Baby Bella

Trying to get untangled

Thoughts these days have been represented in the form of lists. Lots of lists. I have lists of lists. It can be overwhelming, but my internal editor has been holding them back. My internal editor…you know. It is that voice inside my head that sort of controls which thoughts are dominant when and where. At times, it could be thought of as a bodyguard for my mind. More often it could be thought of as an enormous menace. More about the editor later.

The OCD is kicking in. I suspect a bit of ADD is also. Organization is waiting in the sidelines for the editor to let it in. The lists that come to mind, are these…..

Knitting, Knitting Stuff, Patterns, Yarn, Needles, Knitting Accessories, WIP's (work in progress), UFO's (unfinished objects), Knitting Books, Knitting Podcasts, Knitting Magazines, Books Series, TV shows, Movies, Other Podcasts, Crafts, Food, Recipes, Cookbooks, Food magazines, Dogs, Dog Training

...Dog Training, Dog Training, Dog Training

By no means are the lists limited to this list of lists. OK. Enough of that for now.

Continuing in the tangled up theme, I attempted to work on the Shetland Shorty that I was making for Chelsea. The last thing that I remembered doing was picking up the stitches for the front and collar trim. I remember that I didn't get enough stitches, but not how many stitches enough was. Not only that, I forgot which size I was making. Spaz that I am, I frogged the whole thing and started over. Now, I just want to say that I am following the pattern for the size MEDIUM. I am working my way up to the arm holes. That should teach me. It should.

Before I returned to the Shetland Shorty, I completed knitting and felting the City Bag. There is a problem with it though. I can't find a purse handle that will allow the knitted strap to go through it. The strap turned out kind of bulky. So that is where that sits. It is knitted, put together and felted. It is left with no straps and no handle.

I knit a pair of socks from last year's Rockin' Socks Club. It is the third pair from last year that I have knit. It is called the Cloning Anemone Rib made from Socks that Rock Light Weight in the colorway, Tide Pooling. I love the colors.




If I would have noticed the way the pooling was forming, I might have frogged back to before the heel flap and twisted the second sock around. Now I have blue and purple pooling on the top of the first and the bottom of the second. The gold and burgundy went to the opposite sides.


The striping is nice and I am getting better at the Kitchener stitch.

It was difficult to get a good picture of the stitch definition. It raised and depressed stitches…very 3D.

Happy New Year

My intention to refrain from knitting any Christmas presents didn't last until Christmas. I decided to knit one thing. I knit a warm hat for my dad. I don't remember seeing him wear hats. That doesn't mean that he doesn't wear them. I just don't remember seeing him wear them. This winter has so far proven to be pretty snowy, blowy and cold!




This is the hat....and the hat modelled by DH and bella Bella.It was quick and it serves it's purpose.


I had lots of this yarn left over, so I made another hat in the burgandy with gray stripes. I still have plenty left over. When Dad received the hat, I couldn't convince him that it was a beanie and was not supposed to be worn like a watch cap. He flipped up the bottom and had a few more comments about the way he was wearing the hat.

Here is the other hat. It turned out a little bigger than I had hoped. I even used a needle 2 sizes smaller. It is pretty warm though.

Projects in progress

Project One:

I have been working on some Fiddlehead mittens and have finished the first outer mitten. Since these mittens are lined, I will end up knitting 4 mittens instead of 2. It is pretty uneven. That is where the fact that I don't have very much experience in color work shows. I have high hopes for the blocking process.

If they fit when they are done, these will be for me.




I made some very nice lined mittens for Devon last year.
They were the Anemoi Mittens by Eunny Jang. They were
my first attempt at working with color and they turned out pretty good if I do say so myself. I added a fleece lining. They are very warm and soft.



Project Two:

This is the progress I have made on a City Bag from Knitting magazine - March 08. I knit a few extra rows because I got caught up in knitting it up. The stitch pattern was very relaxing to knit. The bag is going to be felted, so I have no idea what the finished size will be. According to the pattern, it will be 15in high x 19in wide. We'll see. I have had some inconsistent results since I got my new front loading washer. Anyway, Devon has already claimed this bag. If I like the results, maybe I'll make another one for myself.

This is what it is supposed to look like when it's done. I haven't seen the handles anywhere around here. I will have to look around online.














Project Three:

This is a pattern from knitty.com. It is the Shetland Shorty from the Summer 08 issue. I haven't worked on this since July. I got to the part where I will be adding the garter stitch edging on the neckline, front and armholes. I picked up the front & neckline stitches and came up way short. This shrug is for Chelsea and she won't be able to wear it until summer, so there really is no hurry.

Initial Outing

Instead of knitting Christmas gifts for half of my family I decided to start a blog. The two activities don't seem to have very much in common, but they both do take time. I just don't have as much of that as I used to . Last year I completed 8 projects. This year I am not committing myself to having anything done before Christmas. I have three projects on the needles right now, which is unusual for me. I usually concentrate on one project a time. It seems to keep me more focused in general.