tomten...

my newest inspiration from elliphantom!! Is this not the cutest toddler sweater you have ever seen?? Its an EZ pattern though which I adore, but honestly have not had the best luck with in the past. (see posts about Feb. sweater below!). But even with continuing wrist problems, this one is tempting, possibly to save for the onslaught of nieces, nephews, and friend's beautiful babies that I know is coming in the next few years.

Testing the waters using my new shozu app... But I do want to make this bitty jacket

baby D's placket neck sweater...

Okay, so I think that this is the last placket neck children's sweater I am going to attempt for a little while. I adore the pattern and it comes out so cute every time, but I'm getting a little bored with it, especially since the majority of the sweater is simply stockingnette stitch done in the round. But I thought that this was a hilarious picture of my little newphew wearing his army green version while his daddy held him up to the dinosaur at the museum last week... too cute. I'll try to post some close ups soon, but its pretty similar to little sam's sweater, just green with red buttons.

If anyone has any good suggestions for baby/children's sweater patterns I'd love to hear them, I have a few ideas on the back burner that I'm wanting to try, but I'd love some new ideas. amb

SAM...

In honor of baby Sam born July 2.... here is a picture of his gray sweater including the name tag (bob and mel, check your doorstep) .... much love amb

new finished projects...

here are a few pictures of a few tiny sweaters that I've finished lately. I really thought that I would get even more knitting done over my six week vacation from graduate school, but alas, vacation time soon fills up with many other things. I was happy to finally finish the EZ feb. sweater after the third attempt. It does have its share of visible bumps and bruises in the pattern (including an extra buttonhole I made by mistake... whoops), but it is made with love and i may just save it for one of my own babies in the future. The second sweater was made from a pattern in Joelle Hoverson's book "Last Minute Kitted Gifts" and its one of my favorites. I made one last year for my little neice M and it was a hit, so I made this little stone version in 6-12 mon. size for baby S who is due to arrive any day now. I made a cute nametag for the inside, but will reveal pics of this later because I'm not actually supposed to know his name yet... (shhhh, don't tell mom). Happy knitting... much love, amb

Bitty D

I totally forgot that I had this picture... remember the BBBB? Here's the itty bitty owner all snuggled up! I think he had just come home from the hospital in this one. I was with him the other day and he's much bigger and rolypolyish now... so cute. I'll have to post a movie of him soon. Being an aunt is absolutely fabulous! In other project news, the EZ February sweater is complete as of this morning, all ends are weaved, its just lacking six perfect buttons (I still haven't located these...) It is definitely more narrow than intended, but I picked up fewer stitches for the sleeves also, so its just a tiny sweater. I'm just praying that someone will have a little girl around October, that would be about perfect. But I did really enjoy the pattern once i got the hang of it, and I'm confident that the next try will be much quicker and without so many little "goof ups." So here's to Elizabeth Zimmerman... cool lady!

EZ sweater continued...

So I've made some good progress on the EZ feb. sweater that I started many weeks ago. After literally pulling the thing out four times, I finally finished the body and I'm working on the sleeves.  I definitely have made my fair share of mistakes, some of which are fairly obvious, but after the previously unsuccessful attempts, I was determined to create some sort of final product regardless of the condition.  I don't think that the recipient will notice the difference, and it is a tiny baby sweater after all... surely to see its share of drool and other spills, so I'm not so worried about it being perfect.  I do think that my next version will be much easier and closer to the original measurements (I ended up with too few stitches on the body making a pretty narrow little sweater), but it was a great learning experience and very challenging which made it pretty fun.  I highly recommend reading some blogs about this pattern before beginning.  If I had done this beforehand, I would have had a much more pleasant experience.  Pictures of the finished product to come! amb

EZ sweater...

So the first time I read about the EZ february baby sweater, I thought that the "EZ" was implying that it a simple little pattern perfect for beginners, rather than created by the well-known inspiring Elizabeth Zimmerman... anyways, my interest was perked none the less, and I embarked upon trying to create one of these tiny masterpieces on my own. I ordered the Knitter's Almanac, eagerly awaiting its delivery, bought beautiful jade colored yarn, and readied myself to begin... needless to say, i have not had an "EZ" time with this one. The pattern is fairly vague and leaves many things up for interpretation or guesstimation by the reader. I do not like this in a pattern, I like little tidy instructions that lead to little tiny knitted creations. I have ripped out the top of this sweater at least three times already! But I am determined not to let it get the best of me and plan to cast on again this week. Argh! Wish me luck, I'll report back soon! amb

sewing aspirations...

I've finally starting knitting again lately, inspired by actually seeing my niece running around in the tiny pink sweater I made her, and by friends asking for lessons. I love teaching people to knit, its such a great hobby... Anyways, what I've really been thinking and dreaming about lately is sewing. I've had a few small successes making baby burp clothes for the seemingly thousands of girlfriends that are pregnant right now, and its rekindled a love for the machine. I read today on the purl bee blog about oliver + s children's patterns! Sooo cute and I'm hoping a few of the babies due this summer will be girls so that I can try one of these adorable sun dresses. Check them out... way fun. amb

cutie in pink

i just received some adorable pics of my cutie neice in her pink sweater! I was so excited to see that it fit, and she may even have a few months to grow into it... this is amazingly lucky since I am not an expert in gauge by any means. And to top it off, this cute kid is going to be a big sister this year, so the list of baby gifts continues to grow and grow... i'm going to be busy busy busy!! Anyways, i thought i'd share a few shots with you. enjoy- amb

projects on the horizon...

since the BBBB was finished before the holidays, ive been in no hurry to start another large knitting project. I've been satisfying myself with tiny knitted things that can be started and finished all in one sitting. There is something very satisfying about finishing things to me, I guess its the same reason I like crossing things off of to-do lists (i've even been known to add things to the list just so I can cross them off... so sneaky!) Anyways, after the java jackets, I've made a tiny brown baby beanie for baby D and thats about it. I have about five friends due to deliver babies this spring and summer so i needing ideas for baby gifts (suggestions would be greatly appreciated in this area). So far I'm leaning towards sweaters or knitted pants rather than attempting the blankets again. I feel like if I make a blanket for one friend, I should do it for all of them, and I might not pass my last semester of OT school if i attempted that. Anyways, this is what I've thought up so far, i'm trying to even up the gender specific projects since I don't know how many boys/girls there will be... and I'm hoping none of the mommies to be know about this blog (if you do, close you ears... eyes... whatever...)

1. Another child's placket neck sweater from Last Minute Knitted Gifts (maybe in grey, yellow, green??)
2. Elizabeth Zimmerman's February sweater from Knitter's Almanac (this ones pretty girlie, but who could resist that pattern?? i love it! pic above is Elliphantom's version... adorable!)
3. Baby's denim drawstring pants (also from LMKG)
4. ?????

I need more ideas!! Anyways, I have plenty to get started on... pics on the progress soon to come, well i need to cast on first, but I'll try hard to get busy! See you soon- amb

christmas success

the java jackets or coffee cozies (whatever you want to call them...) were a big hit. I think i'm going to have to knit up several more for all of the starbucks fans in my life. So far, mom hasn't trashed either one of them, but I know the day is coming.. hehehe... anyways, i hope you all had a wonderful christmas holiday and are enjoying the calm after the storm of business... sometimes i feel in a slump after christmas, but this year i am enjoying a few days of nothingness before its back to work. if you get a minute check out my new blog and let me know what you think. goodnight to all- amb

starbucks coffee cozies...

I'm starting a christmas travel project this weekend... while the hubs and I are traveling to dallas from houston in the car, i'm going to attempt to knit up three or four of these awesome coffee cozies designed by mkcarroll. my mom and dad are avid starbucks fans, so i'm trying to adapt the pattern to be more of a sleeve than a cozy, we'll see how well it fits the cup?? Also, i'm pretty confident that mom will accidentally throw hers away after finishing her first cup of coffee, but its worth a try anyways! Merry Christmas everyone, I hope you're holidays are filled with calm moments and laughter. - amb

Molly's Sweater...

Here are a few pics of my 1st sweater, made for my niece’s 1st birthday in November. I started so long ago with no idea if I’d be able to finish it by November, but I made it just in time and the little pink thing was ready to be wrapped up before the big day. Easy pattern from Last Minute Knitted Gifts, and I’ll definitely use it again in the future. I used Cotton Fleece by Brown Sheep Company in provincial rose, and was generally happy with how it knit up. With the new nephewling due after the holidays... there may be a little orange or gray version in the near future??

the BBBB is done...

I finally finished the BBBB thanks to extra, post-finals free time lately! I don't think I'm even going to need to block it since the yarn I chose is fairly springy and holds its shape nicely. I'm pleased with the finished project, but don't think I'll be casting on another anytime soon. The patterns goes on and on and on with rows of knit and purl that are nearly mind numbing. But the overall look is really cute and perfectly boy. Anyways, hopefully I'll have several more interesting projects starting up soon, but for now, here are some pics of the process... Enjoy- amb

10 rows away...

the day has finally come... i am literally 10 rows away from binding off the BBBB I've been knitting for the new newphew due in Mar. What a great pattern, I loved how simple it was and how all of those rows of knit and purl turned out looking so cute. the yarn i used was varigated, so it actually turned out looking like a little blue camo blanket, which i think is just about perfect for the little guy. I'll post pics as soon as its off the needles! amb

holiday goodness...

check out these adorable holiday cards from magnoliamoonlight... every year i labor over my choice for holiday card, and these may just be it! I love the cute designs! I love that the holidays are still an excuse to spend time sending "real" mail for a change and i love every piece of the process from choosing, sending and receiving... so enjoy and happy holidays!

the girls...

sweater for lil' m...

my first baby sweater was a success! little mkf turned one on thursday and i received rave reviews from mom and grandmom about the little pink sweater I knit for her. I used Joelle Hoverson's children's placket neck sweater pattern from "last minute knitted gifts." After reading the errata on this pattern and only one major frogging incident, the little thing turned out pretty cute. I plan to make another smaller, yellow version for baby nephew who is due in march, and i'll probably take the advice of others and make button holes this time rather than use the small beads... they make me nervous that they could fall off and choke the poor kid. But overall, for my first attempt at a sweater, i was pleased! Pics of the babe to come! -amb

here i am...

my new blog... how exciting! I've been hoping to get this blog started for weeks, but after a sad mishap using iweb, I've decided to follow the lead of many and just get started with a free site. I hope this turns into a place for sharing ideas, patterns and stories with other knitters, seamstresses and friends. I have always loved making things and giving gifts to those I love, so welcome and i'm excited to meet you along the way.... i'll post some current projects soon! -amb