Brittany Square Hat

Brittany Square Hats for Babies

Materials:

1 skein Caron Simply Soft Paints in Rainbow stripes

Size 6 (4mm) 16” circular needle
Size 6 (4mm) double pointed needles
Stitch marker
Yarn needle

Gauge: 2” = 12 stitches

Cast on 66 stitches. Join being careful not to twist the stitches.
Brim: K1 in twisted stitch, P1 for 1 inch. (Twisted Knit: Knit into the back of the loop.)

Next row: Continue knitting in the round until piece measures 5”.

Final row: Using a DPN, knit 33 stitches. Using another DPN, bind off using the three needle bind off method. If you don't know how to do a three-needle bind off, there are many videos and instructions by just googling it.

Cut yarn, leaving an 8” tail. Cut yarn, thread through the remaining stitches and secure tightly.  Weave in ends.

Add small pompoms in different colors on each end. 

Babies Hats for Someone's Babies

I have been on a baby hat kick lately. No, there are no grandchildren in my immediate future; I just wanted to do a bunch of small projects that I can do quickly. I plan on giving them away to hospitals for their newborn and preemie baskets.

I use both worsted weight yarn and sock yarn. I just change the number of stitches and the size of the needles. I have also frogged a few that just weren't coming out right. One of my guidelines is using basic stockinette stitch when I have striped yarn and a single color if I want to do a more complicated pattern. Every now and then, I think that I can get away with both, and occasionally it works. However, not recently.

I also plan to post the patterns here over the next few days so check back if you want to make any of your own. So enjoy!

Cat or squirrel? Cat or Pirate?

I have told you that Wookie is a magic cat. Here is her imitation of a squirrel.

She is actually playing with a crumbled piece of paper but the effect is the same.

Not to be outdone, here is Omi's impression of a pirate. She's a real chAAARGHacter.

Free Lacy Scarf Pattern -- the Diva Scarf

The DC Divas and Hubbies.
Back row left: Tom and Susan Littman,
Paul Sanzo, Me and Ken.
Middle row, Katy Hoxworth,
Mo Sanzo
Front row: Tom and Linda Pelo

When my sons were in high school, they were very active in both music and theater. Since we were active parents in our kids' lives, we fed marching band kids and sold theater tickets. I even went to Scotland with Lorne's high school theater group to play the piano for their musical when they performed at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival. They made life-long friends, but as with all of us, once they went to college and lives as adults, they didn't always keep in touch.

While they were making life-long friends, so were Ken and I. I became friends with parents of my sons' friends as well. However, even though our kids scattered to the winds (from New York to California), we, the mothers, decided we enjoyed each other so much, we were going to stay connected in spite of our kids.

That was several years ago. Now, about every six weeks, our group, which we call the DC Diva (Douglas County Divas), get together for a potluck at one of our homes. We celebrate all the weddings and personal accomplishments of our kids but are also intricately entwined in each other's lives. There are five of us, with a combined number of 8 kids.

So I wanted to make special gifts for my friends. I started in August and finished five of them by November. It is a wide scarf so it would be a shawl as well. I used Loops & Threads Woolike yarn and in several colors. The Divas got to pick their colors. Mo took the the purple, Katy took the red, Linda the blue and Susan the rose. I kept the maroon for myself.

So here's the pattern:

Mo modeling the purple scarf

The Diva Scarf

A couple of things about the scarf. I used 72 stitches because the yarn I used is lace weight. You can use any yarn in your stash but you will need to adjust the number of stitches and the length of the scarf. The only thing you need to have is a number divisible by 3. 

MATERIALS
2 skeins Loops and Threads Woolike (85% Acrylic; 15% Nylon, 620m/678yds))
Size US 9 (2.75 mm) circular or straight needles

Yarn needle

Gauge: Not applicable

Size: Not applicable

Cast on 72 sts.

Work in garter stitch (knit every row) for 6 rows.

Row 1: K3 (Edge), *YO, K1, YO, k3tog* to last three stitches. K3.

Row 2: K3, P to last three stitches. K3.

Row 3: K3 (Edge), * k3tog, YO, K1, YO, * to last three stitches. K3.

Row 4: K3, P to last three stitches. K3.

Continue Rows 1-4 for desired length (I consider a good length the height of the person who will be wearing the scarf)

Work in garter stitch (knit every row) for 6 rows.

Happy 2019! My Resolutions -- or How Long Can I Last?

Do you realize that New Year's Day is probably the only worldwide holiday? Think back  to all the holidays you celebrate during the year. 

We have religious holidays such as Christmas, Easter, and Passover, but these are acknowledged by people of certain faiths. We may all get the day off at Christmas, but it isn't celebrated by everyone. Many other countries celebrate these holidays too, but it is not universal across the world.

Then we have the national holidays here in the US: Independence Day, Labor Day, and Memorial Day. Our banks are closed and government offices don't answer the phones, but cross the borders to Canada and Mexico or cross "the pond" to Europe, and they are going about their business as if it wasn't a day off. Last year, Ken and I were in Denmark for the 4th of July, and we didn't hear or see a single firecracker.

And you can't count Thanksgiving either. Canada has a Thanksgiving but it is in October, not the fourth Thursday in November. You may want to try to cite some of the shopping days such as Black Friday or Cyber Monday, but I know many men (such as my husband) who refuses to acknowledge such a holiday too. Actually even I don't shop on Black Friday. I consider it a day for amateur shoppers.

So that leaves New Year. We watch the new year march in across the globe with every top-of-the-hour countdown from New Zealand to to Hawaii. Fireworks blast from the Eiffel Tower to the Pyramids. 

So it doesn't matter where you are from, I hope you have a wonderful and prosperous New Year. I want everyone to success and be happy.

So here are some of my resolutions for the new year.

1. Lose weight. I know, I know, this is on everyone's list and by the first of February (or even sooner) it is forgotten. However, I already have a head start on this. I had surgery in October for some female stuff and I feel much better. Since mid-October, I have lost 20 pounds. I still have a long way to go, and 20 pounds is similar to taking a cup of water out of a bathtub, but I am feeling like this might actually work. Ken and I are both just "eating health" as opposed to dieting. We are followed Dr. Joel Fuhrman's program of "Eat to Live" which is beans and greens. I don't feel hunger or deprived because we can still have some sweets and meats. I will keep you advised on my progress. 

2. Knit more. I shouldn't even have to put this on the list, but there you go. I have started knitting baby hats to donate to the local hospital and take some of my other hats and scarves to a shelter too. I have so much stash that I need to use it up.

3. Buy less yarn. Speaking of stash, I have so much yarn that I could even start to make a dent if I needed to. So I will buy less yarn. Even if I go a yarn store, I often find myself saying "I already have something like this." I will still go to wool fairs and explore new books, but no more buying.

4. Buy less. And leading into that point, Ken and I are buying less. Less clothes, less junk, less stuff.  We spend a good two months a year or so ago, we destashed our house. We donated tons or clothes, furniture, small appliances, books, and even office supplied to ARC. We just refinanced our house and have more money every month, but we don't need anything. Actually between our Social Security and our rental incomes, we are making more now than we ever made working. Retirement is great.

5. Travel more. Although we took a month long trip to Europe last year, we are getting the wanderlust again. A month is too long however. By the last week, all I could think of was home, so we will limit out trips to 2 to 2 1/2 weeks. We are thinking of the Pacific Northwest again, and maybe going to New England in the fall. We even have Australia and New Zealand on our bucket list, but not this year.

6. Cuddle my cats more. This one will not be hard to accomplish.

7. Spend more time with my sons. Also not too hard to accomplish. It will mean going to Fort Collins more and a few trips to California, but that is great.

8. Read more. Since I read over 60 books last year, maybe I should scale this down to keeping even. I use GoodReads to track my books, and visit my library more than once a week.

9. Move more. This will be the hardest to keep up with. I hate exercise but if I just concentrate on just walking or moving, maybe I'll do better. Since I am already losing weight, maybe this will just come naturally.