Lauren Snell: December 2007 Archives

2007 was my first full year as a knitter. I took my beginner's knitting class in May 2006, and have been going ever since.

This year I made:

16 hats (for me, the kids, Jason, and Dulaan)
7 scarves (mostly the Misti Alpaca Ribs and Ruffles scarves, which have served as last minute gifts a number of times)
5 paris of socks
3 pairs of slippers (clogs and fuzzy feet)
1 pair of baby booties
4 baby/child sweaters
3 adult sweaters for me (Lucy in the Sky, Central Park Hoodie and Poppy)
4 baby hats
1 Mother Bear
1 Flying Spaghetti Monster

Wow. That's a lot of stuff! I also started and abandoned three pairs of socks as well as Camisa, and I started Sarcelle but will get back to it someday.

I'd like to do some more complicated projects, and things that people will actually use. More felted clogs, more sweaters, more Mother Bears, and more cables and fair isle.

Plenty of details of everything are on Ravelry.

My favorite thing I knit this holiday season was this Flying Spaghetti Monster ornament for Jason.

Here it is before felting.

It was a bit of a challenge to keep this project under wraps before Christmas, particularly in finding time and a place to let it dry after felting without being discovered.

I am extraordinarily pleased with the outcome. The tentacles are many strings of stitches cast on (backward loop method) and immediately cast off. The meatballs are knitted orbs stuffed with polyfill. The eyes are glued on to shank buttons and sewn to the tentacles.

Pattern: Flying Spaghetti Monster by Civil Bitch. I found this via The Nauti Knitter, my friend LaDonna. She made one too!
Yarn: O-Wool Classic in chocolate and oatmeal.
Needles: size 4 and 10, bamboo

I finished these two hats using Stephanie Pearl-Mcphee's Unoriginal Hat pattern. They are both meant to be chemo caps, the first for Aunt Jan and the second for a friend's wife.

Yarn: Blue Sky Alpacas Dyed Cotton, most of one skein of "shrimp"
Needles: size 8 bamboo
Mods: I cast on 84 stitches and did two extra pattern repeats, as I saw on Ravelry done by
Ravelry link: Unoriginal Hat, worsted version

Over the summer I'd made Aunt Jan this crocheted sun hat, but I think she'll like the new one better.

Pattern: Fun in the Sun Hat, Interweave Crochet, spring 07
Yarn: Tahki Cotton Classic, 1.5 skeins of green and 1 skein of off-white
Hook: size G
Mods: I did a couple extra founds on the brim, but maybe one too many. It's a little floppy.
Ravelry link: Sun Hat

The second Unoriginal Hat I just finished for a friend's wife. This was made with yarn remaining from that first sweater I made for Jamie.

Yarn: Classic Elite's Beatrice (the color is truer in the link to Jamie's sweater)
Needles: size 10 bamboo
Mods: I cast added a purl stitch between each cable and decreased a little slower, making a slightly larger hat
Ravelry link: Unoriginal Chemo Cap