I was on a tight deadline to complete another Montavilla market bag -- a birthday present for my friend Norma. I must admit, as much as I bitterly complained about making the first one, with the four balls becoming entangled even with the use of my knitting nest, it was much easier the second time around. Of course, I feel I must prove that I DID "knit one, give one" as the kit suggested, so here is my photo of the two bags. The one on the left is the one I made for myself, stretched out because I have been using it, while Norma's is on the right.
I did meet my deadline and even was able to make a Loofah Scrubbing Mitt as part of the gift package. Norma said she may even use it -- which is a reference going back to the Peacock Lace Washcloth I knitted for her around twenty years ago. It was a lovely pattern and the rage at the time it appeared in Knitters magazine. I used a sturdy Egyptian cotton which allowed for great stitch definition. Norma took one look at it, loved it and said -- "but of course, I can't wash my face with this -- it's a work of art." To this day, it remains unused! Since the loofah is more utilitarian, I'm hoping Norma will soap it up and use it!
I've also been hard at work on the baby gifts for Tara's twin boys, who are expected in September. Tara is an assistant at Millburn Veterinary Hospital, where all the feline members of the family are treated. So far, two hats and two booties are completed and I'm at work on bootie number three. At this point, I have a good chance of being finished before the babies are born. My goal is to have the present ready when Delta goes for her checkup on August 14th!
The yarn is Dream Baby which I got on sale at Accent on Knits before it moved to its new quarters (reopening this weekend, YIPPEE!!!). The hats were done using Anne Budd's basic hat pattern from her Knitters Handy Book of Patterns. It was the first time I've used this pattern -- I tended to use Anne Nordling's Fruit Hat pattern in the past, which called for a sport weight yarn and a specific gauge. The Budd book allows you to use whatever gauge your swatch turns out to be -- a much easier approach. I also made my own finish at the top: a two inch I-cord which I tied into a French knot and tacked down.
The booties, on the other hand, are a tried and true pattern from the KnitList. I began using more than fifteen years ago, when people shared knitting patterns through email lists. When there were finally browsers, Knitlist patterns became part of Woolworks. I first made the booties for my goddaughter Emma who celebrated her 15th birthday last month! The pattern is called "Jane's Baby Booties" and I actually copied it into a Word document and carry it around on my PDA for easy reference.
My charity knitting has been moving along, too. Last Saturday was a meeting of the Trinity Knitters. I worked on my crocheted shawl in black, gray and white. I hope to have it finished before the next meeting and then move on to a hat to match my Seaman's Scarf.
More to come tomorrow on the books that have cut into my blogging time and my book shopping spree at KnitPicks!
No comments:
Post a Comment