Knitting Sandwich

yarn along 04.18.12

joining up with ginny at small things for the weekly yarn along.

this week has found me thoroughly enjoying myself as i knit up a pile of dishcloths (these are for a gift, so i can't show you any more specifics), and reading my books for lily's book club.  

this month she chose wolves of beyond - frost wolf and i chose children of the noisy village by astrid lindgren.  lily has finished both of them already, but i'm only half way through frost wolf.  bookclub doesn't meet until next week though, so i should be able to make it!

-melissa

sometimes there's nothing to do but knit a dishcloth.

when your beloved friend moves to germany and you miss her so terribly, sometimes there's nothing to do but knit a dishcloth.

pattern: wisconsin cloth by rhonda white (rav link)

dishcloth: filled with so much love i don't know if it even has room to absorb one single droplet of water.

-melissa

poppies

i am fortunate to count amongst my friends the very talented michelle brusegaard.  i have always loved her red poppies dishtowels and this year decided to incorporate them into my holiday gift-giving plans.

i invented this little matching dishcloth to go along with them.  it is just a simple garter stitch cloth with a crocheted poppy sewn onto it.

-melissa

can't go wrong with dishcloths!

here's a couple more dishcloths i've knit up for holiday gifts.

a circle cloth (rav link) to round out the trifecta of solstice cloths,

and an iowa cloth (rav link) for part of a hostess gift for a friend who's a native of my neighbor state to the south.

as i said, you really can't go wrong with dishcloths, or do i just think that because i love knitting them so?

-melissa

preparing for the return

i will fully admit to loving how it gets dark so early this time of year.  but even inside a diehard winter fan like myself there resides a small spark of desire for the return of the light and warmth of the sun.

the cloth is texas sun by rainy kimbrough (rav link) and will be part of a solstice gift for some dear friends.

-melissa

i'm just not sweating it this year

usually by this point in the holiday season i am up to my ears in holiday sweatshop work.  usually i look forward to opening ye olde holiday sweatshop with anticipation and excitement.  but this year... not so much.  

don't get me wrong, i still tackled my holiday gift list with anticipation and excitement... i just didn't seem to want to make any of it. 

of course i ended up adding a few little items to the todo list, dishcloths and coffee snugglers and the like... but it feels more like a cozy holiday gift making retreat instead of a pressure cooker of a sweatshop.  and that makes me happy.

speaking of making me happy - get a load of this dishcloth!  i made it for part of a solstice gift for some friends and oh my!  i think i am totally in love with it!

i mean look at that texture!  it's so squishy and perfect!!  love it!!!!!!  

-melissa

ps - i should mention that it is the aunt may dishcloth pattern by debbie andriulli (rav link).  i'm also going to mention again how much i love it: eeeeeeee!  i love this pattern!!!

eco-friendly door prizes

so what's a girl to whip up when she volunteers to make some door prizes for a sustainability-focused conference?

why re-usable market bags and dishcloths of course!

this is the same pattern i used to make lily's soccer bag holder, the five hour market bag by sarah sipe (pattern or rav link).  after making two more i can still say that i really like this pattern!  it's quick and fun to make - what could be better?!?

and you already know my insatiable love for dishcloths.  here we have - from left to right: the all washed up cloth by jill arnuch (rav link), playful plaid by renee m (ravlink), the popcorn washer by spiraling (rav link), and another all washed up.

yay dishcloths!!

-melissa

 

washcloths that hate cancer!

here is a little washcloth pattern that i designed as part of my fundraising campaign for my bc3d walk this year.  i'm selling it via ravelry for $3 if you'd like to make some of your own.

i love that it combines two of my passions - hating cancer and knitting dishcloths!!

-melissa

handiwork for the brothers

one of my brothers just purchased his very first house!  in honor of this momentous occasion i volunteered to deck out his kitchen with handmade goodness.

in back we have a circle cloth, morse code cloth, and playful plaid.  up front is a cloth i created using the chart by christina danathar.  it's the browncoat emblem from joss whedon's fantastic, but sadly short-lived, television series firefly.

up next - the embroidered kitchen towels. 

we have the dire wolf of house stark, the lion of house lannister, and the crowned stag of house baratheon - all from the incredible epic saga by geroge rr martin - a song of ice and fire.  i still have one more towel to finish, hopefully i'll be able to share that one soon.

big things are in the works for my other brother as well - he and his girlfriend moved in together this past weekend.  not wanting them to feel left out i made up a dishcloth to commemorate the occasion.

-melissa

from the carpool lane

i think i mentioned this before but i keep a dishcloth in my car now to knit on while i wait for lily to come out of school.  most days i only get one or two rows done, but over time those one or two rows add up to a couple dishcloths.

these are two of my favorite patterns ever - the harmonic mosaic (pattern or rav link) and the playful plaid (pattern or rav link), both by renee m.  they're destine to become a holiday present.

thank goodness the yarn curse doesn't dare come near my dishcloths.  it's my refuge from the storm.

-melissa