This cowl is named for the Bobby Darin song, that talks about how the singer’s true love is waiting across the waves. But it also hearkens to song’s original French inspiration, La Mer, with its visions of the sea dancing along the shore, shimmering under the rain.
Mixing the warmth of Revolutions‘ alpaca and mohair halo with the glitter in sequined Cotton Gold captures the feel of the light sparkling on the waves.
The main pattern is a three row repeat using very basic crochet stitches, making this a suitable project for an adventurous beginner.
The finished product has a warm and relaxed fabric, both dressy and practical. It’s easy enough to widen this cowl, if desired. It uses an 8 stitch repeat, so just start with more stitches in that 8 stitch increment and you’re set.
It’s sized from 3-6 months all the way up to 10 years. Whether your little one is “ooh, look at the tiny toes!” or “I can’t believe they’re growing up so fast!” you can still make them a fun sweater.
The stranding is very predictable. If you like to do Fair Isle without having to constantly refer back to the pattern, you’re set. Put on an episode of This Is Us and knit away without missing the juicy bits.
It would be really easy to customize. Fibra Natura Dona has a range of bold colors, both dark and light. Blue and white for a gingham look? Red and black for a classic checkerboard? Team colors for the little fan? There are a lot of possibilities!
This here’s the story of a girl named Sue. No, the lady in the glasses isn’t Sue…
Sue is the fuzzy yeller dawg. (I’m a native Southerner. I can – and do – talk this way sometimes). The Southern belle in the vest is Krista. She’s a talented crafter, and was kind enough to model this camo crochet vest in Uptown Worsted Tapestry, with a knit border in solid Uptown Worsted.
This vest was first worn by Lily Chin as a presenter at Stitches, and now we’re releasing it as a free pattern to you!
Handy pockets, applied at finishing!
But wait, there’s more!
A crocheted quacker to match!
Sue says the duck should be hers, but we think that’s just a mallard of opinion.
Well, if she wants it that bad, it won’t ruffle our feathers. Better to play with the duck than our stash.
A long, twisted rib upturned brim gives way to a basic stockinette body. The difference in gauge between the two stitches means that the rib fits snugly, but the variegated Bamboo Bloom section is slouchy. A neat solution to achieving the perfect fit.
We’ve shown it in two color options here, but I’m about to cast on for one for a friend, using an orange Deluxe Worsted Superwash for the base and Bamboo Bloom Handpaints 317 Sensei for the body.Â
This one’s a bit of an ugly duckling story, although of course the duckling was never ugly at all.
We had this garment in our studio for a long time, and kept looking askance at it. Squares on a jacket? We just weren’t sure about it, so it stayed on the shelf.
Then one day we were discussing upcoming Free Pattern Fridays, and someone picked up this cardi and put it on. Wow! It looked great! The ugly duckling had been a swan all along – we just couldn’t see it until it spread its wings!
We love how the tweedy gray grounds the piece, but the colorful flowery motifs work with most anything. This was a lucky discovery, with sweater weather finally here!
The Deluxe DK Tweed Superwash motifs are made separately, then seamed together. The pattern is written and charted, and contains a schematic for piecing it together.
There’s a lesson here about looking past first impressions. We’re certainly glad we gave this beauty a second chance.
It’s that time of year! Little ghouls and ghosties run amok in the neighborhood, and we love crafting fun things for them – and for us! Let’s take a look at a few free patterns.
We want candy. More candy. And not the cheap stuff.
There is so much personality in these three crocheted monsters! Sized for children through adults, these friends are free patterns in machine washable Uptown Worsted. We decided to make ours in the adult size, so we could have some fun here in the office!
(L-R: Amy, Rachel, and Heather, always up for some wholesome fun)
These Fair Isle knits have a piece plastic needlepoint canvas inside to help them hold their shape. It’s optional, but we go through a lot of candy here, so we thought it was a good idea to help them stand up to the frequent “walk-by grabbing.”
We released the Batcape last week and blogged about it. Maybe you saw it, but if you didn’t, we don’t want you to miss it. 🙂
Moving to printed patterns, there are some real gems in the book 50 Knitted Gifts for Year-Round Giving, from Sixth and Spring. The book features great projects suitable for any occasion. The Halloween selections do not disappoint!
Rachel Brockman has created a simple pattern that makes a lovely twisted eyelet fabric.
It’s just a three stitch, four row repeat that’s easy to find the rhythm of, providing just enough texture to the self-shading, sparkling Classic Shades Sequins Lite.
There are several different ways to go on color here. I love the flowery look of 405 Primrose shown here…
…or go full Autumn with color 403 Volcano…
…or try something less variegated, or even solid, for a more formal and wintry look.
This versatile piece looks great draped long, or wrapped to put more color and warmth in one spot.
We hope you have a great weekend, and that you find time to make something beautiful.
(I looked for a dramatic sound effect that could be played for maximum suspense. This was the first hit, so here you go.)
The pattern is written for one size, but it can be easily scaled up or down by adding or subtracting multiples of 6 from the cast-on.
We’d also like to give credit to our model Lilly, because it was super hard to keep a straight face goofing around with this cape and wearing plastic fangs.
The chevron pattern is knit in one piece from the top down. A contrasting i-cord is added at the end.
The perfect accessory for handing out treats. Or for trick-or-treating in. We’re not going to judge.
