The first slip-stitch sock is done, and I’m loving it.  As you can see, it’s just a little shorty, sock, but the pattern can be knit to any length. It would be great for using up part balls. And I’m think it would look amazing with a solid black and a really wild, colourful skein… really, the possibilities for combinations are endless!

I’ve got to get motoroing on the second one… I really want ot get this pattern released!

My bestest friend Samantha has commissioned me to make another quilt – this one to be a gift for someone. Back in November, we poured over fabrics and patterns and finally decided on a simple random nine patch.

For fabric, she chose the Up, Up and Away collection (which I had in my stash already) and I filled it out with a few other fabrics from Mom’s stash.

We also added in that little bunny fabric on the end, which will have special meaning to the recipient. I didn’t start sewing, but I did get all my squares cut, so it’s ready to go on the next free afternoon.

This will be another lap-sized quilt, and I think it’s going to be just fabulous!

Back in November, I mentioned there were two new babies coming into my circle. First is the impending girl to my coworker. Second is a little boy to my cousin. I had intended to make a quilt for both, but I probably should have started my cousin’s first… because her baby shower is only a week away.

Bad planning on my part (though I do have a knit blankie already made I can gift), but I think I can make up for it with something even more special.

The pattern is Bear Essentials, and its from the January 1994 edition of Canadian Living. Honestly, it’s not my favourite stuffed bear pattern… it’s tricky to seam and assemble, and I’ve knit nicer, easier stuffies… but this one is special.

When I was a teen, we lived three streets over from my aunt and her two girls, (the oldest of which is having the baby). I used to walk them to school and babysit, and as a result we were quite close. And of course, Mom made them many knit things  – including these bears – which for some reason, they called Bearby, and carried everywhere.

So it seemed only natural that my cousin’s baby should have a Bearby of his own. He’s knit entirely from leftovers of Stray Cat, and while I wasn’t thrilled with the construction, I’ve got to admit, he’s pretty soft and cute!

Peek-a-boo!

I finished tacking down the last of the binding on the afternoon of December 30, so this is the official last finished project for 2018.

Autumn in the Country is the perfect couch quilt. It’s about 50″ square, so it’s just perfect for movie watching, book reading, cat snuggling, and all manner of wonderfully lazy activities.

This quilt is special for a couple reasons. It’s the first quilt I’ve made entirely from one fabric collection – in this case Country Blossom from Craftsy. I started with a Jelly Roll for the centre (using the Summer in the Park tutorial), and I bought a few yards of the other fabrics for the borders, binding and backing.

The backing is the white version of the green border fabric and I love it. It’s such a bold, beautiful print!

The second thing that makes it special is that I completed it all myself (without contracting quilting out to Mom).

All those lovely loops are mine, and it was a blast to do them. Mom’s machine had a stitch regulation mode, so I didn’t have to worry about keeping my speed even to keep my stitches nice… I could just doodle away!

Now I can’t wait to finish up a few more quilts I have waiting!

On New Year’s Eve (day), I took the opportunity to get the studio in order, and clear out a few small projects so I could start the new year fresh.

Autumn A-Whirl was one of those projects. It just needed its borders, and the fabric had arrived mid-December, so it was time to get it done.

I put a nice wide, 6″ border of this beautiful batik on it. (and I still have a nice big chunk of it left.)  It’s still a small quilt – probably a little larger than lap size – but it’s a wonderful gathering of all those gorgeous fabrics!

My Snoopervisor has thoroughly inspected it, and given his approval. Which is good – once quilted, it will cover the blanket box at the end of the bed, which is where Mr. Burton spends most nights.

Now I have two project boxes empty… what, oh what, should I start next?

 

 

I completely failed on last year’s knitting goal of releasing new designs, so I’m just going to bring it forward and use it for this year’s goal.

I have lots of designs more or less ready to go. Some need some re-knitting, some need sizes worked out, and some just need the pattern typed up and formatted. I just need to commit to getting that done. 2019 is the year!

The On the Go designs are probably the most complete, so you’ll probably see them first.

But I’ve also got a few cardigans…

They are Queen Mab, Cygnet, and Wildflowers

I also need to work out some sizes for the Posey Bonnet.

Which should be a quick little task.

And last, but not least…

A seamless version of the kitty cat hat (Modeled hear by Miss Wren.)

And of course, there’s always new designs swimming around my head… so bring on the New Year! I’m ready!

 

2018 was a pretty good year, knitwise… I completed 40 projects, which is my biggest project count yet, though many were small, quick projects.

Interestingly, I did not knit one shawl this year, which quite surprised me when I went over all my projects. If you’ve been around the blog for any length of time, you’ll know I love knitting shawls.

There were a lot of socks knit this year, thanks in no small part to my On the Go designs:

In fact, I knit 11 pairs, which I think is the most I’ve ever knit in the year.

While I didn’t get around to releasing any designs this year, I did work on them..

And I’ve been told my Cygnet protoype got lots of wear over the summer.

I was very pleased to finally finish the Empire Line Cardigan

A knit I’d started  and frogged and restarted many, many times. If you count from when I very first put needles to yarn on this one, it took me 11 years to finally complete!

And of course, there were many fun knits for the fair.

Sadly, I will not be entering the Ancaster Fair in 2019. I found out that the reason my beautiful yellow socks did not win a ribbon was because they were disqualified for not being “a new item”. I politely requested to know how the judges determined that, and provided proof that they were new  (ravelry entry and blog posts), but the Fair Adminstration couldn’t be bothered to respond. So I won’t be spending all that time on projects that can arbitrarily disqualified. I don’t mind not winning a ribbon, but I want it to be for a fair reason

So what will 2019 bring….? Tune in tomorrow!

As promised,  I tried my hand at using Mom’s long arm yesterday…

… and it is sooooo much easier than trying to free motion on my little Singer. The main difference is that with the long arm, you’re moving the needle. With my Singer, you’re moving the fabric. As someone who loves to draw, I had a really hard time adapting to the latter – imagine trying to draw with the pencil held still, but moving the paper under it. Using the longarm is much like moving the pencil. It didn’t take long to get comfortable with it.

I didn’t do anything fancy – just loop-dee-loops, but that was just perfect for the Autumn in the Country quilt. Since it’s just a lap quilt, I was able to quilt the whole thing in one afternoon! I’m working on the binding now, so I’ll have an FO post for you soon!

And I’m already excited about quilting my next one!

 

Despite what you saw in yesterday’s post… we haven’t been completely unproductive this week. I did take a little time to finish up the Swan top.

And I couldn’t be more pleased. I adore the silvery grey with the pale pinks and blues. It’s unconventional, but elegant. The finished top is about 32″ square, so it’s not huge, but I was a little worried  it might be too small for a baby blanket.

But my Snoopervisor ensures me it’s just right. And seeing him on it, giving me a sense of scale, I think he’s right.

I’ve got some pale pink that should work for binding, but I’ve got my heart set on a flannel back for this, so I’ll have to hit up Lens. I hope I can find something with swans, but I’m not going to be too picky.

Mom’s giving me long-arm lessons this weekend, so if they go well, I may  even quilt myself. Baby is due mid January, but I’m not too concerned with getting it done before then… as long as I get it to her by spring, I’ll be happy.