Starlight Blanket

September 2011

When I was little I used to have a blanket a lot like this, except that some of the stars on mine were pink. Sadly, I've no idea what became of it, but in browsing baby blanket patterns on ravelry (I get the impression that you can never have too many) I spotted this, and had to make it.

Having washed this and blocked it (using a steam iron held about an inch above the blanket so as not to melt the acrylic) I'm a bit disappointed that it hasn't come up softer. I guess this is a useful lesson in the difference between acrylics and baby acrylics.

Fortunately, as it's intarsia, this would have had to have been lined anyway, and so I'm hoping to find some nice snuggly lining to make up for it.

If I was to make this again I'd hopefully drag my heels over sewing in all those loose ends a little less, and look at whether there's any reason the border can't be knitted as-you-go rather than done separately at the end and sewn down. And use a softer yarn, obviously!

Pattern: Starlight Blanket

Yarn: King Cole Moods Duet dk / Patons UK Fab dk

Amount: 1 skein of each

Colourway: 821 Moody Blue / 2302 Yellow

Needles: 3.50mm

Size: One size

On ravelry: here

February Beret

September 2011

So called because that garter stitch and gull lace combination was inspired by Elizabeth Zimmermann's February Baby Sweater, this is a very pretty freebie pattern which seemed to me to be the ideal way to turn some leftover Cascade 220 into a rather lovely birthday present.

As the pattern, like the FBS, was originally written for dk weight yarns (and Cascade 220 is a worsted) it was necessary to modify it a little in order to ensure that it doesn't come out too loose. Luckily someone on ravelry has already worked out exactly how it's done. You've got the love teh internets.

This hat will hopefully end up as part of a cold weather set for a friend of mine along with Susie's Reading Mitts which I gave her last year. It's nice to be able to build up a matching set like that.

Pattern: February Beret by Caroline Dlugy-Hegwer

Yarn: Cascade 220 Heathers

Amount: 1 skein

Colourway: 6212

Needles: 4.00mm

Size: One size

On ravelry: here

Liesl

August 2011

Another thing for me... well it can't ALL be about baby, now can it?

Some time ago I made Chantal, but it didn't get nearly as much wear as it deserved (particularly considering the price Berroco yarns retail for in the UK), and so it was frogged and turned into Buttercup and this:

A fun and easy pattern which is going to be useful post pregnancy too - in fact I think I probably made a smallish size in the hope that it would incentivise me to get back into shape as quickly as possible. The open front on this leaves plenty of bump-room, though, and that was part of its appeal.

The feather and fan lace comes with a bit of a health warning, in that I found that it grew a lot more than I'd anticipated when I blocked it - so much so that the only solution was to rip back and take some inches off the length. I wish I'd been a bit more thorough and played around with my tension swatch before I started. So much for being able to fit top-down knits as you go!

This pattern includes long sleeve and short sleeve and wide neck and narrow neck options. I went for wide neck and long sleeve (because I can't see much point making anything short sleeved in Alpaca). There was also a picot cast-off option for the sleeves but I like the wavy line you get by just using a knitted cast off with feather and fan.

This is me at 7.5 months, more or less living in Seraphine maternity jeans. :)

Pattern: Liesl by Ysolda Teague

Yarn: Berroco Ultra Alpaca

Amount: 2.5 skeins

Colourway: 6212

Needles: 8.00mm

Size: 34"

On ravelry: here