Cotton Candy Van Dyke Socks

 I spent Christmas and New Years with my family. It was loads of fun, and I visited a fun little yarn shop, Unwind, in Sandy, Utah with my mom and sister. 

While I was there I picked up some pink and purple Cascade Yarn Cherub DK to make my daughter a pair of socks. A couple of days before that, I picked up a copy of "Socks from the Toe Up" by Wendy Johnson while visiting my aunt. After looking through it, I knew I had to have my own copy, and I knew that knitting socks didn't have to be as difficult as it was the last time I knit a pair. I promptly went to the yarn/antique shop next door to her home and bought it. I couldn't wait to get started. 

The instructions in "Socks from the Toe Up" are clear and easy to understand. The author explains the basics of knitting socks and what makes a good fitting sock, so you could eventually make your own sock patterns. 

I loved knitting these socks. I used the Van Dyke Socks pattern. The pattern is actually for a woman's mid-calf sock, but I knew I wanted to make my 7 year old a pair of socks. It calls for a sport weight yarn.

The Cherub DK is lighter than the sport weight yarn I picked up at the same time. It is actually closer in weight to some of the sock yarns I have in my stash. This worked out perfectly for me, as I needed to make a sock slightly smaller than what the pattern offered, and this allowed me to do so without altering the basic pattern right off the bat. The only alteration I made was when I got to her calf and needed to increase it to fit comfortably. Fortunately, I needed to increase it just enough that I could fit in another repeat of the lace pattern.

Seriously, if knitting socks has not gone well for you in the past or you just want to give it a whirl, pick up a copy of "Socks from the Toe Up". It makes knitting socks super simple. I highly recommend it.

Sewing Table

I desperately needed a sturdy table for my sewing machine. The plastic folding table just was not getting it done. I built this table and then it sat in my garage for a full two months before I stained it. Why? Because I really really really don't like staining anything. It is much more gray than it shows in the picture, but I just couldn't a good picture for color, because my house is yellow and reflecting onto the table. So far I am liking it, but may end up building some sturdier legs for it. The legs are from Ikea.

Quilt for Abuela

Last summer my husband started making plans to go visit his Grandmother. When he started making his plans, he requested that I make her a quilt. The only information he gave me is he wanted it to be her favorite colors: pink and purple. I picked up this fabric at a local quilt shop that was having a moving sale. It is Eden by Lila Tueller for Moda. The pattern is Diamond Diva by Heather Mulder Peterson. I love her patterns. I originally picked up this pattern to make a quilt for my family room (which I haven't done yet). This pattern was so easy to piece and went together nicely. While this quilt isn't done in colors I would choose for myself, I am very happy with the results. I will be using this pattern for my family room quilt.

In other news, I picked up some beautiful Christmas fabric today that will match my family room perfectly.

Ready, Set, Snow Stocking

I was out shopping for fabric one day, and I saw the Ready, Set, Snow fabric by Me & My Sister. I loved the colors and whimsy of it! Immediately, stockings for my kids came to mind. I bought a jelly roll and a few yards of some of the different fabrics. I finished this up, and decided I wasn't in love with it. It is just a little too small, and I'm not sure I love the diamonds, either. So I ended up giving this away. My daughter was so disappointed that I gave it away. So this week, I will be making stockings that look a lot like this, only longer.

I am hoping to have enough fabric left to make a little Christmas quilt for the kids to snuggle under.

Last Minute Skirt & Headband

I think this skirt is adorable and will likely make this again in the future. The story behind why I made it, not so adorable. My husband was getting ready to go out of the country on business several weeks ago. I knew this. What I did not know, and what he did not tell me is that he would likely be seeing his cousin and her daughter while he was there. They live in a different country, thus, I didn't think he would be seeing them.

We had gone out shopping that day, for several hours and several different stores. 

At about 8:30pm, the kids were in bed, and he is packing his suitcase. My husband comes to me and says, "I am going to see M & A. Do we have any presents for A?" 

Me: "No. When I asked you about this a month ago, you said you weren't going to see her. Why didn't you mention this when we were shopping today?"

Husband: "Do you think you could make something for her before I leave in the morning?"

This is the result of digging through my fabric stash and pinterest. It's a good thing we have pinterest.

I know it isn't a great photo, but I didn't have the option of waiting for daylight to take a good photo. 

The fabric is Sultry by Basic Grey. I wish you could see the true colors of this fabric, so pretty. The skirt tutorial is from The Crafty Cupboard and is her Lovey-Dovey Skirt. This skirt was a breeze to make. I followed the tutorial exactly, no time to reinvent the wheel. The not fun part was fighting with my old-and-worn-out-machine.