Gifties: Some Goodies for Riley Paige

My friends Shelley and Bob are now the proud parents of a beautiful baby girl, Riley Paige! As a way to say “Howdy,” I decided to get back to basics and knit her my go-to baby blankie: The Hoodie Baby Blanket.

I like this Hoodie Baby Blanket so much because it’s simple and functional, and there’s room to personalize it with your choice of yarn, stitch, color, etc. I made this blanket for my two nieces when they were babies: I used a breathable cotton blend yarn in a garter stitch and a crocheted border for warm-weather-baby Lulu, and I used warmer yarn in a stockinette stitch with a broken rib border for winter-born Rosie.

For Riley, I did the main part of the blankie in a garter stitch, and did a seed stitch for the border. I think it made a good combo!

Here's a close up of the garter stitch (green) and the seed stitch (cream) together. It's my first time doing a seed stitch, it's pretty!

I rocked Cotton Ease yarn again, to make for a suitable warm-weather blanket. Um, also, you noticed how ruffly the border is, huh? Well I experimented with using a bigger needle for the border, and that’s what happened. I like it though!

Also, I made Riley a matching little friend:

Meet "Smirky Sue"!

Why is she called "Smirky Sue"? 'Cuz she looks like she's smirking! (Because maybe my attaching-different-pieces-together skills are not so hot... read on!)

I really wanted to make Riley a hippo because hippos are her mom’s favorite animal! I figured it’d be easier to use a pattern instead of trying to make one on my own, so I started out using this one. It’s pretty cute, right?? Well, I made all the pieces, but then I ran in to my nemesis: Sewing Pieces Together. It was coming out aaaaaaawful. I haaaaaaaaate sewing pieces together. I lamented not going with my gut and just whipping something up on my own (which would have involved less pieces to sew together, naturally), but I already had all the pieces, so I just attached the pieces differently and added some CK Flair.

I wanted Sue to be baby-safe, so one of the most important changes I made to this pattern was embroidering the eyes instead of using safety eyes. Also, I added teeth, 'cuz hippos have teeth!

I also crocheted her a cute little hair flower.

And I knit her a sassy little scarf.

Don't forget the rear view!

Unfortunately, I didn’t get these gifts to poor Riley until last week (she was born in July!). But even though I was two months late, she didn’t mind.

Riley's mom was kind enough to send me photographic proof that the blankie and Smirky Sue were well-recieved!

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