retro beanie

I am knitting a cardigan for myself, in fair isle.  A work of patience, all those small stiches in a row.
Therefore, I need some distraction.  A small project, quick to finish.
And when something like this comes along on facebook, it was love at first sight.

I bought the pattern, and the babywool from Bergère de France and set out to knit intarsia.
Who remembers the little plastic fish - dangling on your needle ?  I has been ages since I used them. Probably from since the boys were little and I knitted them sweaters with footballs on, or Zorro.

Well, this is the result.  I love the combination of light blue / red.  It reminds me of something my mother knit for my doll, Mireille.  Those were exact the same colours. I am speaking of the 1960ies....

Now for a little girl who can wear this. The pattern included little mitts too....  aren't they cute ?

 

a warm hat for the cold days

In winter time, it's all about keeping the young ones warm.  This Ladybug hat is too cute, and I think it can be worn by a boy as well as a girl.

A lovely pattern I found in this book

It was knit up very quickly, and had some fun parts, like the flap is knit with Wrap&Turn technique, and the antenna's are Icords.  And I made the pompons with this plastic device I recently got in the knitting shop, and Lo and Behold, it actually works !

another little project I finished is this baby hat & socks.  It is knit in super soft baby merino, I got at the Knitting exhibition in Zwolle.  I love it....

Greetings to you all and keep warm !

mutsen breien

I'm totally hooked on this book from Heike Roland.  It's about hats, and I love these small projects during summer.  I've now completed 4 of these models.   38 more to go.....

this is the book.....

supersoft lana grossa merino wool

nice, even from behind

not sure about the button though, might add a crochet flower instead

KatiaOxford, this has become more of a hat

nice stripe effect

love the colours of this araucania wool

30 °C outside, and i'm knitting this hat, ^^

muts met klep - beanie with flap - free pattern

Some time ago I posted the pictures of this hat I knitted.  I regularly get mails from people who'd like to knit one too.  So here is the pattern of how I knitted it.  It's actually very easy, I'd say beginners.  Advanced knitters can use it as a base to construct your own version of it.
I like to wear this hat when I have to cycle to work, and it rains.  The flap keeps the rain out of my eyes, and the border is warm around my ears.
Good luck !

Scroll down for the Dutch version.


Knitted with 100 gr of wool, needle nr 4.
CO 66 stiches
purl 18, k1, p7, k4, p4, k4, p4, k4, p4, k4, p4, k4, p4
row 2 : knit the stiches as they are.  (purl the purls, knit the knits)

continue until you have 53 cm.  BO

(53 cm is the avarage circumference of an adult female head.  But do check for yourself.  The knitting streches a bit too. Knit the piece a bit longer if you have a bigger head, or if you make it for a man)
Now sew both short ends together.
Fold the 18 purled stiches in half and close (sew)  at the inside of the beanie.
Insert the plastic flap before you close it completly.   This plastic flap is approx. 21 cm long and  can be made of any sort of flexible plastic.  I used an old plastic ordner from schooldays. 
close the top part, add a pompom if you want to. 

you can download the pattern of the flap

Dit is het gratis patroon voor de muts met een klep.

Gebreid met 1 bol wol van de wibra ( 100 gr)
met nld nr 4
66 steken opzetten, en als volgt breien :

18 averechts, 1 rechts, 7 averechts, 4 rechts, 4 averechts, 4 rechts, 4 averechts, 4 rechts, 4 averechts, 4 rechts, 4 averechts, 4 rechts, 4 averechts. 
Terugkerende naald : brei de steken zoals ze zich voordoen.

Brei zo tot je ongeveer 53 cm hoogte hebt.  Afkanten.   (gemiddelde omtrek van een dameshoofd, maar meet eens na bij jezelf)

Naai nu de beide korte einden aaneen.  De 18 averechtse steken plooi je dubbel, naai vast aan de binnenkant, stop het klepje erin. (= Knip uit hard plastic een klepje van +/- 21 cm lang)
De bovenste opening haal je dicht met een draad.  Eventueel kun je er een pompon opzetten...

it's owl or nothing

I was home early today, and sat down in front of the pc with a cup of tea and some time to surf around blogland.
I just read the latest post on tangled happy.  There is a reference to  Sarah's blog  where you can find a super (and free) pattern for a little baby hat.  It's owl-shaped, and very easy to make. 
And it just happened that I had some left-over wool in just the right colours, so I started to make one.  (Sometimes I just can't help it, I start a new project, and forget the more pressing matters like preparing food for the men....)
In just over an hour it was all finished.  and this is the result :

the look in his eyes...

it is for a little head

but not a little teddybear's head....

he does look smarter now...

In my country the owl is a symbol for wisdom.  But if someone calls you 'an owl' it is not a compliment.  It means you are stupid.  Funny...

a flax hat

I have made a hat, in the style of the 1920ies.  

Ready for Ascot !

it is a good fit, but will I dare to wear it ?

 
It is made of flax and cotton, a very easy technique involving a balloon and wallpaperglue.

just a plain balloon coverd with fabric

and lots of glue

the next layer is flax fibers

When it is dry, it is a firm base that you can cut, trim and pimp with anything you like....
You can also add lace, buttons, feathers, and go all the way.  With a hat like that, you are definately ready for the horseraces at Ascot....
I doubt if I will ever wear it....  but it was great fun making it!  I really liked to work with the material, and the creativity involved.   Anyway, it's just a first try-out, I'm sure I will explore this technique a bit further during the hext holidays.

This one was an example our teacher Charlotte brought along, a gorgeous piece of headware ! 

Charlotte of Charlepeau was the teacher, and she makes all sorts of lovely hats.  Check out her website here. 

And here you see a few of the hats that were made by the other girls in this workshop...

an old treasure and a question for you

I met another knitter in Bruges, and we had a very nice conversation.  This lady knits all sorts of clothes for dolls and teddybears.  She uses old cottons and linnens, with stains and colour fading.  That is how she obtains a result that looks very old, but in fact was knitted only last week... !  How clever is that !

it is such a fine knit, only 7 cm big !

 She has a very special pattern for a little hat, and I couldn't resist buying one.  It is so cute !  I think it is based on a pattern used in the Netherlands, for traditional headwear of the Dutch women in one of the regions there. Am I right ?   Perhaps one of my Dutch followers knows more about it ?  I would appreciate it very much if you could give me some more information about this pattern, it seems very exciting to knit !

I like the 2 colours she used, she started with the circle

such a fine finishing, all knitted scallops

Even in het Nederlands :

Ik had een gesprek met een mevrouw uit Brugge, die poppenkleedjes en berenkleedjes breit.  Ze gebruikt daarvoor oude resten katoen en vlas, met vlekjes en kleurverschillen in.  Zo verkrijgt ze een oud resultaat, maar zijn de kleertjes wel nog maar pas gebreid.  Leuk gevonden !
Maar wat ik heel mooi vond is een speciaal patroon dat ze gebruikt voor een mutsje.  Het wordt gebreid vanuit een cirkel, waaraan ze dan de rest verder breit, zodat er een soort kapje ontstaat.  Volgens mij is dat een patroon dat ook gebruikt wordt in de Nederlandse traditionele dames kostuums.  Meer weet ik er niet van, uit welke regio of stad, maar misschien kan er iemand van mijn Nederlandse volgers een tip van de sluier oplichten ? 
Het lijkt me een prachtig patroon om te breien... !

a warm and colourful baret

A couple of months ago, I ordered a pattern for a nice baret via Riet . There were mittens too, in the same pattern.
But somehow, something always happened so that I couldn't finish it.  first, it took a while to receive the packet because of postal problems in Belgium, then I didn't have the right size needles. The craftshop was closed for holidays, so I had to use an old pair of circular needles but they broke.  I also needed to finish Xmas gifts, and the baret got stuck deep down in the knitting projects bag...
But now, finally, it is finished.

downloadable, excellent description

 
I loved knitting with the wool - Riet spins, and the pale wool she made. That colourful other skein changed colours every few rows, so that is a wonderful effect without any effort !
The pattern is very professional and well explained :  I didn't make any silly mistakes there.   I usually do, and hate to have to frog or to knit backwards..  :-( 
The most fun was the latvian braid - I had never done that before.  It's actually very simple, and the effect is so nice !  There are excellent tutorials on Youtube.

the top is a lovely star shape

I put a plate inside, to steam it

It is a perfect fit !

the latvian braids are at the cast on and halfway

just caught a little ray of sunshine !

Now, I still have to finish the mitts.   Shouldn't be a problem, and I sure can use them in this icecold weather. As you can see, the circular needles are too long for the mitts.  I started on regular needles (size 2.5)

Tomorrow I'm going to a huge craftfair in Parijs.  I'm going to look for a box of circular needles that have interchangeable cords.  I'm fed up with these cheap needles that I have.  The stiches get stuck, and if you pull too hard they break.  Buying cheap stuff isn't a good idea after all....

 I will keep you informed about the fair, and also about the mitts... !