Category: Patterns

To bare or not to bare…

Posted on by Alice Neal

… *snigger*

I have two patterns for you.

That’s rather the point.

One, I hinted at at the end of my last post and I cannot tell you how thrilled I was with the way it turned out.

Knitted in stunning Louisa Harding Amitola, with its shiny silken sheen and delicately changing colours, and Millamia naturally soft merino which holds a stitch like no yarn I’ve used before, the stripes kept me hooked throughout the working of this piece. I was forever impatient as to how the next colour would look blended into the rest.

Here, you can see what I mean:

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For the body, I used Millamia naturally soft merino in Putty Grey and Louisa Harding Amitola in Dark Rose.

The ribbing on the cuffs, neck and button band are in the same Millamia wool, in the shade Storm.

It is knitted in the round, top down, with a circular yoke and I blooming LOVE it. It’s light enough to grab as you run out of the door, and warm enough for a snuggly extra layer. I used mother of pearl buttons BUT whilst I think they look beautiful, I have already had to replace 3 broken ones. They are terribly fragile 🙁

Anyway, here it is, in all its glory:

If you fancy having a crack at it yourself, you can find the pattern here.

 

The second piece…

…is all together more risqué. But it was equally fun to create.

Knitted and crocheted in Cascade Yarns Ultrapima 100% cotton in sand and taupe, which look to me like a dull gold and silver, it produces a really lovely, airy but sturdy fabric. Perfect for super-hot days / evenings. I would recommend a little dress tape, though – no running after the kids in this one! 😉

So, you’ll need basic knitting and crochet skills for this one and you can find the pattern over here if you fancy giving it a go.

In other news...

This King Cole Galaxy with integral silver sequins became another piece of knitting / crochet fusion which I may well get around to writing up. It’s light and airy and perfect either on its own or as an off-the-shoulder top layer.

 

And, this jumper in Drops Karisma will be written into a pattern soon, too.

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And this cardi, knitted in Drops Karisma and a beautiful hand-dyed yarn all the way from The Flying Kettle in the ol’ U S of A (look her up on Instagram, her stuff is gorgeous!)

Oh, oh, AND, this sweater:

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I have an AWFUL LOT of pattern writing to do 🙂

By the way, do you like my t-shirt?

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Right, I’d best get on and start writing, then! TTFN <3

 

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A catch-up in beautiful yarns…

Posted on by Alice Neal

I’ve been playing with some serious beauties recently.

The first two I’m going to show you I have just finished writing up the patterns for, and they’ll be available on the loveknitting.com website, and in my Etsy shop very shortly.

The first I call In the Shade since the fairisle pattern is a row of trees with their shadows beneath them. It is knitted in Drops Karisma, in light and dark grey, on 4.5mm circulars. And I’m wearing it as I type 😉 Click here for the pattern

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The second is Drops Bomull-Lin, a lovely mix of cotton and linen, in brown and beige (the beige being more like pale gold with its lovely linen sheen). This is my Spring Tunic, knitted in the round on 6mm needles, with eyelet lace details. Click here for the pattern

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Also, I got a surprise parcel in the post: a parcel of beauty I would probably not have bought for myself. And I LOVED the challenge of coming up with something to make from it. It is a combination of Millamia 100% merino and Louisa Harding Amitola, which contains silk, shimmers stunningly, and changes colour gradually throughout the piece. Here it is in progress, but on 3mm needles, it’s a slow process – a cardigan in the making (now finished, click here for the pattern):

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And finally 🙂

Fancy making this?

Here’s how (in UK terms)

1. Using Drops Bomull-Lin in beige (pale gold) and a 4.5mm hook, chain 30.

2. Make a double crochet (dc) into the 2nd chain from hook, and into the next 5 chains. Then chain 16, and make a dc into each of the last 6 chains.

3. Turn, chain 1, insert hook into first dc in row and make a dc into this and the next 5 chains. Then chain 16, and make a dc into each of the last 6 chains.

4. Turn, chain 1, insert hook into first dc in row and make a dc into this and the next. To make the button hole chain 2 and skip the next 2 dc. Make a dc into the next 2 dc. Chain 16, and make a dc into each of the last 6 chains.

5. Turn, chain 1, insert hook into first dc in row and make a dc into this and the next 5 chains. Then chain 16, and make a dc into the first 2 of the last 6, 2 dc into the 2-chain gap, and a dc into each of the last w dc.

Repeat step 3. three more times. You will have 8 rows in all. Sew a button onto the opposite cuff part from the button hole and voila!

Hasta la proxima, peeps. <3

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Miniature Delights

Posted on by Alice Neal

A dear friend of mine was expecting her fourth child. She already has three of the most gorgeous girls you’ll ever see, and this was her first boy. Obviously, most of those little garments saved from previous siblings weren’t going to be any good.

She asked me to make a couple of things for him. She’d found a fairisle babygro pattern on garnstudio.com (click on the web address and you’ll see the one), and she wanted a baby cocoon, too. (Scroll down for details of how I made it).

The babygro took ages. On 3mm needles in Drops Baby Alpaca Silk, the seed stitch was the fiddliest part. And I’m not a speed knitter. But, as you’ll see from the following pictures, it was worth every second:

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And here is Arthur, less than a day old, demonstrating the very reassuring fact that there is plenty of room for growth <3

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As for the cocoon, the pictures she sent me of those that she liked were of such a simple design that all I really needed was some approximate dimensions. It’s astonishing how much we overestimate the size of newborn babies, even though we’re know they’re (generally) seriously teeny.

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The circumference of a baby cocoon needs to be around 17-18 inches, so you need to knit a swatch of your chosen yarn to work out how many stitches you need to cast on for the circumference.

I used Drops Fabel in Sea Mist Print, which is a self-patterning sock yarn, and knitted it in the round on 2.5mm circular needles.

When you’ve reached a length of 18 inches, you need to decrease. I simply used a [knit 4, knit 2 together] knitting the last few stitches if there were fewer than 6.

When I reached 20-ish stitches left, I knitted 2 together all around, broke the yarn and sewed it through the remaining live stitches, pulled to close and sewed the ends in.

And look!

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Perfection <3

(With massive thanks to Arthur’s mummy, Imo, for allowing me to share her new baby with you).

A Spring Poncho

Posted on by Alice Neal

… in cotton and linen.

Ooh, I love how this knitted up.

I wanted to try something other than wool. I’m a bit of a yarn snob and only really like using natural fibres, but since Mother’s Day and my mum’s birthday fall in the same week this year, and my troublesome Mum is allergic to wool (aaaaaaagghh!!) I thought I’d better have a play with something else.

So I bought myself some Drops Bomull-Lin – a 47% / 53% blend of linen and cotton. It calls for 5.5mm needles, but I wanted something rather more drapey, so I used 6mm circulars. And drapey it jolly well is.

Humble beginnings:

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(and do forgive my stitch markers – in spite of having half a million of the pesky things, I invariably end up using knotted scraps of waste yarn)

Hiding away:

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I’m totally addicted to House just now. On Season 2. It’s the perfect knitting companion 🙂

Beginning the border:

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I chose a ridged eyelet lace for this one.

See? It progresses:

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Et voila! C’est fini…

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If you fancy having a crack at it yourself, you can find the modestly priced pattern over here.

This is not, however, for my mum. I have something else in store for her, so no surprises spoiled, you’ll be enormously relieved to hear 😉

Fat and Sassy Valentine

Posted on by Alice Neal

 

Loveknitting.com sent me this gorgeous, squishy bundle of delight that is Tjockt Fat & Sassy Merino and asked me to try it out, so I’m delighted to offer you a tutorial for this squidgy, tactile, chunky scatter cushion. It’s blissfully quick and easy to make.
And it is also a simple introduction to intarsia. This stuff is HUGE, requiring the biggest needles I’ve ever used, at 25mm, which makes it both very speedy and really fun to use.

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The cushion measures 30cm x 24cm

You will need:

250g Tjockt Fat & Sassy Merino in Cloud
100g Tjockt Fat & Sassy Merino in Raspberry
25mm knitting needles
Stuffing

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Step 1: Cast on 11 stitches and knit 2 rows of stocking stitch.

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(Knit 1 row, and purl the next – this cushion is knitted entirely in stocking stitch).
Then we follow the chart:

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The first pink stitch is introduced in the middle of the next purl row:

Turn the work and it will look like this:

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Now you are ready to knit row 4 of the chart. When you reach the first of the three pink stitches, wrap the pink yarn around the grey behind the work before making the stitch. This will avoid any gaping holes on the right side of the work between the heart motif and the rest of the cushion. Repeat this process each time you change colour.

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At the end of this row, the back of your work will look very like this:

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Turn your work and purl row 5, remembering to wrap the yarn around the contrasting colour at the back. It is also worth, once you are knitting a contrasting colour of more than 3 stitches, wrapping it around the original colour again before 4th (and so on, in multiples of 2 or 3 stitches depending on the number you are knitting).

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You can see in the following picture that the yarn was wrapped again after 3rd stitch:

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Continuing working through the chart, remembering to wrap the yarn with each colour change and in multiples of 2 or 3 stitches behind the work.

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The back:

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And continue working the chart:

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When you have reached the end of the chart and have 11 rows, bind off.

Your work will look like this:

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And now you need to make another exactly the same, and leave the last length of grey yarn trailing – you will use it to ‘sew’ the front to the back.

Construction:
Since the yarn is so beautifully chunky, no tapestry needle is needed to put it together. You can push the yarn through the stitches with your fingers.
Taking the tail from the second piece and with wrong sides together, right sides facing outwards, push the yarn through the stitch on the corresponding corner of the first piece.
You are now going to ‘sew’ with your fingers, pushing the tail under the outside loop of the one stitch and into the outside loop of the corresponding side. I have illustrated how the yarn travels using a crochet hook in this next image (and you can actually see the previous stitch, too):

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Employ the same technique around the sides:

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When you reach the fourth side, stuff your cushion to the firmness you like. Don’t be tempted to overstuff as the stuffing will be visible through the large stitches. But one advantage of this gorgeous yarn is that it is almost a cushion when sewn together without any stuffing at all!

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Use the same ‘sewing’ method to fasten the last side and weave in the end.

 

Enjoy your sumptuous new cushion!

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You can find more of my patterns on loveknitting.com – search Alice Neal
and in my Etsy shop.

Have a gorgeous weekend <3

Chunky FTW! (a free pattern)

Posted on by Alice Neal

I have made (it’s official) the chunkiest hat in the WHOLE WIDE WORLD.

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I wanted to make a hat for my Beloved. He feels the cold a bit more than he used to, and of all the hats I have made, none is quite right.

I have a micro-stash of the chunkiest wool on the planet. Well…. it’s not. But it’s very chunky and it’s in my possession, and frankly, anything that needs knitting up on 15mm needles is pretty goshdarned chunky in my humble.

I’ve uploaded quite a few patterns for sale recently, so I thought I’d give the readers of my blog this piece of squishiness as a token of my appreciation.

Here’s what you need.
(Click the name at the top for a printable download)

The Chunk

2 x 100g balls Drops Polaris
15mm circular needles
A tapestry needle for weaving in ends
A large pompom maker (it’s so much less fiddly than all that faffing around with cardboard doughnuts!)

Method:
(This makes an adult-sized hat, which fits my 15 year old son rather too well. I may have to hide it).

Cast on 36 stitches and place marker for the beginning of the round.

Knit 1 Purl 1 rib for 14 rows. This gives a really chunky squishy turn-up around the base of your hat.

Knit 5 rows.

Make your decreases as follows:

[Knit 5, K2tog] around. (36 remaining)

[Knit 4, K2tog] around. (30)

[Knit 3, K2tog] around. (24)

[Knit 2, K2tog] around. (18)

[Knit1, K2tog] around. (12)

K2tog around. (6)

K2tog around. (3)

Cut the tail long enough to thread through the last 3 stitches, pull tight and weave in.

Make a large pompom, leaving the ends long enough to thread through the top of the hat and tie in a tight double knot underneath, inside the top of the hat.

Weave in all ends.

Ta-dah!

Enjoy keeping warm <3

In the meantime, if you’re looking for other patterns, you can now find these ones both in my Etsy shop and on the loveknitting.com website:

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The Ponchette pattern can be found here.
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The Juno Jumper pattern can be found here.
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The Ssssidney Snake pattern can be found here.
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The Snuggly Slippers pattern can be found here.
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The Simon Cowell Yorkie Christmas Jumper pattern can be found here.

 

PS I have always wanted a really chunky hat. Apparently, this one is a bit ‘too girly’ for my beloved. Imagine my chagrin… 😉

A little pouch

Posted on by Alice Neal

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So I made a little bag.

I had a vague plan as I embarked on it, but it has turned out more beautiful than I had hoped. *whoop*! 🙂

It is, essentially, a pouch bag in a chunky yarn with a loop handle and top in lemon cashmere merino silk (by Sublime), and a drawstring fastening in contrasting vintage rose silk merino (also Sublime).

I stuffed a ball of wool in it for some pictures:

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And I am off to make another, writing up the pattern and taking pictures for a tutorial as I go.

So… more anon!

In the meantime, though, I have finally written up the pattern for these gorgeous snuggly-but-oh-so-stylish slippers:

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And you can find it here. Happy crocheting! <3

A Jack Russell, a Tunic and an Adventure.

Posted on by Alice Neal

Oh, I know, I know. I’m rubbish.

Life hurtles along at breakneck speed and before you know it months have flown past and now… SPRING! And hallelujah, because frankly winter can jolly well do one. There have been enough bugs under this roof to sink a small fleet of battleships and this family is emerging, battle-scarred but undefeated, blinking into the sunlight.

But I have been busy. Honest.

First of all I have this to share with you:

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I mean loooooooook! And before people get all stuffy and snippy about dogs already having coats, take it from me that the harsh blooming winters up here do not agree with our dear teeny skinny Juno’s demeanour. Admittedly, pure wool may be treating her rather more as a Princess than warranted 😉  but she is most grateful for an extra layer.

If you fancy making something similar, have a little look over here, where you can download the pattern for free.

In other news, I have completed a granny square tunic, which will be on the backburner till autumn:

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And I have just embarked upon a little after-school adventure with 14 of the children from our village primary.

This afternoon, armed with a great mountain of goodies from loveknitting.com (bless their hearts), I headed off into the unknown:

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The hour flew by in a flurry of

“Miss, I can’t do this! Miss, is this right? Miss, what’s happened to this?”

(I know… “Miss” >.< It cracks me up)

But they were little troopers and are coming back next week for more punishment, and I am proud to report that we have a few already managing garter stitch, along with a valiant few who have yet to ‘click’, but we’ll do it!

And here are the fruits of the first session’s labours:

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I will be very happy to report on our continued progress next week 🙂

Back so soon?

Posted on by Alice Neal

Why yes, I am 🙂

How’s this for a New Year’s Resolution not to fall off the face of the earth for a few months? Twice in one year – hurrah! 😉

So.

What’s happening?

Well, this morning I happened upon this video:

[vimeo 6723357 w=500 h=375]

DROPS Crochet Tutorial: How to do Tunisian crochet, Afghan crochet or Tricot Crochetfrom Garnstudio Drops design on Vimeo.

And I thought to myself ‘Now that doesn’t look too tricky!’

So I gave it a go.

tunisian-crochetIt’s hard to express how gorgeous this is. It’s thick, and springy, and sturdy and yet still incredibly soft.

I wanted it to be something, so I carried on, and here we have my new glasses case:

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And in case you fancy trying this yourself, here’s how I did it:

Tunisian Crochet Glasses Case

Drops Andes 65% wool, 35% alpaca (about half a ball)
7mm crochet hook

Chain 12 stitches (you end up with 11 on the hook once you have begun)
Follow the directions in the video for simple tunisian crochet

I did 22 rows of grey which I could rest my glasses on and fold about 1/3 back over.
I then changed the colour to chocolate brown and made another 16 rows.

Do not bind off, but fold the two colours together at the colour switch and single crochet back around the edge to create the case. I put a line of single crochet along the bottom as I went around, too, for aesthetic reasons. When you have joined the sides, continue up around the top of the case and when you reach the middle stitch put in one single crochet, chain 3 for the button hole and make another single crochet in the same stitch. Then carry on around.

If you’re clever (or is it lazy?) you’ll then cut the tail long enough to be able to weave it through the inside of the front and use it to secure your button before fastening it off and weaving in the ends.

Does this make sense?

If you try it and get stuck, please let me know where I have confused matters and I’ll try to clarify 🙂

In other news…

I made a bag over the weekend. That is, I found a ‘blanket’ (ahem) I had started and decided to give it a new destiny. So here it is:

bag1 bag2 bag3And that’s my news for now, so toodle-pip till next time! <3