Baylie's scarf

At Thanksgiving dinner, my niece asked me to make her a scarf to match her new hat and gloves. At first she just asked for brown and pink, but when I looked at the hat I realized it was actually brown striped with light pink, a darker berry-purpley-pink, and cream. I toyed around with several different ways of incorporating all these colors and finally settled on a length-wise stripe pattern. I think it turned out pretty well.



Finished size: approximately 58" by 3" (it's a little longer than I was aiming for, but no biggie)

Gauge: approximately 2.5 stitches per inch, but it's not crucial. It's just a scarf.

Needles: US 15 (I used two cables from my Boye Needlemaster set to make one really long cable)

Yarns:

MC: Lion Brand Wool-Ease in 129 Cocoa
CC1: Red Heart Soft Yarn in 3729 Grape
CC2: Jo-Ann Sensations Tesoro in 954 Pink
CC3: Lion Brand Wool-Ease in 99 Fisherman

I estimate that it took about 160 yards of MC, and maybe 20-25 yards of each CC. All yarn was held doubled.

CO 150. Follow stripe pattern:

2 rows MC
2 rows CC1
2 rows MC
2 rows CC2
2 rows MC
2 rows CC3
2 rows MC

Bind off. (I used *K2tog tbl, slip stitch back to L needle*)

Unfortunately, I should have knit one more row in MC before binding off, because it wound up looking a little lopsided. But I don't think she'll notice. All in all, it took about 4-5 hours, and I think she'll like it. I also think I have enough of the MC left to make her Build-A-Bear a matching scarf.

Vino Bello

A couple of months ago I submitted a pattern for winter Knitty. It was my first attempt at such a bold endeavor, and I've been waiting on pins and needles ever since. I got my response today, and sadly I was not accepted. I wasn't really expecting to be chosen...after all, I'm sure they get hundreds of patterns every issue. I was just hoping, you know? Anyway, I don't see the point in hoarding the pattern for myself, so I'm posting it here (and will be linking the pattern to Ravelry as soon as I'm done). I hope Knitty doesn't mind me leaving it in their format. I don't have anywhere to upload a PDF right now, but I can email it upon request.



(More pictures available here.)

copyright 2007 Merin McManus. Pattern is free for personal use - you may not profit from it in any way without the author's express written permission.

Vino Bello is a deceptively simple, quick-to-knit wine bottle bag. Saturday evening soirée? Cast on Saturday morning, and swing by the liquor store on your way to the party. The yarn is lovely and drapey, and the finished product is, in my opinion, way classier than the paper wine bottle bags and boxes sold in stores. No one has to know that it only took you a few hours to make! Substitute a variety of yarns for a variety of results - I'm sure it would look equally great in a cushy chenille, or perhaps even a fuzzy mohair. The small yardage required makes it an ideal project for using that one skein of luscious yarn you just had to have. Choose anything that will have a nice, soft drape at the intended gauge.

Pattern utilizes the diagonal mosaic stitch pattern in Vogue Stitchionary (modified to work in the round).

Photo credit
Model: Gewürztraminer by Fetzer Vineyards
photos: Merin McManus
Shot at Woodward Park and Tulsa Rose Gardens in Tulsa, Oklahoma.

SIZE
One (the pictured bottle is 9.5 inches in circumference at its widest point, and 13 inches tall from the base to the top of the neck, cork not included)

FINISHED MEASUREMENTS
Length: 12 inches (laid flat)
Circumference: approx. 9 inches

MATERIALS
[MC] Berroco Ultra Silk [20% silk/40% rayon/40% nylon; 98 yd/90 m per 50g skein]; color: 6147; 1 ball

1 set US #8/5.25 mm double-point needles

notions required
tapestry needle
a yard (or so) of coordinating ribbon (or anything else) to use as a tie
4 stitch markers (optional)

GAUGE
20 sts/24 rows = 4 inches in stockinette stitch

PATTERN NOTES
One ball is JUST enough to finish this project as written. I ended up with 8-10 feet (at most) leftover, which I cut in to four equal lengths and used as a tie. If you a) would like to make a matching I-cord tie, b) have a burning desire to keep your gauge swatch, or c) are otherwise uncomfortable with that little room for error, pick up two skeins, preferably from a LYS with a return policy for unused balls. If you want to make several, purchase one ball per bag, and then get one extra ball for good measure. The pattern could also easily be reversed and worked from the bottom up so that you could simply stop when you're nearly out of yarn.

Gauge is not crucial, as the finished product will stretch considerably in all directions, but if you are knitting too loosely you will risk running out of yarn.

PATTERN
CO 48 sts. Divide sts evenly between 3 double-point needles and join to begin working in the round, being careful not to twist. (You may, if you desire, divide the sts between 4 DPNs instead. I only recommend 3 because you will end up with one pattern repeat per needle, eliminating the need for stitch markers to mark the repeats.)

Round 1 and all odd numbered rounds: *K*
Round 2: *K2, yo, ssk, k4, yo, ssk, k3, k2tog, yo, k1*
Round 4: *K3, yo, ssk, k4, yo, ssk, k1, k2tog, yo, k2*
Round 6: *K4, yo, ssk, k4, yo, k3tog, yo, k3*
Round 8: *K5, yo, ssk, k4, yo, ssk, k3*
Round 10: *K3, k2tog, yo, k1, yo, ssk, k4, yo, ssk, k2*
Round 12: *K2, k2tog, yo, k3, yo, ssk, k4, yo, ssk, k1*
Round 14: *K1, k2tog, yo, k5, yo, ssk, k4, yo, ssk*
Round 16: *K3tog, yo, k4, k2tog, yo, k1, yo, ssk, k4, yo*
Round 18: *YO, k4, k2tog, yo, k3, yo, ssk, k3, k2tog*
Round 20: *K4, k2tog, yo, k5, yo, ssk, k1, k2tog, yo*
Round 22: *K3, k2tog, yo, k7, yo, k3tog, yo, k1*
Round 24: *K2, k2tog, yo, k8, k2tog, yo, k2*
Round 26: *K1, k2tog, yo, k1, yo, ssk, k5, k2tog, yo, k3*
Round 28: *K2tog, yo, k3, yo, ssk, k3, k2tog, yo, k4*
Round 30: *YO, k5, yo, ssk, k1, k2tog, yo, k4, k2tog*
Round 32: *K1, yo, ssk, k4, yo, k3tog, yo, k4, k2tog, yo*

Repeat rows 1-32 once more.

Knit two rounds even.

At this point, since the decrease repeats four times per round, you may wish to redistribute the stitches on four needles. That way, you will simply be knitting two together at the end of each needle, again eliminating the need for stitch markers.

Begin decreases:

Round 1: *K10, k2tog* (44 sts)
Round 2: *K*
Round 3: *K9, k2tog* (40 sts)
Round 4: *K*
Round 5: *K8, k2tog* (36 sts)
Round 6: *K7, k2tog* (32 sts)
Round 7: *K6, k2tog* (28 sts)
Round 8: *K5, k2tog* (24 sts)
Round 9: *K4, k2tog* (20 sts)
Round 10: *K3, k2tog* (16 sts)
Round 11: *K2, k2tog* (12 sts)
Round 12: *K1, k2tog* (8 sts)

FINISHING
Break yarn. Draw tail through remaining stitches and cinch closed. Weave in ends.

ABOUT THE DESIGNER
Merin and her husband live in Oklahoma with their cat. She works primarily to support her yarn habit, and longs for the day when she can quit her job and become a lady of leisure. Every once in a while, she remembers she has a blog and posts something.

'Tis the Season

Recently, Mr. Nekkid asked me if I'd given any thought to what I wanted for Christmas. Deciding that it was probably best for me not to ask him what sort of idiot would ask me a question like that...since I've pretty much already decided (for the moment) what I want for the next 10 Christmases...instead I said, "Well, I may have given it some thought. You know, in passing." "Oh? So what might you want?" "Ummm, well, just off the top of my head...a KnitPicks Options Nickel-plated interchangeable needle set?"

I pretty much forgot about it after that. That is, until the new KnitPicks catalog came in the mail a week or so later. Lo and behold, my beloved interchangeable set is on page 3. So I left the catalog open next to the computer:



I am nothing if not subtle.


Two skeins of Cascade 220, procured from ebay for a good 30% off retail. Woo!


A destashing hat, using scraps of Cascade 220 and random worsted cotton. Although the Cascade went way farther than I expected...and I basically made the whole hat out of it. The cotton ran out just shy of the decreases, so I found some more to finish it off. It's destined for charity.


A hat out of Cascade 220, using a stitch pattern from the first Vogue Stitchionary. It was intended for me, but I got anxious and ended too soon, so it turned out too short. It'll fit someone, though, so it's going to charity too.


Washcloths and a bib to give to a friend, along with...


The Pea Pod Baby Sweater, now with buttons! (I found them, like, two days before the baby shower and sewed them on the night before.)

That's all for now. I have some more yarn pr0n to share but I think I'll pace myself.

Updating

I've been absorbed with Ravelry for a while. It's fun, but I realize I've been neglecting this blog. So here are a few updates...


Surprise...I made more washcloths.


I felted a bag. This is Sophie from Mag Knits. Like another Raveler, I decreased every 9 rows instead of 10, and stopped at 40 rows. It's just as well, too...I only had a few yards of yarn left when I was done. (It wasn't a full ball to begin with.)


I started on a mitten, in a colorway I'm calling "Dr. Seuss". This is some superwash wool that I dyed with Kool-Aid (lime and tropical punch) and didn't really know what else to do with.


I made this super warm, super soft hat out of some of my Tuesday Morning yarn. It was very simple - just 3 x 2 ribbing.

I think I'll stop there for now...save some stuff for tomorrow. :)