Free Knitting Pattern: Color Field Baby Blanket

As promised, here is my latest free knitting pattern:  the Color Field Baby Blanket.  Baby blankets are always a great handmade gift for new parents.  A blanket is very useful, and a baby doesn't grow out of it as soon as clothes or other gifts.

 I designed this pattern to be fun and colorful, and adaptable to match any personal taste or nursery decor.  For my blanket, I used the detail color of my first block as the background color of the next block, and transitioned through 6 colors that way to make my design.  However, this blanket could also be knit in just two colors (it would be beautiful using a variegated or striping yarn as the background and a solid color as the detail throughout; or - do the reverse.  Use one solid color as the background, and a variegated or striping yarn as the detail!)

I love how this blanket came out.  I hope you like it too :)  You can find my other free knitting patterns and articles on Hubpages! 

A Field of Flowers

from growcreative.blogspot.com

I love this idea!!  I came across this refreshed tote project on Elise's Grow Creative blog.  She took a thrifted tote bag and upcycled it with the addition of crocheted flowers.  I love the different designs of the flowers and her color choices.  The crocheted flowers add an unexpected texture to the bag that really catches you eye.

from growcreative.blogspot.com

Sadly, I don't crochet :(  But I think this project could also be made with knitted flowers.  I'm thinking of doing a similar project using my knitted flower with button center pattern.  I think the buttons could be a cute addition!

my flirty flower with button center pattern

What do you think?

Yarn Love

My pre-birthday present :)  Lots of possibilities....

Husband-Sized

As promised, here are some photos of my finished afghan for my husband.  He wouldn't model it for this posting, but he seems happy :)

I posted my modifications from the Walt Painted Baby Blanket pattern here.  The finished size of this blanket turned out to be 36 inches wide by 64 inches long (unblocked,and I don't have any plans to block it).  If I were to do over this project, I would add 2 - 4 more chevrons (15 sts each) to the width.  That would give a little more coverage on the side, but it's fine the way it is :)

You'll notice I only did two white stripes as opposed to the three I originally planned.  Knitting a third stripe would have meant starting another skein of yarn and I decided I didn't need any more length, so I chose to skip the stripe and return the extra skein.  Here an update on the yardage I used:

2 1/2  skeins of Caron Simply Soft in Gray Heather (main color)
2 skeins of Caron Simply Soft in Country Blue
1 1/2  skeins of Red Heart Super Saver in Tea Leaf (green)
1 skein of Caron Eco Ways in an off-white

I have enough yarn left over in a few of the colors to do a baby blanket, and we have a friend expecting in late May.  I hope to come up with an original pattern for this blanket.  Stay tuned :)

Keeping Hubby Happy & Warm

We've made it through our first winter in our new house and the one thing we've learned:  our new house is COLD.  My husband complains almost constantly and keeps raising the thermostat (neither of which really helps).  So when I was between knitting projects in February, it dawned on me that I should knit hubby a lap blanket/afghan to keep him warm and happy :)

So I struck a deal with him:  I would knit him a blanket if he let me choose the design and colors.  I knew I wanted a pattern that was simple and modern.  I came across this Walt Painted blanket pattern by Danielle Romanetti that I really liked and went about expanding the baby pattern to be husband-sized.  However, after doing some test knitting, I realized the purl front & back that she uses in her pattern was going to be a nightmare when I enlarged the pattern.  So instead, I used the basic pattern from Zig Zag Pram Blanket by Debbie Orr and made some changes to include garter stitch chevrons.  Since these are free patterns, I feel okay explaining how I incorporated both into my blanket.

First, since I knew my husband wasn't going to treat this blanket with any particular care, I decided to use inexpensive acrylic yarn from my local craft store.  I'm only about halfway through knitting my blanket, but I plan for the finished size to be about 42" wide by 60" to 64" long.  Since I'm still working on it, the yarn amounts below are estimates:

My materials 

3 skeins ( maybe more) of Caron Simply Soft in Gray Heather (main color - MC)
2 skeins of Caron Simply Soft in Country Blue
2 skeins of Red Heart Super Saver in Tea Leaf (green)
1 skein (maybe 2) of Caron Eco Ways in an off-white

So, first was to adjust the chevron garter stitch from the Walt Painted Baby Blanket.  Here's what I came up with:

Garter St Chevron
R1 (RS) :  K5, * kf&b, k5, sl1 knitwise, k2tog, psso, k5, kf&b, repeat from * to * until last 5 sts, k5.
R2 (WS):  Knit

Stocking St Chevron (worked only in main color)

R1 (RS):  K5, * kf&b, k5, sl1 knitwise, k2tog, psso, k5, kf&b, repeat from * to * until last 5 sts, k5.
R2 (WS):  K5, purl to last 5 sts, k5.

For my blanket:

With MC, cast on 220 sts with #7 needle (this creates a 5 st border on my blanket).

Worked 5 repeats of Garter St Chevron (10 rows total).  Then worked 6 repeats of St St Chevron (12 rows total).

*Changed to Country Blue and knitted Garter St Chevron for a total of 20 rows.  Then I changed back to the gray (MC) and knitted in St St Chevron for 6 rows.*

I repeated from * to* two more times for a total of three blue stripes.  Then I did the same pattern repeats to create:

3 green stripes
3 off-white stripes
3 more green stripes
3 blue stripes
(total of 15 colored stripes in all)

After finishing my last blue stripe, I'm going to switch back to gray (MC) and work 12 rows (6 repeats) in the St St Chevron and finish with 9 rows of the Garter St Chevron (end on right side).  I'll bind off loosely on the WS to finish my blanket.

As I said, I'm not done yet, but I like how it's coming out.  A hearty thanks to the two designers for coming up with such great patterns!  I'll post more photos when it's finished :)

Ode to Spring (and a new knitting pattern)

I've been talking about Spring for a while now and I know it's not here yet.  But we are about to change our clocks, and it is getting lighter every day.  So I've been celebrating Spring with some new projects, hoping this will encourage the sunshine and warm weather.

First up is my latest knitting pattern - the Loopy Loop Necklace.  (You can click on this link to get the pattern on Hubpages)  This pattern is inspired by some of the bold statement jewelry I've seen in stores for Spring.  The design uses a basic i-cord to make the pendant (a video tutorial is posted with the pattern).  Then I added some bright colors with a simple wrap embroidery stitch.  I love how it came out!

And to welcome Spring when it finally arrives, I've made a new wreath for our door.   This Scrap Fabric Wreath is easy to make using strips of fabric, a wire wreath form, and the decorations of your choice.  The best part is that you can make a wreath for any holiday or season just with the fabric you choose.  I wanted a Spring decoration, so I chose sunny yellow and bright pink, but you could make a wreath that is more rustic by using plaids and denim, or that celebrates your school by using the school colors.  The options are endless :)

I hope these projects help you prepare for Spring's arrival!!

Valentine's Day Special: Free Knitting Pattern

To celebrate Valentine's Day, and what we hope will be the last weeks of winter, I've posted a new knitting pattern on my Hubpage:  Blooming Colors Scarflet.
This short scarf features a variety of patterns to show off your choice of beautiful colors.  I used half skeins from my stash for this project, but I think it would look fantastic in a combination of self-striping yarns (Noro Silk Garden or Lion Brand Amazing come to mind).

This scarflet also has a bit of a vintage vibe.  I might be watching too much Downton Abbey :)  I hope you enjoy this pattern!