My friend is having a BABY GIRL! After a long, long stretch of boy babies, I finally have a reason to use up some of my fabric stash for dresses and girl outfits! Well, and maybe just make an extra purchase for sloth fabric, because this momma loves sloths. Ha! In any case, I made this little top & bloomers set by mixing and matching two patterns, and also, altering the top pattern a bit.

If you haven’t gone to Oliver & S yet to check out their range of free & paid patterns, head over there NOW. I’ve used quite a few of their patterns and find them useful and easy enough that I use them over & over. I think I’ve made a dozen of the bucket hats! Another favorite is the Popover Sundress, which I used as the basis for the top in this set. read more...

1: A Swift & Winder

Yes, it may be daunting to spend a chunk of cash on something that seem so utilitarian (read: boring), but I’ve used this tool more times than I can count. (Because in order to do that, I’d have to add up how many skeins I’ve gone through, and no one needs that kind of accounting in their lives!) After trying to wind skeins by hand a few times — and causing my husband to run into the man cave when he saw me contemplating having him hold his hands up while I wound), I realized that a swift and winder would pay for themselves in time saved (less time winding = more time knitting). It also keeps skeins from getting tangled. Total cost for both was about $75 — and yes, that would buy some lovely skeins of yarn. But are you going to use those skeins if they aren’t caked? Or are they going to sit in your bin. P.S. — these make great gifts! read more...