licorice for baby

November 29, 2015




I'm invited to a baby shower in early January so I took a little break from my Christmas knitting--which is going great thank goodness--and knit a Gingersnap with machine washable Rowan Pure Wool Worsted

Do you have a go-to baby sweater pattern?
 I have three patterns I go to again and again:

The Totally Free/Totally Adorable Cardi (I've made 8!)
Penny Straker's original Baby Owl Cardigan (I've made 6!)
 and my original pattern, Gingersnap--Licorice is my 5th.

I love the Pure Wool Superwash line from Rowan for all family knits.  It's economical with great yardage and it's machine washable.  I've made a few sweaters for me with it, also many baby sweaters and now making a vest for my son.  When gifting a hand knit, especially to a new mom, practical sweater care is essential.  I cannot imagine handing over a sweater and asking a new mom (or my son!) to hand wash it.  Let's be honest!  The ball band doesn't recommend it, but I put this wool in the dryer with no ill effects.  Here's what I do:  Turn inside out, place in a mesh sweater bag and wash in cool water on gentle cycle.  Next, pop in the dryer on low and take out before it's fully dry and finish drying flat.  I have to admit I've missed that last step and dried it fully in the dryer and they were fine. 

Edited to add:  A reader just asked me what machine washable yarns I like for baby.  My answer:  I am a Rowan fan all the way. For cotton I like their Handknit Cotton, it's a worsted weight and the All Seasons Cotton is more like an Aran and is fantastic. They have Softknit Cotton as their machine washable DK yarn. Many cottons can be hard on your hands, tiring your hands easily.  Not these.  If you've had bad luck with cotton you'll be surprised how easy these cottons are to knit.  I can knit for hours with these cottons and not get tired hands. Their machine washable fingering weight cotton is Summerlite and they plan on expanding that line soon. Lately I've been using the new Pure Wool Superwash line in DK and Worsted weight (Licorice above) and have been really happy with those. They also have a superwash Superfine Merino in fingering, DK and Aran weight. I don't want to forget the elegant Baby Merino Silk DK, also machine washable.  I'm a Rowan fan because they are consistently high quality and well priced.  You can get cheaper yarn but your garment will suffer in the end, plus, knitting with finer yarn is a tactile experience that is a gift you should give yourself.  I've knit all of the above yarns many times and love them all.  I think you'll have a hard time deciding which is best for your baby pattern!  Your Rowan stockist or any of the great online knitting shops will carry all of these popular yarns.


 Here's my Ravelry project page for Licorice.


On Thanksgiving we were invited to my girlfriend's son's home to celebrate with their family and friends.  We were a large and very fun group, from age 9 to 86. I fell in love with Caleb, who totally cracked me up.  A few years ago my girlfriend started a tradition of taking each grandchild when they turn 13 on a special trip to Europe--Paris, Rome, Prague, wherever, their choice.  Can you imagine how much fun this guy will be?





The new rescue puppy totally got the idea of his first Thanksgiving and his role in it.
He kept the kitchen floor spotless and jumped in to help wherever and whenever he was needed.


Lat week we stayed the night in Paso Robles while we were driving back from visiting our daughter in Southern California.  We hadn't stopped in Paso in years even though we love that town and it's not that far away from us.  We took an afternoon to drive through the Paso Robles countryside, quiet during mid-week and golden after the fall harvest.  There were so many wineries and olive orchards to stop for samples--these days it rivals the Napa-Sonoma-Mendocino area--but we limited ourselves to one winery visit only.  The Croad Winery was recommended to us and I recommend it to you.  We ended up bringing home some awesome wine to serve over the holidays. We stayed at the Paso Robles Inn which we love.  They've placed hammocks with wineglass holders all around the property.  We definitely took advantage of that and sipped wine next to a brook and gazed at the ancient oaks and gigantic olives that dot the property.  We MUST visit Paso more often.
I named the baby sweater after the candy my husband loves so much.  The Paso Robles Inn is across from the downtown square with all the shops and restaurants within walking distance--such as Powell's Candy Shop.  Here's my guy checking out the licorice section.
















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2 Comments

  1. I love that little sweater. I've yet to make it, but I plan to.

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  2. It sounds like it was a lovely time away. The idea of hammocks with wine glass holders sounds very appealing! I love your Gingersnap pattern - it's in my Ravelry queue to be knit for my grandchildren. Your liquorice version is adorable!

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