Pattern: None really, just a corner to corner garter stitch square with crochet shell edging.
Yarn: Heirloom Easy Care 5 ply in shade 779
Needles: umm? they were Addis…

So Dolly’s blanket has been done for a while now, since the week before Easter in fact. I finished in on a plane trip to one of the nicest weddings I have ever attended (other than my own of course). Apparently plastic hooks are unthreatening enough to be tolerated on Australian planes, even after numerous fairly thorough examinations by stewards wanting to clarify if I had anything so dangerous as knitting needles on board. Trying to find a day that with sunshine and no Isabelle so I could get a photo proved somewhat more challenging than crocheting on a plane…

You may recall that this blanket was supposed to be a Stonington Shetland Shawl but I decided the yarn wasn’t nice enough, even after lanolising, and abandoned that plan. I made a funny discovery not long after completing it as a dolly blanket. The lanolin I used to lanolise it - was in fact lip balm. Oops. Never the less, I still feel the yarn is better suited to dolls than babies. I hope Isabelle likes it and treats it better than the last dolly blanket I knit her.

I need some advice about edging the dolly blanket. I have a book with crochet edgings but crochet isn’t really my thing. I also have Barbra Walker’s Second Treasury of Knitting Patterns, which has some lovely edgings but she seems to be suggesting to seam them on afterwards that doesn’t appeal. Does anyone have any tips for knitting on an edging and also for how to deal with the corners? Oh and where do I start - a corner or the middle of a side? All suggestions welcome!

I finished the centre square of the Stonington Shetland Shawl and what I learned while knitting this vast expanse of garter stitch (well it’s not that vast but it certainly seemed that way as I knit it) is that this yarn is not going anywhere near my baby. The more I knit with the yarn the less I liked it. So when the square was done I tied it off, put the remainder of the current ball in a ziplock bag and washed it, lanolised it and blocked it. Which certainly improved it’s size and now it smells like breastfeeding woman (well woman with damaged nipples to be precise, not a fond memory of mine), but it’s still scratchy.

Goodbye baby shawl, hello dolly blanket. I am going to add some sort of crochet trim to what you see above and give it to Isabelle for her dolly when the new baby comes. Conveniently enough she asked for a new dolly blanket just today. I never did fix the last one I made her….

Having abandoned the Stonington Shawl I moved right along to nicer yarn and a project that just seems to be flying by. Another Jacket with Moss Stitch Bands, this time in Debbie Bliss Wool Cotton from the stash. I knit the back and two fronts in two nights, I was having great fun. Of course their had to be a hitch.

The wrist opening is WAY too small. It’s been a long time since we had a tiny baby, and Isabelle was never that tiny (as new babies go) but I could tell it was going to be too tight even before I pulled out some clothing to double check. I think I am going to make the next sleeve almost straight, it will be easier to get on and more comfortable for baby.

Who would have thought something as simple as salt could work a health miracle? 2.5 weeks ago when my neurologist told me not to do any cardio vascular exercise, drink at least two litres of water a day and to eat as much salt as I could get down I was a) amused and b) skeptical. It’s not like I was able to do any exercise anyway and I was drinking plenty so really she was saying “Add salt”. Retrospectively the woman is a genius. The effect of the salt was almost instant, though you can imagine the lecture I got from the pharmacist when I went in to buy salt tablets. I feel like a different person. I still have bad days but my bad days now are like my very best days before and on the good days I can do as much as any pregnant woman might expect to get done in a day. The dishes are done, the house is clean and I am actually doing the book keeping I get paid for. Oh, and I am even knitting. Still nothing like I used to, as I am pretty wiped out come evening, but look:

It might even turn into a shawl soon enough for more baby objects to be completed before the birth! I doubt I will return to my regular knitting and blogging habits any time soon, but hopefully I will post a bit more than not at all between now and July. Thank you all so much for your kindness when I threw my hands in the air and declared that all blogging would cease, it’s very nice to be wrong.

In other news we had our 19 week ultrasound today and baby is happy and healthy. It’s happiness all around at the moment.

My Jaywalker is progressing SLOWLY. I don’t know if I am all socked out, if it’s the pattern, the pregnancy, or if I just need to be knitting baby stuff right now, but whatever the case I am not feeling the love for this project. That said I think it is going to fit quite well and it’s the first time I have started a pair of socks for myself so I am not completely giving up. I am going to leave it in my hand bag and knit on it when I am out and about - most likely sitting in Drs waiting rooms, which is something I do an awful lot of these days. What I am not going to do is kid myself that I will knit it at home and then not knit at all.

Having made this decision let me introduce Baby Project #1. No, it’s not a great big hanky. Its the very mindless start of a Stonington Shetland Shawl:

I bought this yarn more than six months ago I think, with this shawl in mind. I believe this may be the first time I have actually used yarn bought that far in advance as intended. I am thrilled with the colour but it is not as soft as I would have liked, I am hoping it will soften up with washing.

I have been thinking about putting a star like the one on the recent hat in the centre of the main square. I would do this in some sort of contrast stitch, not intarsia. What do you think? Would it work and in what stitch? I could also do the star thing on each of four sides instead of in the centre, or I can do a more traditional lace pattern. The possibilities are endless really. And at this rate I have plenty of time to decide.

This is the baby quilt I am making for my neighbour’s due any second grandson Thomas. It’s made from super soft and suggly velour cord with flannel backing. It took me two nights work to get this far (I have done a little bit today). All that remains is to hand stitch the border/binding down at the back. I was going to bind it with purple satin ribbon binding. In fact I went so far as to spend $15 on the ribbon before discarding that idea. Apart from the money I wasted on the ribbon I was so happy with the result (even before actually finishing it) that today I went out and bought fabric for three more.

I have completely re-assessed my gift plans for all the upcoming babies in my life and EVERYONE is getting one of these, yes even the pregnant friend who reads this blog. You know how you are, just don’t expect to see photos here before you see it in the flesh. And just so you know, this is a much better plan that the last idea I had for you, the only thing better about my last idea would have been the surprise.

As well as all the new babies, Isabelle is getting one too. This is my second project in a row to make her cry - the poncho because I wanted her to wear it and this one because it wasn’t for her. How could I resist that? Isabelle’s will be pink and green with a gorgeous multi-coloured stripe flannel backing which matches beautifully. Let’s hope she still loves her first quilt when the new one is done, it’s not going to be bed sized so it will be a real pain if it’s all she wants to sleep with.

And the added bonus of making everyone one of these cuddly soft quilts? I get to keep the Stonington Shawl all for myself!

As well as all the walking, while we were away I :

1. Finished Carla. I know I promised more today, but there are issues. Firstly the weather, it sucks. Secondly the sweater, it’s stretched. Carla needs to be washed and semi blocked into shape again before I take more photos. I am quite pleased with how Carla turned out, this is my first adult sized sweater with sleeves and I have already worn it out in public (well in the bush). However (didn’t you just know there was a “but” coming?) this stitch pattern is super stretchy so, despite the fact that I knit the size for exactly my bust measurements, if I were to do it again I would knit it at least one, if not two sizes smaller. That said, the Raglan armholes fit me perfectly and the sleeves fit pretty well too, so I would actually have to do something tricky with the sizing to get a better fit. Also the sweater seems to get shorter and wider with wear. The wider part I accept as being a fact of life with 100% cotton, but the shorter part I was not expecting. I suspect I will wear this sweater as often as I can allowing for the fact that I may need to wash/wet it between every wearing. Finally, such a loose knit pattern is SNAGGY. Obviously bush walking is not the most sensible place for a hand knit but the worst pull so far came from walking through the doorway to Isabelle’s room this morning, which I do a whole lot more of than bush walking. On the upside the snags heal quite easily.
2. Swatched and started knitting Isabelle’s Poncho. She is very excited and wants to wear it now RIGHT NOW, needles and all. I am going to need a fourth ball I think. 3 balls did seem a bit hopeful to me when I was buying it, but I knew i would be getting onto this one quickly and don’t expect there will be any trouble matching dye lots so soon after the initial purchase.



3. Bought yarn to make a Stonington Shetland Shawl from Knitting Workshop by Elizabeth Zimmerman. There are babies on the way all around me at the moment, which is a fine excuse to knit a shawl or two if you ask me.



4. Was given Incredible Quilts for Kids of All Ages. This book has a number of cute animal quilts and an incredibly sweet set of Big Sister/Little Sister or Big Brother/Little Brother quilts which can obviously be mix and matched to make Big Brother/Little Sister or Big Sister/Little Brother. Should we ever manage to produce a sibling for Isabelle I will be sorely tempted to make a pair of these quilts.
5. Borrowed Quick Quilts to Make in a Weekend. There are three quilts in here that I really like. One of them that I am absolutely in love with.

It was really quite a packed weekend.