Birthday Knits

A long time ago, I started knitting these bears. I finished all the separate pieces and then they sat and sat and sat. Sewing together isn't my favorite part of knitting. I went on to other projects but always wanted to come back and finish these bears for the girls. I still have lots of this great sock yarn left so maybe when Cory baby #3 comes into the picture, he/she will have one too.

As Boothe's first birthday approached, I had motivation to finish the bears to give as a gift to each of my girls. And so these two googly-eyed cuties were born. They are soft and floppy and we all love them."B" for Boothe.I also made the girls matching sweaters that I wrapped up with the bears. I love making homemade gifts for them that will have a greater meaning later in life than a toy that will quickly be forgotten.The sweaters wrap around and tie in the back. I have made this pattern before and it is really easy and doesn't require much sewing together once the knitting is finished. It is from the book Baby Knits for Beginners by Debbie Bliss and I think I have made every pattern in there. I started before Magnolia was born and am still using it to make things for the girls.As I was gathering the bears and sweaters to blog about, I came across a few other baby knits that I had forgotten to include in past knitting posts. I made this blanket for Boothe when she was born. I had always wanted to try it and I'm glad I did, but it involved a lot of sewing of these little squares together. I love how it turned out though and Boothe still uses it.I made these sachets without a pattern. I have used these in my diaper bag to hold diaper rash cream, lotion and lip gloss or crayons or pacifiers or recipts or coupons. Lots of uses and lots of options for sizes. If you want to learn to knit but would rather not do a scarf, this is the project for you....Directions: Knit a rectangle however wide you want the sachet to be and keep knitting until you have reached the length you would like. Fold it up 3/4 of the way and sew up the edges. Sew on a button and tie on a piece of ribbon to hold it closed. I think they turn out really cute and you can use one to hold so many different things!Baby wash clothes. Also a good project to learn to knit.And 2 Christmases ago, I made a bunch of matching hat and mitten sets for family.
The options for yarn, colors, sizes and projects to knit overwhelmes me sometimes. Everything is customizable and homemade items make such meaningful gifts. I would love to teach anyone who wants to learn how to knit. Let's get together for coffee and knitting sometime!