have guessed it...I do NOT like to knit with novelty yarn of any type....but, for my daughter and her friends it seems as though I'll do anything, LOL!

FOs # 28-30

Yes, I've become a slow knitter and the main reason is because I have more than one project OTN and this for some weird psychological reason...slows me down!
Okay, I've not been able to post these for a while because they had to be sent to my pal Colleen as a way of welcoming her baby to be (soon, very soon!). Not that she would look here, but who ever knows, right?! So, she's seen them and likes them so here we go:

1st up is the lovely Mason Dixon baby kimono I knit this with Lionbrand Cottonease, perfect for baby, soft and machine wash & dryable! Boy...babies are tiny, I just hope these things fit!

Next up is the lovely 10 cable hat from Julie Also knit with Cottonease...it's so cute!

And last, but certainly not least! The baby socks from another friend of mine by the name of Julie! How cute are these?! They may not fit for very long, but they are certainly fun to make (I'm gonna have to make another pair or 2!). And, I readily admit....these socks have turned me around on my thoughts of toe up socknitting! I really enjoyed these, the figure 8 cast on did it, I think!

So, here we are in mid Oct and I've only knit 30 items....a slow, slow year for this knit girl! But, lots of designing for my honey, that does take up a good deal of time, even if it's only for socks! And, I don't see that ending any time, soon, LOL!

Knitting FO #27

Lonnie's Simple Toe Up Gym Socks
I knit these in August for Lonnie. These were my 1st adult toe up socks, I used the gusset/heel flap method so that I could reinforce the underside of the heel where Lonnie wears through his socks.....well, I would just rather knit more socks and/or graft the areas he wears through rather than knit this type of toe up again. I say that, but, everyone knows I'm a monogamous knitter and at this time I had several projects OTN and I was going CRAZY simply because I knew that I had more than one project OTNs!! Yeah, an experiment that failed miserably, I must say! After reading about so many knitters having such large #s of projects OTN I thought that I had to try it yet one more time and I did....still didn't like it! I'm happy to say that I am down to one project OTN that I'm not currently working on, these are the "A Touch of Whimsy Socks." I can't knit those because I have to begin yet another pair of "mystery" socks on Monday, so I decided to update blogs, etc on the computer.Okay, I used 2 skeins of Pingouin Laine nylon sock yarn, for a total of 400 yds, not enough yarn to make a pair of socks for a man with a long leg, thus the title, "Gym Socks."I didn't write a pattern for these socks because they are a simple, ribbed toe up pattern that anyone could put together.Lonnie enjoys them for the gym!

FO # 21-26

All of these were knit for my Swap Pal at KnittingHelp.com
I knit 4 Mason Dixon Ballband cloths, 2 for bath, 2 for kitchen. I love this cloth pattern!
The next 2 are from Interweave Knits spring and summer. Lace beverage carrier and Ribs and Lace Tank, both knit from KnitPicks MainLine yarn: (I've got to have one of these!) and the last FO: I so hope she likes everything!

FO #20

#One Husband Socks

I had cast on and begun knitting the socks for the "A Touch of Whimsy" series of accessories and was knitting away for a few days when I realized that Father's Day was in a few days!!!! Easy enough, Lonnie can't get enough socks! Luckily I finished Lonnie's Father's Day socks yesterday just in time for the day! LOL, although, he did tell me that he certainly isn't my Father, why would I give him anything!?! He says this every year and every year I tell him the same thing, that he is the father to our kids and the greatest dad in the world!! LOL, we do this every year! As you can see, the name is "# One Husband Socks" I felt it would be really hinky if I knit Father's Day socks for him, LOL, because, as he says, he's not my dad! But, as I've said many, many times, he IS the BEST husband in the world And I had a blast with the photos for this design! Remotes, remotes, here's a remote, there's a remote, LOL! And, of course, I had to throw in 1 or 2 guitar accessories like pics and that thing he uses to change strings.
I used 3 skeins of Regia Cotton and size 1 circs, but, as usual, I wrote the pattern for 5 dpns. The pattern will be on my design blog in a little while. Well, the link will be on my regular blog, too! Oh my, I'm blog central! Me, the women who said she would never start a blog, like I said I would never use anything but dpns on my socks! Chewy words they all were! Oops, almost forgot...a fun knit! Lonnie loves them!

FO #19

(click to enlarge)
FO#19 is a square (grapevine pattern from Walker Treasury One) that will be used in a surprise afghan. I used Encore...a great afghan yarn and size 7 needles. you can see the detail here (kind of....it's a blurry photo, sorry, I was rushing when I took the photos...my bad!

Now....for the next project, if it works out as I hope, it should be a nice one!!!

FO #18

Music Man Socks are done! I loved knitting these for Lonnie, as I do all of his socks! These are knit with SWTC TOFUtsies and I LOVE it! Most definitely a great yarn for summer socks! Very soft yarn that is actually cool to the touch, I really like it! And, it looks like my Mojo, Sojo is back, I knit these in a few days as knitting should be done! These are an easy, quick knit for the man in your life, he will love them for the summer. Now...I'm off to knit my next project!!!

FO 14-17

LOL, I really think I'm cheating by calling each of these squares and FO, but we are doing an afghan for a friend and we are calling each square an FO so I'm gonna do it because everyone else is, too, LOL!
So, here we have FO #14 Dragon Skin Square in cotton/acrylic blend:

FO #15 Weaves and Shield in Wick:

FO #16 Flame Chevron in cotton/acrylic blend:

FO #17 Leaf Lace in cotton/acrylic blend:


All Four:


I'm now back to socks....hope to do blog catching up this week, too....until the next FO....

FO #13

OMGoodness, I can't believe that it's May 17 and I have knit 13 things this year!!! I've said it all year, it seems as though the longer I knit (3 yrs in Aug.) the slower I knit! Until a few days ago when I seemed to get my Mojo back, rather my SockJo (Mo's sister) back. I say this because I had designed and knit Lonnie's socks, oh, 1/2 way at least and I had to frog!!! Why you might ask....I didn't check gauge! CAN U BELIEVE?! Anyway, after casting on I got them done in a week which is okay, I suppose for big men's socks.
Sooooooo.....here we have FO #13, Rockin' Strat Men's Socks and pattern. Lonnie got a vintage stratocaster the week I finished these socks, thus the name. So, until I finish the socks I cast on last night......ciao.

FO's 9-12 are done!!!

WOW, that sounds like such a great accomplishment, but, alas, not so much, LOL! What's with the longer I knit (almost 3 years) the slower I knit?! I just don't get it!
Okay, I do love each and every one of the FOs, they just aren't big ones! I had been knitting socks for a while and, frankly, was tired of the socknitting...well, a wee bit tired of the tiny needles and yarn, not of socknitting....NEVER!
It just so happened that I found a new forum, Get Stitchy which seems to cover all forms of needle work. I, of course, headed to the knitting because I had found that someone had knit a Flower Power Washcloth by checking the hits on my design blog...so I went to investigate and really liked what I saw, so I joined Get Stitchy and April Showers ! Seems as though each month has a theme for a kal and this month is knitting for the bathroom! I am so honored that a few knitters knit Flower Power Washcloths and allowed me to put their photos in the Knitters Gallery....how cool is that, I ask you?!

Okay...onto my FOs I did a few washcloths, washcloths are fun, quick, almost instant gratification when knitting...so it's cool to knit a few now and then...and I didn't even design any of these .... mindless, fun knitting! The baby round (no pattern) is the only one that didn't come from this cool French site , which, I'm afraid is up and down, it only allows so many hits per hour, then you have to wait until it's up again! But, I believe it happens this way because it's done for free and only allows so many hits an hour, so you take what you can get as a free service, I suppose.

All of these were knit with size 6 needles and Sugar N Cream 100% cotton yarn that I had around the house. We have Lily (isn't she a dish ?!), , then there's Baby Round and her . I love pink, and Lacy Checks is a winner in my book. The final cloth is really my fave (I think, is called Fiesta - remember, the site doesn't stay up!) Isn't she pretty?!


I have a friend that has been feeling really down for a while, so Lonnie picked up the rubber duckie and French soap for me to go with the cloths as a "Sure hope you feel better"
These babies are packaged up and ready for Lonnie to ship them out tomorrow, hoping to give her a spring in her step and a song in her heart....yeah, it's corny, but this is a good friend and I sure hope this puts a smile on her face and lets her know that she is loved! Hey, what are friends for if not to write goofy things for one another?!

Fuzzy Dice

LOL, oh me, oh my, these things are funny looking! But, they will work for Shannon's Easter basket! These are FO#8, but not those that I had otn when I finished Shannon's Lace Socks (how cute is that?! I designed and named her socks for her Easter basket!), those were 2, no 3 pairs of slippers that I ended up not liking...I'm just gonna have to come up with some that I like, I guess! These were really quick and fun and I even say that after using a novelty yarn which I normally detest knitting with! After seeing the final project, I wish I had opted for smaller pom poms instead of the size recommended in the pattern, but that ship has sailed, these poms aren't moving! The pattern is one from Knitty Gritty and can be found here.
Okay, as a side note...I'm hoping to open a SmugMug account because they have such a wonderful section for galleries. I can then have a gallery for 2004-2007 FOs, a nice gallery for the Knitters Gallery and I can create the galleries via my Photoshop Elements 5 software, that's just too cool! I have a photobucket acct and it's great, love, love it, but, different photo hosts offer different things. So, hopefully, in the next month or 2 this will be moved to a 'proper gallery'....how cool is that?!

Shannon's Lace Socks

I have another FO! This is #7 and I have #8 otn! These socks are for my daughter, Shannon's Easter Basket, thus the name....Shannon's Lace Socks!
(click to enlarge)I don't know what it is with me, it's as if I have to design socks that I knit! What can I say?! It's FUN to design socks! One day I may have the ability to design garments other than accessories, who knows?! Right now I'm having fun with socks and other accessories.
(click to enlarge)These were a fun and fast knit, you can find the pattern right here. I used my favorite size circs for socks, US size 1 (2.5 mm) circs and Knit Picks Bare Donegal sock yarn. These are the perfect color for spring.

Mock Around the Clock Men's Socks

These socks were also knit for Lonnie. He (like any and all who wear their 1st pair of handknit socks) wants a wardrobe of socks knit for him...of which I am more than happy to do! I came up with the name of these socks because I used a mock rib pattern and I was knitting at all hours...so here we have the new Mock Around the Clock Men's Socks pattern. These were a fun knit. I knit these with 1 skein of Opal and sizes 1 and 2 circs.
FO #6 ..... hopefully I will be knitting more because I am finally feeling much better!

Guitar Man Socks

These were, of course, knit for Lonnie who plays guitar and just happened to have received his latest guitar on the same day that I finished Guitar Man Socks, FO#5 this year (I really need to get busy knitting now that I'm feeling better!). This, too, is a fun knit with an easy, yet non-boring st. pattern on the sock, the pattern is right here. He really loves these he told me that they are his favorite so far...what higher compliment can a knitter get?! And, he got a very, very nice guitar, too!!

I knit these with 3 skeins of Meilenweit sock yarn and US size 1 circs.

The Flapper Socks

These are FO #1 this year as I said in the 1st post. I gotta tell you, these are a fun knit, not your everyday sock pattern, this is certain! As you can see from the color I knit them for my Christmas socks, aren't they cute with the bells?! The pattern is right here.
I knit these with KnitPicks handpainted sock yarn that is now discontinued, the colorway is Hollyberry and used my favorite US size 1 circs.