Work in Progress Thursday

On October 4, 2018October 4, 2018 By FogKnitsIn cross stitch, Misc, Toy, WIP4 Comments

‘What have you been up to?’ is such a generic question. It’s in line with ‘How are you?’…it’s hard for me to be anything but dismissive, when faced with such questions. I haven’t been at work at all week. I don’t know what I’ve been doing. Am I supposed to actually stop and think about it and then recount all the things I’ve done this week? Funemployment is different every day and remembering is hard work, okay?

Thank goodness for the iPhone…how else would I know what I’ve done? Photo stream to the rescue! I don’t have to remember what I’ve done…there’s pictures of lots of it!

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And, that’s not all…My Dragon Fade shawl is finished! Mostly…I’ve still got a few ends left to weave but I’ve been wearing it anyhow! Pics tomorrow! It’s gorgeous…I love it!

FO Friday -Nephew Care Package

On August 10, 2018August 10, 2018 By FogKnitsIn cross stitch, FO Friday, Hat, Toy15 Comments

My little nephew Marcus is 4 weeks old today! Wooo! He’s such a sweet little thing. It’ll be a while before I get to meet him so I’m sending him a long distance hug, in the form of yarn, naturally.

I’m so excited about everything in this pile. A dinosaur birth announcement. An ‘only in San Francisco’ onesie. I didn’t make it but I love the tripping hippie vibe. It’s the kind of thing you can only get from your crazy California aunt!

Found on Etsy. Added the text myself.

Then there’s the cat toy mushroom rattles, such fun! The pattern is from Purl Soho’s blog. A great little stash buster project with super results. (disclaimer: my yarn and gauge is completely different, so these are actually a heavily modified version of their pattern, if ya know what I mean.)

Then, there’s the hats. Even though it’s still August, I’m sending five hats. Might as well teach him young, this is what I do. I hope you like wearing hats, kid! I’m making them regardless.

These came from the knitting Olympics back in February. It’s such a fun collection. I’ll never stop making goofy hats but now is really my time. He won’t be wearing goofy hats forever!

And finally, Baby’s Second Blanket. He got the first one before he was born, a cotton blanket for summer. This is one is the wool blanket for cooler days. It’s the true pièce de résistance…

A Honeycomb blanket, complete with fringe.

I knit it as a tube, to avoid purling and then cut it open. Using the cut edges to create fringe, I avoided the dreaded end weaving. After that, I added an applied i-cord to the top and bottom edges. and POOF! An Heirloom was born!

I hope Marcus likes it. Obviously I made something I like but I thought about him a lot too. I picked colors with high contrast and textural interest so it can help his little eyes develop. The fringe is for a tactile experience, something for his little fingers to figure out.

It’s pretty amazing to see how much he’s changed already. I can’t wait for the all the developmental challenges to come. I totally appreciate being a casual observer to the miracle of life. Human bodies…wow!

..AND, I have plenty of yarn left for all those amazing occasions. 5 Skeins of Miss Babs Yowza is gonna get me a lot of coordinating accessories. The blanket put a dent in it, but just barely. It’s time for sweaters and an army of stuffies!!

Welcome to the world, little Marcus. You have a crazy knitting aunt (and that is the best kind!!)

The Making of a Monster

On March 22, 2018March 22, 2018 By FogKnitsIn Toy, WIP6 Comments

The time has come. I’m no longer talking about knitting monsters. I’m actually knitting them! Yay! This is Kevin. He’s going to be a pocket monster. Eventually, there will be sweaters and blankets with pockets for Kevin to live in. He’s going to get a whole bunch of friends too. They’ll get pockets too! Pockets & Friends and Friends & Pockets! I love the whole thing.

I am a little stuck right now though. Monster faces are hard. I’ve eliminated buttons, safety eyes and other sewn on items (like felt or bobbles). This leaves me with embroidery options. And they have not gone well. The eyes are proving difficult.

I tried duplicate stitch. It was dreadful. I tried some plain X’s. That’s not the thing either. Kevin isn’t dead.

Satin Stitch is next on my list of things to try. I’m not optimistic. My embroidery skills are nil. At this point, everything goes in and out through Kevin’s crotch. It’s a real challenge to manipulate embroider in a tight space with barely any access. So I’m taking a little break before I attempt the eyes again.

I’m pleased with my crooked little mouth, though. I can do intentionally askew. That’s completely my speed! He’s gonna be so cute when (if?) I get the eyes right!

May The Fourth Be With You

On May 4, 2017 By FogKnitsIn Crochet, FO Friday, Toy3 Comments

Happy Star Wars Day! and May the Fourth be with you!

My intergalactic amigurumi crochet collection is growing! I gotta say, I’m happy to see this Stormtrooper killed. He’s kind of a reject anyway. If Yoda didn’t do it, Vader would have, soon enough.

While he does look more like a Stormtrooper than a Village Person, he’s a summary of everything I dislike about making stuffies. He’s just a bit off.

At least he’s less phallic than when he started. It makes me wish Rebecca Danger wrote a Star Wars book. I love her toy design. Her pieces aren’t sewn together but rather, picked up and worked more continuously.

That said, if you’re good at tiny finishing and you like fiddly bits, this is the book for you! Rumor has it, you can find it at Costco these days.

I’m not letting the dark side win, I’ll be back to crochet another day. For now though, I’m just going to enjoy a day filled with nerdy puns—and KNITTING!

May The Fourth Be With YOU!

Friday Photo Dump

On April 7, 2017April 7, 2017 By FogKnitsIn FO Friday, Misc, Scarf, Shawl, Toy, Yarn3 Comments

Hoooooray for Friday! I’m very excited to get some knitting done this weekend! In the meantime, here’s a random bunch of pictures I took but haven’t shared yet!

First, some yarn my Mom dyed for me recently! The olivey green is going to become a felted hat with a wide brim. The color has a lot of depth to it, lots of gold & mustardy tones to it. Hopefully that’s not lost when it’s felted.

The multi is a special handspun yarn I got in Iceland. Not sure what to do with it yet. Something for the torso I think. It’s the soft part of the Icelandic wool, next to skin softness for sure!

Next, my little Yoda, done he is!

His friends will be joining him soon.

My latest foray into beading. The beaded part was lots of fun! I didn’t even mind the pre-strung business. It’s tough on the yarn but it’s way less fiddly that stopping to pick up a crochet hook every time you place a bead. Now it’s just slogging through a regular old scarf. No bells or whistles to get excited about. Oh well, that is what I signed on for after all…

And last but not least, the sequence knitting shawl has been getting lots of outdoor love with spring springing so much in the recent weeks! I’m really looking forward to wearing this one. If all goes according to plan, I predict I’ll love it!

Hope you all have a beautiful weekend filled with lots of knitting! Only a couple hours to go, I’m confident I’ll make it…

Last Minute Halloween Costume

On October 29, 2016October 29, 2016 By FogKnitsIn Crochet, FO Friday, Hat, Toy4 Comments

Who doesn’t need a last minute Halloween costume?? If you’ve got a crochet hook and a bit of green yarn, I’ve got your solution!

It’s a Brain Slug! (which is pretty much what it sounds like.)

It’s a free crochet pattern. You can find it here!

I whipped this little fellow up in a couple hours. Using the safety eye was genius…It’s holding the white of the eye in place as well. No Sew Eye! And he’s sitting on a skinny little headband, just slipped the headband through his stitches and slid him into place! No sewing there either!

Honestly, I didn’t even sew the antenna, I just pulled their ends through and tied them. I even left the ends uncut on the inside…it’s just more stuffing!

I doesn’t get any easier! There’s still time…you could have a costume for that party tonight!

IF…you have the right stash.

(Really, this is a post about stash justification. It only works if you’ve got the right stash. How do you know if your stash is right? You don’t. You’ve gotta collect all the yarns. See?? Proof right here! It’s on the internet, it must be true!)

Happy Halloweekend!!

FO Friday -It’s a girl!

On August 5, 2016 By FogKnitsIn FO Friday, Hat, Toy11 Comments

With the excitement of a new baby close to home, I wasn’t knitting for a far away baby. It probably helped that far away baby was gender neutral until birth! Imagine that, some folks still like to be surprised at delivery?? I have horrible impulse control, no way I would have been able to wait that long.

The wait is over…It’s a girl! Trillium has arrived and she’s beautiful! I whipped up a quick hat, inspired by her name.

Although, perhaps, it may be a stretch to call a literal representation of something inspiration. In any case, I didn’t know Trillium was a flower. Imagine my delight at finding out it’s an easily knit flower! A Chrysanthemum hat would not have happened!

And then, I had to make something for Trillium’s new big sister! As a kid, I really loved getting presents on my sister’s birthday. Presents for everyone. Who can argue with that? Plus, new knitting is always more exciting than old knitting. So big sister got a monster!

Find the specific details on my Ravelry pages…

Trillium Hat –

The hat is a pattern I concocted myself starting with a picot cast on. The flower is a free pattern with some modifications.

Blue Monster –

This guy is a Rebecca Danger monster. He’s mostly Lydia or Lucas. Her designs are super fun to modify. The options for mixing and matching monster limbs and bodies are endless! This will not be my last monster. Stash busting and instant gratification! Yay!

And now, to prepare for the Ravellenic Games cast on! I still haven’t fully decided what I’m doing. Egads! Time to decide!