Pop Smear

The Pitter Patter of Little Feet

nobody@vox.com(Sarah) — Tue, 05 Feb 2008 20:37:20 +1300

When I want to make booties, I seem to go straight to this book, 50 Baby Bootees to Knit. While I haven't made anywhere near fifty pairs, I do find the patterns in this book very quick and simple, and easy to adapt.

So, in addition to the booties I made for my niece(s) offspring, and the two pairs for baby Penelope, this book has now been the source for two more pairs!

These green and brown slip-on style booties are for Helen, a friend who is due late February, early March. She's having a boy, so I figured I used up some of the green wool I ordered from Bendigo Woollen Mills last year for no apparent reason (or at least a reason that I can recall). Of course, two little slippers don't make much of a dent in a 200 gram ball of yarn, so I might have to make some adult-sized slippers for me! The undyed brown yarn is an NZ merino, from Naturally Yarns.

If you want more nerdy knitter details (and are one of the almost 76,000 registered members), you can check out the Starry Slippers and Harmonly Slip-Ons in my Ravelry projects!

Read and post comments | Send to a friend

Done: Bootees & More Knitting

nobody@vox.com(Sarah) — Mon, 13 Aug 2007 21:19:22 +1200

Two months ago I wrote that I had completed one purple bootee, and one pink bootee. And that is exactly how that project languished until the other day. Finally, however, I had two pairs of girlie bootees, all sewn up and one trimmed with ribbon.

Really, they're so quick to knit it is ridiculous that it took me this long to get around to it. It didn't help that I'm not exactly (or even approximately) sure when my step-niece is expecting to deliver, but that's not much of an excuse.

Now, I just need to package them up and send them on their way to Wellington to my brother, so that he can deliver them. Hopefully they won't still be sitting on my desk in a few weeks like last set of bootees waiting for a trip to the post office for stamps (I knew it was a bad idea to get a non-prepaid package to send)!

In other knitting news, my first ball of hand-dyed yarn is becoming yet another Calorimetry head scarf. I'm very please with how it is turning out! Socks are on the go, too.

I've invited my parents to visit me this weekend, and at this point it looks like I'll meet them in Papakura, where a Knit Out is being held. Dad has a golf thing on Friday, so they're thinking of coming down on the Saturday morning; not a lot of point them coming here from Rotorua in the morning, and then us going over to Papakura together in time for the event starting at two in the afternoon. So, I need to take a look at bus or train timetables. The last time I was on a train was a trip from Hamilton to Christchurch - I can't imagine that an hour or so away could be half as bad!

Life has been pretty quiet. My brocolli has gone to seed, I have more silverbeet than I've ever eaten, and my houseplants are still alive. I started being the "weigher" at my WW meeting. Otherwise, I'm a little sad, a little bit angry, and disappointed, but I'm OK. Knitting is keeping me out of trouble, and Ravelry is keeping me in knitting.

Read and post comments | Send to a friend

Bootee-full

nobody@vox.com(Sarah) — Sat, 21 Jul 2007 17:58:28 +1200

Textured Cuff Bootee

Now that Mena and Ben have announced their news to the world, I thought I'd better get knitting. Any excuse will do! Having seen them with a co-worker's baby last year, I think they'll be great parents. And great parents deserve handknits. ;-)

I decided to use some undyed Treliske organic merino, grown in New Zealand , because well, if the the finished products is going to travel from here, they may as well be from here!

No traditional baby colours here (pretty hard to find traditionally baby coloured sheep roaming about).The natural brown and off white will suit either sex, so they'll be easier to pass on if/when they're no longer needed. From memory, I think I knit the 3-6 month sizes, but I'm not 100% on that (and well, I'm too lazy to check right now).

Both of the patterns I used are from 50 Baby Bootees To Knit, by Zoe Mellor, though of course knit in a different yarn. It's the first time I've made the little slip on style, and I was quite happy to find that I could get a pair of them out of the leftover wool after the textured cuff bootee (it's moss stitch - or seed stitch if you prefer). I added a little strap to go around the ankle for added security, though it is removable.

Now all I need to do is pop them in the post one day soonish. I figured I'd go ahead and post the pictures now rather than later, as I've had a slow knitting week (and I might have actually done these last weekend now I think about it), and needed to post some progress! Hopefully the mail service doesn't let me down now I've declared my intentions...

I still have to complete the partners to two booties I knitted for my (step) niece, but have just learned that her due date is later than I'd originally been thinking (or not thinking). Last night I finished up a pair of cabled gloves for a friend. I hope they're not too big even for his manly hands, but if they are (or if, as I suspect, he won't wear them), I'm sure the city mission or some other such place might appreciate them. I used the yarn I'd originally tagged for my wristwarmers, which was sitting to one side after I unravelled that attempt. In other knitting news, I've worked one more square on my blanket (pitiful progress after my initial burst of enthusiasm), and the red thing is definitely a jersey (to have, all going well, raglan sleeves and a roll neck), and has progressed (now with no cabling) to just about short of the arm shaping.

Knit Rangers this week, but I don't know yet whether I'll be working on one of these unfinished projects, or the bundle of chocolatey cashmere merino I want very much as a v-neck jumper. I suspect (wrongly, most likely) that after travelling on the bus and ferry with my laptop (work continues up to 2pm, when the meeting starts) on the way there that I might feel I deserve a new project. Of course, there may be so many new faces I'll do more talking than knitting anyway... ;-)

Read and post comments | Send to a friend