Two Projects with Puff Ball Yarn

The baby blanket is finished!  It really knit up pretty quickly, once I got the hang of it.  I think it is around 30"x 36".  I actually knit through one ball and part of another ball before I decided it was going to be a lot bigger than I planned.  So I frogged it and redid it.  I like how it turned out.  Even my husband commented on how soft it was.

I only used two skeins, so I decided to crochet a scarf with another skein.  The pattern was demonstrated on a video by Mikey, from The Crochet Crowd.

                                                     

It is very quick and easy.  I finished in about thirty minutes, and still have about 2-3 yards of yarn left.  Now I have to figure out what to do with the other skein.  Maybe I will make another scarf to give to someone else.

Look on my Sharing page to see where I am linking.

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Puff Ball Blanket

Two years ago in November, I saw several skeins of pink Bernat Puff Ball yarn on clearance at for $1.19 per 3.5 oz skein.  I am a breast cancer survivor, so I was interested in seeing that some of the money from the purchase of these skeins would go toward  Susan G. Komen for the Cure.  I purchased four skeins, put it in my yarn stash when I got home, and promptly forgot about it.  Every time I would see it since, I would think that I needed to figure out what I would do with it.  Finally, I decided to make a baby blanket with it last night.

I started to crochet a scarf with it first, but realized that would only use one skein, so I decided to knit a baby blanket instead.  I am knitting a smaller version of the blanket from Bernat's Peppermint Stripe Blanket pattern in just the pink, so it will be without stripes.  It took me about three tries to get the hang of it, but now it is going along fairly smoothly.  I hope it is not too bright.  I know it is nice and soft.

Look on my Sharing Page to see where I am linking up.

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Finished Object Friday

It has been two weeks since I posted on Friday, and I have both a knitted and a crocheted piece to show you.

The knitted piece is a shawl done in straigth garter stitch, with a two stripes of  stockinette stitch, just because I got bored with all the K rows!  I love the variegated yarn colors of white, navy blue and maroon.  I think it is Red Heart yarn.  I don't know for sure, because I used yarn from a top I had made myself quite a while ago.

Knitted Shawl

The crocheted piece is a seat cover that I made for my office chair at school.  I came back from summer vacation to find that someone (probably a summer worker) had stepped on the seat cushion of my chair and made tiny gauges that grew every time I sat in it.  I decided to make a granny square to cover those marks. It is made of some nylon/wool yarn that should hold up pretty well.

That's it for me this week.  Please see the links on my "Sharing" page to see where I am linking today.
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Stitches Midwest 2012

When I first heard of Stitches Midwest a year ago, I was actually up in the area where it was held, on the weekend when it was held, but I decided not to go at the last minute.  This year, I promised myself I would go, and I did.

This is a show/expo hosted by Knitting Universe, with several events and classes as well as a large market place.  I decided to only go to the market place for my first experience.  Next year I may decide to participate in a class.  There was plenty to do and see.  There were thousands of yards of yarn, hundreds of books and patterns, kits galore, wool  drop spindles, knitting needles, and other items too numerous to mention. There were "yarn tastings," demonstrations of techniques/gadgets  and appearances by some crochet celeb's~ Drew Emborsky, aka The Crochet Dude, and Kristin Ohmdahl.  There were also representatives from some charity organizations.

Project Linus is one of those groups.  They had an area as part of their booth where people could sit and crochet a granny square that would be added to other granny squares to make blankets.  The colors are red, white and blue, and the blankets that are made go to children that have lost a loved one who was in the military.

Ladies at the Project Linus booth, with a blanket and squares behind them.

I made sat down and made a square, in the Filet Starburst Pattern that I have been using lately.

I also learned a needle felting technique, and made a flower.  When I finished, I realized that the color of the flower would go perfectly on the purse that I had brought with me.

What a great experience!  I can't wait to go again next year.

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Wednesday WIP

Two of the three skeins of this yarn have been knitted for a shawl, plus a few more rows since this picture was taken.  I like how the pattern keeps coming out, even if it doesn't look like trees anymore.  ;)

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WIP Update

Prayer Shawl/Lapghan

So, I have been making this for two weeks now, with more progress lately than before.  I have changed patterns, needles and frogged and started over at least twice. But now I am through a whole ball of yarn,  I am sticking with this.  It is rows and rows of garter stitch with a stripe of stocking stitch near the end of the current ball of yarn. I like the trees and shadows that I see coming out in the first section.  Do you see it?  Now that I have stuck with this pattern for so many rows, I think I will finish it much faster than I started.

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WIP Wednesday~ 7/11

Prayer Shawl

 I have a knit and crochet project to show today.  My daughter says she doesn't have to ask me what I am working on any more, because prayer shawls and baby items are "all I do."  ; )   Yes, I do a lot of them.  They give me a lot of pleasure, to make something for someone else, since I can't do the things for my family as well as I'd like.  I think that is one reason I will never sell my items.  This is my mission.

Baby Dress

So I am repurposing yarn from previous projects I have made, that I no longer want.  The yarn for the shawl used to be a sweater, and the yarn for the dress used to be doll clothes for my daughter that has grown out of that stage.  I like to know someone else will use them well.

Playtime Overalls

Yes, they are finished!  As you can see, I ran out of the variegated yarn, so I put my spin on the pattern with the white bib, red straps and blue buttons.  All in all, a success.

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Progress on WIP

The back half of the overalls is done, and the front legs are started.  With the other projects I am doing, this is a pretty good pace.  I believe this is the second most complicated knitting pattern I have used, so it is going pretty well.  I know it will keep a little one warm this fall/winter.

Linking with these sites:  

Work in Progress

Susan D's

Ambassador Crochet

Simply Crochet

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WIP Wednesday

Both legs of  baby ovearall back are done!

 I have been busy with finishing up on one of my projects, which I will post on Friday, but here are the other two.  The knitted overalls have the back almost completed.  I have to do another inch in stocking stitch, and then an inch in ribbing.

More stripes on Prayer Shawl

The prayer shawl is half way done.  I told my friends that I wasn't going to try to match up the stripes, but I find myself doing so after all. :)

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WIP Wednesday

I am working on three new projects this week.  I am knitting a pair of overalls for a baby, a granny square sweater for a baby, and another prayer shawl, with scrap yarn.  It feels good to be able to crochet for charity even when I don't feel very good.

Baby Overalls

Granny Baby Sweater

Prayer Shawl

I am adding a new linky party today :  

at Susan D's

 

Hints of Spring Afghan

My latest knitted project is complete.  Knitting two afghans for babies in six months is pretty good for me.  I first started this afghan in late March, and have finished several other projects, as well as this one, since then.  The details of this project are in this post.  We will see how long my needles stay packed away this time!

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WIP Wednesday

I can't believe I am knitting again already. :)  I have started a baby blanket made with Patons Mosaic yarn in the color called Mexican Tile.  It is paired with Incredible ribbon yarn from Lion brand in a pink/fuchsia combination using size 10 circular needles.  This has been working up pretty fast. The pattern is called the Hints-of-Spring Afghan from The Little Box of Knits for Baby, the source of the pattern for the sweater I recently finished.

I am almost done with my Apache Tears Prayer Shawl.  I only have eight more rows, and hope to be able to share it for FO Friday.

You can see more WIPs at Tami's Amis, and Ambassador Crochet.

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Knitted Baby Sweater

This sweater has been finished for about a week.  My phone stopped working and things at work got hectic, so I am back today to post.  I haven't done much with knitting or crocheting for a week or so, and I am not sure when I will be back to it.  Suffice to say,  my posting will be limited.  At least you can see the color a little better in this photo.

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Another Knitted WIP Wednesday

I started another knitting project this week.  It is going to be a baby sweater.  The yarn is a kind of heather mauve/maroon that I purchased at Big Lots for a dollar a skein! I am using a pattern from a box of leaflets that I got in the bargain bin at Barnes & Noble, so I guess you could say I am being really thrifty with this project.  So far, I have finished the back side of the cardigan.  I am not really happy with the bodice part of the pattern, but I will see how the rest of it goes before I try it again...

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Newborn Bunting and Baby Blanket

A fellow teacher friend had a baby last week, on my bonus son's thirty-first birthday.  I wanted to get something done for the baby, but I had some other things I felt I needed to finish first.  But, in the middle of the week, I got tired of waiting to finish, so I went ahead and created this. I used a very easy pattern from Miracles Happen  with TLC Baby yarn in the color Powder Yellow Sparkle.  It is very plain, so I am trying to decide if I will add a little ruffle on the collar and sleeves and across the top section, like an empire waist.  What do you think I should do.?

I also finally finished my baby blanket!  It was completed with two skeins of Baby Coordinates in a self-striping blue/green. color.  I am pleased with how it turned out, but next time, it will be a smaller project.  I like to be able to get things done.

WIP~ Knitted Baby Blanket

It seems like I have been making this blanket forever.  I posted about it when I first discovered the WIP sites where I share my work, back in November.  I have done a lot of projects since then, but am now getting much closer to finishing this one.  As you can see, it is worked in a diamond, and I am to the part where I am decreasing every row.  I think it would be easier to knit if I wasn't using my interchangeable needles, since they become unscrewed at least every other row, and I have to stop knitting and take out the caught yarn and re-screw them together.  Oh well, I guess that is what you get for a cheap garage sale find!  ;0p

WIP Wednesday

I am working on a prayer shawl called "Elegant Shawl" using Lion Brand's Homespun, in the color marked as Fiesta .

I also got a couple more rows done on my knitted baby blanket.  It is a good thing that is not going to someone in particular, since the knitting is slow going for me.