A New Penguin Ornament

Today is my 30th birthday!  I decided that I wanted to share a project that I completed in March because it is a fitting birthday post for me.  The first Christmas ornament I ever received from Keith was a penguin, and then we got married at the New England Aquarium with our first dance surrounded by penguins.  I am now collecting penguin Christmas ornaments and therefore I wanted one of my early crochet projects to be an Amigurumi Penguin.  

This is my first time crocheting with fingering weight wool.   This pattern also looks more complicated than the other amigurumi crochet patterns I've attempted thus far.  Two colors in a round!  Since I love colorwork with knitting, I'm hopefully that I can figure this out.  The colorwork isn't so bad... but I am glad that the body as written is a single color. (It is supposed to be grey but I'm going to go with white.)  I see that some other users made a two color body, but I am going to try crocheting the single color and then see what I think.  At this point, I'm wondering why the body is created separately, but we'll see.  

So after knitting the body, I'm still confused as to why it is done separately   This is going to create an obvious seam at the neckline.  Oh well...  At least this should make it easier to sew on the feat and eyes before stuffing the little pengu.  (Never mind, they have you sew the head and body together before attaching any other pieces. If I were to make this again, I would make a continuous piece and then just stitch the bottom together at the end.  Craziness!   I disregarded the instructions and sewed on the beak and eyes before stuffing and sewing the neck closed.  (I decided to wait with the feet so I could handle the placement better.)   

This project used 3 g of Black, 1 g of white and negligible hand dyed orange KnitPicks Palette Yarn.  The entire project weighted 4 g before I started stuffing and weaving in loose ends.  I used a size B (2.25 mm) crochet hook.  

The patterns said to stuff the wings, legs and beak, but I just "stuffed" them with the loose end from the magic circle.  I am thrilled with the way this project turned out!  I'm not sure if I will make another, but this is a great pattern and you should really check it out.  

Dip Dyeing Yarn in the Microwave

Here is an old dyeing tutorial that I never posted on the blog.  In this video, I demonstrate how you can dip dye your yarn in the microwave by submerging part of a skein in dye at a time.  You can go crazy with overlapping colors and create some truly beautiful yarns.  Watch to find out more!  

KnitPicks Share Your Wishlist Contest

KnitPicks is having a "Share your Wishlist" contest running now through December 9, 2013.  There are three ways to enter: email your wishlist, share it on Facebook or share it on your blog.  Take a peak into what I'm dreaming about, because here is my wishlist! 

To make this post a little more fun, here is my most recent KnitPicks Order (hurrah for the Cyber Monday sale.)  I managed to get all 18 items for $50.93.  How is that for hitting the free shipping mark? I purchased two yarns that had been on my wish list for months (or even years), Capretta and Imagination hand painted yarn. 

 

Time for me to go play with my new pompom maker.  I have a Christmas hat for Lucky to finish up.  

Comfort Knitting & Crochet: Babies & Toddlers

While 8 months pregnant, I picked up the book Comfort Knitting & Crochet: Babies & Toddlers: More than 50 Knit and Crochet Designs Using Berroco's Comfort and Vintage Yarns by Norah Gaughan and the Berroco Design Team from my local library.  I've been knitting and crocheting for my little one for the past 7.5 months (ever since the positive pregnancy test result), and now that my baby boy is almost here I don't have much time for much more crafting, but I have years of his childhood to craft for.  This means that I need to start queueing patterns!

When I picked up the book, I was immediately excited by the title.  I want the things that I make for my baby to be functional, comfortable and COMFORTING in addition to being fun to make.  I love knitting books that have book ends, this makes it really easy to mark patterns.  This book has over 50 patterns that are split pretty evenly into knit (26) and crochet (21).  Now this number from the TOC doesn't quite add up to 50, so I have to assume that some of these patterns include multiple variations.

My favorite Knitting Patterns

• Orangelo Bib - A darling segmented bib that looks like an orange slice.  It is a simple, easy project, but the name makes it oh-so-delightful.  
• Smocked Cardigan - The smocking is done with embroidery at the end, but it adds a very beautiful element to a simple stockinette cardigan that would work for a little boy or a little girl. 
• Brattenberg Blanket - It looks like there are cables running diagonally up this blanket, but apparently this is deceptive because it is created with shifting ribbing.  
• Solaria Blanket - A round blanket with cables that radiate out from the center like rays of sunshine.  
• Bertie Bird - I'm a sucker for knit toys!  I love how ripple stitches define the feathers at the end of the wings and tail.  

My Favorite Crochet Patterns

• Cleire Cardigan - Darling crocheted cables and bobbles create a delightful cardigan.  It may be above my skill level, but I think it looks both vintage and modern at the same time.  (It reminds me of the fisherman's afghan my paternal grandmother made for my parents.)  
• Snowflake Blanket - Crochet hexagons are assembled together in a way like I've never seen before.  I may be a novice crocheter, but this is something I am dying to sink my hook into.  It feels much more modern than a granny square afghan.  
• Slice Cap - Crocheted in two different ways, options for a visor with or without ripples.  
• High Fidoodlity Blanket - Thick and thin waves of crochet give this a modern feel.  I think I would love this as a scarf, but I'm not sure if I have the skill to make it or not.  (I haven't looked closely at the pattern, this is just based on looking at the pattern itself.)  

This is not a book that would teach you how to knit, but then again I have come to think that "how to knit" and "how to crochet" sections waste pages in pattern books.  Some special techniques are defined in the back of the book, but you may need to go to YouTube or a "how to" book if you are a novice fiber crafter.  

Overall I am very excited by this book.  There are many patterns that I didn't mention, but as you can see from the ones I highlighted there are MANY that I loved.  It may even be worth adding this book to my personal library!  My only complaint is that I wish there were difficulty levels clearly indicated for each pattern.  It is hard to know whether some of the crochet patterns are well beyond my ability level or not.  

  

Another BU Sweater

Holiday time is upon us once again!  My wonderful cousin-in-law(-in-law?) saw the BU ornament I made my FIL hanging on the tree.  She exclaimed over it and I realized that I completely forgot that both she and her husband went to BU for graduate school!  Therefore, making them their own hand knit Boston University sweater ornament became a must for this year.

I created this orament using the same yarn that I dyed using left over tulip tie dye kit dye as the original.  I'm not weighing the yarn, but I should have enough (hopefully!)  The yarn base was KnitPicks Palette and I used size 1 (2.25 mm) knitting needles.)

I decided to wet block this ornament slightly after sewing it up just to give it a slightly better shape.  (I did not take before pictures.  There are plenty of pictures on the pattern page.)

The best thing about the BU sweater ornament is that you can make it for other schools other than BU!  Just change the letters and colors and you can customize your sweater ornament.

More Baby Lucky Pictures

I always have trouble with sizing baby items.  Therefore I decided to keep track of little Lucky's measurements as he grows.  You know, the important stats like head size and from ear tip to ear tip over his head.  I will eventually share these measurements with all of you, but for now I want to share some fun pictures of Lucky wearing knit items.

I knit so many items for Lucky not just for him to have something to wear, but for props in his newborn photoshoot.  We worked with the IL photographer Sarah Severson and are THRILLED with out the photos came out.  I hope you enjoy these pictures of little Lucky as much as I do! 

Itty Bitty Amigurumi

I have may tiny scraps of WOTA around, so when I saw the four Itty Bitty Amigurumi crochet patterns, I knew that I had a use for these remnants.  

I didn't bother weighting the amount of yarn that I used, but I would guess that it was only 1-2 g per color.  

I crocheted these mini creatures with a size F crochet hook.  I then embroidered on a mouth (for the fish) and added fringe hair to the mini monster.  I didn't like the mouth so I decided to remove it.  I took this as an opportunity to break out my googly eyes with lashes to make these mini guys really sparkle.  

What a difference a haircut makes!

Also included in these patterns are a Little Snake and Baby Mouse, which are also super adorable.  In the end, I am so happy by the new set of googly eyes I have.  I think that these really give a lot of character to these mini creatures.