punkinhead

hand knitted baby hats…for warm heads & warm hearts

Spring coming? No….really? {punkinhead hand knit baby hats}

Yay, babies!    Always love it when I get new babies into the studio to photograph.  Of course, we always think they’ll sleep when they’re supposed to, and they don’t.  And of course, as soon as we take the diaper off, we almost always have a problem (I do a lot of laundry).   But, I still love holding these little creatures.pat125

I was so fortunate to have the cutest little girls come in recently.   This is the Autumn hat – reworked, as I wrote about before.  I love, love, love it now.

The two hats below are organic cotton, perfect lighter weight for spring and summer.   The pink/purple is actually the ‘Chip’ pattern, done in spring colors, I am so desperate to see some pink, lilac, colors of spring!

Because as I look out my window this sunny March day , I see the same snow we got in January, when a snowstorm shut down our city.  Which was just a few days after we had an ice storm that knocked out power for days.   Over Christmas.  And it has been cold, for months.  Really cold.  School’s closed cold.  The Great Lakes are almost completelywoz144 covered in ice cold.  Insane heating bills cold.

woz137 So no, we didn’t think spring would ever come.  But yesterday we actually had some melting with a temp in the 40s.  And the sun was out.  Bonus!    Who would ever be excited to see yucky, brown grass?  We would.   And are.

Someday spring will come.  And we’ll be able to open our windows.   See our grass.   Visit with neighbors that we haven’t seen in months.   And after that maybe we’ll even get to plant our gardens and get out our hammocks.  Really.  It could happen.

Please visit  http://www.etsy.com/shop/punkinhead1

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Lessons learned from Dory {hand knitted baby hats}

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“Starr”

We all love Dory from “Finding Nemo”, right?   The great Ellen Degeneres never fails to make us laugh – even in animated form.   Thinking of her speaking Whale – and doing it myself – never fails to crack me up.   I think it’s one of the funniest things ever.

So what did Dory teach me?  Besides how to speak Whale?  I use her line “Just keep swimming” a lot, especially at the studio, where life can just get overwhelmingly hectic.   And when things are just too much to handle – I ‘just keep swimming’ and somehow I’ll get through it all.

Well, that’s what I was thinking of the aqua colored hat right here.   This is actually the 3rd hat I made- in a row – trying to get the shape and size just right.  I try to come up with all of my own patterns, so it’s often trial and error before I get it right.   And when I finally got it – woo hoo!  I had to put down the needles for a couple of days to let my elbow and wrist recover.   I loved the idea of huge poms on the sides – I think it will be so cute for everyday – as well as professional portraits.   I’ve name it “Starr” – after my older sister – I don’t know why I picked this particular hat for the name.  It just makes me happy, and made me think of her.

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“Autumn” – new

Now….speaking of ‘swimming’ – I decided to remake the “Autumn” design to the left.  I wasn’t happy with the way the roll brim turned out on the original – and well…I just wanted to change it up.  So here is a new Autumn.   This yarn is the thickest I’ve ever seen – and I had to special order the needles for it.  So, this is a one of a kind (size: 0-3 months) – and will be available in other sizes by custom order, but it may take a couple of weeks.   I love the way the texture of the ribbing looks now.   It just felt right to redo it.  Kind of like Dory knew it felt right to go through the trench when Marlin wants to go around.

Sometimes you just need to go with your gut.

https://www.etsy.com/listing/94398367/hand-knit-baby-girl-hat-knit-newborn-0-3?

https://www.etsy.com/listing/162677127/hand-knit-baby-hat-with-pom-poms-knit?ref=listing-shop-header-2

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My brain is going to melt.

You’ve ever been to a conference and learned so many new things that your brain actually hurts from all of the information?  That’s me.   It’s only been 3 days, but it’s been a very long 3 days.  3 days of talking about work, thinking about work, getting new ideas for work, for 12 hours a day.   I. Am. Burnt. Out.   548338_319743551424512_288508574548010_756669_75664385_n

But, learning is growth, right?  New ideas are exciting.  And change is good.  It is all worth the long drive and long days.   We are seeing so many cool things, and getting so much feedback, and getting such inspiration, it’s been really, truly, awesome.

Who needs full brain power, anyway?

BTW, no time for knitting, so more stuff will have to wait….Here is a repeat of one of my favorites, the Ruby, on the left.   And below, an image from another photographer, featuring the Bobby.222592_10151042068056157_1078814403_n   Love to see my hats ‘in action’.

Until then, don’t forget the shop is at : http://www.etsy.com/shop/punkinhead1

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Time

Is going by just too darn fast.  Really.  My sweet, cuddly, curly haired toddler has turned into this beautiful,  tall, wavy haired teenager overnight, I swear.

Today we are about to go to someplace that holds precious memories for our family.  Especially for my husband and I, remembering how our little girl used to look in awe at the wonders she saw.  Sheer delight on her face.

It will be different today, because now she’s ‘grown up’, but we are still going to cherish each memory.  Because in just a short time, she really will be grown up.  And I will be proud of the woman she becomes, sure.  But I’ll always miss my little girl.

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The sun is out – Joy to the world!

mit144After all the recent gray days, both in weather and in the emotions of our country, the sun is out today.  It’s a beautiful day out there, though the trees are bare and brown, and the grass isn’t looking so great.   It’s still beautiful to see the sun and it is lifting my spirits, reminding me of better days ahead.

I thought it a perfect time to post my newest hat, shown on a sweet newborn baby.   There is Joy in this world.  Even in our darkest times.

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Natural – bamboo – hand knitted baby hat for newborn boy

My newest ‘creation’.   Made of the bamboo yarn I love to use, it’s super, super, super soft.   I love feeling the yarn between my fingers as I knit.  I guess I find it comforting.

Life has been busy – the studio is busy, so days off are elusive, at best.   Evenings are busy with everything wanting my attention – the kid, the garden, the CSA veggies, the hammock.  🙂    So, needless to say, knitting has gone onto the back burner.  I have enough stock for my shop at etsy-  http://www.etsy.com/shop/punkinhead1 – but haven’t though of anything new to do.  But recently I found the urge to make this hat – and mostly to use this yarn.   Did I mention how soft it is?

I haven’t named this piece yet, it’s similar to the Meghan, but made in a different yarn.  Maybe I’ll call it the Daniel, named after her dad, my younger brother.  Yes, that seems fitting.   ‘Daniel’ it is!   What will be next?

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Bobby – hand knitted baby hat – boy

This is that sweet little guy I was looking forward to photographing.   He is So.  Stinkin’.  Cute!   He was a challenge – a little wigglier than the average newborn since he was 5 weeks old – but so bright eyed and sweet!   His parents just completed his adoption and feel so very lucky to have this little one in their family.  Congratulations to his parents and I can’t wait to watch him grow up!

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Newborn Baby Photography with sweet little hats

Tomorrow  morning I have a session with a 5 week old baby boy – I can’t wait!   I hear he’s pretty cute.  🙂   And I’m sure he is.  I’m excited for 2 reasons – he’s going to be so tiny….and because I’ll have another model for my hats!   Boys have been a little hard to come by, so tomorrow I’ll be able to get a sample of  the Chip design and more of the Bobby, Sam and Jace.   I know that’s expecting a lot out of a tiny baby, but if he falls asleep, I’ll be golden!

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Organic cotton newborn baby hat, photographic prop

As a photographer, I LOVE working with little babies.  This beauty was asleep, but a little wiggly at first.   Then, after a good feeding, she was zonked!   She is just so precious, I can hardly stand it!

She is wearing the Ruby hat – and I am currently working on getting an image with the hat without the ceramic button.  While I love the button for photography, I’ll be showing the same hat with two knit flowers (1 inside the other).   This is to make this design more suitable for everyday wear (without the choking hazard the ceramic button may cause.)   The organic cotton and texture are light enough for spring and fall wear – and of course, make beautiful portraits!

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Chip – knitted baby hat, newborn, photography prop

Another organic!   I felt a need for more boy hats, and was thankful to find this yarn in that great organic cotton I like to use.   I made the border squares, which reminds me of a baby blanket I made a while ago and I really like the variation in texture.

A name, a name, the pressure of a name!  Thinking of names for the girl hats was easy, my family is mostly girls!  But, boy names are more challenging…..so I thought I’d start with the oldest of my younger brothers.   Besides, this reminds me of a hat Chip used to wear.   Or maybe not.   It just reminded me of him, and I like the pattern, so I wanted to actually give it a name, because I’d like to make more “Chips”!  (Though when I was younger, 1 Chip was plenty!)  🙂

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