Knit One, Purple Two

I've been telling you that I'll be showing you my Jacket with Moss Stitch Bands and Moss Stitch Shoes for weeks now, and today I can finally show it to you (I've had to delay it until I gave them to Sara as she reads my blog)!

I bought Baby Knits for Beginners by Debbie Bliss as not only was my sister pregnant with her little girl, Daisy, at the time, but I also wanted a simple introduction to knitted garments. Which is exactly what I got. The two patterns that really stood out to me was the Jacket with Moss Stitch Bands & the Moss (seed) Stitch Shoes. So, I decided to add them to my Year of Projects list. And now I can officially say, they are finished!!

First up is the Moss Stitch Shoes. My normal go-to Baby Booties pattern is Baby Booties by Aneeta Patel, so I decided to go for something that requires some 'real' knitting. I chose to knit these booties in Peter Pan DK by Wendy, in the Purple (3003) colourway. The yarn is 60% Acrylic and 40% Nylon, so it's perfect for banging in the wash which is just want you need for baby knits. The yarn is plied with sparkly thread, which adds a bit of depth to the yarn. (If you remember, I used the yarn to make Abby's Faye Purse) Really nice to knit with, and will definitely buy it again in the future.

So, onto the pattern. It was pretty simple, I did have to learn a new technique called KFB (Knit Front Back) which is going to be really useful for the future. They knitted up really quickly, the only problem I had with them was the sewing up.... As you know, I am not known for my sewing up skills. But, I persevered and managed to create something slightly resembling a shoe.

I probably won't knit them ever again, but at least I took a stab at it.

So, I've saved the best 'til last. I am so proud with this one, I must admit. It is my first ever garment, and the pattern is called Jacket with Moss Stitch Bands. I stared at the pattern for a while, and thought I would never be able to knit it. But, once I started knitting it everything made sense. Which just proves that I shouldn't just give up simply because I 'think' I can't do something, I need to give it a go first.

I used Heart Buttons, which also had little Daisy's on them.

So for the cardigan, I used Peter Pan DK by Wendy, in the Purple (3003) colourway. The cardigan is really simple, just stocking stitch with moss stitch on the right and left hand side. Thanks to this pattern, I learnt how to pick up & knit properly. I'm not sure what I was doing prefer, but it was definitely wrong. Now, though, I can do it well, which just adds to the 'proper finish' that all us knitters are after.

We went to tea at my sister's house on Friday, so I took my little knitted gifts with me. Sara & I did a trade, I gave her Daisy's presents and she gave me home-made peanut butter cups (which were amazing). Which I thought was very fair.

My gorgeous niece, Daisy. 

I was really worried that it'd be too small (she has just turned 6 months, so I knitted her the 6-9 months size), or that the sleeves would fall off, or something awful like that. But, not only did Daisy look adorable, it fitted and nothing fell off in the process of putting it on. Hooray!

So now I can put a line through those two projects on my new Year of Projects page, I just have to decide what to knit next. I have had a fiddle round with my list, added and changed a couple of patterns. So feel free to have a look at my new and shiny list, and pop a suggestion on what I should knit next!!

For now though, head on over to the Year of Projects group for this weeks finishes. Enjoy the rest of your weekend folks!

P.S, thanks to my best friend Abby from Virtual Stitch, for coming up with the post title. Bagwoman to the rescue once again, saving the blogging world from bad blog titles. You rock dude ;) 

Knitting, the Universe, and Everything!

Having a new teacup-human in the family (fantastic turn of phrase by AndiSocial) means that you get to knit lots of cute, tiny things. This weeks teacup-human knitting is the Jacket with Moss Stitch Bands and Moss Stitch Shoes, both of which are from the book Baby Knits for Beginners by Debbie Bliss.

The Moss Stitch Shoes, are really pretty. And you'll probably remember me blogging about knitting them not too long ago. I forget why I ended up frogging them... but anyway! Now they're back, and I've really enjoyed knitting them!

Click to see it bigger!

They were really easy to knit, and very fast too! They're sat in my knitting bag now... waiting to be sewn up. So hopefully on Sunday you'll get to see the finished result!

Back Panel

Now, I am knitting the Jacket with Moss Stitch Bands. As it is my first time knitting a garment, I decided to pick something simple to get me going. I started it yesterday, and I'm amazed at how quick it is knitting up! Yesterday I managed to start and finish the back panel, and today I've almost finished the front left panel :)

Front Left Panel

It is basically stocking stitch with (you guessed it) moss stitch bands. As it is a 'mindless' knit, it has meant that I can read while knitting. Which is great news, because I'm really behind on my reading goal already this year. But, more on that tomorrow. 

So now I've entered the world of 'proper knitting' (as my Mother calls it) I've lined up a few more cardigans to try my needle at in the next few weeks. They are: Simply Shrug by Ida Olniansky, Peggy Sue by Linda Wilgus and Dress with Eyelets by Debbie Bliss.The first two for myself, and the latter for my niece Daisy! (Who is going to be the recipient of the Moss Stitch Shoes & Cardi)

So, now its time for you to head on over to Tami's where WIP Wednesday has reached its 80th week - can you believe it??

Have a great week everyone, and don't forget to pop on by tomorrow for the 2nd week of the Thursday Book Challenge!