Pair 1 - Some plain vanilla socks made from Arne & Carlos Regia, 2459 Siljan, in honour of Arne & Carlos launcing their new sock yarn. The self patterning in this sock is so fun and makes them fly off my needles.
Pair 2 - These socks were made using a pattern called Minecraft Socks by Heather Cox and they have a really delightful bouncy texture that makes them easy to love. The yarn is one I've saved and petted for more than a few years. It was made with a sock yarn from Flock Fibre Studio in a colourway aptly named Cookies for Santa, I love the pops of red and green, extremely festive.
I tried some new recipes in November. Both, of course, were from the genius of Ruth Tam at Cook Til Delicious.
Baking 1 - Marshmallow-Stuffed Ginger Molasses Cookies, these tasted absolutely incredible. My timing was a tad off and my marshmallow melting got away from me, so not as gooey as they should have been, but definitely did not affect the taste.
Baking 2 - Lemon Almond Poppy Seed Loaf, mine isn't as pretty as Ruth's, both because I do not own a Pullman pan and because I am not as talented a baker as she is. But the flavour was fabulous and we devoured this sucker in one day.
In other news, I helped out a friend and crocheted a sweet baby blanket called Crochet Pattern Alphabet Baby Blanket Puff Stitch by Pam. It can be fun to try patterns I wouldn't normally gravitate towards and I was making puff stitches in my dreams for weeks after!
October flew by in a flurry of baking and a bit of knitting - here is a summary of October:
Finished knitting a pair of Celebration Socks by Alice Kim in a new to me yarn called Wisdom Yarns in Horizon, which was a really fun yarn to work with and hard to put down with the next color change just a few stitches away.
My garden was VERY fruitful this year and I couldn't get enough tomatoes.
I made Apple Fritters! And Dutchies! Wow are homemade donuts amazing! These did not last long at all and seem to be appreciated by everyone who was lucky enough to nab one. The receipe I used was Dutchies and Apple Fritters by Ruth Tam of Cook Til Delicious.
I also made a Spiced Coffee Crumb Cake and tried my hand at a Lemon-Cream Cheese Danish Bread from Ruth Tam's cookbook Baked to Order, both turned out very scrumptious and I cannot wait to bake more from Ruth's cookbook.
The last bit of October baking was Almond Poppyseed Sourdough Scones also on Ruth's Substack Cook Til Delicious, these didn't last the day and I can't wait to make a batch to freeze and eat on demand.
In crochet, I worked on a blanket, taking over for a friend who is having trouble with her eyesight. It was a cute little project called Alphabet Baby Blanket Puff Stitch by Pam.
In anticipation of next month, I chose a super cute Christmas colourway in pink, greens, and reds and got to knitting a pair of plain stockinette socks with an afterthought heel to preserve the self-striping pattern. The yarn I used is Biscotte Yarns Felix Self-Striping in the colourway Melon D Eau, and if you know a little French, you will recognize, like me, who read the label after the fact, that this is not at all a Christmas inspired self-patterning sock, but much more suitable for say, July. Maybe Christmas in July. These are Watermelon socks, insert gut laughing at myself.
In an attempt to organize myself a bit, I came across a pile of granny squares I crochet and work on from time to time with no project plan at all. I like to check in on them, pet them a bit, make sure they are all getting along. That sort of thing.
I completed my Cozy Autumn Socks by This Handmade Life and am pleased as a pumpkin with them. I knit these fairly long in the leg and when I blocked them, they consumed my sock blockers like I consume ice cream with apple crisp.
Plugging away on my two monthly cross-stitch calendar samplers. I have the cutest little May house with lilies and blue bells and a Llamay with, I dare say, a bit of attitude.
I completed my The Daily by Andrea Mowry and fit and function are great and I think I quite like it.
For fun I knit up a little hacky sack with some leftover scrap yarn. I am no good, but it went to someone who has a desire to skill up.
In other news, this month I got bit by a crochet bug and decided to start making granny squares with no real plan.
I finished the quilt on my Sampler quilt and have gifted it. Unfortunately the new owner doesn't love the fussy cut hedgehogs as much as I do.
I cast on a new pair of socks. I am really in enamoured with this yarn from Lynai Yarns in a glittery version of Sugarplum Fairy. The pattern I paired with this yarn is Simple Skyp Socks by Adrienne Ku.
This month a new baby is expected in the family and I sewed another set of flannel baby blankets and crocheted the edge. I absolutely adore how they feel christmassy for a December baby, but not too much Christmas so they can't be used year round.
I've seen some mini zippered box bags floating aroung and I just had to try to make one myself. There are a ton of generous people who have written tutorials and patterns for box bags in every shape and size, the options seem endless.
For fun, I knit up a quick pattern called 2023 Soldier Hats by Channah Koppel using some The Wacky Windmill worsted weight yarn I had in a colourway called Orange You Glad. I gifted this one to someone's whose favourite colour is orange. This gift was a miss, perhaps the recipient likes to look at the colour orange, but not necessarily wear it on their head.
I had a request from someone to make a baby quilt. I was able to use up some fabric scraps and turn them into a lovely quilt.
Sewed up some more bags that will hold school supplies :-)
May was an incredibly productive crafting month. Here is the run-down.
I bought the book Little Stichesby Aneela Hooey and quickly became enamored with every single detail. This book is amazing and I am thrilled. I sewed and embroidered a little needlebook and a little baggie to hold clothespins and am thrilled with each item.
Also from Aneela Hooey [huge fan over here], I made her Project Book Pouch and immediately put it to use.
I sewed a set of flannel baby blankets and hand crocheted around the edging, when I had my first baby, someone gifted me a used version of this blanket, very pre-loved and it lasted so well and was so very hardy that I reverse engineered the design and have started making my own versions. I find it very fun to pick out the flannel and chose a coordinating or contrasting thread for the crocheted edging. I love challenging myself to come up with creative crochet designs.
These cute teacups got my attention and I decided they had to be stitched up right away. I almost always say yes. Fancy a Cuppa by The Frosted Pumpkin Stitchery.
A huge project, way out of my comfort zone and knowledge circle was a piece of freakin' luggage. That's right. Luggage. This is The Weekender Bag by Amy Butler. Admittedly, the fabric probably wouldn't have been my first choice, but the heavy fabric require was a out of my budget and because there is a decent amount of notions required, I chose the lesser of all the evils from a hugely discounted section of the store. I can not believe I successfully made this durable, useable, perfect bag. The lining, the pockets, the heavy duty zipper, and even the Pellon interface stuff that is very stiff.
Cast on a new pair of socks this month.
Sewed a little Coffee Mug Rug and learned how to paper piece, a bit of a learning curve, but I can see how it opens up so much in terms of sewing.
Got even more miles on my sewing machine by whipping up a SockSack by Ramona Rose. I already love how this sock sack keeps my yarn from getting tangled. Probably my favourite feature is the snap buttons to feed the working yarn through.
