I am such a happy swapper. :)

My first swap was completed today--I got my book in the mail (Encyclopedia of Crochet! Yeah baby!!), and she got her yarn in the mail today, too! :) What good luck. We both sent our packages out on Saturday.

I am verrrry happy with my new book, and can't wait to try out a whole bunch of new stitches. I hope my swap partner is happy with the yarn.

And I'm in the middle of a swap with someone else. I'm giving her a whole bunch of jewelry findings and beads in exchange for a knit & crochet book and (what else?) YARRRRRN. :D Some cotton sock yarn that sounds yummy, and violet Fun Fur! Whee!

I like this swapping stuff!!

We saw my sister's new baby the other day. She is beautiful. (As are all of my sister's children! I am not kidding--they have the most gorgeous kids. I may be biased, but wow, they are cuties.) My sister and brother-in-law loved the booties I'd made, and my sis says she'll take a picture of the little one wearing them. I can't wait to see those little feet in the little booties. Awwwww.

I will definitely be making more of those booties. I can't help myself.

I put hearts on them.

baby mary janes with hearts
Originally uploaded by saintlex

I just could not help myself! :) Ooh, I can't wait to see those little baby feet in 'em.













I found instructions for the heart appliques here: Suzetta's Heart Motif

A pair of Mary Janes!

baby mary jane - pair
Originally uploaded by saintlex

Yay, I finished them! :) I am still thinking about putting some kind of tiny applique on them (a heart or flower or something), but I should probably work on the baby blanket instead. I'd really like to have it done on time.

Baby Mary Jane!

baby mary jane
Originally uploaded by saintlex

I was thinking about the baby booties last night. The one I'd been working on was coming out nicely, but it was big and thick and warm-looking, and this baby is being born in the spring. I realized that it would probably be a better idea to make something the baby could wear in the spring and summer.

I started looking for patterns, and I came up with one for "Fake Mary Janes." I couldn't resist!

I whipped this one up pretty quickly, though it took me a little while to get the hang of it. The pattern calls for an I hook, but I had to use a K hook, and the sole still came out to only 3 inches (the pattern says the sole should be 3.5"). I am a fairly tight crocheter, and I guess the designer crochets more loosely than most? I don't know what's "normal," or if there is any such thing. ;) Anyway, I am sure the second Mary Jane will be even easier to make. :)

This is Caron Simply Soft yarn; can't remember the color name, but it's more purple than it looks in this picture.

These baby Ugg boot booties are the cutest things I've ever seen.

I now know what to make my youngest niece for the holidays! (I'm mainly posting this so I don't forget, and so others can see the pattern...)

WsIP: bit of a baby blanket and boxy baby booties

How was that for alliteration?! ;P

Here's a pic of the baby blanket I'm working on for my newest niece, who has yet to be born:

It's Lion Pound of Love yarn; I'm making this with the hooded baby blanket pattern from the label. It can also be found on the Lion web site.

And some baby booties I started working on today--I've only got one about halfway done:

The yarn at the top is a stitch marker for the instep. They're gonna have cuffs and pompoms. The pattern is from Vogue Knitting "Crochet Basics" (see sidebar if you're curious). I'm using Caron Simply Soft and an F hook (the pattern calls for a G hook and sport weight yarn).

And just for fun, here's the Lion Homespun yarn in Candy Apple that I received yesterday.

Isn't the color gorgeous? Not what I'd expected, and nowhere near as soon as I'd expected it, but very nice indeed. (I think it will make a lovely poncho for my oldest niece. I even have the pattern picked out!)