Rikke: Baby Style

Rikke Hat 

I made some quick Rikke Hats for my niece & nephew last fall, but getting pictures of those squirrely kids took substantially longer. Pictured above, Ben has adopted his as an inspiration cap, and wears it during his creative endeavours. 

The hat is very stretchy and elastic, a great garment that has grown with the kids! Also an added benefit, garter stitch is an excellent way to deal with yarns with colourways that pool.

• Cascade 220 Superwash Paints: 1 skein, colour 9916 Blues
• 3.5mm/US4-16" & 4mm/US6-16"circular needles
• 4mm/US6 double pointed needles
• Free Pattern
• Modifications: see our notes
• would also knit up beautifully using Madeline Tosh Vintage: 1 skein

New Yarn: Cascade Avalon

Cascade Avalon

Cascade Avalon is everything we look for in a staple yarn, and we think you will love it! It's soft, comfortable, affordable, machine wash AND dryable, and of course easy to knit with. It's baby/kid/man/pet friendly, vegan, and allergy free. The colours are clear, bright and saturated. 

• 50% cotton, 50% acrylic
• 100g/160m
• worsted to aran weight
• 4.5mm to 5mm needles (US7 to 8)
• 18 to 16 sts = 4"
• Machine wash, tumble try low
• 5 stars on Ravelry!
• Pattern Ideas

Photo: Jelly Wares

Granny Stripes

• Cascade Avalon: 1 skein in each colour (8+)
• 5mm (H) crochet hook
• FREE Pattern

Photo: Carol J. Sulcoski

Heavenly Heathers

• Cascade Avalon: 5 skeins in main colour, 1 skein in each of 4 contrast colours.
• 8mm/US11 needles (see pattern for details)
• Pattern from 60 Quick Baby Blankets

Photo: Linden Down

Baby + Child Sophisticate

• Cascade Avalon: 2 to 3 skeins
• 5mm/US8 needles (see pattern for details)
• Free version of pattern for sizes 3 to 6 months

Photo: Espace Tricot

Chevron Baby Blanket

• Cascade Avalon: 1 skein in each of 5 colours 
• 5mm/US8 - 29" circular needle
• FREE Pattern

Photo: April Klich

Cuddly Chevron Baby Blanket

• Cascade Avalon: 2 skeins in each of 3 colours 
• 4.5mm/US7 - 29" circular needle
• FREE Pattern

Photo: Kate Jackson

Parallels Sweater

• Cascade Avalon: 6 to 10 skeins
• 4.5mm/US7 needles

Don't forget our FLASH SALE also ends on April 11th! Take an Extra 20% off all Cashmere, Angora, and other select yarns, in store and online.

SHOP THE SALE

New Store Sample: Pebbles Baby Vest

Last week Liane whipped up this adorable little baby vest, Pebbles, with less than 1 skein of Madeline Tosh Tosh Merino DK.

The Yarn

OMG, Madeline Tosh Tosh Merino DK  is a yummy, yummy yarn! It's a 100% merino superwash, squishy single ply, with a little bit of sheen, and the beautiful subtle colouring Tosh is know for. It's called a DK but it blooms, so we used a 4mm needle. 

The Pattern

1. It's free.  2. It's been pretty popular on Ravelry and has over 3400 projects, so there are lots of notes from other people.  3. It's only one size, but if you want to make it larger consider browsing through some of the aforementioned notes.  4. It comes from the mind of professional designer Nikol Lohr, but it's a "this is how I did it" freebie.  

Details

Yarn: Madeline Tosh Tosh Merino DK, 1 skein 

Needles: 4mm needles

Notions: 7 little buttons + matching thread

Pattern: FREE Pebbles

Ravelry Project: Here

New Store Project: Bulky Chevron Baby Blanket

We finished this great chevron baby blanket a couple of weeks ago with Juniper Moon Yearling and I love it more every day! 

The Yarn

I really loved working with  Juniper Moon Yearling, after the project I was done I was still itching to work with it. It's a blend of cotton & wool that feels like a cotton with squish (ie. the cotton of my fantasies). It's also slightly textured which gave it a smidge of rustic interest (cottons are so often smooth and a little on the boring side).

The Pattern

The pattern was free and pretty straightforward, just two rows. It was not hard, but I had to pay attention because both of the rows were action rows, neither were holiday rows (straight knitting). Basically, Row 1 makes decreases, and Row 2 makes increases (in contrast to a feather & fan pattern that creates both increases and decreases in the same row). Another hitch was that stitch markers weren't as easy to use as in a regular feather and fan pattern. My solution: A. I used two colours of locking stitch markers, one for Row 1 and one for Row 2, and B. the markers will be one stitch short of the correct count, so when I reached the correct colour marker for my row I moved it one stitch to the left. 

Details

Yarn: Juniper Moon Yearling, 1 skein in each of 7 colours

Needles: 7mm-29" circular needles

Notions: Clover locking stitch markers

Pattern: FREE Chevron Baby Blanket by Purl Soho

Ravelry Project: Here

Kits

The yarn has unfortunately been discontinued (I don't know why, it's lovely), but we've made up kits with what we have left. We sold two kits as soon as they hit the shelf, and as of this blog post we have four left: 3 rainbow combos (the sample above) and 1 boy colour combo (greens, blues & grey). Each kit comes in a zipper project bag and they are on SALE!

BUY KITS HERE

New Free Pattern: Rialto Baby Beanie

Rialto Baby Beanie

Size

° preemie (newborn, baby, toddler)

° Head circumference: 11(12-13, 14-15, 16-17)” or 27.5(30-32.5, 35-37.5, 40-42.5)cm

Materials

° Debbie Bliss Rialto DK Print;50g/105m, 1 ball

° Debbie Bliss Cashmerino DK; 50g/110m (or Debbie Bliss Rialto DK), 1 ball

° 4mm-16” circular needles

° 3.5mm-16” circular needles

° 4mm double pointed needles

° 1 stitch marker

° darning needle (preferably pointy & small)

Hat on the left:

Newborn size, Debbie Bliss CashmerinoDK colour 18 (navy), Debbie Bliss Rialto DK Print 05 (Ravenna)

Hat on the right:

Toddler size, Debbie Bliss Cashmerino DK colour 43 (beige), Debbie Bliss Rialto DK Print 01 (Florence)

Dowload the pattern Here

NEW YARN ALERT: Debbie Bliss Rialto DK Print

Rialto DK Print is a fab new yarn from Debbie Bliss which we are sure you'll love. It is made with soft, 100% Superwash Merino Wool - which means it's great for everybody and everything, including kids, men, blankets, etc, even boot socks! It knits up in stripes that will wow everyone. Use Debbie Bliss Cashmerino DK in a contrasting colour for ribbing to make your stripes pop!

• Available in 6 self-striping colourways
• 50g/ 105m
• 22 sts & 30 rows = 10cm/4" on 4mm needles
• Machine wash cool, lay flat to dry
• $9.97 per ball

 

I know it's hard to visualize how the yarn will knit up, so take a peek at the patterns from the Debbie Bliss Rialto DK Print Book drew up for this yarn HERE

Nutmeag made these Striped Baby Legwarmers (free pattern Legwarmies) with 1 ball of Rialto DK Print and 1 ball of contrasting yarn.  Or Try Hopscotch (another free pattern) for children's sizes.

Make a Caramel cardie (free pattern) using Rialto DK Print alternated with a solid contrast colour of Debbie Bliss Cashmerino DK. 

I think it would make an amazing Chevron Baby Blanket (use 4mm needles and cast on 193sts for a blanket about 31" wide) but keep in mind the striping will be much narrower. 

More modest striping options: use  Rialto DK Print alternated with a solid contrast colour of Debbie Bliss Cashmerino DK for pattern OhLaLa. 

You can find us at Knitomatic.com!

Baby Bolero

Pretty Damn adorable! Came across this freebie Baby Bolero on Ravelry, it's so simple yet effective, and cute! 

Baby Bolero

• 6 mo size : 2 skeins Noro Silk Garden, 4.5mm needles, 4.5mm double pointed needles
• 1 yr size: 2 skeins Noro Odori, 6mm needles, 6mm  double pointed needles

As always, you can find us at knitomatic.com!

Hudson's Bay Company Baby Blanket

I love the simple aesthetic and nostalgia of the HBC blanket.  

Hudson's Baby Baby Crib Blanket

• 10 skeins Cascade 220 Superwash or Berroco Vintage: 6 off white, 1 red, 1 yellow, 1 green, 1 dark blue
• 4.5mm-36" circular needles
• for a faster knit try using Berroco Vintage Chunky and 6mm needles - cast on fewer stitches

As always, you can find us at Knitomatic.com!

Easy Baby Pullover

Something lovely and simple for lovers of working with sock yarn.

Easy Baby Pullover

• 3.5mm-24" circular needles
• 2 skeins Dream in Color Smooshy or Handmaiden Casbah Sock or Fleece Artist Trail Socks

As always, you can find us at Knitomatic.com

Owl Hats - The New Cute

Ya know what's cute? Babies in Owl hats. Darn cute!

Crochet Owl Hat

• J hook
• Cloud Cotton, or Malabrigo Worsted, or Malabrigo Rios: 1/2 skein in each of 2 main colours, scraps in contrast colours. 
• Or, Debbie Bliss Casmerino Aran,  1 skein in each of 2 main colours, scraps in contrast colours. 
• 2 little buttons

By the way, I think you have to join the website Mediafire to dowload the file. It's a pain, but it's free. 

As always, you can find us at Knitomatic.com!

Pretty Pretty Baby Blanket!

This is such a pretty baby blanket and great use of a gorgeous yarn, Malabrigo Rios. 

Slipped Rib Baby Blanket

• 5.5mm double pointed needles
• 5.5mm-47" circular needles (or any long ones)
• 4 to 5 skeins Malabrigo Rios (for a 30" x 30" blanket) 

As always you can find us at Knitomatic.com!

60 Quick Baby Knits

60 Quick Baby Knits $21.95

What a great idea!  This book compiles 60 great patterns for babies using the same versatile, soft, affordable, and washable yarn - Cascade 220 Superwash. The yarn comes with PLENTY of yardage (200m fpr 100g) and costs a very reasonable $10. And as for the patterns, there's lots to choose from: sweaters, blankets, hats, slippers, leg warmers, dresses, jumpers, mittens, and socks. The skill levels are varied, as are the aesthetics, so there's something there for everyone. 

Color Square Blanket

Garter Stitch Jacket

Smock Dress

As always, you can find us at Knitomatic.com!

New Sublime Baby Patterns Books

Sublime Book 648

The Exquisite Little Baby Silk & Bamboo DK Book 

Sublime has delivered another in their line of astonishingly cute (if cuteness can astonish) baby patterns in their new yarn, Baby Silk & Bamboo DK.  The book contains Sublime's usuall selection of beautiful, stylish, and wearable baby clothes for both boys and girls. Patterns include sweaters (pullovers and cardigans), a coat, hats, booties, a blanket, a vest, and a very cute romper. Book $20.

The yarn, Baby Silk & Bamboo DK, has a very soft and silky composition of 80% bamboo and 20% silk.  It is machine washable, but I always use the delicate cycle just to be safe.  It knits up a standard 22 sts & 28 rows on 4mm needles, 50g/95m. Yarn $9 ea.

Sublime Book 649

The Eighth Little Sublime Hand Knit Book

Pictures aren't available yet for this little book, but it's full of vintage inspired sweaters for boys and girls. It is heavy on texture, lots of beautiful arans, a couple simple fair isles, and some simpler cardies for girls. They yarn used is a DK weight, so Debbie Bliss Cashmerino DK or Cascade 220 Superwash Sport would both work. 

As always, you can find us at Knitomatic.com.

New Free Pattern - Simple Crochet Ripple Baby Blanket

Simple Crochet Ripple Baby Blanket

Pattern by Haley Waxberg

Ravel It   Download It

Skill Level: Beginner

Notes

The pattern repeat for this blanket is 14 +2 sts, so if you want to increase or reduce the size of your project, add or subtract stiches in multiples of 14. Each ripple measures approximately 4”. Additionally, don't be afraid to skip over part of the colourway if it isn't working, sometimes Noro throws in a colour that's a dud.

Resources for New Crocheters

The Crocheter's Companion by Nancy Brown is an excellent reference resource.

StitchDiva also has excellent tutorials: http://www.stitchdiva.com/custom.aspx?id=53

There are also helpful video tutorials on youtube titled The Art of Crochet by Teresa: http://www.youtube.com/user/tjw1963

Size

26”wx30”l (30”wx35”l)unblocked

Materials

3(4) skeins Noro Taiyo, 100g/200m (colour used for small sample, colour 20 used for large)

5mm/H crochet hook

Gauge

approx 17 sts & 5 rows = 4” in ripple stitch

Abbreviations

ch chain

dc double crochet

dc3tog double crochet 3 together

Techniques

dc3tog

(Yarn over hook, insert hook in next stitch, yarn over hook and pull up loop, yarn over hook, draw through 2 loops), repeat instruction in brackets 3 times {you should have 4 loops on hook}, yarn over hook, draw through all loops on hook.

As always, you can find us at Knitomatic.com!

Unbelievably Cute Baby (&Kid) Knits!

Sirdar also makes some unimaginably cute baby knits (actually, the pattern range from birth up to 7 years)!  Click on the links below the pictures to see the patterns inside. As always, you can find us at www.knitomatic.com.

Sirdar 382 - Nursery Knits $15.50

Sirdar 347 - Ooh La La!  $15.50

Sirdar 369 - Little Brits in Spiffing Knits $15.50

New Book: Design It, Knit It Babies by Debbie Bliss

Design It, Knit It Babies by Debbie Bliss $31.95 (hardcover)

"Design It, Knit It Babies" is the follow-up to Debbie Bliss's great adult book "Design It, Knit It".  It comes with all of her knowledge and experience, but this time specializes in knits for babies. Each chapter comes with 2 patterns for all kinds for baby knits (cardies, blankets, jackets, pullovers, dresses, itts, scarf, beret, and legwarmers). Additionally, it includes knitter's graph paper, alphabet charts and nursery motif charts. There are even pictures at the back you can use to make hand made tags for your gifts! A great resource for sure!