the naptime knitter

Cutest thing I ever made

I think I have done it - made the cutest thing in the history of my crafting madness......a Peter Pan costume for Zora's boy doll. She already had a good "Wendy" doll, from my sister...then was gifted this boy over the summer. She insisted we turn him into Peter Pan, and I deliver:

complete with shoes made out of scrap leather, a little pouch to carry tinkerbell in, and a little garland. Entire project made from stash yarn and my imagination - in just a few hours. I have had this yarn since I first learned to knit, and am so pleased I never got rid of it in one of my stash cleanses. It is 2 strands held together - one with that crazy yarn with bits, the other some variegated greens wool/cotton blend. I had EXACTLY enough to finish it and the garland, and no more.
Can you tell I am proud of this one?
So proud I had to have a little photo shoot fun.

ps...her favorite Peter Pan (besides books) is currently the live action film made several years ago. It is really good. There is a big kiss in it (not just a thimble), and Zora has been imitating that kiss on me and those she loves, regularly. It lasts approximately 15 seconds, and I have told her that she is not allowed to kiss the kids (or her teachers) at school in this way! Scandalized!

(also posted on my personal blog)

Shrinky Dink Madness

E and I have been home these 2 weeks before she starts school. What have we been doing with our precious time? Making Shrinky Dink necklaces and bracelets, of course.

We have been obsessed with book characters and themes:

Especially Elephant and Piggy book characters:

She even made a matching Twilight set (necklace and bracelet) for her best friend (who is into Twilight, obviously)- then a bookmark (same as necklace) for her mom (a more closeted Twilight fan - not inclined to wear it in public otherwise!):

And I made a Peter Pan necklace for my Peter Pan obsessed daughter:

We made many others - such as Frog and Toad, Green Eggs and Ham, etc. etc. I think we are done now!
We also went to Zora's school and did them with the preschoolers one morning.

Mrs. Beetons for a friend

I made these last year, but didn't remember to take a picture until this year.
I love these.
From Knitty (Brenda Dayne)

Sweater like Grandma used to make

When I was little, my grandma used to make us sweaters with pictures on them like this. Well, not like this - ours had hearts and squirrels and snowflakes on them. If I find an old picture, I will add it here.
My favorite sweater was one she made for herself...it had dancing people on it, much like this. I used that sweater as a jumping off point to create one for Zora.
I have to say, this is the best thing I have ever knit, hands down. It has given me the most pride, satisfaction and joy - plus it gets tons of use! I sized it up, so it will get used next year too. Though I do have plans to make her one per year, to reflect her changing tastes.
Her favorite colors right now are pink red and blue. And dancing is her favorite activity.

and the back:

one more front - love the pose:

And the dress underneath? A nightgown inspired by Wendy (Peter Pan), only shorter (not enough fabric):

Yarn: OWool Balance (Cotton/Wool Blend) - generously given to me by my sister (I have tons left in all sorts of colors).

Pattern: Ann Norling Raglan Cardigan pattern, purchased from a yarn store. Size 4, but made longer.

Little Red

* I posted this on my family blog, but figured I would just paste it into here as well, since it is actually about a knitting project:

I just finished this hooded cape for Zora - not as a costume, just something for our mild winter. I can picture her wearing it to the park or the library.
She was thrilled with it, and played out the whole story with Daddy as the big bad wolf.

There was one big twist to the story though - she didn't need the woodsman (played by me) to chase the wolf away....she can do it herself, because - as she says - "I'm brave!"

(this is her, telling the wolf off. I didn't get any shots of her chasing him around and beating the heck out of him. Beware any big bad wolves that meet Z!)

If you didn't notice, I found a clasp with wolf heads for the closure on the cape (my favorite detail):

pattern: Little Red found here: http://www.fortheloveofyarn.com/Issues/08Winter/patterns/littlered.shtml

yarn: knitpicks swish superwash worsted - reddest of the bunch (a little over 3 balls)

needles: 8

Even when I make it for myself...

it becomes hers!

Introducing, Zora's very expensive and time consuming felted Pomatamus ballet slippers!

Yes, that is right....felted Pomatamus slippers. Not intentional, but quite the hit.

I guess I used a yarn that was not washable - even though I thought it was! These were so new, I hadn't even photographed them yet. Sadly, my favorite socks quickly became Zora's favorite ballet slippers. And they won't fit for long.

It is a consolation that these were not totally lost!

new doll, new crafting opportunities

My sister gave Zora a new doll when we were in TX a few weeks ago. Such a great doll - Kathe Kruse Lolle..she is big and soft and has really nice hair. Oh, and rainboots!
So, I have been enjoying making clothing for her.

First, there were the matching strawberry dresses:

Next came the sleeping bag - made out of Zora's old crib edge padding thing I made that was never used:

And finally, a pair of jeans (Zora had said "she needs pants, she doesn't have any pants!):

And here is Zora's doll having a tea party with Becky's new doll:

(yes, she even has fairy wings!)

Now I need to work on some clothes for Becky's doll. She wants a soccer outfit and a knight's costume.

Mosaic

My First Meme - Sticking to the Point

Here’s how you play:

type your answer to each of the questions below into Flickr search.
using only the first page, choose an image.
copy and paste each of the URL’s into the mosaic maker over at FD’s image maker.
The questions:

What is your first name?
What is your favorite food?
What high school did you attend?
What is your favorite color?
Who is your celebrity crush?
Favorite drink?
Dream vacation?
Favorite dessert?
What do you want to be when you grow up?
What do you love most in life?
One word to describe you.
Your Flickr name.

I decided to go all black and white after selecting the first image, which made it a bit easier to choose the images (since I didn't have nearly as many options for each).