Lesley

The Lesley sweater is part of Hannah Fettig's newest book, Home and Away, which is available for preorder now (preorder of the hard copy includes a digital copy too!).

Back before Thanksgiving I had the opportunity to knit another sample for designer Hannah Fettig. I started sample knitting for her over 4 years ago in 2010 (how has it been that long?). She had sent the yarn for this pattern during the summer but the pattern didn't come until much later. And I think it was perfect timing. In August I started working on my own all-consuming design project and didn't have much brain (or knitting) space. But in November, we had a family crisis. My father-in-law went in for a routine procedure and suffered a stroke 3 days later. Three days after that he suffered a second stroke, never regained consciousness, and passed away a few days later. 

During that time, I was so overwhelmed with work, trying to keep our home afloat, and still be supportive to my husband who was the one suffering the most. I wanted to knit. I needed to knit. But I was completely incapable of thinking. Then this pattern showed up and the aran weight Osprey and seamless construction of this lovely stockinette sweater saved my sanity. I needed to loose myself in something, to not have to think. And what resulted was this simple and beautiful pullover. 

I remember when Hannah posted photos of the photoshoot day. It was a freezing day in January and I'm pretty sure I was home for a snow day. What an amazing model to stand in those frigid temps and not look at all cold! 

When people tell me what a faster knitter I am, I say that I used to be. It's hard to find a lot of knitting time with a 2-year-old running around. But this sweater really did fly off the needles. I knit the entire thing in 10 days! I'd credit it to Osprey and and a seamless stockinette design. I love the gentle scoop of the neck.

I'm already planning my own (I seriously have said this about every design of Hannah's I've ever knit!) and since the smallest size uses less than 4 skeins of Osprey, this will be a fantastically economical knit. 

As much as I love Lesley, this is just one in an amazing collection of patterns from Hannah. My favorite might be Georgetown. What also makes this collection really unique is that each pattern is written for seamless or seamed construction. I love this since for some shapes I have a preference to what I think fits well and maintains shape. 

You can preorder the collection on Knitbot, or you can queue and view the entire collection on Ravelry. Have you seen this collection yet? Which is your favorite?

On Beginnings

This post is part of the Love Your Blog series sponsored by A Playful Day.

When I started this blog over 5 years ago my goal was to just share my excitement about knitting. I had only been knitting for a couple of months and everything was so new and exciting. As I continued through the last several years, my posts have changed quite a bit. 

First off, my level of availability for blogging has decreased drastically! When I started I was a full time post-baccalaureate student, I worked part-time, and had no littles at home. I snapped pictures of my knitting constantly and shared a lot of dog/yarn pics. 

In the past two years I became a mom, began working full time, and began designing my own knitting patterns. All the free time for blogging had to be redirected to other areas of my life. While I wouldn't change anything, I do miss getting in touch with my blog and try to redirect some energy in its direction from time to time. 

In other news, since I've finished the big project I was working on I've had just a smidgen more time for personal knitting. Like, really, only a smidgen. How does that even happen? I think I lined up a few too many new design projects to make sure I wouldn't be in a dry spell afterward. Anyway, with that small amount of personal knitting time I've finished a new vest for D!

This is currently a test knit and the pattern is not released yet. The design is from Ashley Yousling of Woolful. It will be available in children's and adult sizes. I got to use some left over Jill Draper Makes Stuff Rockwell in the color Pumpkin. I was just chatting with my friend and LYS owner Cyndi and I mentioned how I'd bet that she hasn't sold much of this yarn. She agreed and let me tell you, that is a terrible shame! This yarn is so rich and wooly. It comes smelling very sheepy still but yet, when knitting with it I was pleasantly surprised at the lack of vegetable matter in the yarn. And the colors work up gloriously. I think the marling make it difficult for people to imagine what that yarn will look like, but I really love the marling! 

I have a few more beginnings going on and while I can't share them just yet, I will very soon. There's still a lot left for me to do before I can start sharing but I'm very excited about this new project and hope you'll enjoy it too!

BabyDROPS Hat

I finished the little hat I was working on for D a few weeks ago. I made a few mods since I was using a heavier weight yarn called for (these are listed on my Ravelry project page, linked at the end). I keep trying to get a pic of him wearing it but he doesn't ever really want to. Call it being 2, or maybe it does really itch, but he's just not into it these days. 

Either way, this little hat has already been on adventures. The first day he wore his new hat to the babysitter's happened to be a day my husband picked him up. The hat was misplaced somehow and when it was time to go home it couldn't be found. My husband told me that they sent it home with another kid. The sitter told me it was just hidden and that my husband told her "my wife will be really mad if that hat is lost." I probably wouldn't have been "really mad", maybe only just annoyed. Hats and gloves get lost all the time around these parts. When they're worn every day it's bound to happen.  But I still think it's funny he is becoming protective of the handknits I make!

After knitting D that hat, I am getting the itch to cast on for a hat of my own. It'll probably be something simple, maybe using the Knitbot pattern I used recently. I'll be using this gorgeous skein of cormo wool I purchased from the Wooful Mercantile. It is amazingly soft and I can't wait to start knitting with it!

Pattern: BabyDROPS b14-2 (FREE pattern)

Yarn: Red Barn Yarn Powder River

Needles: US 5

Began: January 31

Completed: February 2

Ravelry Link

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Tiny Toes

About a month ago I decided I wanted to knit D a pair of socks. I grabbed leftover Cephalopod Yarns Bugga! in I don't know what colorway (Gorgeous? Awesome?) and cast on for some toe-uppers.

I figured with the toe-up method I could get a more custom fit for D's socks rather than just guessing and potentially having to rip and reknit. 

I used the round toe method from Cat Bordhi's book Personal Footprints for Insouciant Sock Knitters. I also paired the Bugga! with some leftover yarn from my Audrey in Unst that I knit what seems like one hundred years ago.

These socks turned out to be just the cutest things ever and slippery as heck in our house. I don't know if it's just the heel thing (like, having one) but D's socks never stay in place on his foot. I'm tempted to try some boring (brilliant?) tube socks but am not yet convinced they will fit any better. 

Now that his socks are done, I picked up some yarn to knit myself a matching pair.

The yarn is a set of Three Irish Girls Adorn mini-skeins in colorways that are custom to my knitting group (Akron Stitch n' Bitch). The colors are (from bottom to top) Canal Park, Cascade Valley, Furnace Run, and Autumn Buckeye. I also have a sweater's worth of the Autumn Buckeye and the Canal Park colors that may grow up to be more than socks!

 Little Socks 2

Yarn: Cephalopod Bugga! and Becoming Art Suave Sport in Cranberry (red)

Needles: US 2.5 (3 mm)

Began: September 17

Completed: October 6

Abate Again

I'll admit that I'm not a huge fan of Halloween. We didn't really make a big deal out of it when I was a kid. After I moved to Ohio we happened to live in a neighborhood that doesn't get a lot of kids. Additionally, Akron does their trick-or-treat night on a night other than Halloween which had me fairly well confused for about 4 years. 

Now that I have a son, I will use just about any excuse to make something for him. For this reason, I decided the Abate pattern was the perfect sweater to use for a gnome costume!

There wasn't too much involved. We had the boots and pants, Mary (ever the gracious and giving friend!) knit and felted the amazing hat, and I just cut out a few felt circles to stitch to his sweater. There was a beard too but he didn't like wearing it (and you really have to pick your battles with a 2 year old). 

I love that the Abate pattern is such a quick knit. It took a total of 2 weeks with me working on about a thousand other things for work and The Book at the same time. I used less than two skeins of Stonehedge Shepherd's Wool Worsted. Last year's Abate was knit in a size 2 and this year a size 4! I did shorten the length by about a half inch and the sleeves by about an inch. I still need to add the drawstring. Maybe tonight...

Pattern: Abate by Alicia Plummer

Yarn: Stonehedge Fiber Mill Shepherd's Wool Worsted

Needles: US 8

Began: October 10

Completed: October 24

Ravelry Link

Cradle Cardigan

I know I said yesterday I don't gift things very often, but in reflection, I did a fair amount of gifting in June. 

This little cutie is the Cradle Cardigan by Hannah Fettig. I did some sample knitting for her Mabel's Closet collection a few summers ago. The pieces are very simple and clean, in true Hannah style, for a classic baby look. I also knit the Autumn Frock last Christmas for my niece. Anyone who does any knitting for babies could benefit from owning this collection.

Anyway, I knit this piece out of Quince & Co. Chickadee in Frost. I bought a few skeins to reknit a Pacific Grove vest and used less than two skeins on this sweater. It was a gift for my knitting group friend Amy who is expecting her first baby.

And surprise, surprise, I even sewed a bib! This is the first time I've used my sewing machine since like, 2008, and I was very pleased with my skills so I knit another for D and am going to make a third for my niece who we refer to as little D (d). Apparently though, two bibs in six years was too much for my machine. It was given to me by my father-in-law and is probably at least as old as I am. It stopped feeding the fabric and now it's spending some time getting a little tune up.

Pattern: Cradle Cardigan by Hannah Fettig

Yarn: Quince & Co. Chickadee in Frost

Needles: US 5 (3.75 mm)

Began: May 12

Completed: June 8

Ravelry Page

Basic Baby Cardigan

SO you would think that with summer finally here I'd have a little more time on my hands. This seem just to be the opposite. We've spent a lot of days swimming, zooing, playing, and other all consuming toddler stuff. It's been great! I even managed a weekend trip to California. Yes, I said weekend. My mom was retiring and my parents have officially sold their house in Fresno, purchased one in the Sacramento area (where my dad has been working for the last few years), and will be moved by the end of July. I wanted to get out there one last time before they left since they've lived in that house since I was 3!

As I began planning my trip a whole week in advance (!!!) I remembered a friend of mine from high school was expecting her second child. For her first baby I had crocheted a blanket and some bibs. I didn't want to leave the second baby out so decided to whip up a tiny, last-minute sweater.

The pattern I used was Basic Baby Cardigan, a free pattern by Alana Dakos. It's simple and done in worsted weight, just what I needed for a fast gift. 

The yarn is Anzula For Better or Worsted. This has become my favorite worsted weight yarn. It's soft, shiny, and feels like magic knitting. I've used this yarn for an upcoming design this fall and I used the leftovers for this sweater. 

There were a few mods I made in order to make it a bit less (in my mind) feminine looking. I cast on an extra two stitches to fronts and back and knit straight. I decreased for the armholes as written to the correct stitch count. I also added about a half inch of length to the yoke. Yes, this sweater is knit in pieces, but it's so darn tiny that it comes together very quickly. 

The buttons are from a Fresno yarn shop called Swatches. I was on my way to meet my friend (the day of the retirement party) so I literally ran in, bought buttons, ran next door to the quilt shop for thread, then sewed the buttons on as my dad drove the car. 

The sweater was very well received and my friend suggested I start sewing tags into the pieces I gift. I don't gift very often these days but I think I'll definitely be looking into tags for D's sweaters and gifts.

Pattern: Basic Baby Cardigan

Yarn: Anzula For Better or Worsted

Needles: US 7 for stockinette, US 6 for ribbing

Began: June 21

Completed: June 25

Ravelry Project

Mountain Meadow Wool

Recently I had a great opportunity to try out some yarn by Mountain Meadow Wool. The yarn I was working with is their Laramie yarn in the colorway Fern. This yarn is a 2ply worsted weight yarn. When I first wound it up I was struck by how rustic the yarn looked yet it was still so soft! I swatched it up on size 7 needles to see what it wanted to become. Given the great stitch definition this yarn produces I decided on the Pembroke Hat by Kristen Kapur.

With one skein of this yarn I was able to make the smallest size (with mods) and still have some leftover! Laramie comes in 100 gram skeins with 196 yards. Even though I had swatched I wasn't getting row gauge and therefore had to modify the crown of the smallest size. I knit the chart as written until I reached the crown shaping. At this point I did 3 decrease rows then used Kitchener stitch to seam the top of the hat shut.

Either way, I'm glad I used this yarn for this hat pattern. This yarn is rustic and natural looking while maintaining a beautiful softness that you don't often find in rustic yarns (I'm attributing this to the fact that it is semi-worsted spun). This yarn really showed off the cables in the Pembroke. You can check out my project page here.

I have one extra skein of this yarn to share with a lucky reader! Leave a comment below you have the opportunity to win one skein of Mountain Meadow Wool's Laramie in the colorway Brick. I'll choose a winner using the Random Number Generator on Saturday, April 12th. Good luck and thank you to Mountain Meadow Wool for sharing!

Rainbow Blankie

I can't believe I'm finally writing this post: the Rainbow Blankie is finally finished!

I've taken July off of designing and dedicated myself to finishing this project that I started 13 months ago. I finished the final 21 squares while on my summer trip to California and the better part of the last 2 weeks working on the border.

To work the border I picked up stitches on a 40" needle around the entire blanket (FYI: if you're going to try this border on a baby blanket, go with a 47" cable) then worked a knit row, followed by an increase row where I worked a make 1 left or right on eithe side of the corner stitch for a total of 9 rows. I did a purl row, then repeated the whole thing again (with decreases this time). I bound off by incorporating a stitch from the original pick up row. It took 3 evenings just to bind off. I am SO glad that's over. But it was totally worth it.  I love this blanket and hope that it will become one of Daniel's favorites. 

Ravelry Page

Patten: Sock Yarn Blanket by Shelly Kang

Yarn: various

Needle: US 2.5

Began: June 28

Completed: July 25

Mariposa Tee

Now available and just in time for warm weather!

 

 

This tee is knit top down, almost entirely in the round.

 

 

While knit completely in stockinette, the fluttery sleeves and pleated waist shaping give this simple piece some extra special details.
 

 

The yarn used is Dream in Color Wisp, a gorgeous Merino and silk blend lace that has a lovely sheen and rich color.

 

Even more, the knit along for this piece is going to be help in my group from now until the end of June. If you join the group and finish the project you will be eligible to win some very special prizes courtesy of Dream in Color.
 

Photos courtesy of Marianne Barta, blackbox-photo.com

 

 

Sizes:

28 (30, 32, 34, 36, 38, 40, 42, 44)" bust

to be worn with no ease.

 

Yarn:

Dream in Color Wisp in Tart

2 (2, 2, 2, 2, 3, 3, 3) skeins

 

Needles/Notions:

US 3 (3.25mm) 16" circular (all sizes)

24" circular (smaller sizes)

32" circular (larger sizes)

tapestry needle

 

Special Stitches:

pattern includes directions on creating pleats as well as sewn bind off method.

 

Come KAL!


 Purchase on Ravelry (you don't need to be a member).

Towpath Henley

Thank you to everyone who helped with naming this little gem! Let me introduce to you the Towpath Henley (congrats Franny G.! I've sent you an email).

 

 

One more long-sleeved sweater to round out the season. I know so many people still have snow and even though we don't, it's still only like 37 degrees (F) here. So brr.

 

The Towpath Henley is knit out of fingering weight yarn, making it the perfect sweater to transition your kiddo from winter into spring. The sample is knit in the 12 m. size and uses just one skein of The Plucky Knitter's Merino Cashmere Nylon Fingering (in colorway Trusty Rusty).

 

Towpath Henley begins with a provisional cast on to achieve the folded hem. It is knit in the round from the bottom up, sleeves are knit separately and joined at the yoke which is finished with raglan shaping. The button bands are also folded to give the sweater a more tailored look, along with an applied i-cord on the collar.

 

 

 

 

What I'm really excited about is that this sweater is available in 10 sizes! From 3 months to 12! So now you can make one for all the kiddos in your brood.

 

 

I like this picture because those cheeks look like they are terribly heavy to carry around.

 

 

The particulars:

 

Sizes:

3 m (6 m, 12 m, 18 m, 2, 4)[6, 8, 10, 12]

 

Finished Chest Measurement:

18¾ (19¼, 20½, 21½, 23, 25) [27, 28½, 30, 32]”

 

Yarn:
The Plucky Knitter Merino Cashmere Nylong Fingering (80% Superwash Merino, 10% Cashmere, 10% Nylon) 385 yards/352 meters, 101 grams: 1 (1, 1, 2, 2, 2)[2, 3, 3, 3] skeins.

 

Neeldes:
US4/3.5mm - or size needed for gauge
16" circular (smaller sizes)
24" circular (larger sizes)
2 - 32" circulars (all sizes)
Set of 5 dpns

Gauge:
24 stitches x 32 rows = 4" in Stockinette Stitch

 

 

Pugsley

 

Those of you that have followed my blog for a while are aware of how important the dogs are in our house. I'm always looking for a way to support our local Humane Society because living in a relatively metropolitan area means plenty of homeless animals and animals in need of low-cost medical assistance. So...

 

Even though it's supposed to be spring, I know in many (ahem most) places around the country it still feels like winter. What better way to keep your head warm than with a new hat?

 

Here is Pugsley, a beanie-style hat knit out of Spud and Chloe Sweater.

 

Pugsley is knit in the round with snout and ears knit separate and sewn on. Pugsley's eye patches are done in duplicate stitch, with buttons sewn on for eyes.

 

 

 

Pugsley is available in three sizes: Baby/Toddler (Child, Small Adult), shown in Baby/Toddler size on a 17.5" head.

 

Finished measurement: 16 (17.75, 19.5)" circumference, hat will stretch to accomodate a head approximately 2" larger.

 

Yarn:

Supd and Chloe Sweater in Toast (MC), and Rootbeer (CC) - 1 skein each.

 

Needles:

US 7 - 16" circular and set of 5 dpns (or size needed to obtain gauge)

 

 

 

 

All proceeds from Pugsley will be donated to PAWSibilities: The Humane Society of Greater Akron. Thank you for helping support our animals!

 

 



Neighbor Hoodie

Meet my newest design, the Neighbor Hoodie (Ravelry Link), now available for purchase!

My goal was to create a unisex garment that would be easy to knit and could really pack a punch when knit with a luxury yarn. For this, I chose The Fibre Company's Road to China Light. This yarn is so delectable! It is an amazing blend of alpaca, silk, camel, and cashmere. This may be my new favorite yarn with which I'd like to knit all the things!

This hooded pullover is knit in the round, top down with a round yoke. The sleeves are knit in the round as well, with the hood being picked up at the collar and grafted along the top. A small hidden pocket is the final fun detail to make this sweater really special.

While this is categorized as a sweater, I could easily see the length increased for the 3 and 6 month sizes to create a tunic to go over sweet little onesies and leggings.

I was thoroughly please with how quickly I could work this pattern up. I hope you enjoy knitting it as well!

Sizes:

3 months [6 months, 12 months, 18 months, 2, 4, 6]

Finished Chest Measurement:

18 [19, 20, 22, 22½, 25½, 26]”

Yarn:

The Fibre Company Road to China Light

MC: 3 [3, 3, 4, 4, 5, 6) skeins in Peridot

CC: 1 skein in Autumn Jasper

Gauge:

24 stitches x 32 rows = 4 inches

Needles:

US 4

Go ahead and cast on!

Scarf Swap 2013

This was my fourth year taking part in my knitting group's annual Anniversary Scarf Swap (here you can see my scarves from 2010, 2011, and 2012). This year I knit a scrappy scarf using leftovers from my Rainbow Blankie (that still remains unfinished, ugh). I had to knit on this exclusively for about two weeks to get it done in time. The final measurements were approximately 65" by 5", so it was fairly large. I think I cast on somewhere around 450 stitches!

Pattern: Mini Mania Scarf  by Sarah Core (free download on Ravelry!)

Yarn: Various fingering weight scraps, all superwash

Needles: US6 (4mm)

Began: January 2

Completed: January 21

Ravelry Link

In my attempt to appreciate my son's babyhood I snapped this picture on a day when I was (a) exhausted from being up six times the night before and then (b) he wouldn't nap in the afternoon and was up until 4pm! I remind myself that this time is SO fleeting and someday he's going to be a big boy and I will miss this time. 

 

And look how happy he was to be up for 6 hours! They do eventually sleep through the night, right?

And one last thing, I'm tweeting now! Or I will once I have at least one follower :)

You can follow me @andrea_knits.

Navajo Pullover

I can't begin to tell you how excited I am to be sharing this with you today! 

Meet the Navajo Pullover, my newest design now available on the Petite Purls website. 

When I found out that I would be having a boy last winter, my knitterly instincts kicked in and I began hunting for more modern styled sweater designs for boys. As those of you with boys already know, those are few and far between. This sweater design began to develop in my mind. When Petite Purls had a submission call for colorwork, I figured it was worth a shot. I had no prototype knit, no pattern worked yet. Just a swatch and sketch. 

Then it was accepted! My first thought was, "Hooray!" quickly followed by, "oh crap. I have to design a sweater to fit multiple sizes." I spent a fair part of the end of the summer working on this. I remember waking up at 3am one night (you know how pregnant women can never sleep) and finished grading this pattern through to the end until 6 in the morning. 

This little gem is knit in the round from the bottom up using Spud and Chloe Sweater. The sleeves are knit in the round then joined at the yoke. The deep button band is perfect for your smaller tots, because we all know how fun it is to try to squeeze big baby heads through little neck openings. 

Just a word on sizing: if you are unsure of what size to make, go to the larger size. When knitting stranded colorwork, you really need to make it the size it needs to be and not expect the knitting to stretch (remember the sock debacle this summer?). Little Tommy (our model in the photos and the son of my knitting friend Meg) just fit into the 12 month size.

 

Ready to get started? Check out the pattern here or queue it up on Ravelry.

And stay tuned! I have a little more on this fun sweater later this week as well as a great review!

All photos are copyright Sara Neff

The Awkward Bunch

Last month I did a trade with my photographer friend Margaret: knitwear for pictures. She wanted matching hats for her family to wear in their Holiday Card photos. 

Aren't they awesome?! When I saw this picture I just started laughing. Talk about spreading holiday cheer! For Margaret's hat I used deer with little antlers hat by Tiny Owl Knits. The doggy snood was simply a round tube with ribbing at either end. I used the same ear and antler pattern. For the kitty snood, I did about a six inch ribbed cuff with just ears. 

I just love how precious her fur baby Marlin looks in his Christmas hat! 

Pattern: deer with little antler hat by tiny owl knits

Yarn: Knit Picks Full Circle Worsted (for the hat/ears), Knit Picks Palette (antlers), Crystal Palace Yarn Kid Merino (inner ear)

Needles: US 11

Began: November 30

Completed: December 8

Ravelry Link

Fluffy Little Sheep

Last spring, during my annual pilgrimage back to my homeland, I happened to see the cutest baby mobile hanging in the window of Pottery Barn Kids. I quickly snapped a picture.

My first thought was that I wasn't sure if this was maybe one of those window decorations that the store uses or if it was an actual mobile I could purchase. My second thought was that I could probably just make one. Ideas began brewing.

In the next few months I would a pattern, some yarn, got some ideas for how to make a coral and boom!

This was finished in August but I just managed to get it up over the holiday with the help of my dad. My parents are pretty used to my crafting antics. My dad says when I was little I would try to put all sorts of weird things together using Scotch tape. So I doubt he was surprised when I called him asking, "do you think I could make a round coral out of balsa wood?" Anyway, you can, and he hung it up with a simple screw hook.

 

I don't know if Daniel is terribly taken with it. He does look at it but I was hoping for a more enthusiastic reaction than drooling.

Pattern: Fluffy Little Sheep - free Lion Brand pattern

Yarn: Martha Stewart Crafts Roving Wool in Snowdrift (2 skeins) and Tahki Yarns Montana in Charcoal (about 42 yards)

Needles: US 7 (4.5mm)

Began: August 1

Completed: August 17

Ravelry Link

Babies Showered

It seems like ever since I had D, pregnant mamas have been popping up everywhere! At school there are two other teachers who both just had their babies this month and yet another due in May. My sister-in-law is expecting in February as is the girlfriend of a good friend of ours. And Sara, a knitting group friend, will be having her baby in January! So of course what do we do? Knit away. 

The Akron Stitch 'n Bitch ladies did a little knitted baby shower for Sara recently. I'm finding it hard to make time for knitting while I'm working but I did whip up this little cutie in just an afternoon naptime.

It's inspired by Susan B. Anderson's Acorn Hat. I used Spud & Chloe Outer in the color Sandbox for the sides, and Berroco Vintage in Chocolate (held triple) for the acorn topper part.  I must make more of these! 

My sister-in-law had her baby shower today and of course as this baby's only auntie and my first niece, she must be showered with the handmade goodies.

I knit the poppy hat out of leftover yarn from the Christmas Sweater and the sweet little flower is from leftover Mal Lace. 

I threw in a pair of little sockies for the baby made from my leftover Anzula from these socks. 

These just kill me with their cuteness. Why have I not been knitting baby socks all along?!

I'll be knitting a few more things for her baby but since she's not due for two more months I haven't quite started. With the rate I've been knitting, she better not show up early!

p.s. I'm still looking for test knitters for the Christmas Sweater. See this page.