Category Archives: knitting

Bib and Cloth

On the surface it does not seem like much was accomplished in terms of knitting  last week, but  in reality there was. I was growing weary  of knitting dish and washcloths to use the cotton in my stash and was thinking about other things to make with my stash.  I had  recently received a copy of the monthly local Newborns in Need Chapter a couple  days prior to the weekend.  I wrote the person who sends out the newsletter to see if baby bibs  and burp cloths would be accepted. She assured me they would. I also heard from a long time friend saying she would accept bibs and cloths for the charity with whom she is involved.  This information provided the boost I needed.

I set off on a search of Ravelry for bibs and burp cloths. A few moments into my search I saw a link to a pattern by Elaine Fitzgerald, the owner of Down Cloverlaine. That was exactly the person  for whose patterns I was searching.  The patterns she writes are always clear, accurate and easily understood. I allowed myself the luxury of reading the past several entries of her blog before deciding to make a bib using her pattern: Rhonda’s Delight. It has always been and still is, one of my favorites because it shows off the colors in the ombre yarns in my stash. The next item I saw was Slipped Rib and Bib  which is  a design I had been wanting to try but could not because it was not available to the public.  The pattern is now available and you can read about it in her post: Blast From the Past. I chose to knit the cloth to try out the pattern.

I am not sure which of these two patterns I like the most. Knitting the Rhonda’s Favorite Bib reminded me of visiting an old friend. My hands and needles enjoyed the feel and rhythm of the pattern. The bib turned out looking quite nice. Knitting the Slipped Rib Cloth was a bit of a knitting adventure at first. It did not take my brain or hands long to memorize the stitch pattern.  Once that happened I relaxed and enjoyed the time knitting it. The pattern shows off the colors of the ombre yarn wonderfully.  Each of these are destined to become part of a bib and cloth set.  My conclusion is that they are equally my favorites.

May you enjoy these patterns at least as much as I do.

 

Exploring Patterns

A couple of weeks ago I started looking online again for patterns that were either inexpensive or free. I found and made two I have never seen before.

This first one is a Ravelry download called : My Six Row Dishcloth.

I made it using the large cone of Yellow cotton in my stash:

Six-Row-ClothThis was an easy pattern to crochet. I think the fact that it does not lie straight is because I pulled the center yarn too tight.

This next one I found thanks to a Google Alert. The pattern is Dashed Stripe and can be found here on Georgina Giles site.

Dashed-StripeI made this using a cone of Potpourri Ombre made by Lily Sugar’n’Cream. It was easy to knit and has great texture.

The next two cloths are from Dishcloth Diva by Deb Buckingham. The book is available from bookstores, amazon.com or as a Ravelry  download.

They were both easy and pleasant to knit. These are larger cloths and used 1.7 and 1.5 ounces of yarn. I want to make the In Style cloth again using a solid color to show off the pattern.

The last two cloths to show are both made using the pattern My Fave Dishcloth by Kathy North:

The pooling of the cloth made from the Sea Mist is interesting. It just happened that way.

I will be posting more about my Cotton project on the weekend.

May all of you be safe and warm.

A Word About Yarn

You will notice that I normally  use  the original Peaches & Creme yarn or Sugar and Cream yarn.  That is because it is primarily what is in my stash. There are a lot of other good  brands of cotton yarns available such as : I Love this Cotton by Hobby Lobby, Sugar and Cream, Knit Picks yarns, Brown Sheep yarns and  many others.

Yarn comes in  different weights such as Aran, DK, Sport and Fingering Weight. If you want more information about yarn weights take a look at the Craft Yarn Council‘s page about Yarn Standards .  I am sure most of you know that yarn weight; hook or needle size and other factors affect gauge. Gauge affects the size of an item you make. Please keep these factors in mind if you use a different yarn than the one recommended by a designer or if you are making something where size is important.

I hope you are having a wonderful day!

 

 

 

 

New and Old Friends

As I mentioned before, one of the goals of my Cotton Projects is that I use at least one “new to me” pattern a week. The few days  in January were busy. I made four dishcloths and three of the them were from patterns I have never used before.

Here are the cloths I made from patterns I have never tried before.

They were all fun to make and uniquely gorgeous.

The link to Joan Hamer’s e-book is here: Dozen Dishcloths to Knit I made it from a cone of original White Peaches and Creme yarn. I am delighted with this pattern and will be making the remaining eleven from this book.  If you are on Ravelry you might consider taking a look at the other patterns she has designed.

Variable Star is from  Leisure Arts  #5568 Knit Dishcloths by Julie Ray. I used Baby Green from the original Peaches and Creme. In person it is a delicate looking square.

Simple is from Dishcloth Diva by Deb Buckingham. I used  the original  Peaches and Creme Dark Purple Ombre for this cloth. The pattern is lost in the color of the yarn.

I like the amount of texture in each of these patterns and will be using them again.

The one dishcloth I made from a familiar pattern is below:Squishy1b

I used Hills and Valleys which can be found on this blog. It is a favorite of my husband because it is soft.  I like it because it holds its shape and  is squishy. It is also made on the diagonal which allows the size to be changed easily.  The yarn, OD Spice is also one of the softest feeling colorways made by the makers of the original Peaches and Creme.

Please come back as I share my journey of using my cotton yarn stash.

Grandmother’s Favorite

I have struggled off and on for years with making the Traditional Grandmother’s Favorite Dishcloth. I have tried several very well written versions of this with no success despite the patterns being well written.

My latest attempts have been with this very well designed pattern purchased from a wonderful designer on Etsy: Bordered Biased Dishcloth  The pictures she posted on Craftsy look good.

Here is one attempt at following her pattern:

PinkClassic1aIt is not her fault the lower right corner does not look right.

Here is my latest attempt:Y&W-1aIt looks a bit better. Any flaws in it are not the designer’s fault but are mine.  I think I will try it again in a couple of weeks. For now there are other patterns to use.

8-10-2019: I  have attempted to update the link to this pattern and have  not  been able to find it. If and when it is found, I will add the current link to the pattern to this page.

It is my prayer that you be safe today!

End of Slump

The knitting and crochet slump has finally ended! A slipper that had been on my needles for the past few months came off this past Saturday. Another pair has been started using yarn from my stash.

I will get some pictures taken and posted in the next couple of days. They would be taken today but it is a cloudy overcast day that makes photography difficult.