Thanksgiving and the giving is easy…

I’ve selected the winner!  No. 9=folksmith. Please e-mail me; kace520atcox.net with your snail mail address and I will send you the loopy rose pin, enjoy! Thanks to all the lovelies that left me a comment.  I had a couple questions asked so I thought I’d answer here. Yes the loopy rose pattern is from Sarah London. The leaf pattern is adapted from Eden scarf by Larissa Brown in the book knitalong.

Wishing you all a very happy and joy filled Thanksgiving.

Granny squares of fun. 

I started working up these little beauties until I had a stack of 17. Then I thought, what do they want to become?  Why a skinny scarf of course.  

And for some reason, it reminds me of a Barbie doll.  Color combination maybe?  I think it would make a great gift for one of my grand nieces…So on to the next project. I hope to get lots of knitting time in this weekend.  How about you?

My 1st Giveaway!

One of my favorite things about the blogs I frequent is their generosity; i.e. Giveaways! Since many bloggers have a giveaway at the One-year mark and/or the 100^th post, I thought I’d follow suit. Is there anything more fun than free stuff?  knitalatte has been around a little over the one-year mark and a bit shy of the 100^th post, so here we go…. I’ve made up a loopy rose just for the occasion.  If you’d like a chance to win this loopy rose pin, just leave a comment and I’ll draw a winner before my next post.  Thank you all for stopping by for a visit and leaving words of encouragement about my love (obsession?) for everything knit and crochet.

Plus, what? another baby?  Oh, how I love it when one of my bff’s informs me that they have another grandbaby on the way.  Any excuse to whip up a baby blanket is fine by me.  The ruffled blanket from the pure and sweet layette is one of my favorites.  The pattern can be found in the book, itty-bitty nursery by Susan B. Anderson.

A really fun knit using Rowan Handknit cotton.  I’ve made a couple of these and they are always well received by the mama to be.

Rectangle or Square, I love em both!

Granny Square Tissue Box Covers that is.

Seeing the photos of both of these tissue box covers stirred up a childhood memory.  Me being a pre-teen, walking into the bathroom belonging to my bff family who lived down the street and seeing a colorful crochet toilet paper roll cover with a little girl doll sitting on top.  Do you remember those?  (Circa 70’s something) I decided I must give each of these tissue box cover patterns a go.  The rectangle pattern comes from The Royal Sisters blog who so graciously wrote the tutorial for us.  The yarn; 3 colors of Cotton Stria by Manos del Uruguay. The hook; size 3.50.  It took me about 3 hours to work up.  Thank you Michelle, for your generosity! The Square pattern comes from DanielaH at Ravelry (free download).  The yarn; 3 colors of dk Special by Stylecraft. The hook; 3.50 and this one took a little over two hours to complete.  Thank you Daniela for this great pattern. With cold and flu season just around the corner, I thought it would be nice to have something pretty to look at if any one in the family is in need of tissue.

Granny Stripe Blanket....

Complete, finished, done, over, moved on, the end! Yes, I’ve made the Granny stripe blanket.  It has a total of 17 colors, 69 rows and measures 48x60.  I edged it with two rounds of granny stripes in periwinkle, one round in aqua using a slip stitch and the final edge is a 7-double crochet scallop in the color lavender.  I think it was a fun project and I really enjoyed the weight on my lap this past month as it has been cooler in the evenings and it kept me cozy and warm as I worked up the rows.  Thanks you Lucy at Attic24 for this wonderful pattern and your yarn suggestion, dk Special by Stylecraft, is perfect. The bright color combination makes me smile.  Sweet!

Latest Obsession

I’m obsessing over the pattern; Splashy Crochet Flowers in the book ‘Crochet in Color’ by Kathy Merrick. Why you ask?  Well, during a recent visit with my sister, we went to my favorite yarn store in the bay area, Green Planet Yarn, downtown Campbell, to browse thru the lovely isles of yarns, patterns and hand made items. Hanging in the front window display was a window valance that had been made using this pattern.  Oversized so it would fit there perfectly. (Why didn’t I take a photo?) as I haven’t been able to stop thinking about it since.  So I immediately ordered the book and yes, it is now on my must make list.  The Noro Silk Garden yarn suits the pattern perfectly and I just love the variations in color throughout the piece.  So, will I make it as a scarf or as a window topper?  Decisions, decisions….So much fun!

Oh what a glorious morning...

I wanted to share with you that Jodie, over at Jellywares posted on her blog about these adorable fingerless gloves. Fingerless gloves with buttons?  Oh yea, I’m in! So I requested a copy of the pattern in her comments section and she graciously e – mailed me a pdf copy for my personal use. I went through my yarn stash and chose Manos del Uruguay  hand crafted kettle dyed pure wool in the color Bing Cherry.  Using just under (1) skein and size 5 needles.  They are knitted flat and I was able to complete the pair in a couple of settings.  It is such a joy to finish up a super quick project in between the larger, time consuming ones I’ve committed to.                Thank you Jodie! Stop on by her blog if you get a chance and enjoy taking a look around, I sure did. My sister Kathleen graciously let me use her as a hand model to take the photographs this morning. Yes, it has been a glorious morning this 10-10-10.  The beach weather is just perfect for a stroll along the waters edge.  I got to enjoy a walk an talk with this dear sister of mine.  Hope you have a great Sunday afternoon.

Homage to handmade…

I received a note from my mom the other day that talked about my grandmother, great grandmother and great aunt and their creative talents that included knit and crochet. I got to wondering; who taught them to knit and/or crochet?  These wonderful women are no longer with us and I realize I missed the opportunity to talk to them about such things. I know my mother is a fan of crochet.  Years ago when she and my great Aunt worked at the hospital, they would wear crochet vests over their uniforms.  They made them for themselves and for others who wanted a little warmth. I can still remember mom wearing one of hers. A little splash of color over all that white.

She also crocheted ripple blankets for many of her children and grandchildren over the years.  I didn’t learn to knit or crochet from any of these wonderful ladies.  I went to my LYS and took lessons to learn to knit, and then I viewed YouTube videos to teach myself to crochet.  I have a passion to create, is it handed down, or is it just something that one develops?  Coincidentally, I have been in the process of cleaning out closets, drawers, etc. and I came across this cute little crochet baby set that was made by my Great Aunt Edna.  Both my babies came home from the hospital in this set.  I’ve kept it all these years thinking that maybe someday my future grandchild would come home in it too.  That’s the beauty of handmade things; they carry special memories for both the maker and the receiver.  How wonderful is that?