Portland Plaid Socks

These socks were a quick knit near the middle of June - Portland Plaid socks. The yarn was thicker and sturdy, and I thought they made the perfect summer socks.

These were a free de-stash yarn as well!

I made them in time for my trip back east, and even got to wear them at the Portland Airport Carpet!












Ravelry Project Link

Tuscarora

This was a linen tank that I rushed to finish before I left for Cape Cod at the beginning of the summer, and would you know I left it at a transit point? My parents were able to ship it back to me, but it never even made it to Cape Cod. Ugh.

Honestly, I'm not sure how I feel about this top. It's Linen, and it sticks to anything I wear underneath in unflattering ways. It kinda just looks like I'm wearing a bag.

Maybe it'll grow on me? I did knit it from some free, de-stashed Linen that I dyed.

Ravelry Project Page

SM3 - Waimakiriri

Round Three of Sock Madness was tough for me. Really tough. It almost knocked me out. The pattern required a tiny cable to be created for the toe. It then asked you to pick up stitches around, and then continue the cable up the sides of the foot as you knit, and then around the heel and up the leg.

I used Tipsy Sheep yarn in the White Russian colorway, and I can barely get them over my heels! But they do get over the heel, and I did finish them, and I did make it to Round Four!

Ravelry Project

French Braid

As the holidays approached, I was panicked and overcome with the need to finish all of the gifts, but when I noticed that this was the November KAL pattern on the Ravelry Mega-KAL group, I could not pass the opportunity up. I was even able to use stash yarn from my Brantingham Tree Rings blanket!

I was not that difficult of a knit, and I even managed to get through most of the body before we left. After taking a break from it to finish up my brother's Christmas socks, which I had put on hold to do a heel-sizing test on the first one, I got right back on it, and I managed to finish on Christmas itself.

It wasn't blocked, of course, but I still wore it the next day, and while we were grass-sledding, it came in handy for my cousin Anna (very front - and yes, those are sleds being pulled by an ATV). I blocked it the minute we got home, and I've been wearing it ever since.

Hacky Sack - Kids' Puzzle Balls

And here we are - we've reached the end of the Christmas posts! This'll be the last one!

Today I present to you the hackysacks I made for the kiddos - they're all puzzle balls! Each one uses a different pattern, but they all come apart in a series of puzzles.

First, I made one for Owen using Dedri Uys's Mini Crochet Amish Ball pattern. Owen liked green, so I used a variety of green scraps for the inside, and made the edging in yellow. 

This one was completed in June.

Ravelry Project: Owen

Second was Ellie's flower ball, and this one was an adapted version of another one of Dedri's patterns, the Flower Crochet Amish Puzzle Ball. I adapted the pattern to try to make the ball smaller, and so the flowers only contained one row in the center, and the outside DCs were HDCs. I adapted the wedges accordingly, and though it worked, it still wasn't quite as small as I had hoped.

Ellie liked blue, but I also knew she really liked flowers, so this was a perfect fit for her, and I finished it in July.

Ravelry Project: Ellie

Third was Caleb, a kiddo who liked red, so I simply turned Dedri's Crochet Pumpkin Segment Ball into an Apple segment ball for a delightful finished product, completed in October.

Ravelry Project: Caleb

And finally, last but not least, I've got a Spikey Star ball for Grayson, whose preferences I never got, so I just made him a rainbow of color using an adapted version of Dedri's Crochet Star Ball. I simply made each of the wedges about half the size, and the end result works great, though it does tend to bulge in the center.

The best part is that all the rings are completely reversible, so he can decide which side he wants out!

Ravelry Project: Grayson

Stay tuned next week for the first non-Christmas post since December!

(Oh, and in case you were curious, yes, these are the same Ellie, Owen, Grayson, and Caleb as the quilt recipients!)

Hacky Sack - Fuzzy Bobble

A few of the Hackysacks I made were essentially pattern-less, in an effort to let the yarn speak for itself, and I present them to you today!

Peter's, which was finished in September, used a fuzzy blue yarn. Unfortunately, the fuzz didn't really show through in the final project, but I chose to make just a plain sphere in order to highlight it. 

Ravelry Project: Peter

Uncle Andy S requested purple and green, so knowing that I had this yarn, it was really a no-brainer. I worked another simple sphere, but after the boring results I got from Peter's, I decided to add a few bobbles haphazardly. When I finished it in October, I decided it had worked.

Ravelry Project: Quog

Finally, we have my hackysack. I chose a green fuzzy scrap for mine, and somehow mine came out much fuzzier than Peter's - go figure. Anyway, I finished in October, and packed it up with the others.

Ravelry Project: Lily

Hacky Sack - Easy Peasy Baby Ball

Another one of the patterns I used for this project was the Easy Peasy Baby Ball by A la Sascha. I absolutely love this one, and though I adapted the pattern a few times by adding rows or changing needle sizes, it was still one of my favorites.

Dad's was first, and his selected color was blue. For a man known for wearing only blue for years of his life, this was not a surprising choice, and I striped his ball accordingly, with two of his favorite shades. This one was completed in September.

Ravelry Project: Gary

Aunt Jody requested red, green, and blue, so this stripey duet seemed perfect. Hers was completed in September as well.

Ravelry Project: Jody

Also a September ball, this one was for Elizabeth S, and she liked the colors green and grey, so hers was the perfect excuse to use up some scraps. I am particularly proud of this one because I only had a few yards of the light green left, and I was able to use it up almost perfectly, with less than 10 inches to spare.

Ravelry Project: Elizabeth S

Finally, I made one more as an extra, and quite frankly this might be my absolute favorite of all the balls I made. This one was finished in November and just might end up in my classroom.

Ravelry Project: E1

Striped Double Crochet Ball - Pattern

Once again, I present to you the pattern for the hacky-sacks I previously posted.

Materials:

• Yarn in chosen colors (worsted)
• size F crochet hook
• scissors, darning needle, filling (stockings, stuffing or rice)

Directions (Detailed):

• Round 1: With color A, create a magic loop. Into the magic loop, chain one, and then make 6 single-crochets. Slip-stitch to the top of the first SC. (6 stitches)
• Round 2: Make a standing DC, and in the same stitch, make two more DC. Make 3 DC in each stitch around, and slip-stitch to the top of the standing DC. Cut and bind off color A. (18 stitches)
• Round 3: With color B, attach to first stitch with a chain, and sc in the same stitch, and then sc in the next stitch. (sc twice in one stitch, sc in next two stitches) around, and then sc twice in the last stitch, and slip-stitch to the first sc. (24 stitches)
• Round 4: Make a standing DC in the first stitch, and then two DCs in the next stitch. (DC in one stitch, make two DCs in the next) around, and slip-stitch to the standing DC. Cut and bind off color B. (36 stitches)
• Round 5: With color C, attach to first stitch with a chain, and sc in the same stitch, and then sc in the next four stitches. (sc twice in one stitch, sc in next five stitches) around, and then sc twice in the last stitch, and slip-stitch to the first sc. (42 stitches)
• Round 6: Make a standing DC in the first stitch, and then DC in the next five stitches. (DC twice in the next stitch, DC in the next six stitches) around, and then DC twice in the last stitch, and slip-stitch to the standing DC. Cut and bind off color C. (48 stitches)
• Round 7: Attach color A, sc around
• Round 8: dc around
• Round 9: sc around, cut and bind off color A
• Round 10: With color C, make a standing DC, and DC in the next 5 stitches. (DC 2 together, DC 6) around, Dc last two stitches together, and slip stitch to standing DC. (42 stitches)
• Round 11: Chain one, sc in same stitch and next four stitches. (sc 2 together, sc in the next five stitches) around, sc the last two stitches together, slip-stitch to first stitch. Cut and bind off color C. (36 stitches)
• Round 12: With color B, make a standing DC. (DC 2 together, DC 1) around, Dc last two stitches together, and slip stitch to standing DC. (24 stitches)
• Round 13: Chain one, sc in same stitch and next stitch. (sc 2 together, sc in the next two stitches) around, sc the last two stitches together, slip-stitch to first stitch. Cut and bind off color B. (18 stitches)
• Note: At this point, you should stuff the inside of the ball in whichever way you choose, before attaching the last color.
• Round 14: With color A, Make a standing DC 3 together, and DC 3 together around. Slip stitch to the first stitch. (6 stitches)
• Round 15: Chain one, sc in each stitch, slip stitch to the first stitch, and bind off. (6 stitches)
• Sew all ends in

Directions (Simplified):

1. (A) magic loop, 6 SC (6 sts)
2. (A) DC 3 in each sc (18 sts)
3. (B) SC 2, SCinc across (24 sts)
4. (B) DC, DCinc across (36 sts)
5. (C) SC 5, SCinc across (42 sts)
6. (C) DC 6, SCinc acorss (48 sts)
7. (A) SC all
8. (A) DC All
9. (A) SC all
10. (C) DC 6, DC2tog across (42 sts)
11. (C) SC 5, SC2tog across (36sts)
12. (B) DC, DC2tog across (24 sts)
13. (B) SC 2, SC2tog across (18 sts)
14. (A) DC3tog across (6 sts)
15. (A) SC across (6 sts)

Hacky Sack - Striped DC Ball

This was another pattern I created myself, so once again, I'll be showing you in two posts. In the mean time, here are my creations.

First up, Cole's hackysack. He said he liked blue, so here it is. This one was completed in September.

Ravelry Project: Cole

October brought us Randall's hackysack. He likes orange and green, so this was a perfect fit.

Ravelry Project: Randall

Another October creation, Aunt Kathy's was done with scraps, and slightly adapted since the yarn was thicker, so all Double-crochets are half-double crochets instead.

Ravelry Project: Kathy

Finally, we have the one I made for Adi, completed in November. I never got color requests from him, so I just went with red and brown.

Ravelry Project: Adi

Granny Square Hacky Sack - Pattern

As I mentioned in my previous post, this set of hackysacks was made using a pattern of my own creation, and as promised, here it is.

Materials

• Yarn, in desired colors. If you choose to follow the schemes above, you'll need 3-4 colors.
• size F crochet hook
• scissors, darning needle, and stuffing material (pantyhose and rice or batting)

Directions:

Squares: Make 6

• Round 1: With color A, create a magic ring. In the magic ring, make one standing DC, and then 2 normal DC. (Chain 1, make 3 DC) three times. Chain 1, and slip-stitch to the top of the standing DC. Cut and bind-off.
• Round 2: With color B, make one standing DC in any of the ch-1 spaces, and then make 2 more DC in the same space. (Ch-1, make 3 DC) in the same space, then (3 DC, ch-1, 3 DC) in the next ch-1 space three times. Slip-stitch to standing DC, cut and bind-off.
• Round 3: With color C, make one standing DC in any of the ch-1 spaces, and then make 5 more DC in the same space. (3 DC in the stretch between the sides of DC in the previous round, 6 DC in the next ch-1 space) three times. 3 DC in last stretch, and slip-stitch to standing DC, snip and bind off.

Finishing:

• Once you have all six sides done, begin binding them together. SC two corners together, and sc across, ending in the next corner stitch. Then, hold another piece up, and stitch in the new set of corner stitches (yes, you will be making two stitches in one of the corners), and follow that side down. Continue in this manner until your ball is all stitched up, except for one side, which is only attached at one side.
• Fill the bottom of an old pair of stockings with rice, beans, or stuffing, depending on how heavy you want your ball to be. Tie a knot in the stockings, cut above the knot, and stuff it into your ball. 
• Seam across the rest of your edges, and use a darning needle to weave in all the ends.

If you want to make each side different, you can follow this color schema, making one of each.

• A, B, C
• A, C, B
• B, A, C
• B, C, A
• C, A, B
• C, B, A

If you want to keep the centers the same, and use only three colors, follow this color schema:

• make 2: A, B, C
• make 4: A, C, B

You can, of course, use any color schema you would like!

Hacky Sack - Granny Square

This is a pattern that I made myself, and so I'll write this one in two posts. First up, lets showcase the hackysacks! I'm classing them granny square hacky sacks, and they were one of my favorites.

Garrett's was first, completed in August, and made from Brava scraps. He requested blue and gray, so this one worked out for him. I chose to do one side in each color combination, so each side is different.

Ravelry Project: Garrett

Second, I made Aunt Becky's, and she liked "Eggplant purple, cobalt blue, lime green, and bold colors." Instead of making each side different, I chose to do all six sides with a green center, so four of them have burgundy followed by eggplant, and two have eggplant followed by burgundy. This one was done in September.
Ravelry Project: Becky

Next up is Sami, who said she liked red and green, and so hers, completed in September, came out fairly Christmas-y. Again, I chose to keep all the centers red to match with the binding, but this time, I decided to make all the squares the same.
Ravelry Project: Sami

Finally, I made an extra with this pattern, and used a fire-schema. Each side is different, following the same pattern as Garrett's, and bound in gray. This one was completed in November.

Ravelry Project: E6

Hacky Sack - Garter Rib

These balls came from the Amusing Knitted Balls pattern, written by Martha Marques. I played around with needles sizes and pattern sizes, finding that in general, I knit them up smaller than the pattern said, but I really loved the pattern, and it was a quick knit.

Keith's was made first, and was completed in July. He liked "Matte black, blood red, and British racing green."
Ravelry Project: Keith

Next up, we have one for Grace, who liked Purple, bold red, and winter colors. Hers came together nicely, I think, as a nice complement to Keith's, and was also completed in July.
Ravelry Project: Grace

Aunt Leigh is third, and she liked "Plum, Black, Charcoal, Red, Royal Blue, Teal, Coke Bottle Green, Taupe, and Burgundy," and so for this one I went with a burgundy outside and closest I could find to coke bottle green accent inside a white backdrop. I finished it in September.
Ravelry Project: Leigh

Finally, we have another extra, knit up with some pink scraps, and finished in November.

Ravelry Project: E2

Hacky Sack - Polyhedral Balls

Next up we have the Polyhedral Balls, which were taken from a Planet June Pattern, Polyhedral Balls. I chose to do three different versions of the pattern, and I decreased the hook size to make them a bit smaller.

First up, an Octohedral Ball made for Carrie which was completed in June. I used Red Heart pink scraps, and Brava gray scraps. Since she liked Pink and Silver, this seemed like a good match.

Ravelry Project: Carrie

Second, we have a Dodechahedral, which was made for Uncle Andy P, who liked bold blues. I used a variety of blue scraps, and added in a binding red for contrast, and completed it in October.

Ravelry Project: AKP

Finally, a Tetrahedron ball was made for Alex, who said he liked all colors. I finished this in October, after choosing a primary color palette with accents of white and black.

Ravelry Project: Alex