Can it possibly be almost a year since I last updated? Yep, looks like it! Shame on me! The entries may be fewer but that doesn't mean there's no knitting going on. It was a busy year, my daughter was in a musical in the spring, then prom, her graduation from high school, planning her graduation party, then she was off to college in the fall. Not as much time for serious knitting!
I did start a cotton bag for her. Yes, I'm still addicted to bags. She loves the lovely brown, black & cream bag I knitted & felted for her, but she said it was too warm for the summer. So why not? I used some denim cotton, in a blue & pink, found a nice fun sturdy stitch pattern & off I went. I knitted the bag in the round, but I wanted it to have a more blocky shape. I ended up trimming it with a simple edging that gave it the shape I was looking for. I picked up stitches along the sides and across the bottom, conveniently sewing the bottom closed at the same time, then bound the stitches off. It made a small simple edging that I really liked. I did a full sized inside pocket, a simple flap closure & a thicker strap. I'm pleased with the result & pictures are shown above.
Next project I'm currently working on is a sweater for her as well. I found the pattern on Knitty.com & she liked it too. Of course, I didn't have the yarn called for, but I found something we both liked. Of course, it wasn't the same size yarn either, but it was okay. It called for a size 7 or 8 needle. My yarn takes a 3. No matter, I could wing it.
So I figure it out, do some swatching and...208 stitches on size 3 needles. A little daunting. But I perservered & I'm almost there. After adding the sleeves, I'm up to almost 300 stitches. Yeah...daunting! There needs to be about 5 inches above the underarm, but its taking awhile. Plus in the winter, the old hands ache, so its been slow going. I can't wait to see it on her, though!
Speaking of the brown/black/cream bag...my daughter waswalking through the mall with it. A girl came up to her & said she LOVED the bag & wanted to know where she BOUGHT it! My girl proudly told her "My Mom MADE this!" Yep, I'll take that as a huge compliment!
Hopefully more to come soon!
