7 Quick Takes: A Bit of This & That

1.  Here's a teaser for my upcoming giveaway!  If you'd like to win beautiful hand dyed yarn from an awesome Etsy shop be sure to check back here this weekend!

2.  Catherine enjoys Reading Eggs so much that she actually will ask to play before breakfast.  (You still have have time to get a five week free trial.  You can find out how here.)

3.  I am rather absurdly proud of the little baby sweater I made.

4.  This week I got a Lands' End catalog in the mail, so of course I've been browsing through all of the lovely summer styles.  (If money were no object I'd have quite a closet full of Lands' End clothing.)  I am a little bit in love with these pink Chino shorts:

Source: Lands' End

5.  This spring will be, let's say, a wardrobe challenge.  Every mother goes through it -- the postpartum stage where neither maternity nor regular clothes fit quite right.  I'm thinking comfy skirts and I really like Mama2primus's suggestion of open front sweaters.  (I really love this pattern from Go To Patterns.  I wonder if I have/will have time to sew a couple . . . )   I'd love to hear what worked for you! 

6.  Those of you who haven't wasted your time watching frivolous t.v. shows (good for you) won't find it as amusing that Ashton Kutcher and Mila Kunis are reportedly engaged as I do.  (I don't follow celebrity gossip, really I don't, it just popped across my newsfeed.)

7.  Lent begins on Wednesday.  For the past three weeks I've been terrified that Lent already started and I somehow missed the memo.  (Yes, my pregnancy "worry hormones" have been in overdrive.)

Visit Jen for more Quick Takes.  

Handmade Purple Dangle Earrings (With a Link to a Tutorial)

Lately my crafting endeavors have been pretty exclusive to knitting and crocheting.  (This is due to my never ending morning sickness, which hopefully will end in a few weeks when Baby is born!)  I made these purple dangle earrings before I was pregnant and never got around to sharing them with you!

For my tutorial on making earrings be sure to check out {this post}!

WIPS: Various Updates and New Yarn

Well, my big knitting news is that I finished the baby sweater!  And it looks like a sweater! Please,  check it out here -- I'd love some feedback!  I've added a few rows to Catherine's poncho/cape -- this particular project sure is taking me awhile.

I've also added some yarn to my stash.  The purple yarn will probably be a sweater for Catherine.  (I'm on the lookout for an easy-ish child's pattern -- any recommendations?)

Catherine picked out a blue yarn for her giraffe.  I'm going to start working on this as soon as I put the computer down.

This green yarn is going to be a Yoda hat for Porcupine.  Again, I'm looking for pattern recommendations.  I have a baby beanie hat pattern that I like, but I'd like a pattern for the ears.  I like the ears on this Craftsy pattern, but I want to see if I can find one for free first.  (My hubby is a bit of a Star Wars fan, so I have to make sure that the ears are "right".)  

The yarn looks a little bright in this photo -- the above one is much truer. 

Be sure to follow my blog so that you don't miss anything!  I have an awesome hand dyed yarn giveaway coming up very soon, sponsored by Quaere Fibre!

 

Rachel: The Philosopher's Wife

I will be sharing this post at the following:

Frontier Dreams with Nicole

Work In Progress with Tami

Yarn Along with Ginny

WIWW: 36 Weeks Pregnant

Here's another week of my Baby Bump!  I've been playing with the self-timer on the camera, but I never quite caught myself fully smiling.  Oh well.

I am feeling . . . very pregnant these days.  Even some of my maternity clothes don't seem to have enough to cover my ever expanding belly.  I can't wait to hold little Porcupine in my arms! I've been washing all of his little clothes and they are just too adorable!  (I even knit him a little sweater!)

I suppose I should be thinking about what I will be wearing postpartum.  Fellow mamas, what were your favorite items for shortly after the baby arrived?  With my daughter I had a rather rough recovery and just wore whatever didn't annoy me.  I'd like to be a little bit "cuter" this time around, but also don't want to spend much money.

I'll be linking up at The Pleated Poppy and I Feel Pretty.

I Knit a Baby Sweater! (Including a Link to the Pattern)

I've only been knitting for a short while, but I really have been wanting to try to make a sweater.  I must admit, while I really wanted to make one I was rather intimidated.  Nancy, who can be found at Of Wool and Loveliness, suggested that I start with The Baby Boy 5 Hour Sweater.  After looking the pattern over I decided to take the plunge!

Before I even cast on a single stitch I read through all of the comments on the Ravelry page, which I would highly recommend to any beginner.  This really helped me to understand what was going on in the few places where the pattern was a little unclear.  I also looked through a lot of the completed projects and blog posts.

This sweater pattern does not include instructions for buttonholes.  I did know that before I started, but since it was my first sweater I did not want to try adding anything to the pattern.  There are quite a few people who made this sweater and left notes on how they added buttons, so if I make this sweater again I  will add buttonholes.

This is probably more a critique of my knitting than of the pattern, although other knitters had the same issue, but the pattern claims to be size 0 - 3 months and my sweater is clearly larger than the other little baby clothes I've been washing lately.

Other notes: This sweater is worked from the top down in one piece.  (Very clever construction, if you ask me!)  I was able to use only one set of circular needles. Also, another critique of my knitting, it certainly took me longer than five hours to complete.  I'm a newbie knitter though, so I can't hold that against the pattern!

I have to say, I'm a little bit proud of my first sweater!  It looks like a sweater, it should be able to function as a sweater, and I made it!

(Of course, Catherine has now requested that I make her a purple sweater.  If you have any little girl size 4/5 sweater pattern recommendations, I'd love to hear them!)

Tell me about the first sweater you knitted!  Was it for you?  Or for someone else?  Did you (or the recipient) like wearing it?

 

Rachel: The Philosopher's Wife

As always, I love sharing my projects around the web at places like these and Hookin on Hump Day and Fine Craft Guild!

Nesting & Morning Sickness

Yes, this is me right now.  (It's a happy conundrum, but a conundrum nonetheless.)

Save Big at Craftsy!

There's another awesome sale going on at Craftsy this weekend!  Enjoy up to 80% off all inspiring project kits and supplies. Shop now to find your next amazing project during the Stash Of Possibilities Sale.  But you do have to hurry, because the offer ends at 11pm PST on February 24, 2014. Save up to 80% on Yarn at Craftsy! Save up to 80% on Fabric at Craftsy! **This post contains affiliate links and I will be compensated if you make a purchase after clicking on my links.  I really do appreciate all of your support!***

7 Quick Takes: My Weekly Post of Randomness

1. I realized I didn't do a "What I Wore Wednesday" post this week -- which I'm trying to do as a Baby Bump record more than a fashion record.  (Because who would I be kidding. Me? Fashion?! Ha!)  So, here I am today at 35 weeks and a few days:

2. With the help of a friend, we picked up a new-to-us piece of furniture over the weekend.  I'm oddly excited about this.  Eventually, we are going to refinish it to be darker, but that will most likely be after Baby makes his debut.  I really love the size and the lines that it has!

3. If you have toddlers, please enter this giveaway for a Handmade Belt.

4. I love linking up my crafty projects at various blog "parties" around the web.  Right now there are a plethora of St. Patrick's Day crafts, which makes sense, given that his feast day is March 17th.  Many of these crafts involved green, clovers, and the like, but I was originally stumped by the amount of rainbow "St. Patrick" crafts.  Maybe it's the end of pregnancy brain fatigue, or maybe I am just slow on the uptake, but I think it might be because I was looking at St. Patrick's day from my "homeschooled Catholic" perspective (i.e., it's a feast day of a saint who was born in England, was brought to Ireland as a captive, who escaped, became a priest, returned to Ireland, taught the people about Christianity, and according to tradition, used a three leaf clover to help explain the Blessed Trinity) instead of looking at it from a more secular point of view (i.e., it's an Irish holiday, that means green, shamrocks, leprechauns, and pots of gold at the end of a rainbow).  What do you think?

Photo From: Free Digital Photos 

5. I have a half finished rainbow pot holder blog post that I should finish . . . especially if rainbows are currently "in".

6. Actually, I have a lot of half finished blog posts that I should finish.  How many posts sitting in drafts do you tend to have at one time?

7. It's rainy here today, but it's warm.  It might be a good day to find some puddles.

***I'd like to make a quick plug for a friend of mine! She runs Catholic Deals, a blog which I highly recommend (especially if you're Catholic and would like to find Catholic items at a reasonable price),and her Facebook page is hovering just under a big milestone.  Could you help her reach 1,000 followers?  Here's the link!***

 

Rachel: The Philosopher's Wife

For more Quick Takes visit Jen!

WIPS: I Started a Sweater & Poncho/Cape Update

I've taken the plunge!  I have started knitting my first sweater.  It is a baby sweater -- hopefully Porcupine will be able to wear it.  The pattern is called "Baby Boy Five Hour Sweater", which is a pattern that Nancy from Of Wool and Loveliness recommended.  It's going to take me a lot longer than five hours, but that's alright.  Despite the fact that I am on gauge, I am dubious that it will actually end up newborn sized, although only time will tell.  Obviously, it's still pretty early in the knit, but it appears rather large to me.  (There were others who had the same problem when I looked through the various Ravelry notes, but I didn't want to change anything on the first sweater I made.)  How did your first sweater turn out?  Was it wearable? 

I am still knitting away on Catherine's poncho/cape.  I am trying to decide if I want the bottom edge to be a seed stitch, to match the top, or if a rib would be better.  I think I'd prefer the look of the rib, but does it really make sense to have two different types of edging on a small garment?  Probably not.  What do you think?  Seed stitch or ribbing?

I finished The Yellow Hat that I had started crocheting last week.  My favorite part is the pink rose. (Here's the pattern!)  It makes the hat seem equally appropriate for cool spring days as frigid winter days.

I will be sharing this post at the following:

Frontier Dreams with Nicole

Work In Progress with Tami

Yarn Along with Ginny

Another Crochet Project: The Yellow Hat

I have been looking for a good hat pattern that uses half double crochet.  This pattern popped up on Pinterest a lot last week, so I thought that I'd give it a try.

Like I said in my WIPS post last week, I'm not in love with the pattern.  It is fine.  However, I think that the increases could be staggered a bit more nicely.  I made the 3-5 year old size, but it is a bit small for my three year old.  It fits, but quite snugly.  (I'll be putting together my own pattern shortly, so keep an eye out for it!)

For the finishing touches, I added a few rows of single crochet at the bottom and slip stitched all around.  I then crocheted a rose, using my pattern, to add a bit of "girlyness" to the hat.

What is your favorite crochet hat pattern?  Do you have one that uses half double crochet?

 

Rachel: The Philosopher's Wife

I love sharing my projects!
 {Here} and here are some of the places I party: Fine Craft Guild & Hookin on Hump Day. 

I've been featured!

Save Big on Craftsy Courses!

**This post contains affiliate links and I will be compensated if you make a purchase after clicking on my links.  I appreciate your support!**

Heads up Craftsy fans! This weekend only, it's your chance to get up to 50% off perfect matches (for Valentines Day, get it?!?) of 2 Craftsy online classes. You can bundle classes for a bigger discount!  Act fast, the offer ends at 11pm PST on February 16, 2014. Craftsy Perfect Match Flash Sale  Did you see what I crocheted this week?   Mint Blue Elegant Hat

7 Quick Takes

1.  We got snow!  Lots of snow for our area.  Of course, the temperature promptly went above freezing and I believe today is going to be close to 50!

2. I have been enjoying watching the Olympics online.  I've been lucky to be able to stream from NBC.  I have to say though, I really, really, really, really dislike spoilers and NBC is determined to spoil things!  The side headlines, the live side-scrolling twitter feed, the commercials in the midst of their streaming  coverage, etc., are all rife with spoilers!  What about you?  Do you dislike seeing who won or lost before an event?

3. I read this article the other day: Why You Should Never, Ever Put Two Spaces After a Period.  I will admit, I generally am a two-spacer.  That's what my college professors wanted -- in fact one space after a period would result in deductions.  However, now I am second guessing myself.  Are you a one-spacer or a two-spacer?  Does one bother you?  Do you even notice such things?

4. I think I might take the plunge and try to knit a baby sweater this weekend.

5. Catherine has been full of requests lately of things that she'd like me to make her.  (Such as Wednesday's request for matching monster hats for her and Porcupine.)  The newest one is a crocheted giraffe.  I've actually already made one, but it's not the "right" color.  I just need to find my pattern among the chaos that is my craft room.

6. Happy St. Valentine's Day!

I can't find the original source, but I think it came from here. 

7. If you have toddlers, check out this cute belt giveaway.  This is an awesome handmade item, and I think the giveaway will have fairly low entries so get yours in!

For more Quick Takes, visit Jen!