Braided Ear Warmer

About a year ago I bought myself a cabling needle but was yet to put it into use because, as usual with trying new techniques, I thought it would be very difficult.  And as usual it turns out I was very wrong and it is actually much easier than it looks.   I finally started giving it a go recently with the help of some books and YouTube videos and I've been experimenting with lots of different types of cabling.  As a result I designed this chunky ear warmer head band.

It is quite slow growing as every other row is cabled but it creates a lovely plaited effect.  As a result of the cabling it also comes out pretty thick so keeps the ears super warm.  It has a fair amount of stretch so make it a bit smaller than your head size and it will stretch on and stay put. I've used DK yarn but I want to make one with chunky yarn now to make an more bulky ear warmer.

The pattern is available as a free download from my Knitting Pattern page, HERE.

Easy Crochet Kindle Case

Following on from my Easy Crochet iPhone Case, I've now made an Easy Crochet Kindle Case.  It's made in a very similar way although I've added a little fold over envelope flap to close the case.

 The pattern is available to download from my patterns page HERE. 

A Traditional Ted

Hello!  I haven't posted for a while because I've had several projects on the go at once which as well as being unusual for me (I try to finish one thing before starting another) it also means that I have not had any finished objects to show you.  However hopefully this means I will now have a run of lots of finished projects in a short space of time. 

Anyway, my Number 1 project of late has been to create a soft toy for a new baby boy who shall be joining the world very shortly.  Being something of a traditionalist I decided to make a good old fashioned Teddy Bear and found a vintage pattern via Buttons and Beeswax here.  Visit their Patterns page and then select Weldon's Teddy Bear which brings up a printable PDF. 

Here's the bear in all his naked glory. 

I made a couple of adjustments to the pattern, mainly that I wanted a bear worked in stocking stitch rather than garter stitch.  To do this I worked the pattern in exactly the same way regarding rows and where to increase/decrease etc. but alternated knit and purl rows rather than just knit.  I was slightly concerned this would affect the size/shape of the bear but he's turned out just fine.  I also changed the ears as I wanted to make them a bit stiffer than a single layer of knitting so I made an additional piece for each ear, one stitch smaller than the pattern, to use as an 'inner' ear, stitching the two pieces back to back.  This has made the ears more sturdy. 

Otherwise I kept to the pattern.  He turned out a bit bigger than I was expecting at about 18 inches.  I would probably therefore use smaller needles if I were to make another bear from this pattern in future to make it a bit smaller and to keep the knitting tighter but otherwise I think he's turned out great. 

 I also decided he needed something to wear so I made him a cute little snazzy vest.  I improvised this and didn't write the pattern down but I will try to reproduce it at some point so I can share the pattern.

 I do hope the bear is thoroughly loved by it's recipient. As he is about the size of a baby it will be a while before he's able to fully appreciate Bear but Bear is very squashy and cuddly so hopefully Baby will love to snuggle him when he's big enough to. 

Cutest Crochet Pattern Ever

I was pointed in the direction of this pattern by my armadillo-loving, non-crocheting friend and writer of Nutty Knittings.  I am pretty sure it is the cutest crochet pattern in the whole world.  If you've seen anything cuter please let me know!  I simply had to make one and surprise her with it.  

Definitely an OMG moment on the cuteness ratings.  It's a teeny amigurumi armadillo that can curl up into a little ball inside its shell!  OK so maybe I'm just easily pleased but I love it.   

The pattern suggests using whatever colours take your fancy but I kept it quite traditional and went for a beige body and a brown shell.  It was quite fiddly to make as some of the component are very small but I put it together over the course of a couple of hours in front of the telebox.  The whole thing fits in the palm of my hand and it turned out to be just as cute as I had imagined.  The pattern used just a few grams of yarn, a small amount of fibre fill and a pair of 6 mm safety eyes.  The pattern itself is well written and easy to follow with some good photos. 

The pattern is available as a free Ravelry Download HERE and was writtten by Kati Galusz.   

One Ball Neck Warmer

I was very kindly donated an odd ball of Rowan Colourscape Chunky lambswool.  It was one of those moments where I had to down-tools on my current project and immediately start making something with this special yarn.  Being so usually on a tight budget and therefore using *ahem* cheap yarn it was a very rare treat for me to be working with something so nice.  Although actually I think this has given me the bug for working with more luxurious yarn and I can't wait until i can next go yarn shopping to find some more lovely wool to work with.

Being a multicoloured yarn I wanted to make something that would show off the stripes nicely.  I decided it would become a cowl neck warmer with lots of different textures.  It had been a while since I'd had my circular needles out too so they were dusted off and put to work.  I think it may have been even better with a larger circular needle but 5 mm was the biggest I have.  Being a chunky wool it would probably have been fine up to about an 8 mm needle which would have made a looser scarf. (Note to self: something else for my shopping list next time I'm in a haberdashery.)  

Spring is fast approaching and we've had some weirdly warm days over the past couple of weeks.  The daffodils are all coming up and I bought myself my first bunch last weekend.  But I'm sure there are still some chilly and frosty mornings to come before winter is completely over so hopefully I will get some use out of my neck warmer before it has to go into hibernation until Autumn. 

If you want to make a stripy, chunky neck warmer like mine I've written up the pattern and it is available to download HERE on my Knitting Patterns page.