Hello ... Is anyone home?

This space... a place to document my making... has no posts for quite awhile. Does that mean that there was no "making" going on? Honestly, very little happening. Let's catch up...
I have been diving into my yarn stash to keep my needles and hooks happy. There have been socks. My favorite sock pattern FRETFUL has been keeping me company. A few reds have been completed and a blue pair needs some ends weaved in.
This is Knit Picks Essential Kettle Dyed in Auburn and was gifted as soon as it came off the needles.

There have been stacks of dishcloths paired with hand-made soaps gifted to teachers. This is Vanilla Grit Stitch in Peaches and Creme.

And one lonely shawl, waiting to be blocked... This is Utsukushii using Knit Picks Gloss Fingering in Cocoa, no photos yet, it is still stuffed in its project bag.

Well there's also been a bunch of softies and some embroidery, oh and would you believe that I started a small cross stitch...but let's save those for another time.

More animals - DONE

Since there was a request made for the giraffe and the zebra, my hands have been busy. Crocheting the body parts went very quickly, however these two animals have a lot of finishing detail. Adding the fringe was my favorite part. I decided not to separate the strands, it is slowly unraveling on its own with the handling that it gets. There are patterns included in the book for the stripes and dots, but I found it was easier to cut the shapes free hand to fit...


Dots you say? Apparently, the detail on the giraffe was taking too long (over a hundred pieces in the fringe) so my son declared that his giraffe doesn't have spots and added it to his animal collection. I also decided to change the tail on the giraffe and braided six strands of yarn instead. The eyes are all French knots and didn't do any of the detailed shaping on the hooves.

The next order is in for the hippo and elephant...

The patterns may be found in Crochet a Zoo by Megan Kreiner.

Penguin - just one? - DONE

The Zoo playmat is currently being used as a jumping game. Why? Because mom hasn't made any toys for it yet. Never mind that there are other toy animals that could live on the zoo mat... It's more fun to pick a color and jump! So I took out my hooks and started the first project... A penguin - love it. It is super quick to make and adorable.

I used French knots for the eyes and embroidery thread for the detail.
It's a nice change to pick up my needle to add details to these toys.

I thought I would do a few more penguins and then work my way through the book in order, but I have a request for the giraffe and zebra next. The patterns may be found in Crochet a Zoo by Megan Kreiner.

Ferns - (another hat) - DONE

I managed to squeeze one more hat out of the skein that came with the Craftsy workshop. That will be three hats for the price of one class! Awesome. This hat is Ferns, also by Alana Dakos found in Botanical Knits 2. I wasn't giving it my full attention and had to rip back a few times to correct wayward fern leaves, but this is a fairly easy knit.

I love it!

Craftsy July Mystery Knit Along - DONE

We are on a roll! I cast on Craftsy's July Mystery Knit Along. It is a hat by Alana Dakos knit in Tracie Too Sport by Imperial Yarn. This is workshop on the Craftsy site. The pattern and yarn is included in the workshop cost. You also get access to a step by step tutorial and access to a forum with other knitting the project. I thought the yarn would be a bit more blue, but it is a pleasing gray. I have forgotten how satisfying it is to knit a hat. Such quick results! I think there will be more than enough yarn left over for a second hat.
  Here is it is before blocking. I've already cast with plans to add pattern repeats with hopes of a slouchy effect.

Fruit Stripe Gum Socks - DONE!

As soon as Fretful stepped off my needles, I cast on another sock - Fruit-stripe-gum-socks-featuring-a-spiral-rib. This time using Knit Picks Felici in Firefighter. Ooh, way softer than Patons Stretch Socks and much more fun to knit with. This is another easy to remember pattern that just seemed to knit itself. So much so, that another pair of socks has made it off my needles! Okay it still took a month, but the second side was done in less than a week. That's more like it!

I love the effect!

Fretful is DONE!

Fretful is DONE! Actually it has been done for awhile now. They were on my feet a few days after my last post. The boxy toes are not noticeable after you put them on.

The pattern in Fretful by Twisted Knitter. It is a simple pattern that has made sock knitting with a toddler possible. It really took longer than it should have because the yarn is a bit stiffer than I would have liked.