Matching Pairs

I finished the pair of socks for myself. They are very plain - stocking stitch, using a free Regia pattern available with the yarn. I'm pleased with them and they are very cosy. The only slight downside is that I cast on a bit too tightly on the first sock, making it a little hard to pull on. Must remember to make a point of casting on more loosely next time.

I had some left over yarn, and just managed to squeeze a matching pair of socks for Little Cherub out of it. I had to scale the pattern down as the smallest size was still considerably larger than her little feet, but it came out well. I had all of about 18 inches of spare yarn when I finished!

Mary for May

I have been quiet not because I am not knitting, but because I am knitting three large projects simultaneously and haven't finished anything for a while. As well as the sweater and puppet theatre in my sidebar, I was distracted by a cable stitch sampler disguised as a blanket. You knit strips with a different cable pattern in the centre of each, using Aran wool and large needles, and then sew the strips together to make the blanket.

This week I took a quick detour from the large projects to make this little Mary figure. As Catholics we celebrate May as a month dedicated to Our Lady, and I wanted something to put into a May Basket for Little Cherub. I found a free nativity scene pattern online at Australian Women's Weekly (it can be downloaded as a PDF file here).


I may add the baby Jesus figure for Christmas and probably also Joseph, though I don't see myself knitting the whole scene. The light blue yarn was a bit paler than I wanted, but it was a case of using what I had to hand.

Distractions

I got distracted by a couple of smaller projects.

Project Number 1 ... an Easter gift for Little Cherub


Project Number 2 ... a scarf for myself, from a pattern in The Encyclopedia of Crochet Techniques. I have never done anything more than basic crochet before and was inspired by the book (a library find) to try out this fan pattern, using a very old ball of brushed DK yarn I found at the back of a cupboard.

Another Finished Project

I am so pleased with the way this cotton sweater for Little Cherub came out. It is made in Rowan Handknit DK Cotton, which is lovely to knit with. The pattern is from The Big Book of Kids' Knits by Zoe Mellor.

Here is Little Cherub modelling, complete with cheesy grin for the camera ...


This is the flower motif on the front ...


And the lacy, scalloped edging ...

Little Blue Bolero

This was very quick to knit, though the Sirdar Snuggly Bubbly was a bit ... well ... bubbly! The lumpy-bumpy texture made it a little fiddly. The end result was good, though. A little large still for my Little Cherub, so it should last her a while.

Just Finished

This "little" cardigan for Little Cherub turned out to be not quite so little. The pattern makes it look shorter than it really is - I was thinking it was more bolero style - and Cherub's miniature build means the age 1-2 size is still a bit large. I draw the line at knitting the 6-12 month size for a 20 month old toddler! At least it will still fit easily next winter.

The Snowflake yarn is lovely and soft, and the cardigan warm and cuddly. The only downside to knitting is that the texture of the yarn makes it hard to count rows. The pattern uses Sirdar Snuggly yarn for the bobbly border, but I tested out both some spare Snuggly I had and the Snowflake on the sleeve and preferred the Snowflake. The effect was chunkier, but it felt softer (and saved me having to buy more Snuggly wool in the right colour!)


As modelled by Little Cherub, slightly dishevelled ...