Special Olympic Scarfs

A friend asked if I would make a couple of scarves for Special Olympics.  Every year they try to get enough scarves made so every participant and coach gets a scarf.  Each year they pick two colors that all the scarves are to be made of.  I didn't keep the labels of the yarn, it was Red Heart yarn, Blue & Teague, I believe.
I thought they came out pretty good.  I chose to crochet them since I can get that done so much faster than knitting.  They have a certain width and length requirement, but other than that you can do whatever you want.  The striped scarf I just made up as I went carrying both strands along trying to make a long striped look.
The curved or wavy one was a design I took from an afghan design, it came out pretty neat too.
I am working on some socks (or a sock) right now, hopefully I will post a pic. this next week!

Scarf

This scarf was a Christmas gift that my son wanted to give to a girl - friend.
Of course he asked me two weeks before Christmas if I could make it.
I finished it Christmas Eve.
50 /50 blend of Black Shetland Wool & Grey Alpaca Fiber

Fingerless Gloves / Mitts Pattern

Size US 5 Straight Needles
2 ply yarn

Cast on 36 stitches (leaving about a 10 inch tail for whip stitching)
Place a marker on right side.  (right side will be the knit side)

Knit 2, Purl 2 for 18 rows to make ribbing.(or desired length)

Begin to knit across on right side
Purl on wrong side.

Repeat this for 28 rows or desired length of fingers (count stitches on right side)


I did not find the need to increase (for finger spread)  using this pattern.

Bind off on the purl row to make a nice flat end.

Whip stitch the edges together leaving a space for your thumbs.

Good Luck!

Fingerless Gloves / Mitts

Happy New Year to everyone!
The last few months have been very busy, I wanted to share with you what I have been working on.
......fingerless gloves or mitts, you might call them.
I am a member of  "The Algonquin Spinning and Weaving Guild" located in Carrollton, Ohio.  Through the Guild we participate in area events / festivals, one of those being "Yankee Peddler Festival" located in Canal Fulton, Ohio in September.  We demo various crafts from spinning to weaving and hand work, crochet, knitting, beading, tatting, just about anything you can think of, all while dressed in time-period clothing and using time period tools.  The time period we demo is 1776 - 1825

While working a weekend at the festival this fall I had finished a scarf the first day and wanted something quick to work on during the second day.  I came up with a pattern to make fingerless mitts on straight needles, since working in the "time period" I need to use wooden needles and I didn't have double pointed needles, only straight needles.

I originally made these using a 3ply yarn, which made the mitts kind of chunky, but I was working with size 10 needles.
I have refined the pattern and will share with all of you!
I have been making these like crazy, I've sold eleven pairs of them this fall and they are quick to make.

Above mitts are a 50/50 blend of Grey Shetland Wool and Grey Alpaca Fiber

Shown with my hand in them, just so you can get the idea.

Another pair to show.  I think these are pretty neat and functional, they don't take alot of yarn and you can make them pretty quick.

It is girl time now......

After getting all the girls back in one group they had to reaquaint themselves with some pushing and shoving  and head butting.  This will make feeding them much easier too.  We had four breeding groups so four water buckets, four feed troughs and four hay feeders.

A little grain always brings everybody together:)

Shields for two of the boys

I knew that when I put these guys back together that I would be trying a shield on the grey horned ram, Rambo.   After putting them all together, it worked so well on him that the moorit ram, Clyde had to have one too.  Cause he was getting pretty cocky with Rambo.  The light grey scurred / polled ram
is Mercury, he is a sweety.  The personality difference is amazing between him and the horned guys.  Their must be  a connection between horns vs. no horns and temperment.

As you can see they look pretty silly, but it works great.  I took a couple of my husbands old hats that he didn't wear anymore and cut them to wrap around the horns.  I duct taped the entire hat to make them more durable.  Then I also duct taped them around the horns.  They can see downward and to the sides.  When they did try to ram each other they look very clumsy, either missing each other completely or just side swiping each other.

As you can see I needed to try something to calm them a little from beating on my gates.  This poor gate has barely survived.  I have the panel portion tied with twine all the way around to the frame of the gate, they've bent the frame and broke the welds on the wire panel, separating it.  I am literally put together with twine.

....slow computer:(

I am unable to load pictures at this time, due to my computer.  Apparently I've used up my bandwith usage for the month.  When this happens they intentionally slow your computer down.  Which makes it impossible to load pics. and even get connected during the day.
so bummer for me :(   I will keep trying to get some pics. on here.