Woodland Nursery

My sister and brother-in-law are expecting their first baby in just a few weeks.  When they thought about decorating the baby's room, they decided on a gender-neutral woodland theme and started with dark teal walls and a bright orange rug.  Then they chose the fabrics pictured above, and my mom and I volunteered/were recruited to make loads of fabric items for the room.  When we were all together in early November, we sorted through this fabric and decided what would be used for the various handmade items.  Many of the fabrics are from the Michael Miller collections Norwegian Woods and Norwegian Woods Too; you can find links at the end of this post.  (The colors in the photo above are the most accurate - the others are a little bright thanks to the limitations of cellphone photography.)

On my mom's list were crib sheets, changing pad covers, and a crib skirt.  My list included a couple of accent pillows, the crib bumper, and a quilt for the twin-size daybed that my brother-in-law would create in his woodshop.  My mom started by making crib sheets and covers for the changing pad.  Then she sent me her scraps to include in the quilt.  After she finished the crib skirt, she sent her leftover fabric and I got to work on the bumper.

The accent pillows are from a panel print that had 4 panels -- foxes, birds, leaves, and squirrels.  I forgot to take better pictures of the pillows because I was in a rush to finish them up in time for the baby shower, which was also woodland-themed (more on that in another post to come soon).

Here's a peek at the finished quilt.  I'll share more about it soon too.

Some of the fabrics used in the room:

• Chevron
• Owls
• Hedgehogs
• Leaves (turquoise)
• Forest scene
• Acorns
• Orange posies
• Panel print
• Geometric print (quilt binding)
• Dark wood grain (quilt backing)

Best Chunky Knit Infinity Scarf

I'm always on the lookout for a good knit or crochet infinity scarf/circle scarf/cowl/whatever you want to call them.  I'm a little picky about the bulk -- too much and it looks like it's consuming your head, but not enough and it looks deflated and sad.  Last fall I found a promising pattern from Purllin at http://purllin.blogspot.com/2012/12/december-seed-stitch-infinity-circle.html.   I made a second one for another friend's birthday gift. Then I made one for myself, followed by one for my first friend's sister.  Then it was my sister, my sister-in-law, me again, and a third friend.  Then a third one for myself.  It's pretty clear -- I'm in love with this scarf.

Can you tell that I hate how I look in selfies??

This scarf is knit on 36" US size 15 circular needles, which I had to order from Joann.com because they don't stock needles that large in stores around here (unless I want to pay big bucks at a specialty yarn shop...which I don't).  Aside from that annoyance, I love everything about this cowl.  The yarn is Lion Brand Hometown USA.  It comes in all sorts of bright, team colors for sports fans, but it's also available in some nice neutrals, including black with colored flecks, charcoal, black and silver, and a flecked oatmeal.

Me crouched by window seat for light + curious cat

Something came over me the last time I was standing in front of the yarn, and I picked up this jade green to try.  I knew I'd keep it for myself, so even if it was hideously ugly, I could at least wear it around the house to keep warm.  Turns out I love the color and it looks particularly nice with my dark purple winter coat.  I call that a win.

I've now made 9 of these scarves, and I'm not making any promises that I won't add more to the list.  It's a great pattern, with soft yarn, and it only takes a few evenings on the couch catching up on the DVR to finish.  If you're looking for an easy project for yourself or for a gift, I encourage you to give it a try.