Knitted Baby Booties

My sister-in-law is expecting a boy, so I knitted these baby booties and gave them to her at a baby shower this past weekend. My mom told me about the pattern (they're called Saartje's Bootees) a while ago, and I found it on Ravelry and was pleasantly surprised to find that they're knitted flat (instead of in the round) and then seamed together, so I figured I could do it.

It took me a while to figure out how to do a couple of things it calls for, but I think they turned out pretty well. It was my first attempt at seaming and making button loops. I used US size 2 straight needles, brown fingering weight sock yarn (Patons Kroy Socks 4-ply in Flax colorway), and some dark brown buttons from a stash my mom gave me (thanks, Mom!).

These are quite possibly the cutest things ever. I'm going to have to figure out how to make an adult-sized pair.

Knitting Goals

In August, it'll be two years since I taught myself to knit. Since then, I've completed 12 washcloths (some are duplicates of ones I've posted about) and four scarves, and I've learned a few techniques and tried new stitch patterns along the way. So, I've gotten pretty good at knitting things shaped like squares and rectangles, but circles, triangles, and various polygons are calling my name. I'd also like to get a little less 2D, if you will. Here are five things I hope to learn/try in order of increasing perceived difficulty (to me). I'll call them goals, but I'm not going to put a time limit on them.

1. Using different yarn colors in the same project. I don't know why this seems difficult to me, but it's probably just a pain to have to keep switching colors and having to weave in a million ends when you get done. I couldn't find any good photos of small projects that I liked, but I'm thinking maybe a pot holder or fingerless gloves.

2. Knitting "in the round" (pretty much knitting in circles). This is useful (and often required) for hats and some garments. I think a good way to start would be a basic beanie-type hat in a bulky yarn, like this one:

That Favorite Toddler & Baby Winter Hat (Photo credit: A Crafty House blog)

Then maybe I can try to make this adorable stuffed hedgehog:

Knit Hedgehog (Photo credit: The Purl Bee, Purl Soho)

3. Cables. Maybe I could start small with a reusable coffee cup sleeve:

Woven Cable Coffee Cup Sleeve (Photo credit: Purl Avenue)

4. Sweaters/cardigans (garments in general, really), preferably from vintage (mostly 1930s-1950s) or vintage-inspired patterns. I really can't wait to start knitting tops for myself and sweaters for Ed.

Cardigan knitted from 1940s pattern (Photo credit: Elegant Musings)

Sweater knitted from 1930s pattern (Photo credit: Elegant Musings)

5. Socks. I'd like to knit some wool socks for Ed (and for me, too), because they're surprisingly hard to find around here for a decent price.

Sporty Striped Peds (Photo credit: The Purl Bee, Purl Soho)

Homespun Boot Socks (Photo credit: The Purl Bee, Purl Soho)

I'll let you know if/when I successfully knit any of these things. (That means less washcloth posts!)