Knitted gifts for the new baby

I've written before about the talent and generosity of the knitting group that I go to every week, but even the excited looks they exchanged when I told them I was pregnant didn't prepare me for the knitted baby shower that they threw for me at our meeting last week.

My photos aren't exactly amazing, but I'm still lacking a model to wear most of the items I've been given – one thing's for sure, I'm going to have a very well dressed baby who is going to be kept lovely and warm!

Mary has made this lovely ball for Baby C to play with – complete with a little bell inside it. She also made a beautiful white 4-ply hat which is packed away in my hospital bag for when the baby is born. Being amazingly well known for all the toys that she makes Mary also made a beautiful knitted teddy bear for Little Miss C to make sure that she didn't feel left out with all these gifts. Teddy has been taken to bed with LMC every night since she was given him and I've not yet been able to sneak him away for a photo session – I will though!

Penny (or Purple Penny as she is known to differentiate her from the other four Pennys in the group) made these adorable couple of hats. With the autumn weather having really arrived here overnight I think (s)he will be really needing these!

Holly has been busy on her knitting machine and has come up with this fantastic pair of funky knitted yellow trousers. The tie round the waist means they co-ordinate with some of the jackets that others have knitted below. The bottoms and waist also both fold out to accommodate a growing baby. Knitters are asked to pay particular attention to the gusset and the shaping to fit around a nappy. As these were made from an old pattern they were designed for when babies all wore terry square nappies which are obviously much bulkier than modern day disposables. I'm hoping to use re-usables with this new baby (something I never quite managed with LMC) so it will be interesting to see how they fit and Holly's asked for feedback so that she can adjust the pattern accordingly.

As she's a bit of a whirlwind on her knitting machine Holly also knocked up a fantastic poncho for LMC to wear. With yellow, green and pink stripes complete with a yellow trim it's great fun and ideally designed for a toddler to be able to put on and take off without help. The only problem I have is that LMC wont keep it on long enough for me to take a photograph – the excitement of putting it on and taking it off again is so much that she's yet to wear it for any length of time!

LizAnn made a wonderful colourful version of the Elizabeth Zimmerman Baby Surprise Jacket and as one with an eye for detail she's included button holes on both sides so that I can sew the buttons on the "right" side once we know what flavour baby is! The colours also work perfectly with the yellow trousers that Holly made.

LMC wasn't forgotten by LizAnn though and she made her a cute little purse that she can wear over her shoulder – just a perfect size for carrying around some of her smaller toys, in particular her Schleich animals. Once again, squirrelled away long before I could get any photographs.

Charlotte also went for a Baby Surprise Jacket, but this time with coordinated booties – incredibly cute!

A third jacket from Geraldine, with all the stripes beautifully matched up. This one has lovely little ties on the front of it – so ideal for popping over something else when it's a bit cooler.

Lillian made a gorgeous yellow chick from one of Charlotte's crochet patterns. Adorably cute and already sat in a moses basket waiting for a baby to join it!

Thinking practically Ellen made this lovely blanket that can be used for when baby is on the floor rolling around of just absorbing what's going on around them. Purposefully made in acrylic it can easily be thrown in the washing machine when it gets dirty. The colours haven't come out very well in the photograph, but the bottle green edge works really well with the tweedy-green bit in the middle. It's incredibly soft and makes me just want to snuggle up with it!

This crochet ripple blanket from Rosemary is so tactile – when I laid it out to photograph it I found myself just sat there absentmindedly stroking it for ages whilst watching LMC play. Once the baby's a bit older this will be great for them to experience some lovely textures, as well as keeping them lovely and warm.

There's no chance of baby catching a chill at all as Yvonne also presented me with a lovely crochet blanket in white, beige and lilac. Again very tactile.

As I'm sure you'll agree some stunningly beautiful things made by a talented bunch of women – thank you all so much!

All I need know is a baby to wrap up in all these lovely knits…