Little things, baby things, doll things

I am knitting up some balls of yarn that I have been given. Most of the yarn is just one ball of a particular color, composition, weight, and so on.

"Nach strick und faden", in Dresden. I have yet to get there, though it's reasonably close.

Some strange blue/green acrylic yarn has become a scarf. I used 5  balls of superbulky acrylic in red, red/purple mix, blue, blue/red mix and lavender/green mix to knit two baby changing cloths and a diaper bag for my friend who's having a baby (forgot to take pictures before I gave them to her). Now I'm working on doll clothes.

not what I am making, sadly. These are much cuter.

 Really, I am just puttering. I'll try to take a few photos and put them up, but they won't be all that exciting. I need some new yarn, or some inspiration, or both.

The passing on of the yarn

Today my friend Colleen and I took part in a rite of passage for expats leaving Prague: the passing of the yarn. She posted on Facebook that she had some yarn she couldn't take back to the US, and was giving it away; did anyone want it?

Rowan, a British yarn not sold here...sigh

"Me," I quickly replied. I love other people's yarn stash, as there is always stuff that is absolutely new to me and amazing. So I went to her flat and she presented me with a bag of yarn, some of which was given to her by other people who left Prague. (I gave her a book written by my husband and me, on choosing a career, as a thank-you and to help her as she moves back to the US job scene.)

This proud tradition unites knitters in Prague who've moved on. My friend Joanna, when she moved back to the US, dispersed her stash among several people (she had a huge stash, because she hosted stitch-n-bitch Prague and got lots of stuff from people who were leaving). Then another friend, also Joanna, did the same.

My friend Marie has a considerable stash from getting on the train of passed-on yarn. She feeds lots of it to me in small amounts, so I don't get overwhelmed. I use every bit.

a rare label

I love getting other people's yarn. It's like having a window in their lives in Prague. It's also a fun guessing game, as most of the yarn has no label anymore, so you can only use your imagination as to what it's made from, unless you recognize it. Here in Prague, it's a pretty good bet that it will be synthetic yarn, as that's what they sell here, so I'm starting a baby/kid's clothes project to make stuff that will be washable. "Kiki and Kubichek" is coming soon!

Sea Skate Scarf

My second attempt at designing a scarf uses two methods of increasing, outer (at the end of each row) and inner (around a stationery center stitch). The sock yarn (from Marie) looked random in the skein but turned out to be self-striping, which is a nice effect in the scarf (the stripes get narrower as the scarf gets wider).

I like the organic shape of this scarf: not rectangular or strictly triangular. I'll post the pattern here and on Ravelry in a few days.

Noah's Colorful Striped Scarf

I just put this pattern up, on Ravelry. It's free, like the others.

http://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/noahs-colorful-striped-scarf

Please visit my design store on Ravelry and see if any of the nine free patterns would be fun for you to knit!

I finally uploaded the free pattern for my "Duben" scarf on Ravelry.

http://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/bk-duben-scarf

You can upload the complete pattern, with photos, for free, but first you need a Ravelry account (also free).

Ravelry is the Facebook of knitting, and a tremendous resource for patterns, inspiration, friends, and information on yarns, LYS (local yarn shops) and so on.

My friend Stephanie kindly modeled the scarf on a dim Prague afternoon

I love Ravelry, which is why my pattern store now has 8 patterns, all free, on Ravelry. It's a way to say "thank you."

Dream scarf

two nights ago I had a dream. In the dream, I had knit a scarf from a pattern I created. I showed myself the scarf and pointed out the key features (thank you, self). I then woke up and began to knit. Here is what I have so far:

I think it's pretty. Sock yarn on #7 needles. I will post the pattern when I finish it.

still clicking; Meadowcroft Farm

Found another unique businesswoman/farmer/dyer/spinner/weaver:

getwool.com

Seawool Maine Blankets

sheepgal

I am clicking around the Internet, looking up yarn stuff from the book "Knit Local." Here's a wonderful blog I found:

http://www.sheepgal.com/

She also has a website:

http://foxfirefiber.com/story.htm 

Her blog and website are both fascinating!

7th free pattern on Ravelry

Today I uploaded my 7th free pattern!

Basic Bags felted tote, Big and Medium sizes

Irish tote

This is my favorite bag pattern. Felted, with grab handles.

 Find it on Ravelry

spring sweater

Now it's nearly spring in Prague, and I wanted a knock-around sweater in a neutral color, big enough to throw over my clothes for quick trips to the potraviny and DM.

Here it is:
143-23 October - Jacket with raglan, worked top down in Delight and Vivaldi

It was quite easy to knit, though I just skipped the cable/raglan detail as it seemed more trouble than it as worth and the photo didn't show it in enough detail to be useful. Instead, I added 6 rounds of garter stitch to make it not so bland. I made it quite a bit longer than the pattern suggested, so it covers my rear end.

The yarn is 

N.Y. Yarns Olympic in Graphite, a warm grey with hints of sage green.

I washed it and it shrunk a bit (that was my intention) and got softer (a nice surprise!)

pre-washing

6th Free Ravelry pattern added!

Finally! It was quite a bit of work to write this pattern, make a new sample bag as a test of the written pattern, and upload the resulting PDF! But it's here, and it's free.

http://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/basic-felted-shoulder-bag-with-straps

The pattern includes detailed instructions for this Red Sampler bag, with round-by-round notes and charts to make it all clear.

Download and make your own! and please let me know how you like it!!!

Putting up patterns on Ravelry

Over the years I have gotten so many free patterns from Ravelry! The knitting community is exceptionally generous with its talents and skills. I have made friends (some, like Facebook friends,whom I have never met) and gotten immense inspiration from other knitter's projects. I admire the designers who make stuff so good they can actually charge for their patterns!

Laura Chau's Topdown raglan sweater--FREE!

So to give back a little bit, I have posted 5 free patterns on Ravelry: 2 hats, 2 mitts and a mini-bag. Still to come are two more bag patterns and a mitten pattern.

my pattern: Refined Slouchy Hat--FREE!

 

 

my pattern: Basic Go-To Hat--FREE

You can go to my Ravelry.com store and download the patterns for free (Sara Tusek). You have to register, but it's free and simple. Ravelry--Facebook without the male egos and need to make money!!!

my pattern: Mini Felted Bag (lower right)