Chunky Thick-N-Thin Blanket

A few months ago, I came into a ton of Adriafil Baba yarn (100% merino), which falls into the super chunky weight category. Like: a ton.

Now, I'm not a fan of chunky yarn. Most projects in chunky yarn look simplistic and immature to my eye and I prefer the finish of fingering weight. (I am also not good at spinning chunky yarn, but that's a different discussion.)

So without much interest in the yarn or chunky knitting patterns, I just decided to make a large rectangle in stockinette stitch and call it a blanket. The thick and thin nature of the yarn makes it more interesting and it was a quick knit, but I still don't love super chunky yarn.

The merino makes it cozy, but the large needles and thinner spots on the yarn create breathability in the blanket. I'm quite pleased with how it looks. Finished size is approximately 44" x 60", although there is a lot of stretch and give in all directions. I imagine this could be a great blanket for two people to share while sitting next to each other on a couch....

Usually I end posts with a shot of Tatum modeling the knit item, but I have no pictures of Tatum cuddled up in this one because I am selling this blanket. Should you have any interest in purchasing, go to my Etsy page here.

In the meantime, T will have to just cuddle up in one of our myriad of other wool blankets.

Hot Pink Campside Shawl

One of these days, I'll figure out lace and make gorgeous, delicate knit shawls. In the meantime, I have to take baby steps in that direction. 

To start with, I found a Pom Pom Mag pattern (download free) that practices yarnovers and chart reading. I scrounged some Cascade worsted yarn from my stash; hot pink- I can't explain why I bought this. The last two charts were left off my version, as I was short on yarn, but it's big enough regardless.

I take it on airplanes and mostly use it as a lap blanket. After I master lace shawls, my next task will be to learn how to wear shawls masterfully. Tatum already has shawl skills...

And if you're a Ravelry fan- go here for project notes- and also let's be Ravelry friends!

Tatum Ornament

Just a quick note to share our favorite Christmas present:

A+

Happy Holidays

Tatum and I wish you a Merry Christmas and Happy New Year and all that. It is with great joy that we end 2015 and invite it to get the hell out and never come back. We look forward to a 2016 that finds us knitting more and having cancer less. Heck, we even hope to publish our own knitting pattern or two...

See you in 2016.

Tree Sweater #2

This year, we chose to go it alone with the tree sweater. Lessons from the first year's experience included:

#1- even if you block the tree sweater, it will droop and slip after a couple of weeks in the elements.

#2- people steal tree sweaters. True story- a few had pieces cut off, one was even stolen in its entirety. Don't spend money on these things.

#3- don't worry about saving it for the animals, the tree sweater will end up in the trash. So, again, don't spend money; use scrap/spare yarn.

As such, I found a pattern on Knitty for plaid (free here) and had some good colors already in my stash. Adapting it for a tree meant that I had tons of pieces to tie around the tree, creating a snug fit. It also took 3 hours to install. For real.

But once it was on, it wasn't going anywhere.

After two months, it hadn't slipped at all, but the purple yarn had completely faded and the plaid was much duller. More lessons were learned and I hope they'll continue the project next year, as I have a really cute superhero tree sweater in mind...

Tree Sweater #1

Last year, Taters and I participated in a tree sweater program that our downtown association put together. We were assigned a tree, then we designed a sweater for it (within certain specifications) and the sweater hung for two months.

Our inspiration was falling leaves- since it was autumn- and I knit the primary sleeve in cables while a friend made crocheted leaves. We got rave reviews.

After two months on the tree, they were to be donated to a local humane society to use for animal bedding. When taking ours off the tree, however, I found a nest of spiders underneath. Coupled with the wear-and-tear of two months outdoors, it was bound for the trash instead. Sorry, animals!

It was a fun project and I enjoyed seeing the creativity of the other tree sweaters. I have tons of ideas for the future, too, so here's hoping they keep doing this project for many years to come.

Entrelac Headband

In the last year, I've had a lot of time to knit (my cancer treatment has provided abundant downtime). I decided to fill some of that time by learning new skills and expanding my knitting knowledge. For instance, I'd always been intimidated by entrelac. Turns out it looks a lot more difficult than it actually is.

After some searching to find a good beginner's pattern, I landed on a Knitty headband (free here). They call it a turban, but I think of it as a headband... And I happened to have a cool pink-green wool in my stash. Here's the result:

It was just the right amount of challenge. Required above-average attention, but once you wrap your head around the style, it flows. It's perfect for California winters- just warm enough.

And, of course, Taters had to try it on.

In pictures: Trail running on a clear day

Tatum does not have any herding instincts when it comes to cattle (thank goodness), but we keep as far away as we can, often detouring through the grass, way off trail. On a recent, very clear day (you could see snow on the Sierra, 175 miles away), we did 8 hilly, hilly miles among cattle. A few pictures:

This curious guy kept walking towards us, so the soundtrack of this photo is me yelling MOVE repeatedly. 

A Hat for Surviving Chemo

A friend's mom is going through breast cancer. She just started chemo and winter is already dropping snow on Colorado, so I went straight to work making her a warm beanie. (Also as a cancer patient who didn't have to do chemo, I feel a need to pay extra special care to those who do.)

I used a Knitty pattern (free here) and Debbie Bliss baby cashmerino yarn.

It's reversible, because of the double knit, and super snuggly. I added a few extra rows before the decreases to increase the length. Fits well for a medium, average head, with some give. Pattern is easy to follow and only took about a week to complete. Two thumbs up.

Tatum had to try it on, of course, and showed that he really missed out on his ideal career as a super model.

Tahoe Mountain Beanie

The idea for this hat came about in one whirlwind Tahoe trip.

In the 4th spring of the California drought, snowpack in the Sierra was non-existent. Just: NONE. We were hiking trails where there should have been feet and feet of snow, but nothing. The lake was low, ski resorts had been closed for months already, everyone was despondent.

Then this:

So we had a couple of days in our cabin by the fire. And I brainstormed a repeating mountain pattern for a beanie, then decided to do stars in the sky.

It became the Tahoe Mountain Beanie.

If you are interested in buying, they are available at my Etsy store here. A pattern should be up one of these days. No promises, but it's in the works. If I can ever get the original back from Taters...

Cowichan-inspired KAL

Nixed the heart. Too cheesy, right?

On a whim, I jumped into Fringe Association's KAL- the first online KAL I've tried... This year's pattern was a Japanese version of a Cowichan-inspired vest (free!).

I had a ton of wonderful, mis-matching wool lying around, so I thought I'd use the project as a stash buster. And I added more natural elements- bears, fish, trees- instead of the geometric shapes in the original pattern.

Mission accomplished! It turned into a cozy vest that I wear around the house a lot. Like right now.

It was also a chance to learn more about a style and tradition of knitting that I'd never investigated. So consider me more educated, too...