Playful Stripes

I have loved the Playful Stripes Cardigan for quite some time. Now with Hannah being older and much more independent I have found a lot of time to knit during the evening. Paul thinks the colors are a bit loud but of course I think they are perfect as I chose them. When I was looking through my stash of yarn I came across this pink and white sock yarn that I have had probably since I was a very new knitter. My children would be happy if all I knit were socks for them so I figured I would make Riley happy. I love how they fit and of course when Riley put them on Jake asked where his were. So you can probably guess what my next project will be. To round out a lazy Sunday post here is a picture from the week. The older kids were watching cartoons and keeping Hannah busy so I could get a few things done. This is how Hannah usually looks when she is relaxing.

Getting My Craft On!

Paul got me a tablet book reader for Christmas. It has already seen a lot of use. Now I am not known as being careful. I am quite the opposite and horribly clumsy. I am terrified I am going to ruin this thing. I went to Barnes and Noble today hoping that there would be a Nook cover that might fit mine. Unfortunately they are a different size and the cheapest one being $20 was not that attractive. When I got home I did a search online to see if there were any I could order which again were boring and cost more than I wanted to spend. After a few minutes I thought, "I know I can make this myself". Another search and a few minutes later I found a couple of cute ideas. It is so easy!

First find a book you don't care about and remove the inside leaving the cover and spine. I found this book at a thrift store around the corner for $2. The win win about this is that the thrift store is a Christian non profit and all of the proceeds go to a local recovery center. I also dropped off some clothes that I had in my trunk forever.



I had all of the fabric on hand. I used upholstery fabric for the outside. I laid the book cover out and cut the fabric one inch larger all the way around. Then I used spray adhesive and sprayed the cover and the wrong side of the fabric and pressed the cover onto the fabric. After doing that I sprayed the inside and folded the fabric over neatly.



I then took a piece of contrasting fabric and laid it over the inside of the spine affixing the same way as before and folding the top and bottom edges under.



For the inside I cut two pieces of cardboard just smaller than the inside covers and covered them in fabric the same way.



On the right side I attached elastic around the corners to hold the tablet. I sort of wrapped it around like you would on a present and glued this on with all purpose craft glue. I then attached both cardboard pieces with craft glue and weighted the cover flat with some books.



And there you have it! I don't have a clasp for the outside at the moment. I did see one person online who found a decorative headband and used that.

More Knitting

With Hannah being so mobile I am finally able to get more done around the house and more knitting done as well. My goal is to finish projects that have been sitting for too long.

I finished Madder Ribbed Socks by Nancy Bush found in Knitting Vintage Socks. The yarn is Malabrigo Sock (one of my absolute favorite sock yarns) in the Lettuce colorway. I love this book. This is the second pair of socks I have finished from this book and they won't be the last. I have another half finished pair to finish and hopefully post soon.



Last week I finished Noro Stripey Socks. This is my first time using Noro sock and I was worried about the yarn feeling scratchy while I wore it but indeed it is not as people have told me. These socks are incredibly warm and comfortable. Perfect for winter.



Also after making such cute pants for a friend's twins who are due soon I had to make a pair for Hannah. I have so much wool lying around that was intended for soakers I figured I should use some up. These are quite big for her. I used a larger needle size because I wanted to make sure she would be able to wear them for a long time and I think these will fit her petite frame until she is three!



More to come! I still have a pair of socks that I know of that are halfway finished as well as two sweaters and one that I need to add a hood and a button placket.

Random Places Kids Sleep

A friend has this blog which I LOVE! Random Places Kids Sleep I knew I had a video of Jake and found it to send on to her. Check it out.

Knitting Knitting Knitting

I am finally getting my knitting mojo back. Having holiday bazaars and baby gifts to knit is very helpful. I have a friend who is expecting twins. She had sent me a picture of some newborn elf looking hats and was wondering if it was something I would be able to make. The photograph was crochet but I did find a comparable knitting pattern. They turned out so incredibly cute! I wish I would have thought to knit one of these for Hannah when she was a newborn.



There were also pants that she had found pictures of online here. Thankfully there was a free pattern on Ravelry (found here) that was for the most part exactly the same I just needed to stitch the eyes differently and my pants didn't have as many stripes on the legs.



The sock monkey pants were knit exactly the same I just had to leave off double stitching the teeth on and made the eyes per the example.

I have already cast on a pair for Hannah to keep for herself.

One

It is hard to believe that this...



Was once this...

Hannah celebrated her first birthday on January 5th. One seems like such a small number for everything she has accomplished this past year. One is such a small number for a person whom it seems has been with us forever. One is such a small number for a person who brings so much joy.

Happy New Year

Happy 2012! We had a whirlwind of a year with Hannah's birth and the death of our dog and my grandmother. Here is hoping that 2012 is full of happiness and good heath. I also pledge to blog more. Once a week!