Conifer

September 2017

This was a holiday knit, mostly completed during a short family break in Norfolk. The green and white colour combination is so fresh and lovely, and the yarn used, Rowan Felted Tweed dk,

 is my favourite yarn of all time, and particularly good for colour work (my kids do sometimes complain about it being a little bit itchy, though).

I love the little tree chart, it's really cute, but I'm not entirely sold on the shape of this cardigan - specifically the v-neck - and it hasn't really been getting the wear it deserves. I think if I was to pick up this pattern again it would most likely be to transpose the chart onto something else (which would be easy to do as there's no shaping or fiddly bits in the section where the chart appears).

I knitted the largest size (12 months) but in a yarn which is more of a sport weight than a 4-ply, and so this is really about a size 2-3. Lucy is around 20 months in these pictures but it's a bit big still.

Pattern: Conifer by Ella Austin
Size: 2-3 years
Yarn: Rowan Felted Tweed
Colours: Clay (mc), Hedgerow (cc)
Needle 2.75mm
On ravelry: here

Isabel

August 2017

Having a few skeins of Baa Ram Ewe's Titus going spare, I looked around for something worthy of them which looked like a fun and interesting knit. This pattern definitely ticked those boxes.

Isabel is a pretty little project but all those cables and lace felt like a lot of work to me, since I'm so slow and out of practice. Too much colourwork (if such a thing is possible).

Titus looks beautiful with cables and lace. It’s not the softest, but great for a cardigan and very warm. Here I was subbing it for Rowan's Felted Tweed dk. Both contain wool and Alpaca, but as Felted Tweed knits up at more of a sport weight than a dk and Titus is a 4-ply all I had to do was go up a size and the fit was perfect (so an aged 2-3 size fits Lucy at 20 months).

This was my second project from Marie Wallin’s Timeless collection (see also Freddie). The designs are great but as much as I love Marie Wallin, the patterns are a little but fiddly at times - for example, why did the collar of this cardigan need to be knitted separately and sewn on? I'm sure it could have been picked up and knitted using short rows instead.

To save a little on the finishing work, I knitted the body, front and back in one piece and the sleeves in the round.

But seriously, though, who could resist cladding their little Yorkie girl in a Wensleydale blend in a colourway called Yorkstone?

Pattern: Isabel by Marie Wallin
Size: 2-3 years
Yarn: Baa Ram Ewe Titus
Colours: Yorkstone
Needle 3.00mm
On ravelry: here

Machrihanish

June 2017

This is only the second thing I have made for my Dad in all of the years I have been knitting, which is a shameful thing to admit. He is a little bit on the fussy side, and he does have a wife who knits too, and so he doesn't always occur to me as a suitable knitwear recipient.

When the two of us have agreed on a pattern, though, so far it's always been a stunner. The predecessor to Machrihanish was an all-over cabled cricket sweater which is still frequently worn, despite not really being what it once was, due to  careless washing (not his fault, as far as I know). Still, credit to him for being so happy to wear actual proper wool, and British wool at that (at the moment my son insists on merino - it's a sore point).

So I happily embarked on Machrihanish, safe in the knowledge that I love Kate Davies' patterns, and to knit one in Baa Ram Ewe's beautiful Titus would amount to treating both the yarn and and pattern with the respect they deserved. I'm not convinced Titus is next-to-the-skin soft (I always add an under-layer when I wear my Northdale for example) but in a way that only makes it all the more perfect for a tank top like this one.

There was one potential bogeyman contained within this pattern and that is the fact that it features steeks. For most knitters these go hand in hand with buttock-clenching anxiety, and rightly so, as what kind of a psychopath would take a pair of scissors to their knitting anyway? However, I found that using the delightfully toothsome and fibrous Titus put my mind at rest to a great extent. It was never going to fray. It simply couldn't.

For anyone interested in that sort of thing I secured the steek using a sewing machine rather than a crocheted reenforcement, as it's so much quicker.

I dragged my heels over the finishing work one this project, as steeked projects do require a lot of sewing and tarting up after they've been cast off and I'm terrible for loosing interest at that stage. Eventually, though, I covered the cut steek stitches with navy blue velvet ribbon, just in time for Christmas 2017.

Thankfully I dealt with the frequent colour changes using spit-splicing, because if there had been loose ends to sew in as well, this may have become a New Year present instead.

Pattern: Machrihanish by Kate Davies
Size: Smallest
Yarn: Baa Ram Ewe Titus
Colours: Endeavour, Filey, Bantam, White Rose, Crucible, Dalby
Needle 3.00mm
On ravelry: here

Tiny Woodland

April 2017

This is such a satisfying set of patterns. Not one of them took more than a couple of hours to complete, but each of them is easy to follow and tremendously cute. The owl and the hedgehog in particular have such a lot of character despite being so tiny.

The only modification I made to these patterns as written was to unpick the owl's wings. They were intended to be sewn down, but I made these for my six year old son and one year old daughter and, inevitably, they wanted to flap the wings and make him fly.

I used Rowan's Felted Tweed dk because I had a big bag of oddments stashed. The tweedy little flecks add a certain rustic charm which suits these little creatures very well, in my opinion. Although described as a dk, it's not really much thicker than a sport weight, and knitted up on 2.00mm needles came out dense (as toys should be) but manageable.

Knitted toys aren't really my oeuvre, but I was very pleased with these, and amazed by the sheer choice of patterns which Anna has published. 

Pattern: Tiny Woodland patterns by Anna Hrachovec
Size: n/a
Yarn: Rowan Felted Tweed dk
Colours: Camel, Treacle, Ginger, Clay, Hedgerow, Carbon
Needle 2.00mm

On ravelry: here, here, here and here

Northdale

February 2017

I took an awfully long time over this sweater, primarily because when I first cast it off it was too small and too tight, with a neckline that wouldn’t lie flat and all in all it made me very cross.

After a good few months of neglect, I managed to motivate myself to tackle its flaws one at a time. First I unpicked the neckline and re-cast it off knitwise rather than in rib, which tightened it up immensely. Next I blocked the heck out of it to add some width, and finally I unpicked the hem of the now wide enough but still too short sweater and added two extra stripes’ worth of length.

There may also have been a bit of dieting involved which helped with the fit.

None of the issues I had are due to errors in the pattern - I was just unfortunate and didn't think enough about sizing before I started.

Ultimately the additional work was very much justified by the end result, which I absolutely love. It just took me a while to get there!

This is my second knit from the Shetland Trader Book 1, if you count my heavily modified version of Nikka Vord.

Pattern: Northdale by Gudrun Johnston from the Shetland Trader Book 1
Size: 34"
Yarn: Baa Ram Ewe Titus

Colours: Coal, Filey, Crucible
Needle 3.25mm
On ravelry: here

Rainbow Dress

April 2017

I had loads of Sparkleduck rainbow miniskeins left over from making George’s fabulous vest, and so I thought I’d improvise a little tunic dress for Lucy.

The end result is very bright and cheerful, but with hindsight I wish I had made the shaping much more a-line so it didn’t cling so much around her tummy.

Visiting the Sparkleduck stand was very much the highlight for me of an otherwise rather overwhelming Yarndale 2016. I had my little boy with me, and the nice man running the stall gave him a little toy duck. Its funny how the random acts of kindness like that can stay with you.

This is such a beautiful yarn that I’ll most likely frog this dress once Lucy grows out of it and recycle it into another project. It’s worn very well so it would be a shame not to.

Pattern: improvised
Yarn: Sparkleduck Galaxy rainbow mini skeins.
Size: 12 months
On ravelry: here

Saffran

April 2017

A worsted weight stranded pure wool cardigan is not the most clever of projects to be knitting in April, particularly if you don’t factor in enough growing room, which I didn’t.

Consequently this didn’t get quite the wear it deserved, although with a bit of determined stretching it did see us out until the end of the winter.

I really rate Rowan’s pure wool worsted. It’s cosy, knits up quickly and washes very well. It’s not the cheapest, admittedly, but in baby cardigan sized amounts it’s manageable.

Saffran is supposed to be steeked, but since I was using a superwash wool, I was worried that any steeking I did might not have held properly. I just knitted my version back and forth instead, and was pretty pleased with the result.

The pattern for this little cardigan is very well written and I don’t remember spotting any issues with it at all. Plus you’ve got to love a pattern which includes a recipe for saffron buns at the end just because.

Pattern: Saffran by Nicolina Lindsten
Yarn: Rowan Pure Wool Worsted in mustard (mc) and ivory (cc).
Size: 12 months
On ravelry: here

DROPS 157-2 Silver Dream

February 2017

DROPS is an amazing yarn company. They make fabulously good value yarns, and the pattern support is absolutely overwhelming, and entirely free.

Around Christmas 2016 I took my son ice skating, and had a sudden and uncontrollable urge to possess a proper nordic looking cosy sweater. Just the right sort of thing to wear for next year's trip.

Luckily I had an enormous skein of mid-blue Wensleydale Longwool Sheepshop dk stashed, after spotting it in the seconds bin at their stall at Yarndale 2014. I never did work out what was wrong with it, even after knitting it into a sweater. And quite frankly it had been festering in my stash for so long that it was a relief to finally use it.

Pattern-wise I have nothing helpful to say about this project. It worked perfectly as written and I didn't feel compelled to modify it at all. The top-down construction made it great for trying-on-as-you-go. It's worth noting in passing that I have a special fondness for colour work with raglan sleeves rather than round yokes. The increasing/decreasing required to make the raglan seams is more disruptive to the flow of the colour work but the fit is so much more flattering in my experience that I really do feel it's worth it.

Wensleydale Longwool Sheepshop dk is a beautiful yarn, so warm and lustrous. Not "next to the skin" soft but fine for a sweater if you're happy to wear a layer underneath. Knowing that I was supporting a local business and not having to pay extra to have yarn shipped halfway around the world just made this project all the more enjoyable.

Pattern: 157-2 Silver Dream by DROPS garnstudio
Yarn: Wensleydale Longwool Sheepshop dk in blue (mc) and white (cc).
Size: 36"
On ravelry: here

Balfour Skirt

February 2017

I love this pattern! I've never knitted a skirt before, partly because I'd previously not been sure whether they would hang properly or stay up. With Balfour, I thought it was worth taking a risk and it totally paid off. I love the fit - it’s pretty snug, but I think it’s flattering that way and holds a good shape. It's great to find a new way to wear hand knitting. 

Balfour is knitted using rowan felted tweed dk. Although labelled a dk, in my opinion this yarn knits up more like a sport weight, and so in terms of yarn substitutions, a 4-ply would probably just about work (I've seen Drops Alpaca subbed for felted tweed a couple of times very successfully). The skirt is knitted bottom up, with a folded hem at the bottom and a section of ribbing and elastic to hold it up at the top. It's seamless and intended to be worn with a little positive ease. On ravelry it's described as "a-line" but I would say "pencil skirt" would be the more accurate way to describe its shape. It sits quite high - on the waist rather than the hips, which makes for a warm tummy, but I can live with that if it's the price I have to pay for it not falling down.

I did tweak the pattern to some extent. As written, it has you increase and decrease in such a way that the chart repeats don’t always line up at the two side seam stitches. This is liveable-with for some of the simpler chart but when it came to the with stripe with the double diamonds I thought it would look rubbish, and so I adjusted by stitch count so that there would be no partial repeats. I figured I could always block it aggressively if it ended up a funny shape - I've used felted tweed a lot before and it does grow a bit when you block it.

There's a matching cardigan in Rowan 60 which uses some of the same fairisle motifs. The skirt doubles as a snood in that you can pull it over your head and stick your face out of the waist opening but I while I love it as a skirt, I'm not sure I'm really a snood sort of person.

I came up with my own colour combination rather than following the pattern, because I already had a lot of felted tweed stashed, and thought it would be best to try to use that up. Also, I love turquoise.

I chopped a bit of length off too, as I’m not very tall (5’5”) and I wanted it to fall just above the knee.

Pattern: Balfour Skirt by Lisa Richardson
Yarn: Rowan Felted Tweed dk in Avocado (light green), Camel (beige), Watery (blue/green), Carbon (grey), Seafarer (navy) and Clay (white).
Size: smallest
On ravelry: here

Bláklukka

December 2016

This was a very enjoyable knit, when I needed a quick and easy Christmas present for a little girl. Although I originally bought Védís Jónsdóttir's Knitting with Icelandic Wool collection intending to make myself this dress, it's full of little gems like this one, and I expect I will return to it again and again.

The pattern was very well written and I didn't feel inclined to modify it at all. There was an option to include some vertical lace stripes on the plain part of the body but I was in a bit too much of a hurry for that. Most of the knitting I do is with 4-ply and so this being worsted it seemed to knit up very quickly. Just as well, though - I only managed to post it off a couple of days before Christmas.

I don't normally use acrylic yarns for colour work, due to the fact that they're not as easy to block into a nice neat, flat fabric as wool is. This yarn, Pacific, is an acrylic/merino blend by Cascade, and I was really pleasantly surprised by how tidy it looked after blocking. It was also great to be able to combine solids, like the white, and heathered shades, like the green, from within the same palate, as I love the way they look alongside each other.

Pattern: Bláklukka by Vedis Jonsdottir
Yarn: Cascade Pacific in Spring Green, Blue, Red and White
Size: 6 years
On ravelry: here

Freddie

December 2016

Marie Wallin’s designs for Rowan have been amongst my favourites for some time, and there are several sweet ones in the vintage inspired “Once Upon a Time Collection” for children. Freddie grabbed me straight away, as I love all-over fairisle projects and this is such a pretty one.

I did modify the pattern in several respects - it was written to be knitted flat, as seems to be the house style at Rowan - but I worked it in the round as far as the armholes as it tends to give better results with stranded colour work and even if it didn’t it saves a bit of sewing up to do it that way.

Secondly I played around with the colour palate quite a lot. This is about the fifth or sixth fairisle I’ve knitted using felted tweed, so I have a big bag of leftovers to plunder but not necessarily all of the recommended colours. I’m firmly of the view that all shades of felted tweed go with all other shades - it’s such a beautiful yarn - but as ever with fairisle you do need to think about what degree of contrast you want. I tend to favour medium or high contrast and Freddie was a bit subtle for me at times. The one stripe which I did use the suggested palate is the broadest one featuring beige/green/orange and to my eye the pattern gets a little bit lost there.

The third modification was that I added about 2” length. If you study the pattern pictures closely you can see Freddie is designed to be fairly short, which is fine as long it’s worn over a shirt that stays tucked in. Having a son myself, though, I couldn’t overlook the potential for a longer top worn underneath it to come untucked hang down below the hem of the vest and spoil the look completely. It was easy enough to add some length though. Just a matter of unpicking the ribbing, putting the live stitches back on the needles and knitting downwards for a little while until it felt right.

I was really pleased with the end result - virtually all of my most beautiful projects have been knitted in felted tweed and this is definitely one of them!

Pattern: Freddie by Marie Wallin
Yarn: Rowan Felted Tweed dk in Pine (dark green), Avocado (light green), Clay (white), Camel (beige), Bilberry (purple), Ginger (orange), Watery (blue/green), Mineral (yellow) and Treacle (brown).
Size: 7-8 years
On ravelry: here

Wee Chickadee

April 2016

This little cardigan is one of the cutest partrns I have seen in ages, and Ysolda Teague’s patterns are always really well written, so I couldn’t resist it. This was made for my baby daughter Lucy as an extra layer to throw on on those cooler summer days, though admittedly my choice of colours meant that it seemed to coordinate with fewer outfits than I would have hoped.

My one gripe was that although I thought I had followed the pattern to the letter, the top buttonhole of the cardigan was much to low down, which meant that the collar appeared to come up very high on Lucy. I’m not sure if it’s a problem others have had too, or just one of those things, but it’s definitely something I would keep an eye on if I was to make this again.

This yarn proved a little disappointing too. It’s cheap, it makes colour work look very good, and it’s machine washable and soft, so it had great potential. Sadly though, I found it didn’t wash very well, and had to do a little repair job on a couple of snapped stitches after a few washes.

With the suggested needle size - 3.25mm - my gauge was 26.5st to 10cm blocked, so I went down to 3mm.

Pattern: Wee Chickadee by Ysolda Teague
Yarn: King Cole Merino Blend 4-ply in Stone (blue), Emperor (purple) and Aran (white)
Size: Smallest
On ravelry: here

A pair of Traktorgensers in Yarn Stories Fine Merino dk

August 2016

Some time ago I was sent a big bag of Yarn Stories Fine Merino dk to try. It took me a long time to settle on what to make with it, but this summer I decided that this Norwegian tractor pattern was just about gorgeous enough to do it justice. Only just, mind you.

Fine Merino dk is so beautiful knitted up that everyone in my knitting group wanted to know what I had used. It's incredibly soft and, as these sweaters would suggest, the colour palate is very pretty. I'm always on the look out for yarns which take colour work well - I tend to use yarns heavy in natural fibres for most of my colour work, and they can sometimes be a bit coarse and itchy. Not this one. It is incredibly soft and also machine washable, which makes it ideal for children's clothes. Let's face it, they get dirty.

The yarn does have some fantastic pattern support on the Yarn Stories website. Amelia is just one example, and originally I was sorely tempted to make one for myself. One day I probably will, but this tractor pattern had been on my wish list for over a year, and as my son is increasingly fussy about me not dressing him in scratchy wool, I thought I had better whip up a couple of these first.

The pattern itself is by Sadnes Design, and only available in Norwegian, but once again, I ran it thought google translate, applied a little bit of common sense et voila. I had great fun playing around with the fairisle motifs and colours, as I didn't feel that both sweaters needed to be identical. 

It's worth noting that not all of that yoke is made by stranding however. By the time you get to the exhaust pipes, your floats would be unmanageably long, and so the bits of contrast colour are added using swiss darning/duplicate stitch. More loose ends to sew in, but it is the only way to prevent the finished object from being terribly wrinkly - I can see why the pattern was written that way

Profuse apologies for the lack of any modelled photos of the small one. It's going to fit my little girl next winter, I think, not this one. I really hope I can come back and add some in due course. There needs to be a photograph of them both wearing their matching sweaters and one day there will be, so watch this space.

Thankfully George's is also a bit on the large side too at the moment, and so here it is modelled with great panache by his friend Albie.

In conclusion, this was a fun project in which a fabulous yarn met a handsome pattern and produced a pair of practical, warm and appealing garments. Happy days!

Pattern: 1308-14 Traktorgenser by Sadnes Design
Yarn: Yarn Stories Fine Merino dk in French Navy, Taupe, Thistle and Mulberry
Size: 6 years (taupe), 12 months (purple)
On ravelry: here

Stjerneshorts/Starryshorts

June 2016

I spotted these little shorts on ravelry a few years ago, and thought that were so cute, I was determined to have a go at them. Lucy is just learning to crawl, and so we're mostly going to be giving dresses a miss over the winter, as they're not the most practical at this age. Shorts make a lovely alternative, particularly as she's less prone to nappy leakage now she's on solids - probably too much information, that, but given the work that went into these, I would rather they didn't get poo on them. I don't think that's unreasonable really...

This is a pattern which is only available in Norwegian, but with the help of google translate and a little bit of common sense I managed to make it out. In this day and age, when there are so many supportive people out there in cyberspace, it's nice to think that the lack of an English version of a pattern is no reason not to have a go anyway. The Excuse Me? group on ravelry is especially helpful when it comes to translating the tricky bits, but for the most part, google translate is more than adequate.

These shorts have a drawstring waist to hold them up. The pattern suggests threading the cord drawstring through at the end after you have sewn the waistband hem down already. I thought it might be easier to add it as I went.

As these have folded over and sewn down hems at the waist and legs, I think that if I was to make them again I might work the inside part of the hems in a contrast colour, as it's a very cute look.

These are a little on the snug side, but should see Lucy through winter ok - I wanted to stick with a stitch count which would make sure the chart ended in the right spot. I also moved the start of round to the back of the shorts, as I there was bound to be a slight jpg in the olourwork where one round ended and the next began, and I felt I would rather have that happen there than at the front (although there’s something to be said for doing it the other way around when you’re knitting for someone who spends so much time with their bum in the air).

I did pick up some stitches inside the shorts and knit a reenforced gusset, as they felt a little bit loose there. I am a little bit envious of Lucy's knitted hot pants, and toying with the idea of improvising an adult pair, but if I do, I'll probably skip that bit, as I don't fancy the woollen double gusset much.

These were knitted from stash using a 4-ply sock yarn which long since lost it's label. I think it might well have been King Cole zigzag but I wouldn't swear to it.

Pattern: Stjerneshorts by Tina Hauglund
Yarn: Grey/cream wool blend 4-ply of unknown origin
Size: 6-12 months
On ravelry: here

A pair of Colorblocks

December 2015

Every year I knit a little something for the children of my husband's cousin, Daniel and Emily, and this year just for a change I thought it would be cute to make his and hers matching jumpers. I needed a fairly quick knit though - with a baby due on December 22nd I was loath to commit to any Christmas projects which might prove too labour intensive. A worsted weight top down in the round jumper fitted the bill perfectly.

I'd spotted this pattern on ravelry a while ago. Garter stitch always makes very attractive looking stripes in my opinion, and the construction of that pocket intrigued me whilst the rest of the garnet promised just the right amount of fairly mindless knitting.

This pattern has some very pleasing little design details - the hem being slightly lower in the back than the front through short row shaping for example, and as I knitted it I couldn't help but wish more of my sweaters were shaped like that. Plus it's a truly unisex design, and so perfect for a brother and sister. (Emily has apparently got her eyes on Daniel's version - the red and grey - once he gets too big for it).

The Rowan Pure Wool Worsted I used for this is a fabulous yarn. It's not cheap (especially when you don't need to use very much of the contrast colour, as with this pattern), but it comes in every colour you could ever want, washes beautifully, is properly warm and cosy and not itchy in the slightest. It knits up into a very handsome looking and pleasingly squishy fabric.

I love the fact that it's a proper worsted since the UK market doesn't seem to be particularly spoiled for choice when it comes to that particular weight, and yet there are vast swathes of patterns (particularly from the USA) which call for it. Knitting with this makes me understand how a petrolhead would feel driving a ferrari, if you see what I mean. And besides, these were Christmas presents, so I could justify the cost.

I can see myself coming back to this pattern at some point, as it was such a fun, quick knit and these little sweaters are the sort of wardrobe staple that could see any child through a long, British winter or two. And thanks to Rowan, there are many colour combinations left to try.  

Pattern: Colorblock by Oomieknits
Size: 4 years and 6 years
Yarn: Rowan pure wool worsted in Mustard, Damson, Charcoal and Rich Red
Needle: 4.5mm
On ravelry: here

South Pole Jumper

December 2015

I recently discovered the work of Jorid Linvik, and in partiular loved these little penguins from the South Pole hat. I was really keen to use them somewhere, and when I took George’s chest measurement, it turned out to be close enough to the circumference of the hat that I could just follow the chart as written, without having to add any stitches. I just used slightly larger needles.

Having had a go at the fish in the South Pole hat pattern, I decided they were perhaps a bit grown up and subtle for a child’s pattern, and so I swapped them over with the Swedish Fish Socks chart. It’s a lot cuter that way.

This was basically worked bottom up, but having dithered about the fish I worked in both directions at different stages. I started it just under the penguins using a provisional cast on so I could play around with the length later on.

The neckline looks slightly sloppy to me, and might need to be ripped back and redone, but in fairness he has been wearing it unblocked today so it might settle down. He also has a habit of trying to chew at the collars of his jumpers at the moment, which doesn’t help!

All of the yarns I used are very soft and not at all itchy, as George is approaching that fussy age. I particularly like the Berroco Vintage dk, even if I did encounter a slight different-dyelots-not-matching problem with it. Entirely my fault of course.

Pattern: 9-9 Sweater with Raglan Sleeves by Garnstudio DROPS design incorporating South Pole Hat by Jorid Linvik and Swedish Fish Socks by SpillyJane
Size: 4 years
Yarn: Berroco Vintage dk in blue-green 449, John Lewis Heritage dk in demin and cream, Sirdar Snuggly dk in light blue, Garnstudio DROPS Karisma Superwash dk in dark grey.
Needle: 3.5mm
On ravelry: here

Embrace

December 2015

I haven't had much luck with dresses. I tried twice to improvise something with a skull pattern around the hem - the first time it got coffee spilled on it and stained, the second time I managed to felt it shortly after finishing it. The only picture I managed to take first is here.

So it was with some trepidation that I embarked on Embrace. However, I had some yarn to recycle from this, which just wasn't getting the wear it deserved. Kid Classic is a wonderful yarn, warm, flattering and it wears very well. I have some projects I made in it years ago which hardly show their age at all.

This was also a bit of a worrying knit because I was pregnant whilst I made it, and so unable to try it on as I went. Indeed, I was slightly unsure about what my figure was going to do after the baby arrived, and so I had to feel my way in the dark a little. These pictures are about 3 weeks postpartum, and I've been pleasantly surprised with how it's looking. Horribly impractical for breastfeeding, mind you, but I'm a dedicated knitter, and I wear it anyway.

Embrace was knitted in the round from the bottom up to the armhole, then front and back yoke knitted separately. The original pattern would have you knit the front, back and sleeves flat and seam them, but I that seemed like a really silly idea to me. The sleeves done in the round on DPNs.

One thing that pissed me off a bit about this pattern (apart from it being made available for free after I had already bought it) was the amount of loose ends which needed to be sewn in due to the yoke being worked flat. I’m not quite brave enough with steeking to have converted it to be worked like that instead, but if anyone is, it would be much more sensible. I expect Kid Classic would steek beautifully.

The chart repeats on the back don’t quite line up, but I’m not really bothered. Tired, tired pregnancy knitting. I think it’s beautiful anyway despite usually having a bit of an aversion to yellow.

The original pattern had drop-sleeve armholes, a higher neckline and no sleeves. I decided to add a lower neckline and set-in sleeves based on another of Sarah Hatton’s patterns for Kid Classic from the same collection, Cosy. If I'm being really harsh, I'd say the ribbed section at the cuffs might benefit from being longer, as it's not lying especially flat at the moment. If I can dig out some more of the Kid Classic, that should be a fairly easy modification to make, though.

I'm also wearing it with less positive ease than perhaps was intended, as I've convinced myself that's the best way to flatter my figure.

It's safe to say that this has convinced me that my luck with dresses might have finally changed, and I'm already mentally queuing umpteen others - Bloom, Keja, Bressay, Laneway, Darlington, Kristina, Lidiya... the list goes on. Oh, and I have a 95% complete Still Light which needs to come out of hibernation at some point in 2016 - it's going to be a busy year.

Pattern: Embrace by Sarah Hatton from Rowan Studio 14
Size: Small, but with bust darts
Yarn: Rowan Kid Classic in 888 Pumice, 831 Smoke and 877 Mellow
Needle: 3.75mm
On ravelry: here

Merriment

December 2015

I spotted this lovely set a while ago whilst the pattern was unavailable because it was being updated, so I was really pleased to find it was available again in time for me to make one for my daughter. Having expected her to come early, like her brother had, she actually turned up 10 days late. This was something I knitted up around week 40 - 41 of my pregnancy whilst waiting for her to to arrive. I used leftovers from my purple and yellow colorblock sweater.

The pattern includes instructions for a steeked version and a non-steeked version. I don't mind steeking, but in this case I decided not to, since I was using a super wash wool, and I wasn't sure if it would be grippy enough to hold.

One ball of the yellow was enough for the cardigan, but there was virtually nothing leftover, and I had to buy a second for the matching bonnet.

I worked an extra row between colour changes in a couple of places to avoid having to cut the yarn to get it to where I needed it.

M1 increases throughout yoke were done with backward loop cast on, as lifting a strand between stitches can look a bit odd if it's not the right colour.

This was a really quick and satisfying knit - I mostly seem to use 4-ply these days so making something in worsted made for really rapid progress. I'd definitely make this again - it's one of the prettiest baby sets I've seen for ages. My little girl has worn it a few times already, although it's still a bit big for her. The fact that the sleeves have yarn stranded round them for the entire length means they're not especially stretchy, but we managed to get them on and off without too much fuss in the end. 

Pattern: Merriment Bonnet and Cardigan by

Size: 3 months
Yarn: Rowan Pure Wool Worsted in 150 Damson and 133 Gold and John Lewis Heritage Merino Blend dk
Needle: 4.00mm
On ravelry: here

Baby Goth

October 2015

This project was a joy from start to finish. I bought the yarn at Yarndale 2015 in Skipton during a lovely knitting holiday with friends, and cast on shortly after I got back. It seemed to knit up in no time, and I've had a lot of very kind compliments on it.

I know skulls aren't everybody's cup of tea, and I'm not sure that the grandparents approve, but for anyone with a bit of an inclination towards the gothic like me, it is the cutest pattern ever. As soon as I saw it I knew my little girl needed one.

The skull pattern is made using intarsia, which is a technique I often tend to avoid since it can be a bit of a faff. In this case it wasn't quite as bad as I'd remembered. Ok, every skull means two loose ends to sew in, but if you embark on this project knowing what to expect it's no big deal, probably because it's so tiny.

If I can get some cute modelled pictures after she is born I will try to come back and add them, although something tells me I might not have as much time for blogging at that point!

ETA: voila!

Pattern: Baby Goth Cardigan by Baby Goth Knits
Size: Newborn
Yarn: Garnstudio DROPS Karisma Superwash dark grey/ off white
Needle: 3.5mm
On ravelry: here

Wee Carson

September 2015

My third attempt at steeking (working fairisle in the round and then cutting into it to create an opening) and the first time I did it all by myself without any help from my Mum. Ok, I didn't have much choice, as I was on holiday at the time, but even so, I was proud of myself.

There are two ways to reenforce the knitting to prevent it from fraying before you cut it, crochet or machine stitching. Last time (for Hedgerow) I used machine stitching but having not taken my sewing machine on holiday with me, I had to use crochet this time. I think it would have been strong enough to hold on its own, as Felted Tweed is wonderfully grippy, but when I got home I added a few rows of machine stitching just to be doubly sure.

Of all the steeking resources I've looked at the few times I've used the technique, Kate Davies' series of tutorials - starting with this one - are among the best. It is a subject one tends to read up on quite a bit before attempting even the second and third times, since to thought of cutting into knitting with scissors seems to terrifyingly wrong.

With the right preparation and the right yarn it's fine though. Honestly.

My gauge on 2.75mm needles was 27.5 stitches to 10 cm over stranded colour work, which was the closest I was likely to get to the recommended 28 stitches to 10 cm. This is possibly a bit tighter than Felted Tweed was intended to be knit, but I think it works great, and as this pattern called for something that would steek well, but at the same time I wanted it to be washable, the choices were limited.

I'd guess this will fit at about 3-6 months at my gauge. I felt like it was going to end up much bigger as I was working it up, but this cardigan has a series of rapid decreases near the underarm which give it the a-line shape and so the finished chest measurement is quite a bit smaller than the measurement around the bottom hem. I should have trusted Ysolda, she knows what she is doing.

The zip was installed by my Mum, a 10" chunky open zip in navy blue. It was really difficult to track down a zip so short which was also open ended, but there are some instructions about how to shorten a zip yourself included in the pattern for anyone who finds it impossible. You've got to love a pattern which anticipates your problems like that, and solves them for you.

Pattern: Wee Carson by Ysolda Teague
Size: 3 months
Yarn: Rowan Felted Tweed in Seafarer (dark blue), Scree (pale blue), Hedgerow (mid green), Watery (blue/green), Camel (beige), Carbon (dark grey), Maritime (mid blue), Avocado (light green)
Needle: 2.75mm
On ravelry: here