Posts tagged BFL
Newborn Cuteness
Jul 7th
About a month ago, I knit some longies for a lovely mama out of Elliebelly’s “Sistine Chapel” colorway on Blue Faced Leicester. The yarn was spectacularly yummy.
There was a lot of question as to what trim color to pick. There are a lot of colors in there! But I found that some colors blended a little TOO well with colorway and made for a washed out look. I took the yarn to my LYS and the lovely woman there helped me find this wine-colored Cascade 220. It went GREAT with the yarn, and really made the colors POP.
It was about this time that the mama I knit these for found out she was expecting another baby! She asked if I could use the leftover yarn to make matching newborn sized longies. But of course!
They turned out darling and just as beautiful as their toddler sized counterparts. What a lucky new little baby that will be!
And I couldn’t resist taking a picture of the two pairs together. I can’t wait to see action shots of these pants, side by side!
And if that weren’t enough newborn cuteness, I also offered up my services to knit a lovely brand-new mama (for the first time!) a little set for the bean she is expecting here in several months. The longies and matching hat were knit on Dashing Dachs’ “Oyster Rock” colorway, on Stallion Merino yarn. Very soft and thick and perfect for a newborn baby!
The hat was knit with the ever fabulous and versatile “Holly Hat” pattern that I now fully and truly swear by. I plan to make about a bazillion of these for Christmas presents! Quick and easy and very cute. Plus, she has instruction for all sizes! Sweet!
And again, here is the whole set together. And yet again, I cannot wait to see action shots. Who can resist newborn fluff? Since I will be having no more newborns around here, I have to live vicariously through others, you know!
That’s all for now! Look for an update tomorrow that has some super cute things that will be for SALE this week! (Yes, I’m actually selling something I’ve already knit!)
Yet another game of catch-up
Jun 15th
I’ve been criminal about this crafty blog here. I have been SO busy knitting that I haven’t hardly had a chance to update it. And that is all my bad, mind you. It doesn’t take that long to post a finished project but here I am, I have a whole handful to post! BAD KNITTER!
First, check out this skirty, done in Sugar Bubbie’s “Silly Old Bear” colorway on Cestari Superfine. There was less than an ounce of trim yarn (on BFL, of all things!) so I had to dye some yarn for the trim myself. It came out a little more royal blue than the blue in the colorway but I think the contrast is striking and really brings out the reds and oranges.
Since I had extra trim available, I tried a lacey edge detail on the skirt and not only was it easy to do, but it looks so charming on the edge of the skirt! It requires some blocking when drying the skirt after washing but the end result is SO worth it!
Next up I have a pair of longies I made for a sweet mama who purchased a custom slot off my Hyena Cart. She had the colorway custom dyed on Cestari Superfine by Ewe Need Color and it’s called “Maverick”.
Striking, yes? I knit the body on size 8 circulars instead of my usual 7’s, because I felt the thicker yarn would behave nicer with it. I’m glad I did! It made for a quick knit.
I also have a custom knit soaker to share, which doesn’t happen that often. It’s knit with Mosaic Moon’s “Birthday Boy” also on Cestari Superfine. The trim is regular white Cascade 22o.
Such a pretty colorway! I tried a 2-stitch icord for the first time and was pleased with the results though it was more difficult to find a neat way to tie it off at the ends. I also tried a 1×1 ribbing on the leg cuffs which worked great and looked nice too.
Speaking of Mosaic Moon, I knit a pair of shorties with MM’s “Goblin” colorway (yep, Cestari Superfine… AGAIN). I completely adore the mama I knit these for and am incredibly honored that she asked me to knit them for her son. I only hope she enjoys them!
And I finish off with another skirty. This was also knit for a mama who purchased a custom slot from my HC and I had such a good time working with her. It was her first completely custom knitted item and she was nervous and excited. The yarn was custom dyed on BFL by a talented HC dyer (whose store name sadly escapes me at the moment) and it was named “Dryad’s Dance”. A perfect name for this ethereal colorway!
I did another 2 stitch icord!
I also did another lace edge detail on the skirt. I thought the colorway complimented it well.
I also put short rows in the back. I don’t usually do this for skirties as the pattern doesn’t really require it. But I’ve noticed that sometimes the skirt will hike up a little in the back so I thought the short rows might counter-act that.
And that gets me all caught up! I’m currently 2/3 of the way through a big custom outfit. It’s three pieces, including a top that I’ve never knit before. It’s coming along quite nicely though and I promise to post it as soon as I’m finished! I’m very proud of it! Then again, I’m proud of everything I knit.
Shorties Season
May 30th
I love knitting shorties. The pattern itself is very satisfying to knit and then the legs are several inches shorter than longies making them a relatively quick knit as well. Plus, they use less yarn so one 4 ounce skein of worsted yarn and a couple ounces of coordinating trim make for a cute, cute, CUTE pair of shorts to wear all summer long.
First up, we have a pair of shorts knit with Dashing Dachs’ “Oyster Rock” colorway on their Stallion Organic Merino (a bulkier weight yarn but oh so soft!).
The mama was hoping for board short length shorties which generall come to the knees or below. I fell about a half an inch short of the projected inseam since bulky yarn has less yardage than worsted. But they still came out longer than your average shorties and are definitely adorable on their new owner.
I also recently finished this pair of shorts which was knit with Western Sky Knits’ “Kelp Forest” colorway on their fabulous Rodeo BFL yarn. I just love BFL. I never get tired of knitting with it. This was a kettle dyed variation and completely reinforced my love of kettle dyed yarn. I just love the variations in the colors. And this colorway was very calm, soothing, cool and sweet. Perfect!
They came out super cute, don’t you think? I hope the mama that requested them loves them as much as I do. I may have to hunt down some of this yarn for my littlest boy. I think a pair of shorts like this would be perfect for him! (This of course assumes I ever have time to knit for my own children.)
I have my latest skirty that I need to share yet (it turned out FABULOUS) and I have even more pairs of longies (people are already looking ahead towards fall!) to share too. The fun never ends, I tell ya!
But most of all? I just love to knit. Why, oh why didn’t I start earlier in life? It is just a wonderful hobby. If you’ve ever considered starting, do it now!
The Sparrow projects
May 14th
These customs were a challenge as I had to try to make the yarn “stretch” over the span of two projects. It wasn’t terribly easy, unfortunately. And I did sweat it towards the end. BUT, it all worked out and I think both came out very nice!
First up is a pair of medium/large longies in the “Sparrow” colorway from Sugar Bubbie on Hyena Cart. The yarn is their Inspire BFL which is an aran weight BFL (meaning it’s more like heavy worsted). WONDERFULLY soft. A joy to knit with. Things went well until I got to the legs and the yarn started to pool something awful. I switched skeins every row and that seemed to help. The mama wanted long legs so her daughter could grow into them next winter but we both agreed after the fact that perhaps an 11 inch inseam was a bit too long. I’m doing another pair of longies for her soon and we’ve decided that 10 inches will be fine for the inseam.
The same mama also wanted me to do a pair of medium shorties with the leftover yarn. The problem was, due to the long legs on the longies, there wasn’t a whole lot of yarn left. But I vowed to give it a go. I used a dark brown Cascade 220 yarn for the trim for a different look (at the mama’s request).
It worked, but barely! I used size 8 needles for the colorway to try to help it last a little better and that worked. I also added several rows to the waistband to help toward the rise. They’re probably on the small side of medium for shorties, but they fit the little cutie they went to live with and I think they turned out nice regardless.
Coming up? More skirties, shorties and stripes! I’ve been a busy girl!
Custom Work Catchup
Apr 27th
Once again, I find myself terribly behind with showing my latest customs work! The good news is the reason I am so behind is that I have been so busy knitting! The jobs are very steady right now and that is a very good thing. I have enough yarn waiting in the wings to keep me busy for a long time to come:
See what I mean? So let’s get caught up, shall we? I have a lot to share!
First off, we have a trio of wee bitty small longies with ruffles on the cuffs for a sweet mama who contacted me on Etsy to do the job. She’s expecting a baby (she may have had it by now!) and wanted some wool, including a pair for the cherub to wear home from the hospital (the pink and brown pair above). I ordered the yarn from TIG (Three Irish Girls) on her request and though it did take a while to get the yarn in hand, I was able to knock out the longies quickly and in time to get them to her. They were all on Carys BFL yarn (with coordinating Cascade 220 trim) in the colorways Elsbeth, Kirsty and Isolde. Very pretty yarn! I can’t wait to work with more TIG yarn in the future!
Next up is the second skirt for a sweet mama. It was knit with Western Sky Knits “Saltwater Taffy – Kettle Dyed Variation” on their Rodeo BFL yarn, with coordinating trim in a peachy-pink color. This was a fun yarn to knit with as the color repeats were so random and small. You never knew how the finished product was going to look! It is very soft and just adorable. Kile was going to crochet a fancy edge on, but we ran out of yarn. Nuts!
These next two projects were fun because it was the first time I had worked with my friend Kira’s dyed yarn AND the first time I had worked with the Cestari Superfine Merino I have heard so much about. Both of these colorways were custom ordered by another lovely lady. The first pair (on top) was purple, pink, yellow and green. Very pastel and very pretty! The second pair is called “Fairy Catmother”, named after a Goodmama diaper of the same name. The yarn came out PERFECT and knitted up perfect too! I was also trying a new pattern with this pair and really like it! I added a row of trim to the top of the waistband and the cuff of the capri ruffles and it came out really sharp.
Lastly, I have a sweet pair of shorts for the gal I did my first custom job for several months ago. There was some drama regarding the yarn and I offered up this yarn in lieu of the intended yarn. It is Yarnoodles “Oh The Thinks You Can Think” colorway on Organic Worsted Merino with coordinating red trim. I bought it because I just love Yarnoodles yarn and how it is so wonderfully pool-resistant. It didn’t let me down here, either! I hope the new mama loves them as much as I do. I think they came out just gorgeous.
And now I am caught up! On the needles: another skirty! This time on Blackberry Ridge Merino, which I haven’t tried yet am interested to see how it turns out. I think I’ll be busy for a good while yet!
Saltwater Taffy Ruffle Shorties
Apr 13th
I love working with BFL (Blue Faced Leicester, for the uninitiated). I’m sure I’ve mentioned this before. It pretty much doesn’t even matter what the colorway is. As long as I feel that silky soft yarn run through my fingers as I knit, watching the stitches define so neatly and shine with a luster that one wouldn’t expect from wool yarn, well… that’s all I need.
I got to work with some Rodeo BFL from Western Sky Knits in the “Saltwater Taffy” colorway recently and the love was very, very much there. I was knitting a pair of ruffle cuffed shorties for a sweet mama, using a matching teal trim. These were a large size, alarming after working on so many small sizes and came out just darling.
The cuff ruffle was a challenge. There wasn’t a whole lot of trim yarn and I was unable to do either my standard “flat” ruffle or a nifty new “leaf” ruffle I’ve been wanting to try. I went ahead with a “lettuce” ruffle but was unhappy with how it looked. I asked my husband if he could do a single crochet around the edge. I was hoping for a fancier crochet finish, but again, there wasn’t enough yarn. Much to my pleasure though, the crochet caused the ruffle to lay flat, like my “flat” ruffle. Whew! Much better.
I’m finishing up the last of the three pairs of newborn longies I mentioned last week. All this bitty sized fluff is just adorable and I love how quick it knits up. I’ve been able to knock one pair every two days!
The knitting, it never ends!
Ladybug Ruffle Capri customs
Feb 26th
A sweet mama had me knit up her Laines Magnifiques yarn in the “Ladybug” colorway on BFL (Blue Faced Leichester). She wanted capris but only had one skein of the colorway so told me to just knit until the yarn ran out. And that is what I did. This yarn was gorgeous, even the solid red for the trim was gorgeous. I could have made the ruffle cuffs a little longer but was running out of trim color. Ruffles do take up a lot of yarn! She also asked for an icord drawstring which I was happy to oblige with. I think the whole project came out adorable and it was almost sad to send them on to a new home. I look forward to working with BFL yarn in the future!
I hope the mama loves them as much as I do!
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