Project Linus - Reverse Mitered Block

My Stitch'n Club at Nationwide is starting blanket project to benefit Project Linus.  To help everyone get started, I wanted to find a couple simple patterns that could be easily used with any yarn and any gauge.  For the crocheters, it's the Corner Stripe Square by JudyK.  For the knitters, I wanted a mitered block pattern but most of the ones I was finding started with a large number of stitches for the cast on, then decrease to a point.  I wanted to work in the reverse direction to make it really simple to get the proper size.  While this is probably not an original idea, I have searched for this pattern and could not find it anywhere.  It is similar to this pattern by Ari Whitlow, but without the yarn-overs.

Enjoy!  I will add pictures soon!

Pattern
cast on 3

row 1: kfb, pm, kfb, k1
row 2: sl 1, k across
row 3: sl 1, k to 1 st before marker, kfb, sl m, kfb, k across

repeat rows 2 and 3 to desired size, ending on row 3, bind off

Notes
kfb - knit into the front and back of the stitch
pm - place marker
sl - slip
sl m - slip marker

Christmas Presents

I swore to myself that I was not going to be doing any last minute Christmas knitting this year.

My husband and I were out shopping for a present for his grandmother, who is turning 95 the day after Christmas. He spied a really nice hand-knit looking scarf at Macy's. I said, "I would rather make one than spend $60 on that."

Oops.

I comfort myself thinking that this is a birthday gift, not a Christmas gift.

I found a lovely and lacy scarf pattern by Julie Sprague called Christmas Lace. It's a simple two-row, four-stitch repeat that a poor left-handed knitter like me can follow without adjustments. It's turning out beautifully so far, and more so because I get to use some beautiful blue wool that's been waiting patiently in the stash for a few years (the rest will become a sweater at some point).

Because it's not done, and I suspect there will be a rush to block, wrap, and give, here's a picture of the incomplete scarf. This is going to stay on my list for future gifts.

Turn A Square

I love these hats! So far, I have made two of them out of stash Paton's Wool and Noro Kureyon and I plan on making two or three more for Christmas.

I am a huge fan of Jared Flood's designs. They are simple, but appealing. I have a couple more of his patterns queued up, including a sweater for Bill when I get around to it.

Elery's Sweater

I finished up a super cute, super easy baby cardigan this weekend. It's a gift for Justin and Michelle's baby, expected to arrive in November. I've heard that they're going to call her Elery.

I made this completely out of stash yarn, scraps of acrylic baby yarn that's been sitting around. I started with the pink, then ran out of my little ball only to find out it was a different dye lot than the other 2.5 skeins of pink yarn in my stash. That's when I switched to white. I am actually very happy with the results.

I don't know exactly how much I used up on this sweater, but I'm calling it 273.1 yards based on my ravelry stash totals.

Don's Slippers

I have complete my first finished object of the month! I made the Cable Guy Slippers for Don, using the yarn I had frogged from the Celtic Tote. I love how they turned out, though next time I would make them a little shorter than called for in the pattern. That way, they would require slightly less felting and the cable would be a little more defined. But, they're great. I only need to pick up some slipper bottoms to sew on to make them a little more grippy.

I'll post some pictures once I get them taken.

This used up approximately 330 yards of my stash!

Pretty Pinafore

I finally managed to sew on the buttons for the Debbie Bliss pinafore dress that I have been working on for a very long time. It's a little big, but I love it!