Just a dream and the wind to carry me, soon I will be free.

Can you tell we went sailing yesterday?  One of our friends from work and his wife have a big Hobie, so we all went out for the day.  It was a lot of fun, but I might have gotten a little sun...

Anyway, this week I'm gearing up to go to a friends baby shower.  I'm fairly certain the friend who's shower it is doesn't read this, but just in case, Jenda, should you be reading this, here is your spoiler alert.

I debated for days on what to get her, and I decided to try to be crafty about it:

 I saw a 'quick change' project on Pinterest and knew I had to make it.  The idea is that you make a bunch of drawstring bags, and inside each one your put a diaper, some hand sanitizer, and some wipes so that mom can throw a quick change bag in her diaper bag and have a quick way to change the baby.  The only problem is, I can't really sew...  Ronnie is really handy with the sewing machine though, so he did most of the work for me.  I used this tutorial here.

I wanted to put numbers on each bag, so she would know when she gets to the last bag, it is time for her to refill them, but the shower is tomorrow and I still haven't gotten around to it.

I also knit her a little sweater.  It's really cute, but the way the sleeves were finished was kind of annoying.  I hope it fits...

Our fourth wedding anniversary was on Thursday.  We celebrated by going to the Melting Pot.  It was delicious as always.  I didn't really have much to wear, so we went out to Target to get my first maternity clothes purchase (unless you count my uniform, which I don't because that thing is an atrocity). 

15weeks

The dress is really cute, but I feel like it makes me look super pregnant. haha!

Nothing else is really new this week.  I've been feeling pretty good, aside from being a little tired.  My next appointment isn't until the 8th, so there is still a little time before that. 

Ellie

Pattern:  Lorna Suzanne by Ellen Mason (link will take you to the Ravelry purchase page)
Yarn: Patons Classic Wool Merino in Aquarium
Needle Size: 5 and 4
Dates:  February 18th, 2011- March 15th , 2011
My Project Name:  I was listening to The Third Day, the Frost by John Marsden when I started knitting this.  I really love the character Ellie Linton, so this cardigan was named after her.

Modifications:  Nothing big.  I used a backwards loop for my increases instead of M1's because my backwards loops always look quite sloppy.
New techniques learned: None however when I was grafting the underarms, I realized that a refresher couldn't hurt.  I used this article right here.
Notes:  I actually finished the knitting portion of this on the 11th but I had to go out and pick up some buttons today so I could finally wear it.  The buttons are a Beatrix Potter bunny which I got from Joann's.

I had some really bad rolling issues with mine because I knit it on smaller needles.  Blocking really fixed it but I think I'd like to re-block the collar because the right side is still looking at little funky.

I really love everything about this cardigan, it's so cute!
More Pictures:

Pinwheel, Pinwheel Spinning Around

Pattern: Pinwheel Sweater by Shelley Mackie

Yarn: Bernat Mosaic in Psychedelic. I've read a few bad reviews about the yarn, but I thought it was great to work with. I didn't encounter any breakage problems and my hair doesn't stick to it as bad as it does with Noro. Plus, Christina can throw it in the washer and it I only paid about $10 for the 2 skeins it took to make this sweater.

Needle Size: 7 for the body and 5 for the collar area and the edging. I misread the needles sizes in the pattern. Oops.

Dates: December 4th - December 8th

My Project Name: Named this after the old Nickelodeon show 'Pinwheel." I sing the theme song to myself every time I see a pinwheel so naturally it was the first thing I thought of when I saw this pattern.

Modifications: I increased the body up to 20 stitches before the sleeves, which is a good thing since I used the wrong needles sizes. I also did the 'afterthought heel' method for the sleeves instead of the provisional cast on.

New techniques learned: I learned how to do the afterthought heel for this. I have to admit I was still a little confused about it after reading the tutorial above. I didn't realize that after I knit with the scrap yarn that I should put it back on the left needle and knit again with the working yarn. After I got it all figured out, it worked GREAT!

Notes: This knit up super fast so I'm thinking about knitting one of these for Janalynn instead of the Nonstop top.

More Pictures:

Oh Stewardess!

Pattern : Emerald Isle Cardigan by Melissa Wehrle from Knitscene magazine Fall 2009

Yarn: Stonehedge Fiber Mill Shepherd's Wool in Navy

Needle Size: 5 for the ribbing, and 7 for the body

Dates: November 5th - November 15th

My Project Name: I knit this for work. As you can see, I named it Oh Stewardess as opposed to Oh Flight Attendant. I named it this for 2 reasons. #1, it's what my husband used to say to me when we first started dating and #2 because when I was at my local yarn store picking up the yarn the owner asked me what I was going to make with it. I told her it was a sweater for work and was deep in thought when she asked what my job was. When I answered I distractedly said 'stewardess' confusing both her and my husband who I dragged along yarn shopping.

Modifications: The only huge change I made to this was the sleeves. I needed the sweater to look as similar to our uniform sweater so that meant no sleeve tabs. I also wanted a more fitted sleeve so although I knit the sweater in a medium size, I knit the sleeves in the smallest size listed. I also knit them in the round.

New techniques learned: Tubular cast-on I LOVED this cast on and will be using it a lot more in the future.

Although these techniques weren't exactly new to me, these two tutorials were very helpful to me. One Row Buttonhole and Mattress Stitching for the seams.

Notes: I really love this finished product. The fit is really good. I wanted to make it a little big, so I knit a size 37.5. I didn't actually end up blocking the pieces because as I was trying it on while knitting, the fit was coming out perfect. The waist shaping looks great. Also, the yarn is super soft. I had originally wanted to knit this with a superwash, but quickly changed my mind when I felt how great this yarn is. I would definitely knit something with it again.

More Pictures:

The color is off on this shot, but it's a good picture of the cast on.