Babies and Small Things

Some small things were finished and some small things were started.  Yay!  Crafting on a regular basis energizes the spirit, invigorates creativity, and gives a sense of purpose.  And finishing small projects provides a break from bigger projects as well as enough motivation to push ahead on those bigger projects (I'm looking at you, Rainbow Bedspread.  Someday you will be finished).

Meanwhile, I can derive satisfaction from these simple, but pretty, baby items.  This free basic beanie pattern can be found here on Ravelry.  And truly it is a good basic pattern.

Basic Beanie

Sadly the final item seemed rather small--as in freakin' wee!  The above photo doesn't really give a sense of its size until you compare it to something else--like a doll.

Above is my 18" American Girl/Maplea wanna-be and the beanie fits her melon perfectly. Me thinks this is proof that the beanie is too small for a baby--although it might fit a preemie--and I used the 0-3 month size (Worth noting that since my SIL is well into her 8th month, the baby should have a bigger head circumference). To be fair, the pattern included instructions for bigger sizes up to adult size, so I would have found the right size.  Instead I tried my hand at something else.

This second beanie pattern came from Baby Crochet by Lois Daykin.  It was the same book from which came the rainbow baby bib.  Unlike the bib, these instructions were easy to follow and I had no issues with it, other than minor modifications.  Since the original pattern called for yarn thinner than worsted, my mods included:
1) using a 50 st chain instead of the 60 st chain called for in the pattern.  Thankfully this mod did not mess up the decrease rows.
2) using five 30-st chains for the tassel instead of the twenty 30-st chains called for in the pattern (although I need to trim my ends on the tassels a little more).

I also started some booties.  It's a free pattern from Bernat (aka Yarnspirations--whose website is currently being "updated" so I used the Rav link above.  It will take you to the appropriate link at Yarnspirations--once their website is up and running again).  Since the pattern is one I've made before (see here and also here.  Or you can check out my meager notes on Ravelry), I know two things: the directions are easy to follow and the final item is of acceptable size and dimensions.  It's win-win. ;)

With variegated yarn, there's always the danger of bad pooling, but it's not too bad--at least on the side visible in the photo above.  

Whatcha think?  What's in your project bag?

A Tale of Two Hats

Having received a new winter coat, I decided to knit myself a matching hat.  None of my old hats matched properly.  I already had some white chunky yarn in my stash.  After perusing Ravelry and printing off a few beret-type patterns, I settled on Wendy Bernard's Not-too-too-beret pattern (Rav link).

In-Progress Beret

I searched for the appropriate needles and thought I had found something suitable.  Immediately I cast on.  I did not realize my error until I had finished the hat!  I even **gasp** blamed the pattern  **shakes her head in shame**

My error came from two circumstances: first, I've been working on itty-bitty needles for a while so my tactile senses were off track; second, I misread the label in my interchangeable case.  I mistook the size 10 for 10mm.  Size 10 is 6mm.  That's a difference of 4 needle sizes!  No wonder the thing came out differently than expected.

Hubby with new beanie

Thankfully hubby took the hat for himself.  And with the frigid temperatures we've faced of late, he's been very pleased with it.

As for me, I still had another ball of bulky white in my stash, so I cast on for another beret, using another pattern ('cuz at the time I was still under the delusion that there was something wrong with the previous pattern when in fact there was something wrong with my needles).  With new pattern in hand, I finished the second hat with some modifications.  (I used the 1930s-beret and have the mods listed on my Rav page).  The second hat was more to my liking.

My New Hat

Now I can survive the wintery blast that's plagued us for the past week or so (why yes, I am counting down the days till springtime). 
Later,
;)