Simple Recipe for Chunky Knit Headbands

The decorations are down - well, for the most part.  No doubt I'll be finding the odd little thing for the next few weeks as there always seems to be straggler items that I don't notice because I've been living with them so long. Oh well, the bulk of the work is done so it's time to start getting sorted for this year's projects.

False Rib Wash Cloth

False Rib is pretty in variegated yarn

A quick little update today so that I don't lose my momentum, and also to keep track of this knitting stitch / dishcloth pattern as I particularly like it.  This is the false rib stitch and it couldn't be more simple.  (K1, P1) for odd rows, and K on even rows.

Pixie Hood Hats - Country Loom and Charisma

One of my favourite hats - the wool is just gorgeous

Happy November everyone!  Yikes, can you believe it?  Despite my almost-year-round Christmas obsession, I always start to panic 'round about now.  While it may be still a good bit of time away, it is already a week after the time to send your overseas parcels without paying higher prices, so I know it won't be long now.  The Christmas wrap has come out.   Gulp.

Country Loom Baby/Child's Blanket

Little boy blanket in progress

This week I discovered my "willpower score".  It is zero.  Nowhere to go but up really. After declaring this week's crafting agenda to be about earring organization and this Country Loom childs blanket I'm working on, a fantastic new crochet pattern caught my eye and I just had to intersperse a new little project.  Out comes the worsted wool as well!  I bought the pattern and made up two hats before the sun set.

Country Loom Wool Hat Parade

Stack of completed hats

What does this picture say to you?  To me ... it says progress!  One of the items on my recent "battle with wool" agenda was these lovely Country Loom Hats, and here they are.

Amazingly luxurious hat ... in orange

I still keep making hats, and some days I'm especially glad I do because this hat for a little girl is fabulous - if I do say so myself.  This is just another variation of one of my favourite - very simple - hat patterns, but this time I've done the rib with double worsted, and the 'body' of the hat with three strands; worsted, eyelash yarn, and faux fur yarn.  I just wish the photos could demonstrate how thick and soft it has turned out.  This combination of yarns is luxurious indeed.

Look - it even stands up all on it's own.  I'm also wishing that I wasn't quite so effective at using up all this faux fur wool that I had, as I'd really like to make LOTS more colours of these.  Such is life though, and I am certain that something else will capture my imagination with all the supplies to get crafting in 2012.


For inspiration, I'm going to head over to Tami's Amis finished object Fridays to see what creative things others are up to. 

Tension

I used to think that I had no issues with tension when knitting or crocheting, but I was wrong. Depending on how cold my hands are - or not - can make a really big difference when making something so small as a baby bootie. In one of the first pairs I tried there was quite a bit of differece in the sizing. Not good enough at all, really.

But I'm with the program now as I am knitting then both at once - with two balls of wool.  While you can't whip one up quite so quickly this does answer nicely to my enormous issues of making two things exactly the same.  This green pair in Vanna's choice wool worked up very nicely and I just love the kitty face buttons - which are on there very securely.

And this is another pair for a slightly older child.  I am no expert but I'm guessing about 12-18 months.  The mottled wool is actually quite a lot nicer than I think it shows in the photograph, and I think they're sweet with the matching polka dot buttons.

I've washed and dried the green ones to test and they wash up lovely.  I always wash in cold water and use a delicate setting for wool in the drier.  No fuss - just what a mum needs.

Note to self:  From now on buy two balls of each colour.

Slipper Style Bootie for 6-12 months

This is another pattern winner in the great bootie experiment - I found it here on the hipknitized blog.    A more moccasin style slipper that looks to be ideal for the 6-12 month old.

  The first pair I tried in a simple colour and just added some buttons I had on hand for embellishment. I like this concept and I've ordered some lovely baby buttons - teddy bears, sailer anchors, cats, ducks, hearts, polka dots, stripes and etc.  It should be fun and inspirational when they start arriving.

 This is a variation I think is rather cute - inspired by a bit of a running shoe look.  You could do narrow stripes, 3 or 4 colour options, full stripes or etc.  I have been experimenting - in the form of single edition booties - with quite a few variations, but this is one of my favourite so far.

The little laces, which are crocheted, should help to give them a nice snug fit, and add a bit of whimsy.  Of course this style would also look cute with fancy buttons.

I love simple patterns like this that allow you to get really creative with variations in execution.  I'm thinking the kitty cat buttons would look really cute on that red and cream stripe ... and maybe white bunnies for the pink jacquard.  The slipper in the middle I thought I'd really like ... but it turns out I don't.  You don't know until you try.

Super Cute Baby Booties

Happy New Year everyone! I hope the holidays were wonderful and not too stressful.  I have been taking a break from the never pleasant chores of putting all the Christmas trimmings away - and questioning my sanity as I do every year - to experiment with something new.

These are my very first ever pair of baby booties!!!  Yes, I am rather pleased.  And these little guys are so cute I am already thinking about adapting the pattern for a pair for myself.

 The two rows of knit, two rows of purl gives you a lovely soft and bulky ridged result that should both fit snugly and stretch easily for the growing foot.  While I have never been one to be very caught up by baby things, I must say that holding these little guys in the palm of my hand solicited a surprising "ooooh".  They are super cute and I give this pattern 5 stars.

 They're done on 3.25 mm needles and I find they work best with the thinner baby wools, but a sport weight will produce a good size for a toddler.  You can find the pattern at Knitting-Crochet.com.  As a good newborn baby bootie, no doubt they would also look cute with ribbon or other embellishments.  Soo many possibilities with a lovely simple pattern.  You can imagine them striped can't you?

Country Loom Winter Hats

I've been experimenting with adaptations to a basic hat pattern for the lovely bubbly Country Loom yarn by Loops & Threads.  It's available in so many colours, and I have many of them!  It works up super soft, warm and snuggly, and the regular yarn for the brim gives it a nice snug fit to keep your ears nice and warm.  The finished result is a fitted hat with a teensy bit of slouch.

I made several versions of hats with this wool, and although they were okay, they weren't quite right.  Finally, I think I've got it, and before I lose my scribble notes and the big tidy up to come in the next couple of days, I thought I'd document 'the pattern'.

Rib is worked on 8.0 mm needles with 2 strands of worsted wool.
Body is worked on 9.0 mm needles with 1 strand of Country Loom super bulky

For small, medium and large:

Cast on 44 (48, 52) stitches.  With 8.0 mm needles work in rib for 6 (7, 8) rows.
Switch to 9.0 mm needles and one strand of Country Loom wool.  Work in stocking stitch for 14 (16, 18) rows.   Decrease by knitting 2 together across, purl a row, knit 2 across, purl a row until you have 6 or 7 stitches left.  Cut yarn leaving enough to sew up seam.  Thread needle through remaining stitches, gather and stitch up seam to the ribbing.  With matching worsted wool, join the seam for the rib, and your hat is ready.

Easy peasy!

If you're interested, I'm selling these hats as well as some other styles  Click here for the Knit and Crochet section on my Etsy shop.

Relaxing with Wool

It's very crafty around here right now. Beads everywhere and I'm pretty sure I swallowed a sequin yesterday. Oh well, probably not the first and likely not the last, but I thought I'd have a change and enjoy the relaxation of wool (ignoring the fact that there is also wool everywhere).


Mum recently brought back to me several large bags of wool that I had passed along many years ago when clearing out the cupboards. One of the bags was all Patons Astra wool that I had been once using to make little dolls and ornaments - translation - only one ball of each colour. So, I'm crocheting that up into a childs play blanket. When I'm finished it will be a good size for playing on the floor, or for a child's snuggle blanket.

It would be a little intense for a baby blanket I think, but hey, I bet they learn their colours early! I have a few more colours to add into the sequence, and then I will be repeating. It's a very simple pattern: worked on 5.0 mm crochet hook it's two rows of double crochet. I recently learned a new technique for changing colours - pulling up the new colour with the last stitch rather than finishing the row and then joining - and it works very neatly.

One more thing - so I don't forget - the Patons Astra wool is gorgeous to work with! Welcome back lovely wool.

Over on the knitting needles - I'm experimenting again with the Bernat Baby Jacquards. I did try crocheting this, and although it was pretty and looked a bit like the sky, it seemed a waste for the Jacquard wool. The knitting - especially with 'striping' - really brings out the pattern which is rather subtle in this Boo Berries colour wave.

This - if I ever finish it because I really don't enjoy knitting with tiny (anything under 5.0 mm) needles - will be a small blanket for a premature baby. Because the wool pattern is so interesting I'm working up with a simple striping of gartar stitch and stocking stitch. A border of gartar stitch on top, bottom and sides helps it keep a nice shape.

You can find this pattern as well as a multi-colour and basket weave variation at Little Blankets by Nancy Hearne.

And now we have hats & scarves

Another mission on the great crafting "to do list" (which isn't actually written down, as that would be too overwhelming) is to work up some hats to turn the myriad scarves I have made into "Hat & Scarf sets". The scarves are crocheted and the hats are knit.

I actually prefer the 'co-ordinating' approach to a matchy-matchy set, and these first few versions have worked out pretty well. I love the softness of the Charisma wool in this hat, and think there will be many more of these to come.

Another job done today, the first batch of these sets is now available in the new 'Hats & Scarves' section of my Etsy site. Many more to come ....

You've got to get Charisma!

My new favourite hat pattern is written for two strands of worsted on 8.00 mm needles, but of course you can use a chunky wool that is size appropriate. This Charisma yarn from Loops & Threads (a Michael's brand) is gorgeous to work with and super soft.

And the colour patterned yarns are truly FUN to work with. You barely notice the knitting as you're excited to see what will happen next.

I know, small things, small minds ... but trust me it's fun to knit with, and you can say "oooh" a lot.

The yarn also comes in many solid colours so I am on a mission to turn my scarves into hat & scarf sets.

I like them not completely matchy-matchy with the faux fur scarves. Things are all coming together.

Related articles

• The Hats are Back! Great new pattern. (magicalcrafts.blogspot.com)

The Hats are Back! Great new pattern.

Knit with 2 solid yarns - gives a lovely tweedy effect.
I think it would work well with subtle or contrasting.

I am back to the hats - and in a big way. I just can't get enough of knitting the latest in the line-up of new hat patterns. This pattern is from the StreetKnit website and I love it for several reasons.

Knit with 1 variegated and 1 solid yarn - I like the subtle effect

• It's knit with two strands of worsted so the colour possibilities are virtually endless.
• It's knit on large 8.00 mm needles so you can whip them up in no time.
• It's soft, thick and warm so it will do a good job!

Knit with 2 variegated yarns - not something I'd likely do again

Yes I love this hat pattern and shall be making some up for the StreetKnit Project.

The Big Knit ... count me in!

Image via WikipediaMy friend Lynn's blog yesterday alerted me to a great craft cause that I didn't know about. The Big Knit for Age UK. These are my first three little hats, but I hope to make several more and get a few more folks involved too. This is a terrific program.

A fruit drink company in the UK (innocent ltd) is soliciting these little hats for their 250ml bottles; for every behatted bottle sold they make a donation to Age Action to help seniors at risk due to the cold. You can click on the photo below for more information when it becomes available.

Think of the awareness created when folks see these little woolen hats on rows of fruit drinks. I wish we had something like this here in Canada.

Some of the creations that folks have come up with in the past are simply amazing. There are prizes too! I shall not be looking for a prize. I'm sure Lynn will do some amazing things (already talking sock puppet adaptation) but I shall be sticking very close to the basics. My challenge for myself will be to make no two exactly alike - but don't get too excited folks, I'm talking colours not stitches.

Click on the photo to see Hat of the Week
winners from past years on the innocent drinks blog.

This year's goal is 650,000, but you've got until October, so get knitting!

Not Ready for Intermediate

Lion Brand yarn posted some patterns for dishcloths on Facebook today and this Knit Folly Beach Washcloth took my fancy. That would be the white one pictured below, which has already come off the needles. Unfortunately it didn't quite work out. I'm not ready for intermediate.

I wasn't too far off, and I will be trying it again but the combination of a mistake I didn't feel I could live with and my needle size choice being too large, I've decided to start again. Start again, that is, after working up to it.

I need a little more practice with knitting stitch patterns before I do this one again and there are some great samples at Knitting on the Net and the Angel Hugs Stitch Sampler. I'm going to make up some cotton washcloths to give a few a go.


It's not undersatnding the pattern that I have great difficulty with, nor is it the actual stitch variations (ssk, skp) which usually seem well explained. My fundamental problem is paying attention to what I'm doing. It's been a while since I've done crafty things that didn't allow my mind to wander off completely while my hands kept busy, and it's a wee struggle.

Even with a piece of paper to cross off rows, I often forget to do so and it was only when taking this photo of my work in progress on the Triangle Squares washcloth that I realized I flipped the diamonds after the first two repeats. As Homer would say, DOH!

While it won't be a perfect example of the Triangle Squares pattern, I am going to press on. At this point I'm curious to find out if the size will be square with one ball of wool, and it isn't terribly noticable as this makes a nice chunky looking pattern.

Next stitch choice .. something more obvious to follow. Baby steps.


In other news ... Spring arrived this week. But it's not like you would notice yet.

Related articles

• Heart Washcloth (eileencaseycreations.wordpress.com)

Minnesota Winter Hat

Rain, rain, and more rain ... When are we happy to see the rain in Ontario? When it is washing away all the snow - yippee! Now, I understand it is not yet Spring, and yes I accept that there will likely be more snow ... BUT ... at least when Spring does roll around there will be less snow to get in it's way.

It's been a busy week with not too much time for crafting, but I have been ever so good about not starting anything new and plodding along with existing projects with the time I have. My first ripple blanket is coming along nicely with not too much further to go I think.

In the meanwhile, I thought I'd share with you another one of my favourite hat patterns. This version is super warm and knit with two strands of wool. You can also use a bulky chunky wool in single strand, which might be nice.

As the design folds back for the 'brim' there is a lot of warmth and comfort around your ears. It's rather surprising that I haven't made more of these given the host of colour combination possibilities with two strands. And I think - (don't know as I haven't tried yet) - that if you used two solid colours of wool, you would end up with a very nice tweedy effect.

This hat is called the "Minnesota Winter Hat" and you can find the pattern at Bev's Country Cottage.