Cute Little Things

I just finished this small Lilly Blanket, which I will donate to our local hospital. My friend recommended the yarn, Dream in Color Classy. It is a merino superwash, and easy to care for. The deep, saturated colors (this skein is Shiny Moss) are stunning, and it knits up into a beautiful blanket. I washed this in the machine, and it came out with a soft, comfortable drape.

The pattern is Lori Emmitt's Sleepy Owl Blanket. After knitting most of one row of blocks, I decided that the owl cable pulled in too much, distorting the seed stitch squares and making the blanket too wonky for my taste. I frogged it and started over, this time increasing two stitches at the base of each cable, and then decreasing those stitches at the top. That did the trick, and the squares behave nicely now.

I don't know if I ever explained what "Lilly Blankets" are. A friend of a friend lost her baby shortly after his birth, and she now collects these small blankets (she calls them Angel Blankets), and donates them to the local hospital. Parents who experience this tender loss then have something they can take home with them, to comfort them and remind them of their missing family member.

Lilly was my grand-niece, who herself was in this world for only a short time. When I knit these little blankets, each stitch is in her memory.

And now for something totally different, but totally cute:

This young friend was having the best time. He stood on this chair, happily stamping one foot, looking back each time to make sure we were still watching. Such simple, innocent pleasure!