Kool-Aid Socks

As you can see, I'm still knitting the baby socks. In fact, I may be addicted to this simple little pattern by Amber Ward. I went and dug out one of my very first hand-dyed, slightly slubby, handspun yarns--some Kool-Aid dyed, handspun Polwarth singles that I never got around to plying, to see how it would knit up as a sock. Since a sock for a newborn wouldn't require the durability of a toddler sock, this was a great way to use up some of my handspun singles. I quite like what I see so far... I really do love how handspun, hand-dyed yarns look and feel so vibrant and "alive" versus the commercial yarns. I will most definitely be digging out the dyeing equipment again soon... I have a few skeins of undyed sock yarns begging to be painted in my "gynormous" yarn stash...

R's Thoughts on Baby

R: Why are you always knitting so many socks? Does the baby have ten legs?

Baby Projects

I've been thinking about knitting for our baby, due to arrive mid to late February, for awhile now, but have had trouble starting projects. There are just way too many patterns to choose from, first of all, and not enough time to go through everyone's amazing patterns and notes on Ravelry! Anyhow, with all the kicking and playing going on inside my belly to remind me that it won't be too long before s/he will be arriving soon, I've had to get a move on with narrowing down a few projects and starting something. Among some of the projects that I really want to complete for this baby are a Baby Yoda cardigan, an EZ Baby Surprise Jacket in my own handspun, some hand knit socks, an earflap hat, and some other crafty projects as well (ie. a kimono style quilted jacket and felted slippers/bootees) I know I'm being quite ambitious at the moment, but there's nothing wrong with aiming high. I decided to start with some socks. Below is my completed first pair of hand knit wool socks in elann's superwash yarn. The pattern is Ribbed Far-Away Baby Socks by Amber Ward found as a free download on Ravelry. My second pair, above, is the same pattern, but in elann's Esprit, a stretchy cotton yarn. I think I like the wool more, which I think, will hold its shape better as a more snug sock. We'll have to put the socks to the test when baby comes out...

Handknits Fit!

Look! The handknits mailed to HK this past spring for my new niece and nephew finally fit! At the rate that these two cutie pies are growing, I'll be lucky if they get six months wear out of these Baby Yoda cardigans!

Here's the link to Cari Luna's super Baby Yoda pattern along with some other free patterns.

Can't Read Charts in Karate

I desparately needed a finished object from being so frustrated at the Koolhaas hat that I had been working on, so I started and finished a pair of Maine Morning Mitts instead. The mitts (my second pair) are such a relaxing knit, that I may have to knit a bunch more for Christmas. The Koolhaas hat, which was almost half finished last week, ended up being frogged due to mistakes made while watching D's karate classes. I fixed some of the mistakes, but more mistakes were made after re-fixing, so I gave up. I should just not bring any kind of chart reading to any of D's lessons. That concentration of mine needs some fine-tuning...

Anyhow, it's just too bad that the Bernat Alpaca seemed a bit itchy after trying on the finished mitts. I had to put in a cuff lining just to remedy the problem before gifting the mitts to a friend at work.

As for the flan from yesterday, I pretty much licked the plate spotlessly clean. I resisted the temptation to gobble up a second serving, despite the boys not liking it, but who'd a thought that D would reject dessert! And because D thought the flan tasted like "barbeque", R pushed it away at the table too. I guess the "burnt" sugar taste isn't for everyone, especially for those with simple tastes. Hey, wait a minute, D loves cambozola and blue-veined cheeses on croissants! Oh well, I'm sure he'll acquire the taste for sophisticated desserts in time. For now, that just means more flan for M, me and baby #3.

A Little Baking... A Little Patching... on a Rainy Thursday

I've been craving flan or creme caramel for weeks now and have finally gotten down to making it. I went through a whole pile of recipes on different sites, but decided on a lighter, Mexican version without the condensed milk. The ramekins are in the fridge chilling until dinner, so we can't wait! My boys have not been eating eggs lately, so this is a good way to disguise a little protein in their meal.

Otherwise, I've also been trying to think of cool ways to patch up D's trousers and sweatpants, which are usually relatively new except for the holes that a six-year-old wears into them right away, more specifically, on the right knee for every pair that needs patching. I love the look of leather patches, but I just don't have the time and patience to hand sew through thick leather sometimes, and for some reason, I'm not very skilled at using a thimble. I just never got used to using one. So, imagine how excited I was to find some bargain iron-on patches at Dressew last week while doing some last-minute Hallowe'en shopping. (Two patches for 25 cents!) This is what I came up with for D's pants.

I simply cut out the skull design I wanted and ironed it on for 30 seconds.

Then I outlined the eyes and nose of the skull using a chain stitch.

That was it! Other designs to consider without having to do the extra embroidery might be a star, a car silhouette, or animal (ie. a dragon, etc... )