Inspired by a free Cleckheaton knitting pattern from a Spotlight promotion, I decided I was going to knit a beanie. I've never knitted a beanie before, so of course I wanted to give it a go. There were two problems with the pattern from Spotlight. The first problem was that the pattern was too big for Amélie, and secondly, it had a seam up the back. I prefer to avoid seams in knitting where ever I can and love to put my circular needles to good use.
To keep Noah busy (because he needs to be kept out of trouble), I set him to work making me a pom pom. The pom pom is probably a bit on the big side (I guess that depends on how you like your pom poms) and maybe even a little bit too dense, but both of those are my fault.
The stripes were a bit tricky. When you knit with circular needles, you really are knitting a spiral. This means that each time you start a new colour there is a jump, or a jog. To overcome this, I found a youtube tutorial. (I love YouTube for knitting tutorials). Basically, you start the new colour, as normal and start knitting. Once you get back to the start of the round, you pick up the right leg of the stitch beneath, to pull it up in line. You can see from the picture above, that I did struggle to get this right, but I worked it out by the time I got to the top of the beanie.
I may just be a little bit addicted to knitting beanies. They are a great little project and knit up fairly quickly. Perfect for in front of the television on these cold wintery nights, and really good for instant gratification. The stripes could be a great way to use up scraps of left-over yarn as well.
Do you have a favourite knitting project that you like to make?
This looks great. I also like making beanies with left over wool to donate to our local soup bus as they are essential in Ballarat. Cowls are good too, and doll sized kina's are also being made for the school fete
ReplyDeleteHow nice that you have found a local charity to support, Rachel.
DeleteThanks for reminding me. I have the doll-sized Kina pattern, ready to make one for Amélie's dolls. I must get onto that. I wonder if I could fashion my own dolly beanie as well. I bet it would knit up quickly.
Looks great. I would love to give it a go as well one day as I love knitted beanies, both for my children and for myself.
ReplyDeleteThey are much easier than I thought they would be. They don't use a lot of yarn and they don't take very long to knit. If you've knitted circular before, and can knit two together, then that is as difficult as it gets.
DeleteAbsolutely gorgeous. Your little lady looks lovely in her hat and cardigan. Well Done
ReplyDeleteI should have mentioned that the cardigan was knitted and given to Amélie as a gift from my friend, Susan from the Brissmiths. You can get the details from my blogpost, here: http://liamsolomonsmummy.blogspot.com.au/2011/06/look-what-postman-brought.html It's beautiful, isn't it. Amélie actually chose to wear that cardigan herself the day I took that photo.
DeleteVery nice. I can't knit anything other than scarfs (scarves?)!
ReplyDeleteYou should definitely give it a go. It doesn't use as much yarn as a scarf. You would need to learn how to knit in the round and how to decrease by knitting two stitches together.
DeleteI meant to add; I have found YouTube really useful for learning new knitting tricks (and refreshing my memory on old ones).
DeleteOh my goodness Carmel I can't believe that cardi is still getting wear! What a value knit!! I think at the time I added a little extra length knowing the yoke is so stretchy. I think I made the size one too and that is a good sizing to last the early years. PS Amelie is gorgeous and the beanie looks so snuggly. Thanks for commenting on my blog, I haven't had a chance to keep up with everyone's crafty adventures lately. Susan
ReplyDeleteOh, I know, Susan - I love it when you get more than one season out of a knitted item. So much work goes into them!
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