Category Archives: Knitting

Apr 12 2013

Free iPhone Knitting Apps

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I have compiled a small list of free and hopefully useful knitting apps for iPhones. This list definitely doesn’t have all the free knitting apps available. I’m just mentioning a few I liked and that fit my needs.

 

knit appsI like stitch counter app by KAZE because it allows you store multiple projects. It also has a feature on the counter screen where you can turn the sleep function off. It also has a memo section where you can type notes about your progress, as well as, take pictures of your work.

Jknit LiteThere is also JKnit Lite HD for your iPad. JKnit Lite by Jakro Soft lets you store all of your pdf files in it for easy access and viewing where ever you are, no need to waste all of that paper anymore. There is also and stitch counter, place to write notes about your project and a camera option to take a pic of your project. There’s even a timer to record how much time you spent working on your project!

 

knit appsQuilt2Go has a couple of free apps that can be useful for knitters. The first one is a counter called StitchMinder and the other is called KnitMinder Lite.  KnitMinder Lite is a cool app because it allows you to put in and track current projects. It also has categories to list your pattern, yarn, and needle stashes so you will always know what you have instead of rummaging through everything to make sure you have it. The only thing that could be an issue is that the Lite version limits the amount of information you can put in to the app, you have to buy the full version to get more space.

knitting app
Gaugfy Free:Knitting Gauge Calculator is a handy app that helps you figure out what the gauge for a project should be. It also does the math for you when you need to figure out how long a project will be if you knit so many stitches per and how many rows. Or the opposite, you can input how long you need your project to be and it will tell you how many rows to knit. 

Mar 3 2013
knit mug cozy

Slip Stitch Knit Mug Cozy Revisited

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I decided to attempt my slip stitch knit mug cozy pattern again because I had so many problems the first time. Well, this one didn’t go according to plan either. My impatience got the better of me, resulting in this:

mug cozy

The pattern is slightly off. Using the yarn left over from my slip stitch belt, 100 % wool Crystal Palace Yarn, with size US 3 (3.25mm) needles, I decided to cast on 70 stitches and do the pattern

Row 1: P3 K2

Row 2: K1 S1 K1 P2

Repeat till desired length, I did 33 rows.

Cast off like it was an odd row so P3 K2.

Sew on button and loop.

But somewhere on Row 17 I noticed I combined two stitches leaving me with only 69 stitches on my needle and instead of  doing the smart thing and undoing my stitches until I found the problem, fix it, and move on, I decided I was too impatient and it was an amazing idea to just cast on another stitch at the end of the row. Wow I was wrong but I  knew I was wrong and did it anyways which makes it even worse. But that’s why my pattern is off. I do like the pattern and I do like my dressed up coffee mug in the morning. I also believe that this could be a great pattern for a cuff/bracelet.

The 70 stitches compared to the 75 in the first one I did it working out a lot better. It fits more of my coffee mugs!

knit mug cozyknit mug cozy

 

knit mug cozyknit mug cozy

Feb 15 2013
knit mug cozy

Slip Stitch Pattern for a Knit Mug Cozy

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knit mug cozy

I decided to dress up my morning coffee a bit with a knit mug cozy. I was still excited about learning the slip stitch from the belt I made and wanted to create a pattern that used the slip stitch in it. I still had to do a bit of research to figure out exactly how to do it but after compiling everything and then some trial and error,  this is what I came up with:

US 2 needles (2.75mm)

2 ply lace weight yarn from Hettinger Corriedales. It’s a farm, in Illinois near my hometown that raises the sheep, and dyes the wool and spins them at their farm! You should check it out.

I’m not sure how much yarn I’m using. The skein I’m using had 214 yards but I’m using it for multiple projects. This fits a 10.5 inch circumference mug best. The yarn is a little too dark to get a great picture of the pattern but it looks great in person. Maybe I’ll make another in a different yarn to better display the pattern.

Pattern:

  • Cast on 70 stitches
  • Row 1: P3 K2 repeat until row is finished
  • Row 2: K1 S1 (P) K1 P2 repeat until row is finished
  • Repeat pattern until desired length. Mine ended up being 31 rows
  • Cast off on an odd-numbered row in the P3 K2 pattern
  • Sew loop like in the felted bag on one side and sew the button on the other
  • Attach to the mug by putting the button next to the handle and loop through the mug handle
  • Enjoy a nice cup of whatever with your cozy.

*Please note that for this pattern, unlike the belt, when you slip stitch purl style you do NOT bring the yarn forward, you simply just put the needle through the stitch like you would for a purl stitch and then push the stitch onto the needle.

knit mug cozy

What I actually did to figure that pattern out:

  • Cast on 75 stitches
  • Row 1: K2 P3 repeat
  • Row 2: P2 K1 S1 (P) K1 repeat

After 8 rows, it was looking like a hot jumbled mess, that’s the point of trial and error I guess. It’s a little difficult to see because the thread because it was hand spun isn’t the same thickness throughout. I decided to flip the pattern and test it out. To be honest, I don’t completely understand why it worked but it did so that’s awesome.

  • Row 9: P3 K2
  • Row 10: K1 S1(P) K1 P2
  • Rows 30 and 31 in a garter stitch to somewhat match the bottom of the cozy.
  • Add loop like I did with the felted bag to one end
  • Sew on button to the other end

*I marked on a piece of paper every time I did 5 stitches, and would only stop after doing five to keep my place. I also, marked them by row just incase I forgot which row I was on.

Didn’t turn out how I had envisioned in my head. But I was able to figure it out and I think it still looks cute and definitely serves its purpose. I can now create a mug cozy with the exact pattern I was hoping for. Like I said before, it’s best for a mug with a 10.5 inch circumference. I found it slipped a little on a 9.5inch and a 10 inch that decreases towards the bottom of the mug. Decrease the amount of stitches, by 5, to fit the mug you would like to use it on.

knit mug cozy

10inch and decreasing

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

knit mug cozy

9.5in circumference

knit mug cozy

10.5inch circumference

 

 

 

 

 

Feb 2 2013
knitted belt

Knit Belt, How to Slip Stitch

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knit belt

I decided to make the Artisan Belt in the Chick with Sticks knitting book. I’ve never had a knit belt before. It was my first time slipping stitches. I was a little nervous about it because although there was a picture of it I wasn’t sure how it would work. But it gave it a nice almost braided looking border, using Crystal Palace Yarn. I used attach 1” D rings as my belt closure.

– To slip stitch all you do it put the needle through the loop, in either knit or purl stitch fashion whatever the directions say, without wrapping yarn around the needle first. So you’re literally slipping the stitch onto the needle.

knit belt

Start by pulling the thread to the front of the project

knit belt

Then take the needle through the front of the stitch like you’re going to do a purl stitch.

knit belt

Push stitch on to needle WITHOUT actually doing the purl stitch

– To attach the D rings, simply fold fabric over the straight part of the D ring and stitch closed. The package the rings come in should also have instructions on it.

knitted beltOverall I’m really happy with my knit belt. It’s really just an accessory, not for actually holding up pants. But that is just fine with me. I think it’s a nice addition to my wardrobe and it was a fun, easy and quick project to complete.

 

Dec 29 2012
fingerless gloves

Simple Knit Men’s Fingerless Gloves Pattern

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Homemade presents are the best presents in my opinion because you know the person really thought about the gift and put some time into it. Also, I enjoy making gifts for people too so it’s a win win.

I needed to get a gift for a friend and decided on fingerless gloves. I have a pair and love them.  I have also decided to make a pair of fingerless gloves for my dad because he uses a cane and these will allow him to keep his hands warm and still have the ability to grip the cane. For my friend’s gloves, I decided on a 100% baby alpaca chunky yarn in gray because it’s so soft and warm. It’s also just my favorite yarn to knit and gray goes with everything.

easy pattern/ how I did it:

  1. cast on 32
  2. k2 p2
  3. continue pattern until it reaches desired length  I made mine about 8 inches because I wanted the glove to go all the way under the coat sleeve so no skin was exposed
  4. cast off in the k2 p2 pattern
  5. fold in half lengthwise and whip stitch up the side leaving an opening for your thumb about an inch down from the top

Then you have great fingerless gloves for the late fall and winter!

This pattern can easily be adjusted for men and women. Just reduce or increase the stitches by the pattern of 4 stitches (k2p2)

fingerless gloves

action shot

Nov 28 2012

Basket Weave Pattern Knit Scarf

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My next project was a basket weave pattern scarf for my husband. I’m using a crimson color wool yarn on size 8 needles. The pattern I decided on was:

  • Cast on 30
  • Knit 5 Purl 5 for 5 rows
  • Purl 5 Knit 5 for 5 rows
  • Repeat until it’s long enough
  • Bind off

It is a skinny scarf for a man but the basket weave pattern is very nice because it gives the scarf texture without being girly.  I think it will be good when it’s really cold so he can bundle up with it.

I don’t know when I’ll finish but hopefully it’ll be soon so I can post a picture.

rusty, basket weave pattern

This is Rusty hard at work making sure my yarn ball doesn’t roll off of the couch while I’m knitting.

 Finally finished in June!

Nov 15 2012
from the front

How to Make a Knit HeadBand

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I’m going to the Harvard vs. Yale football game this Saturday and realized I don’t have a lot of Crimson to support Harvard. I have plenty of orange and navy to support the Fighting Illini and Da Bears but not much else. I decided on a knit headband.

So I took the extra maroon yarn from my felted knit bag and counting the slip knot, cast on 7.

yarn

tiny yarn ball

I went until I had little yarn left and finished it. It ended up being 11 3/4 inches long.

all knitted up

supplies

Then I got one yard of black ribbon a little bit smaller in width than the knitted piece, cut it in half and hand sewed it to the knitted piece. I used a running stitch  along the top, bottom and down the middle of the ribbon. I tried to make sure not to go over the knit stitches so the black stitches wouldn’t be seen. I also put the ribbon about four inches onto the knit piece to give the head band some strength.

The ends of the ribbon will fray so it’s best to fold over the end, to create a hem and sew to enclose the end of the ribbon.

front view

back view

I tried my best to get a good shot of me wearing it but apparently I am no good at it, and every straight on view, I looked a little cooky so maybe I’ll get some good pictures at the game!

from the front

Now I have a nice unique headband to wear to the game and just a fun winter accessory!

  1. wool yarn, cast on 7 on size 6 needles
  2. knit stitch until about 12 inches long
  3. 2 pieces of 1/2 yard ribbon
  4. sew ribbon to knitted piece
  5. wear and look great!

 

 

Nov 9 2012
all three

Knitting Washcloths

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My next project was knitting washcloths using different stitches. It requires all cotton yarn, because you need to be able to use and wash them regularly.

wash clothes

yarn for wash clothes

The first one, a plain knit stitch wash cloth, I have cast on multiple times. I find 100% cotton yarn to be much more difficult to work with than wool and alpaca. Maybe because it’s a stiffer material.  Also, I found the pattern in the book for the first washcloth, which is to cast on and do a knit stitch which creates a garter stitch, to be quite large for a wash cloth. So I cast on only 35 stitches. But, I found that 35 was a bit smaller than my other wash clothes but not so small that I couldn’t use it. But cotton is not my favorite. I can see why the book suggests to do just a knit stitch for the first cloth. I was having a lot of problems with it.

problem

issues

I probably cast on five different times until it looked close to normal and once I got to knitting, I found it different to keep the end of each row as tight as the other stitches. But this is the finished result. I think it looks nice.

knit stitch

knit stitch

Next one is using a purl stitch. This was my first project with it. The cloth has a knit stitch border.

-knit stitch a few rows for the top border

-knit stitch a few stitches to continue border, I used 5 stitches,

-purl stitch the row until the last 5 stitches, knit stitch those

-knit

-repeat until last few rows

-knit last few rows for bottom border

-bind off

purl

purl stitch with a knit stitch border

I obviously had a couple of issues, but that’s what happens when you’re watching the newest episode of Revenge, thank God for Hulu Plus :), and not paying enough attention to your needles, so from now, after I complete a few rows I’ll always check to see if there is anything I should fix.

Next was the basket weave washcloth! Probably my favorite, pattern wise and the colors in the yarn. This is what I did:

-cast on 50

-knit 5, purl 5, continue pattern

do this for 5 rows

-purl 5, knit 5, continue pattern

do this for 5 rows

-continue to alternate until desired length is reached.

-bind off

I just did it until I ran out of yarn. I used my row counter for this just incase I forgot what stitch to start with and even wrote out, row 1-5 start with knit, 6-10 purl, 11-15 knit, 16-20 purl, and so on to keep me on track.

weave

basket weave

As much as I do not enjoy cotton yarn, I know I’ll use it again if I redecorate and I make wash clothes and other kitchen items.

all three

completed wash clothes

So now I have three wash clothes to use in my kitchen 🙂 Maybe I’ll enjoy cleaning more knowing I created/made the wash clothes I’m using? Hopefully?

 

Nov 7 2012
felted bag

Felted Knit Bag Revisited

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My last attempt at felting a bag did not go very well. So, I threw the almost felted knit bag into a different washer that had more options and it worked a bit better. I actually think if I put it on another cycle it would have been completely felted, but I had no more quarters with me and I really didn’t want to spend anymore time in my building’s basement. But I do like the way it turned out, the knitting does get to be more like a fabric, it feels a lot stronger and I like that it looks fuzzy.  Here is what it looks like…

bag

2nd time felted

Then I finished the bag by whip stitching around the flap with the gray novelty yarn and attached a button.

felted knit bag

finished

I’m pretty happy with the results. I’ll have to use it next time I go out!

 

Nov 6 2012

Wash Instructions on Yarn for Knitting

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All of those wash instructions symbols on the yarn tag can be confusing, before I got a knitting book, I started a page where I drew the symbol and wrote what it meant underneath it. I think I have most of them now, so I’ll share it.

knitting wash wash instructions

Wash Symbols

If there’s an X through it, don’t do it! Now that I’ve knitting a few things and felt like I’ve looked at thousands of labels trying to pick out yarn, the pictures are a bit self-explanatory but when just a month ago, I was confused to what they meant and now I have a page to look back on and check just in case I forget.