FullOfStitches.com blog.A good laugh leaves me in stitches!

I was looking for a Santa Hat pattern, but most are knit flat or use weird chunky yarns. I based this off the Lion Brand pattern. My hat fits a toddler or young child
This is knit in the round:
CO 46 sts of white yarn (mine is a chunky weight fluffy yarn)
Knit even for 6 rnds
Knit main color, increasing by 10 sts evenly (I used 2 strands of Red Heart Shimmer yarn) – knit even until colored area is 4”
(decrease 8 sts, knit 4 rnds even) repeat until 8 sts remain. Knit 1 Rnd even; k2tog around; cut yarn and close top. Sew in loose ends.
For a baby, I’ll aim for 40 st brim, 45-50 st top; for an adult probably 55-60 st brim & 65-70 st top.

I’m working on a sweater for T.J. I started it New Year’s Eve last year and set it aside. A couple times, I picked it up again and now it’s past the yoke..

Wednesday, TJ had an ortho appointment. My MIL took him and the older girls, leaving MissC and I at home. We slowly walked over to the coffee shop, about 1/3 of a mile. We drank our coffee (half-caff) and finally meandered back home. Within a couple hours, my lower back and hips were sore.

Thursday, I awoke stiff. Barb took TJ to class and the three girls and I walked Ben to the coffee shop. I had MissA push the stroller on the way there. MissB decided to ride and MissC pushed most of the way back. My hips ached and the joints were freezing up all day.

Today’s Friday, and I woke with comfortable hips! I was planning on being able to walk to the coffee shop today originally, but we’ve decided to check out the gardens at the Winchester House instead. I haven’t been there yet, so I’m looking forward to our trip (and hoping they have benches so I can rest between gardens).

I should be knitting.. Today was not a knit-friendly day, though. MissC came down with a stomach bug yesterday and has been in diapers for the day! That got me to finish replacing snaps to old diapers and adding snaps to ‘new’ diapers (are they still new if I made them just before the last child was out of diapers and ended up not needing them fully useful till today?). A few days and she’ll be out of diapers again.. But, now we’re prepped for emergencies.

Ben and I were reading where some of the Christmas traditions come from. We haven’t decorated much in the past. Maybe some lights and always the nativity scene. This year, we read the story of Christmas stockings. A few days ago, he told the children to make stockings. I had MissA working on the knitting loom, but I only had the mitten set and it was coming out the size of her foot. So, we bought a new set and started MissB on that. But, she has a minute attention span and the others were hoping she’d get her stocking done so they could do theirs. Needless to say, it’s Christmas Eve and we’ve no stockings.

Out came the handy tub of fabric. The children chose as simple/plain a fabric as there was. MissC took a lengthy nap, so we had time to make a pattern from a pair of Daddy’s socks (placed next to each other, traced, then evened the lines -seam allowance was considered included). MissB sat on my lap and pulled pins as I sewed hers. MissA pinned hers, sewed the straight lines, then pulled the pins as I sewed the curves. MasterT made his stocking himself. I added the hanging loop, otherwise it was his project.

I’ll have to put their names on them before I put them away!

Sunday night, T.J. was goofing around on the bunk bed and smacked his hand pretty hard. He showed it to me and there was a scratch on one finger and slight swelling on his knuckle. He washed it, iced it, and went to bed. Next morning, he showed me a well bruised and swollen pinky. Dr didn’t open till 9AM, so we went to piano lessons as usual (he had one of his best lessons ever attitude-wise, go figure), and I arranged the appointment.

The x-ray showed a fracture at the very base of his pinky-finger bone, but the hand itself is just fine. He gets to wear a splint for about 3 weeks.

In knitting news, I’ve started on Christmas gifts. I made my first hat the other day (still haven’t taken a photo yet) and was happy with how quick and simple they are! I thought, “Wow, a hat every other day would get gifts done for our family,” and started knitting from stash. Then I came across the Shark Hat pattern. What boy doesn’t want his hat to look like it’s eating his head? I bought some Cascade 220 Superwash (in Blueberry, they didn’t have a blue-grey in superwash) and cast that puppy on! I followed the directions and it looked really weird. I looked through the Ravelry entries and found the problem, no plain knit rounds were indicated between the increases! As is, the tail turned out rather stubby and the increases left a line of almost-eyelets down the back “seam”! Also, I measured the depth and from the last increase to the bindoff of the red was 9 inches.. And, I’m using a lighter weight yarn. I’d already seamed the dorsal and sewn on the tail, so I ripped back to the last round of 10 stitches and reknit it, adding rounds to the tail, removing some from the body, and moving the dorsal fin. I’ve just finished to the gums again and have to get to bed.

When I get up, I’m going to bake the last couple gingerbread houses because the homeschoolers are coming over to put them together at 10AM.

MissA said to us, “The wind is cold, it’s a good day to stay inside and knit.” As I looked over her Daddy’s work. I smiled and agreed as I continued my crocheting. He worked away, checking on the Yarn Harlot video for speed techniques and picking my brain when he somehow increased nearly threefold in just 3 inches of work. I let him know of the “World’s Fastest Knitter” videos that I’d seen on youtube.

Friday night, I started and was working on a poncho for MissC when Ben got home. I finished it while he watched a couple TV shows. I tried it on her and it fits fine, a little loose, but I can’t find my camera. Again. I haven’t seen it since our Thanksgiving trip.

Today, I started a pattern, but found I was short on yarn (I’m trying to make presents from stash), and started the search again. I came up with the Cute Kid’s Ponchos from Crochet Fantasy (Spring 2005), -the pink one- and have the first 2 repeats done. Just four to go, then the short rectangle and sew two pieces together.

I also started a poncho for me. From Snappy Wraps to Crochet, the one on the front cover. We’ll see when I get that done with needing to make two more children and maybe the man a gift..

I tried the pattern from the book and liked it, but it’s too narrow for my hand, so I know it’ll be too narrow for his shortly. Then, the book was overdue at the library (I’m one of those who keeps the library in business), so I returned it and haven’t picked it up again yet. I was flipping through my books and magazines to see if I have a mitten pattern that’s boyish enough and came across the Peruvian Hat in Knit.1 (Spring 2006) (link to pic of the only one on Ravelry) which has people kicking a ball. Perfect! This will be his mitten!

I started off with the cuff from Women’s Norwegian Mitts pattern. And am using the palm chart from Glittens pattern. I’m hoping to add a sun to the top of the back, I’m thinking of using the boy/girl pattern for the top of the palm side. After all, if I glitten them, will any of this patterning I’m adding to the back of the hand show much of the time?

Yes, if you were wondering, my children do fight. This morning, I grafted the toe of the first “Little Guys” sock (from Cool Socks!) and sought a foot it would fit. I compared to a pair AJ just outgrew and decided on BB. MissB was SO happy to try it on and wouldn’t take it off till MissC started in on her.. Then she had to hide and protect it.. So, now I’ve got to finish the second one and see if I can squeeze a smaller pair from any remaining yarn for MissC!

As the Mad Hatter might say.

Sock shots:

Gotta love it when the socks fit the shoes. These slouch just slightly in that lacey panel above the ankle, so I know they’ll sit just inside the tops of my boots.

Yarn: 2 hanks Lorna’s Laces Shepherd Sock, color: Douglas Fir.
Pattern: Scherherazade’s Slippers, September 2007 Mystery Sock, from Maia Spins. I think I bookmarked this pattern the moment I saw it.

I cast on (according to my Ravelry notes) on March 27, and I bound off just before midnight Sept 26. Ben came home to me trying to do a photoshoot with the camera’s timer function and gave me a hand with the back of the leg and boot shots.

Why not? I need a new one and, well, it’s a contest (which I generally don’t win, but might as well let it be known in case you win these things occasionally). Handbag planet is having a contest for their opening, and I’ve got no affiliation, but for writing this I get extra entries toward potentially winning one. Enter, let it be known, lower your chances, too! Have fun, it’s the spirit of contests, yes?