Transitions Shawlette Pattern update

 

There's an updated version of the Transitions Shawl pattern.  New instructions have been added for a Shawlette. It's a smaller version of the original asymmetric shawl but long enough to wrap around and secure with a loose knot.

Knitted with a new yarn called Charm, which I received from Stylecraft as a sample. It's a blend of acrylic, wool and mohair with colour swirl shade changes. I love the colours of this particular combination called 'Spring Dawn' and enjoyed seeing the changes as the knitting progressed. Charm is a 4ply, light and soft yarn perfect for knitting shawls and accessories. There are 5 more different shade combinations in the range.        

The main part of the shawl is knitted in garter stitch with a simple eyelet edging, finished with a picot cast off. The colour changes are most evident and effective on the edging detail, see the image below.

The edging detail is also featured on the original shawl, seen below. 

Ever tried a picot cast off? 

There's a tutorial for a knitted picot cast off, you can find it here on my blog. Alternatively, there's a short video on my Instagram account - @handknittedthings showing the technique in detail.

The updated knitting pattern for the Transitions Shawl and Shawlette can be found in my Ravelry and Etsy shops.

Knitted Toys and Smaller Needle Size

There's a lot written about gauge and tension in relation to knitting which can be quite intimidating to the beginner knitter. Where toys are concerned, the good news is, you don't have to worry too much about gauge and tension except where you want something to be a specific size.

Generally, for toys the most important consideration is to prevent the stuffing from coming out or showing through the knitting. Using a needle size smaller than the one recommended for the size of yarn is the most popular way to achieve a closer knit fabric. There are other factors which can influence the end result of a piece of knitted fabric, for example, how tightly a person holds the yarn, how a person holds their needles and the type of material the needles are made from eg. metal, bamboo, wood, plastic.  

For this experiment I used Naturals Organic Cotton double knitting by Stylecraft who kindly sent me samples. The cotton is washable, has a lovely bounce to it when knitted up and there are 38 gorgeous shades. I particularly love the pretty sample colours and how they worked together: Rosewood (purple), Sage (pale blue) and Bone (white). (The embroidery on the houses is the same yarn and gives a hint of the other lovely shades in the range).

I used my pattern Mini Red Roof Croft House and chose three smaller size needles than the 4mm recommended on the yarn ball band. 

For each main house colour (seen on the walls) a swatch was made in stocking stitch and the number of stitches and rows were counted.

 

House Number One...

Even though I'd used a 3.25mm needle the gauge was very similar to the one recommended on the ball band. So the way I knit was influencing the end result. That said the fabric created was great for my toy. I could see a tiny bit of the filling through the garter stitch roof but none through the stocking stitch sections. (Gauge was 22st and 34 rows over 10 cm). House approximately 13 cm wide x 10 cm high.

House number Two...

This was knitted with 3mm needles and turned out slightly smaller than the first (purple) house. (Gauge was 23 stitches and 36 rows). House size approximately 11.5 cm wide x 9 cm high.

House Number 3...

The third house was completed with 2.75mm needles, the result being definitely smaller than my first (purple) house. The white house has the tightest fabric and had the best surface for sewing the embroidered flowers on the front. Finished house size 10 cm x 8 cm.

The size of each house reduced by about 1cm in hight and width each time the needle went down a size.

In summary, a tight fabric is good for toy making. Experiment yourself with a smaller needle size to see how that affects the end result.

Enjoy your knitted toy making!

 

 

Updated Scallop Mittens

 

Alternate bands of contrast colour on lacy cuffs. These mittens are knitted flat, suitable for confident beginner knitters. The pattern has been updated with new instructions and knitted in this gorgeous tweedy yarn Highland Heathers from Stylecraft.

Scallop Mittens Pattern is available to download from Ravelry and Etsy.

Knitting Skills 
Cast on, cast off, knit, purl, slip one stitch, pass a stitch over another stitch, bring working yarn forward, make one stitch, knit 2 stitches together, basic seam sewing