Weekend Baby Hat Blitzing

I spent the weekend crocheting baby hats for the Knitting for Children yahoo group. I got 18 hats done! Yeah, me! these will go to Parkland Hosp. in Dallas, TX. There need is so great that if I did that every day of the week, I still wouldn't be able to fill the need there.

My little friends are modeling 2 of the hats(please overlook the lovely stack of laundry in the background) for me. I need to get a baby doll that is closer to a real newborn size. this little gal came from a freecycle bag and isn't really big enough for the hats that I make for Parkland, but when I do hats for Lubbock and U of K, she will be perfect, I'm sure.

I will be working in some hats for the Cheyenne River Rez over the next week. I have some projects for me to finish(read: putz at) before I can do another real blitz. Hopefully, I will be able to blitz on 2 weekends in June for Parkland, again.

the link to the pattern that I used is:

http://www.bevscountrycottage.com/hats-hats-hats.html

I think that is the right link. If it doesn't work you can scroll down a few posts to my April 6th post (I think)and Bev has placed a link in her comment.

Goodies in the mail!

I just got a goodie bag from Little Knits in Seattle. They had a marvelous sale and I was able to get a few things. I needed some sock yarn with some cotton in it for summer socks for myself. The front 3 skeins are the cotton/wool blend. The colors or softer in real life than in my pic on my monitor. Just nice summer colors. And they had some bright colored wool/nylonblend sock yarn for only $2/skein! I got 4 skeins of that. It seems to be a little heavier than regular sock weight, but lighter than sport or dk. No matter, it is Regia and very nice yarn. If I don't use it for me or the family, I can always use it for my charity knitting for CIC or NAS.

I just joined the NAS group and am trying to figure out what to start for them. I confess that I don't really like mitten knitten. I have some fleece scraps that would make nice kids mittens, so I may try to find a pattern that I like. I have a pattern or 2, but I don't like them. I used to have the neatest pattern for slippers, they were so easy. I got it in the late 60's and we all made tons of them in our family. but those kids are all grown and some of them have grown kids of their own now. So, the pattern has gotten lost in the 40 some odd years since. LOL I keep hoping that it will turn up in one of my internet searches one day. Those could be turned out assembly line fashion, by the dozen. There wasn't a kid within the family and extended family who didn't wear those cute little slippers from birth on up to about 8/9 yrs. old. And, no one seems to have saved the pattern. My aunt that I often sewed with, passed away in '73 and her things got done away with in one way or another. If I was really talented, I could re-invent the pattern, but I can only follow a pattern, not invent one!

I got a new knitting tote bag and a knitting themed coaster for my coffee cup from DD Annie on Saturday and a very nice gift certificate to the LYS from DD Karin. I'm a happy camper!

Here is a pic. The lamb was given to me by DGS Jared, he got it in a kids meal of some kind and thought I would like it better than he did. He was right! I also included a pair of socks in progress in the same pic and a camera case that I crocheted on Sat. It looks a little funny because I put DH's camera in it, not mine.

the socks are using Socka in a wild color combo that reminds me of '70s colors. I am using size 1US needles and cast on 72 sts. Ribbed for about 1 and half inches in 1 x 1 ribbing and then switched to knit 3 sts, purl 1 st for the remaining cuff length. I am thinking about doing a Sherman heel on these. I have done it once before(a lon-n-n-g time ago) and I'm not sure that I remember how. but it was discussed on the Townsend sock list recently and I can go to the group site and search for the Colin's suggestions.

I hate to admit it, but I found some baby hats that I knit over 2 years ago, just before we moved, and now I need to sew them up to get them in the mail for Parkland Hosp. in Dallas for the Knitting with Children yahoo group. there was yarn in that box, too. I have enough Ack to last me until the year 3000!

DD Karin is here and she has my dinner ready, so I gotta go. I don't waste time when somebody else is doing the cooking!

New socks

I finished a pair of new socks for little(not) ole' me. I used Opal and I love it. This was my first experience with Opal and it was a very good one.

and yes, those are my lovely flannel pj's.

I used 75 grams of Opal Partie that I got from Little Knits in Seattle(very nice people and great price)

Needles: size 1 US

Gauge: 8 1/2 sts: 1 inch

Cast on 76 sts for my quite thick ankles and did 1 x 1 rib for about an inch and a half.

then I switched to Knit 3, Purl 1 for the remainder of the cuff. I use a regular old heel flap on half the sts. type heel. I just worked the 'foot' in plain ole' st. st.

and I always just do a decrease 1 st each side of the top and sole on every other round until I have about a dozen or so sts. left and then graft the toes. Even to it is really spring here in SW MI and it has been in the 70s, I am wearing them right now. I love how these socks feel.

I was able to get 57 preemie hats and 24 pair of preemie booties done for the April Shower that the Knitting for Children yahoo group had. We are showing the NICU at the University of Kentucky in memory of our long-time member Nancy Scott, who passed away in 2005. We met all out goals and then some. Yeah! us. Now , I will start making hats for Parkland hospital in Dallas and some booties for Warm Hearts Warm Babies in Colorado. Till july, that is and then we will be doing another shower. This time it will be for the Univ. Med.Ctr. in Lubbock, TX. I'm betting that we pretty well wipe out our annual goal for them, too. What a great group of knitters! I am so happy to have been a member for several years, now.

Well, gotta go get those groceries that I meant to get on Saturday......never do grocery shopping to day if you can put it off till tomorrow/or the next day or......

TTYL,DJ