Favorite Aunt-in-law Hats Follow-up

As promised, I'm here to report back on the Favorite Aunt-in-Law hats! On Monday, I received in the mail two lovely handwritten thank-you cards from my husband's aunts to whom I'd sent the hats. They were very appreciative and seemed to really love them...one aunt said that this was the first hat she'd ever had that really fit her! They both really seemed touched, so that pleased me to no end. :)

Funny thing is, neither one of them seemed to pick up on the jokey game side of it! Neither one made any reference to it, although one did say that I am her "favorite niece-in-law"...hee...but I think that was more in response to the "favorite aunt-in-law" note I'd put on the tag. I also don't know whether at this point if either one knows the other got a hat too...that family is close-knit (ha! pun not intended) so I'm sure it's just a matter of time.

Anyway, it was still fun to knit for them and I am glad they liked them so much!

Playing Favorites

First off, let me just say that I promise there is a knitting aspect to this post, if you're willing to get through the wordy part. :) Trust me, the background story is helpful in understanding the reason for the knitting part. (At least I hope so. It's possible that this will make no sense at all.)

Oh, and one other thing...I feel a little bit like I want to start sharing just a little more about myself on this blog. I know up till now this has been 99% about knitting...but I know that when people whose blogs I read share more about themselves, I find it more fun to read. So in an effort to make this blog less boring, I am going to try and open up a bit. :)

Now on to my story.

I consider myself to be very lucky in that I married into a really great family. My in-laws, every last one of them, are wonderful people. I've become good friends with my husband's two aunts, and especially one cousin. They are fun people, and there are many laughs when everyone gets together. They've really made me feel like part of the family, too.

This past Thanksgiving we went to visit my husband's family in upstate New York. Almost all of his family lives close to each other...my husband (his name is John...perhaps that will make this easier? :) heh) and two of his three siblings are the only ones who actually moved away, and we're the only ones on the east coast.

Anyway, holidays are big family events with them and everyone comes over to John's parents' house for the big meal (they host Thanksgiving every year no matter what). So this year it was the usual crew, and after the meal people sat around chatting and enjoying themselves. I found myself sitting in the kitchen with John's two aunts and one of the aunt's two daughters.

They're all fun-loving people and though I don't know the history of it, somewhere along the way a sort of "game" was born where the two daughters began vying for the position of "favorite" with the aunts. This involves fetching a cup of coffee or tea or water when needed, and just doing little chores or favors, all in the name of fun. The rules (if there are any) are vague and really it's just a mutual "I'll do something nice for you in order to be your favorite" even if it's the cousin's affections you're after. Oh and yes, this "game" makes no sense. It's just fun, is all, and the source of many laughs.

So on Thanksgiving we were all chatting in the kitchen, and John's one cousin happened to be sitting on a suitcase as there were no more chairs. I was at this point mostly unaware of the "game" and I quietly left the room to get another chair for her. Well, this was taken as a strategic move in the "game" and I was instantly adopted into the game myself. Much laughter was shared (I really only got the chair because I saw it was needed...I just like to do those sorts of things if I can) and the conversation turned to things people could to for one another to win points.

At one point, one aunt commented that she wanted to try the coconut cake we'd brought up, and (even though I am a shy person and this is not something I would ordinarily do), I heard this as, "Hey, I can win some points if I get her some!" So I made a great show of hopping up and exclaiming that I would be most happy to get her some. (Again, this is actually not a "me" sort of thing to do! I prefer to blend in and not be the object of attention, especially in a group.) But everyone roared with laughter and the one cousin with whom I've become friends hopped up after me and chased me into the dining room, where she proceeded to hold my arms back as I tried to get a piece of cake for her mom, and we were both hysterical. I finally succeeded and ran back to the aunt who requested the cake. Meanwhile, the cousin then heaped another plate full of other goodies and was close on my heels offering that as well. It was very funny. I hadn't laughed so hard in a long time.

Fast forward to Christmastime, and when we got a Christmas card from the cake-requesting-aunt, it had a little note indicating that I was very close to becoming the favorite. hehe. ;)

Fast forward further to Valentine's day where my husband and I were chatting at dinner and he came up with the idea that I should knit his two aunts each a hat, and send them off in the mail to them. I thought this was a great idea and then decided I'd add a note saying that the hat was for "my favorite aunt-in-law"...with the hopes that they'd each get a chuckle out of it and then show them to each other, thereby discovering I am playing favorites with both of them. :) Mock-sneaky, fun, and almost guaranteed to elicit a laugh.

Which brings me to the knitting portion of this post (thanks for reading through all that!) I found this yarn called Caron Simply Soft Shadows. I wanted something soft and machine washable since they're gifts.



The yarn is neat and I like how it knitted up...it's basically a solid color but one ply is a long-color-changing strand that gave a subtle change throughout the hat.



I used my usual roll-brim hat which is quick, easy, and fits most people.

This color was called Opal Twist:



It was basically black with a thread that changed from white to gray to browns.

This one was an off-white with a brown/off-white thread, called Pearl Frost:



Specs on these hats:

Pattern: Basic Roll Brim Hat
Needles used: Size 7 (16" circs and DPNs)
Yarn: Caron Simply Soft Shadows
Colors: Opal Twist and Pearl Frost
Amount used: 1 ball of each
Started: 2/20/08
Finished: 2/27/08

Now I'm going to get them ready to mail off to John's aunts, and hopefully this will elicit some sort of response! I'll keep you posted of any developments. :)

Valentiney

Happy Valentine's Day! Well, day after... I'm not usually an over-the-top valentine person, but this year I had some fun with it. I brought some chocolates in to work for my coworkers and also made a couple of knitted valentines for a couple of friends.

But first off, here's what my sweet husband gave me:



And this awesome-smelling candle, Velvet Petals:



It's PIIIIINK!! :)

And this is what we had for dinner last night...heart-shaped ravioli!



Here they are cooking:



Fun, and tasty too. We decided to stay in last night and enjoy a nice, simple dinner at home, and tonight we're going out to one of our favorite restaurants...The Melting Pot. It's a fondue place, and soooo tasty and fun! We like to go there for special occasions. (I'm planning to use my Girl's Night Out bag, too. :)

So now that Valentine's Day has passed I can finally share with you the knitted valentines I've been alluding to which I made for a couple of friends.

But first up is the adorably cute valentine my friend J gave to me:



Isn't that pretty? I love, love, love the colors...pink and purple and silver sparkles! So cute. Here's another shot (without flash):



Isn't that great? I love the little tiny pink heart button, too. :) She made all these awesome valentines for her friends and she is the reason I was inspired to make a couple of my own, in my preferred craft.

So this is what I made for her:



I had such fun making this. I had limited valentiney colors available to me in my sock yarn leftovers stash, but this one fit the bill perfectly. I used the same mini sweater pattern from before, and then I added some Xs and Os around the bottom of the sweater using red embroidery floss and white beads, and then made the red and white wire hanger.



I found the little heart in some scrap paper and cut that out, punched a hole in it, threaded it onto the string and attached to the sweater. I wrote a little (tiny!) message on the back. I wanted to make a special valentine for my friend since she is always thinking of me and giving me little goodies here and there. :)

And then I made another one for another friend at work...she's become a good friend too and gives me little things now and then, so I wanted to make her one as well, knowing she too would appreciate it. These are a bit of work, but the fun type, and totally worth it for the right people!



I added a little heart tag to this one too:




For little tiny sweaters they went over big! That warmed my heart. :)

That's it for my Valentine's Day report...I know I still owe you photos of the Girl's Night Out purse and my husband's hat and mittens. Soon, I promise!

Stuff

Ick.

That is how I would describe the weather hereabouts today. It was snowy and icy yesterday, and overnight it got warmer and started raining to beat hell, and now the area has turned into a giant puddle. bleh.

So...I finished my Sparkly Pink Bag last night...love it! Although due to the aforementioned craptastic weather, I have no photos to share. The ones I took inside were just not doing it justice, so patience shall have to prevail.

I've also been cranking out other little things...but, again, since a couple of them are surprises and my friend might stop by I cannot spoil any Valentine secrets. Soon though. ;)

In other news...the other day I got a call from my best friend with one of the greatest compliments that a knitter can receive: she was a little afraid to tell me...but she needed to report that she'd worn holes in the socks I'd made her. Yay!! This means she loves them!! Of course, I already knew she loved them (this is why best friends are awesome...they tell you the truth) but to know that she loves them enough to have worn holes in them? That's just awesome. :) I think she was a little surprised that I was not upset but in fact took it as a compliment and was pleased to hear it. heh. And what's more...she raved about them and even said that she'd love it if she had an entire drawerful of my socks! How cool is that?! Definitely made my day. I gotta get knitting on the socks! Up till now I've made her just ribbed socks in rather tame colors...but she said she'd be up for some brighter ones in patterns, too.

That's all for now. Back soon with photos.

Also...

I was named by Lynn over at Knots in a Row for the You Make My Day Award! How nice is that? I don't know much about the origin of this award. All I know is it made my day too, thanks Lynn! :o)

I know you're supposed to nominate a list of others...though I would rather just say this: all of you whose blogs I read and comment on, with whom I've chitchatted on email and by comments...consider yourself nominated! I tend to read the blogs of all the people who comment here, and you guys make my day every time you stop by. I am happy to have "met" all of my new bloggy friends. :)

(I hope this is coming out sounding right...I only mean nice things, however it might sound. :)

Have a great evening!

Praise for ravelry

Just wanted to babble about some random thoughts. I'm sure I will have many in agreement with me when I say, ravelry is fun! I joined/was invited a while back, but haven't really been seriously spending time in there until very recently. I think I was a tad overwhelmed with all that was involved with just putting a project in there that I sort of left it and wandered off. But, I think they've actually streamlined some of it since I was first in there and it's much easier now. I've also made a personal decision to only list projects that have actual published patterns...the kind I can search on in there and actually find (for example, I'm not bothering with putting my plain roll brim hats or other "personal patterns" in there). It's quicker and easier that way, and just adds to the wonderful cross-referencing that ravelry is all about. I figure, I've got the blog on which to post photos of random hats and such, why not use ravelry for what it's intended.

It's so great to be able to go in there, click on a pattern, and see photos of all of the ones people have made. Helps me decide what yarn to use, or what color to do...that's how I decided on making pink and white Anemoi mittens...(no, I haven't started them yet, but I do have the yarn!)

Also, remember that swift I was trying to get rid of? Well, I sold it through ravelry! Very cool. I went onto the forums, happened upon a post from someone who was looking for one, and a few PM's later, we'd agreed on a price and I mailed it off! That's also the first time I've used PayPal to sell something, very easy and cool. And my thanks to Dee too for her help as I bounced ideas off her. :)

It's also kind of fun to join the groups in ravelry, and to add friends to my list. I've never even been on Facebook or any of those popular networking sites...to be honest they kind of freak me out. But somehow a whole site about knitting and crochet and yarn and patterns? It just seems cozy and friendly and safe.

But I think one of my favorite features is the project queue. I am a HUGE fan of lists, and love to be able to find a pattern, and with just one click add it to my list and never forget about it or wonder where to find it. Fabulous!

And I swear every time I go in there there's something new to discover. I just noticed how you can see what your friends have queued or made or what yarn or books they have in their stash. That does serve to remind me though that every thing is out in the open, and whatever you put in there can be seen by anyone in ravelry!

So there. That's all I wanted to say! Just wanted to give my two cents about the site.

Oh! One more thing...on a completely unrelated topic...remember the hat I made for my FIL for Christmas? Well, my husband was talking to his mom the other day who told him that his dad leaves the hat on a table by the door and every time he comes in from outside, he will switch from his outdoor hat (a baseball cap type) to the hat I made him! And apparently he wears it constantly! How awesome is that?! Made my day, I can tell you. (Of course, my funnyguy husband then tried to trick me by saying the story wasn't true and he'd made it all up! humph. But it really is true...he promised it was.)

Henry

I was just over at Peaknit's blog, reading her post about Warm Fuzzies...those well-loved and well-worn toys we loved as kids. And I got to thinking about it...my "warm fuzzy" from my childhood--a dog named Henry-- is somewhat actually knitting-related! I learned to knit as a kid from my mom, and then took it up again briefly when I was about 12 and made my Henry an outfit.

Warning: picture-heavy post!

Here he is in his entire outfit - sweater, pants, hat and scarf:



The sweater has an "H" on the front:



The scarf has fringe:



The hat a pom-pom, and ribbing on the edge:



Funny part is, that hat was made in three triangles! I didn't know how to knit in the round back then.

I made two separate sets of ties to hold the hat on, that all tied under his chin:



Here you can sort of see the hat's construction. The ties at the bottom came around his neck from the back, and then the ties on the sides went under his chin. That hat was not coming off!!



Here are his pants, with a little drawstring:





Now, the Henry sans clothes! This is the little ticking "outfit" my mom had to make him when his original fur started to disintegrate. She stitched it right onto him.



Here you can see how well-loved he was. One ear is shorter than the other because I used to swing on my swing with him, and stick one ear through the chain. I remember grabbing him off one time, and the ear stayed behind! My mom quickly stitched that back on...and it's a little shorter than the other one. His eye fell out when I chucked him down the stairs (he was "jumping" of course) and so from then on a bandaid served as an eye patch. I used to change it periodically. I have a faint memory of him with both eyes, but I can't even remember him with a real nose. What's left is just the glue that held on the original.



As you can see here, his neck has been stitched many times over. His neck actually used to be longer, but since that was how I carried him, my mom eventually had to move his ticking outfit up thereby shortening his neck.



Hope you've enjoyed my little walk down memory lane! :) Anyone else have a favorite toy from their childhood they'd like to share? Leave a comment if so!

Turkey Lurkey

Isn't he great? We got the kit with the turkey parts at an apple festival a few weeks ago, and then picked up a pumpkin last week. He makes me laugh!

Too cute

Okay, I know everyone's probably posting this one, but I can't resist. It just hits too close to home! :)