city sleek: a free cowl knitting pattern

City sleek is my latest free knitting pattern. I had 2 lonely skeins of Rowan Felted Tweed DK, and no project for them. I have been very much in love with cowls, and cowls that could work for both guys and gals. Garter stitch has been a favorite of mine for a long time: simple and cushy.

The pattern is based on uneven repeats of rows and colors but with a clear progression. Slipped stitches carry the colors up into the next block creating a very fluid, sleek look. 

The systematic progression of the pattern, which is knit in the round, makes you want to knit just one more section. Before you know it you are done with the cowl, and are wearing it!

The pattern is available as a free pattern on Ravelry. To download the free pattern and get knitting city sleek click HERE.

Happy knitting!

it's a guy thing: a free sock pattern

There are a lot of men in my life. Some big and some small! There are a lot of perfect yarns in my life! Malabrigo Sock is one of them. And the Persia colorway leaves me speechless!

 I loved my men so much, and I loved this yarn so much, I had to come up with a super guy sock pattern from baby size to adult. And here it is. Seed stitch and mini baby cables combine to make a masculine, relaxed pattern, playing the subtle changes in color to the perfect tweedy effect. Don't they go great with jeans? And best of all, the stitch pattern makes the socks fun and interesting to knit, making you want to knit just a little more to get to the next repeat, even when the big men in your life are size 13!

The pattern is available as a free pattern on Ravelry. (Just click on the word Ravelry to be brought to the page.) I hope you and your guys enjoy the socks!

The Mod Case Free Crochet Pattern

I called my new i-phone case the Mod Case! I hope you like the name.
I am offering this pattern as a free pattern. The case is super simple to crochet, requires very little yarn, you can use your scraps for it, and is crocheted in the blink of an eye. Perfect for a last minute gift! Just click on the link to download the pattern.
Happy crocheting everyone!

download now

And the Winner is...

Thank you all for your wonderful suggestions. I loved so many of them, I am going to have a little bit of a hard time picking.

The random number generator has spoken. Comment number 11 is the lucky winner of the 3 balls of Rowan Handknit cotton. Sierrapelona you can send a note to carolinehegwer on Ravelry, with your address, and I will mail the yarns to you.

Congratulations!

Name a new pattern give-away!

I need your help in naming my new i-phone case pattern. It would be so nice if you left a comment with your suggestion for a name.
I will pick one of the comments with a random number generator. The winner will receive 3 balls of Rowan Handknit Cotton, in the three colors I used for the case!
I will announce a winner by Friday 04/26/13 at 10 p.m eastern standard time.
Happy naming!

Finished!

The sweater for little L. is finished. I was not sure this morning that neither the weather nor little L. would cooperate for a little photoshoot, but the stars must have been smiling on me! It did not rain, and my adorable little man was in the mood to explore our still wintery back yard.

The sweater, which by the way he loves,  fits like a glove. I know for sure he loves it because right after we put it on, he rubbed his belly, and said "it's beau", mixing French and English as he often does, and beau of course meaning beautiful. It is fitted enough to be be modern, while still having enough ease, for easy play.

The neckline is big enough for the head to go through, and for the sweater to sit on the shoulders perfectly. There are no buttons as I wanted the whole sweater to be crocheted in the round. Who does not like a seamless project?!

I am really fond of the overlay work with the stripes and the diagonal  lines on the raglans. These diagonal lines really add definition to the raglans, highlighting the shaping by looking like a faux seam, and framing the oatmeal stripes.

I kept the back simple, without a yoke design, only highlighting the raglan shaping with some overlay lines. I really like this sweater, and the fact that it is not girly, making it perfect for little boys, though I am sure it would look equally nice on a little girl. I am thinking of offering it as a pattern? What do you think?

Overlay Crochet Stripes

So, yesterday I told you I was excited because I was going to make the stripes for little L.'s sweater. What I did not tell you was that I had a plan for the stripes. I had decided to do the stripes using the overlay crochet technique. Instead of crocheting the stripes as you go, and getting a join when you switch colors, I decided to crochet the entire yoke with the blue single crotchets through the back loops. Once the sweater was finished, I went back and slipped stitched my oatmeal stripes securing them on the single crochet posts. This technique allowed me to make the stripes thin, with a texture contrasting with the background, and only on the front of the sweater. I love the overlay technique!

I finished the overlay work, and the weaving in of the ends just before writing this post. I will take pictures of the finished sweater tomorrow. Hopefully little L. will be willing to model for us!

Joined!

The sleeves and the body of little L.'s sweater are joined! I placed markers at the four intersections of the sleeves and body to mark the spots for my decreases. I forgot to say that I opted for a raglan sweater. My decreases are paired on each sides of the markers.

I plan on crocheting for about an inch before putting oatmeal stripes in my design.
I have almost an inch, and I can hardly wait to stripe! I will be using the same Misti Alpaca Cotton Silk mix in a lovely tone on tone oatmeal.

Sleeves

I made a little more progress on the sweater for little L. I finished one sleeve and am almost done with the other.
As I did for the body of the sweater, I am crocheting the sleeves in the round. I placed the paired increases on the underside of the arm, evenly spaced a few stitches apart, and at regular intervals. I love the way the increases are there without being there.

Little discrete pearly bumps going up the arm, adding structure, and smoothly enlarging the sleeve to fit cute chubby arms.

I am more and more in love with the yarn (Misti Alpaca cotton silk) and the stitch pattern (single crotchets through the back loops in the round) as well as the round, seamless construction. This is going to be such a comfy, soft, light summer sweater for the slightly chilly walks we will take in the evening, after a long day at the beach this summer.

I tried the sleeve on my little L. The perfect fit! I am not sure he was as excited about the sleeve as I was. After examining the loose threads, he quickly decided to take the sleeve off. I hope he will be more impressed with the finished sweater!

The Perfect Crochet Stitch

I have crocheted on and off over the last few years making mostly blankets, and a few baby sweaters when I was expected little L. But a few months ago, while browsing Ravelry, and the crochet magazines at the bookstore in particular the lovely Inside Crochet , I found myself dreaming about all the things I could do with crochet.

In my rediscovery process, I fell in love with a fabulous, yet very simple crochet stitch, the single crochet through the back look while crocheting in the round. By having each single crochet go through the back loop only, the front loop creates little horizontal bars on the front of the work, breaking the traditionally vertical appearance of the crochet posts. The posts as a matter of fact almost seem to disappear. The fabric is soft and flexible and best of all it is perfect for either girl or boy garments.

The sample I am showing you here is knit in Misti Alpaca Cotton silk. It is a sport weight, and I am using an F hook.

This little sample is actually the body of a seamless crochet sweater I am designing for little L. But more on that later.

The Gatsby Vest - New Pattern

I am so happy! The Gatsby Vest pattern is ready. I just uploaded it to Ravelry!

The pattern is clearly written, with beautiful pictures highlighting the features of the vest.

A fun contrast between the striped front of the vest, and the solid back.

A comfy fit at the tummy.

Comfortable armholes for fun playing.

Best of all, the pattern comes in sizes 3 months to 6 years!

You can click the "buy now" Ravelry button to purchase it. Happy knitting!

The Gatsby Vest

I always find it hard to write after a long time with no writing. It is not the I have nothing to write about, just that my writing muscle is asleep, and my inner critic quite ready to strike down each and every sentence I write! But I am determined to share with you my progress on my new pattern, the Gatsby Vest. The knitting is done, the testing is done, and the pattern is undergoing its final editing. I find this the hardest stage, checking and rechecking. My favorite moments when I create a new design, are the moments when I get the inspiration for a new project, the actual knitting (I like to knit the project myself first to see how it feels), and then the photographing.

This was a very fun photo shoot with mr. L., my youngest son modeling. We had a lot of fun playing with pine cones, and running around in the playground. He did not seem too puzzled by the camera, as i you can clearly see! The great thing is that it also showed the vest in action.

 The vest covers the back and the tummy perfectly, and it is comfortable, while giving that classic touch I love so much for young children, and it is perfect for a boy. There are so many wonderful patterns out there for girls, but very few for boys. Not to say that it would not work for a girl, but the simplicity of the lines, details, and colors make it a perfect boy garment. After all, the Great Gatsby inspired the vest! One thing I really enjoyed about knitting the vest, was how easy and fast it was to knit. The contrast between the striped front of the vest, and the solid back, kept me entertained, and before I knew it I had a finished vest for mr. L. to enjoy! The fact that it is knitted using a worsted weight has something to do with how fast it knits up...

OK, back to work on the pattern. I will live you with my favorite picture of mr. L. wearing his vest.

The Retro Cardi for Girls

Little Miss SockPixie and I had a wonderful time together this morning, taking pictures of the Retro Cardi for Girls.



As she was putting the cardi on, I found myself giving her the same kind advice my mother had given me. As I was buttoning the cardi, I told her she should always leave a couple buttons open at the neck to show how beautiful it was , and leave the last button at the bottom edge of the cardi open to emphasize the gracefulness of her waist.



Growing up in France, I learned to love the timeless beauty of simple lines, of an understated lace panel, a shoulder, a perfect button, of simple knits.



The sweater is done, but I still have work. The pattern now needs to be sized and edited before I can offer it as a pdf.