A Little Honey...For a NOT-So-Little Kid!

So....some firsts!  My first time using Hedgehog Fibers (FB page), first time knitting a fingering weight sweater for Camden and possibly my first time knitting an Amy Miller pattern!

Basically, I'm saying this sweater is awesome!

Seriously, I WISH y'all could see this sweater in person!  It's not my first time using either Voolenvine Yarn (FB page) or Gnome Acres (FB page), but those are naturally also still glorious.  The Little Honey is glorious and soft - and I would love to steal it for my very own :O  The Voolenvine was in the Nevermore colorway, and I actually used some of the Violet from my Bon Bon Bunny Gnome Acres Doppelganger set.

This sweater was NOT a planned knitting project for the new year...yet here we all are.  I decided I wanted to take some chances - and throw a wrench into my planning for the winter - by joining the Honey KAL in the This Old Knit and Yarngasm Ravelry groups.  I figured I HAD to have two skeins of fingering weight yarn that would go well together...and I did!  Yay for me!  I was doubly excited because I hadn't yet knit with one of my several skeins of Hedgehog Fibres, so, it all worked out well.

I naturally encountered some problems when starting out...why wouldn't I???  I thought I totally had gauge on one needle size, but it turned out, a few good inches in that it was all a LIE and that I was knitting too tightly...which was fine, so, I bumped up what I THOUGHT was a needle size or two - but what was REALLY a size 4.  I have no idea how that happened, but I kept questioning why my fabric was so loose, LOL.  It turned out there was a reason.  Ugh.  So, I moved back down a needle size, but then I also remembered that I'd planned on casting on for the size 4/5, rather than the 6/7, because of the positive ease...and apparently, I forgot.  So, I knit along on the size 6/7, thinking it'd be way too large...and it actually fits super well - yay once again!  She definitely has some room to grow, length-wise, so, I hope it continues to fit well in the shoulders when it fits better in length.  My project page is here.

I was worried, too, that I'd run out of yarn, which is why I used the Gnome Acres in the collar and cuffs.  I partly did the cuffs, too, when I realized it'd look cooler if I knit them in purple...as it turned out I had enough yarn, after all, between the other two skeins.

Awww, she came in at the camera, and I liked the result, LOL

The pattern is well-written and simple, though I do wish it had short row shaping at the neck.  I clearly could have tried to work that in, but eh....effort.  You can see I totally skipped out on knitting the pockets, because I knew they wouldn't be used, per se, and I didn't want any heavy things inside the pockets, weighing the sweater down.  And, well...yarn worries, aha!

A pose she needed to do, apparently ;)

Anyway, snafus aside, it's lovely, and I'm glad I'm DONE.  I put pressure on myself to knit this semi-quickly, and my hands are broken souls.  Camden loves, it, though, which is awesome!

And....days in the life.....

As a homeschooling mom, I have NO idea what I'm doing

Their little role-playing people

I spend $6 at Joann Fabrics for quickie activities!

Aww, a Berenice and Camden's old Owlet, passed on!

Mad skillzzz with Valentines!

This kid NEEDED a cut!

Adding embroidery to his sword jacket

A Scarf, a KitKat Hat AND Deep Stash: Things Which Never Happen

It's incredibly exciting when a knitter digs deep into her stash and pulls out yarn which needs to be knit up.  I can officially say I've experienced that.  I truly think this pattern and yarn were both purchased within the first few months of learning to knit, and I'm happy to report the final product is something Camden loves!

Honestly, I told myself a couple-few weeks ago that I just need to get this yarn OUT of my stash and git 'er done/used it. I have a few other skeins of yarn that I just wish were NOT there, so, I need to think how I can best use them, also....maybe a baby sweater for the future niece!  I bought the yarn seven or so years ago during a Friday night market event.  The vendor was positioned outside of the LYS (which no longer exists), and for some reason, I thought it was something I would like for myself.  I totally can't imagine that at ALL right now.  I'd never make this sort of purchase nowadays, but thankfully, I figured Camden would be into it, if I knit it for HER.  The vendor at the time was called Material Whirled but is now called Peculiar Ambitions and now seems to sell knit items on Etsy.  I think I bought the supplies all as a kit, of sorts.

I started this project, the Stop, Drop and Weave Scarf, on Thursday last week, I believe, and I finished it up last night, which was a relief, as I already wanted it off the needles, aha!  It was supposed to be six feet long (well, I swear the paper pattern says this, but Ravelry says four feet), but I'm sure my row gauge was tighter than what the designer, Angela Place, envisioned, so, it came out to less than four feet.  It was lovely to work on while driving out to the coast with friends and hanging out for the weekend.

This was clearly a super simple project - probably not worth multiple paragraphs of writing.  I was surprised by how much I liked the finished object, and Camden thinks it's great, which is always appreciated.

And....I had a lovely, quick weekend at the beach.  We became hilarious weather forecasters and played a lovely game of Cards Against Humanity...all while stuck inside, due to the neverending rain.

Deep sea divers....obviously

I made the KitKat Hat by Andi!

Our traditional running photo

I maybe put ONE in the hole....and almost had to throw down with someone :O

Everyone made it!

Awww, years past!  I didn't attend Beach Weekend 2015, though!