Wishful Knitting

My friend's son has an imaginary friend- a bunny named Tiny. I just think it's the sweetest thing EVER. Apparently, Tiny can be naughty and is responsible for a whole slew of mischievous behavior at her house. Tiny also has been known to jump out the car window- requiring my friend to pull over to give him a chance to catch up. It's just so sweet. Tiny was born red, and has since metamorphasized to purple. I have wanted to knit Tiny for a long time, and I am so tickled to have finally completed this loving task. Tiny is safely in the arms of his boy- his sister is the one who got the elephante. Tiny is from the Last Minute Knitted Gifts book and is made from Swish Superwash from knitpicks. The yarn was soft and squishy just the way Tiny should be. I wish I had an entire army of these.

My dear friend recently moved her family to the Washington, D.C. area. I thought it would be nice to send a softie to her kids so they would have a little something extra to hold onto during all these changes. Her little girl is named Ella, and here is her elephant. The pattern is from the fabulous Ana Paula's book- see side bar. I am tickled pink (ha, ha) with how she turned out. I had several hesitations with the trunk. Plus, she looked like a pig right up to the end. Finishing it was very fiddly and not fun at all. It will be a while before I make another one of these. I don't know how any crochet toy that I make will hold up to "play" from a little one. Her brother's bunny is waiting in the wings for his photo shoot.

Blossom by Knitting@Knoon is done- it's a wonderful knit! The pattern is interesting, but not overly complicated. This is the first time I used Cascade 220- I had no idea what I was missing! It feels very soft and has a nice drape. I adore this sweater and my daughter likes it too. I might try to make one for myself : ) I love the picot edging and the bell sleeves. And this is what it would look like if you made one for a pirate.

Now that the latte is safely on the table of her new owner, it's blogg-able. The patterns are from Ana's book (see side bar)- and the recipient is my ever coffee-lovin', Seattle-livin' sister. Umm, sorry that the cupcake didn't come along for the ride, but there was no prying it out of H's hand! Most of the faces in the book have wide-set eyes. They look darling, but when I try to duplicate them, it doesn't seem to look as cute. I usually settle for closer-set eyes. The finishing is a bit labor intensive, more so on the larger critters. I bought felt here in Italy, but it can't be used for my purposes. It's about 1/2" thick! I should have told the store clerk that I didn't want it, but she went upstairs and then returned with 5 bolts of different colors, while I was shopping around. When I went over to the cutting table, she had most of it cut already, so I just bought it. Oh well. Maybe I'll come up with a use for it- doubtf...

These were my first projects from Ana Paula's book. It all started off so innocently, and now it's hard to stop! I have made several of these little cuties and they get rave reviews from the kids! Easy, cute, why not? I am still experimenting with the nose. The book calls for a nose made out of felt and sewn in place. I don't like how thin and flimsy the felt seems. The embroidery skills could use a little work, but I think that's the way to go.

With any new obsession involving yarn, I find it necessary to acquire more. Although Amigurumi is billed as a stash buster, a stash enhancer is so much more fun! Here are some misc. pictures of the market. I didn't get a shot of the yarn guy's stall because it's in a tight alley. It was impossible with the alley crowded with shoppers. Just a few skeins in various colors. They were 3 Euro each, I think. I seem to have conveniently forgotten. The yarn is 80% wool and 20% acrilico. While at the market, a woman approached me and asked for help. She was a fellow Americana. She thought the yarn was silk because of the name "Silke" on the label. An honest mistake, she would only have to touch the yarn to know it's not silk. Anyway, she was looking for something to take to her mom back in the States as a souvenir! How thoughtful! Help spend someone else's yarn budget- heck yeah! I asked her what kind of knitting her mom preferred- she had no idea. She answered sim...