This post has been a long time in the making.  I've been a part of so many group baby quilts over the years that I knew one day I'd have to share my foolproof "recipe" to make a crib-sized quilt.  In the United States, presenting special-occasion group-made quilts is as old as the colonial days.  My posse of girlfriends and I have been making baby quilts for 15 years; the first one being presented to my grand-daughter Annie when she was a newborn--the first grandchild of our bunch.  We've since made a dozen plus, and we've got it down to a science.  We are "all-in" for every one, because we know it will be our turn soon!  We give ourselves about 4 or more months from start to finish, and throw a group shower at the end when we present our quilt that was made with so much love.  Every baby quilt has been made for our children's children and since we all met when we were young mothers, we have quite a history.  I've know every child since they were little, attended every wedding, and now get to be part of celebrating the growing of their families.  Our children call the quilts, the book club quilts or the grandmother quilts.  Making, giving, and receiving them is a very sweet tradition, and one that we, the grandmothers, mothers and grandchildren, treasure. One day I'll make a post and share all the gorgeous quilts we've made over the years. It's easier than you think, and very little previous sewing experience is required, just an old-fashioned can-do spirit! 

You'll find the full directions in this post. Click here!

  

   

  

   

           

I love girly sweaters knitted in elegant yarn.  I like them fitted with tiny, feminine, details.  I make a lot of those kind of sweaters, but while looking through my sweater wardrobe last season, I noticed I was missing the most basic: the casual, everyday sweater--that sweater that goes in and out of the washer/dryer and basically takes the place of a sweatshirt.  With so many new machine-washable yarns available, it's an easy problem to remedy, so I set about to make a few.  Bellerose by Martin Storey fills that void in my wardrobe and is the newest item in my closet.  It calls for Rowan Pure Wool Worsted, a yarn I have used many times since it's introduction last year.  It's an easy care, machine-washable, well-priced yarn meant for the entire family. It's easy to knit, with enough bounce to achieve an even fabric with just a light blocking.  While the ball band will tell you to dry flat, I tumble dry with great results:

Step one:  turn inside-out.
Two:  put in a sweater bag.
Three:  Wash on gentle cycle with cool water.
Four:  Still inside-out, remove from sweater bag and tumble dry on LOW until almost dry.
Five:  Turn rightside-out, lay flat and pat to shape to finish drying.

Rowan does not recommend the above, but I just wanted to share what I did with success.  So there you go.  I do want to say, that even though a sweater may be machine washable, it is still a hand-knit, and I respect that.  I make sure that I don't wash it very often.  I find I can get some distance between washes if I hand wash the cuffs only or dab out a spot.  I don't throw it into the wash basket willy-nilly.

Bellerose is from one of the newer Rowan Loves books--they have quickly become favorites of knitters as each pattern has a few options for style details and yarn.  This pattern can be knit as a pullover or a cardigan.

Bellerose by Martin Storey is from 

Rowan Loves Pure Wool Worsted and Creative Focus Worsted
the yarn, Rowan Pure Wool Worsted

my Ravelry project page with all the details

I asked my teen-age neighbor Jessica to model for me.  She just does such a nice job in front of the camera, doesn't she?  That last picture above is me, but can you guess where I am?  For Big Sur lovers, the iconic concrete bleachers with their bright pillows are a dead giveaway that I'm at Nepenthe.  Kaffe Fassett fans know he grew up here.  His family still owns the restaurant, cafe, gift shop, family home and surrounding land and I know he comes to visit about once a year.   Me too, Big Sur is one of my favorite places in the world and I have to come at least once a year or I'll miss it too much.  If it's been a while, I beg my husband to take me there, if only just for a day trip.  For this trip we were meeting for a one night family reunion and had lunch at Nepenthe.  It was as crowded as I've ever seen it, probably because the weather was breathtaking--bright blue skies with a few puffs of white clouds just for contrast.  We stayed at Deetjen's Big Sur Inn, very rustic, but reasonable prices for the area and besides, there's really not a lot of choices.  We've stayed there a few times and like it, but if you go on my recommendation, please do remember that it's rustic, but like I said, I love Big Sur.  So much. Grandpa's room is my favorite and it has a record collection with a turntable and plenty of old records.  I played some Chambers Brothers, Tower of Power and Moody Blues.  The younger people in our group came in to have a good look at this curiosity!