Knitting: Toddler Panda Hat

We have a set of 2-year-old twins that come to our church, and I wanted to make them something for their 2nd birthday recently. This panda hat jumped out at me as I was browsing project ideas, and so I decided to do it.

I made this one using stranded knitting in-the-round, but there's a lot of yarn wasted on the inside, so I'm going to try it in a few other techniques, too. See?

It's neat, but there's a lot of yarn waste.

I'll keep you posted on any additional panda hats I make and which method seems to work better.

In the meantime, if you'd like to make one, it's a free pattern on Ravelry called Knitted Panda Hat. I don't recommend using anything from the pattern except the chart, though, since most of the comments mention how utterly huge the hat ends up being. I just made a basic hat and added the panda face chart to it.

Knitting: Garden View Shawlette

Believe it or not, I have been knitting a few things that weren't for charity, and this shawlette is one of the projects I recently finished. I made it for my mother, who tends to get cold sitting in church during the winter months.

It was my first shawl project, and I did run out of steam about 3/4 of the way through it. I suspected that I would. But I made myself pick it back up and finish it, and I'm really glad I did. It turned out beautifully.

Since most of my family isn't big on handwashing delicate items (I'm not either), I made this from acrylic.

As you can see, I laid it out on my ironing board and used a steam iron to block it. You've never heard of blocking acrylic before? Don't worry, I hadn't either. I found out about it on Ravelry and was pointed to this excellent article about it from Bead Knitter. This blocking method helped me to get it stretched to the correct dimensions - and stay there.

Here's a closeup of the leaf-pattern edging that makes this shawlette so pretty.

If you're interested in making one, it's a free pattern on Ravelry called Garden View Shawlette. It's really easy, and it's a great first shawl project.

Knitting: Ribbed "Waffle" Socks for Lesotho

I have lovingly dubbed this yarn my "skunk yarn," since the color combination reminds me of a skunk. I'm really, really hoping there are no skunks in Lesotho so these dear children don't make the same association. :)

At any rate, I made these using the same pattern as my previous pairs of Waffle Socks for Lesotho. They're fun and fast, and the pattern is easy to memorize.

Then I decided to try a variation suggested in the pattern - doing ribbing instead of the waffle stitch pattern. You might not be able to tell much difference because of the yarn I used, but you would be able to tell if they were right next to each other.

I do like the ribbed cuff for several reasons. For starters, it's a lot stretchier so it will fit a lot more feet that way. Secondly, it's even more mindless than the waffle stitch, if you can imagine that. :)

I think that's it for the socks for Lesotho, at least for this shipment. I'll probably be making more in the future.

Knitting: Hat #5 for Lesotho

This Waffle Hat was fun to make, although I goofed and didn't realize there was a separate section for the child's version until I was already 3/4 of the way through the hat.

As a result, you can see that it's a little bit long. No worries, though. The wearer can always roll up the bottom just a bit and keep his/her ears extra-warm.

Knitting: Hat #4 for Lesotho

I thought I had shared all the hats I knitted for Lesotho, but I came across a few pictures on my camera and realized I had forgotten to share a few.

This one probably doesn't look very interesting, but it's super-warm and super-soft. It's a lot like the Rib-a-Roni hat, but this one uses bulky yarn. It's really fast and easy to make, and it's a great introduction to ribbing. If you've never done it before, you'll be an expert by the time you're done with the hat. :)

Want to make one? It's a free pattern called Pro Bono on Ravelry.

Knitting: Warm Socks for Me!

I used to think that I was slightly allergic to wool because I itched so much when I came in contact with it. However, after handling non-scratchy wools, I have discovered that it's just the scratchy wool that I can't stand. What a relief! I have the coldest feet in the world (just ask my husband), and I needed something to warm them a bit. When I found a sock pattern called "Foot Ovens," I figured I had stumbled onto the perfect solution.

I was right, too! This was the perfect pattern for me, especially since I can't stand a sock that goes any higher than my ankle.

If you look closely at the heel, you can see that I didn't get my wraps and turns closed as well as I should have, but this was my first sock that utilizes a wrap-and-turn heel. The second one has no visible "holes" at the heel.

One other thing I learned from my first toe-up sock: Use a super-stretchy bind-off for the top. I didn't for my first one, and I can just barely get it on and off. I used this bind-off on the second one, and it slides on and off perfectly.

I figured that I could make myself a pair of socks with this yummy yarn and not feel guilty, since I already made a hat and two pair of socks for the children of Lesotho. Now I know just how comfy those items are going to be!

One last note: I tend to wear socks around the house instead of slippers, so I painted puffy paint circles onto the bottom of each sock as a non-slip measure. It works great, but don't try it on socks you're going to wear with shoes. I tried them with my boots once, and they didn't want to come out of the boots. :)

Knitting: Socks #2 for Lesotho

This was my second pair of socks ever, and I fell in love with this pattern. In fact, after making two identical pairs of these, I about have the pattern memorized. They're that easy. I can finish a pair of these in one day's worth of free time, if I don't have tons of distractions.

I also dearly love this wool yarn. Since it came from an unraveled thrift store sweater (which was handknit by an invidual), I have no idea the exact fiber percentages in this yarn. But according to the bleach test, this is indeed animal fiber. It's the softest, squishiest animal fiber I've felt yet (well, the baby alpaca ranks up there, too), and I loved working with it. I suspect the Lesotho children are going to love these socks!

These also have a reinforced heel, to ensure they can get lots of wear.

I've perfected the Kitchener stitch, thanks to these socks. At first, I had to watch a Youtube video or refer to a knitting book for directions on doing Kitchener, but after doing it four times (once for each sock), I remember exactly how it's done. A lot of people are scared of that stitch, but it's really no big deal once you've tried it. You just have to wrap your mind around what it is that you're doing, and then it's a simple repeated process.

I love, love, love this waffle stitch pattern for socks! You don't have to do the "knit 2, purl 2" thing for every row of the whole sock, but you do get a snug fit.


If you're interested in trying these, you can find the Waffle Socks 32 pattern on Ravelry. I highly recommend it!