#SherlockLives (on a pillow)

I have big news, lovely people who spare my blog a glance.

I made something!

For those of you who know this blog well, this remark will probably be met with the theory that I am developing amnesia and have forgotten that I have been a long-time maker of things. And so let me elaborate: I made something using material and a sewing machine and that had absolutely nothing to do with knitting needles or yarn. In short, I stepped out of my comfort zone.

What choice did I have? Because when I saw this Sherlock Holmes pillow on Etsy, I knew I had to have one and I knew that I could make it myself for cheaper than $30. (Though, $30 is really a fantastic price for a hand-sewn appliqué pillow, so if you're in the market for a Sherlock pillow and don't have the talent to make one yourself, I would advise you to add the aforementioned one to your Etsy cart.)

If you looked at the Sherlock pillow that inspired mine, you'll notice that I made a few changes in my design, mostly to the coat and scarf. Possibly my favorite change was the addition of the red buttonhole on the coat's lapel, which is one of the things I love about the actual Sherlock's coat. It's a tiny detail, but I love it nonetheless.

Out of respect for Heart Felt Design, I won't publish any instructions on how to make your own Sherlock pillow. But I will say that it was fun and easy to make, and I may well be taking inspiration from some of her other pillows…

Shark Attack

Today's FO is actually almost a month old- but due to my lengthy blogging hiatus/ the project being a gift, this is the first chance I've had to blog about it. But, without further ado, I present to you:

Shark mittens! These were a gift for a swap, but they're so much fun I think I might make a pair for myself. Let me clarify- the finished thing is fun, but the knitting was not. In part, because the pattern, Deep Blue Sea: Shark Mittens, contained several design choices that I decided to rewrite entirely. The biggest change I made was to the mouth, and I intended to write my modifications on my project page but never did. 

The best part about these mittens? The second you put them on, you can't resist going into full-on puppet mode and trying to bite everything within reach. Many thanks to my sister Rebecca for being a perfectly un-self-conscious puppeteer/model for these pictures. 

WIP Wednesday: Happy New Year!

New Year's Resolutions:

1. Blog more
2. Knit more

I don't usually make many New Year's Resolutions, but this year I think it would definitely be good for me to have the goal to more frequently update this blog. Sorry, readers. 

I don't really need to make the resolution to knit more, because knitting is something I do all the time whether I have to or not. But it's always good to throw in at least one easily achievable resolution, right? 

I started off the New Year with two knitting projects, both of which I worked on quite a lot on my week-long trip to New Mexico, where I did nothing but sit in a cabin and knit all day, pausing occasionally to eat something (because every knitter knows it's impossible to knit on an empty stomach). 

The first is a new sweater by Mel Ski called Halele'a. I'm joining in with the Must Stash Podcast's KAL for this sweater, without which I doubt I would have the fortitude to knit a fingering-weight cardigan. 

I am not using the recommended yarn for this sweater because I do not have a large enough yarn budget to use hand dyed yarn for sweaters (not yet, anyway). No, I'm using the much more affordable Knitpicks Stroll, made even more affordable by purchasing it during the Cyber Monday sale for $15. 

Because I'm using a yarn slightly thicker than the recommended yarn, I had to go down three needle sizes to get gauge. Having to make so many swatches set me back on the sweater a little, but now I'm going strong and am hoping to get the fronts of the cardigan (which are being knit two at a time) done this week. 

The second project is a pair of plain vanilla socks, knit with Manos Del Urguay Alegria in the color way Carnival. 

It's my first time knitting with hand-dyed sock yarn, and I'm loving how the yarn is pooling. Even my mom, a devoted hater of hot pink, says that these socks look nice. I'm about 5 inches into the leg- another couple of inches and I'll be ready for the heel! 

Thanks for stopping by!