Tag Archives: my published designs


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Happy Towel Day

Happy Towel Day to all the hoopy froods out there! Here’s a free towel pattern (with custom mods) that you can work on while sipping your pan-galactic gargle blaster or some drink that is almost, but not quite, entirely unlike tea.

I first came across this pattern at Craft Time at work. (Yes- my job came with a craft club. YES- IT IS AWESOME). A few of my colleagues have knit this towel pattern, found for free online here (Ravely link here).

The version shared with me was the row-by-row Word Document version that is available here. (I’m not sure if/how it differs from Dixie’s original pattern above). I really liked the texture and stripe but am not a fan of the single hanging strap. In my experience there is too much strain on a single point and it winds up stretching over time until the towel is sagging lower than desired.

To fix this I reworked the final steps to have 3 hanging straps per towel. (You can also do 2 but I didn’t want the middle to sag either). I also worked the contrasting-texture stripe in intarsia for an inset colored band that used up scraps of cotton leftovers from previous projects.

I’ve now made 4 of them (with matching washcloths using the leftovers) and have been consistently having 2 on my oven while the other 2 are in the wash, and swapping them out regularly.

The top two sets in the image below were made with Lily Sugar ‘N Cream cotton for the white and have buttons in colors that match the contrasting colors.

The two bottom sets were made with Bernat Handicrafter Cotton for the white and have plastic snaps in matching colors set through the natural holes in the knitting. (I’ve been using my snap kit paired with a set of assorted color snaps and have managed to always find the colors I need for my projects). They have held up wonderfully and none of the snaps nor buttons have come loose with time or multiple repeated washings.

Finally I used the remaining scraps from each towel to make a matching dishcloth using my favorite easy dishcloth/washcloth pattern.

1 Strap-to-3 Strap Modifications

  • Work the towel pattern as written through row 61, adding repeats if desired to make longer towels. (Note that my towels pictured have 7 extra repeats of rows 43-46)
  • Row 62: Slip 1st st as if to purl (yarn in back), k to last st, p1
  • Rows 63-67: rep row 62 for garter band at top of towel
  • Row 68: (hanging strips setup row) Slip 1st st aitp (yib), k9, BO 17, k10, BO 17, k9, p1. You will now have 3 sections of 10 live sts with 2 BO sections in between.
  • Row 69: (first hanging strip) slip 1st st aitp (yib), k to last st, p1
  • Rows 70-100: rep row 69
  • Row 101: SSK, k6, k2tog
  • Row 102: SSK, k4, k2tog
  • Row 103: SSK, k2, k2tog
  • Row 104: SSK, k2tog
  • Row 105: BO rem 2 sts
  • Cut yarn, leaving tail to weave in, then rejoin yarn to next set of 10 live sts.
  • Repeat rows 69-105 twice.
  • If you use snaps, wiggle the post of each side of the snap through an opening in a stitch before pressing. If using buttons, add a YO on row 101
This post may contain affiliate links. This means I might make a small commission on purchases made through the links, at no cost to you.


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SuperBaby, revisited

The boys keep talking about what they want to be for Halloween this year, and it has me reminiscing about Jakob’s first Halloween, and one of my very first designs.

Here’s a repost, coming to you from all the way back in 2007.  Lookit how wittle he was!!

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From November 2007: May I present…

SuperBaby!

SuperBaby’s special powers include drowning his adversaries in massive amounts of drool, and the ability to shove anything into his mouth. Foes are often foiled in their plots by his awesome cuteness which requires all who pass to stop, come closer, and kiss him.

SuperBaby also managed to stand by himself (leaning on the sofa) for the purposes of taking this photo.
His detachable cape is this season’s “in” accessory. No SuperBaby would be caught dead without a cape this year, and we hear that shiny red is the new black.

The pattern is my own, for both the outfit and the cape. I had Yannick’s help in creating the baby, and the Superness is all his own. 🙂

By the way, these are the pumpkins that Yannick bought for outside our house. Should I be insulted that the “Daddy” and “Baby” pumpkins are perfect, and the “Mommy” pumpkin is all lumpy and deformed?

~~~~~~~~~~~

Heh.

My brother Aaron edited that pic up there and now SuperBaby looks right at home, defending the city.

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He wore the outfit again for Purim too.  🙂

jakobsuper

A little while later I’d contacted DC inquiring about permission to write up and publish the pattern.  (They, duh, refused me).2746347727_708f81ccb0_n

So… I modified it into a generic superhero instead, and now anyone who wants to can knit up their very own!

myfirstcostumesuperhero

The pattern is written for ages 6-12 months [12-18 months], and includes full instructions and charts for the costume, the two shown chest shields, and the cape.  There is also a blank chart with instructions on how to design your own shield, in case you want to personalize it with your favorite SuperBaby’s initial.

It’s on Ravelry here.


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pick ups

UPS is coming today!  UPS is coming today!  Yay yay yay!  UPS is coming today!

Don’t mind the happy dance over here…I’m just excited that this box will be leaving today to go to it’s destination.  It’s sad to see a project leave but I’m thrilled to know where it’s going and the physical act of it leaving my presence means I can move on to other projects completely guilt-free.


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cadmium

Without further ado, allow me to present Cadmium:

As you can see I was faithful to the desired sketch.

Cadmium is a dress/layering piece, sleeveless with 4 integrated belts actually woven through the runs created by dropping stitches.  It’s knit from side to side and the only seams are to close the tops of both shoulders.

Here’s a closeup of the belts.  Because they’re woven through the garment, you can leave the dress loose or cinch it up to gather at the waist or hips.

Because it’s knit sideways, it’s easy to modify the length by simply casting on fewer stitches and always remembering that difference vs the stated stitch counts.  So it could easily be made hip or thigh length.

The pattern is part of the premiere issue of Clotheshorse magazine, and I really urge you to check it out.  Besides my design there are a ton of other really gorgeous patterns (a few I’ve already planned to make).  You can find the whole issue here at the Clotheshorse site or find the pattern directly at Ravelry here.

(All photos above copyright to Clotheshorse)


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cadmium preview

I’m so excited that I can finally blog about this!

Last year sometime, while browsing in a designers’ group on Ravelry, I came across a call for submissions for a new online knitting magazine that would be debuting in Spring 2012.  Their goal was to be very fashion-forwards and right on-trend with the latest runway styles.

I submitted an idea I had for a drop-stitch cardigan.  What would make it cool is that it would be knitted sideways, so that the dropped stitches would run horizontally, and then I’d deliberately place some of them to be near the waist so that I could weave a belt through.  I thought it would be really cool, and submitted these sketches:

showing my idea in 2 different colorways, with the intent of showing the clothing underneath peeking through the dropped stitches.  I also sent along a photo of a swatch I’d made testing out my belt theory.

A few weeks of waiting with everything crossed that can be followed, and then I heard the news- my pattern was accepted!  Yay!  All that they asked was if I’d be willing to change the silhouette to be a bit more in line with their ideas for the magazine, so instead of a sleeveless cardigan, could I make it into a wrap dress?  They sent me this sketch as an example:

That was a design change I was willing to live with, and so as soon as the yarn arrived I got to work.

First of all- the yarn is LOVELY to work with!  It’s Araucania Ruca Solid, 100% sugar cane, and my first time working with sugar cane yarn.  It’s got a sheen like silk and an excellent drape.

The pattern and sample was sent out last September and now it’s just been a waiting game for the pattern to go live…which it has!

Pics and link tomorrow- I’m such a tease!  🙂

ps I’m 2 rows short of being officially 2 days ahead of schedule on my secret project.  And Henri’s still coughing but has no more fever.  And my hernia(s) haven’t popped out again.  Woo hoos all around!


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so…….

Did a ton of knitting today.  I’ll be doing a ton of knitting tomorrow too.  And the next day.  And…every foreseeable day in the near future.

See I got another design accepted- YAY!

But I’m not allowed to talk about it- BOO.

But it’s really exciting- YAY!

But it’s kinda big and will take a lot of work to get it done by the deadline- BOO.

But it’s my first time that I’m going to be published in this source- YAY!

But I’m not allowed to blog about it until it’s preview goes live- BOO.

So I regret that I won’t have much to show you guys for the next little bit.  I’m going to try to take more pics of the boys to keep the blog colorful.  Since I need to pay attention to this knitting, if I find myself with times where I can work on my January socks (which, let’s be honest, will be moved into February) I’ll blog those.

I can share vague updates though.  I’ve already designed the pattern, and am knitting my way through it to test it out.  Because of this I know exactly how many rows there are, and how many I need to do each night to stay on track.  As of today I’m…uh…6 rows behind schedule.  Oops.


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organized chaos kal vegas scarf

It’s done!  And it’s awesome!!!

I love this scarf.  Have I mentioned that yet?

I don’t know what’s going on with my eyes or cheeks here, but Yannick’s not home and it’s the best self-portrait I managed to take.

These colors suck ‘cus it’s late and there’s no natural light, and the flash completely washed them out.  But still, I just finished twisting the fringe-

(See- fringe!  It’s colorful!)

-and I couldn’t wait to take pics.  Look- it’s a sequin!  I love how the thinner mohair yarn around the thicker yarn makes that “scribble” effect.  I need a whole shawl like that.

Sorry for the flash, but this was the best I could get, color-accuracy-wise.

So in the end this scarf was 63 rows (61 if you count first and last as co/bo), all designated by rolling a die/flipping a coin, as per my Vegas Scarf AKA The Knitting Game pattern.  I cast-on Jan 21st and finished Jan 25th, but really didn’t knit at all on Sunday or Tuesday, and not very much on Monday, so if you’ve got a bit of time here and there, you’ve got a scarf.  You could also use this same technique for a larger shawl, or tuck the fringe in and make a pillow cover, or a blanket…there’s a lot you can do, and every one will be different.  You can find more pics of mine, and those others have made, oven in Ravelry.

Completely unrelated, but I’ve got Much Music on in the background as I type this and there’s a song that has the guy from Marianas Trench doing a guest vocal.  I love his voice-oh and that scream at the end…amazing!  I’ve been too busy with podcasts to buy any music in the last few years, but I keep meaning to get a MT album, I love their sound and the wit behind their lyrics/videos.  Them, and Pink.  I think she’s my favorite female singer but I’m at least 2 albums behind.


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so in love

Oh my gosh.  I didn’t know I could fall so hard, so fast.

I love this scarf so much.  I cast on while the boys were playing after breakfast and I made it through 20 rows before calling it a night.

Totally gratuitous shot of my sparkly nails.

I love these yarns so much.  Each row is so delicious to knit I can practically taste it in my mouth.  I love seeing the colors line up, and seeing the mix of garter, stockinette and reverse stockinette.

I will confess that this is going to be called my “Organized Chaos” Vegas scarf for a reason.  I wanted to stay true to my original plan, and my original rolls of the die, and flips of the coin.  Luckily I’d prerolled 63 rows for the original scarf, and I decided to use them all, exactly as is.  I only did one teensy bit of pre-planning.  Two of the yarns (Bonsai and Tiara) had pretty short yardages, under 100y each.  I wanted to make sure I wouldn’t run short, so I quickly tallied up how many rows of each color I had prerolled, and assigned the rarest number to the Bonsai, which had the shortest yardage, and the 2nd least common number to the Tiara.  The rest were nearly the same, so I plugged them in randomly.

I did find it interesting to note that although the rolls didn’t seem “random” in the sense that threw people off on FB and in Rav (some numbers occurring repeatedly, or too close together), in my case it turned out that my non-appearing random numbers actually had a pretty even split of the rolls.

Wait, did that come out clear?  Let me rephrase- some people rolled the same number in succession, and chose to re-roll the “non random” number, or swap it for something else.  While the rolls really were random, it was bugging some people that they weren’t turning out “even”.  So what I found entertaining was that even though in some sections of the 63 rows the same colors kept coming up, so that area didn’t feel “even”, overall I got a pretty good split.  See:

Yarn 1: Polaris (gray with sequins)- 11 rows

Yarn 2: Bonsai (green tape)- 8 rows

Yarn 3: Marble (jewel tones)- 13 rows

Yarn 4: Campus (darker green/purple)- 12 rows

Yarn 5: Tiara (mauve with sparkle)- 9 rows

Yarn 6: Party Angel (fuchsia with sparkle)- 10 rows

Which means that yes, out of 63 rows (of which I counted row 1 as my cast on and row 63 as my bind off) I had each of the 6 yarns coming out with 8, 9, 10, 11, 12 and 13 repeats.

That’s pretty cool to me!


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i’m sorry

It’s not you, it’s me.

I’m just not that into you.

I love you, I’m just not in love with you.

However you wanna put it, I’m breaking up with you, Vegas Scarf.  I knew it wasn’t going to work out between us, but rather than change the rules I decided to keep going.  Every row made my feelings obvious…I didn’t like where this was going.

I know you didn’t expect me to end things tonight- I didn’t either, honestly.  That’s why I was right in the middle of a row when I pulled you off the needles.

I know I made you think we’d work it out.  I’m sorry if I teased you by holding you up to my neck to be sure, even though I secretly knew that we didn’t “click”.

You’re good enough, long enough, but not wide enough though I take full responsibility for that, having ended it where I did.

Somewhere out there is someone who would have loved you.  Loved your Fun Furry kitch, your insane amount of black, and your combination of colors that I really had thought I’d grow to love.  That someone, unfortunately, isn’t me.

I’m moving on.  Tomorrow I’m going to go out and pick up someone else.  I hope you’ll be happy for me.


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aren’t they called “waiting rooms” for a reason?

Today I had a doctor’s appointment.  It’s not the kind of appointment that most women look forwards to- think cold hands and torture devices.  In fact, the only plus side to these appointments is that my doctor can, and usually is, called out to deliver babies.  If she’s not bringing new life into the world, she’s hopelessly overbooked with at least an hour’s wait past your scheduled time.

So it was actually with eagerness that I set out this morning for my visit.  Sure I had to miss sleeping in on my “late morning” and drive into town, find parking and schlep through the snow.  But I got to bring my Vegas Scarf with me, and was SURE to get in at least a dozen of those long, long rows.

Not.

I got there, 5 minutes late for my 9:45am appointment, and checked in with the secretary.  “How’s she running?” I asked.  “Oh,” she said, not realizing she was about to totally disappoint me, “you’re her first patient today.  Come right into the room.”

Crap.  No knitting for me.

I didn’t get any knitting done in the afternoon, ‘cus I spent it doing something totally frivolous and fun- shopping!  Note- I don’t usually call shopping “fun”.  But today it was.  My neighbor C and her adorable daughter (the one I babysat on Sat) went to Fairview to spend some gift cards I’d received for the holidays.  C is MUCH more fashionable than I am, works in the industry, etc, and a few weeks ago we’d played a game of “What Not To Wear” in my closet and pulled out EVERYTHING that did. not. work.  Too big, too small, too 90’s…if it wasn’t making me happy, it went in the bag.  There’s a woman’s shelter C knows of that has a lending “closet” where women can borrow clothes for interviews, work, etc, and we’ll be bringing the huge garbage bag of clothes there.  Which meant I had empty hangers to fill!  We had a great routine set up where I watched the stroller while C went around and picked the clothes, then I tried them on while she went to change sizes, etc.  In the end I managed to take advantage of some crazy sales and get boots, shoes, a belt, a pair of skinny jeans, a dress, a sweater dress, a cardi, a long-sleeve T and a sweater (oh- and 2 bottles of nail polish)- all for $180!  It was INSANE- and thanks to her amazing sales-radar, I still have more money to spend next time!

I had a headache by the time I got home, and it turned into a migraine by the time the kids went to bed, so I ended up crashing early.  That means no knitting for the day.  So I’ll share 2 projects I finished over the last 2 months.

After my cousin told us he was having another baby, I knew automatically what I’d make.  He’s a huge HABS fan, but he moved out of our province and couldn’t root on his favorite team as much.  Whether the baby would be a boy or girl, I KNEW he’d like one of my HABSie dolls.

I used worsted weight acrylic yarn from my stash, held doubled, and appropriate needles.  Beyond that I followed my pattern as written.  I used the doubled worsted yarn because I wanted a larger toy than the original.

Ok I did make one teensy change…or rather, an addition.  I duplicate-stitched the year of the baby’s birth on the back.  🙂

As it turned out, my cousin had a baby boy so the HABS doll was perfect!

A baby boy in a Jewish family means a bris, and my aunt had asked me for tips on making a baby-sized kippah.  She wasn’t sure about the yarn…or the pattern…or the hook size…and finally just asked me if I would be able to make it for him.

So I did.  I used crochet thread and a very small (1.25mm?) crochet hook.  The white was one thickness but the blue was thinner so I held it along with a white/silver strand, not that you can really tell from these photos.  I made up the pattern, both the increase rate and the colorwork, as I went along, and stopped when it “seemed about the right size”.  I think it was roughly 3″ across.

This is the inside, for those of you who like that sort of thing.