Learning to Knit Two

I haven't knit socks in well over a year. I like to knit socks but I'm the type that wants to knit it and revel in the finished product of my hard work and move on to the next. With socks (and mitts) you finish and then repeat. Another problem with that is, it makes is more difficult to be creative with adding color unless you are taking notes the entire way. Also the size can end up being slightly off from the other one because you decided to knit your second sock late at night so your tension is a bit off.

I've been hearing for quite some time about knitting two socks at the same time. The idea severely intimidated me. It brought back horrible memories of the first time I tried to use DPNs. I almost quit knitting all together over stupid DPNs. On my bookshelf Knitting More Circles Around Socks by Antje Gillingham sat and tormented me. All I had done with the book is admire the socks pictured throughout it but this last time I couldn't resist at least trying.

As it turns out, it really wasn't that hard to do and only got easier as I went. I started with the very first pattern in the book, Women's Basic Cuff-Down Socks and made a simple pair with Brava Worsted yarn in Camel Heather from Knit Picks. Not only was it the fastest I've ever knit up a pair of socks but they looked great when they were finished.

The York Mittens and Amelie Hat

I have a pair of fingerless, flip flop mittens that I love. As it turns out, so does my daughter and we both almost have the same size hands. After a morning of her trying to convince me to allow her to wear mine to school (and me not budging) I promised to make her her own pair.

I have quite a few skeins of some Ironstone flake cotton yarn that she wanted me to use but I don't like the feel of it and I really don't think it would knit up well or warm enough for mitts. Instead I found an extra skein of Caron yarn in my stash in sage green. Caron yarn is super cheap but it's also super soft and puts up with being thrown in the wash with no issues. It's perfect for using on kid's projects as a good Aran yarn.

The pattern I finally settled on was The York Mittens pattern by Mariana Wegener. The pattern is another free one from Ravelry. I love Ravelry for finding great, free patterns. The pattern is very easy to follow and I finished these mitts in about a day. The only thing I haven't done yet is make the I-Cord button loop and attach buttons since my daughter hasn't decided on which buttons she would like.

Next on the list was a hat to match her mitts since the only new one that I have made for her recently is the Slouchy Snood and that is in red. Red and green go great together for the holidays but not everyday is Christmas.

For her hat I fell in love with The Amelie Hat pattern by Christi Wasson. This is also another free pattern from Ravelry. This pattern gave me the perfect opportunity to use up some of the Ironstone flake yarn that she so desperately wanted me to use. If you have some of this stuff laying around I highly suggest using it as a striping yarn for decoration and sprucing up of knits. Searching online for good patterns for the yarn I wasn't too impressed with how the yarn looked on finished projects. It just looks really messy and like it's going to fall apart at any moment. Apparently Craftsy had an overstock and sent a bunch out in purchased mystery boxes and not many were happy when they saw it either. I got mine on clearance from Knit Picks. It was around a buck a skein so I thought why not, and bought 9 skeins. Now I know why...

 

Green Elf Hat

I never really got into doing themed knitting. Maybe because when I first started knitting I wasn't very fast at it and was still throwing my yarn so anything themed would never be done in time. Now that I've mastered continental knitting I can keep up with some of the best of 'em.

A couple years ago a friend asked me to help her out with her kid's costumes. They were dressing up as Link and needed warm hats to go with their outfits. That wasn't a problem and I got them put together. Unfortunately that was before I realized just how important taking measurements really is. When they put the hats on they looked like they were wearing giant condoms with a pointy tip. Thankfully the boys liked them and their mom has a great sense of humor.

It was funny but I wasn't happy with my work and was determined to make something that looked nice to make up for it. I would make a hat that was long and pointy and it would look nice. I gathered up all the left over yarn from the boy's hats and cast on, this time taking measurements of my own head. I didn't care if I wasn't going to wear it but damn it, it was going to be functional and cute!

After throwing my yarn like a newbie, I worked on that hat for nearly three days before it was finished.

This hat is for sale and available at KnitsNFrillyThings

It turned out wonderfully. The hat fit, it had character and came out looking exactly as I had pictured it. This is also probably my only example of work with perfect seaming as well. I still don't know how I got the seaming done that well, but I'll take it. ;)

Drop Stitch Scarf

Okay, one last post for the day because I recently made it available in the shop. Just added is the availability to custom order a super warm and stretchy drop stitch scarf. The one pictured is an example of what you can order. I'm keeping this one for myself.

Each scarf is over 6ft long and 9 inches wide. If you don't like to wear it that wide all you have to do is fold it in half. Because it's so stretchy (and long) you can wrap it any way you want around your neck and you won't be stuck with a "bow tie" look.

The scarf is machine washable and dryer friendly. To get your custom scarf knitted up, place your order with me at KnitsNFrillyThings and let me know what you want.

Custom Fit Raglan

My current work in progress is a custom fit raglan for my daughter. Again she's the test subject for a new pattern. This pattern is great because it's knit from the top down, allowing my daughter to try it on as I knit.

I'm keeping the knit very basic for the first go at it, making notes for changes along the way. Keep your eye out for custom sweater orders in the KnitsNFrillyThings shop.

For those of you other knitters that also want to try a raglan sweater that you can design on your own you can find the instructions at Ravelry for the The Incredible Custom-Fit Raglan. It walks you through step by step on how to take proper measurements and how to plug them into the chart to achieve the right size you are wanting. Some of the instructions are vague and it took me a couple times of casting on and ripping my work to get it right but the pattern does work.

Feel free to ask any questions about the pattern here and I would be more than happy to try and answer them for you or direct you to someone who can.

Slouchy Snood

New and creative looks that aren't too out there always get my attention. Don't get me wrong, monster hats and kitty ears are adorable but not all grown ups want to run around with those on their heads. My kids do but I like something a little more subtle but still have character. Slouchy hats are very popular with teens on up and I think they are very cute as well.

Slouchy Snood

This is a Slouchy Snood with Picot Edging. If you notice, the edging around the hat is not just basic ribbing. Picot Edging is very pretty especially when used with a lace knit such as this hat. Slouchy hats are are great to wear like my daughter is as well as being baggy enough to tuck your hair up into.

If you want a Slouchy Snood you can order a custom one just for you. You can find that purchase option at KnitsNFrillyThings. There you can tell me what colors you want. Sizing is one size as the knit is very stretchy.

Ruffled Leg Warmers

With my other crafty friends we never hesitate to barter our goods with each other. On one of my last barters I was asked to make some leg warmers for a 4 month old. My friends daughter was scooting around on the floor and getting ready to crawl. She's got hardwood floors throughout her house and wanted some padding and protection on the knees. Simple enough of a request and I found the perfect pattern for them.

Happy Vi in her ruffled legwarmers and matching ruffled hat.

Sage Green size 6 to 12 months

Brown size 6 to 12 months

Yellow size 6 to 12 months

I knit a couple pairs for my friend going a size up so they could be pulled up over the knee to accomplish what she was wanting them for. A bonus is that when she is walking, they will still fit her and can be worn as actual leg warmers over tights and such.

The pictured leg warmers are available for purchase at KnitsNFrillyThings as well as the option for custom orders on these. With custom orders you can determine the size and color you want as well as design (such as stripes of colors).