stashbusting slippers

 

Since my last pair of simple slippers using Manos Wool Clasica turned out so well, I decided to use up the rest of my wool clasica stash on a second pair. No more thick and thin yarn for me--phew! It feels good to put such nice yarn to use, as well.  Exact same pattern, needles, and yarn as last time--just new colorway! Super squishy coziness. Now I just need the temperatures to drop so I actually want to wear these!

going hatty

You're not crazy--you have seen this hat before. It's Luuk, which has become my go-to kid and baby hat pattern. It's free, fast, easy and fun. My favorite part is the bobble on top! Adorbs! These were knit earlier this month, when our entire family was afflicted with a gnarly new-school-year cold that was making the rounds across Starkville. I'm amazed I was even able to finish these hats, considering how bad it wiped us out. The top hat is for my daughter (knit from Lion Brand Amazing, a color-changing acrylic) and the bottom for my son (knit from Miss Babs Yummy Worsted in the "forest afternoon" colorway). I feel somewhat "eh" about the hat in Miss Babs. I loved the yarn, but in this pattern it looks funky. I love this hat so much better in yarns with a halo (or fuzz!) to them like the Lion Brand.  I have more Lion Brand Amazing stashed in "boyish" colors, so I may eventually make a new one and donate this one to charity. Or not. We'll see ...

super simple slippers

Ever have a yarn languish in your stash because you're just not sure to what to do with it? That was the plight of four skeins of Manos del Uruguay Wool Clasica that I had purchased several years ago at my favorite LYS in Jackson, Mississippi. I was drawn to the gorgeous variegated colors and yummy fiber, but the wooliness of the yarn gave me pause the longer I lived in our humid Mississippi climate. It just wasn't yarn that I wanted next to my neck (makes me sweat thinking about it!) and the thick and thin nature of the yarn put me off most of my go-to patterns. So the poor skeins sat untouched for quite some time ... then for whatever reason I started looking at slipper patterns for potential Christmas knitting this year. And ta-da! Someone had made a gorgeous pair of slippers using this exact yarn in the exact colorway. And then I knew exactly what to do with it! Nothing makes me happier then finally finding a yarn's purpose!

I ended up using a different slipper pattern than the original inspiration, but I love these just as much! This is a free pattern, which is written to be knit flat and seamed. Given my despise of seaming, I instead knit the ribbed cuffs in the round, and switched to flat knitting for the foot (since I equally loathe knitting garter stitch in the round). After knitting the cuffs you knit the top of the foot by itself, and then pick up stitches around its edge to knit the sole. Then I did a three-needle bind-off to close the bottom of the foot, leaving only 1.5 inches of the back of the heel to actually seam. Yippee! They are soft, cushy, and totally dreamy. This pair I'm claiming for myself--they are such a treat to wear--but already have a second pair started in my remaining Manos (a yummy red) to be gifted away.

Pattern: Nola's slipper pattern, a freebie (scroll to the bottom for a link to the pdf)! (link to my Ravelry project page)
Yarn: Manos del Uruguay Wool Clasica (used about 1.5 skeins)
Needles: size 8
Mods: Pattern is written with yarn held double to make a man-sized slipper. To fit a size 9 women’s foot, I used aran weight yarn (held single, not doubled) and size 8 needles. Otherwise followed pattern exactly!

feeling ducky

It's been awhile since I've finished a project that utilized my ever-growing and typically ignored pattern library (remember the Love Your Library challenge?), but for once I opened one of my books and knit something! These are some duck feet baby booties for one of my expecting knitting friends--I've been dying to knit them forever so it was fun to finally get to. This is the second pattern I've knit from the book Cute Knits for Baby Feet (the other: my snake socksss). Such a fun book! And now I'm officially caught up on all my August knitting progress.

Pattern: Quack! (link to my Ravelry project page)
Yarn: Knit Picks Swish Worsted ("sunshine," used about half a skein)
Needles: Size 6 dpn's
Mods: None!

nalu mitts

  

Another late August finish!

 

Pattern: Nalu Mitts, another freebie! (link to my Ravelry project page)

Yarn: String Theory Merino DK (in the Radiant Orchid colorway, less than half a skein)

Needles: Size 3s

Mods: NONE! Super super fast knit. Would be perfect for last minute gift knitting. The traveling twisted stitches keep it interesting, and the rest is easy peasy. Ended up using a locking stitch marker for my "cable needle" and that worked out perfectly!

rainbow brite mitts

I was knitting faster than blogging last month, so I've got a bunch of finished projects to show off! Fingerless mittens have become one of my favorite ways to use a treasured skein of sock yarn. Who wants to hide this awesome rainbow goodness under shoes and pants? At first I wasn't totally in love with the light blue "sky" portions of this self-striper, but now I can see that it really helps set off the rainbow and make the rainbow "pop." Totally in love with these ... so comfy and slouchy! Now I have to wait for cooler temps to put them to use!

Pattern: Graffiti on the Metro, a freebie! (link to my Ravelry project page)
Yarn: White Birch Fiber Arts "Nothing Says Screw You Like a Rainbow"
Needles: Size 2.5s
Mods:  Didn’t switch to smaller needles at the gusset. Instead, followed instructions and then decreased three stitches after putting the thumb stitches on waste yarn.

knit night KAL

 

 Monday morning

Monday was a flurry of garter stitch ... I signed up for another knit-a-long this month, and made some super speedy progress over the holiday weekend. The pattern is "knit night" by Louise Zass-Bangham.You may recognize this yarn ... if you read this blog three years ago! That's right, this is the Claudia Handpainted that I picked up from a trip to St. Louis back in 2011. (so far I've knit up the Malabrigo, but the Colinette Jitterbug still remains in stash as well ... eep!) I've loved this yarn (colorway: turquoise jeans) since I laid eyes on it. But it lingered in my stash since I routinely fall in and out of love with knitting socks ... and I am not a huge fan of crazy variegated yarns for socks ... and only this year have I really got into making other stuff with my fingering weight stash like cowls, shawlettes, and fingerless mitts. Soo .... long story short, I'm really excited to finally be using this super yummy yarn! Garter stitch is always a favorite of mine, but especially for crazy variegated yarns like this. This pattern truly is perfect for working on during knit nights with your friends, too. You make a picot by casting on some, then casting off some at the beginning of each row, then knit across. No counting! Easy peasy! This is knit on size 5 needles, so it has a nice squishy drapey feel. Sooo in love! This one is already half done, so don't be surprised to see a finished object post soon!

Monday evening!

90 days strong

Wahoo! I never thought I could go this long!