Boo!

Boo!  That’s the color name of the I Love This Yarn used to make Zach’s latest sleepsack……….

For the record, I also knit him the cute little pumpkin hat he’s wearing using this pattern.  I found a leaf pattern somewhere on the internet and added the leaf.  There is a leaf pattern linked within the pumpkin hat pattern, but I chose a different leaf – use whatever leaf pattern you like.

For the sleepsack, here’s the pattern I used – I created this pattern after reviewing lots of options and consulting with Danielle on what she and I thought would work best for Zach.  She loves this design.

Yarn weight:  Worsted

Needle size:  Whatever you like to use for worsted – use magic loop, dpn’s, whatever you like.  I use size 8 and magic loop.

Directions:  Cast on 80 stitches (I cast on with two needles to make it looser and stretchier).

Join in a circle being careful not to twist stitches – you will be knitting in the round.

Rib for two inches – I use a k2 p2 but you can use whatever ribbing you prefer.

Switch to stockinette and knit until desired length.

For Zach, I knit a 12 inch total length (including ribbing) for newborn…………

15 inch total length (including ribbing) for up to three months……………

and 18 inch total length (including ribbing) for his Boo! sleepsack.  He was twelve weeks old when I made the Boo! sleepsack so it lasted him awhile.

Kitchener the bottom closed.  Don’t fear the kitchener!!!

Then………….make an I-cord.  I use this…………..

and my I-cords are 30-40 inches long, depending on the size of the sleepsack.  I must give credit to Danielle – she was my I-cord maker on the sleepsacks I’ve made.  Weave the I-cord into the ribbed section and tie into a bow.  Perfection!  We didn’t use the I-cord for his largest size (Boo!) because he was more mobile and we were worried about him getting tangled in it.  The sleepsack still worked great without the I-cord.

For Zach, this pattern is perfection.  I hope it’s great for your baby, grandbaby, niece, nephew……….whoever you want to knit a cool gift for.  Enjoy!

Sparky!

Here is Sparky, Keith and Justin’s new dog.  He is part Dalmation, part Pointer.  He will be one year old in January and is a really good dog – well-behaved for a puppy (translation:  still a wild child but he can sit, shake, let them know when he wants out, kinda-sorta go in his cage when he’s supposed to and only slightly terrorizes Molly, their fifteen year old cat).

Here he is sitting on the sofa……..

and here he is sitting in my lap – kinda big for a lap dog but for some reason he took a liking to me and I didn’t mind – he’s a sweetheart.  We were watching Alice in Wonderland and he couldn’t take his eyes off the tv – he loves watching tv……..

Bears, bears and more bears

AC4C is a Yahoo group I belong to.  AC4C is actually All Crafts 4 Charity.  The current project I’m working on is clothing for bears.  There are 5,000 bears for the Salvation Army’s Womens Auxiliary Club to donate to underprivileged children in the Hampton Roads area in Virginia during Christmas.  Volunteers make or buy clothes for the bears.  Our group (AC4C) is trying to dress as many bears as we can.

These outfits are very fast and easy to crochet.  Think of the kids.  Can you dress at least one bear??????  There are more details below but here are pictures of some clothes.

The pattern I used was created by Joan Martino.  It is very very easy.  It is here:  Salvation Army Crocheted Bear Dress and Sweater.

The measurements for the actual bear are as follows:

Hip to ankle – 4.5 inches
Waist to ankle – 6.5 inches
Tummy circumference – 14 inches
Crown – 12 inches
Shoulder to wrist – 4 inches
Nape to hiney – 6 inches
Neck circumference – 9 inches
Neck to belly button – 5 inches