What's in the works

Here's what's doing...

• Teaser
  
  This is on a bit of a hiatus. I had hoped to have the pattern go live last week, but I haven't been able to make the time to finish the pictures and the remaining prototypes. With any luck, it will be up in the next week or two. To tide you over, here's another sneak peak...
  
  
  


• Socks By the Numbers
  This will be a free download - all the numbers you need to make socks sized from Preemie to shoe size 13. It has stitch counts and lengths for multiple gauges - 9 to 6 stitches per inch, and multiple techniques - toe up (short-row toe with crochet cast-on, figure eight/turkish cast-on), short-row and afterthought heels, and top-down again with short-row and afterthough heels. There are multiple cheat sheets for each combination of techniques where you can copy out the numbers for your gauge and the size sock you wish to make, as well a a sheet that can be used with Knitty's Universal Toe-up Sock pattern. It's not really a pattern per-se, but should prove very useful if you want to knit up socks for your 4 year-old nephew and only have his shoe-size.


• Neck-warmer
  This will be another free download for a simple neck warmer knit in the round. I was planning on making all of the men in my family scarves this year for Christmas but realized that I don't have that much time. This neck-warmer pattern knits up quickly in a few hours and has some nice stitch variations so it will work for men as well as women. Since I'm still working on the initial prototype, this will most likely be a few more weeks in the making, but with a bit of luck I'll have it up in enough time for a truly last-minute gift.

There are a few other ideas knocking around in my head, but holiday knitting is taking a definite priority right now so they'll have to knock around a bit more.

Teaser...

Here's a sneak peak at my new pattern which will be going live around Thanksgiving.

Free Pattern - Knot Cap

Well, it's finally available!

This top-down hat is a quick and easy knit. The pattern comes in a wide range of sizes - from preemie to three years, and has several finishing options for the brim. There is a full listing of abbreviations used in the pattern as well as links to Knitting Help.com for specific techniques used.

---

Update: November 5, 2009

Since Geocities is now defunct, my patterns are being hosted at Ravelry. You can download the PDF directly from the Ravelry Knot Cap pattern page. Not a member of Ravelry? You really should be. It's an incredible resource and FREE so what's not to love? Still not feeling the Ravelry love? Leave a comment and I'll email a copy of the pattern to you.

Thanks!

Knitting Update

I'm supposed to be taking a break from real knitting, but here's what's doing:

Ito Maki Pincushions

Here's a first look at the Ito Maki Pincushion that I'm designing. I used one of those English-Japanese dictionaries to find the Japanese Word for yarn and "Ito" came up, so my appologies if it is in fact the wrong word. This is the Tuna Roll version. I have a vegetable roll with brown rice on the needles right now and I'm also planning a Salmon Roll and California Roll version as well. It's knit using Carron Simply Soft acrylic yarn.


Quick and Dirty Stich and Row Markers



I broke out the pliers and beads the other day to make myself some row and stitch markers. Usually, I just use cut up straws (an idea I got from DIY Network's Knitty Gritty), but my last black straw is almost gone and I like to have a couple of different colors to mark the begining and midway-point on my knitting. I also hate using a straw segment to mark a row and then have to cut it when I'm finished.

I didn't have any head pins, so I just made little spirals to hold the beads in place. I really like the way the row markers came out - it's a long piece of wire bent in half and then formed into to the hook with the ends of the wire bent into spirals. I flirted with making ones that looked more like fish-hooks, but I was afraid the wire would snag my yarn. It was alot of fun making them and my friend K gave me some really pretty beads to make some more.

Wool as far as the eye can see

The Essene Market Crafts Show was a moderate success. Since my items are so specialized, I wasn't expecting to sell much unless I came across a cloth-diapering mom with loads of cash to spend. Click on any of the images below to view the full-sized picture.

Snazzy Pants Shorties, Newborn



Snazzy Pants Shorties, Newborn
These shorties are knit from hand dyed 100% wool yarn and feature a traditional drawstring waist and seed stitch cuffs.
Waist: 14" Hips: 16" Rise: 16"
Legs: 8" Inseam: 2"


Snazzy Pants Shorties, Medium



These shorties are knit from hand dyed 100% wool yarn and feature a traditional drawstring waist and seed stitch cuffs.
Waist: 18" Hips: 20" Rise: 18"
Legs: 11" Inseam: 2.5"



Snazzy Pants Step-Ins, Small Overnight



These step-ins are knit from a 85/15 Wool/Mohair blend and are perfect for overnight use. They feature a more generous sizing than my regular small size to accomodate bulkier nighttime diapers as well as being extra thick to prevent leaks. An elastic waist keeps them up without adding additional bulk and ribbed cuffs.
Waist: 17" Hips: 19" Rise: 18" Legs: 10"



Snazzy Pants Step-Ins, Newborn



These step-ins are knit from hand dyed 100% wool yarn and feature a traditional drawstring waist and ribbed cuffs.
Waist: 14" Hips: 16" Rise: 16" Legs: 8"



Snazzy Pants Longies, Newborn



These longies are knit from 100% wool and feature an elastic waist and ribbed cuffs.
Waist: 14" Hips: 16" Rise: 15"
Legs: 8" Inseam: 7.5"



Snazzy Pants Longies, Small



These longies are knit from 100% wool and feature an elastic waist and seed stitch cuffs.
Waist: 17" Hips: 19" Rise: 18"
Legs: 10.5" Inseam: 8.5"



Knot Cap, Newborn
**Sold**



This simple cap is knit from 100% extra fine merino wool and features a rolled brim.
The pattern for this cap will be available later this week as a free download



Spiral Knot Cap, Newborn
**Sold**



This cap is knit from 100% extra-fine merino wool and features an open-work spiral and a seed stitch brim.



Falling Leaves Knot Cap, Newborn



This cap is knit from 100% extra fine merino wool and features a pattern of embossed leaves with a ribbed brim.



Falling Leaves Knot Cap, Newborn
**Sold**



This cap is knit from 100% extra fine merino wool and features a pattern of embossed leaves with a ribbed brim.



Thanks to everyone who stopped by and looked at my wares. I'll have the prices and ordering info for the rest of my stock up later this week. If you have a questions, please leave a comment below or email me at knittykeen @ gmail.com.