No Sewing Required

I think this is the first Christmas Eve in a long time that I have not needed to still be working on a Christmas gift :)
I finished this Swaddled Baby Love on Wednesday. It's from Colin to his little cousin Brooke, he got her in the name draw. Another pattern from Anna Maria Horner's Handmade Beginnings book.

My doll doesn't look to bad here but in person it is a bit deformed and wonky looking. I hate am seriously disappointed in all/every doll/ softie I have ever made. I expect it to look like something I would buy in a store and when it turns out different then I had envisioned I am just not happy with it, sigh.  Both Brooke and Colin like the doll a lot so I don't know why it bothers me so much that I could not just give it to her. Maybe if I wasn't so worried about the opinions of the in-laws??
I was hoping that my doll would be so wonderful I could make one for Colin too. He has been really curious about taking care of baby brother and I thought this little gift was perfect for that.
I love, love the diapers. Super easy and fun to make. I got 8 or 9 from my 1/4 yard cut of fleece (enough for Colin and Brooke). Needless to say I bought a doll. I am not sure if I can explain in words what it felt like to be searching for a doll that's 1. fabric/ cloth 2. clothes came off or at least up to expose the diaper area 3. could wear the  diaper size I already made 4. could zoom or have different angels in the pictures online to see if it was possible for meeting the 3 requirements. I felt the need to tell each and every store clerk that was looking at me why I was looking under the doll clothing and had to show them my diaper :)

The doll quilt is a bit different in size then the pattern. The pattern is for a 24" x24" string quilt. I decided to do paper pieced hexagons. Why I decided to start this a few days before Christmas I do not know. A charm pack and a few scraps later and I was done. I had to go to Joann's for the binding and I was blown away by all the cute fabrics they have in the store right now. I also was shocked that this pocket looked exactly like the other polka dot print fabrics from the MoMo Wonderland fabrics.
Have I ever mentioned I love polka dot binding? Hmmm... well I do :)
The back of the quilt has a big pocket for the diapers to go in or for putting the doll in for easy swaddling.

   Just for a reminder for myself I have a picture of the pieced hexagons before cutting it down to a squareish shape of around 21". I have plans of making one for Colin with some primary solid fabrics and Japanese robot fabric I have.      
Sorry for such a long post.
Merry Christmas/ Happy Holidays,
E & the non stop kicking baby in my belly :) 

Show and Tell: Christmas

We have all been sick with a very nasty head cold. It would appear that we are all on the mend. Or so I hope.

I made Colin a Christmas bib on Christmas Eve morning before we went to my grandparents house. I used a very dark denim for the front and a super soft flannel for the back.

I still need to top stitch around the edge and sew the appliqué on (it is currently being held on with steam-a-seam).

Also, I made Colin a Crayon Portfolio adopted from this pattern.

I topped stitched around twice hoping to hide the wonkiness of my stitching.

I wanted two rows of crayon holders so I could fit 20 crayons. But the more times I tried to make the little holders the better I got. Which meant the worse the ones in the beginning looked. I can not tell you how many times I ripped it out and started over. I then finally decided to forget it and attempt a zippered pouch.

Overall I am happy with it, it is wonky but I think that adds to the overall character of it :)

I used a navy blue linen as the main fabric and a Japanese canvas for the pockets. The Sometimes Crafter's pattern was super easy to follow and had great pictures just where they needed to be.

That Darn Scarf....

Remember that scarf I was trying to figure out? Well here it is! It took a lot of thinking and thanks to Christina and to the comments from my previous post it got me on the right track. And of course as soon as I got it figured out Christina, whom was helping figure it out, emailed the talented Karin and she told us exactly what to do. Which was exactly what I had figured out and even linked to some of the same sites as I had come across. We should have emailed her sooner :)

I don't know if the gauge is right for the Anne Taylor Scarf. I have yet to see one in person. They still don't have them in the store.

The stitch is a moss stitch (on link scroll down to #4) or double seed stitch, which ever you prefer to call it :) with a "slipped selvedge" edge.

I am using size 15 10.mm straight needles with Lion Brand-Wool Ease- Thick and Quick yarn (uses 1 1/2 to 2 skeins depending on length).

A cast on of 17 stitches gives a 7" wide scarf (I knit on the tight side)

A cast on of 21 stitches gives a 8" wide scarf. I finished this scarf and made it shorter in length then the inspiration. It seemed like too much for the width and the heavy yarn.

So far I really like both of the scarves.

The Anne Taylor scarf is 74" x 6" and can be seen here.

I personal think this would make a great gift, especially if you have any last minute gifts that need to be made. It works up quickly with the thick yarn.

Tips-

*first row- knit the first stitch then begin your moss stitch

* When completing your slipped selvedge- slipping the stitch pearl wise make sure your working yarn is in the front. Otherwise you will get a bump on the edge.