Knitting/Crochet projects!

By request, here are my recent knitting and crocheting projects. My teachers were really helpful even with me being left handed and making her life difficult. Whats even more awkward is I knit right handed and crochet left handed. I found some good books that teach both ways. Its called the Encyclopedia of Crochet by Donna Kooler. She has one for knitting too.

I'll show my most exciting one first!

So, these are knitted fingerless gloves. I made them out of a cashmere blend, so they are extra soft, but still very warm. I have to do a mattress stitch on the side of each of them, but I don't know how to do that yet. I think I'll watch a youtube video to figure it out. These 2 gloves took about 1 full skein. I realized I went through a little more than half for the larger glove, so I made the next one slightly smaller. I needed to anyways because the first one was too long for my little hand. The longer one will be really nice when I make one that has more ribbing on the bottom, so it hugs around the wrist. I also made the thumb gusset on the smaller one smaller and I regret that, because it's a little tight on my thumb. I'm debating making the matching one a little bigger and just live with having one a little smaller.

On to the next... here's my crocheted dishtowel (first class project). I made it with a yarn called Cream and Sugar. It's cotton and it was really nice to work with. Its not like regular acrylic or wool yarns which are scratchy. I got some more of that kind of yarn to start making a granny square blanket. I also got some to make some simple squares to donate to make blankets for Haiti through Project Linus. We are doing that for the library for the month of February and March.

In the second crochet class we made a double crochet scarf. It also has scallops on the sides and ends. I made it out of Patons Bohemian yarn in a pink kind of color. It is SO fluffy and soft. It's also pretty thick and very warm. I went through 2 skeins for that one. I think I have to go back and buy it all up, because I heard that they are discontinuing it!

Hopefully this will inspire some people! I have to admit that it's better than sewing (as Neil cringed because I have a room full of fabric!) Its just you, a ball of yarn and knitting needles or a crochet hook. None of this sewing machine, thread, rethreading, tension, cutting fabric, piecing the fabric, etc. Way less stressful and time consuming. I hope to get good enough where I can watch a movie and knit and crochet without looking.

OH, I still have a couple of classes left. I'm knitting a scarf for Neil....I'm thinking a checkerboard pattern like this. The last class is the MOST exciting. I'm going to make one of these. The penguin to be exact. SO cute, SO adorable. I'm going to make them ALL. I already got another book that has some awesome patterns in it, such a little crochet baby with removable diaper, a mother turtle that holds white eggs and inside the eggs are baby turtles. AHH! SO awesome :)

Ok, I'm done :)