Herzchen

Next week is St. Valentine's Day <3
So why not knit a few of these lovely little hearts to decorate your home, presents etc. I found that they could be quite addictive and once I started, I couldn't stop knitting them.
Even though these hearts are 3-dimensional they are knitted back and forth. They are constructed of short rows and knitted all in garter stitch. They come in three different sizes.
These little garter stitch hearts may also be a lovely way to practice your knitting skills – especially magic CO and grafting in garter stitch.
As to the name, "Herzchen" is the German word for little heart.

This pattern is available:

• via Ravelry,
• via Loveknitting,
• via Payhip, and
• via Gumroad.

The PDF of the pattern is 10 pages long and contains:

• an explanation of the general construction
• six explanatory photos
• row-by-row patterns for these hearts in 3 sizes
• charts for hearts in 2 sizes

Materials

• yarn – basically leftovers - I different kinds of yarn – and self-striping fingering weight yarn)
• knitting needles – I used straight knitting needles, 2 mm for fingering weight yarn, i.e. always smaller needles than the yarn called for – in order to get a tight texture
• stuffing - I used the yarn ends and fabric scraps that I had saved from previous knitting or sewing projects
• a tapestry needle for grafting and weaving in ends
• one removable stitch marker

Skills
In order to knit such a three-dimensional heart, you need the following knitting skills

• Magic CO
• Short rows - with wrap and turn
• Grafting in garter stitch
• Basic increases and decreases (ssk and kfb)

Luftbläschen Brioche and Lace Scarf

This year my Mum wanted a new scarf for her birthday. So I took her to the yarn store and asked her to select whatever yarn she wanted. She choose a beautiful purple wool/silk mix in Lace weight. I wanted to knit something with a bit of structure, but I soon found that the yarn didn't lend itself to this and was better suited to a lacy pattern. In the end I settled for a combination of brioche and lace stitches – and I am very pleased with it.

It results in an elegant and squishy scarf with a reversible lace pattern that looks the same from both sides.

As to the name, Luftbläschen is the German word for little air bubbles.

The pattern PDF is available via

• Ravelry and 
• Loveknitting
• Payhip and
• Gumroad.

This pattern pdf is 5 pages long and contains:

• the complete written patterns to knit this scarf
• photo tutorials for the stitches and stitch combinations that are used in this pattern 
• yarn over between brioche stitches and how to knit it
• a left-leaning decrease in brioche

Skills you need to knit this pattern:

• knitting brioche (in one color)
• a certain stamina while knitting - this is knitted in lace weight yarn and brioche, i.e. it grows extremely slow

To knit this you need the following materials 

• about 160 grams of Lace weight yarn (around 1300 meters) - for the piece in the pictures I used West Yorkshire Spinners Exquisite Lace (here's a link to the yarn's Ravelry page)
• 3mm knitting needles
• 4 stitch markers plus 1 removable stitch markers
• a tapestry needle to weave in ends

Pixel Star

After publishing the Stella potholders pattern, I thought it might be a good idea to do an 8-pointed star within a knitted square. I had done similar constructions before (e.g. Tannenbäumchen potholders) - i.e. something within a square, using short rows combined with intarsia.
In the end, it didn't look exactly the way I wanted - more like a pixelized star :) But I realized that this was something more or less built in with this kind of construction - and so I didn't change it.
So here it is. Enjoy!

This work by Knitting and so on is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.






Materials

• a total of about 30 grams of DK weight cotton yarn in two colors (C1 = background color, C2 = color of star)
• 3 mm needles - if you use yarn of a different weight, use a needle that is one size below the size that the yarn calls for
• scrap yarn for provisional CO
• a tapestry needle for grafting and to weave in ends

Techniques and Notation

• Provisional CO: My favorite method for a provision CO is the crochet provisional CO - it is shown in this Youtube video by New Stitch a Day.
• Short rows with wrap and turn (w+t) - as shown in this YouTube video by Very Pink Knits.
  Note: in some rows the wrap has to be made just at the color change in the row below, e.g. Ridge B11 where you knit 11 sts in C1 and the 12 stitch that is to be wrapped was knitted in C2. In this case, it's advisable to change the color (as if to knit the next stitch in the new color), wrap and turn in the new color, and then to change back. This gives nicer color edges.
• Grafting in Garter Stitch: A technique to get an invisible (knitted) seam - this technique is shown in this YouTube Video by knittinghelp.com.
• Intarsia: Changing colors with the intarsia technique - as shown in this YouTube video by knitwithpat; or this YouTube video by Francoise Danoy. That way you don't have to carry long strands on the WS. The picture below shows the RS and WS of the piece.
  Throughout the pattern, the following notation is used:  C1 (k4), C2 (k10, w+t, k10), C1 (k to end) means, knit 4 stitches in C1, change to C2 and knit 10 sts, do a wrap and turn, knit 10 stitches and then change back to C1 and k to end. I.e. color is indicated before the knitting instructions for that yarn and the knitting instructions for that yarn are given in brackets after the color. 

Construction

This potholder is knitted in 4 parts. It starts with a provisional CO. Then each row is a stitch shorter than the last one, One part ends,

• when the row is only 1 stitch (plus 1 w+t) long - then the next part begins and each row is one stitch longer than the last one until all stitches are knitted and we've sucessfully knitted around a corner - or
• when the row length is knitted to the end and after a normal turn (as opposed to a w+t) starts with a slip stitch; then the row  length is getting shorter as you approach the next corner.

After knitting around four corners, the two sides (CO and last row) are grafted in garter stitch.
The photo on the right shows the piece, just before taking out the stitches of the provisional CO and grafting this to the last row.

Size
Knitted in DK yarn, the piece measures about 15 cm x 15 cm.


Instructions
With scrap yarn provisionally CO 17 stitches

Part A:
Setup row (WS): C2 (k14), C1 (k3)
Ridge 1: C1 (k5), C2 (k11, w+t, k11), C1 (k5)
Ridge 2: C1 (k7), C2 (k8, w+t, k8), C1 (k7)
Ridge 3: C1 (k9), C2 (k5, w+t, k5), C1 (k9)
Ridge 4: C1 (k10), C2 (k3, w+t, k3), C1 (k10)
Ridge 5: C1 (k9), C2 (k3, w+t, k3), C1 (k9)
Ridge 6: C1 (k9), C2 (k2, w+t, k2), C1 (k9)
Ridge 7: C1 (k8), C2 (k2, w+t, k2), C1 (k8)
Ridge 8: C1 (k8), C2 (k1, w+t, k1), C1 (k8)
Ridge 9: C1 (k7), C2 (k1, w+t, k1), C1 (k7)
Ridge 10: C1 (k6), C2 (k1, w+t, k1), C1 (k6)
Ridge 11: C1 (k6), C2 (w+t), C1 (k6)
Ridge 12: C1 (k5, w+t, k5)
Ridge 13: C1 (k4, w+t, k4)
Ridge 14: C1 (k3, w+t, k3)
Ridge 15: C1 (k2, w+t, k2)
Ridge 16: C1 (k1, w+t, k1)

Ridge 17 = Ridge 16
Ridge 18 = Ridge 15
Ridge 19 = Ridge 14
Ridge 20 = Ridge 13
Ridge 21 = Ridge 12
Ridge 22 = Ridge 11
Ridge 23 = Ridge 10
Ridge 24 = Ridge 9
Ridge 25 = Ridge 8
Ridge 26 = Ridge 7
Ridge 27 = Ridge 6
Ridge 28 = Ridge 5
Ridge 29 = Ridge 4
Ridge 30 = Ridge 3
Ridge 31 = Ridge 2
Ridge 32 = Ridge 1
Ridge 33:  C1 (k3), C2 (k14, turn, sl1, k13), C1 (k3)

That's the first part finished.

Now repeat this (ridges 1 to 33) two more times (parts 2 and 3) - and then once again ridges 1 to 32 (part 4).

Take out your scrap yarn of the provisional cast on and put the live stitches on a knitting needle. Cut your yarns but leave tails long enough for grafting.
Graft in garter stitch: 3 sts in C1 and 14 sts in C2.

After grafting there is still a small hole in the middle of the piece - you can sew this closed with your C2 yarn tail. Sew in ends afterwards.


Chart
The chart below shows one forth of the potholder. The numbers indicate the number of stitches per color of each ridge. The orange number gives the stitches in C2 and the black number the stitches in C1.

Stella - Star-Shaped Potholders

Christmas is the time to decorate the space around you with pretty things. And as a knitter, in the run-up to Christmas I like to knit decorations. And if these decorations are also useful, it's even better. These 8-pointed stars can be used as hotpads, doilies or coasters.
They are knitted in one piece and all in garter stithc– starting with a provisional CO, then point by point around the center. Grafting the first and last rows together gives it a seamless look. The construction uses short rows and basic increases and decreases.
So, if you want a quick knit to get you into a Christmas mood – and maybe learning a couple of new techniques along the way – this pattern is for you.

The pattern is available for purchase 

• via Ravelry,
• via Loveknitting,
• and on Payhip.

The pattern PDF 14 pages long and contains:

• the complete written patterns for stars in two sizes including charts
• a general pattern how to knit stars in other sizes – containing also a photo tutorial
• three further variations of this pattern (see photos below)
• a lacy variation of this star – written pattern and a chart
• a pattern for a two-colour variation – written pattern, a chart and detailed instructions how to undo the provisional CO in two colours and how to do the grafting in two colours
• a three-colour variation – chart only 
• short photo tutorials for the following techniques
• provisional cast on with a crochet hook and how to undo it
• grafting in garter stitch
• intarsia

Skills you need to knit this pattern:

• provisional CO
• short rows with wrap and turn
• grafting in garter stich
• basic increases (kfb) and decreases (ssk and k2tog)

Materials

• yarn – I used cotton yarns, for the off white ones in Aran weight (15 grams for the small star, 30 grams for the bigger star) and Sports weight yarn for the orange lacy star (about 40 grams)
• knitting needles that are smaller than what the yarn calls for – I used 2.5mm needles
• scrap yarn and a crochet hook for a provisional CO
• a tapestry needle for grafting

Sizes

The bigger star in Aran weight measures 24 cm from tip to tip, the smaller one 16 cm.

The big lacy star in Sports weight yarn measures about 36 cm.

Autumn is Coming Bandana Cowl

Even though summer stayed for quite a long time here, it is getting colder. That's why I like to wear something "woolly" around my neck - but rather than a heavy bulky scarf, something smaller and lighter. A bandana cowl fits this brief beautifully - since it basically covers your neck and (my preferred) V-neckline :)
I used a light yarn and an easy lace pattern
This cowl is adaptable to your size of neck and to other yarn weights as well - since it's starting small and growing. So by the time you actually would need a swatch, you already have a small knitted piece :)

This work by Knitting and so on is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.






Materials

• a little more than 50 grams of DK weight yarn (I used Rico Design Essentials Merino DK - here's a link to the yarn's Ravelry page)
• 4 mm knitting needles (circulars)
• a stitch marker
• a tapestry needle to weave in ends

Techniques and Abbreviations

• Knitted Cast-On: See this Youtube-video by Very Pink Knits.
• kfb - knit into front and back of one stitch (increase)
• k2tog - knit 2 stitches together (right leaning decrease)
• ssk - slip slip knit (left leaning decrease)
• yo - yarn over

Gauge and Measurements
The cowl that I knitted measures 50 cm in circumference, 31 cm in height at its highest point (front) and 14 cm at its lowest point (back).
Knitted in pattern and (gently) blocked, 32 rows neasure 10 cm in height and 20 sts measure 10 cm in width.

Construction

The bandana cowl is started at the tip of the triangle - knitted flat - grows with increases. Once you've reached a certain width, you use a knitted CO and join in round.

Instructions

Part 1 (knitted flat)

CO4

Row 1 (WS) and all uneven rows in part 1: kfb, p to last st, kfb

Row 2 (RS, start with 6 sts): k all

Row 4 (RS, 8 sts): k1, k2tog, yo, k2 yo, ssk, k1 

Row 6 (RS, 10 sts): k2, yo, ssk, k2, k2tog, yo, k2 

Row 8 (RS, 12 sts): k3, k2tog, yo, k2, yo, ssk, k3 

Row 10 (RS, 14 sts): k4, yo, ssk, k2, k2tog, yo, k4
Row 12 (RS, 16 sts): k1, yo ssk, k2, k2tog, yo, k2, yo, ssk, k2, k2tog, yo, k1
Row 14 (RS, 18 sts): k2, * k2tog, yo, k2, yo, ssk k2 repeat from * to end
Row 16 (RS, 20 sts): k1, * k2, yo, ssk, k2, k2tog yo repeat from * until there are 3 sts left, k3
Row 18 (RS, 22 sts): k2, * k2, k2tog, yo k2, yo, ssk repeat from * until there are 4 sts left, k4

The chart below shows the first 26 rows and also (in red) one repeat of the stitch pattern that is used throughout.

Row 20 (RS): k1, * k2tog, yo, k2, yo, ssk, k2 repeat from * until there are 7 sts left, k2tog, yo, k2, yo, ssk, k1
Row 22 (RS): k2, * yo, ssk, k2, k2tog, yo k2 repeat from * to end
Row 24 (RS): k1, * k2, k2tog, yo, k2, yo, ssk repeat from * until there are 3 sts left, k3
Row 26 (RS): k2, * k2, yo, ssk, k2, k2tog, yo repeat from * until there are 4 sts left, k4

Repeat rows 12 to 27 once more. Then knit rows 12 to 19 once more.
Now you should have 56 sts on your needles.

If you use yarn of a different weight or want other measurements, now is the moment to use the triangle you have just knitted as a swatch:

• to make sure that the triangle covers a bit more than front part of your neck - if it doesn't you can adjust the number of repeats of rows 20 to 27 accordingly, and
• to calculate the number of stitches that you have to cast on now. Please make sure to cast on a number of stitches that is divisible by 8.

Knit row 20 once more and after finishing knit do a knitted CO of 40 sts (or the number of stitches that you calculated) and join in round. Place a marker to mark the beginning of the round.

Part 2 (knitted in the round)

Round 1: k all
Round 2: * k1, yo, ssk, k2, k2tog, yo, k1 repeat from * to end
Round 3: k all
Round 4: * k1, k2tog, yo, k2, yo, ssk, k1 repeat from * to end
Knit rounds 1 to 4 a total of 10 times - or until you're about 2.5cm short of the desired height.

Then knit the follwing sequence once
Round 1: * p1, k2, p1 repeat from * to end
Round 2: * k1, yo, ssk, k2, k2tog, yo, k1 repeat from * to end
Round 3: * p1, k2, p1 repeat from * to end
Round 4: * k1, k2tog, yo, k2, yo, ssk, k1 repeat from * to end
Bind off in ribbing (p1k2p1)-pattern

Weave in ends and block gently.

Eckstein Socks

Recently, at a departement store I saw a pair of socks with a heel at a right angle. The claim was that it would be more comfortable to wear because there'd be no crease at the instep. Well, I wanted to try this myself - especially whether they really fitted better. It took me only two attempts to get the shaping right - and even though the socks look a bit strange, they fit rather well.
So, here's the pattern: a pair of socks knitted cuff-down with a right angled heel.

As with most of my sock patterns, I assume that you already have a certain knowledge of how to knit socks. So, this is NOT a stitch-by-stitch and row-by-row pattern.


This work by Knitting and so on is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.






Materials

• about 50 to 70 grams of fingering weight yarn - a bit more if you like your shaft to be longer (the yarn I used is called Schöller+Stahl Sockina Color, here's the link to the yarn's page on Ravelry)
• 2.5 mm knitting needles - I used Addi Crazy Trios, but you can also use long circulars (with the Magic Loop method) or dpns
• 2 stitch markers
• a tapestry needle to weave in ends

Techniques

• Shadow Wrap Short Rows - as used for the heel: as shown in this YouTube video by Lee Meredith. A video by Miriam Felton that shows how to do a heel with shadow wraps can be found here on YouTube. However, I pick up the stitches in a different manner. 

• Knitting the Shadow Wraps: In a knit row (i.e. you're knitting on the outside of your socks), you knit up to the stitch where you want to turn, and then knit into the stitch in the row below, i.e. you insert the right hand needle from the front into the stitch below (1 on picture below) the next stitch and pull your working yarn through (2 on picture below). Then you put the loop onto the left hand needle (creating a double stitch from the stitch below) - keeping the yarn on the back (3 on picture below). Then you turn and your yarn is now in front, tighten it to make sure that all stitches have the same size and start to purl in the opposite direction. This sequence (knitting int the stitch below and turning) will be called kbelow in the pattern.

• If you're in a purl row, you purl into the stitch of the row below, i.e. insert the right hand needle from the back into the stitch below and draw your yarn through and put the stitch onto your left hand needle - creating a double stitch. The yarn is in front while you're doing this. Turn your work. The yarn is now on the back of your knitting. Make sure that the stitch is as tight as the other stitches on your needles and start knitting in the opposite direction. This sequence will be called pbelow in the pattern.

• In this pattern you'll be asked to kbelow/pbelow into a stitch that is already a double stitch, i.e. creating a triple stitch.
• Picking up the double / triple stitches: When you come to a double stitch you can simply knit / purl it as one. This can create quite thick stitches and small holes that might be uncomfortable and not really neat. That's why (on the knit side, outside of the sock) I knitted the triple stitch as follows: slip the first loop of your triple stitch as if to knit (1 on picture below). Slip the second stitch of the triple stitch as if to knit - and do the same with the third stitch (2 on picture below). Slip all three stitches together back onto the left hand needle (i.e. each of the stitches is turned now). Now knit them together through the back loop (3 on picture below).

• On the purl side I worked the triple stitch like a normal purl 3 together.
• To avoid holes it is quite important to draw your second and third loops quite tight when turning.

• Grafting in stockinette stitch (also called Kitchener Stitch): a way to seamlessly join two rows of live stitches - as shown in this YouTube video by WEBS America's Yarn Store.

Gauge and Sizes
In stockinette stitch, I had 21 rows for 5cm in height and 15 stitches for 5 cm in width.
With my gauge, a heel (size 36-39) is 8 cm high and wide. Therefore, it's about 0.25 cm less for sizes 32-35, and about 0.25cm more for sizes 40-43.

Here are the stitch counts for the sizes given:

shoe size	total number of stitches	short rows	stitches w/o short rows (top)	stitches w/o short rows (below heel)
33-35	56 = 2x28	19	4	5
36-39	60 = 2x30	20	4	6
40-42	64 = 2x32	21	5	6

Instructions for sizes are given as follows: sizes 32-35 [sizes 36-39, sizes 40-43]. I.e. the instructions before the brackets are for sizes 32 to 35 and in brackets first for sizes 36 to 39 and then for sizes 40 to 43.

Instructions

Cuff
CO 56 [60, 64] stitches and join in round - the start of a round will be at the back of the calf
Knit 15 rounds of k2p2-ribbing
Knit 20 rounds of stockinette stitch - during the last round place a stitch marker after 28 [30, 32] stitches, i.e. after half the stitches

Heel
R1: k to 5 [5, 6] sts before half, kbelow, p to end, p to 5 [5, 6] sts before half, pbelow, k to end
R2: k to 2 sts before last double stitch, kbelow (i.e. now there are two double stitches next to each other), p to end, p to 2 before last double stitch, pbelow, k to end
Repeat R2 17 [18, 19] more times

Now you have 19 [20, 21] double stitches on each side of your heel and your piece should look similar to the photo on the right.

R3: k to first double stitch, k this stitch, kbelow (now you have a triple stitch), p to end, p to first double stitch, p this stitch, pbelow (another triple stitch), k to end - make sure to draw your (third) loops tight before turning.
R4: k to first triple stitch, k this stitch, kbelow, p to end, p to first triple stitch, pbelow, k to end
Repeat R4 until you have used up all your double stitches. Now you have finished your heel and can go on knitting in rounds again.

You'll encounter two leftover triple stitches in the next round

• work the first one (i.e. that was created on the k-side) as before
• work the second one (i.e. that was created on the p-side) also by turning the loops one by one before knitting it.

Remove the stitch marker you replaced at the half point.


Foot
Knit in stockinette until you are 5 cm short of the desired total foot length.
Place two stitch markers while knitting the last round, one at 1/4 of your stitches (i.e. after 14, [15, 16] stiches - called M1) and one after 3/4 of your stitches (i.e. after 42, [45, 48] stitches - called M2).


Toes
Knit to M1 - the following rounds will start and end at this marker, i.e. the rounds will from now on start at the side of your foot.
R1: k1, ssk, k to 3 bef M2, k2tog, k1, slip marker, k1, ssk1, k to 3 bef M1, k1 (decrease row)
R2: k all
R3 = R2
R4 = R2
R5 = R1 (decrease row)
R6 = R2
R7 = R2
R8 = R1 (decrease row)
R9 = R2
R10 = R2
R11 = R1 (decrease row)
R12 = R2
R13 = R1 (decrease row)
R14 = R2
R15 = R1 (decrease row)
R16 = R2
R17 = R1 (decrease row)
R18 = R1 (decrease row)
R19 = R1 (decrease row)
R20 = R1 (decrease row)

Now you have a total of 16, [20, 24] stitches left, i.e. 2x8, [2x10, 2x12] stitches.
Rearrange your stitches to sit on two needles - with needle 1 holding the stitches between M1 and M2, and the other holding the stitches between M2 and M1.
Cut yarn and graft toes in stockinette stitch.

Weave in ends.
Make two.

Grape Socks

Usually, I have quite a few ideas what to knit next. But sometimes I am out of ideas or have only ideas that don't feel right at the time - that's when I knit socks, plain socks.

My preferred method is knitting toe-up socks - and ever since I first tried it, a flap heel. 

I used the method described here, i.e. Sarah Keller's Generic Toe-Up, Slip-Stitch Heel, Sock Formula, which worked brilliantly for me.

The stitch pattern that I used was as follows (very similar to my Osterspaziergang Socks):

Using a multiple of 4 stitches, the pattern consists of 6 rows.

Row 1: * k1, ssk, yo, k1 repeat from *

Rows 2 and 3: k all

Row 4: * k1, yo, k2tog, k1 repeat from *

Rows 5 and 6: k all

The yarn used here is called Regia Cotton Tutti Frutti Color, colorway 2423 Grapes - here's a link to the yarn's Ravelry page.