You might remember I posted a rather wibbly post a while ago about the Cabled Raglan Baby Jacket and whether it was too girly or not. Well, now that I know the bump is definitely girly, I can knit it without worrying. Except I can’t decide on a colour…
I’ve chosen to use Sirdar Balmoral. I was looking for a DK-weight alpaca yarn like the one used for the original (which is Plymouth Yarn Baby Alpaca DK; not particularly common round these parts!). I did consider Inca Cloud, but then after browsing for a while, I remembered Sirdar Balmoral. I rarely buy Sirdar yarns because in the past they’ve gone mad for novelty yarn, so I don’t usually think of them when choosing yarns. But recently they’ve had a few nicer yarns, such as Balmoral which has no synthetics and is really rather lovely. So Balmoral it is.
The problem is, I can’t decide on a shade. So for a bit of Friday fun, I’ve created a poll. I’ve listed the colours I like best, but if there’s another colour that I should clearly choose instead, then there’s an option to add that as well. I’ll use the most popular colour for the cardigan and it’ll save me poring over shadecards til all the colours blend into one.
Pattern: Baby Sweater on Two Needles (February) by Elizabeth Zimmermann from Knitter’s Almanac Yarn: Artesano Ltd Opulencia (discontinued, I think), 2 x 50g skeins in colour: Amethyst Needles: 3.75mm Addi circs
When I discovered that the bump was definitely a girl, I knew I had to knit one of these. And thanks to either the wonders of the postal system, the varying efficiency of eBay sellers or simply me being disorganised and not getting a zip, it ended up being my first finished non-hat-or-sock baby garment, despite the Tomten clearly having the moral right to be called so.
I do wonder if there’s much I can say about this pattern that hasn’t been said before, though. It’s such a quick and simple pattern, but the end result is so cute.
The pattern is written in EZ’s usual style, which I think you either love and go with the flow, or curse her name under your breath. It’s not hard to follow, but do remember to start making buttonholes at the neckline downwards. She fails to mention them at all ’til you’re on the lace pattern, by which time the yoke is done and buttonhole-free. Like a lot of people, I also adjusted the sleeve directions so that they were knitted in the round, instead of casting on the extra stitches on the sleeves and knitting them flat. Other than that, I just followed the pattern as written.
The yarn was lovely to knit with – I believe the base yarn is Inca Cloud, which is my favourite alpaca yarn – but the dye rubbed off onto my hands and needles something terrible: I had a nice purple stripe on my right index finger where I tension the yarn as well as blotches on the palms of my hands. I’m hoping that now it’s been blocked (when more colour leaked out) that it’s got over the urge to bleed everywhere and won’t turn the baby into Violet Beauregarde when she wears it. As far as I can tell,the yarn is no longer being made by Artesano, anyway, so I guess it’s a moot point, but I wouldn’t use it again.
I’m delighted/relieved the buttons match as well as they do. It’s hard when there’s nowhere close to me that sells buttons and I’m forced to rely on a photo on a website and just hope for the best, while being fully prepared to buy several different types until I find the right ones, but the little lilac hearts I bought from this eBay shop were the first I bought. They really go well with the yarn and are even the perfect size (it was a lot of fun debating whether to get 12mm or 15mm buttons… who’d have though that 3mm could make such a difference?).
Almost up to date with the FOs now! I shall never look this productive again.
It’s done! *does happy dance* The zip arrived in Tuesday’s post, so I literally ripped open the envelope, grabbed my pincushion and started attaching zip to jacket. I only wish I were small enough to fit into it, because it kind of needed a finishing flourish of actually being worn.
I really loved knitting this pattern. It’s changed my view of knitting endless rows of garter stitch, because beforehand I thought I’d never manage it without the urge to do myself in through sheer boredom. But combined with the variegated yarn, it looks really rather lovely.
The yarn choice was obviously an inspired moment of genius. I’d been musing about knitting a Tomten and had looked at the many finished ones on Ravelry and decided that the ones I liked best were knitted with handspun or subtly variegated yarns. I realised I wanted something like Noro Kureyon Sock but without the itch, which lead me to the Kauni. It’s very similar to a Shetland yarn in texture (which I guess is why the Spindrift works so well for the edging) and it softens up beautifully after washing. It doesn’t feel like it will be too harsh on a baby’s skin at all.
I followed the pattern directions as written in Knitting Without Tears, except for the sleeves. In The Opinionated Knitter, Meg Swansen adds a note about not casting off the armhole stitches, but knitting them together with the sleeve stitches, which saves sewing up a couple of seams. The only seaming was the rest of the sleeves: the hood is joined by grafting. The applied i-cord edging came from one of the two books; I don’t remember which one, but I suspect it’s in both of them anyway. I love how this finishes off the edges of the jacket and want to use it as much as possible now on everything!
* * * * *
Just for anyone keeping score, I’ve now completed:
2 cardigans
1 pair of socks
5 hats
for the small person. More feet and leg stuff is needed!
So, lots of plain stocking stitch is needed for the next couple of weeks. But not so much that I go insane. I decided to raid my vintage baby knitting pattern stash for something completely different to all the modular EZ knitting I’ve been doing. I have several issues of the old Vogue Baby Knitting magazine which was published in the 1950s and 60s and aside from the knitting patterns, they’re just fascinating to read. The long-gone yarn companies, the adverts for baby layettes from department stores and prams for £4!
This pattern is originally from 1966 and takes up barely a column of space. It’s written in the “do this for one side and then mirror everything for the second” style and makes me wonder at the pages I use up just to write a sock pattern.
I’m using RYC Cashsoft 4ply in cream, which probably adds to the vintage look of the cardigan. I’ve lined myself up for lots of seaming, though I did amend the shoulder directions to a three-needle cast off instead as I can never get shoulder seams to look like they’re supposed to. Just the sleeves to knit now, and then the button hunt starts again!
To add to my baby pattern stash, I’ve also managed to get my paws on a copy of the out-of-print Jaeger 29, which is full of gorgeous designs. Mainly I bought it for the completely girly ballet wrap on the cover…
…but there is also a cardigan with bunnies on it!! They’re worked with the dreaded intarsia, but I could maybe get away with just one bunny.
Pattern: Cisco by Berroco Design Team Yarn: All Spun Up Superwash Merino/Alpaca DK, approx ½ a skein in colour: Blackberries, handspun by Kai Needles: 3.25mm Addi circs
Another noggin warmer! Definitely the last one for a while, else the poor bump will have a warm head and be freezing elsewhere!
The pattern only came in one size and didn’t state what age baby it would fit, but compared to others I’ve made, I think it will probably be for *next* winter, which is a shame, but it is pretty big. Unless I have a giant-headed baby…
It was an interesting knit. The back panel is knitted first, then the ears picked up along the top before the front is picked up along the sides and top of the back, across the ears, so there’s no seaming to do.
Other than the obvious change to knitting it all in one colour, I also changed the garter stitch edging and ties to my beloved i-cord; now that I’ve worked out how to do an applied i-cord edging, I want to use it as much as possible.
The yarn was a birthday gift from Kai – ready spun, of course. It’s the first handspun I’ve ever knitted with, though I have a few skeins in my stash because of having very clever spinning friends. It was lovely to knit with. The slight slubbyness of the yarn actually evened out after washing, and the colours are my favourites, naturally, and I love the subtle variegation. I hope that with enough purple clothing, the bump will choose it as her favourite colour as well. Plus the hat is incredibly soft after blocking.
Again, it only took a couple of evenings to knit and was actually finished over a week ago. Good thing it wasn’t needed urgently, really.
Definitely the girliest baby knit so far! After seeing this pattern in the Classic Elite Yarns weekly newsletter, I thought it was adorable, but not one for a baby boy. So I queued it until I knew for certain one way or the other. And then when I did..!
The pattern is very simple and the hat only took a couple of evenings to knit, but I was held up by blocking and then needing to find matching ribbon. I think I could have just worked an i-cord instead, but then I think a girly hat needs a girly ribbon, doesn’t it?
Obviously Classic Elite Cotton Bam Boo is pretty impossible to find round these parts, but Baby Cashmerino is the same weight and it will make a nice snug autumn hat. It’s getting to be a favourite yarn of mine, though I’ve only used it three times, all for hats. I think I really need to buy a baby cardigan’s-worth, just to see if I still like it…
The other knits are all dry now, so once I have buttons and zips, more FO posts will follow and I will look ultra-productive!
There’s a lot of it to do. Since Monday’s post I’ve added another finished cardigan and a boring but useful tension swatch and finally it’s all laying out to dry on copious carrier bags. I washed them all in a few sample sachets of Soak that I bought from The Little Knitting Company. Like Eucalan, it’s no-rinse, which I like as it appeals to my lazy side. I should have known not to try any of the scented versions, though, as I now have a headache from the aquae scent, and the citrus one smells like loo cleaner… I do like the unscented one, though, so will probably buy a large bottle of it, and it only needs a tiny amount each time, so it’ll be pretty economical.
Now to keep small people and cats away from it all ’til it’s dry!
I do maintain that I am trying to use only stash yarn at the moment to clear out some of the oddments that I have which are just right for baby-size knits. It makes good sense to save my yarn money for more important stuff like nappies and other useful baby paraphernalia, and I’d also like to be able to shut the lids on the plastic boxes which hold my stash… It’s not an ideal scheme: I still choose patterns according to what I want to knit rather than necessarily choosing them according to the yarn have in my stash, which means that I have bought the odd ball of yarn recently. But sometimes something that I did months ago will also cause my stash to increase…
Back in early February, I pre-ordered two skeins of Crystal Palace Mini Mochi from The Woolly Workshop. Not surprisingly, I’d half-forgotten about it over the following months but then it arrived on my doormat and I am smitten.
I chose the Neptune Rainbow colourway as I plan to use it for manly socks for Mr B’s spoilt feet. He approves of the colours, too, which means I can’t use that as a reason to knit socks for me instead, sadly. It’s a gorgeous blend of blues, greens and purples which are a lot brighter than the photo on the Crystal Palace website, and he so wouldn’t have chosen it for his socks until I started knitting them!
The yarn has a 20% nylon content which should mean it wears well and it feels wonderfully soft and is named after an actual cat which is just silly and I love it. It does seem to be slightly unevenly spun, but I like that. I know there are a lot of comments on Ravelry about it being prone to knots and splitty, but hopefully this being a new batch will mean my yarn is unaffected.
Once the Having Hope socks are done, these are the next manly socks in line. Though they’d make wonderful Wimbledon knitting in plain stocking stitch, which might mean a bit of queue jumping!
The Tomten Jacket has its second sleeve now, so I just need to block it before I can work out the length of zip that I need. In the meantime, I’ve completed a couple more hats, one of which needs a ribbon. It’s probably the girliest hat I’ve knitted so far.
I should really stop the hat knitting now, but my reasoning is that it’s good to have a selection of sizes and as it’s going to be October when she’s born, she’ll need plenty of headgear over her first few months. I do want to knit some more cardigans, though, and some legging things, so will have to curb my urges for now. From experience, lots of thinner layers are going to better than buying a big snowsuit. DS2 was an October baby as well, and trying to carry him in a sling while he was wearing a snowsuit was like trying to carry ten pounds of baby-shaped marshmallows.
I’m also trying to plan it so that I have something moderately mindless but big to work on so that I have perfect Wimbledon-watching knitting. Last year I was knitting the Peacock Feathers Shawl which meant that I only really paid attention to the tennis on the wrong-side rows. I’d like something a little less complicated this year!
So, after I finished the manly socks, I pulled out my sock yarn stash to see just what I have available. I have it all listed on Ravelry, but having the sock yarns together in front of me is a lot more helpful. I have actually got a fair bit of wool/nylon blend yarn, though not many manly colours. Some of the yarns I probably won’t ever use for socks as I know from experience it won’t wear well, such as the cotton blend sock yarns. I wonder whether 100g of 4ply yarn is enough to knit a baby garment instead..?
Anyway, I eventually found some very boring grey Sunbeam St. Ives 4 Ply Sock Wool, and decided to use it to make Mr B another pair of Having Hope socks, to make up for the feltedness of the first pair I knitted him.
So instead of knitting another orange sleeve on the Tomten while on holiday, I knitted a toe up sock. The yarn is so boring that it needs a good pattern and being twisted into dozens of cables really works. It’s a lovely pattern that I really enjoyed knitting the first time round so it’s also no hardship to knit it again.
I’m knitting a size smaller than before as the previous socks ended up being a little baggy on the feet. After a brief in-progress trying on session, these are proving to be a perfect fit and are perfect when I fancy an change from knitting tiny baby stuff.
…bigger blob than before, but very uncooperative. The head is on the right and facing downwards. But I do know whether it’s a pink or blue one. Let’s put it this way – I’ll not have to worry about whether a knitting pattern is too girly or not..!
Mr B and I have tentatively chosen a name, but it remains to be seen if she actually suits it when she arrives. DS2 was going to be Archie until he came out looking nothing like an Archie and ended up being nameless for about three days until he was given an name which suited him far better.
I’d say it was good to be back, but I was very unwilling to come away from the tiny cottage in Devon we’ve been hiding in for the past week. This coming week is far too busy, with hospital and midwife appointments and me being prodded and poked and generally not having much fun. I’d rather be having another cream tea (not a photo of the one I had while away, but you get the idea of the gluttony that’s been going on!) or go up on Dartmoor and look at the views and enjoy the peace and quiet.
Anyway, as there’s little I can do about being a medical specimen rather than eating clotted cream, I may as well get back to my knitting. I didn’t get much done while I was away. I have started a couple of new projects which I will share later, but the Tomten Jacket is still without a second sleeve, which I feel bad about because I deliberately ordered the yarn before I went away so that I could finish it on holiday and then just find a zip. Oh well, I shall distract you all with a photo of some manly feet instead.
Pattern: Sock-shaped Yarn: Zitron Trekking XXL, 1 x 100g ball in shade: #147 Needles: 2.25mm Susan Bates Silvalume
I finished MrB’s manly socks just before we went away, and the first chance for a photo opportunity was when he wore them for the first time on holiday. They’re just the basic plain sock recipe from the free Regia booklet that I don’t even look at now: as long as I note down how many rows I knit for the heel flap and the stitches worked for the heel turn, the numbers are stuck in my head. At least I though they were…
I found the booklet at the weekend because I have had a sock request from my sister to knit a pair for my new brother-in-law and as he has smaller feet than MrB (which makes me happy in a not-having-to-knit-ultra-long-feet sort of way) I needed to check what length they needed to be. Turns out I had mis-remembered the length before the the toe for the largest size and had been short-changing MrB a whole half centimetre (about 0.2 inches) for years. Seeing as it doesn’t seem to have affected him in any way, I’m just going to carry on. Just don’t tell him.
Also, since the last time I used them (which according to my finished project page, could be as long ago as May 2008!), I have lost one of the 2.25mm Silvalume needles somewhere. I can knit small socks on 4 dpns, but it was tough going with large numbers of stitches. I used a 2.5mm bamboo needle as a stop-gap, but I hate the awkwardness of having a different texture interrupting the flow. So I’ve ordered a set of KnitPicks (or KnitPro or whatever they are currently called over here) metal needles from eBay to see if they’ll do as a substitute, or else it means expensive postage costs to get another set of needles. And I’d probably pay them, too. I’d do much stranger things just to get needles that I love to use.
Well, now that I know the bump is definitely girly, I can knit it without worrying. Except I can’t decide on a colour… 
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