Finishing off

I've been working almost non-stop trying to get some baby things done for an old friend of mine. It's more knitting than I've done for ages but I'm thrilled with how they've come out. I won't post pics until I've given them to the parents but I will show you this:

One of the items just seemed unfinished and I couldn't figure out what it needed until I remembered this little lace edging that I'd done as parting my study course and realized it was perfect for this item. It's only about 1/2 inch wide and just perfect for this item. 

While I can't show it yet, suffice to say there will be some edging and some gathering and some rosette-ing going on. Still need about another foot but it goes quite quickly so shouldn't take too long. 

Lace makes everything g better!

Change as good as a rest

Of course a rest is pretty good as a rest, too.  I was able to take a couple of days off last week just ahead of a business trip.  I took the opportunity to wander through the back roads of Massachusetts and added 3 states to the number I've been in - now at 34 states. 

I find driving very, very relaxing and, of course, everything in that area is so close together that it's only a short drive to be in another state.  While I was driving, I had a little epiphany while I was driving as to how bobbins for lace could be constructed:

This was after I saw a lace bobbin in an antique shop marked at $120.  I haven't tried using them yet so I don't know how practical they are but I really like the possibilities they represent.

To make them, I cut a length of 16 gauge craft wire to about 8 inches.  I settled a wooden bead about halfway and folded the wire on either side of the bead to hold it tight.  After shaping the wire, I folded the ends in and then hid them inside another bead.  To add some rigidity to the wire, I took the bottom bead off and hammered the wire down the length on both side to avoid the piece arching.  Now it will be a little more durable.

I just need to try them out now to see how they handle or if they need to be adjusted.  I've already got a number of variations in mind.

The other things I worked on while I was away was a baby sweater.  I have a feeling it's going to be way too large for the baby I intended it for but it's been an exercise in design.  I started with a pattern I found in a magazine but once I got past the bodice, I've taken it a completely different direction and I'm really liking it.

It's not actually wonky  like this appears - it's on circular needles so it doesn't lie very flat.  The band becomes the sleeves and I may add a little cap on them but I like it the way it is.  The little green band under the braided cable band will have embroidered flowers around.  It's a cardigan and is being worked in Mandarin Petite, a very soft cotton yarn.  Now with the flounce working in this lacy pattern, I think it's going to be a really sweet little item.

I'm very, very tempted to work one for me.  I think I have some handspun that would be perfect for this pattern.  But first I want to get this one done and any design issues worked out before I start on a larger version.  I actually think working this pattern on larger needles with a heavier yarn will work really well and won't need much tweaking for the larger size.

That braided cable band will certainly need to be larger needles because this one took FOREVER!  Kind of like knitting edging for a shawl!

Back to Knitting

It feels like I haven't knitted anything for a year.  It hasn't been quite that long but it's true that I've been focusing on other things lately.  But visiting the lovely knit shops in Nashville last weekend, I got inspired to get started again.  I have a lovely California baby to knit for that hasn't had anything since the beginning so I found some beautiful Mandarin Petit, a cotton yarn, that I thought would be beautiful and bright.  But I couldn't decide on a pattern.

Here's what I finally came up with:

It's from the Lanas Stop Bebe Baby 0-3 Book #120.  It's a very cool multi-lingual book of baby patterns that I just couldn't pass up. Because I don't have that many baby patterns. That's my story, anyway.

So on to the sweater.  I'm doing the main body in this chartreuse green and I'm going to do the cable band in yellow and then use yellow buttons.  I think it will be ever so sweet and will work for her in California.  It's knit from the top down with the cable band worked side to side. Should go pretty quick, too.

Baby steps

For some reason, I'm finding it very hard to focus on blogging lately.  It's not that I've forgotten you. I'll try to do better.

In the meantime, here's the next step in the baby stuff.  This one's for wee Mason in Florida.  It's probably going to be big for him right now but hopefully will be ready for him as things cool down a little.

The yarn is Plymouth Yarn Jeannee. 51% cotton and 49% acrylic so it can be washed and dried easily and it will be a little better for the warmer climate. I don't know if the yarn is even still made because I've had this in the stash for quite a while and I only had 1 skein each of the 3 colors.  Not really sure why I had these particular colors but I ended up with just a few yards of 2 of the colors left over and none, really of the dark green left over.  It still needs button but I wanted to get a quick photo done before I go on my next trip.  I may add pockets, which was in the original plan, but I think I just like it like this.

If you could see it in person, you would see that it doesn't have button holes.  I've decided since this yarn is pretty thick and is half cotton, buttonholes would tend to stretch.  So I'm going to put snaps on and just sew the buttons on top.  I think they're easier to manage like that anyway but it will also mean I can do fun buttons that don't always work well with buttonholes.  I do plan to write this pattern out and will probably just publish it here instead of doing a proper pattern for it.  We'll see how much time I get to formalize the pattern. I actually went through several different iterations of this with different yarns.  I just couldn't get happy about the other yarns I was trying and finally came across these in the stash.

It's actually pretty easy.  I cast on 96 stitches (with US size 5 needles) and did K2/P2 ribbing for about 8 rows.  I don't know what the gauge is but the yarn is worsted weight.  After the ribbing, I knitted stockinette stitch until the piece was 7 inches from the beginning.  To shape the armholes, I knitted across 20 stitches, bound off 6, knitted until there were 26 stitches left, bound off 6, and knitted 20 stitches.

From this point, each section had to be worked separately.  I decreased stitches at the armhole twice on the knit row and at the same time started decreasing on the neck side.  I continued to decrease on the neck side until there were 12 stitches on the needle and then I knit straight until the armhole was 3 inches and then I bound off the 12 stitches. 

On the other front, do the same thing, On the back, I did the 2 decreases each side of the back (4 stitches decreased in all) and then knit straight until the back matched the front.  On the last 2 rows of the back, I bound off 12 stitches at the beginning of each of the rows and put the remaining stitches on a stitch holder ready for the band.

I sewed the shoulder seams and picked up for the band.  I didn't count but I did a strict pick up 3 stitches on 3 rows and skipped a row.  This is a pretty good way to make sure it lays properly.  When I got to the stitch holder, I knit those off and picked up the same number on the way back down the other side.  I did K2/P2 rib for 6 rows but I wish I'd done it for 8 to match the bottom band.  See what you like.  Then I bound off in the stitch pattern.  Remember, I didn't use buttonholes so if you would rather include them, I would recommend no more than 3 or 4 along the band, evenly spaced, inserted on the second of the K2/P2 rows.

For the sleeves, I cast on 40 stitches and did the ribbing for 2.5-3 inches.  I like to have the band longer on the sleeves so they can be rolled up if necessary and still look well.  After the ribbing, I increased 4 stitches along the first knit row then I increased 1 each side of the sleeve every 6th row until I had 50 stitches.  I knit the sleeves until they were 6 inches from the middle of the ribbing section.  In other words, I folded the sleeve at the ribbing and used that as my beginning point.

I did the same sleeve decreases as for the body (3 on each side followed by 1 decrease each side on each of the next knit rows).  Instead of knitting the final purl row, I bound off on that last row.  On my model, one more purl row was going to make the head of the sleeve just a little bigger than I wanted.  To adjust this in future, I'll probably do the sleeve increases to 48 stitches and include the final purl row (if that makes sense).  I think the sleeve with fit a little better that way.  It's okay but I think it would lay a little better with that little adjustment. 

After that, I just sewed the sleeves in and worked all the ends in and it was done!  Very quick, very easy and would look great with a little fair isle pattern or worked in a variegated yarn so you don't have all the ends.  Just a fun, basic sweater.  I hadn't planned to put all this in tonight, but might as well since it's all fresh in my brain.  Have fun with it.

That's 2 babies down (the other one is getting delivered this next week) and now for the next one.  I'm glad I've got some time to get the things done I've got planned.  Hehehe.

Counting on my fingers.

I've been feeling a little torn lately but only realized this morning what might be the problem.  I started counting...

1.  Baby bonnet - It's getting along and I'm on the last round.  I changed the last round a little to match the photo.  It was the only instructions in the whole pattern that wasn't completely clear but the photo was really good so I think this is a good representation and I think it will finish it off nicely once I get the ribbons in it.

2.  Baby sweater.  A friend just had a baby so I'm back in baby-land.  Know how hard it is to pick just one thing?  I always decide I'm going to dress the baby until they're 18! It's so hard.  But as soon as I saw this little vintage matinee jacket, I knew it was the very thing.  The new parents are Canadian and this is a vintage Canadian pattern.  Seemed just the thing. The top section is smocked with a contrasting color and their nursery is yellow and lavendar so I decided just to go with those colors.  Besides, I already had the yellow and I think it's such a great color to brighten up the winter.

3.  Clun Forest wool being spun for socks.  I've got 2 bobbins and need just 1 more to finish it off.  This is the first time I've ever spun Clun Forest and everything I've read talked about it being difficult and not so fun to spin.  Once I kind of got used to it, it hasn't actually been so bad. The difference between this and other wools is that it's a very short staple.  It's got a lot of bounce but it's short.  I'm spinning it using a pretty high ratio.  It's not really soft but it's supposed to be great for outer wear and supposed to be really great for socks.  I'll let you know.

4.  White on white project 1.  One of my spinning buddies, Mary, made a comment about a white on white project.  It really caught my interest so I decided to do something with white on white on white.  This is the first white - it's 1oz of merino/tussah silk mix and 1oz of cashmere/tussah silk mix.  It's going to be a 2-ply of the the two.  You can't imagine how rich this fiber is.  I'm spinning it on my Fricke wheel.

5.  White on white project 2.  The second white of the project is silk being spun from these silk hankies on my Kromski Minstrel.

6.  Gray Lace. This is not a part of the white on white project.  This is some gray wool roving that I'm spinning on my new Country Craftsman.  When I first got the wheel, I read that it's supposed to be particularly good spinning lace and this was on top of the pile.  Spins like buttah.

7.  Sock and shawl.  I was running out of time to take photos so I put some of these together.  Socks with Berroco Sox (my favorite sock yarn) and a "Half Square Shawl" from an 1850's knitting book.  Wait until you see this.  It's made with fingering weight and lace yarns using a lozenge pattern.  When I decided to try it out, I went straight to the stash.  I'd forgotten about the fingering weight yarn but it's a silk yarn that I've already used to make 1 shawl which I wear all the time.  I decided to pair it with a matching alpaca lace yarn from KnitPicks. 

8.  Lace and Lace.  Since I'm still able to sleep a couple of hours each night, I guess I've decided I've got too much time on my hands.  I started this orange shawl from "Victorian Lace Knitting" about a month ago.  As you can see, I haven't gotten too far but it's beautiful and I love this yarn.  It's got a light variagation and is merino soft.  Next to it is some blue-faced leicester from Frabjous Fibers that I recently finished spinning.  It's the one that I loved in roving but wasn't so crazy about once it was plied and finished.  Well, I just got looking at it this morning and decided I did like it so not it's ready to be cast on and I know exactly what I want it to be.  I won't say it out loud yet, you'll just have to wait and see.

On top of these projects, I've got 3 classes at Lincoln Land, starting the new Heritage Knitting program with the Old State Capital folks and having a full-time job.

It's all beginning to make sense now.

Cutie Pie Elf

A lady at work is pregnant.  Back in the summer, I asked her what she wanted for her knitted item and she decided on an elf outfit.  She's due December 14th and wanted something to dress the baby in for Christmas.  Do you know how many knitted baby elf outfit patterns there are?  Neither do I but I'm guessing not many.  I had a think about it over the summer, decided on my basic pattern and found some yarn while I was out and about - I think it was in Tulsa that I found it.  DreamBaby D.K. by Plymouth Yarns.  So soft and stretchy and not at all splitty like this type of yarn can sometimes be. 

So here's my vision come to life!

(click on pictures to see a larger version)

The main thing she wanted was the curly toes.  I decided on doing the white knitted-in i-cord down the top of the foot which allowed me to continue it on after I'd bound off the red to make the curly at the end of the toe.  I don't know if you can see it but there are little jingle bells at the end of the curly.  You can see it better here in this close-up.

At first I finished it without the fringe around the hood but it all looked so plain.  I took it with me to JoAnn's and got some other ladies to give me their thoughts.  Someone suggested the candy cane button for the chest but that wasn't quite enough.  I had originally put the white fringe on the cuffs of the sleeves but since the sleeves were too short, I took them out and redid the sleeves as you see them.

This is the fringe that I learned while doing the 1860's Spanish Opera Hood and it works a treat for this purpose, don't you think?  Very handy technique.

Anatomy of Baby's Bloomers

As you know, I've been knitting for baby(ies), though I believe I'm nearing the end both in terms of having enough for upcoming babies and in desire to knit for babies. But I've learned something really easy I thought I'd pass along. For one of the babies I knit a little dress but I wanted bloomers to go under and discovered an easy-peasy way to make them.
The little dress was very blousy at the bottom so I used about 80% of the stitches I cast on for the dress to cast in the round for the bloomers. I'd decided I wanted to use elastic for the waist so I knit 4 rows in stockinette, did K2together/yo for the next row (for a picot edge), then knitted 6 more rows in stockinette before I started my little eyelet pattern.

Next I knit even using my eyelet pattern until the tube measured 7.5 inches from the picot edge. I then marked 10 stitches from the middle back and 10 stitches from the middle front to use as the crotch. I put all the other stitches on stitch holders. I knit about 10 rows over the 10 stitches on either side, then bound them off using a 3-needle bind off.

Now I was ready to do the legs. I did the same thing for the legs that I did for the waist because I was lazy and just ready to be done but you could knit longer and make little shorts or even pants out of it. I picked up the stitches from one of the legs and then picked up 10 stitches from the crotch piece I'd just finished. The gave me the stitches I needed for the leg so then I used my double pointed needles to finish off the leg edging. I did the second leg the same way and boomps-a-daisy, we have baby's bloomers!

Vintage Rocks Baby Pattern

In case you're interested in trying it, I've posted the pattern for the baby sweater on my website. Click here to download it.

Vintage Rocks Baby

Here in babyland, patterns just keep coming. I was looking for something else the other night when I came across a very cute baby pattern in a 1954 pattern magazine. I took it out, copied it and got the yarn I was going to use. Then I realized it was a crochet pattern. Although I do crochet, I don't like yarn crochet for clothes. Don't like it. Don't do it.

But when I first saw the pattern picture, I immediately had an idea of what I thought it was so instead of being sad, I just got to gettin' and this is what I got (getted):



Cute, no? And fast, like likety split. I'm planning to get the pattern written up and posted as a free download this weekend. I'll let you know when it's done. To make a larger or smaller size, all one would need to do it use larger (or smaller) needles.

Oh, yeah, and I found out someone else at work is pregnant. More babies mean more baby knitting.

Babies Galore

Why does it seem like babies come in bunches? I’ve got a couple of babies coming up (not personally, you understand!) so I’ve been stocking up on the baby items. Here are the first 2 things I’m working on.

The first is a baby jacket based on one I found in a 1937 baby knits magazine. I bought this Berroco Comfort yarn originally for a baby blanket but I love how it worked on this jacket. This came out a little small but fortunately I have enough to make one a little larger!

The second is a baby argyle sweater using Sandnesgarn Lanett. I’ve had argyle in the back of my mind for a long time wanting to do something with it. I can’t believe I’ve never done an argyle pattern before this but this is the first effort. I think the color combination is just what is called for but the overstitching of the yellow is taking longer than it took to make the whole sweater, something to keep in mind for a full size sweater.

I’m going to do the sleeves in yellow and then I’ll do a little ribbing around the neckline. I’ve redone the shoulders several times and still don’t like them so I’m leaving them until last. Maybe something will occur to me before then!!

I’m planning to do a tam to go with this and, if there’s enough yarn, socks, too. Knitting for babies is very addictive because they tend to go so quickly that you get that quick payoff.