All-winter Irish wool sweater

Yarn: Drops Alaska

Colour:  49

It is getting all autumn now, here in Sweden, and baby Edit needs something to keep her warm. This little sweater is worked top-down on circular needles.

There are buttons at the left shoulder to avoid any sad moments when getting the sweater on and off.

The cables make the arms look quite sleek, although they are very roomy. A good sweater to grow into. I made some decreases on the inside of the arm.

/Maia

Tingestar pattern: Hedda – the luvhjälm

This is Luvhjälmen. Sometimes, with small children, you need to make sure that the knitted hats stays on. At the same time, you would want to look smart with a luva and a nice pompom and all.

This little hat is a combination of that. 

You start at the top with six knits in the round. You go on like that for a while, and then you add six every fourth row. 

When you are OK with the width, you make four more rows with stripes, and then you leave four stitches on a string of yarn and knit 3 purl 1 on the right side, purl 1, knit 3 on the wrong side for about 11 rows. 

Bind off  (always on the right side, bur with purls) and leave the last stitch on the pin. Pick up 11 more stitches on the side of the ribbed part, knit the six stitches on the string, pick up 12 stitches on the other side of the ribbed part. And then go on with 3k 1p for a couple of rows (6–8).

Bind off, like above, and leave the last stitch for the crocheted band. Pick up a new stitch for the band on the other side. Make a small pompom and put it on the top. (Make sure you fasten it well...)

Ta-daaa! The Luvhjälm!

/Maia

PS. I used a yarn in sport weight and needles 4,5. The hat I made had seven increases and it fits a newborn up to three or four months. It is easy to change the size by adding increases and adding to the stitches that are put on the string. Or change to bigger needles and a worsted yarn?

PPS. Here's a link to a more detailed pattern. In Swedish.

Testing: Angel's wings vest

I got the opportunity to test knit the Angel's Wings vest from Kyrkkaffe. So I grabbed some Drops Alaska and got to work. Here's the result. BTW, the pattern worked as a charm!

The name Angel's Wings comes from those bookmark angels with just a head and the wings under it. Just look how the yoke looks like the wings of an angel.

I used some left over yarn that I had in my stash and 4,5 needles. The finished vest weighs 103 g all in all, but I think I made it somewhat longer than the pattern said. Just checked. Yes, I did. 2 centimeters longer. So 100 g Alaska with needles 4,5 will work fine, just as the Falkgarn Sport and needles 5 that the pattern suggests.

In the original pattern, there was thin crocheted chain, that you tied into a pretty bow, but I really wanted a button, and found one among those that my mother-in-law and her relatives had left in the house at Donsö in the Göteborg archipelago, and that now are mine. It is so precious to have access to a treasure like that.

This is how the button hole looks from behind:

One important thing with the finishing off a garter stitch (Swedish 'rätstickning') is that you need to bind off from the right side, but using the purl stitch. That way you prevent the "chainy" stockinette bind off to show on the right side.

See how great it looks below:

I really liked this pattern. As you know, I am NOT a fan of patterns, but this was neatly put. 

I would really like to try this pattern out for a little dress or a tunic.

/Maia

Blanket for Kotten

Work in progress.


/Maia
- using BlogPress from my iPhone

Edit's slightly bigger blue cardigan

Dear grand daughter E has outgrown the brown cardigan I made for her this spring. So I made a bigger version. Enough to last for the winter, I presume. Though she might need something in wool as well, I think.

There are some small differences. Both the body and the arms end with ribbed knitting. But the yarn is Drops Paris, just as the brown one.

The raglan is thinner, with only one stitch in between.

The buttons are from Strikk.

/Maia

Kotten blanket

Another grandchild is coming this autumn; this time it is DDJ who is expecting. Another blanket is needed. Granddaughter E got this.

I have bought Lima yarn from Drops, in white and two shades of grey, and now I am trying out a pattern with roses, from a sweater at Garnstudios homepage. I searched for brokad and found a bunch of 80's to early 90's sweaters. Too much for an entire sweater today, if you ask me, but, lovely as an edging for the baby blanket.


/Maia

Karin shawl

When I was at Carl Larssongården recently (if you are in Sweden, do visit there) I saw a red shawl with a pompom edging. Very nice. Probably one of Karin Larssons ideas, she was an artist that turned from painting to textile when she married. Lucky us!
When I finished the book The Night Circus, I knew that I had to knit a bright red scarf, and the memory of the visit to the Larsson home the week before came to my mind. I bought some Finullgarn at Strikk, and here I go.

I don't know why my iPhone refuses the color red, but it always come up blurry and messy. But anyhow. you get the idea. I knit the shawl from left to right. I have five balls of yarn and I will use four of them for the shawl, and one for the many, many small pompoms.

/Maia