through the loops
The "Giraffe and a Half" was lovingly painted.
And photographed in a natural habitat.
Discussions and negotiations are underway for another, larger giraffe. Much larger.
I guess the recycling will be lighter this week.
In knitting news, I now have a completed pair of Ode To Eames. The first sock was sent to me by Pam in November. It was up to me to finish the pair. Isn’t Pam’s choice of colors fantastic! I love these socks!!
Yup, I’m a lucky girl.
. . . they are making paper mache giraffes.
Or is it a ?
(don’t’cha just love Shel Silverstein?)
DH and I went out to dinner with some friends on Saturday night. When I got home DD#1 showed us how she had spent her time while we were gone. Nope, it’s not a school project. For some reason she just got the urge to make a giraffe.
Perhaps it was the circus tent her sister made a few evenings before.
The circus tent is for their art class. The teacher caught wind of the fact that there is some sewing going on in our house and asked DD#2 to make a tent to house all of the circus animals that the class is making. DD#2 begged me for help, but frankly I was way too caught up in which color stripe should be next. So the poor neglected child was left on her own to "figure it out". (One of my favorite "Mom Sayings", BTW. It works equally well when they fight or are have minor homework issues.) Of course left to her own devices, figure it out she did. She used an old umbrella, sketched out some pattern pieces and spent the evening sewing. She’s pretty darn proud of the results and so am I!
And since we are on an animal theme today, I give you Owly who was made as a stocking stuffer way back in December. I found the pattern here. Super cute, super quick! Perfect for last minute crocheting.
I used alpaca left over from the mitts you see embracing him. "What’s the brand of the alpaca? What’s the weight?", you ask. I’ve got no idea. It was just something I had laying around. No mitts pattern either. I made them up as I went along. DD#1 wanted some that were really long at the fingers so that she could leave them up or roll them down as needed.
Now that my darling son has discovered the joy of handknit socks, I’m in a bit of a pickle. He’s only got two pair and refuses to wear anything else. They stay on his feet until I tear them off to be washed. Poor lad. Both pairs were still wet this morning. Perhaps I need to teach the boy to knit socks. Hey mom, Aunty Lisa? If you are reading this, Anders would like a pair of socks. Size? BIG.
I wrote up the “recipe” for Dante’s Purse. Both of the project bags pictured in this post were made in the same basic way. This recipe is flexible enough for you to play with dimensions, color, texture, pattern, fabrication, etc. One of my favorite things about designing is seeing all of the unique ideas knitters come up with for my patterns. This one has even more variables than most. So I’m looking forward to seeing what you come up with. If you make one, I’d love to see yours!
This has not been test knit/sewn, so if you find any mistakes or have any comments about how to make the text clearer, I’d love it if you’d let me know. Now, I know there has been a lot of grumbling about my 4 stitch cast on on Thorpe and the One Day Beret. Sorry to say that I’ve done it again here. A number of folks have started those hats with 8 stitches and have found it easier. I chose not to write this pattern up that way since I haven’t tried it myself. But how you start is up to you. This is after all just a “recipe” and most good cooks add their own seasonings and ingredients to recipes. Right?
You can download the pattern on Ravelry.
Enjoy.
Thanks to the hard work of some talented test knitters, Sigrid is finally ready.
Stacey over at On and Off the Needles is so experienced with color work socks. I couldn't have asked for a better test knitter for this pattern. Scout dyed two beautiful colors for her, Sage and Hunker Down. Check it out, Scout even made a calendar out of a photo of the colors.
I love to see different color combinations of stranded patterns. Stacey's looks so different than mine. Its muted colors are really beautiful.
My good friend (blogless) Bev used much brighter colors when she test knit the pattern.
I don't think I know a faster knitter than Bev. She made the pair in under a week. We need to enter her in one of those fastest knitter contests!
Sigrid
Materials:
Two pairs US size 0 (2mm) 24” Circular needles (or size to obtain gauge)
Double pointed needle in the same size.
Tapestry needle
Yarn:
Scout’s Swag, Fingering Weight Superwash Merino, 400 yards per skein.
Main Color (MC): “Loops”, 1 skein
Contrast Color (CC): “Kona”, 1 skein
Sizes: S, M, L
Gauge: 19 stitches = 2” in medallion stitch pattern
Finished Measurements: 7.5(8.75, 10”) / 19(22, 25.5 cm) relaxed, circumference at leg and foot.
Price: $6.00 US
