Red Heart's 31 Days of Giving

This morning, I was talking with some friends about paying generosities forward, and then, moments later, something arrived in my mailbox that I want to share with you.

If you're like me and you love to knit, and if, like me, you like to give the gift of warmth, you'll want to check out Red Heart's 31 Days of Giving calendar. Visit their web site to download the calendar. The movement continues until the 31st of July, so there's still plenty of time to contribute. There are some great ideas here for knit items and information on who needs them.

Even if you're not a knitter or crocheter, there are great ideas here for you too! Pay it forward by sending along blankets or other items you no longer need or make a much needed cash donation.

To those who have recently made my day with Random Acts of Kindness, thank-you! I'm having a fun day paying your generosities forward!

All the best to you today, my friends!

Easy & quick knitting project: Slippers for the whole family

I've been doing a lot of knitting lately - trying to spread the cozy woolen love. I cleaned out my craft closet and found several incomplete knitting projects - it's just embarrassing to admit how many, so I won't. I spent a bunch of time organizing and undoing old knitting projects that I knew I'd never finish, like that over-sized mohair cardigan I started in the 80s.

My son has been asking me, almost daily for a few months, when I will knit something for him. I knit him a quick bag for his toys... which went over like a lead balloon. There's not a lot of spare time for large knitting projects these days, so I had to find something else that isn't as big of a commitment as a sweater, and isn't winter-wear since it's now spring.

I found this great knit slipper based on an old 1940s pattern, adapted by Bev Qualheim. It knits up fast and true to the pattern. It's not difficult to adjust the size of these slippers as you go. To make them longer just keep knitting until you reach the desired length less 2" for the toe. To make them wider, just cast on a few more stitches, or increase (I increased in the middle, just inside the purled stitches) as you get to the wider part of the foot.

Here are some pictures of Jack's slippers. Of course, I had to complicate things by adding a second colour. I used a strand of green and a strand of multi-coloured wool for the foot and green and blue for the toe. I think they're pretty cute.



I knit some slippers for myself with reclaimed pink and burgundy wool. You may recall that I am not a fan of pink, yet the wool needed to be used and what else was I going to do with it? Combining the two colours made it less 'pinky'. I made mine both longer and wider than the instructions indicate for my size 9-wide feet.



And then I knit two more pair - matching slippers for Jack and his dad - from some funky 80s style chunky wool. I revised the heel on these two. The original pattern leaves a bump on the bottom. I started with fewer stitches in the centre section (1 stitch on Jack's, and 3 stitches on dad's) and then increased by two stitches every second (WS) row to the number of stitches in the original instructions. This allowed the heel to lie flat.

This is my new favourite slipper pattern! What do you think?

Do you have a slipper pattern to share? I'm always looking for ways to do things a little differently.

Stitch 'n Kibitz

Last night I participated in a get together with a group of women who share an interest in knitting: An event commonly known as the Stitch 'n Bitch. A friend suggested the gathering and prepared the invites. The word bitch upset her internet service provider's anti-spam filter, and her invites kept bouncing back to her. After finally figuring out what was happening, she sent out my invitation to a Steetch 'n Beech.

Yes, the word bitch has an offensive meaning as a noun, but here we're talking about it's use as a verb to convey the natural propensity of people who gather to complain about various aspects of their lives. Perhaps we should use the word kibitz to more clearly and less offensively indicate our intention. At least that word wouldn't set off the anti-spam filters, and it still sort of rhymes with stitch. I'm not sure it has the same allure though. It does have a slightly less depressing feel than the word complain, which doesn't convey the amount of laughter that occurs at one of these events.

The phrase Stitch 'n Bitch may have been around since the Second World War when women often gathered to knit clothing for soldiers (see Knitting for Victory -- World War II). These days women often form groups and meet regularly, knitting projects in hand, to discuss knitting techniques and other topics of interest. This site (stitchnbitch.org) lists more than 1000 such groups worldwide, and offers tips on how to start your own group.

Whatever it's called, the opportunity for women to gather and share their interests, ideas and concerns is a healthy one. It's good for us to kibitz from time to time!

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Knitters still gather for philanthropic reasons too. If you're interested in learning more, you can visit Knitting for Charity for ideas on how to get started.

MacKnitter to the Rescue!

My husband sometimes thinks I have superhuman powers, or at least MacGyver-like skills. He's fascinated by my ability to take a hunk of wool and two sticks and make something both beautiful and functional. He sees my hands moving about in seemingly the exact same way time and time again, yet each time it yields something different.

Wool + needles + mysterious knitting super power = scarf, hat, sock, mitt, gloves, sweater, belt, chaps, Pterydactyl... The list goes on.

He's further amazed by the fact that half of the time, I seem not to even be looking at what I'm doing. I'm watching a TV show and having a conversation with him, all the while creating a cozy masterpiece. (Clearly, he is forgetting all of the times I have cursed while focusing too much on something else and then undone my work to redo it again the right way.)

He claims to have tried this, moving his hands about holding a piece of string and two toothpicks, and all he has managed to create is a mess of string and toothpicks. "That's not all you've managed", I say. "You also look kind of funny doing it." I shouldn't mock him. He is, after all, my biggest fan.

I suppose knitting is a kind of awesome skill, though the cool kids might not think so. I don't know that it's all that useful a survival skill: I don't know how many jams I could knit myself out of. In other words, I don't think MacGyver would be all that impressed. That is, unless he found himself stranded in a land with no clothes - a very cold land with no clothes - and only sheep and trees as far as the eye could see. He'd figure out a way to sheer the sheep, hack down a tree and whittle knitting needles from the wood. And then he'd wait for me to rescue him from hypothermia. I'd fly in with the help of my hand-knit wings, and stitch him a cozy and fabulous wardrobe.

Perhaps knowing Russell Crowe knits, elevates knitting to cool status.

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I don't know if I believe that this photo is real. (See Knitting Confidential: Does Russell Crowe knit? for a smart summary of the debate.) But I've seen it now, and can picture Russell Crowe no other way. I now imagine Captain Jack Aubrey (Russell's Master and Commander character) retiring to his quarters after a long day to knit.

If you're looking for a new hobby, it's worth a try. Knitting is a very relaxing activity (if you don't count the I dropped the bleepity-bleep-bleep stitch again!?! cursing ritual that inevitably occurs), and there is a sense of accomplishment in making something rather than buying it.

Cookie's Knitted Kindle Cozy

I received my Kindle this past Christmas and started looking for a suitable cover. I needed to protect my new "baby". I couldn't find anything that I really liked that wasn't going to cost a small fortune coming from the US to Canada. So, I found a knitted e-reader cover and adapted it for my Kindle, added a strap and voila: A Kindle cover that is also a cross-body purse. There's enough room in here for a pad of paper and a pen, and the adapter for my Kindle. I can also fit a change purse in it. A slim phone would fit, and I've carried my mp3 player in it also.

If you're interested in making a cover/purse like mine, please click here for the free pattern.