Monday, November 12, 2012

Batman Cap



I'm hesitant to post a picture of my latest knit. I may have a few requests from family for this one. We are a family of superheros. So for all my Batman family... if you want one, just let me know. I'd be happy to make a few more.

This one was for a friend, Sean, who happens to love Batman. I wonder what he'd do at one of our family reunions or during the Batman Christmas "Gag" gift game?!

Here are the details:
I used this pattern, Batman Hat, by Ann Donovan, but adapted it to make a cap by decreasing as you would do any other hat and by using thicker yarn knitted with size 9 needles. Add some leftover yarn, an evening of knitting, and voila, a Batman cap.

Enjoy, Sean! Merry Christmas...slightly early.

Friday, November 9, 2012

Perspective


"He has made everything beautiful in its time. He has set eternity in the hearts of men; yet they cannot fathom what God has done from beginning to end."
-Ecclesiastes 3:11

This is the view from my kitchen window this morning. The roses adda bright bit of color toa foggy morning - so beautiful!

What you don't see is the brown, drearyness of a late fall day after all the leaves have fallen and winter is beginning to nibble at the  grass.

It's all in your perspective, isn't it?

Wednesday, November 7, 2012

A Hand Holding a Pen



I woke up this morning with magical lines

bouncing off the walls of my mind.

I wrote a whole poem before I opened my eyes,

yet sitting before me, a pen that lies.

Suddenly, my brain is a silent room

stuffed with nothing but feelings of doom.

Raindrops slip down with their own quiet sound,

and my eye twitches its thundering pound.

The clouds’ lines are grey and the pavements are puddled.

It’s peaceful, yet painful. My mind’s all a muddle.

I had dreams of today, a clear line in my vision.

But now it’s a fog without recognition.

My rhymes all follow a confused little stream.

                This headache has left me unable to dream.

Can’t I just trace my hand holding a pen

and count that my writing? ...It’s a place to begin.

 

Thursday, September 27, 2012

Two Handmade Baby Bibs and a Knitted Baby Hat

We had a baby shower for my niece-in-law who is having a little baby girl in just a few weeks. I will be a Great Aunt ...again. This is the third time. Yet every time I think of myself as Great Aunt Beth, I cringe. How did this happen?! Am I not still eighteen?! Oh, wait. I have an eighteen year old daughter! I still can't believe that either.
 
Back to the shower. It was a lovely day. My sister-in-law, Felicia and her daughter, Emily, hosted it. They did an amazing job. Emily can bake! I don't think I've ever tasted cupcakes and pumpkin cheesecake so delicious. Believe me, I've tasted a lot of both in my short 18 years. Like how I brought my age back into the picture?
 
Luke and Liz, the soon-to-be parents live out west, so all gifts were ordered and shipped; and instead we brought our favorite childhood books to the shower. That was a lot of fun, hearing stories of why we all picked the books we did. But of course I had to add a little bit of the homemade to the mix.
 
 
 
 
 
I played around with the sewing machine and ended up with these two bibs for little Lila Kate (read more about Lila Kate and her parents here http://abattylife.com/)
 


I also just had to knit a little hat for her. She's growing up in ski county, with a mom who works in the industry at Heavenly Mountain. She needs the proper outdoor apparel.

I started making the Snow Time Hat, but soon realized I was running out of yarn. I either had to improvise or start over. I chose improvise and turned it into a regular shaped hat. It turned out cute, but was murder trying to figure out what to do to make the cables look good as the hat decreased at the crown. I was happy with how it turned out.

I had so much fun making these gifts. I just might have to do more gift-making in the future.

P.S. Thanks so much to Felicia for taking such amazing pictures. She is one talented photographer, eh?


Wednesday, September 19, 2012

Toe-up Socks with a Difference


I love my new socks! I used left over Noro sock yarn with some solid brown sock yarn I had. I wanted a top-up pattern because I was unsure how much Noro I had left. I used the Toe-up Socks with a Difference pattern from Wendy D. Johnson. I think the socks turned out quite nice.

Thursday, September 13, 2012

Stripy Crocheted Cowl

 
Jaena saw this Stripy cowl on Pinterest and just had to have it. So of course I made it. It's crazy how much quicker crocheting is than knitting. It was done in no time at all!

Monday, September 10, 2012

Coat of Many Colors Swirl Coat

 
If you spend any time around Ravelry, you've heard about the book, "knit, Swirl!" I  just finished knitting the pattern, Coat of Many Colors, only without all the colors. It took months, but was well worth it! It's amazing how a project that looks nothing like a sweater while knitting turns into something that looks gorgeous and fits so well. Designer Sandra McIver must be a genius!
 
 

The back. Not such a great picture.
 
 
 
Does this look like a sweater to you?!

Friday, August 31, 2012

Surprise!


Surprise! I'm still alive. I'm sorry I haven't blogged in over a year. There's no good excuse. I just let life happen without posting about it.



Here's a little review of what you've missed:

Jaena went to the prom. Beautiful!
(What happened to my baby girl?!)
 
 
 
Kelsey played some softball. Okay, lots and lots of softball.
She lettered and was awarded MVP of the JV team her freshman year!
(My buttons, they were busting!)
 
 
 

Jessica became a gorgeous teenager.
She also got her wisdom teeth pulled. Here she is still unaware of the pain and slightly out from under anesthesia. (A rough way to start the summer.)
 
 
 
 
There was a car accident where a car flipped in front of our house and all four teenagers crawled out with nothing more than a few stitches needed. Thank you, Lord!
 
 
 

 
 
Santa kissed Mrs. Clause, and the Uncle Jeff tried to take Berkley as his gift.
 
 
 


We started watching the cute cousin (Some days it is plain exhausting!)
 
 
 
I've read a few books and knit like the wind. But I'll save those for another day not so long from now.