Thursday, February 23, 2017

40 in 40 2017

2017
 There is less than a week until this year's 40 hats in 40 days challenge!  I can't believe that this is my 5th year doing this challenge.  My first post was WAAAYYYYY back in 2012.  For those of you who are new to this, I'll give you the run down.

During the season of Lent I make an extra effort to give back to others by creating a hat a day (except Sundays) for babies.  These hats are then donated to God's Tiny Angels, a local charity that collects hand crafted items for preemies and newborns and distributes them to hospitals all over the country. 

I try to use only free patterns available on the internet and I share them every week with you, here on my blog.  And I invite you to participate with me.  If you are already a member of Ravelry you can join the challenge board here.  If you aren't a member yet, I encourage you to join.  It is free and is a great source for patterns (free and for sale) advice, camaraderie, and assistance.  I have never found a group like it any where else.  And if you have been with me through the years you know that a LOT of my hat patterns come from the wonderful designers on Ravelry.

So dust off your hooks and needles and shop for your yarn....

Until next time,

Thursday, February 2, 2017

Off the hook....and needles

It has been so long since I have posted that I think my fingers are a bit rusty!  LOL  My first grandchild came to live with us about a year ago, which made me realize that I am not as young as I used to be!  We had to do some adjusting to our home school schedule and I had to do some adjusting to my sleep schedule and crafting fell to the wayside for quite some time.

 Now, however, I think I have found a "groove" for us and my fingers had been itching to pick up a hook or set of needles so before Christmas I managed to make a hat for 2 of my kids and one for my grandchild as well as a mermaid tail blanket.  I had forgotten what a great feeling it is when I complete those final stitches on a project!  So here is a peak at what I accomplished.



It isn't a great picture, but I hadn't really been thinking about sharing online when I was taking Christmas photos, so this is the best I got.  I was able to work it up in about a day.  I made it a few rounds longer since my son enjoys "slouchy" hats.  You can find the pattern, Bankhead, as a free Ravelry download here.












This was a fun knit project.It is called the Etta, also a free download from Ravelry.  Another horrible picture, I know.  It is knit on size 6 needles, and I used a Simply Soft yarn in brown.  I thought the finished fabric wasn't as fluid as I would have liked, but she loved it, and considering she has several brown outfits and hadn't a single brown hat, I think this worked out quite well for her!






I have to admit that this was my favorite hat this year.  I saw it on Pinterest and fell in love.  It isn't a free pattern so I spent several days searching for something similar that was free with no success.  So I broke down and purchased it.  It is called the Chouette and is also available on Ravelry.  The pattern calls for a chunky weight yarn, but I just held two strands of  Red Heart yarn together throughout.  I didn't get around to adding the button eyes before Christmas though.  This is definitely a warm hat!





This was my big project this Christmas season.  My oldest saw these all over social media and requested it for Christmas.  This one is crocheted and used 6 skeins of yarn (2 of each color).  If you can work a dc you can make this.  The designer even did a YouTube video for those who struggle with written directions!  It is a freebie also and can be found here.








My current projects include adding crochet edgings to fleece blankets that will be donated to a local foster care group and a knit shawl.  Oh how I have missed crafting!