Ok, I've cast on 26 things in June, all because I'm participating in the Finnish KAL I mentioned a few weeks ago, where you - starting from the 1st oh June - cast on something new every day until Midsummer, and you finish everything my the end of July. It's a challenge, but so much fun! Here's what I have ready (or almost done) by now (& since the last posting)

You might remember I volunteer for my local animal shelter by knitting things for sale and helping during open doors days, working at the sales booth. The shelter just had their big summer open doors day a few days ago, and to try out something new I decided to knit two little triangular shawlettes for sale.

Once in a while my attention gets drawn to the misccellaneous bags in my stash closet, the ones with yarn ends and half balls, the leftover yarns from bigger projects and maybe a few full balls with yarn I don't really know what to do with. To be honest, my attention is actually drawn to the fact that the bags are packed if not overflowing. This is usually the time I take out the bags, take a look at the yarns inside and decide to start a stashbusting project.
 

I'm heading to my local animal shelter's Easter Bazar tomorrow morning, and have some knits ready for it.

I've made some bulky hats:
Pattern - Chunky Button Hat
Yarn - Filati Funky, a really bulky wool / acrylic mix. This happens to be the first yarn I ever knit in my "new knitter life" in 2006!
Needles - 10 mm dpns (!)
Modifications - I did change the crown of some of these hats, plus I attached no buttons, but made pom poms instead.

This is my 2009 tally für preemies. You might know that I support the German knit for preemies charity Frühchenstricken, who collect preemie knits and distribute them to the hospitals who request them. I usually send one packet a year, and this is the one for 2009 (they asked me to wait over Christmas to send it, so I only sent it last week).

Greetings from the Mouse Factory!

Well, not quite, but I have been making lots of mice lately, as I was trying to get as many as possible done for Ompelukerho (a Finnish women's action group I am a member of) stand at the Christmas market. The market is today, and I hope they sell well! They did last year, anyway, and because these mice are smaller than the ones last year, they might even sell better (as last year's mice were more like rats...)

I've knit some small things last month and I thought I'd show them to you, as they came out nicely, I think!

First we have the Grown-up bootees. The pattern is by Ysolda Teague, and it's a part of the Whimsical Little Knits 1 collection. I've knit them with vintage superwash wool held double on 5mm needles. This pair fits me, so the size is ca. European 39. They took approximately 100 grams of yarn. I'll be making more as Christmas presents!

Just two more pairs of little preemie socks for charity. I'm also counting them in the Sukkasato sock KAL.

The yarn is a nameless sock yarn I received from a friend a while back. The socks are made on 2,5mm dpns, and have 28 stitches around. The cuff is 1x1 rib and the foot is plain. As simple as it gets!

Sukkasato has started again, the Finnish 2-month sock KAL in which I also participated last year.

Like last year, I'll be making small socks for charity. Here's the first pair of preemie socks. Made on 4mm needles using 24 stitches around, the yarn is Hjerte Sock held double.

I have more pairs on the needles and will post them throughout the KAL. They are so sweet and quick!

I'm still working on the perfect cat bed. This is not yet it! But at least it's fluffy and cuddly! I'll give it to the animal shelter for sale later on.

I used odd balls of fluffy yarns, that's all I can say about the yarn. Some I got from the shelter, some I had in my stash. I made the bottom in one piece, like the bottom in Princess Snowball cat bed from Stitch'n'Bitch, and then picked up stitches along the sides. I used 6mm needles.

It still doesn't stand up right, but I keep trying!