Baby Blue for Henry (& Gretta!)

I had quite a bit of yarn left, so I made a hat to match the sweater.

I used the knitter's handy book of Patterns by Ann Budd to give me some direction for a hat size, but it was too big on the first try and so Henry's mother also gets a hat.

After finishing both hats, I think I know where I went wrong. I knit the sweater on a size 10. I don't have a short (or set of dps) in a size 10, so I bumped up to a 10.5 for the hat, but I cast on for the hat as if I was still using the 10.

Today's special reminder: GAUGE IS IMPORTANT.

Black Linen/Cotton Sweater

{Original post of this mostly finished sweater was April 2009}

Instead of a crochet neck band, I improvised a pick up bind off edge.

I couldn't make the single crochet look good at all, so I wore it a few times without a finished neck. (no one noticed but me.)

The black yarn doesn't show the stitches very well, but you can see the smoothness of the bind off stitches along the front neck edge.

Pick up a stitch by inserting the needle into the neck edge and creating a knit stitch. Pick up a second stitch, then pass the first stitch over the second as in a standard bind off. Repeat.

The neck now has a more finished edge and is not quite as stretchy. Pretty slick!

[Tahki Yarns Spring/Summer Collection 2004, Tahki Yarns Willow, 12 skeins]

Five Hour Baby Sweater

(five hours - ha!)

Five Hour Baby Sweater from yarntootin

It was a good pattern, top down and quick to knit. I used 2 skeins of Cascade 220 Superwash in Skyline Blue (color 884) on a size 10. I purchased the yarn at Crazy Girl Yarn Shop in Iowa City; they had a nice looking sample done that caught my eye.

I am just not that quick (and I never sit still for a whole five hours at one time to see if I am!) I started the sweater in May 2010, as a 'hope' sweater for my sister. I got scared in June and set it aside. In August, when she announced she was pregnant, I got it back out, but didn't restart until November after the baby was born!

One modification I would like to incorporate -- buttonholes. If and when I make it again, I have a note to add some buttonholes.

I used an afterthought buttonhole from a sweater pattern I made a few years ago. I have never seen instructions for this type of buttonhole anywhere else, and I think it is pretty useful.

Afterthought Buttonholes (Peerie Brocade, Charlie Hada)

With WS facing, insert crochet hook into the strand between sts 2 & 3 (worsted/bulky yarns) [fig.3].
Pull strand until loop is about ½" [fig.4]. Then catch the strand above (marked by arrow) and pull it through loop on hook. Lengthen this second loop and tack it down with a piece of yarn.
Return to the hole you have made and repeat the process in a downward direction.

Try Again

There are two important elements to a blog:
• regular posts
• good material

I have had neither of late.

This is my try, try again.


What is this mess? A pile of UFOs (UnFinished Objects). And shortly after I took the picture, I found another lurking in a closet.

There are two baby sweaters in these bags with the knitting already done. One needs buttons and afterthought button holes, and the other needs the sleeves to be attached and buttons added.

They are the simplest finishes, so I will try to tackle them first. I also have an EZ surprise sweater in a pre-teen size and color, a cardigan for myself, an earband (it doesn't need much either), a scarf I started and ripped out, a lace shawl that has been started and ripped out, and a pair of socks.

Pictures and links to some free patterns to follow!