Pine Tree Raglan

Another exercise to practice stranded knitting. 

 

 

This one is my own design and knit for my middle grandson, Gavin, who is 4 years old.  Intended for his 2015 Christmas sweater and hoping he won't grow too much before December.  But, if he does, his little brother will have it and I will knit another one bigger for the G-Man.

Using a simple top down raglan design, I added a band of trees near the bottom and added a third color in purl stitches above and below the design. 


This came out to be about a child size 6-8 and is worked top down.

Needles: Size 6     Yarn: Lion Brand Wool Ease
Gauge: 5 stitches per inch

Cast on 76 joining to work in round. Knit K1 P1 rib for about 3 inches. Fold over and knit cast on stitch with working row to create double thick fisherman neck. Begin increasing for raglan with stitch marker dividers as 14 for each sleeve and 33 each for front and back.  Keep increasing to measure 7 inches from top of neck to under arm. I had 66 stitches for each front and back and 46 for each sleeve.

Place sleeves on holder, cast on 6 stitches underarm, continue to work in round about 5 inches.  Knit one row alternate color, then 2 rows purl and then knit one more row. Change to white for the back ground and knit one row.  Knit the tree pattern and one more row white at the end.  Do the alternate color purl 4 row combo again (knit one row, purl two rows, knit one row).

I also did a second purl bump 4 row combo in green underneath the tan one.  Knit a few rows, then switch to K2, P2 rib and bind off. 

Knit each sleeve separately by picking up the stitches on the needle and pick up 6 stitches from the under arm.  Knit straight to about 3 inches prior to end. Knit an alternate color purl bump 4 row combo. Knit 2 rounds, decreasing 10 stitches to 36.  K2, P2 rib for about 2.5 inches, bind off. 

Block if needed.

Super easy if you like working top down raglans!



I still need to get the tension right with my right hand.  You can see there is discrepancy between the trees when tucking the floats. But in this case, it almost enhances the design and actually looks like snow falling within the tree line.  And for a boy who will be playing in the snow I think it came out just fine and will serve the purpose of keeping him warm.

Little Man Sweaters

I'm always looking for fun knits for my grandsons and I recently found this really fantastic pattern on Ravelry for wee ones.  Of course it is a unisex design, but boy oh boy, it sure fits the bill for a little man's sweater. 

The pattern is Abate by Alicia Plummer. It is so well written that I didn't ever.. not once.. question what I was doing on each and every step. It is knit top down in the round so there is very little seaming. And it has the best underarm attachment that I have done to date.

I would definitely recommend this pattern if you need to make a sweater for kids. 

I knit up this one for my Grandson Gavin that just turned 3 last June.  I used Vanna's Choice Acrylic and it came out soft and snuggly, just like Gavin.

I liked the pattern so much, I did another for my other Grandson Warren, who just turned 7 this past May.  I did a little modification and added some textured design around the chest. For this one, I used (GASP!!) Red Heart with Love acrylic.  Now, I am a huge yarn snob and usually won't allow Red Heart in my house, much less knit with it.  But, after constant complaining from the mothers about the inability to wash and wear, I caved and bought some.  I am actually quite surprised that it didn't squeak on the needles and it is much softer than the regular Red Heart.

Anyway,  the pattern is FANTASTIC and I will probably make it again with some modifications. Definitely a great skeleton pattern to build your creativity!

Keep your needles clicking ♥

Warren's back to school sweater

Warren is starting 1st grade this fall.  It is hard to believe, but he is.  He will be going off to full day classes and starting his school career. 

It is cold in those hills in Vermont, so I knit him a classic pull over in DK weight yarn.  Soft, warm and light enough to wear under his winter jacket. 

I found the pattern on Ravelry, and the pattern was an easy knit, with most of it just plain stockinette stitch in the round.  I loved working on this project during the olympics, as I could knit and watch TV at the same time.

Even though it was pretty simple, there is some cable work up the sides and on the yolk, so it wasn't boring.

You can find the pattern HERE on Ravelry if you have a little boy that needs a classic sweater.


Here is the sweater knit in navy blue:

Good luck to my little man in first grade this year!  Grammy loves you ♥