Ramblings of a Knitting Obsessive

Okay, well, this really has nothing to do with anyone getting married, but I do have an anniversary-related thing to celebrate–
This little blog is one year old as of today!
It’s my blogiversary!

Boy, it sure doesn’t seem like a year, but now that I look back on the posts from those first few months, I feel like both my crafting and especially my photography skills have come so far.
Here’s to more blogiversaries to come!

I don’t really have much knitting to show you purely because of the combination of not having much time to knit, and not being able to figure out what I WANT to knit right now.
So, I thought I’d show you something I mentioned awhile back (in November) but never actually posted pictures of.

The stats:
Pattern- improvised, sized to fit my extremely well-loved iPod mini
Yarn- The Knittery Merino Cashmere Sock, with small bits of Louet Gems Fingering in Lilac and Cream for embroidery
Needles- Brittany Birch US 1 (2.25 mm) double points

I made this after searching everywhere I could think of to find a suitable cover for my “obsolete” iPod, which I saved up for for months 3 years ago, only to find out a few weeks after I got it that Apple had opted to stop making them (and all accessories for the mini) to make way for the then-new nano. This little blue machine has been a very good friend to me, even through various occasions of slipping out of my hand while walking and getting scratched up on the sidewalk. It is, however, starting to die a slow and sad death, and I’m afraid I may have to start saving for a new one soon.
The things I love most about this iPod cozy are the sweet little details, like a picot hem at the top, a pretty, engraved button, and the love-music embroidery motif on the back (the music note was done in duplicate stitch, and the heart was done in chain stitch). I also made it completely seamless, knit from the top down ending with a 4-stitch saddle style gusset at the bottom, and an i-cord loop that was picked up and then grafted at the top of the back.
Something else that has inspired me recently-
I found this sweater pattern advertised in the newest Knit Picks catalog

Which goes by the same name (the Innovation Mockneck pullover) and looks suspiciously like this sweater from Anthropologie’s winter collection

Image courtesy of Mixed Plate blog

I, of course, would never be able to buy anything from Anthropologie, but they’re always a great source of inspiration, and it looks like someone from Knit Picks must have made a deal with the Anthropologie people, and now us knitters reap the benefits. I would have to purchase the pattern, but it would be great to use as a starting point (I like the original version better) to modify.

(this weekend)

The little group of daffodils beside our driveway is in bloom, and since they don’t usually last long, I picked a few and put them in a vase to brighten up our kitchen.

The crocuses right next to the daffodils are blooming too.

The pink camellia bush in our backyard is blooming.

The cherry tree in our backyard has little pink buds, and I can’t wait for them to burst.

It’s Meyer Lemon season! These are so cute and really fragrant.

I refilled our coffee bean jar today, and couldn’t resist taking this picture. I love the shape of coffee beans.

I also made a latte. Isn’t the mug cool? I saw a bunch of them at Chapters in November right before my birthday and thought I might like it (though I probably never would’ve bought one) and then Austin ended up getting me one for my birthday. It reminds me of a candy cane, but cooler with the striping.

I took Emma (our family’s old, cranky, but still active border collie) for a walk to the park right near our house.

At the park I saw more daisies and was glad I brought my camera along so I could show them to you!

I’ll be posting an actual knitting-related post very soon.

because that’s how long these pictures have been on my computer, and that’s when I MEANT to post, although obviously that didn’t happen because I’ve been horribly neglectful of my poor little blog.
Oh well, here goes…

I finally took my turn and made a pair of Saartje’s Bootees (Linked to Ravelry, sorry if you can’t access it).

These were for Bethany’s baby, but for some reason I mistook the location of the baby shower and missed the opportunity to get them to her before she went back to Utah, so Bethany, if you’re reading this, please tell me how I can give them to you before the baby gets too big to wear them! I made the newborn size, and they’re so tiny and cute and soft. I used remnants of The Knittery Cashmere Merino with more of the little pearly buttons.

I also made some adult-sized footwear:

Fuzzy Feet in Cascade 220 (left over from my Dahlia prototype) with little bits of Rowan Felted Tweed and Malabrigo Worsted for the embroidery, and they were for Liv’s birthday, which was all the way back on the 19th. The only modification that I did was making the cuffs about an inch longer than suggested, so that they could be folded over more easily.
Making those made me really want to make another pair of socks, just because the shaping of them is so fun and intriguing.

Not knitting, but still cute and Project Spectrum-y, the very last thing I made in sewing class:

Yes, those are elephants. And look! The stripy lining!

It’s just a basic little clutch put together from some awesome fabric I found in one of the bursting scrap boxes, sewn on one of my last days in CPF class. Oh, how I miss it! I’ll have to take it again sometime in the future.

I’ve also been working on and off on an Anemoi Mitten.

This was taken right after I put aside the thumb gore stitches, but I’m actually about an inch further than that now. It’s too bad it’ll be too warm to wear them by the time these are finished, but at least I’ll have a pair of mittens ready when next winter comes.

In other news, spring is here in the beautiful Northwest!

Aujourd’hui, il fait tres beau.
The roses in our backyard are SO close to budding.

It’s still a little chilly, but I’m so glad the weather’s been so pretty. The daffodils and crocuses are already starting to poke their heads out of the ground, and the little tiny daisies are already showing themselves in crowds down in the grass (they’re one of the first signs of spring to me, and now when I take my dog Emma for a walk to the park I always pick one and put it in my hair. I have many elementary school memories of sitting in a field during recess making daisy crowns.)