Hello, again. It's taken me a while to put together this blog. I don't have the easy access to flowers in the back yard now that everything is dormant or appears dead from freezing night temperatures. However, I did find the tiny purple violas that always come up without any care under the shrubs or in the lawn in front of the house. They pop up just in time for my birthday in February - color and flower of that month. So there is color other than brown. It's coming - Spring. Also, the shrubs have these lovely red berries, we call Toyon berries, not sure that's correct, but no matter, they're red.
On to the fiber arts - while helping her mom convalesce after surgery, my niece, D, crocheted two baby blankets. She was kind enough to send photos and info about the projects for me to share. These blankets will be donated to local Vancouver, WA - area hospitals. Some lucky mom will be able to wrap her new baby in a hand made blanket to take home.
This first blanket was made from a pattern in "Leisure Arts #3524, Crocheting for Baby", designed by Edie Eckman, and can also be found on Ravelry:
D used Lion Brand Babysoft yarn, in Twinkle Print. The border is Bernat Softee Baby, in Lemon. The yarn is doubled for both the blanket and border. She used a size K (6.5) crochet hook.
The second blanket is a Hooded Bobble Baby Blanket from Lion Brand patterns. Pattern number: cjif-bobbleBlanket. It calls for Jiffy Yarn, but D used a Pound of Love yarn, doubled, in Mint Green. Crocheted with a size K hook. D is relatively new to crochet but with the guidance of her daughter, L, she has blossomed (still thinking about Spring). Look forward to more crochet from her on future blogs.
And on to the knitting. Even though I haven't been blogging for a while, I have been knitting, but not thinking about blogging. I've made several items, two short scarves and a hat, and mailed them out before taking pictures. Hopefully, I'll be able to get pics when I see my sisters in the near future. However, I can give you the link to the scarf pattern and a photo.
http://www.bhg.com/crafts/knitting/wearables/knitted-scarf-with-slit/
I have made several of these in Lion Brand Homespun, and they are the coziest to wrap on your neck.
The hat, I also knit in Homespun - pattern can be found here:
http://www.michaels.com/Big-Twist-Hat/30242,default,pd.html
or at Michael's at the Loops & Threads display.
This scarf is knit in one of my favorite patterns, an easy Feather and Fan where I used two yarns held together and large needles. The yarns were different shades of brown in a synthetic mohair looking yarn. I've used this pattern many times. It's easy to memorize and the scarves are always lacy and impressive.
http://www.straw.com/cpy/patterns2/accessories/MochiPlus-FeatherFanScarf.html
And last - I've knitted blankets and a cozy bed for the cats. But for minipurl, a plastic bag is her second favorite place (my lap, being the first) to take a snooze. I hope this blog finds everyone well and participating in your favorite creative activities. Until next time, keep on knitting and crocheting.