Boston Terrier Socks and Hat for Lynn and Henry

It's no surprise that I'm behind on baby gifts and may never catch up. But I did manage to send this one right after Christmas, so can we count that as a Christmas present?

Lynn and I worked together at Martha Stewart, and though we've both since moved away from NYC, we still keep in touch. Lynn has an adorable Boston terrier, so I thought it would be fun to send her a pair of Boston terrier socks along with a matching hat for her lil Henry.

Hat
Pattern: I used the Mohawk Hat from Wacky Baby Knits as my foundation, and I added in the chart from the Boston Terrier Socks. I also added a 14-stitch ear, folded over and sewed in half, on each side.
Yarn: Knit Picks Stroll Sock White and acrylic black from my stash

Socks
Pattern: Boston Terrier Socks
Yarn: Knit Picks Stroll Sock in Black and White

Beaucoup de Baby Hats

It seems like everyone I know had a baby around the same time. I got behind on gifts really quickly. I intended on knitting something for each baby, but I got overwhelmed with the sheer number of babies so I decided to make multiple jersey hats on my serger instead.

Pattern: Top Knot Baby Hat by Pretty Prudent (Free Pattern)

Fabric: Scraps from many of my Moneta dresses

Owl and Elephant Fabric Collage

My niece just turned 1 year old, so I wanted to make a special gift that she could enjoy every day.

I really like these Petit Collages on Martha Stewart, but I wanted to use fabric instead of paper.

I bought the wood boards at Michaels, and I used my huge bag of scraps (inherited from my friend Jessica) to choose fabrics for the collages. Someday I will be able to create a fabric pit that I can just roll around in all day.

I was feeling inspired by the color palettes in Better Homes & Gardens. (The palettes I looked at were in the March issue, but they have palettes online, as well.)

What I love about scraps is preserving awesome fabrics that may otherwise go unused, like this cute doggy fabric.

What I liked about this project: Great, inexpensive project for using fabric scraps.

What I didn't like about this project: I had to spread the glue very thinly to make sure it didn't bleed through the fabric and make dark spots.

What I listened to while I made this project: Yoshimi Battles the Pink Robots by The Flaming Lips

Dinosaur Knit Hat

Lots of baby hats have been hanging around my apartment lately, but all of them have been for girls. (See the Watermelon Hat and the Pumpkin Hat.)

My co-worker is having a baby boy, so I had to abandon fruits and find a more manly hat. Enter the dinosaur! Rawr!

What I used to make the hat:
1 skein Stitch Nation Bamboo Ewe in Sprout
1 skein Stitch Nation Bamboo Ewe in Lipstick

I created this pattern by knitting a basic baby hat with a rolled edge, k1p1 ribbing, and stockinette stitch. Then I crocheted three triangles. (I didn't stuff mine, but I saw a few other people online who did.) Then I sewed the triangles down the back seam of the hat.

Have any other manly baby ideas?

Watermelon Knit Baby Hat

I continue to torture my niece with hats -- hats that my brother probably doesn't even let her wear when I'm not around.

What I used to make this project:
Stitch Nation Bamboo Ewe in Lipstick and Sprout
Lion Brand Wool-Ease Thick & Quick in Black

I knit a basic baby hat, then single crocheted a ruffle onto the edge. For the "seeds," I used bulky black yarn and a tapestry needle to embroider small v-shapes onto the hat.

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She liked it for a while...

When she was sleepy, she jerked it from her head. Ah, well.

This hat was inspired by a hat I saw on YellBaby.com:

What I liked about this project:
It's one of the few times I've successfully completed a great-looking copycat pattern!

What I didn't like about this project:
I fear it looks a little like a strawberry instead of a watermelon. Thankfully, babies can pull off anything.

What I listened to while I made this project:
Jenny and Johnny's I'm Having Fun Now album

More Knitted Baby Janes

I told you I couldn't resist these knitted Baby Jane shoes from Red Heart!

I learned a few lessons from making them for my niece a few months ago. That made the next two pairs super easy to knit.

I knitted one pair for a co-worker's baby and the other for my cousin's baby Sadie. I haven't actually met Sadie in person, but in photos she has pretty long feet so I hope these will fit her!

What I used to make this project:
Red Heart Stitch Nation Bamboo Ewe in Lipstick
Two white buttons from M&J Trim
Baby Jane Stitch Nation pattern

What I liked about this project:
You can change the entire look of the shoes by changing the yarn color and button.

What I didn't like about this project:
The strap comes loose on kicking baby feet. I sewed my buttonhole closed just a bit to make sure the button stays in place.

What I listened to while I made this project:
ELO (I love you, Jeff Lynne!)

Baby Janes, Now with Buttons!

The Baby Janes I made a few weeks ago now have buttons!

I used cute flower buttons from Joann's to complete the project. Here's my niece modeling them:

I started calling my niece Cricket because she likes to rub her feet together. Unfortunately, that means she's not fond of the Baby Janes because they interfere. I got an action shot of her in Cricket mode:

After about 5 minutes of this, she successfully ditched her shoes. Maybe her parents will have better luck keeping them on her feet.

Knotted Baby Hat

Warning: there will be lots of baby pictures in the next few posts because of my visit with my niece.

First, I tortured her with the Top Knot Baby Hat from Prudent Baby.

This is one of the quickest sewing projects I've ever made. I used old tee shirts as the fabric. (The below shirt is one my cousin impulsively picked up at a clothing swap. Thank goodness she couldn't fit it into her suitcase when she left.)

And the result on my niece was exactly what I wanted. I liked the double-knotted one much better on her. The green one-knot made her look like a Snork.

But the pink double-knotted one was pretty cute. I added a flower to this one.

Without the baby cuteness, they just aren't the same.

Baby Cupcake Hat

After browsing hundreds of baby knitting patterns, I feel sure that the Wacky Baby Knits book is going to rescue my yet-to-be-born niece from a mundane baby life.

As soon as I found out that I had a niece on the way, I wanted to make every baby pattern I looked at, buy every baby yarn available.

But time and money were not on my side. For the January baby shower, I narrowed it down to the Wacky Baby Knits cupcake hat.

This slouchy little hat is going to look so cute on the baby! And a photo of her wearing it is going to make for a much better photo than this one.

The best news is that you don't even have to buy the book to make this pattern. The publisher has made the pattern free on WomansDay.com, so hop over and get your free pattern.

Now, we just wait for the baby...