Giving Forward

A friend of mine has a friend who has a friend named Emily. Emily needs all the help, positive thoughts, and well wishes she can get right now. As if we don't have enough good causes to donate to these days, Emily's story touched my heart. I've lost so many loved ones to cancer. I can't even imagine not having the health insurance to cover the expenses. It's bad enough Emily has to deal with cancer, but to have to worry about having enough money to pay for her medicine is absolutely ridiculous! Please do whatever you can for Emily.

Deserving Gift Recipients

Obviously, just like everyone, love, family, and friends make me the happiest! Those things aside ~ people to whom I give my crochet or knit projects and they show genuine amazement, awe, and/or appreciation for my work and creativity....that's what makes me the happiest in life and those are the people who truly deserve the creations of my hard work.

I gave this blanket to a friend who recently had a baby. When he opened the bag and pulled out the blanket, he expressed appreciation in such a way I knew it was genuine. Those are the ones who truly deserve our handmade, love-filled gifts.

This pattern intrigued me as soon as I first saw it. I knew I had to try it. If you are trying to de-stash, this is the pattern for you! It eats a TON of yarn.

This type of crochet is Bavarian crochet. It’s a super simple, easy to memorize pattern once you figure it out. Since the pattern doesn't really mention it, after round 4, you just join the next round between the 4th and 5th dtr of the previous round and countinue the pattern.

I ended with the 8 dtr in each cluny group which gave it a scalloped border. I crocheted two rounds of sc in the back loop only, skipping the slip stitch and another stitch here and there when it looked like it needed skipping.

The finished product is absolutely gorgeous, but only those worthy of your hard, love-filled work deserve to be the recipients.

My Nana's Gift to Bee

My grandmother (Nana) crocheted every single day. She was the one who taught me how to crochet way back when I was 7 years old. I fell completely in love with the craft! Sadly, Nana passed away last year. As always, she was working on a project. This project was the very beginning of a baby blanket. She didn't get more than a few rows finished. She wasn't making it for anyone in particular. There were no babies on the way at that time. This was just her thing to do; or as she always called it, her "pasttime. Something to keep my hands busy."

Our crochet projects were always our favorite thing to talk about. I'd ask her what she was working on and she'd ask me what I'm working on. We didn't live close to each other, but she would come and visit or I'd visit her. My most favorite thing in the world was being able to sit and crochet with her. I was more daring than she was with trying out new patterns. When she saw whatever I was working on, she'd always say, "That Kim....she could do anything!!" It made my heart sing whenever she said that. I loved that she was proud of the art that she taught me how to do!

She was 90 years old when she died and her mind wasn't at its peak, but amazingly, she was still able to crochet her favorite pattern by heart without too many times of losing her place. Being a kindred spirit to my Nana and a yarn lover as well, all of her yarn, patterns, needles, and unfinished projects were given to me.

It took me a little over a year to feel strong enough to pull out the last blanket she was working on. Looking at it, I decided to finish this blanket by adding to it and making it into a full-sized afghan as a gift to my daughter, "Bee". It will be a very special birthday gift to her from her great Grammy. Bee has plenty of aghans that Nana made for her throughout the years, but I know this one will hold a very special place in her heart and will be cherished for years to come.

This is my Nana's portion of the blanket:

My New Journey

I'm embarking on a new journey. While knitting or crocheting, I am often inspired by the designs of others. Many times, their designs spark ideas of my own. Or sometimes an idea just pops into my mind while I am doing something totally unrelated to crocheting or knitting. I know...it's weird, but it happens.

About a year ago, one of my friends introduced me to Ravelry - a knitter/crocheter community website. This was exactly what I needed. So, I joined and have been able to keep track of my creations. Now that I have the hang of that, I'm going to try my hand at something new...adding my own designs to the Ravelry database. With that said, here is my first design... www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/grenade-hat . If you're not a Ravelry member and would like the pattern, let me know!

Hats Off to Me!

I fell in love with this pattern the first time I saw it and knew I needed to try it as soon as I was brave enough. Little did I know that I would end up making four of these lovelies. The first one I started was for my mom. Soon after I began, we received the sad news that one of our aunts has ovarian cancer. I immediately set aside my mom's hat and casted on stitches to make one for my aunt. The Malbrigo yarn would be perfect to keep her head warm if she lost her hair from chemo. The pattern was easy enough for a newbie knitter, yet challenging enough to keep me focused. The lace part was a bit difficult for me to get the hang of right away, but once I did, I loved it. This is a super fast, fun, addicting knit with gorgeous results. I added an extra round of the lace pattern since it felt like the hat wanted to come off my head before I added it.



The next hat was for another aunt who told me not to worry about buying her a Christmas gift this year. Ok...I'll knit her one instead. This yarn is Cascade yarn and although it looked beautiful, I don't think I'd use it for this pattern again. The thicker, softer Malabrigo was much nicer. I modified the pattern a bit here and there. One way was by doubling the garter stitch after the first lace pattern. It started as a mistake, but I ended up liking it, so I kept it.



Once Christmas gifts were done, I picked up my mom's unfinished hat and whipped it up in no time. It turned out beautifully. I mailed it to her a couple of days ago and I can't wait to hear what she thinks!



When my daughter saw my mom's hat, she loved it and asked for one in the same pattern. This time I used Berroco Ultra Alpaca. Another great yarn to use for this pattern. I hope she likes it!




I plan on making two more - one for a friend and one for myself!

I'm a Godmother!!!

Remember Lily? I am so excited to announce that I am now officially her Godmother! My very first godchild! As soon as I accepted the invitation, I searched for the perfect booties and cap to knit for her Christening. And here they are...

These are Saartje's Booties. These were so amazingly easy to knit up, even for a newbie like me it took a mere few days. I'm sure an experienced knitter could very easily whip them up in a matter of hours. They were so easy and fun! The hardest part was deciding which buttons to use! I paired them up with this cap...

It's a simple lacy scalloped cap. It was my first attempt at any kind of hat and my first attempt at anything scallopy or even lacy!!! I never dreamed it would be as easy as it was and it turned out unbelievably beautiful!! Everyone commented on how beautiful it was! Admittedly, I did frog it at least 4 or 5 times until I had it figured out. Once I got the hang of it though, it was not difficult at all! I had it done in no time. This cap paired with the booties was the perfect gift for Lily's Christening! The cap was almost too small for her sweet 6 month head, but it still looked adorable! I'm going to make her another one a bit bigger for the winter!

My First Socks!!!

I'm so proud!!! I look at these socks that fit my feet so perfectly and I cannot believe that I actually made them! If I had known knitting was so easy and satisfying, I would have taken the plunge many, many years ago!! I immediately began my next pair of socks as soon as I finished this pair and I intend to have a pair in progress at all times. Sock knitting is so satisfying for many reasons...the two main ones for me are it's a quick project that doesn't take forever to finish and they are so portable. Just pop the knitting bag into your purse and away you go. It makes sitting at traffic lights or stuck in traffic actually enjoyable. Bring on that long red light or traffic jam!!

Since this was my first sock attempt, I used the simplest pattern I could find. And it was perfect! Unfortunately, the web link isn't working anymore, so I can't post it here. Turning the heel (my first one!!) was so exciting! I immediately put the sock on my foot and was amazed that it was actually starting to look like a real sock! I finished the first sock while in the car on the way to PA for the weekend. I was so proud I sent the pic to a bunch of my friends who all reminded me that I now needed to make another sock or one of my feet would feel left out. Oh yeah....

It took me a bit to get going on that second sock. Apparently, I came down with a case of "Second Sock Syndrome". But once I got over that hump, I finished my first pair of socks in no time! I was totally amazed that the yarn dye pattern was exactly the same on the second sock except I misjudged the measurement for the toe reduction round, so my second sock has a red tip on the toe!! I seriously considered ripping out some rows to fix it, but then decided I’ll keep it as a reminder for next time to measure more carefully!

I so heart these socks! They will be forever special!