Swatchless

$3.00 CAD

Just in time for Valentines day, show your sweetie you care, by knitting them a pair of red and white striped mittens.  This pattern can be customized to fit any hand size.

Hold hands with your special someone, and keep your hands toasty warm at the same time.  This two person mitten is more than meets the eye.  Knit with a technique called illusion knitting, at first glance it is a simple striped pattern, but when viewed from a different angle, a heart appears.

Skills: cast on, knit in the round, purl, increase, decrease, chart reading.

Yarn: sport weight, red and white

Needles: 4.0mm

Download the .pdf pattern for the set of three mittens, including full colour charts for $3.00 CAD

‘Tis the season for babies it seems.  My cousin and his wife just welcomed baby Charlotte, a little early, but all are doing well.  I dove into the stash and found some sweet baby yarn, from back in the day when baby yarn was thinner than sock yarn!

I knit this hat during the super bowl.  The pattern is based on helloyarn’s top down bonnet, but I had to add more stitches and improvise a bit to deal with the super thin yarn.  I based the sizing on the bonnet I knit for Laila earlier this week.  There’s enough yarn left for a matching pair of booties, but I’m still searching for the perfect pattern.

What’s your favourite team?

These socks were designed for several football fans who wanted to let everyone know their allegiance.  Knit in team colours, with logos on the top and bottom of the foot, these socks show your team spirit when you’ve got your feet up watching the game.

Knit in worsted weight acrylic yarn, these socks are fairly quick to knit.  Graph your favourite logo, and knit it right side up on the top of the foot, and upside down on the bottom.  Add stripes on the cuff, and contrasting heels and toes, then wear with pride!

Toe up socks:  Cast on figure of 8 method 16 sts.  Knit in the round, increasing on alternate rows until sock fits over toes.  Change colours. Knit a few rows in before starting logo chart (knit more for longer feet).  Start logo.  On the top of the foot read the chart from the lower right.  On the bottom of the foot read the chart from top left.  Here is a chart as an example.

Having the chart on the top and bottom of the foot serves two purposes.  It allows for more continuous stranded knitting, and also shows team spirit when your feet are up while you’re watching the game.  Work your favourite heel in contrasting colours(if doing a gusset, you might need to start this while still knitting the chart–that’s ok).  An afterthought heel works well for this pattern.  After the heel continue up the leg.  Change to ribbing, and add team colour stripes as desired.  Cast off loosely in ribbing.  Wear, and be the envy of EVERYONE!

Happy super bowl everyone!

Who are you cheering for?

Several anonymous knitters met today at lunch to sketch out a plan for a surprise project. The goal was to design a headband that has a complex image on it, and some of these anonymous knitters looked at me strangely when I mentioned words like gauge and thickness of yarn, and stranded knitting, and reading charts.  This post is dedicated to these anonymous knitters, and all other beginners who want to make up their own designs.

Find out the general size of the garment

For a headband, this requires the circumference of the head (wrap a string around your head, then measure the string with a ruler), and an estimation of the width of the band.

Plan of attack

Headbands fit best if they can stretch outward, and knitting in the round will allow for this stretch.  Another option would be to knit a rectangle and sew it up (I avoid sewing things up if at all possible).  Consider how the edges might roll–add ribbing on the top and bottom edge to prevent rolling but to still allow it to stretch.  (I-Cord will not stretch….I learned the hard way on this one)

Choosing the right yarn and needles

If you are planning a really complicated pattern, choose thin yarn and fine needles.  This will let you have detail in your project without the project getting too large.

Swatching

I don’t like this step, but it is sometimes a necessary step in the design process.  With the needles and yarn that you have chosen, knit a small rectangle at least 2 inches by 2 inches.  Get a ruler, and (without stretching your sample) measure how many stitches fit in one inch.  Measure also how many rows fit in one inch.  Write down your needle size, yarn that you are using, and stitches per inch, and rows per inch.  This will prevent the need for future swatching with the same materials.

NOTE: Stranded knitting with two colours tends to draw in (get tighter) than knitting in one colour.  Keep this in mind if you are going to knit with two colours.  Another option is to use duplicate stitch to add designs on after the headband is knit.

Math Time

To make a headband fit snugly around the head, you need negative ease.  This means that you should aim for the headband to be about an inch less than the head circumference.  If you are doing stranded knitting you might not need so much negative ease, since your knitting will be tighter.

Headband circumference[adjusted to account for negative ease] in inches x #stitches per inch = #stitches to cast on

Desired headband width in inches x #rows per inch = #rows to knit

Chart Time

Get a piece of graph paper, or a fresh excel spreadsheet, and mark off the rectangle that will be the headband (#stitches to cast on is the long side, and #rows to knit is the short side)

Colour in the design on the graph paper.  Each square will represent one stitch.  Think of it like you are creating the pixels of your picture.

Cast on!

Start with ribbing, then add your design according to your chart.  If your design is not symmetrical (like letters or numbers) make sure that your pattern will be the right way up and the right way around.  End with ribbing, and cast off.

I look forward to seeing the finished product!  Get knitting!

My, I certainly had more of this yarn than I thought!  I have now made a bonnet, a sweater AND the cutest little baby shoes you ever did see.

These are the seamless version of Saartje’s Bootees that was published on Fleegle’s blog.  I have been eyeing this pattern for a while, and was glad of the opportunity to try it.

These darling shoes knit up quickly, and have no seams to sew up, a real plus in my books.  I hope that they will stay securely on little baby feet.

More friends and relatives are expecting babies this spring.  I’m looking forward to knitting lots of tiny baby clothes to send off to everyone!

It’s time to go dive into the stash for a different colour though, I think I’ve just about had it with this blue and yellow!

This sweater started out with the bonnet that I made yesterday.  I had lots of stash left over, and thought a matching striped sweater would be cute.

When knitting sweaters for babies it is important to leave a big neck opening.  This sweater was going to be a cardigan….but changed half way through.

I used Astra yarn and a circular needle, size 4.0mm, to cast on 70 sts.  I separated the stitches  12, 10, 26, 10, 12.

Top down raglan construction is great since you can knit it, increasing on both sides of the markers, until the sweater is big enough to fit around the body and then continue on with the rest of the sweater.

This sweater starts with 6 rows of garter stitch, and then switches to stockinette with an 8 stitch garter stitch border/button band on both edges.

Stripes are worked at will, with button holes placed every 4 ridges in the garter stitch button band.  To make a button hole K3, K2tog, YO.  Making button holes on both sides of the garment will allow you to sew a button in the correct spot by sewing it on top of the redundant button hole.

This sweater spoke to me, wishing to become a pull-over rather than a cardigan.  Perhaps it is just since I don’t like to purl all that much.  After working 3 button holes, and at the end of a purl row, place the 8 knit border stitches on a spare needle.  Begin the knit round by combining both 8 stitch sections together by working a K2tog with one stitch from each edge of the sweater.  This will cause the borders to be one directly above the other.

The sleeve stitches are kept on waste yarn while the body of the sweater is completed.  Cast on 3 stitches under each arm pit.  Knit the body until it is 1/2 an inch from the desired finished length, then work 6 rows of garter stitch.  Note: in the round, garter stitch is knit 1 row, purl 1 row.  Cast off loosely knitwise.

The sleeves stitches are knit, armpit stitches are picked up, and joined in the round.  Decrease 2 stitches every 5th row to narrow the sleeve.  Continue until the sleeve is 1/2 inch from the desired length.  Work 6 rows of garter stitch.  Cast off loosely knitwise.

Work in ends and sew on buttons.

If you like this pattern, check out my others!

This weekend, friends of mine became parents, and I started knitting!  The news of the healthy baby and happy family had me digging through some of the stash to find some old fashioned Astra yarn that I had found at a thrift store a while ago.  When knitting for a baby, machine washable yarns are a definite plus!

My new favourite baby bonnet pattern is the Top Down Bonnet with Anime Character {Ravelink} by Adrian Bizilia.  I have made this bonnet with the ears and face before for a Japanese friend of mine.

This time I made the bonnet without the face and ears.  It’s amazing….a totally new and different hat.

I enjoy how the stripes join up with each other along the line of increases.

This bonnet did not use up ALL of my stash, so I have cast on for a top down raglan sleeve sweater to match (blue with yellow stripes), and there might be enough left for booties too!

The wonderful thing about knitting for a new baby is that projects are small and manageable, and they look SO cute!

What’s your favourite thing to knit for a new baby?

It is with great regret that I announce my death…..

Tonight there was a pair of beautiful socks in my mail box.  They are purple and stripey and so soft and comfy! This is the first pair of hand knit socks I have ever been given, and I will treasure them.  I’ve noticed that knitters don’t often get hand knit gifts for some reason….

Thanks so much to warrior “suckittrebek” for the fine knitting, and the yummy chocolate!  I’m glad (and a little concerned) that you enjoyed killing a Canadian so much.

Pattern:  Don’t Box Me In

Yarn:  Bamboo & Ewe Pattern, superfine wool/bamboo blend yarn (55% wool, 30% nylon, 15% rayon from bamboo)

I came home tonight, with FREEZING toes (it’s -25 C with windchill tonight).  I tried on my new socks, and put my feet up for a bit. I might get a chance to do a little knitting of my own before I go to sleep.

It’s been quite a day!

About two years ago I knit these Magnificent Mittens (5-1 Mitten, by Anna Zilboorg) to be auctioned off to benefit the local school board’s “Food Sharing Project”.  I was able to borrow a copy of Anna Zilboorg’s book from our local library and had fun looking at the amazing and intricate patterns.  I knit these out of Brigg’s and Little Tuffy wool.  It made me feel good to be able to do something to support such an important local initiative.

The annual Talents & Treasures Auction goes a long way in supporting the Food Sharing Project. It raises much needed funds to provide approximately 3,500 students, daily, in about 80 sites in the Limestone District School Board and the Algonquin and Lakeshore Catholic District School Board with the nutrition they need to be successful students.

The 2010 Auction is taking place tonight.  It’s always a good show, with a great variety of items to bid on.  Bring your friends!

Auction Details:

The public is invited to attend the Talents & Treasures Live and Silent Auction Friday, January 29th at Bayridge Secondary School, 1059 Taylor Kidd Blvd. Doors open at 6 p.m. for the preview and to begin bidding on Silent Auction items. There will be raffles, silent auctions, and the live auction, with Gordon’s Estate Services, which starts at 7 p.m. Admission is $3 per person or $5 for two persons, with complimentary refreshments. VISA, Mastercard, Interac, cash and/or cheques will be accepted.

Today is one of those days….actually this week is one of those weeks….it seems like there aren’t enough hours for all the things that have to get done. I’ve been having fun though, spending a lot of time after work helping the K-Botics team build a robot!

In short….No time to knit.

I did have time to write a HAIKU about a sad mitten I saw in the parking lot tonight.

Dark and very cold,
A lone mitten on the ground
Is missing its mate

Watch out folks…it’s cold out there!  -22 C tomorrow.  Keep hold of BOTH your mittens.