Shameless Self-Promotion Saturday

I'll be updating my etsy shop tonight at 8pm ET with some new goodies for the holidays and everyday. Here's a sneak peek:

FO Friday

It's FO Friday! I've had a busy few weeks here chez K8erpillar and I have three new FOs to share!

First, I finished another hat for the Podcaster Throwdown to benefit Halos of Hope. I had a lot of fun practicing my newly-acquired two-handed colorwork skills. As a bonus, I got to use some stash yarn that had been sitting unloved for over a year. The pattern is called Sheep & Wool Hat by Emily Spence.

Next, I finished another hat. This one is for me; the yarn was a birthday gift from my sister. It's made from one skein of a yarn called Bubbles by Knitting Fever, and the pattern is Expedition Hat by Maude L. Baril.

After all the mad hatting, I also managed to finish a pair of socks in honor of Socktober. These are made from Must Stash Yarn & Fiber Perfect Sock in the Tarts & Vicars colorway. I got this yarn in a shop update and I was so excited that it never even made it into my Ravelry stash - it went directly onto the needles!

I hope you had a great knitting week too. What's off your needles?

FO Friday!

It's my favorite day of the week: FO Friday!

I finished my first hat this week to go to the Halos of Hope Podcaster Throwdown! I plan to knit many more hats for this worthy cause over the next few months. What a great way to work through some stash and make a difference!

My other FO this week is a Halloween present for my mom. He's made from Jenna Krupar's Adopt a Blob Monster pattern. My dad has already dubbed him the "Triclops."

Here he is, hanging out with our other resident monsters!

What have you finished this week?

FO Friday!

I should sub-title this post "So Many FOs, So Little Time!"

It's been a while since I posted an FO Friday, so I have several things to share!

First, I have a pair of socks that I made for another Ravelry user as part of a swap. They are kid-sized to fit her young son, and made of Malabrigo Sock in a basic 2x2 rib pattern.

Next, I made a Bitty Bug Hat out of a lonely skein of Mochi Plus. I will say that I'm not the biggest fan of this pattern. It turns out nice, but I think it could be constructed in a more sensible way.

Last Monday I broke my foot at work, which obviously necessitated some knitted accessorizing. I used scraps leftover from previous projects, and a free pattern by Heather Jackson, and whipped up these:

And finally, I took a class last weekend on two-handed Fair Isle, and made this lovely hat:

All in all, I've been a very busy K8erpillar! What have you finished recently?

Sunday Sneak Peek!

Here's a sneak peek of some of what's coming to my etsy shop in this week's update:

I'm hoping to have the update go live by noon Eastern on Tuesday 10/1 - stay tuned!

FO Friday

Edit 8/31/13: I tried to post this last night but for some reason it didn't go through.

My Navona is finally finished! It is blocking as I type and I couldn't be happier. I was really relieved when I took it out of the water and found that it had relaxed a TON, just as the swatch did. I'm now totally confident that it will be the right size and fit comfortably without any aggressive stretching or pulling in the blocking.

It's still soaked, so I can't model for a photo, but here's a picture of it laid out to dry:

I am really looking forward to starting a new project. I think Color Affection is in my near future...

WIP Wednesday

I'm still plugging along on my Navona! I am so close to being finished! I have about two inches to go before the cuff on the second sleeve, and I've already woven in all the other little ends. Once I finish the knitting, it will need a very aggressive blocking. I realized after the body was finished that I had knitted the entire body on size 4 needles instead of size 5s, so my row gauge was waaaaayyy off. Fortunately, my stitch gauge was still close enough that it shouldn't be a problem.

Here's the sweater as it looks right now:

I'm hoping that I may be able to feature it again on Friday this week! At the very latest, I have to have it finished and photographed by Saturday night so I can submit it for Camp Loopy.

WIP Wednesday

I am really making progress on my Navona this week! Oh the wonders of (nearly) monogamous knitting! I only have one more stripe of the contrast color to go, which will only be 2 rows. I'm hoping to have the body finished by the end of the week.

So far, I think I'm on track to have this sweater finished by the end of the month for Camp Loopy project #3. I'm really proud of how much I've been able to accomplish. I am off from work next week and plan to get a ton of knitting done on this and a few other projects.

Mother Bear Monday

Yesterday I finished my third bear to send to the Mother Bear Project. I named her for my Grandma, Erma, and this will be a Christmas gift to her this year. I'm crossing my fingers that if I get the bear mailed out right away, it may be matched with a child before Christmas and I'll be able to show her a picture of the bear and child together. If not, just a photo of the bear along with a pamphlet about the Mother Bear Project will certainly fit the bill.

I'm hoping to get a few more bears done by the end of this year. My ultimate goal is to get into the 100-Bear Club, but that will be a while!

Thank-You Thursday!

I have been remiss in not posting a "Thank-You Thursday" post in quite a while! I wanted to send out a huge THANK YOU to Jen of Jen Hagan Design who recently hosted a fun scavenger-hunt contest on her blog. The contest ran for four weeks with one winner each week, and a grand-prize winner at the end. Guess what? I won the grand prize! Squee!
Jen sent me a package of goodies including yarn, a pattern book, a project bag, and a t-shirt. I can't express how excited I was to get it in the mail (especially since it arrived on the same day as a giant, nasty, unexpected bill!). She also sent me the pattern for the Feather Lace Socks that I've been working on:

Thank you so much, Jen, for an awesome contest! Everyone should definitely head over to Jen's blog and see all the great photos and other things that she has posted (if you hurry, you will get to see adorable pictures of goats and puppies!).

WIP Wednesday

I have a new WIP to share this week! I'm working on my third and final project for Camp Loopy 2013. The pattern is called Navona and I'm working it in two colors of Malabrigo Sock (my new FAVORITE yarn): Eggplant and Lotus. I love how the body incorporates stripes; they really make the stockinette portion seem less tedious.

WIP Wednesday

I've only been working on one project this past week: Feather Lace Socks by Jennifer Hagan. I am absolutely head-over-heels in love with this pattern. It's a toe-up pattern, which would normally have sent me running for the hills, but I didn't know that until I was already committed to making them. It turned out to be no big deal (even with the wrap-and-turn heel... another "non-favorite" technique of mine). This is turning out to be the perfect in-between project before I can start my August project for Camp Loopy.

I have the first one just past the heel:

Best of all, I'm using yarn that has been sitting in my stash for three years! Talk about working through the stash! I really love the subtle color variations in this yarn. It plays really nicely with the pattern.

No progress on my One-Skein Baby Bolero this week. I'm stalled out at the seaming. Help!

FO Friday!

I have another FO to share this week! On Saturday, I finished my Hitchhiker:

It was my July project for Camp Loopy with The Loopy Ewe, and I am in love with it. Who knew garter stitch could be so much fun? I used about 2 1/2 skeins of Shibui Yarns Sock in the Orchid colorway, and I ended up with 47 "teeth" on the final product.

WIP Wednesday

I finally have a new project started this week (and an FO for later in the week!). I started a One-Skein Baby Bolero from Leigh Radford's book One Skein. I'm using a skein of Blue Sky Alpacas Organic Cotton that I bought at Stitches East back in 2010.

I have all three pieces finished and the shoulder seams sewn. I'm having a little trouble sewing in the sleeves, but once I figure that out, all that's left to do is knit the border around. It worked up very quickly and the yarn is really soft and has a great hand for being 100% cotton.

WIP Wednesday!

I've been completely project-monogamous lately as I've been working on my Hitchhiker for Camp Loopy! I'm up to 41 teeth and I'm on my third skein of yarn. I'm pretty happy with the size of it as-is, but I need to knit 500yds to meet the requirement for camp, so I just have to keep on knitting!

This photo is, I admit, terrible. It's just getting so darn big, it's getting harder and harder to photograph! I'm hoping that it will be finished soon so I can get a nice FO picture!

WIP Wednesday

I've only been working on one project this week, but it's a new one! I started my Hitchhiker by Martina Behm out of Shibui Sock in the Orchid colorway. It's my July project for Camp Loopy with The Loopy Ewe. I am hooked on this project! I did the first 18 "teeth" on Monday and two more yesterday (the rows get longer as it goes!). Lots of garter stitch = perfect vacation/social knitting!

FO Friday!

I have two FOs to share this week!

I finished my Conference Socks on Wednesday evening. Glad to have another old WIP off the needles at last! Too bad it's way too hot to wear them!

I also finished another project. I have been participating in Camp Loopy with The Loopy Ewe, and I finished my first camp project. The pattern is To Infinity and Beyond by Joji Locatelli, and the yarn is Malabrigo Sock in the Zarzamora colorway.

Even though it was hot, I still wanted to model it for a picture. TMG played photographer for me.

What have YOU finished this week?

WIP Wednesday

Just one WIP to share this week, because the other project I've been working on recently is no longer a WIP :)

I've been working some more on my Conference Socks that I started back in April. This week I finished the gusset on the second sock and got into the foot. It's easy going from here on out, so I hope to have them finished soon.

 

I even put in a little work on them at the Phillies Game last week:

I didn't know that TMG was taking a photo, or I would have smiled!

We-Have-A-Winner Wednesday!

We have a winner in the Lo-Lo Love Giveaway! I ran the Random Number Generator and the winner is...

photoknitgal!

I will be contacting photoknitgal on Ravelry so that she can claim her Lo-Lo Love Sampler Pack!

Thanks to all who entered the contest. Please keep checking back here regularly! The more traffic, subscribers, comments, and followers the blog gets, the more reviews and giveaways I'll be able to do!

Mother Bear Monday!

I'm so excited today because I had my very first bear sighting in the photo gallery for the Mother Bear Project. The bear I knit back at Christmas time has been paired with its child, and my heart is so full I felt that it would burst if I didn't share!

If you haven't made a bear for Mother Bear Project yet, I encourage you to get started! It is a great way to use up leftover yarn and bless a child. A true win-win!

Just a reminder that tomorrow is the last day to enter the Lo-Lo Love Giveaway! Get your entries in!

Tuesday Reviews-Day: LoLo Redux

Game-Changer. Day-Saver. Lo-Lo.

A few months ago I reviewed a fabulous product from Bar Maids: The Lo-Lo Love Sampler. I praised its wonderful qualities: yummy scents, non-greasy feel, portable size... this product has it all. It's perfect for my skin in the winter time. When the warm weather started, I admit, I put it aside. That is, until this weekend.

I went camping in the mountains this past weekend and encountered my mortal enemy: the mosquito. I searched desperately through my travel bag for anti-itch cream, lotion, ointment, anything to calm my itchy skin. I begged my fellow campers, to no avail. Desperate, I pulled out my Lo-Lo Love Pink Grapefruit sample and rubbed it on the bite. The result seemed like a miracle: within moments, the itching stopped, my skin was soothed, and I didn't even think about the bite again for hours.

So now, here I am, back again to sing the praises of Lo-Lo! Even better, the generous folks at Bar Maids have provided a coupon code for a lucky reader to win a Lo Lo Love Sampler pack of your own!

To enter: leave a comment on this entry! Get a bonus entry if you subscribe via email using the box in the upper-right corner of the blog. Just come back and leave another comment saying that you subscribed. Please make sure to leave some form of contact information (email, Ravelry ID, etc.) in your comment so that I can contact you if you win. But wait! It gets better! If we get 100 entries, I will add a second coupon code to the mix - double the chance to win! Tell your friends, share on your blog, it's a win-win!

I will draw the winner next Tuesday, June 18th, at 10:00am ET and post the winner(s) on Wednesday, June 19th. Please note that the coupon code is valid for a Lo-Lo Love Sampler pack and shipping up to $1.80 (which should cover most places in the continental US). Shipping charges above that amount are the responsibility of the winner(s).

FO Friday

I'm still here! I'm still knitting!

I have a few small FOs to share this week. May has been a busy month and I can't believe it's just about over.

This hat is made from some of the yarn I had left over from my Ampersand Socks. It will be for sale in the Newborn Prop Co-Op BigCartel shop soon!

 

This hat is also for the Newborn Prop Co-Op and is my own design made from my own handspun, hand-dyed yarn.

Finally, here is my Zuzu's Petals, which I made over Memorial Day weekend in a skein of Plymouth Kudo. It still needs to be blocked, but I'm pleased with how quickly it worked up and how pretty it turned out.

WIP Wednesday

I don't have too much of anything exciting on the needles these days, but I do have a few new WIPs since the last time I updated.

I have a pair of socks in progress. I knitted the first one while at the American Music Therapy Association's Mid-Atlantic Regional Conference in early April. It's exciting in that I dyed this yarn myself and it's turning out beautifully. Here's the first sock; the second one is only just past the ribbing, so not much to look at.

I'm also working on another bear for the Mother Bear Project. This one hit a snag when I knitted the first leg on sideways (whoops), so it's in time-out for a little while.

I have also finally started on my Paper Dolls sweater! I don't have a picture of it yet, but I'm working on it in Valley Yarns Huntington.  I bought the yarn when I got to make a pilgrimage to WEBS last summer. Pardon the extra-lousy photos; these are from before I got my new camera.

Sea Gull - Main body

 

 

Navy - Dolls

Bluestone - Details

MOM Monday

Just when you thought I was never coming back to the blog...

It's been a crazy couple of weeks as TMG and I moved and are working on getting settled in our new house. On top of that, I had my busiest week of the year at work, and on top of that, TMG and I were both sick all weekend. I'm feeling a bit better today, but took a sick day to play catch-up.

All that being said, I have been doing some knitting. I'm still working on the pieces of the Knitivity Scene from Fiona Goble's book for my mom. As Mother's Day is coming up this weekend, I thought it would be nice to give her a little something for her set, so I made up this little sheep:

Baaaaa!

The brown yarn is actually recycled 100% lambswool from a sweater I got at a thrift store. The black yarn is Debbie Bliss Wool/Cotton. Both of these are closer to a sport weight than to a DK, but gauge isn't terribly important. It can be a lamb!

FO Friday

I have three four FOs to share this week, after missing a few weeks in the mayhem. I'm thrilled with all of them, but especially glad to have the first one off the needles at long last.

1. Cabled Quasi-Crew Socks
I started these as a test-knit for the designer in October of 2010. I made it through the first sock quickly enough, and then the second languished for a long while. I ended up having to rip and restart it three times due to various problems. What a relief to have a 2 1/2-year-old UFO finally turned into a FO!

2. Becca's Baby Blanket
A dear friend of mine at work is expecting a baby (any minute now!), so of course I had to make something special for her. She doesn't know the gender, so I wanted to keep it fairly neutral, but something different from the typical yellow and green. I found the perfect yarn in my stash from back in 2010, and it felt great to use "deep stash" for this project. I chose the pattern so that I could be sure to use up all the yarn; it's now discontinued, so I wanted to use it all in one project.

Based on the "Grandmother's Favorite" pattern, in Knit Picks Simply Cotton Sport

3. Maggie the Mama Owl
I am crazy about owls, so when I saw this pattern come out, I just had to make one! It's part of the monthly KAL for the Retro Lemon Podcast, too. Her body is knit in handspun, and the solid brown is Cascade 220.

4. Fire on Ampersand Mountain!
Late-breaking news! It's 10:30pm and I just finished a pair of socks that are just TOO COOL to wait until next Friday. The pattern is Ampersand and the yarn is Blue Moon Fiber Arts Socks that Rock Mediumweight in the color "Fire on the Mountain."

WIP Wednesday

I've been busy working on house stuff and on a project that will be featured on Friday, but managed to squeeze in a few rounds on a new pair of socks. The yarn is Blue Moon Fiber Arts Socks that Rock Mediumweight, in the colorway "Fire on the Mountain." I got it at Stitches East back in 2010, and I'm finally using it! I'm participating in a Socks that Rock knit along with the Knitabulls podcast for the month of March. Check out these gorgeous colors:

The pattern is Ampersand by Kirsten Kapur, and is written specifically for Socks that Rock Mediumweight, which is nice because I'm not used to knitting sport weight socks. They are coming along really fast since they're knit on size 3 needles. I'm not a huge fan of metal needles, but I'm using them for this project because they're what I had in the right size, and I'm not spending any money right now as we prepare for the move.

Monday Moving Mayhem

Good Monday morning, all!
I've been maintaining relative radio silence here on the blog recently, largely because of this:

Mine!!

TMG and I bought our first house! I'm so excited! Of course, that means I'm moving. Again. For the third time in less than three years. Yep. The packing has already begun and the big move will happen after we close on March 25th, with the bulk of it happening over Easter weekend. I'll be blogging as regularly as I can during the process, but the packing and signing of paperwork (soooooo much paperwork) have been interfering with knitting time, so I haven't had much to post lately. Hang in there; we'll be back to the regularly-scheduled knitting soon!

FO Friday

This week has been hectic and stressful as TMG and I have been busy house hunting. I did manage to squeeze in some knitting time, though, and I made a cute hat from a skein of Noro Kujaku I had in deep stash.

We-Have-A-Winner Wednesday!

Thanks to everyone who entered the Lo-Lo Love Giveaway! I ran the random number generator and it said that the winner is comment number 6, Knitty Kitty!

Knitty Kitty, I don't have your contact information, so please send me an email at k8erpillarATgmailDOTcom so that I can send you your coupon code. Be sure to come back and let us know what delicious fragrances you choose!

Stay tuned for more reviews, giveaways, and fun!

MOM Monday: Poll

It's time to get back into making Knitivity pieces for my Mom, after a break of over a month. I'm having a hard time deciding what figure to do next. So far, she has Mary, Joseph, baby Jesus, an angel, and an ox. Other patterns in the book include wise men, shepherds, sheep, and a donkey. I have yarn for any of the figures except for the donkey.
What piece should make next? How does one prioritize the "characters" in the nativity story?

Five pieces so far... what will be next?

Don't forget to enter the contest for the Lo-Lo Love Sampler on last Tuesday's blog entry! I'll draw the winning entry tomorrow and announce it on Wednesday.