My First Quilt Top

Quilting.  It's one of those things that I've always wanted to do and never gotten around to.

Until now.

My hubby's cousin is pregnant with her third child, and it's the first birth since I've been in the family.  I couldn't decide what to do.  Should I make a blanket?  A hat?  Booties?  I wasn't sure.

Ben's Socks: Second time's the Charm

Those of you that have been following along know that in January, I made my husband a pair of socks that went around his heels!  Finally!  They still don't fit terribly well, so hopefully next time will be better.  Does anyone have any ideas?  Since his heels are so much wider than the rest of his legs, either they don't fit over his heels or they don't cling to his shins.  I've heard that a double forked heel might work.  Thoughts?

Well, anyway, I used that same pattern to make a pair of socks for my brother's birthday, and since he has a much more typical foot shape, they fit him perfectly.  Behold!

Ravelry Pattern | Ravelry Project

Socks for my Man

Last time, I told you about how I tried to make socks for my husband, but they didn't work.  Well, after we got married, I was in a strange predicament.

We got married December 21st, went on our honeymoon, and moved across the country December 29th.  Then, we waited until February first for the rest of our stuff to arrive in shifts.  During that time, my yarn was en route, so I skidaddled down to the local yarn store and got some super soft sock yarn to try again.  This time, I used a pattern that was specifically for men instead of trying to adapt my own.

It worked (mostly...they really don't fit across his legs...but that's okay)!  He loves them!

Here's the best part: My husband goes through socks like most people go through tissues; they wear thin almost instantly and within a month they have holes the size of quarters.  Right now, he has at least three pairs of socks with holes the size of my fist in the heel and the toe on each sock!  and he only has seven pairs total!

But he won't throw them out!  He says they still work as long as his foot doesn't fall out!  Hah!  As if!

So we made a deal.  Once he has ten pairs of socks, I can toss one pair for every pair I make.  Begin the sock-fest!

I'm hoping his feet wear through these ones slower!  We'll see!

Has anyone else dealt with this?  Do hand-made socks slow down the wear process?  Let me know!

Ravelry Pattern | Ravelry Project

Accidental Socks

A while back, I decided I was going to make socks for my fiance (now husband).  He is constantly running holes into his and I was in a sock-making mood.

Well, I tried to adapt a pattern to fit his foot, but it wouldn't go over his heel.  He has bony, bony heels, and they protrude far from his ankles, and no matter what I tried I was out of luck.

So, after much agony, I finally decided that I would just have an extra pair of socks for myself that were a little too big and my husband's favorite color!

A few comments on the pattern: I used some sock yarn from Jo-Ann's that didn't really work with this pattern.  The striping wasn't profound enough, and so the dew drops looked a bit strange.  The pattern was pretty straightforward, though, and fun to knit.  I would just use a better quality yarn!

Ravelry Pattern | Ravelry Project

Shampoo Bar Soap

While I was on a soap-making spree, I came across this recipe from Frugally Sustainable.  Since I had been looking for an alternative to commercial shampoo, I jumped right on it!  Here's the finished project.
Here's the problem.  It doesn't work.  It leaves a greasy residue in my hair and makes it tangly.
Has anyone else had this experience?  What did you do about it?  Commercial shampoos dry out my ends, while my roots grease up every day, and I'm hoping to switch, but I'm at a loss!  Advice would be appreciated!

Tennessee!

I went to Tennessee a few weeks ago for a class trip.  While we were there, we found this adorable little yarn shop put in what used to be an old house called "A Likely Yarn."  I got some nice wool yarns there and one of my professors got some hand-dyed yarns for his two teenage knitting daughters.  After that trip, a friend asked me to teach her how to knit.  I had some extra yarn and extra needles, so I did, but we were on a bumpy car ride and both the needles and the yarn were sock weight, so she made a valiant effort, but didn't get very far.  Instead, she made an accidental alien!  We all loved it though, so I cast-it-off and she took it home.  Overall, it was a lot of fun.