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Archive for the ‘magic loop’ Category

Radio Frequency Hat

June 21, 2011

My son, Nick, modeling the hat

More Christmas knitting FOs! This one is a hat for one of my nephews. I really love this hat. It’s Mandy Power’s pattern, “Radio Frequency Hat”. I thought it was masculine enough for a guy. It’s supposed to have a pom pom on top but I can’t decide if my nephew would like that or if that’s too “girly”. Hmmm . . .

I knitted this up in Berocco Ultra Alpaca Light, a DK weight yarn. I love this stuff. So warm and soft. The hat pattern did not include a lining, but after I knitted the hat and blocked it, the edge of the hat curled so badly I couldn’t believe it. Even though it had a braided edge, it curled just like pure stockinette. So I was thinking about adding a lining anyway, because it adds so much to the hat and when I did, it solved the curling problem. I just picked up stitches all around and knitted the lining, making the decreases just by eyeballing it.

I just picked up stitches all around to do the lining

I knitted this hat with a long circular needle, using a Magic Loop type method, instead of a short needle. I really don’t like doing that with a hat and having the knitting so tight on the needles and then having to switch to dpns to do the decreases. If you do a hat using Magic Loop, you can actually try the hat on and see better how the size is going.

Pattern: Radio Frequency Hat
Yarn: Berocco Ultra Alpaca Light in Black and Moonshadow
Needles: Circular US#5, 40″
Ravelry Page

Posted in finished objects, gifts, guy stuff, hats, knitting, magic loop | 6 Comments »

Pink Flocked Mittens

June 2, 2011

I’m continuing on with my Christmas knitting, and I’m not slowing down for summer! I’ve just finished these lovely things – lined mittens for one of my sisters-in-law. These are Adrian Bizilia’s “Flocked Mittens” and they are a lot of fun to knit.

I lined them with super thick Brushed Suri in a cotton candy pink color – they make the mitten so warm. I knitted these using Magic Loop and because the pattern calls for a worsted weight, they knit up fairly quickly. A welcome change after knitting with so much fingering weight yarn for a while there.

The pattern calls for a braided edge, which I love, but in the pattern it was done in one color. I changed it to two colors, which I think is more striking. If you do that, be sure to make the previous row a k1 MC, k1 CC instead of just one color, so the first row of the braided edge is correct.

They also have a picot edge which is a nice detail.

These mittens should be knit in a light color and a dark color, for strong contrast. If you don’t the pattern isn’t going to show up well.

Pattern: Flocked Mittens
Needles: US #4 , circular, Addi Lace
Yarn for Mittens: Berocco Ultra Alpaca in Pastel Pink and Duncan
Yarn for Lining: Blue Sky Alpaca Brushed Suri in Pink Lemonade
Ravelry Page

Posted in finished objects, gifts, knitting, magic loop, mittens | 6 Comments »

Snowy Woods Socks

May 16, 2011

This project was the perfect marriage between yarn and pattern. This pattern is Robin Gallimore’s Snowy Woods Socks and once I started knitting them, it was hard to stop. The pattern was so fun to watch emerge and the Berocco Alpaca made for a really soft warm sock. These are for one of my sisters-in-law for next Christmas – I hope she likes them because they are hard to let go!

There was plenty of tinking back on this project, but it was worth it. You really have to pay attention to the chart. I love the pine trees on the back of the socks:

I used my beloved Magic Loop method on these socks. Made them easy to try on as I knitted.

Pattern: Snowy Woods Socks
Needles: US# 1.5 circular
Yarn: Berocco Ultra Alpaca Light in Potting Soil and Steel Cut Oats
Ravelry Page

Posted in finished objects, gifts, knitting, magic loop, socks/footwear | 1 Comment »

Green Stripey Socks with an Afterthought Heel

April 27, 2011

When I got this great yarn at Rae’s, I wanted to get going on some socks. This is just a plain, stockinette sock using the technique I learned at Rae’s to knit socks without a pattern, toe-up. I decided to knit the leg in plain stockinette because I just wanted the self striping yarn to show without any texture.

Barbara, who teaches that sock class at Rae’s, really prefers an afterthought heel, placing waste yarn as you knit, which is easily picked out later for the heel. Having done socks with both a gusset/heel flap and the afterthought technique, I’ve come to prefer the afterthought heel, too. It’s by far the simplest method, requiring no pattern or keeping track of short rows and Barbara feels it’s the most comfortable to wear.

Another bonus with an afterthought heel – you basically knit a whole tube for the sock, from toe to cuff, and so it doesn’t interrupt your self striping yarn or any other pattern that you’re doing.

I also did a Russian bind-off for the cuff, which I really liked using this method (love this lady’s accent). I had tried the Russian bind-off in Wendy Johnson’s book, Socks from the Toe Up, and did not like that version at all.

Pattern: None!
Yarn: Pagewood Farm, Forest Camo
Yarn for Toes/Heels: Yarn Hollow Bitty/Jade
Needles: US #0, circular, using magic loop
Ravelry Page