Spherey!

Introducing....Spherey!

Oh, this was even quicker and more fun than Squarey. Only a couple days to knit the whole thing....and, man, is he POPULAR! I took him (partially finished) with us to a restaurant for dinner and, since only his head was done, everyone kept looking at the head in my bag and smiling. Ben kept saying, "I want the smiley head!" and we would toss it back and forth. Spherey is a real happy guy ; )

DETAILS:

Pattern: "Spherey" from "Unusual Toys to Knit and Enjoy" by Jess Hutchinson.
Yarn: Lamb's Pride Worsted in pale greenish blue and red (only 1/2 skein of greenish blue and small bit of red)
Needles: Knit Picks size 8, 32" circ for magic loop.
Time: 2 days...1.5 days for "head" and only a couple hours tops for arms/legs.
Fun: A- (Really loved it...especially since you can use stash yarn for it and it's quick and adorable. Only thing was that sewing on the legs neatly wasn't AS fun.)


Wanna see what Spherey does in his spare time??



He LOVES the Grab-It Game!

Oh, I also finished my Wavy scarf on Wednesday night in the hot pink color of Ella Rae Classic. It's just as warm and wonderful as my other Wavy in the Cascade 220 yarn. Now, I just need possibly one more Wavy (in black perhaps?) to go with the other outfits in my closet. Isn't it great to be able to knit to coordinate with your wardrobe? It's awesome!

Speaking of finishing things...I also finished my entry for the One Skein Wonders book and I'm going to reblock it tomorrow and send it off ASAP. Please, please keep your fingers crossed for me. It would be the best and most wonderful event in my puny knitting/designing life.

I was also shocked to see that there are over 100 Amanda hats on Ravelry now! Isn't that amazing????

My very next blog post will feature:

-an interview with Caroline (an amazing knitting friend) who is on her way to knitting about 8 Amanda hats!

-pictures of the "prize swag" that the winners will receive from the contest

-since I'm not the one judging the contest (thank goodness, since they're all so awesome), I'm going to show MY favorite hats/pics so far.

And, remember, there are only 17 days left to enter hat pics!!!

I'm v-e-r-y slowly working on my other lace projects and UFOs. But, I'm happy to have finished these three things this week. Woo-hoo! Happy Knitting everyone!

Squarey...and the Amanda Hat UPDATE!

I am in LOVE with this little knitted guy that I made for Ben this week. Ben couldn't wait for me to finish him and asked every, single day if he was "done yet ?". I had lots of fun knitting this toy, too. Tim, trying not to look interested, kept passing by while I was knitting Squarey and then, finally, he couldn't contain himself anymore....he started looking at the pattern book and pointed to "Spherey" and said, "Uh, can you make me that one?" (of course!)

Here is Ben loving his Squarey:



DETAILS:

Pattern: "Squarey" from "Unusual Toys for you to Knit and Enjoy" by Jess Hutchinson
Yarn: Lamb's Pride Worsted- 1 skein orange and a few yards of purple and turquoise
Needles: Size 8 32" circular for Magic Loop
Time: 5 days
Fun Level: B+, loved knitting with this yarn, the pattern was very easy to understand, well written and cute as hell...the only thing that took away from super fun is the final sewing up of the body, arms and legs. That was a bit tedious.

I'm looking forward to starting Tim's "Spherey" and I think he'll be even easier...he's knit in the round! I'm getting the yarn on Friday at the store. Woo-hoo!

Now....on to....the "Do the Amanda" UPDATE!

Ravelry: 133 people heart my hat pattern and there are 49 knitted hats finished or in progress at the moment. I am thrilled!!!

Gallery: I have 25 hats in the gallery so far and I have at least 4 more that I need to put in. I've been adding new pics to my other galleries, as well, so make sure to check those if you're interested.

Other News: The yarn store, Nana's Knitting Shop in Illinois has asked my permission to have an "Amanda Hat" class! They'll be taking pics of everyone knitting their hats and pics of the shop, too, to send to me to share. I can't wait to see the diversity of those hats and how nice they'll look wearing them....

Prizes: As of this moment, I am getting together delicious skeins of yarn, stitch markers and other goodies for the winner of the contest. (so much fun!) And, Blogless Amanda has had another idea as well. Giving three prizes...first, second and third prizes. This way, more people have a chance to win...Amanda is the judge!

There will be a prize for:

1. Best Hat using Malabrigo yarn
2. Best Hat using a non-Malabrigo yarn
3. Best and Most Interesting Photo wearing the Amanda Hat

There is still over a month for the contest, so you have plenty of time to knit another hat, if you'd like. There is no limit on the number you can enter. I love opening up my email and seeing all these new and beautiful hats. It's like Christmas!

*A few people have sent me links to their photos or told me where they are so that I can add them in, but...if it's at all possible...I would really appreciate the pics being sent to my email address if you'd like to be added to the gallery. I'm getting a bunch every day and need to edit the pics as well, so I don't always have time to go and find a picture. Thanks so much!*

One more thing....I wanted to give Sonya a HUGE thank you on the blog because she is one who gave me the idea to make this hat. She is the inspiration behind this super comfy and quick to knit hat that we're all enjoying and I wanted to make sure that she knows how grateful I am for her great idea. You rock, Sonya!!

Before I go, I wanted to say a HUGE "HAPPY BELATED BIRTHDAY!!!" to my hubby, Ian and share a pic of Ian (and Ben) blowing out the candles on his ice cream cake. He turned 35 on the 8th (and I can be younger for another 4 months!!! he he) and we had a small party while his parents were visiting from Texas. Love you, Ian!!



Happy knitting and keep those hats coming!!!!