Up and Down the Stairs

This small quilt is for the ALQS8 (another little quilt swap #8).  It is my attempt at an Escher-like effect as the quilt actually works in all directions as you can tell from this diptic photo collage.  I used the photo to poll friends for which way it should hang.  The majority agreed the top one on the left.

Here's the finished quilt.  It is machine pieced and quilted.  It measures 18.5 inches square.

Here's the back.  I still need to add the sleeve to the back for hanging.

Here are my past entries for the other seven:
1st: Laced Ribbons Quilt
2nd: Flower Basket Quilt
3rd: Fractures I
4th: Blue Hawaii Wall Hanging
5th:  Winter
6th: Mariner’s Compass Rose
7th:  Country Garden Small Quilt

More Hats

I only intended to make one or maybe two minion hats but three friends asked me to make some for them.  I sent this one off to a great-niece whom I hope will like it.  The pattern is Minion Hat by Maura Houston.  The yellow yarn for this one is Berroco Ultra Alpaca.  I used scraps for the black, white, and grey from my scrap basket.

And the second one was made for a friend's son. The yellow yarn is Lion Brand Vanna's Choice Prints.  Again the black, white, and grey are from my scrap basket.

Four more minion hats have been knitted at the request of friends.

This one is not a minion hat but rather uses the pattern Percy Jackson's Camp Half~Blood Beanie by Nancy Fry.  The yellow yarn is left over from the first minion hat.  The duplicates stitches for the horse were down using brown, white, and grey yarns from my scrap basket.  Hope my great-nephew like it.

More Knitted Hats and Some Fingerless Mitts

I have a lot of nieces (11)/ nephews (11)and a growing number of great-nieces (up to 8) with two new ones this year) and great-nephew (3 now).  I've been on a roll this year with knitting gifts for some of them.

These first two were made using left over yarn from the slippers.   Both were made using the pattern Regular Guy Beanie by Chuck Wright.  Both went to great-nephews for Christmas.  I downsized the regular guy beanie pattern, casting on only 72 stitches rather than 84.

Second regular guy beanie made in child size:

I used the regular guy beanie pattern for this one for a nephew.  I used two yarns from my stash (the brown is Berroco Ultra Alpaca; the other is leftover Maine Woods hand painted wool).  The effect was almost camouflage. 

This one will go to a great-niece.  The pattern is Purple Stitch Project Beanie by Paula Pereira.  The yarn is Adriafil Knitcol. 

This one is didn’t photograph well.  The colors are pink and orange.  Another great-niece will get this one.  The pattern used is Hermione's Globe Hat by Margie Mitchell.  The yarn is  Manos del Uruguay Maxima in peach melba.

This one (for another great-niece) uses the same Manos del Uruguay Maxima yarn.  The pattern is Techno Hat by Colleen Powley.  

These two are for twin girls (great-nieces).  I downsized the regular guy beanie.  Unsure what the yarn is.

These fingerless mitts are at the request of a brother-in-law with large hands.  The mitts are large on me so hopefully will fit him.  The pattern is Man Paws by Chelsea Fabrizio.  The yarn is  Lion Brand Heartland.

My Star Block for NASA

NASA issued a press release asking for star blocks.  Thanks for the tweet from @MartinYoung giving me the head’s up.  Here's mine

Here are the details on the block requirements (link removed 3/2017).

Here’s an old post about the time I worked for NASA during the summer between my first and second years of medical school -- My First Research Experience.