Mittnz Done!

Here are my nine pairs of mittnz for the Native American Support "9 in '09" Mittnz Drive. These will be mailed off at the end of the month along with hundreds of other mittnz from other knitters to arrive in time to keep hands warm on the reservation in South Dakota. This is a picture of my mother standing on the Cheyenne River Reservation with the 140 acres she was awarded for being a Lakota and registered at the rez when she was born in the background.You can see how desolate the land is and when the temperatures fall to sub-zero along with the wind chill, mittnz are a necessity.

I finished up the first of the Scrunchie Hand Warmers from Designer One Skein Wonders. Longer than any handwarmers I've ever made and very, very warm!

Eight Down, One to Go

Here's my eight pair of mittens for the rez. Ninth pair has been CO and I'm about 2.5 inches into it. They are handwarmers with a bit of a pattern, Scrunchie Hand Warmers from 101 Designer One-Skein Wonders. Aren't they so cool looking?

Sharing is not just for kindergarteners

"When we were children our parents and others talked about the importance of sharing. Such a simple act, but many of us have forgotten that lesson. We have to have our own “fill in the blank” and the sad part is so many of those items are used infrequently so the practice becomes extremely wasteful at a time when waste is a luxury we can ill-afford.

So what is sharing in the adult context? Sharing is re-use. Sharing is love-me-downs (formerly hand-me-downs). Sharing is one lawn mower for five or six lawns or better still neighborhood garden plots on those lawns. Re-gifting is sharing. Sharing is efficiency, conservation, simple and green all rolled into one. And sharing is not always about things–stories and joy are also good to share!

See what you can share today." -New Dream Blog

Mittnz pair #7 of my 9 is finished. Interestingly enough, this silk wool blend yarn is some that a kind knitter on-line shared with me, and now in turn I'm sharing it with a baby on the Cheyenne River Reservation to help keep his or her little fingers warm when the wind chill hits 70 below, or the family can't afford to heat their home. The BSJ model for the class I was teaching is done. I finished off the I cord bind off and crocheted the seams shut last night during class. Now it's just time to find buttons! I used almost three skeins of Merino Frappe along with odds and ends of sock yarn. It's nice and thick and will be very warm for some baby out on the plains of South Dakota.

Knittin' Mittnz

The bug has finally bitten and I'm knittin' mittnz! These are pairs 5 and 6. The first mitten of pair 7 is finished. That means at minimum two more pair before the end of the month. Last September when the bug bit, I sequestered myself in my room and made around 50 pair. Not gonna happen this year. But I will get at least my pledge of 9 pair and perhaps a few more. These are baby mitts rather than full fledged mittens with thumbs.

The BSJ is done except for the I-Cord bind off, sewing the seams, and adding the buttons. All the "knitting" is done. Tonight is class #3 of4 so I'm right on schedule...one step ahead of my fastest student.

I've worked a bit on my scrap raglan cardigan (would that be a scraplan or a scraglan?) Past the sleeves, into the body with another 8-10 inches to go, I think. It's fun as I'm finding single skeins of funky stuff to put in it.

Started a pair of socks for my BFF and had to frog them as they looked way to big. Have to check the needle size and see if I'm using the same one I did for the pair he tried on for fitting purposes. They are a quick knit as he doesn't want a long leg! Yeah!!!!

Mittnz 09

The deadline of "9 in 09" is creeping up on us. So I spend my knitting time at knitting group working on my first top down mitten. I used Judy's Magic Cast On, (and interestingly enough, a new group member introduced herself yesterday, recently moving to the desert from Portland, Oregon, and is a friend of Judy Becker!) I'm using leftover Mini Mochi from my Diagon Alley Rainbow Socks.
Other than, "because I can" (and I do respect that reason) why would one knit a chair (cover)? I can only see how it would slip and slide when one seated one's butt down on it.... And it would definitely be a stash buster!

Small Change: "For instance, the authors suggest substituting one glass of water for a soft drink at each meal. Projected savings: 50,000 calories and $500 annually. Another easy change: walk to a further bus stop rather than the stop closest to my home. Projected benefit: I could walk an additional 150 miles in one year with a small adjustment in my route." -from Wise Bread. And the clichés: Every little bit helps; One step at a time....

Mittnz #4

Finished up, finally, the fourth pair of the nine pair challenge of Mittnz 09. Nine pairs of mittnz by September to be mailed to the Cheyenne River Reservation, Eagle Butte, SD.
The pattern is a generic mitten pattern, CO 36 sts, increasing to 40 after ribbing, with an afterthought thumb or EZ'a thumb trick. Size 5 needles, Lion Brand Jiffy, colorway El Paso. I did a series of purl rounds every 6th round to create the lines on the back of the mitten. Palms are smooth.They are nice and thick and feel warm.

I made another crocheted brain scrubbie. That makes five and I'll take them as hostess gifts for my DIL and women in her family. Should start on some toddler socks for grandson.... In March 08 I used a 32 st CO....wonder how many sts this year!

It's been 100 or near 100 degrees for several days now. Monica, in Canada has snow. I'm just thinking the weather is really different than when I was a kid....

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5/16/09: Your Weekly Address from White House on Vimeo.

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Mittnz & Hexies

These are Mittnz 3, 2009. Pattern: Lifeline Mittens. The yarn is one of the Patton's 100% wool products. Needle: US5. Size: 8-10 year old child. These mittens are much faster than regular mittens with a gusset due to the unique nature of the thumb gusset.Received another package of Hexies in the mail yesterday. I have about half the half hexies I need to finish up the first blanket. Hopefully, I'll be able to get more done on that today. Been a crazy week again and I feel like I haven't been home at all!

Mittnz 2009

These are my first two pairs of Mittnz for the 2009 Mittnz Drive. Sure you can't help by making a pair or two?This pair is my own design
With WW yarn, CO 20 sts. Join. Do ten rounds of K1P1 ribbing. St st for 11 rounds. Begin decreases: K4, K2tog around. Knit one round even. K3, K2tog around. Knit one round even. K2, K2tog around. K1, K2tog around. K2tog around. Cut yarn, gather loose sts on tail. Weave in loose ends. Really, we're talking a few hours to help keep a baby's hands warm in the sub-zero temperatures on the plains of South Dakota. Surely you can spare some yarn scraps and a bit of time while watching NCIS or MSNBC?
These are simple, too. CO some sts, say around 30-40 (these have 48 and will fit a large adult hand). Knit flat for at least six inches, with a garter stitch or ribbing on the top and bottom. Sew up the seam leaving an opening for the thumb. How easy can it be?

Mittnz

Worked on Mittnz yesterday. The little one has been finished since Wednesday and a second one CO and ribbing done. The bigger handwarmer was finished yesterday and second one about half done. Hope to finish both up today.