Tag: hat

Yarn, Knitting and Crochet

Tame Those Stripey Yarns

Iris Rose

You know those really lovely stripey skeins of yarn that look so pretty on the shelf and then just jump into your shopping basket and come home with you?  You remember how disappointing it can be when you knit up one of those too gorgeous to leave behind skeins and it turns out that the colour changes are too abrupt?  The must have, love it to death, oh so pretty stripes that look like heck when turned into an actual project can be redeemed!

I am guilty of the same impulse buys that a lot of us are.  There must be a lot of us because the yarn companies keep making new versions of the same stripes, short colour changes or long.  There is a way to minimize the effect of the colour changes that always seem to fall at a place in your project that is just wrong.

This hat knitting has given me plenty of opportunities to play with colour.  I have always doubled two yarns of contrasting colours to make a bulky yarn that will calm down a too bright (but again, oh so pretty) yarn and make it usable.  I have been experimenting with ways to cure the colour change.

It means that the yarn is doubled but a number of today’s yarns are thinner than they were a few years ago.  I start with matching the colours from both ends of the skein.  I like to rewind my yarn into a cake before starting to check for knots and this also facilitates using two ends easily.  Then I will pull one end out to about half way through the colour so that points where the colour changes do not line up.  Start knitting or crocheting and you will see a lovely blending of the stripes so that there are no abrupt changes. The first hat is Lion Brand Landscape which is a worsted weight.  I knit this one with 8mm needles.

 

Next up is made with Red Heart Unforgettable, a little lighter that knit up nicely doubled on 6.5mm needles.  I also tried crocheting with the same method and you can see how the colour changes are softened.

 

 

Finally we have Red Heart Roll With It Melange in two colourways.

 

You can also use one end of a self striping yarn and one of a solid colour.  This hat was made that way using the same Roll With It as in the hat above and a light worsted in medium grey.

It really is that easy.  I used Red Heart Roll With It for a couple of projects and, even though the colour changes are quite short, I still ended up with a pretty tweedy effect that softened the visual impact of the yarn.  I hope that this little tip has helped you with ideas to use up that part of the stash that is calling out to you for guidance!

Have a lovely week, stay safe and be kind.

Yarn, Knitting and Crochet

Wrap It Up For Kids

Iris Rose

Last week I wrote about handmade gifts and shamelessly suggested my own patterns for you to make in time for gift giving at Christmas. Today I will just as shamelessly suggest some of my patterns for kids! It always surprises me at how much little ones appreciate a gift made just for them.  My patterns are all priced at $4.99 or less.

If you crochet, my Toddler’s Pretty Crocheted Cardigan (paid) is an easy and fast make for your Christmas princess. Made with low cost acrylic yarn, you can probably make this with something from your stash. I used Red Heart Soft for my pattern tests, but I have also made this with other basic worsted weight yarn.

My Little Lovely Lacey Cardigan is another pretty (paid) make. Combining both knit and crochet, I have offered you size 6 months to girls 8 in this one in DK weight yarn.

Knit and Sewn Kid’s Dress, also paid, combines a knitted top with a sewn fabric skirt. Make it up in a pretty glitzy yarn on top and satin or lace on the bottom and the Christmas dress is done.

On the toy side, my Sweet Doll Bed is a very quick crochet project for a last minute gift that will make a little one smile. It will fit up to an eight inch doll and can easily be modified by increasing the rounds of the base. Using acrylic worsted weight, this one won’t break the bank either.

How about a Monster? Free in my Ravelry store, this one requires a little more knitting skill but is really fun to do.

And lastly, how about a cute hat? This is also free in my Ravelry store, a quick make and kids just love to wear a Tiger Hat on their head. You will need to know how to knit in the round and have a little more skill to make the features.

I posted a pattern for a cute rabbit that is easy to make in a blog post earlier this year, another freebie if you take the time to look back to May 3rd!

I hope that these suggestions will inspire you to create handmade gifts whether you use my patterns or not.

Thank you for reading and happy crafting this week!

Yarn, Knitting and Crochet

Off To The Mountains, Rerun It Is!

Iris Rose

I am off to Jasper National Park for the weekend, lucky me!  I will have photos next week but in the meantime, here is a rerun of a post from last January.  The subject is appropriate for this time of year with the big W looming.  I just can’t bring myself to say the word yet!

I know that I have written about hat patterns before this and have published one in my blog only, along with the couple that I have in my Ravelry store. I find that knitting or crocheting a hat is a very soothing and rewarding process. The project is completed in a short period of time so that the repetition does not become tiresome and the resulting hat is both functional and shows off lovely yarns. Hats are a good way to try out new techniques and stitches without a huge investment of time and money.


Hat making is for crafters as a romance novel is for a serious reader; a way to keep your mind active without any stress because you know that the major characters are always going to live happily ever after and your hat will always fit and look great on somebody.


I cleaned out my stash in November when I was looking for a yarn for a specific project (and I was appalled at the mess my stash was in) and found a box of odd acrylic, wool and wool blend skeins, all washable, that I had forgotten about. I have made a commitment this year to more charity crafting and here was the perfect yarn for that goal.

Since I like to knit hats the best for the reasons above, I started with hat projects. I have knitted six in the last week! I plan to keep on going but do need to switch up the type of project. I am thinking mitts next or maybe scarfs are more practical. I also need to switch to crochet as I have a horde of hat patterns in that craft that are crying to be used.
We will see what the next week brings but in the meantime, I thought that I would share my hat formula with you. It is adaptable to any worsted or heavier yarn and customizable if you want to try different stitches. I can make one of these hats in about three to three and half hours depending on how distracted I am.


Basic Adult Winter Toque:
Yarn: Worsted weight 130m (143yds) 5.5mm or 6mm (US 9 or 10), 40cm circular needle
Aran or Chunky 110m (121yds) 6.5mm (US 10.5), 40cm (16”) circular needle
Bulky 95m (105yds) 8mm (US11), 40cm (16”) circular needle

You will need DPN’s in the same size to shape the crown or a same size longer circular needle for Magic Loop. You will also need a stitch marker and a tapestry needle for weaving in the ends.

The first cast on number of stitches is for worsted, the second for chunky, and the third is for bulky yarn.

Cast on 84, (78, 72) stitches and join to work in the round. Place a marker at the join.

Work 18, (16, 14) rounds of ribbing. My favourite is K2, P1 as this makes a nice stretchy ribbing like a 1 x 1 but is still a little different looking. It also lets you twist the knit stitches for a faux cable look.

Continue knitting in rounds until 30, (28, 26) rounds of stocking stitch have been worked. Start decreases for the crown. Divide your working stitches by six so 84 stitches will result in decreasing by K12, K2together six times.

You will decrease 78 stitches by K11, K2together six times and with 72 stitches you will work K10, K2together six times.

Next round, knit all stitches. Continue decreasing every second round by working one stitch less between the K2togethers each consecutive decrease round. Switch to DPN’s or Magic Loop when the stitches are too taut on the needle.

End at K1, K2together (12 stitches remaining) and, cutting a 15cm or 6” end, thread the end through the remaining stitches and gather them up off of the needles(s). I like to thread the tail through to the wrong side and fasten it off securely inside. Weave your beginning end and any ends from colour changes etc., and you are done.

Add a pompom for an up to date look or tassels to make it vintage looking. Make it in stripes, a good way to use up part skeins, or with a self-striping yarn. You can modify this pattern with a fancy stitch, but you will have to figure out how to work that into the decreases. You can also adapt the pattern for finer yarn by increasing the number of cast on stitches, decreasing the needle size to suit, and keep your stitch count always divisible by six to keep the crown decrease in a nice shape.


I use this same formula for kid’s hats, decreasing the number of cast on stitches by six for 5 to 9 year olds and 12 for younger. Even smaller for babies is possible with another six less stitches.


Have fun and keep those charities in mind if you want to practice.

Knitting

Finished! and Shawl Part Two

Iris Rose

I have a few photos for you this week as well as part two of the Shawl in Parts that I started last week.

I finally blocked the two little swonchos that I made and declared as finished last week. They really are finally, finally finished now. I really like them and will definitely be making more. I think that I like the length of the peach and the neck of the teal one more. I guess I should combine the two and have the best of both in one. I am going to develop a size range too.


I spent some evening time this week working on a cat hat and scarf set. It is sized for a kid from six to ten maybe and was fun to make. What do you think? Should I make more of these with different animals?

Here is part two of the shawl pattern that I started last week. It is easy mesh lace and is mirrored to slant downward on each side of the centre spine which stays in stocking stitch. Have fun with this part and let me know if you need help; I am available here on the contact page or on Ravelry as bluechicken.

Shawl part two:
You should have sixty five stitches between the markers on each side of the centre spine and side borders. Make sure that you have ended the first section by completing a wrong side row and are ready to work on the right side next.  K2tog means knit 2 stitches together and SSK means slip two stitches onto the right needle knitwise, slip them back to the left needle and knit them together.  This makes the pattern slant in different directions on each side of the shawl to mirror the lace.

Row 1: Work the border stitches as before, slip marker, YO, K1, YO, (K2tog, YO) over the next 64 stitches, slip marker, K5, slip marker, YO, (SSK, YO) over the next 64 stitches, K1, YO, slip marker and work border stitches.

Row2: Work the border stitches, slip marker, P all stitches, slip marker, work the border stitches.
Repeat these two rows another 11 times for a total of twelve repeats.

Wow, this section is easy! Don’t worry the next section is easy too.

Have a great yarny week! Now I need to get knitting fast to have a new section ready for you next week!

Knitting

Knitting and Pancakes, Love ‘Em Both!

Iris Rose

Here we are, almost into April! My goodness how the time passes by when you are not looking.  I have been busy this week.  Two new charity hats are in the bag and I have knit three babies and two mermaid dolls.  I have a big bag of unfinished dollies now so I better get to work on the sewing and stuffing.

I have been procrastinating about publishing my little cardigan pattern. I finally finished the test knits and have them blocked so will push myself to get the final draft of the pattern out next week.
In the meantime, I have been playing with my knitting machine (still) and spent my spare time this week embellishing a little pullover with crocheted appliques. I was hoping to finish it yesterday but, life, you know how that goes. Here is the almost finished sweater. I am quite pleased with how it turned out. I used to make a baby version of this but haven’t done one for a while. I never write this type of finishing down, I should but I do love the creative process of just winging it!


Do you have plans for this long weekend? We are having the family over for a visit and dinner on Saturday. I can’t wait! I always love to see my kids and grandkids. I always like to make a special breakfast for DH and myself on Easter Sunday. I think that this year I will make pancakes with my homemade sausage and cook a couple of eggs as well. If you missed my pancake recipe that was featured in a prior post and would like to make it this weekend, here it is again. Enjoy and have a great weekend!

Iris Rose’s delicious pancakes:
These ingredients will make two very large (plate sized) pancakes.
3 Tbsps of butter
Melt the butter in a 9” or 22cm frying pan over medium heat. I use two pans to cook both pancakes at once and melt butter in each. You will be using the excess butter in the pancake batter but leave some to brown with the batter.
1 cup of flour
1 & 1/2 tsp. baking powder
¼ tsp baking soda
Combine these ingredients in a bowl big enough to hold the wet ingredients too.
1 egg
2 Tbsps honey or maple syrup
1 cup of buttermilk (Don’t have any buttermilk? Just add a tsp of vinegar to plain milk or mix in a good dollop (2Tbsps) of sour cream or yogurt to plain milk to make a cup.)
I mix these ingredients using a 2 cup measuring cup in the following order: beat the egg, beat in the honey or syrup, mix in the buttermilk.
Pour most of the melted butter into the wet ingredients and stir. Make a well in the centre of the dry ingredients and pour in the wet. Mix with a few quick stirs until all of the dry stuff is wet. Don’t worry about lumps and don’t overmix.
Pour half of the batter into each pan. Here is where you make them fun. Top the batter with sliced banana, sliced peaches, blueberries, sliced apples, you get the picture.
If you want savory pancakes, top the batter in the pan with cooked diced ham, cooked sliced mushrooms, grated cheese, shrimps and so on.
When the pancake has some bubbles that pop and is starting to look dry around the edges, be brave and flip the whole thing over. Your added goodies should have sunk into the batter and will cook while the second side is cooking. I wait a couple of minutes and turn off the stove at this point as there should be enough heat in the pan and the cooked side to finish the pancake without burning your yummy addons.
In a couple of more minutes, flip the pancake onto a plate and admire the pretty pattern made by the additions. Serve with syrup, preferably maple, and enjoy!