Egg or Avocado

Currently I really love playing around with yarn trying to knit coasters or potholder in the shape of foodstuffs. These are quick and fun projects that get you a sense of achievement and leave you with cheerful piece for your kitchen.
These egg-shaped pieces are knitted flat and all in garter stitch. They use a combination of intarsia and short rows, which means that they look good(-ish) on WS as well. The pieces can be used as potholders or coasters.

Here's a pattern the to knit a coaster in shape of a hard-boiled egg (written and as a chart) and the chart for the avocado coaster as well as a few explanations on how to knit it.


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






Materials

• about 20 grams of DK weight cotton yarn (for the egg coaster in white and yellow, for the avocado coaster in brown, light green and dark green)
• 3.5mm needles
• scrap yarn and crochet hook for provisional CO
• tapestry needle 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.
• 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 written 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.
  The use of intarsia technique means that the piece looks good on not only on RS but on WS as well (see picture below).
  
  
  

Size
One coaster / potholder is about 18 cm high and 14 cm wide.


Charts
Below you find the charts for both the egg and the avocado coaster.
Each row stands for one ridge (i.e. two rows of garter stitch), and each square for one stitch of this ridge. Each color stands for one color of coaster.
During the first half of the piece, the chart must be read from bottom to top - knitting section A three times, then sections B, C and D once each. For the second half of the piece, the chart needs to be read from top to bottom starting with section E, F and G (which need to be knitted once each) and continuing with section H that's knitted three times. The piece is finished by grafting in garter stitch.
The pink dotted lines are just counting aids. They are placed after every 5th stitch - starting from the end of a row.

Egg Chart - click to enlarge

Avocado Chart - click to enlarge

Instructions for the Egg-Shaped Coaster

C1 = white
C2 = yellow

Important: if a stitch is knitted in one color on RS, it will always be knitted in the same color on WS. The WS stitch might be an increase or decrease, but the color will not change.

Provisionally CO 13 sts
Setup Row: C2 (k8); C1 (k5)

Section A
Ridge 1: C1 (sl1, k4); C2 (k6, w+t, k6); C1 (k5)
Ridge 2: C1 (sl1, k4); C2 (k2, w+t, k2); C1 (k5)
Ridge 3: C1 (sl1, k2, w+t, k3)
Ridge 4: C1 (sl1, k4); C2 (w+t); C1 (k5)
Ridge 5: C1 (sl1, k4); C2 (k4, w+t, k4); C1 (k5)
Ridge 6: C1 (sl1, k4); C2 (k8, TURN, sl1, k7); C1 (k5)

Repeat section A twice more, i.e. you have knitted section A a total of three times.

Section B
Ridge 1: C1 (sl1, k4), C2 (k6, w+t, k6), C1 (k5)
Ridge 2: C1 (sl1, k4), C2 (k2, w+t, k2), C1 (k5)
Ridge 3: C1 (sl1, k2, w+t, k3)
Ridge 4: C1 (sl1, k4), C2 (w+t), C1 (k5)
Ridge 5: C1 (sl1, k4), C2 (k4, w+t, k4), C1 (k1, kfb, k3)
Ridge 6: C1 (sl1, k6), C2 (k8, TURN, sl1, k7), C1 (k6)

Section C
Ridge 1: C1 (sl1, k5), C2 (k6, w+t, k6), C1 (k6)
Ridge 2: C1 (sl1, k5), C2 (k2, w+t, k2), C1 (k2, kfb, k3)
Ridge 3: C1 (sl1, k4, w+t, k5)
Ridge 4: C1 (sl1, k6), C2 (w+t), C1 (k4, kfb, k3)
Ridge 5: C1 (sl1, k7), C2 (k4, w+t, k4), C1 (k5, kfb, k3)
Ridge 6: C1: (sl1, k9), C2 (k8, TURN, sl1, k7), C1 (k10)

Section D
Ridge 1: C1 (sl1, k9); C2 (k6, w+t, k6); C1 (k6, kfb, k3)
Ridge 2: C1 (sl1, k10); C2 (k2, w+t, k2); C1 (k11)

Ridge 3: C1 (sl1, k8, w+t, k5, kfb, k3)

Ridge 4: C1 (sl1, k5, w+t, k6)

Ridge 5: C1 (sl1, k3, w+t, k1, kfb, k2)

Ridge 6: C1 (sl1, k8, w+t, k9)

Ridge 7: C1 (sl1, k12), C2 (w+t), C1 (k9, kfb, k3)

Ridge 8: C1 (sl1, k12), C2 (k4, w+t, k4), C1 (k13)

Ridge 9: C1 (sl1, k12), C2 (k8, TURN, sl1, k7), C1 (k13)

Now you've finished half of your piece - from now on you basically will be knitting the same sequence backwards.

Section E (i.e. section D backwards)
Ridge 1: C1 (sl1, k12), C2 (k8, TURN, sl1, k7), C1 (k13)

Ridge 2: C1 (sl1, k12), C2 (k4, w+t, k4), C1 (k13)

Ridge 3: C1 (sl1, k12), C2 (w+t), C1 (k8, ssk, k3)

Ridge 4: C1 (sl1, k8, w+t, k9)

Ridge 5: C1 (sl1, k3, w+t, ssk, k2)

Ridge 6: C1 (sl1, k5, w+t, k6)

Ridge 7: C1 (sl1, k8, w+t, k4, ssk, k3)

Ridge 8: C1 (sl1, k10); C2 (k2, w+t, k2); C1 (k11)
Ridge 9: C1 (sl1, k9); C2 (k6, w+t, k6); C1 (k5, ssk, k3)

Section F (i.e. secion C backwards)
Ridge 1: C1: (sl1, k9), C2 (k8, TURN, sl1, k7), C1 (k10)

Ridge 2: C1 (sl1, k7), C2 (k4, w+t, k4), C1 (k4, ssk, k3)
Ridge 3: C1 (sl1, k6), C2 (w+t), C1 (k3, ssk, k3)
Ridge 4: C1 (sl1, k4, w+t, k5)
Ridge 5: C1 (sl1, k5), C2 (k2, w+t, k2), C1 (k1, ssk, k3)

Ridge 6: C1 (sl1, k5), C2 (k6, w+t, k6), C1 (k6)

Section G (i.e. section B backwards)
Ridge 1: C1 (sl1, k6), C2 (k8, TURN, sl1, k7), C1 (k6)
Ridge 2: C1 (sl1, k4), C2 (k4, w+t, k4), C1 (ssk, k3)
Ridge 3: C1 (sl1, k4), C2 (w+t), C1 (k5)
Ridge 4: C1 (sl1, k2, w+t, k3)
Ridge 5: C1 (sl1, k4), C2 (k2, w+t, k2), C1 (k5)
Ridge 6: C1 (sl1, k4), C2 (k6, w+t, k6), C1 (k5)

Section H (i.e. section A backwards)
Ridge 1: C1 (sl1, k4); C2 (k8, TURN, sl1, k7); C1 (k5)

Ridge 2: C1 (sl1, k4); C2 (k4, w+t, k4); C1 (k5)

Ridge 3: C1 (sl1, k4); C2 (w+t); C1 (k5)

Ridge 4: C1 (sl1, k2, w+t, k3)
Ridge 5: C1 (sl1, k4); C2 (k2, w+t, k2); C1 (k5)
Ridge 6: C1 (sl1, k4); C2 (k6, w+t, k6); C1 (k5)

Repeat section H twice more, i.e. you knit section H a total of three times.

Put the stitches from the provisional CO on the second needle - cut your yarn.
Graft in garter stitch - 5 stitches in C1 and 8 stitches in C2.
Use the C2 tail to close the hole in the middle of the piece.

Differences for the Avocado-Shaped Coaster
For the avocado the you'll use three colors instead of one, i.e. C1 = dark green, C2 = light green and C3 = brown.
The total number of stitches of each ridge in each section is the same as for the egg pattern. The first two stitches of each ridge are knitted in C1, and the last 5 stitches (counted from the end of a complete row) are knitted in C3, of course they may not be reached when the short row is turned earlier. The stitches inbetween are knitted in light green - all increases and decreases are done in the light green part of the piece, this means that if a stitch is knitted in one color on RS, it will always be knitted in the same color on WS. The WS stitch might be an increase or decrease, but the color will not change.

Egg and avocado with other food-themed potholders - pumpkin and orange

Snowflake Mitts

When I recently posted an old picture of my Bat Mitts on social media, a friend commented and asked for something similar - in turquoise. And since I don't like to repeat myself, I wanted to design something new - plus I only found turquoise yarn in Sports weight, so I had to use this.
I like fingerless gloves that are knitted in one piece - so that you only have to weave in 2 ends per glove. That's why I think it's a good idea to start fingerless gloves at the thumb ... there are already a few patterns like this available on my blog (e.g. Circle Mitts or Zimtsterne Mitts). However, these mitts are the first ones that I knitted in Sports weight yarn.
The pattern is written for one size only, but there are explanations on how to adjust the pattern to your size.

As to the name, in the early stages of knitting them, the pattern looked a bit like a snowflake to me. If you look at illustration 1 below, you might see it, too.



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






Materials

• about 45 grams of Sports weight yarn
• 3.25mm circular needles
• a third needle of about the same size for the three-needle BO
• 6 stitch markers
• a tapestry needle to weave in ends

Techniques and Abbreviations

• Three-Needle Bind-Off: https://youtu.be/Ph93jWSzTa0
• Short Rows in the Round (and t+ky) I learned short rows in the round with this helpful video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SCgycxLce94; however, I ended up doing the pick-ups differently.
  - "Wrapping" of the StitchesBasically, when you're on the RS, you do wrap the working yarn around the next stitch (from front to back) and then turn your work, i.e. the "normal" wrap and turn (w+t).
  When you are on the WS you slip the last stitch, turn your work with the yarn in front, wrap the yarn around the RIGHT needle and knit the slipped stitch. That creates a sort of double-stitch - one half of it has to be knitted together with the stitch in front when you're picking up the stitches. In the pattern, throughout the pattern I will call this stitch, t+ky (short for "turn and knit w/yarn-over").
  - Picking-up When encountering a w+t, I turned the wrapped stitch on the needle, picked up the wrap from the front and knitted the stitch and the wrap together through the back of the loop.
  When reaching the stitch BEFORE the “double-stitch”, I turned this stitch and knitted it together with the yo through the back of the loop. 
• Picking up stitches from a gap or ditch: After the three needle bind-off there is one left over stitch which tends to have a distance to the stitches next to it. To avoid holes, I usually pick up one stitch from the gap and decrease over the new stitch in the following row (see also this YouTube video where it is shown on the example of a thumb gusset). In my experience (or the way I knit :) it's even better to pick up two stitches and knit decreases over them in the following two rows.
• mk1p: make one purl stitch; https://youtu.be/7WLQ9qXa88k (YouTube video by Knit Purl Hunter - you can use one the first two method shown there)
• Stretchy Bind-Off: see this YouTube-video by Knitting Pipeline.

Gauge and Measurements
The finished mitts - as knitted by me - measure about 18 cm in height (at the highest point) and 14 cm at the lowest point. The circumference at the wrist is about 16 cm.
In stockinette stitch 13 sts gve 5 cm in width, and 20 rows gave 5 cm height.

General Construction

These mitts are knitted in four parts. Part 1 - the thumb - is knitted in the round. Part 2 - the first part of the palm - is also knitted in the round, at its end there is a small ribbing knitted on top to make sure that the BO at the upper edge doesn't curl in. Part 3 is knitted flat. In order to keep the upper edge straight(-ish) there are a few decreases at the beginning and end of some rows. This part ends with a three-needle BO. Part 4 - the cuff - starts with a few short rows to even out the height differences. It is knitted in the round and ends with a few rounds of ribbing.

Instructions

Part 1
CO18 sts and join in round
Rounds 1 to 9: * p1, k1, p1 repeat from * to end
Round 10: * p1, k1, p1, mk1p repeat from * to end
Rounds 11 to 13: * p1, k1, p2 repeat from * to end
Round 14: * p1, place marker, k1, p2 repeat from * to end - by the end of the round you have placed 6 markers

Part 2
Round 1: * k to marker, yo, slip marker, k1, yo repeat from * to end
Round 2 to 4: k all
Repeat 1 to 4 twice more - your piece should look similar to illustration 1
Round 13 = Round 1
Round 14 = Round 2
From now on the small k1p1-ribbing will be added to the pattern - between the 5th and 6th marker.
Round 15: * k to marker, slip marker, repeat from * three more times - now there are two markers left to the end of the round - k to marker, slip marker,  # k1, p1 repeat from # to 1 bef marker, k1, slip marker, k to end
Round 16 = Round 15
Round 17: * k to marker, yo, slip marker, k1, yo repeat from * three more times - now there are two markers left to the end of the round - k to marker, yo, slip marker,  k1, yo, # k1, p1 repeat from # to 1 bef marker, k1, yo, slip marker, k1, yo, k to end

Round 18: * k to marker, slip marker, repeat from * three more times - now there are two markers left to the end of the round - k to 1 bef, marker, p1, slip marker,  # k1, p1 repeat from # to marker, k1, slip marker, p1, k to end

Round 19 = Round 18
Round 20: * k to marker, slip marker, repeat from * three more times - now there are two markers left to the end of the round - k to 1 bef, marker, BO17 sts in p1k1 pattern (removing the last marker) - you are now one stitch beyond the last marker - k to end, DON'T TURN!

Part 3
Row 1 (RS): * k to marker, yo, slip marker, k1, yo, repeat from * three more times, k to end
Row 2 (WS): p2togtbl, p9, w+t,
     (RS) k to end, turn,
     (WS) p2togtbl, p to last 2 sts, p2tog, turn
     (RS) k10, w+t, p to last 2 sts, p2tog
Row 3 (RS): k all
Row 4 (WS): p2togtbl, p5, w+t,
     (RS) k to end, turn,
     (WS) p2togtbl, p to last 2 sts, p2tog, turn
     (RS) k7, w+t, p to last 2 sts, p2tog
Row 5 (RS): * k to marker, yo, slip marker, k1, yo, repeat from * three more times, k to end
Row 6 (WS): p2togtbl, p7, w+t,
     (RS) k to end, turn,
     (WS) p2togtbl, p to last 2 sts, p2tog, turn
     (RS) k6, w+t, p to last 2 sts, p2tog
Row 7 (RS): k all - now your piece will look similar to illustration 2.
Fold the piece right sides together and do a three-needle BO of 14 sts - see illustration 3. Turn the piece back right sides out. Now it will look similar to illustration 4.

Illustrations

Part 4
In order to get an even lower edge, you will have to insert a few short rows. This will create a sort of triangle to even out height differences.
Make sure the stitch that's leftover from the three-needle BO is on your left hand needle. Place a marker to mark the end of round.
Set up round: sl1 (i.e. the "BO leftover" stitch), pick up one or two stitches from the gap (to avoid holes), k to end, pick up one or two stitches from gap.
Short row sequence: k1, k2tog, w+t, p3, p2tog, p2 w+t, k2, you're back at the end of round-marker
    k1, k2tog, k3, w+t, p4, p2tog, p3, w+t, k3, you're back at the end of round-marker
    k6, w+t, p5, p5, w+t, k4, you're back at the end of round-marker
Round 1: k1, k2tog, * k to marker, yo, slip marker, k1, yo repeat once from *, k to last 2 sts, ssk,
Round 2: k all, k7, w+t, p13, w+t, k6
Round 3: k all,  k1, k2tog, k6, w+t, p7, p2tog, p6, w+t, k to end of round marker
Round 4: k all
Round 5 = Round 1
Round 6: k7, w+t, p13, w+t, k6 (you're at the end-of-round marker), k one round
Round 7: k1, k2tog, k to last 2 sts, ssk - count your stitches.
If you have an odd number of stitches knit Round 8-odd. For and even number, knit Round 8-even
Round 8-odd: k8, w+t, p7, p2tog, p6, w+t, k to end-of-round marker, k one round
Round 8-even: k8, w+t, p13, w+t, k7 (you're at the end-of-round marker), k one round

End with 7 rows of k1p1-ribbing. Bind off in pattern.

Make two.
Weave in ends and block gently.

How to Adapt for Different Hand Sizes
The obvious way to adapt this pattern to different hand sizes is change the number of repeats in parts 2, 3 and 4, but this requires other adaptations as well.

• If you change the number of repeats in part 2 the mitts will get wider and the upper edge will be higher. This will lead to a change of the stitches of the upper edge BO at the end of this part. Basically, I'd bind of from the stitch of the yo before the first marker to the stitch of the yo after the second marker. You also might want to start the p1k1-ribbing at the upper edge accordingly - it doesn't need to be higher than 5 or 6 rows (including the BO row).
• If you increase the repeats (row 1 to row 4) of part 3 the mitts will get wider without raising the upper edge. This can be done only a few times since - with the decreases at the upper edge, the yo-k1-yo sequences will get closer to the upper edge. This means that you have to adjust the length(s) of the short rows (rows 2 and 4) will have to be adapted; they must be short enough to not come to the yo-k1-yo-sequence. This will also lead to an adjustment of the number of stitches you need to BO with the three-needle BO. You also need to make sure, that the last row of your part 3, is a row 3 or row 7, i.e. one more row is necessary before you need to do the lace pattern.
• If you want to lengthen the shaft of the mitts, you can do not need to insert more short rows because you've already evened out the height. But you need to do a lace row every 4th row and to decrease around the end-of-round marker in the next two rounds to even out the increases.

Frost in March Hat

This year winter doesn't seem to end - and at the beginning of March it got extremely cold - in my part of the world it was minus 10 degrees. Even now - a few weeks - later it's not much better. That's why I took to wearing a hat everytime I had to leave the house. In autumn I had knitted a few new hats (e.g. U-Turn Hat and Circle Beret), but they were shaped in a way that they fitted right over head and were to small if I wore my hair in a bun - which I usually do. So I wnated to knit a roomier hat, something a bit slouchy so that my "hairdo" would fit comfortably.
I decided on something with a short row construction, that is worked sideways and knitted flat. It starts with a provisional CO, is knitted in wedges and ends by grafting the edges together. The first 14 stitches are worked in garter stitch which provides a ribbing.
Their are two versions of the pattern - one to the exact size and gauge as given below, and one more general version so that you can adapt it to your head size.

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






Materials

• 60 to 70 grams of Worsted weight yarn - the sideways effect will be shown best when using self-striping yarn (I used Lana Grossa Cool Wool Big Color - here's a link to the yarn's Ravelry page)
• 4 mm knitting needles
• scrap yarn and crochet hook for provisional CO
• tapestry needle for grafting and to weave in ends

Techniques

• 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. 
• Grafting in Garter Stitch: A technique to get an invisible (knitted) seam - this technique is shown in this YouTube Video by knittinghelp.com.
• 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 Size

In stockinette stitch 21 stitches gave 10 cm in width and 32 rows 10 cm in height.

The finished hat measures 44 cm in circumference at the ribbing (unstretched). Stretched it fits around my head (about 54 cm in circumference). Just above the ribbing it measures about 55 cm in circumference. From the lower edge of the ribbing up to the crown it measures 23 cm.

Instructions

For the exact size as given above

Do a provisional CO of 50 sts

Row 0 (WS): k all

Row 1 (RS+WS): sl1, k47, w+t, p to last 14 sts, k14

Row 2 (RS+WS): sl1, k45, w+t, p to last 14 sts, k14

Row 3 (RS+WS): sl1, k43, w+t, p to last 14 sts, k14

Row 4 (RS+WS): sl1, k41, w+t, p to last 14 sts, k14

Row 5 (RS+WS): sl1, k39, w+t, p to last 14 sts, k14

Row 6 (RS+WS): sl1, k37, w+t, p to last 14 sts, k14

Row 7 (RS+WS): sl1, k35, w+t, p to last 14 sts, k14

Row 8 (RS+WS): sl1, k33, w+t, p to last 14 sts, k14

Row 9 (RS, WS, RS, WS): sl1, k31, w+t, p to last 14, w+t, k to last 14 sts, w+t, p to last 14 sts, k14

Row 10 (RS+WS): sl1 k to end, TURN, sl1 k to end

Repeat rows 1 to 10 6 more times. Then knit rows 1 to 9 once more.

Put the stitches of the provisional CO on a knitting needle.

Hold the edges WS together and graft 14 sts in garter stitch and 36 sts in stockinette stitch.

Weave in ends.

For other sizes

Do a provisional CO of the number of sts you need for the desired height 

Row 0 (WS): k all

Row 1 (RS+WS): sl1, k to 2 sts before end, w+t, p to last 14 sts, k14

Row 2 (RS+WS): sl1, k to 2 sts before last wrap, w+t, p to last 14 sts, k14

Row 3 (RS+WS): sl1, k to 2 sts before last wrap, w+t, p to last 14 sts, k14

Row 4 (RS+WS): sl1, k to 2 sts before last wrap, w+t, p to last 14 sts, k14

Row 5 (RS+WS): sl1, k to 2 sts before last wrap, w+t, p to last 14 sts, k14

Row 6 (RS+WS): sl1, k to 2 sts before last wrap, w+t, p to last 14 sts, k14

Row 7 (RS+WS): sl1, k to 2 sts before last wrap, w+t, p to last 14 sts, k14

Row 8 (RS+WS): sl1, k to 2 sts before last wrap, w+t, p to last 14 sts, k14

Row 9 (RS, WS, RS, WS): sl1, k to 2 sts before last wrap, w+t, p to last 14, w+t, k to 2 sts before last wrap, w+t, p to last 14 sts, k14

Row 10 (RS+WS): sl1 k to end, TURN, sl1 p to last 14 sts,  k to end

Repeat rows 1 to 10 until the hat fit around your head - during the last repeat only knit up to and including row 9.

Put the stitches of the provisional CO on a knitting needle.

Hold the edges WS together and graft 14 sts in garter stitch and the rest in stockinette stitch.

Weave in ends.

Helgoland Mitts in Danish - Helgoland Vanter

Marianne Holmen from strikkeglad.dk has written a Danish translation of the Helgoland Mitts pattern. Thank you very much or rather "mange tak"!
Here is a link to the Danish version of this pattern on strikkeglad.dk.
The original (English) version can be found here.

A list of all translated versions of my patterns can be found in this blogpost.


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

Current WIPs

As usual, I have many works-in-progress (or WIPs for short) on my knitting needles. Most of them are my own ideas ... some of them will work and eventually been made into finished objects and patterns, some will be put in hibernation and maybe unearthed at a later date (usually slightly altered), and some will be frogged completely.
Here are the current ones that are most likely to be made into finished objects and maybe even patterns :)

1. Short row scarf with lace pattern inbetween - similar to the Mermaid's Garden Scarf, but not quite :) The yarn I used here is Schoppel Zauberball colorway Teezeremonie. Since the pattern is quite lacy it will look better after being blocked ...
2. The idea here, was to knit a hat completely without swatching, but with an interesting twist (or rather slant :) The finished shape was supposed to be similar  to a Pussy Hat. It took me five (yes, five!) attempts to get the closing vertical edge right(-ish) ... but it still is too roomy and slouchy to my liking. So at least the upper part will be frogged again and knitted differently - or maybe the complete hat ... (?) For this project I have used Lana Grossa Cool Wool Big Color.
3. Ever since I saw knitted pieces with square holes on the internet, I wanted to do something similar for myself - but of course without having to cut my yarn in the middle of a project. It took me quite a while to figure out how to knit them. Once you've grasped the idea this is great for mindless (TV, train etc.) knitting. When this piece is finished it will be a big wrap. The yarn I have used here is Wollmeise Lace.
4. After I had finished the Starburst Mitts in 2014, I thought it might be a good idea to do an opposite construction to them, i.e. to group the short rows around a point at your wrist or at the edge or your hand - instead of around the thumb. I gave up on the idea then, but at Christmas I tried them again. This time the shaping worked a bit better, but it still isn't quite right. But I guess I will finish these - if only just to see how they fit around my hands. It might just work once they are closed. Here I used some hand-dyed yarn from Frau Wo aus Po - leftovers of the yarn that I used for my Seitenstreifen Socks.

If you have any ideas for pattern names, please let me know. Choosing names is not my strong suit :)

Easter Eggs

Only three more weeks until Easter ... these cute little easter eggs are great to use up your self-striping fingering weight leftovers and maybe a funny project to try a three-dimensional piece of knitting.

A German version of this pattern is available here.
Eine deutsche Version dieser Anleitung gibt es hier.



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






Materials

• about 5 grams of fingering weight yarn - I used leftovers from self-striping sock yarn
• 2.5mm dpns or circulars
• stuffing - I used (really) old yarn leftovers and waste fabric (cut into small pieces)
• a removable stitch marker to mark the end of your round
• a tapestry needle

Size
Your finished eggs will be a bit bigger than hen's eggs.

Techniques and Abbreviations

• Magic Ring CO: Basically, the magic ring technique (from crochet) is used to cast on knitted stitches. There are several videos on Youtube that show the technique - I used something similar to the technique shown in the first video, but since this is fiddly work, just use the one that suits you best.
• with knitting needles: http://youtu.be/_xZywv8wj9Y or http://youtu.be/eXgvTPSOVIw 
• or with a crochet hook: http://youtu.be/4Vkpqdea-6o 

Alternatively, you can always use your preferred CO and later sew the hole closed with the tail.

• [X]*Y, means, knit the sequence in brackets (X) Y times, e.g. [k2. kfb]*4 means knit the sequence "k2, kfb" four times.

Instructions
CO 8 sts and join in round - I used a Magic Ring CO (see link above). or just CO8 and join in round, if you do so, keep the tail outside of the egg, so that you can use it later to close the little hole. If you start with the Magic Ring CO, your piece will look like in illustration 1.
Round 1: k all - now your piece will look like in illustration 2.
Round 2: [kfb]*8
Round 3: k all
Round 4: [k1, kfb]*8
Round 5: k all
Round 6: k all
Round 7: [kfb, k2]*8
Round 8: k all
Round 9: k all
Round 10: [k2, kfb, k1]*8
Round 11: k all
Round 12: k all
Round 13: [k4, kfb]*8 - now your piece will look similar to illustration 3

Round 14: k all
Round 15: k all
Round 16: k all
Round 17: k all

Illustrations

Round 18: k all
Round 19: k all
Round 20: k all
Round 21: k all

Round 22: [k6, k2tog, k4]*4

Round 23: k all

Round 24: k all
Round 25: [k1, k2tog, k8]*4
Round 26: k all
Round 27: k all
Round 28: [k4, k2tog, k4]*4
Round 29: k all
Round 30: [k7, k2tog]*4
Round 31: k all
Round 32: [k1, k2tog, k1]*8

Round 33: k all

Round 34: k all
Start to put stuffing into your egg. Stuffing the egg will become more difficult the smaller the upper opening gets.  Now your piece will look similar to illustration 4.
Round 35: [k2tog, k1]*8

Round 36: k all

Round 37: k all
Round 38: [k2tog]*8
Round 39: [k2tog]*4
Cut yarn and thread it through a tapestry needle. Make sure your egg has enough stuffing.
Catch the remaining 4 sts with the needle and pull tight. Fasten off and weave in ends.

Ostereier

Bis Ostern sind es nur noch drei Wochen - also Zeit, um sich mit Osterdekorationen zu beschäftigen. Diese niedlichen gestrickten Ostereier sind fabelhaft, um bunte Garnreste zu verwenden. Außerdem könnten sie ein interessantes erstes Projekt sein, etwas drei-dimensionales zu stricken.

An english version of this pattern is avaible here.
Eine englische Version dieser Anleitung gibt es hier.



Dieses Werk von Knitting and so on ist lizenziert unter einer Creative Commons Namensnennung - Nicht-kommerziell - Weitergabe unter gleichen Bedingungen 4.0 International Lizenz.






Material

• circa 5 gramm 4-fädiges Sockengarn - ich habe Reste von buntem Sockengarn verwendet. 
• 2.5mm Stricknadeln - ich habe eine Rundstricknadel verwendet (mit der sog. Magic-Loop-Technik), aber ein Nadelspiel geht natürlich auf
• Füllmaterial zum Ausstopfen - ich habe (sehr) alte Garnreste verwendet und kleingeschnittene Stoffreste 
• ein Maschenmarkierer um den Anfang der Runde zu markieren
• eine Stopfnadel 

Größe
Die fertigen Eier sind etwas größer als normale Hühnereier.

Techniken und Abkürzungen 

• Maschenanschlag auf Fadenring: Dies isät eine Technik um eine geringe Anzahl von Maschen lückenlos anzuschlagen - ähnlich der Technik, mit der man ein Amigurumi beginnt. Ein YouTube Video auf Deutsch gibt es von nadelspiel - Stricken und Häkeln mit elizzza. Man kann dies auf unterschiedliche Art tun, es ist aber ein bisschen fricklig. Daher bitte die Art auswählen, die einem selbst am besten liegt. Hier noch ein paar weitere Videos dazu - allerdings in englisch.
• with knitting needles: http://youtu.be/_xZywv8wj9Y or http://youtu.be/eXgvTPSOVIw 
• or with a crochet hook: http://youtu.be/4Vkpqdea-6o 

Alternativ kann man natürlich ganz normal 8 Maschen anschlagen und zur Runde schließen. Dann muss man am Ende jedoch das kleine Loch zunähen. 

• [X]*Y, bedeutet: stricke die Anweisung in der Klammer (also X) Y-mal. also z.B. [2 re.M., reVH]*4 bedeutet also: stricke die Sequenz "2 re.M., reVH" vier mal.
• reVH - aus einer rechten Masche zwei herausstricken, also zuerst durchs vordere, dann durch das hintere Maschenglied stricken. Ein deutsches Video hierzu gibt es z.B. von Strick' Dich glücklich! (In englischen Strickanleitungen heißt dieser Stich kfb. Ich habe leider nicht herausgefunden, ob es eine "offiziellere" deutsche Bezeichnung dafür gibt. Falls jemand eine bessere Bezeichnung kennt, wäre ich über einen Hinweis dankbar.)
• 2 M. re. zus. - zwei Maschen rechts zusammenstricken.

Anleitung
8 Maschen anschlagen und zur Runde schließen - ich habe dafür einen Maschenanschlag auf einem Fadenring verwendet (siehe Link oben), man kann aber auch einfach normal 8 Maschen anschlagen. Falls man sich für letzteres entscheidet, sollte man aufpassen, das kurze Garnende außen hängen zu lassen, um am Ende damit die Öffnung zunähen zu können. Das Strickstück sieht ähnlich aus wie in Illustration 1.

Runde 1: alle M. re. - das Strickstück sieht jetzt ähnlich aus wie Illustration 2
Runde 2: [reVH]*8
Runde 3: alle M. re.
Runde 4: [1 re. M., reVH]*8
Runde 5: alle M. re.
Runde 6: alle M. re.
Runde 7: [reVH, 2 re. M.]*8
Runde 8: alle M. re.
Runde 9: alle M. re.
Runde  10: [2 re. M., reVH, 1 re. M.]*8
Runde 11: alle M. re.
Runde  12: alle M. re.
Runde 13: [4 re. M., reVH]*8 - das Strickstück sollte nun ähnlich aussehen wie in Illustration 3

Runde  14: alle M. re.
Runde  15: alle M. re.
Runde 16: alle M. re.
Runde 17: alle M. re.

Illustrationen

Runde 18: alle M. re.
Runde 19: alle M. re.
Runde  20: alle M. re.
Runde 21: alle M. re.

Runde 22: [6 re. M., 2 M. re. zus., 4 re. M.]*4

Runde 23: alle M. re. 

Runde 24: alle M. re.
Runde 25: [1 re. M., 2 M. re. zus., 8 re. M.]*4
Runde 26: alle M. re.
Runde 27: alle M. re.
Runde 28: [4 re. M., 2 M. re. zus., 4 re. M.]*4
Runde 29: alle M. re.
Runde 30: [7 re. M., 2 M. re. zus.]*4
Runde 31: alle M. re.
Runde 32: [1 re. M., 2 M. re. zus., 1 re. M.]*8

Runde 33: alle M. re. 

Runde 34: alle M. re.
Nun sollte man beginnen, das Füllmaterial einzufüllen, da die Öffnung in den nächsten Reihen nur noch kleiner wird und es schwieriger wird, das Ei auszustopfen. Das ganze sieht dann in etwa aus wie in Illustration 4.
Runde 35: [2 M. re. zus., 1 re. M.]*8

Runde 36: alle M. re. 

Runde 37: alle M. re.
Runde 38: [2 M. re. zus.]*8
Runde 39: [2 M. re. zus.]*4
Das Garn abschneiden und in eine Stopfnadel einfädeln. Jetzt ist der letzte Moment, um noch weiteres Füllmaterial einzufügen, so dass das Ei gut ausgestopft ist. Die letzten vier Maschen mit der Nadel durch das Garnende ziehen, zuziehen, das Garnende befestigen und vernähen.