Is it wrong that I’ve started knitting for December? I feel a twinge of embarrassment so I guess I know the answer! I picked up two skeins of sweetgeorgia superwash worsted and thought they would be perfect for Knitting Pure & Simple’s Children’s Neck Down Bolero #275. This will go to a little girl whose nickname is “Leaping Lill”. The vibrant colour should suit her nicely!
The Prinz Eisenherz Hat is a test knit for katushika. I love the texture of the stitch pattern and crocheted seams. The hat is knit in one piece, with the border stitches picked up and crocheted after the body is complete. The pattern release will include matching fingerless mitts as well.
This was my first time working with Manos Silk Blend and I loved it. So soft!
My dear friend Erin has a brand new niece! I picked up some sweetgeorgia Superwash Merino in Savory (a nice, vibrant colour for a baby, I think) and knit up a cardi and hat set for little Madeline. The cardi is Debbie Bliss‘ Ribbed Baby Jacket and the hat is my go-to pattern for baby hats – the Umbilical Cord Hat from Stitch ‘N Bitch.
It’s been so warm and summery here in Toronto that it really doesn’t feel right to be modelling knits! I can imagine though, that once the summer is over this will make quite a cozy cowl. It’s a simple, infinity-style knit with dropped stitches forming ladders at either edge.
There’s so much to love about Malabrigo – it comes in fantastic colourways and is unbelievably soft. The Malabrigo Junkies on Ravelry love it so much they’ve named an entire month after it – Malabrigo March.
Alexandra Tinsley of Presents Knits has designed five cute and easy accessories using Malabrigo yarns. I love her take on the earflap hat, Wabbit Season. It’s so sweet with the pompoms and flaps that double as little pockets. This pattern also placed first in the Malabrigo Junkies Malabrigo March 2010 Design Contest. Congratulations Alexandra!
The collection includes two hats and a shawlette (pictured here) as well as a ruffled scarf and headband/ neckwarmer. You can buy the patterns separately or together in the ebook Go Go Malabrigo. If you’re not on Ravelry, you can also buy them from Alexandra’s Etsy store.
When I first started knitting I was more inclined to make up my own patterns. Sometimes they worked out, other times not so much. I was more adventurous in a way, less focused on proficiency and more on experimentation. I had completely forgotten about an early hat I made for my brother, but when I saw him over the Christmas holidays he told me he still wears it. Since I can barely remember making the hat, I figured it was high time to replace it. Or at least add to his collection!
I had a serious cute attack last weekend at Mokuba, where I picked up the pink ribbon for this cape. There were so many sweet, frilly options! Now that I’ve finally settled on the finishing touches, I’m ready to wrap this up and send it on its way to my friend Kozue and her baby girl Kaede in Kanagawa.
I used Mission Falls 136 Merino, a nice Canadian option, since Kozue and I met while she was studying in Vancouver and Canada has been close to her heart ever since. Her daughter’s name is actually Japanese for maple.
The pattern is another great one from Kristen Rengren’sVintage Baby Knits. I can hardly wait to see photos of Kaede in the cape – this has to be one of my favourite baby knits so far!
Jane has a great pair of mitts knitted by her BFF’s mother that she wished could be a bit cozier. Oh, and also covered with dozens of love hearts. Afterthought thrums seemed to be the perfect solution. Thrumming would typically be done as you knit, with each thrum knitted in with a stitch. It’s a technique attributed to the folks in Newfoundland and Labrador, who I suspect would know a thing or two about keeping their hands warm.
To afterthought thrum, I embroidered the mitts with merino fleece using the duplicate stitch technique (video tutorial below). The result is very similar to conventional thrumming – with the added advantage of my hands felting the roving nicely as I embroidered… Try it out and give your mitts a cozy makeover!
Materials
one pair of knitted mittens
one ounce (28 grams) of fleece (I used white merino top)
I’m almost at the end of my holiday knitting, which is good since I leave for Vancouver tomorrow morning! Hints were dropped for a muff, so I decided on a slightly modified version of Cirilia Rose’sHanne. I’m not sure if it was the stitch pattern or me but I ended up with the wrong stitch count two times. Not a believer in third time lucky, I switched to a similarly shaped stitch from Barbara G. Walker’s A Treasury of Knitting Patterns (Powder Puff on pg. 136). It was a fun project to make. There was some assembly required – it’s knit in two separate layers, then padded with batting and secured with running stitches to anchor all three layers.
These are Those Mitts by Leslie Friend. This pattern, along with other great ones (hello, toast and toasty!), is available as a free download in her blog sidebar. I can see why this is her “go-to” pattern for mitts. I love them!
I love the slouchiness of this hat! I don’t know if I’ll be able to give it up… Katushika’s Wurm pattern is available for free (along with some other great patterns) and knits up quickly enough to make it a perfect last-minute holiday project. I’ve been loving Mission Falls lately. This hat took about two and a half balls of their 136 charcoal merino. One feature of this pattern that I love is that the hat band is doubled, which makes for a neat-looking, snug finish.
[Photos courtesy of Chris and his awesome new camera]
