Saturday Sampler: 8 FREE Knitting Tutorials

 

With all the extra time spent indoors, fall is a great time to learn a few new skills. Here are 8 FREE knitting tutorials I've found to help you ramp up your knitting this season:

  

TEN ways to work in ends as you go, from TECHknitting!

 Cabling without a cable needle, from the Knitting Daily blog (essential technique IMO).

 Methods for joining new yarn, from STITCH This!

 

 Knit Picks shows you how to set in sleeves.

 Short row shadow wraps, from Signest

 Anne Hanson offers a free mini class on grafting over at Craftsy.

 Ysolda teaches you the tubular cast on (which is a bit labor intensive, but really does look astonishingly better).

 And my photo tutorial on magic loop.

What new technique are you interested in learning?

Pattern Debut: Volteado

 

What did I tell you about autumn, huh? Season of knitting, season of NEW PATTERNS. Yep, another one.  Introducing Volteado!

 

I'm excited to share that you'll find this one in the Knitty Deep Fall issue! So you know what that means--it's FREE!

These socks used two skeins of Tanis Fiber Arts Blue Label fingering weight. The sample is knit in Plum and Sunset.

Purple is my color, lately. And this is one beautiful purple.

They're knit cuff down, and available in two sizes: 8" and 9" foot circumference. The sample socks are the smaller size--they fit my size 7.5 foot quite nicely!

The color repeats are short, which results in short, stacked floats that are extra thick and warm, particularly on the soles. Cuffs, toes and short row heels are done in a solid color to contrast.

Now that the pattern is live, I can stop protecting my sample pair and start wearing them!

Stay tuned, my previously exclusive Pumpkin Butter sock design goes live Monday--more colorwork socks!--bringing my September pattern release total up to 4!

ETA: Please join us for a Volteado knit-a-long! We'll be starting October 1, but you can join in the pre-cast on chatter here.

Sunday Sampler: Early Fall Knitting

Boy it's been a while since I've done one of these!

If you're a regular reader of this blog, you know that, by my definition, September is the start of FALL, the very best season of the year. Fall is, of course, a great time for knitting anything and everything. But maybe you're overwhelmed by your options and don't know where to start. Or you're having trouble prioritizing. Or you're just not feeling inspired by your queue.

Fear not! I am here to help. Without further ado, Ten Spectacular--and FREE--Fall Knitting Projects:

 Photo courtesy of Emily Ringelman / Knitty

 Delaware is for Cables by Emily Ringelman. So cable-y. Great with a rustic yarn. Quick to knit in aran weight. And I'm in favor of building a varied hat wardrobe for fall, as you'll see.

 Photo courtesy of Andi Satterlund

 Lace Shrug, by Andi Satterlund. Perhaps a bit spring-y, but cold shoulders are a risk any time, and lace is perfect for a subtle early fall chill.

 Photo courtesy of Megan Wright

Rhapsody in Lace and Ruffles, by Megan Wright. A heavier shawl in DK weight, perfect for when the weather finally turns COLD.

 Photo courtesy of Jessa Kalani

Rikke hat, by Sarah Young. Lovely garter squishiness!

 Photo courtesy of Tin Can Knits

Clayoquot Toque, from Tin Can Knits. A free hat pattern to match the cardigan in the new Road Trip collection! Great introduction to stranded knitting.

 Photo courtesy of Tin Can Knits

Another freebie from Tin Can Knits, Barley, a squishy hat featuring a simple stockinette and garter combo and sized from Baby to Adult.

 Photo courtesy of Nancy Green / Knitty

Thisbe by Nancy Green. Love this cable and lace combo, and you can ALWAYS use more handknit socks.

 

Photo courtesy of Raveler verabee

 

Wurm by Katharina Nopp. Another squishy hat, and looks like a good candidate for handspun!

Photo courtesy of Purl Soho

Bandana Cowl by Purl Soho. A quick, cozy knit in bulky weight.



Dungarees cowl, by yours truly. The openwork is straightforward, but the lateral braids are a challenge--try something new!

Wittle Wednesdays: Ollie's Hat

 

When you have a baby, the hospital gives you a rather terrible newborn hat that's all stretch and no structure. It falls off baby's head after about 30 seconds, and you spend most of your hospital stay putting it back on. 

Why don't they just keep things warm enough that baby doesn't need a hat? I don't know. One of the great mysteries of life, I guess. 

Knowing we would be given another of these useless hats, before Ollie was born, I set out to knit him an alternative hat. I wanted something newborn-sized (about a 14" head circumference), done in fingering weight, simple and quick, but not plain stockinette.  I searched and searched Ravelry and came up short.

So of course I wound up just putting something together myself.

This little hat knits up so quickly, even in fingering weight, and the chevron pattern is easy to memorize, as are the crown decreases. It's a great way to use up leftover sock yarn, works well with variegated, self-striping or solid color yarn, and best of all, in Ollie's honor, this is a freebie. Check out the pattern below.

 

And if you have some extra time (who doesn't?!?), consider knitting up a couple for your local NICU (using a soft, non-allergenic yarn). They play host to so many tiny babies and exhausted moms and dads who will certainly appreciate your generosity. Ollie's NICU stay was relatively short, but I'll always be thankful for the support and encouragement we received while he was there.

 

OLLIE'S HAT

Size: newborn; approx. 14" head circumference
Gauge: 7.5st/in in st st
Needles: US size 3 DPNs, or long circular for magic loop
Yarn: Approx. 50yds fingering weight

Abbreviations:
kfb: knit into the front and back of the same stitch
s2kp: slip 2 sts as if to knit; k1, then pass both slipped sts over and off the needle

CO 104 sts; place marker and join to work in the round.

Rnd 1: (k2, p2) to end.

Work Rnd 1 5 times total, or until brim is approx. 1/2".

Next rnd: Knit, increasing 1 st. 105 sts.

Chevron pattern:

Rnd 1: *Kfb, k5, s2kp, k5, kfb; rep from * to end.
Rnd 2: Knit.

Rep rnds 1 and 2 until hat is approximately 3".

Crown decreases:

Rnd 1: *K6, s2kp, k6; rep from * to end.
Rnd 2: Knit.
Rnd 3: *K5, s2kp, k5; rep from * to end.
Rnd 4: Knit.
Rnd 5: *K4, s2kp, k4; rep from * to end.
Rnd 6: Knit.
Rnd 7: *K3, s2kp, k3; rep from * to end.
Rnd 8: Knit.
Rnd 9: *K2, s2kp, k2; rep from * to end.
Rnd 10: Knit.
Rnd 11: *K1, s2kp, k1; rep from * to end.
Rnd 12: S2kp around. 7 sts rem.

Cut yarn, pass through remaining stitches, pull tight to close and fasten off. Weave in ends. Put on squirmy new baby.

Wittle Wednesdays: Spooky Wittle Sock Recipe

Ta-da! Here we are at the pumpkin patch, Halloween socks and all.

I was able to finish the socks in time, including an adventure in seaming while doped up on cold meds the morning of, because JJ was kind enough to share his cold with me (and not, I will note, with CP).

Sadly, the first thing JJ did when we set him on the ground to take pictures was rub his socks in the dirt, leaves, sticks and debris. At least it wasn't rotten pumpkin guts.

In case you'd like a quick pair of Halloween (or other themed) striped socks of your own, I've whipped up a little recipe for you.

What makes this a "recipe" instead of a pattern? Let's see.

For starters, there's nothing particularly novel about these socks--they're just slightly more interesting than plain vanilla socks, they just happen to be baby-sized. Basically, I've done a little math to create a smaller sock, so if you don't want to go to the trouble of doing math, it's your lucky day!

Sort of. This sock recipe comes in only one size: Size JJ. His little foot is about 4" long, and 5" around, so if you have a baby that's about that size, or will someday be that size, these socks are for you.

I'm going to assume you already have a general idea of how to knit socks, and have a handle on all the techniques that go with that, so I'm going to keep the instructions fairly simple. I knit these on DPNs, so the instructions are, you guessed it, for knitting on DPNs!

Also, this hasn't been test knit or tech edited.

And finally, while this basic sock will work with any fingering weight yarn, I used Knit Picks Felici and I did a lot of, "Oh, I'll just knit until the next color change," so if you use the same yarn, you'll get the same color blocking.

Spooky Wittle Sock Recipe

Gauge: approx 8 sts/in

 CO 44 sts over 3 DPNs

Work in 1x1 rib for approximately .5", or 1 color repeat.

Knit 1 round, placing a marker after 22 sts to mark middle of the rnd.

Leg Pattern:

Rnd 1: *k2, slp 1 wyib, k to 3 sts before m, slp 1 wyib, k2; rep from * once.
Rnd 2: *k2, k1 tbl, k to 3 sts before m, k1 tbl, k2; rep from * once.

Work leg pattern through 2 color repeats, or until leg is approximately 3" long, ending after Rnd 2.

Heel Flap

Work Rnd 1 once (I purposely worked 1 rnd in the next color, to make a little "strap" across the front of the ankle); at end of rnd, turn work.

Slp 1, then work back across 21 sts, up to the m; as you are no longer working in the round, you'll be purling on the WS, and remember to purl the slipped sts through the back loop.

You will be working the heel back and forth on these 22 sts. Move remaining 22 sts to scrap yarn or a spare needle.

Continue working heel sts in pattern, and slipping the first st of each row, until heel flap reaches approx 1.5", ending with a WS row.

Turn the Heel

Row 1: K13, ssk, k1, turn.
R2: Slp 1, p5, p2tog, p1, turn.
R3: Slp 1, knit to gap, ssk across gap, k1, turn.
R4: Slp 1, purl to gap, p2tog across gap, p1, turn.

Continue as established until all sts on the needle have been worked; 14 sts.

Knit across 14 heel sts.

Gusset

Return held sts to needle.

Pick up and knit approx 11 sts down the left side of the heel flap (needle 1), work across held sts in pattern (needle 2), pick up and knit 11 sts up the right side of the heel flap, then knit 7 more sts from the original heel flap (needle 3) to bring you to the new center of the round.

Work 1 rnd, knitting sts on needles 1 and 3, and working needle 2 in pattern. (You may find it useful to knit the picked up sts through the back loop on this rnd to tighten them up.)

Rnd 1: Needle 1: Knit to last 3 sts, k2tog, k1; Needle 2: work in pattern; Needle 3: k1, ssk, knit to end of rnd.
Rnd 2: Knit sts on Needles 1 and 3; work sts on Needle 2 in pattern.

Rep Rnds 1 and 2 until 22 sts remain on Needles 1 and 3. Needle 1 and 3 now hold sole sts, Needle 2 holds top of foot sts.

Foot

Continue as established, working Needle 2 sts in pattern and sole sts in stockinette, until foot reaches approx 3.5", or about halfway through the 7th color block. Mark new ctr of rnd between Needles 1 and 2.

Toe

Rnd 1 (start of Needle 2): *k1, ssk, k to last 3 sts, k2tog, k1; rep from * once across needles 3 and 1.
Rnd 2: knit.

Rep these 2 rnds until 24 sts rem; then rep only rnd 1 until 16 sts rem.

Seam toe using kitchener stitch.

Make 2nd sock.

Put on adorable baby.

Pattern Debut: Hard Candy Christmas ornaments

If your Christmas tree needs a handknit touch this holiday season, you're in luck:

These darling little candies knit up quickly, using leftover sock yarn, and they're easy to customize: bigger, smaller, striped, plain, round or square, plenty of options to liven up your holiday decor.

You could also use them to pretty-up your gift wrap or personalize holiday cards. Attach them to plain stockings to dress them up. Wear them as earrings.

Just kidding on that last one. Please don't.

A set of these ornaments would make a lovely gift for friends and family, and with ten days to go until Christmas, you have time!

Go ahead and download the pattern now!