Swatchless

Yesterday I met with Eilidh and her mom to take some pictures in the park to illustrate the “Eilidh” cabled vest pattern.  It was a lovely day, sunny and warm.  We found a spot in the shade, and got the wee one all dressed up, and sitting up.  Now, sitting up is new for her, and maybe she rolled a bit too far forward, squishing her stomach….or maybe she’d just been fed….but before any pictures could even be taken, she spit up down the front of the vest.

Thank goodness mommies always carry a bag full of wipey things.  We cleaned her up (you’d never know the vest was dirty in that picture!)….but she was really not into the whole modeling thing.  There were lots of pictures that look like this one!

Cuddles with mommy made it all better.

Funny thing is, when you take pictures of grown ups, you never have to worry about if they will spit up, or spontaneously cry when you get out the camera!  Thanks for being such a good sport Eilidh, and thanks to her mommy for letting her be a model!

What’s your craziest photo taking situation?

Download the .pdf for $5.00 CAD

Eilidh (Ay’-lee) is a Gaelic name that means LIGHT.

When my friend told me that she was choosing a Gaelic name for her little girl, I knew I needed to knit her something with lots of cables.

This celtic cabled vest will look charming on any little one, and could even be worn, over tights, as a dress by a very young girl.  Knit almost entirely in the round in double knitting weight yarn, this vest is quick to finish.  The cables are predictable, which is great for beginners, but each row is different enough to keep the expert entertained.

Here's Eilidh, who is just learning how to sit up!

The pattern is explained in row by row instructions, and also in chart form.

Download the .pdf pattern for $5.00 CAD

Thanks to Eilidh and her mom who met me in the park today for the pattern photo shoot, and thanks to Jean for test knitting this pattern and providing excellent feedback.

If you like this pattern, check out my others!

any guesses?

A colleague had mentioned a while back that after cancer surgery her arm is getting swollen, particularly in the warm weather.  As lymph nodes had been removed, some of the lymph fluid pools in her arm instead of following the usual path around the body.  In a conversation she mentioned that she wanted to suspend her arm from something while she sat at her desk….that got the wheels started.

Note:  All loops or noose-like ideas were rejected, as were things that could injure you if you accidentally ran into them.

The end product of my brainstorming was this contraption (any ideas for a name?)

Here are the instructions (if you’d like to make one)

Cut a pool noodle into a ball (about 2.5 inches in diameter).  This will be the core of the device.  We chose pool noodle foam because it is light and flexible and easy to cut with a box cutter or exacto-knife.

Choose your favourite sock yarn and needles.  I used Kroy, and 2.25mm needles.

Cast on 6 sts.

INCREASES

Row 1: knit into the front and back of each stitch [12 sts]

Row 2: *kfb, k1* 6 times

Row 3: *kfb, k2* 6 times

Row 4: *kfb, k3* 6 times

Continue to increase (adding stripes if you wish) until there are 90 sts. total

Knit for 1 inch (graph a pattern for yourself if you are interested)

DECREASES

Row 1: *K2tog, K13* 6 times

Row 2: *K2tog, K12* 6 times

Row 3: *K2tog, K11* 6 times

Row 4: *K2tog, K10* 6 times

Insert ball and knit around it.  Continue to decrease (adding stripes if you wish) until there are 6 sts remaining.

Knit a 6 stitch i-cord for 1 meter.

Hang this device from the ceiling.  We tied it around the supports for the ceiling tiles.

as seen from below

I’m not sure if it works this way for people of any height, but fortunately for my colleague, this device can be suspended in the correct position to grasp from a seated position, but when the force of the hand is removed, the elasticity of the i-cord raises the very light ball up above the height of her head when she is standing.

If using material that is heavier than foam, be careful–it could give you quite a goose egg if you run into it.

Here’s a cute idea!

Image source: knitpicks.com

So…..today I got a rower friend with big hands to try on the pogies I knit (using this pattern but maybe I didn’t follow it to the letter since they are not quite right).  Now….these are not just knit, these are fully finished, which is what is making me a little mad with myself for not trying them on man-hands earlier.

There is a certain frustration in the “knit first, try on later” kind of attitude, specially when you try things on a non-knitter and ask for their opinion on sizing.  I always hold my breath as they consider how things should really fit.  I hold my breath, hoping that if there is something that needs fixing, it is an easy fix.  For instance, making a mitten cuff longer is easy, but making it wider is not so easy.

It was decided that these pogies will fit oars fine-the opening might be a tad big but that can be adjusted.  The width of the pogie is fine, but it might not be long enough to fit a man’s hand as it goes through the rowing motions.  Hopefully I can rip out the cast-on edge and extend the cuff a few inches, and that will clear up most of the issue.  The ribbing on the oar hole should also be extended a bit too so pinky fingers don’t end up getting exposed and cold.  I think I’ll do these cuff extensions in white because I don’t have enough blue left.

A few hours and several inches of ribbing later, and–I hesitate to say–that these pogies are done!  I hope they are up to the rowing standard.

For those curious, I ripped back the cast off edge at the oar hole and knit one more inch in white.  I didn’t rip out the cast on edge at the cuff because the last time I did that it was a very tedious process.  My work around was to cast on 48 sts and knit several inches of ribbing then use a darning needle and a long tail of white yarn to graft the live ribbing stitches to the cast on edge–it is lumpier than if I had re-knit it, but it’s not too bad.

Ever since my friend showed me the pattern for a knitted pigeon, I had to make one….

Today was the day that Percy meets Bernice and Bernie.  I’m not sure what they think of each other, but I think my Percy pigeon looks pretty good.

If you want to make your own Percy, here’s the pattern [Ravelink]

Let me introduce you to my newest buddy!

The lego man that I knit earlier this month (Some Assembly Required), is now decked out in WAFFLES and K-Botics gear!  I had such fun making the teensy tiny clothes….that once I made a hat, I couldn’t stop!  The WAFFLES shirt was knit from yellow baby weight yarn (very light fingering yarn) from the top down with raglan sleeve shaping.  The shirt needed a row of ribbing at the bottom to keep it from rolling.  The WAFFLES motif was stitched on later in chain stitch.

I used acrylic yarn (bits and pieces left over from knitting robot hats) to make the purple and blue clothing, but I needed to split the yarn up, and use a single ply, and sock needles (2.0mm DPNs).  The hat was knit from the crown to the brim in stripes incorporating the K-BOTICS and 2809 colourwork section before a row of ribbing and casting off.

The sweater is knit from the collar down, raglan style ending with a row of ribbing.  Sleeve stitches were picked up and knit to the cuff, then I picked up the neck stitches and improvised a hood that would fit over a lego head–significantly different proportions than a human head!  I embroidered K-BOTICS and our logo on the sweater using light blue, to match our team hoodies.

This little guy is looking for a new friend.  I may have to make one or two more when I get a bit of free time!

What should his name be?

These days I’m talking a lot about pigeons… a friend of mine noticed, and found this great knitted pigeon pattern for me.

image source: www.areyoubeingbullied.com

Percy The Pigeon Pattern available for download from the “areyoubeingbullied.com” website.  I think I may have to make one to keep my pigeon buddies company.

Pigeons on a sunny Monday

Pigeons on a snowy Tuesday

What should I name my pigeons?

percy

This weekend I got a chance to wander around in the woods for a while and look at the flowers and the leaves as they burst forth from their buds.

Red Trillium	lacy maple leaves
White Trillium	birch leaves

It was nice to get a chance to be outside on such a lovely day!  I can feel myself getting inspired by the delicate colours all around me.

In spring knitting…here’s the first of one of the strangest mittens I’ve ever seen.  They are called “pogies” and are for rowers.  There is an opening for the oar to go inside the mitten.  I’m following a pattern, but I’m not sure how well they will fit this particular rower or their oars.  One down, one to go!

I got home to find my pigeons are getting fluffier these days

saturday pigeons

And for those of you who don’t believe that they click at me…. here’s proof!

Now…is that an angry clicking noise?  What do you think?

I’m enjoying watching these little birds as they grow.  Not much difference from yesterday, but they were left all alone and quivering to keep warm.  I hope their mom doesn’t leave them for too long–it’s going to be a cold weekend.

As for the seeds I planted inside….they are growing too!

I think those are the radishes that are growing so quickly.

As far as knitting goes, I’m starting on “Some Assembly Required“.

image source: ravelry.com

I have the head completed, and have started deciphering the leg instructions.  It is fiddly work, but turning out well so far.  I’m knitting it in sock yarn on small needles (the pattern calls for worsted weight on 4mm needles) so perhaps I’m making it extra fiddly–I tend to do that!

Look forward to progress pictures after the weekend.