Little Acorn

Bunny Hat

The world welcomed a brand new baby cousin for Adeline in January and of course what better excuse is there for me to knit my very favourite thing in the world - a super cute baby hat. Not just any hat, but a bunny hat, using the same pattern from "Itty Bitty Hats" that I used for Adeline's 2 years ago although this one I made with a much chunkier yarn, which made it a very fast project. It was about this time in 2010 that we were waiting anxiously to be invited back to Vietnam and my nerves were being (oh so slightly) calmed by knitting hat after hat for my baby girl. Adeline has outgrown all those baby hats now and certainly would have stretched this one all out of shape, so one of our balls had to model...

Adeline was excited that I was making a hat for "Baby Cousin Annie" and wanted to help. Every little while she would ask me if I needed any yarn unrolled and would take some off the ball for me. A few times Adeline stood in front of me and I put my hands over hers and talked her through making the stitches while she concentrated carefully on what she was doing. There were a lot of happy wishes knit into this wee hat.

Adeline wanted me to find her bunny hat when I told her that's what I was making for the baby, and she's been wearing it stretched tight over her ever growing head for the last few days. My sweet little bunny needs a bunny hat, so without even letting my needles get cold I've cast on for a "big girl" bunny hat.

Green Vest

I was right - the green vest is WAY cuter on a live human baby. You can see the post here from last August where I blogged about making this vest. At the time the newel post did a fine job standing in for our small person while I was attempting to knit away my anxiousness as we waited to find out who our little one was (or indeed if there was even a little one out there for us) but it's just so much better now that I've got Adeline to model! David thinks sweater vests are dorky, even on children, but I think they're totally awesome, and will be knitting more. This one is already a wee bit tight, but it's so cozy and Adeline likes to pat herself when she's wearing it, so she must like it!

The Cutest Little Jailbird!

Now that the weather is cooling off Adeline is getting to wear some of her Mama's hand knits. This is probably the sweater I love the most - I loved every minute of making it and I love how cute it is on my sweet and sassy girl. I knit it last summer, before I knew who our Small Person was going to be or even if our Small Person was a boy or a girl. I certainly had no idea then that the World's Cutest Baby was going to be coming into our lives, but I knew that whoever he or she was, we would need to keep the chill off with some handmade sweaters!

I blogged about making the sweater here and the free pattern can be found here. It's the "Little Coffee Bean Sweater" from The Brown Stitch and this is a seriously awesome and well written pattern. No seaming! Stripes without a million ends to weave in! Cuteness for miles! I'm going to have to make Adeline a bigger version as she's likely to be out of this one before the winter is through.

Much cuter than the newel post...

Remember way back when the only model I had for my baby projects was the newel post? The Cupcake Hat was sweet on the newel post, but on Adeline? A total sugar rush! 

Oh, okay. One more picture! I just love when Adeline laughs so hard that it takes over her whole body! This is what she looks like when that happens...

I think David was barking like a big dog ("a-rrrooof, a-rrrooof") to get her belly laughing like this. It's not hard to get her laughing lately. That seems to be her new thing - finding everything HILARIOUS. Sometimes she'll just be playing quietly and will start giggling like a crazy girl. She's obviously finding something super funny, but I can never figure out what!

Happy Easter!

Our tropical little bunny is very displeased with the chilly Canadian spring. This is the face we see whenever we take our girl outside, even if she's bundled up and topped with a hand knit hat. It might be toasty for us, but Adeline is used to the heat and humidity of Vietnam and is finding this all very much NOT to her liking. This goes hand in hand with how we finally figured out how to make sure she doesn't wake herself (and us) up frequently - blast the heat in her room until it's a sweaty and sweltering 30 degrees. If it's way too hot for me, she's happy as can be and has nice long naps in the morning and afternoon and then sleeps for two five hour stretches at night with a quick bottle and cuddle in the middle. We've even managed to move bedtime to eight! Getting some regular naps and unbroken sleep at night is making it a very happy Easter for all!

I hope all of you have the happiest of Easter days. There may not be any chocolate bunnies to bite the ears off of this year, but it doesn't mean we aren't celebrating. Easter is a time of new beginnings and new hope. A time of rejoicing in the world coming back to life after a cold dark winter. It couldn't be a more appropriate first family holiday for us.

Flower Hat

Can't...stop...knitting...hats

But when the pattern is as cute as this, who can resist? And I rounded up a box of odd balls of yarn that needs to be put to good use, and what better use than a hat that looks like a large blossom has been dropped onto the head of your small one?

Like the bunny hat this on is from the book "Itty Bitty Hats". This is totally the book I wish I'd written. Fun and whimsical but never cheesy, lovely photography and really easy to follow instructions. My library doesn't have "Itty Bitty Nursery" or "Itty Bitty Toys" but I know I'd love those books too. Yes, I'm too cheap frugal to buy craft books and have to rely on my library to get me my fix. This awesome hat is the "Upside Down Daisy" and I worked it in a toddler size with a butter coloured soft organic cotton for the hat and a dusty pink cotton for the flower. Pink and yellow might just be my new favourite colour combination.

It's an addiction, I know, but no intervention is necessary. No baby can ever have enough hats and there are new babies being born every single day, all of them with chilly noggins.

David says...

...that if I want people who are reading my blog to cry, then I should show them this hat

 

I really hope you don't cry, but there is something particularly heartbreaking about this hat with no small, warm, good smelling head to wear it. This sweet-like-sugar bunny hat is from the book "Itty Bitty Hats" and I whipped it up over the last two days. I wasn't planning to make any more small person sized hats, but I found a tiny ball of  Patons Silk Bamboo during my studio clean up and really wanted to make something with it just so that I could have the pleasure of feeling that deliciously soft yarn slide through my fingers. After looking at many patterns, this wee hat was the only thing I wanted to knit.

In my heart I believe that Adeline will be wearing it at Easter time.

Keeping Busy

Here's the completed doll blanket that I was working on. It was very hard to photograph because it's been so dark and dreary lately. We've had nothing but ark building weather, the sun hasn't shone since Christmas and the lamps in the living room have to be on all day. I'm quite impressed with the scalloped edging I managed to finish the blanket with as I just started crocheting without a pattern and it turned out just the way I had imagined, which NEVER happens. It's waiting for Adeline in her room with the soft dolly that Santa brought and my rocking chair from when I was a little girl. I'm still keeping myself very busy in an effort to distract myself. Here's a partial list of some of the things I've done that really didn't need doing, but kept me off the sofa...

- Re-arranged the deck furniture. In January. While wearing mittens.

- Finally organized all our wrapping paper/ribbons/bows/tags/cards/gift bags.

- Cooked a complete turkey dinner. Just for David and I. On a Tuesday.

- Laminated stuff. A lot of stuff.

- Tried to take pictures of the cats, but it was nearly dark and they weren't in the mood to pose.

- Re-arranged my freezers.

- Cleaned out the super high cupboard over the fridge.

- Spent a full afternoon looking up recipes for pasta with squash, pine nuts and sage and then decided in the end just to wing it.

- Raked very wet leaves. In January. While wearing mittens.

knitknitknitknitknit

Fresh off the needles this morning is this "Kaia Babydoll" knit from the pattern at Crafty Wee Wifey.

It was an easy, quick and mindless knit, and I love the lack of seaming. It took exactly 2 balls of Baby Cashmerino, which is a satisfyingly soft and squishy yarn to work with. The lace part at the bottom got nixed after my first attempt ended with me having to frog back 3 rows. Lesson: lace and television don't mix. I think it's one of those patterns that I'll make again and again, but there are definitely changes I'd like to make. In all the pictures that accompany the pattern the neckline definitely rolls and I can't say I like that. Mine is rolling a bit too, but I'm hoping once it's blocked it will straighten out. Why am I so delusional about things like that? It's not like I didn't notice the roll...I just thought mine wouldn't do that, which is just plain denial of the facts. Next time I'll work a few more rows of garter stitch or maybe moss stitch (my all time favourite) which will hopefully stop the rolling. I think I'll also try it in a smaller gauge as the bottom is just too loosely knit and drapey for my taste. I'd also like to try it with the whole skirt portion in a lace pattern, but with the increases every 5 rows, this might prove too tricky for me. All in all I'm happy enough with it, and of course once our small person is wearing it, no one will notice if the neckline rolls or if I forgot one of the increases.
Next I'm looking for a pattern for a 3-6 month sized shrug/bolero/short fitted cardigan, hopefully in a really easy lace pattern. And while I'm wishing I'd like it to be knit top down, with no seams. Is that too much to wish for? Or it could be a crochet pattern, but then I'll have to learn how to crochet more than granny squares. In Vietnam the ceremony at the government office where Vietnam's Lam becomes our daughter forever is called the "Giving and Receiving Ceremony" and of course we want her to be dressed beautifully to start her new life with us. These are clothes we will keep forever and hopefully someday they will be special to her too, so it feels really important to us to choose just the right thing. In my fantasies she is in beautiful handmade clothing from top to bottom, but although I have a rich imagination, I DO know my limitations, and sewing fancy baby clothes isn't within my skill set. I wish it was possible and I feel a touch guilty about having store bought clothes for such a momentous occasion, but I know I'm setting myself up for disappointment if I try and make her a special occasion dress. We have bought her a really lovely little jumper dress and blouse, and because it will be winter and cold in Northern Vietnam she needs to have at least a sweater to go over it for the ceremony, and that I know I can manage. Now just to find the right pattern...

That baby sure has a lot of hats...

Can't...stop...knitting...baby hats...

The Gnome Hat

Thanks so much for all the gnome love! I too can't wait to see it on our small person! For those interested in the pattern, I've figured out that it's probably from this book - SimpleChic by Jil Eaton.

I used all my Nancy Drew skills to try and figure this out for you. I looked at the library's online catalogue and this cover really jumped out at me and I remembered that the book the pattern came from also had dog sweaters in it. Then I remembered I also had a photocopy of the Christmas tree hat that's on the cover so that was another clue. When I found the tree hat pattern it's in exactly the same format/font/style as the one called "Elf Hat" which is what I used (it just looks more gnome than elf to me), so I'm thinking it has to be from this book. I put a hold on the book at the library, so I should be able to check by the weekend to see that it's there for sure. For those who might want to knit one for your own small person (or yourself - the pattern has sizes for babies, toddlers, children and adults) I used Lion Brand Wool-Ease Thick 'n Quick yarn and 8 mm/ US 11 needles. That's not what the pattern calls for, but it gave me the gauge I needed. I often like my knitting in a smaller gauge than called for as I prefer a nice firm fabric. Besides the needle size, the only modification I made was to make braided ties instead of the crocheted ties in the pattern. I just thought they would be chunkier and cuter. For a cable needle I improvised and used a matching sized dpn. If you  haven't cabled before this is a great project to give it a try! This hat was such a satisfying project I'd love to make some more, so I would definitely be open to a trade if you'd just like me to knit you one!

A Gnome Hat

In red, of course.  Okay, I am SERIOUSLY in love with everything about this hat.
I enjoyed every minute of the approximately 3 hours it took me to make, including the knitting, sewing up, fabricating that ludicrously large tassel and braiding the straps.
And cute? It squeezes my heart when I think about it - that's how cute it is. The giant cable. The floppy tail. That huge tassel. It all just works for me. I wish I could point you towards the pattern, but I photocopied the instructions out of a library book a few years ago and of course have no idea what the book was. If anyone knows, I'd love to find out and give credit where credit is due to the designer of this awesome hat.
 
Yes, I have been doing all sorts of other things besides knitting, but you wouldn't know it from my posts lately. I've even been working on a large sewing project that may or may not be my first patchwork quilt - hopefully I'll share news of my triumph with you soon.

Cable Baby Hat

 
A so-very-soft cable hat in Patons Bamboo Silk using the 10 cable baby hat pattern from Hey Julie.
My only modification was to make a longer folded brim. The cables make it a nice stretchy hat, so I think the folded brim makes for a hat that can be worn for longer. Nothing sillier on a baby than a too short hat perched on their wee noggin! I made a similar one in different colours as a gift last week (but I forgot to photograph it), but this one is for our very own small person, whoever he or she may be.

Green Vest

Ah, much better. 5 mm needles and worsted weight yarn knit up into a 4 to 6 month size baby vest. Once again I used this pattern - Pebble, from The Thrifty Knitter. Since I did both shoulders with the buttons it had no seaming, which you know I'm a fan of. Next time (oh yes, there will be a next time) I think I'll try the 3 needle bind-off instead of the seamed shoulder and maybe moss stitch instead of the garter and I may size it up (using the powers of mathematics and maybe even a gauge swatch) into something appropriate for the 6 to 12 month set. The brown vest was knit as written in the pattern with DK weight yarn and it ended up barely a newborn size for me, so I'm happy that the second attempt came out to a size that's going to be just right for the small person who should be 4 to 6 months old when we arrive in Vietnam to complete the adoption. The newel post does a decent job modeling the wee knitwear, but I just know this vest is going to be way cuter on a baby. I just love a sweater vest. Good looking AND practical. I wear them a lot in the cooler months. They keep me warm but keep my arms free for action. I think they look good on anyone - babies, children, women and especially men. I have yet to convince David that he would be ultra-sexy in a dork-tastic kind of way in a sweater vest.

Baby Hat #2

I can't say I'm loving how the striping turned out on this hat, but it was a nice small monotonous heat-wave-and-no-air-conditioning friendly knitting project for this week. It's sock yarn from my collection (no, I don't knit socks, but I do have a LOT of sock yarn - don't ask) and tiny needles. I just cast on 144 stitches (after measuring my gauge on my one and only handknit sock) and then I knit in the round until I though it was tall enough. I never did any decreases, just finished off the top with a 3-needle bind off and added some tassel-y thingamabobs on the corners and declared it a baby hat.