Free Pattern for Winter! The Diamond Scarf

In September, I took a chance on designing my very first knitting pattern. My goal was to do something so simple that even I could make it, and design a scarf that would look nice and yet highlight my pretty homespun. The result was my Diamond Scarf!



Well, it's now been written up, and tested, and I'm ready to release it to all of you, for free! It's my first pattern release since, er, the spring, I think, so I'm pretty excited about it!

Materials:
Worsted Weight Yarn (at least 150 yards)
Size 9 Knitting Needles

Finished Size:
Width: 11”
Length: 50”

The scarf can be easily shortened or lengthened as desired by using more or less yardage.

Gauge:
Approximately four stitches to the inch.

Abbreviations: Note that this pattern uses US definitions.
CO: Cast On
K: Knit
K2tog: Knit 2 together
YO: Yarn over

Directions:

You can modify the width of this pattern in intervals of five. Each interval of five increases or reduces the size by 1 and ¼ inch. Thus, if you want a scarf of 9 and ½ inches wide, only CO 33; or for a scarf of 13 and ½ inches wide, cast on 53; etc. To get a scarf approximate 11” wide, use the below instructions.

CO 43
Rows 1 – 8: Knit across

This pattern is constructed using a repeating 5 stitch motif.

Repeat the following pattern:
Row 1: K4, (K2tog, YO, K3) across, K4
Row 2: K4, purl across, K4
Row 3: K4, (K1, K2tog, YO, K2) across, K4
Row 4: K4, purl across, K4
Row 5: K4, (K2, K2tog, YO, K) across, K4
Row 6: K4, purl across, K4
Row 7: K4, (K3, K2tog, YO) across, K4
Row 8: K4, purl across, K4

Continue to desired length. Each repeat of this pattern adds approximately 2” in length. When you have repeated the pattern to the length that you would like, knit 8 rows, then bind off and finish.

Weave in ends. Block.

...And now you’re done!!

You can also download this pattern as a PDF from Ravelry by clicking this link!

Feel free to get in touch with me any time on his blog or on Ravelry if you have any questions!

Finished Object Friday, 7/29/2011

I've FINALLY finished something! Man, I don't know what's going on with me this month. :(

Anyway! A couple weeks ago I posted a teaser pic of a project I was working on that drew from about 10 different skeins of yarn. I finally, finally got that project done on Tuesday!

The Dragon Banner
In Nerd Wars, one of the challenges this month was to make something inspired by a fandom other than the one for your team. I'm on the team for Supernatural, and there are a LOT of other teams who have fandoms that I adore - Babylon 5, Star Trek, video games, comic books/manga, MMORPGs, Star Wars, Lord of the Rings, and more. It was a really tough choice, but finally I decided to go with my original love: series fiction - specifically, in my case, series fantasy. I made a banner in honor of my favorite character in my (I guess it's my) favorite series of books - Rand al'Thor from Robert Jordan's the Wheel of Time. Without giving away any spoilers, this is the banner of the Dragon, and it's described as follows in the book:

”Character 1 and Character 2 took the bundle of white cloth…and unfolded it between them. A long, white banner spread out, lifting on the air…the whole thing seemed of a piece, neither woven, nor dyed, nor painted. A figure like a serpent, scaled in scarlet and gold, ran the entire length, but it had scaled legs, and feet with five long, golden claws on each, and a great head with a golden mane and eyes like the sun. The stirring of the banner made it seem to move, scales glittering like precious metals and gems, alive, and he almost thought he could hear it roar defiance.

“‘What is it?’ Rand said.

“Moiraine answered slowly. ‘The banner of the Lord of the Morning when he led the forces of Light against the Shadow. The banner of Lews Therin Telamon. The banner of the Dragon.’”

Based on this description, and a similar-but-very-slightly-different-one in another of the books, I designed and made my own Dragon banner!



It's BIG - about as tall as I am!


I made the chart myself. It was so hard to keep track of where I was in the pattern that I carefully made a check mark every time I finished a row!


To make the face extra awesome, I used gold blending filament with the red:

And to accomplish the "shimmered like it was gems" look, I used iridescent blending filament mixed with the white:


All in all, it was a bitch to make - it was SO hard to keep all the threads straight, and then my dog got it all tangled and I almost cried, but I persevered, and I'm so proud of how the FO turned out!




See what every one else has been up to! Check out Fiber Arts Friday brought to us by Wonder Why Gal, and Finished Object Friday's organized by Tami!

Meet the Roly Poly King and the Arctic Fox! (Finished Object Friday, 4/22/2011)

It's not actually clear to me how I got a lot done this week, but somehow, I did!

First, I finally got around to releasing two of my patterns (both previously seen on past FO Friday's):
Rockin' Rocket Ship

Available from Etsy and Ravelry. (You can read more about him in my blog here.)

Manny Man-o-War, Portuguese Man of War Amigurumi, Manager of the Oceans

Available from Etsy and Ravelry. (Or you can read more about him here)

Then, there are this weeks FO!

Romney Handspun
Thought I'd start with the least interesting. :) I finished that spinning I've been working on for ages, wrapped around the hanger that I pretend is a knitty noddy, and boiled it last night. Now I just have to wait for it to dry.

I'm very happy with it. It turned out MUCH more even than my first two attempts (though that doesn't show much in the above, because of course the outer layer is what I spun FIRST before I got in to the rhythm of things). Now I can finally start playing with the lb. of fiber I bought online, and in two weeks it's Maryland Sheep and Wool...so I can get something that's, ya know, dyed. :)

The Roly Poly King
Last week for WIP Wednesday, I posted a strange purple ami at a bizarre angle and said I couldn't explain in case any Nerd Wars folks were reading my blog. Well, we on Team Ranger had a plan: On Wednesday, we staged a pitched battle between Green Drazi and Purple Drazi. It was epic, and I feel certain that the Purple would have won, had not our Fearless Leader stepped in and shown us all the error of our ways. Of course, the main feature of this battle was the finished objects we had each created in our appropriate colors. All of these had to align with a challenge whose theme was the number pi. Hence, I ended up with this:

This is the Roly Poly King. He's inspired by a character in Babylon 5, but the whole thing isn't worth getting in to. He's also almost entirely composed of spheres, circles and semi-circles. But I think in the end that I'm most proud of the crown.

I've had these Mill Hill beads sitting around for a decade, and I finally used some of them! Yes, I hand beaded that silly thing! :)

It was also fun to make his grumpy face. :)

Arctic Fox Amigurumi
On Wednesday, I challenged ya'll to guess what my strangely-shaped amigurumi was. I got some awesome guesses - pill bug, female bits, other internal organs, seal, manatee... - and I was surprised not to get what I considered to be the two most obvious guesses (bunny rabbit, kangaroo) - but it wouldn't have mattered, since it was none of these things! Right after the earthquake and tsunami hit Japan, I joined an auction on LJ as a provider - in exchange for a donation to a charity of the buyer's choice, I would design them whatever amigurumi they wanted, with size and complexity based on how much they donated. (A restriction I ended up throwing out the window because it's ultimately more useful to me to design a "normal" sized one of my dolls than to do a small one just because). My buyer ended up donating $15, and she requested an arctic fox! She wasn't too picky; her only real restriction is that she didn't want it to be generic with big floppy limbs. The example she showed me all had something unusual about them, so I set my mind to the question: how would I pose a fox? And here's the result:


My inspiration was this picture:

(except in adult fox colors)

All in all, I'm pretty happy with how it turned out:

...though I'll own, in the second draft I'll be slightly redesigning the tail(s) and making the head about three rounds smaller. :)



So! That's me for this week. A lot, I know. :)

Hey everyone, now that you've read my post, why not check out the other going's on at FO Friday on Tamis Amis and Crochet Blog and Fiber Arts Friday at Wisdom Begins in Wonder!

Re-Introducing Sammy the Squirrel!

Last summer, I completed a squirrel pattern as a commission for a friend. I've now finished a second version, and it's been thoroughly pattern tested and updated, and it's that wonderful time again: a re-release!

Meet Sammy the Squirrel!


Sammy is a real tough guy, the biggest and strongest squirrel in the park, and a lot of the other animals think he’s a bully. But that’s only ‘cause they haven’t gotten to know him! Sammy only got to be strong so that he could protect all his brothers and sisters from all of the predators, especially the big, mean dogs who spend all day chasing the squirrels. All the dogs are afraid of Sammy, though. He might be smaller than (most) of those cruel dogs, but he’s so fast and brave that he leads them around in circles until they’re totally exhausted, and then he taunts them until they promise not to bother his fellow squirrels ever again. In the squirrel community, Sammy is a hero!

The new version of Sammy is available for $2.50 from Etsy and from Ravelry.

In other news, I've finished the first version of the Manager for the Oceans on Thursday, and should be finished with a second version today or tomorrow - with hopes for a third version (because I had to modify from the first a fair amount) by Monday or Tuesday! Expect to meet this mystery man...er...ocean-goer soon!

New Pattern, Old Pattern!

Just a quick post to let everyone know, I've officially released the Santana Squid pattern, and I've also re-released Julie Jellyfish!


Santana Squid is a squid who loves to pitch; you can read more about him in this post and this post. He comes in two versions, the one shown above, and one in which he's wearing a baseball uniform! Both patterns are included in the same PDF.

He's available for sale for $2 from Ravelry and Etsy.


Julie Jellyfish just wants to have fun and swim the oceans of the world! She also can be made two ways - one with short tentacles, and the one shown above, with long tentacles. Both patterns are included in the same PDF.

Julie is available for sale for $2 from Ravelry and Etsy

It's worth mentioning, too, that I currently have finished versions of all of these dolls available for people who don't want to make them - none are listed, but if you're interested, get in touch! :)

Have a great weekend, every one!

Celebrate Hanukkah with a Free Amigurumi Pattern!

Only somewhat known fact about me: I'm Jewish! And one of my favorite holidays of the year is Hanukkah. I've already got my menorah and candles all ready for tomorrow, and I'm pondering potato latkes and gelt. While these things wandered through my brain on Sunday morning, I had a moment of insight - a design for a cute little amigurumi dreidel. Cause really, Hanukkah ain't complete without a dreidel!

Here's how to make your own! Note that I've made this pattern three times, so I know it works, but I've not had it tested by any other person, so there is a chance it'll be a little confusing. If you have any trouble, just let me know!! :) Also, here are two links that helped me design this: How to Crochet a Cube and Magic Adjustable Ring Tutorial.

Make your own dreidel!



If you want to make it in one color, just ignore all the color switch instructions. I encourage you to use colors, though - this pattern is a great way to use some scraps!

Materials:
Small amount of worsted weight yarn
Size G crochet hook (4.0 mm)
Yarn needle
Fiberfill

Abbreviations:
Ch - Chain
Dc - Double crochet
Sc - Single crochet
Ss - Slip stitch
Tc - Triple crochet

Main part of the dreidel:
Start in color 1.
Round 1: Ch 2. 4 sc in second ch from hook. Do not join. Place marker: 4 sc

Round 2: (3 sc in next sc) around: 12 sc

Round 3: Sc in next sc, (3 sc in next sc, sc in next 2 sc) 3 times, 3 sc in next sc, sc in next sc: 20 sc

Round 4: Sc around: 20 sc

Round 5: Sc in next 2 sc in first color. Switch to your second color. Sc in next 5 sc. Tie on your third color but DO NOT CUT your second color off. With the third color, sc in next 5 sc. Tie on the fourth color but do not cut your third color off. With the fourth color, sc in next 5 sc. Tie on the fifth color but do not cut your fourth color off. With the fifth color, sc in next 3 sc: 20 sc

Here's what Round 5 should more or less look like once your done:


Round 6: Continuing with your fifth color, sc in next 2 sc. Switch back to your second color. To do this, lay the yarn along the color 2 crocheted stitches from the previous round, and as you work your sc, work around both the normal loop and the "loose" length. If you're confused, I've attempted to take a picture of this process (just below). No idea if it's clear or helpful, but I tried. :) Using your second color, sc in next 5 sc. You'll be using this procedure to switch colors each time from now on. With third color, sc in next 5 sc. With fourth color, sc in next 5 sc. With fifth color, sc in next 3 sc: 20 sc

Here's my attempt to photograph what you're doing when you carry over the colors to a new round:


Rounds 7 - 10: With color five, sc in next 2 sc. With color two, sc in next 5 sc. With color three, sc in next 5 sc. With color four, sc in next 5 sc. With color five, sc in next 3 sc: 20 sc

Round 11: With color five, sc in next 2 sc. With color two, sc in next 5 sc. Cut the second color, and carefully tie the loose end to color three before you continue. With color three, sc in next 5 sc. Cut the third color, and carefully tie the loose end to color four before you continue. With color four, sc in next 5 sc. Cut the fourth color, and carefully tie the loose end to color five before you continue. With color five, sc in next 3 sc: 20 sc

Sc in next 2 sc, ss in next st, tighten in finish off.

Next, make the top of the dreidel:
In first color.
Row 1: Ch 6. Starting in second ch from hook, sc in next 5 ch: 5 sc

Rows 2 - 5: Ch 1 (turning ch). Sc in next 5 sc: 5 sc

Ch 1, tighten, and finish off. Leave a long end for sewing.

Stuff the base of the dreidel with fiber fill, then sew the top over the top. Make sure you line up the corners of the square top with the color transitions on the dreidel (or, if only using one color, that your corners line up with the corners at the base). When you've got three sides sewn on, stuff in a bit more fiberfill. Don't over stuff, though - make sure the top stays (relatively) flat, instead of puffing out.

Handle:
Ch 2. In second ch from hook, sc 3 times. From there, work in a 3 sc spiral until it's one inch long. Ss in next sc, tighten and leave a long end for sewing.

Sew the handle on to the center of the dreidel top.

Next, you can decorate your four sides with images that reflect the four sides of a dreidel - the key to how you play the game. First, here are the rules on Wikipedia. Now, the way I learned - which is a little different, is as follows. Dreidel is a gambling game, and you start with a pool of something to gamble with - for us, it was always either pennies, candies (like M&Ms), or gelt (that chocolate wrapped in gold foil that looks like coins). There are four sides on the dreidel, represented by the Hebrew letters gimmel, hey, nun and shin. Which of these turns up determines what happens. If you spin a gimmel, you get the entire pot. This is the best result. If you spin a hey, you get half of the pot. This is the second best result. If you spin a nun, nothing happens. This is a neutral result. And if you spin a shin, you lose your entire stash. This is the worst result! Now, if you're gonna play, I suggest you use wiki's rules, they're more functional, but mine get the idea across: four possible results, one awesome, one okay, one neutral, and one lousy. I thought it would be fun to represent this with different looking smiley faces. I also made one dreidel with the traditional symbols. Consider these pictures to be some ideas on how to decorate yours - but feel free to have fun with it and use whatever random embroidery stitches you might know!!

Gimmel:


Hey:


Nun:


Shin:


Now that you've made your dreidel, though, you need something to gamble for! How about...some amigurumi gelt? Of course!



Small gelt:
10 sc magic circle. Join with a ss, tighten and finish off.

Medium gelt:
12 dc magic circle. Join with a ss, tighten and finish off.

Large felt:
16 tc magic circle. Join with a ss, tighten and finish off.

I tested my dreidel, and it kinda works...it has a tendency to not land flatly on a side, but it will spin if you hold it close to the base! Now, if only I had someone to play dreidel with...



Happy Hanukkah, everyone!!! :)

Blub Blub the Amigurumi Fish, Mark 2!

As I mentioned in the first post introducing Blub Blub, I wanted to complete a second version with an alternative pattern. I've now done so! Here he is, stripped!









From a crafting stand point, I probably shouldn't admit that this is the first time I've ever made one of my patterns twice, and I'm glad I did. I did end up making modifications to the original, mostly to make it look the way that I wanted it to look in the first place. They were all minor changes, but I think they helped a lot, and clearly I've got to acknowledge that I'll have to remake all the rest at least once, also, and possibly update them. Another advantage of remaking it was that I got to see how long it took me to make when I wasn't worrying about patterning it, which is essential if I'm going to try to "mass produce" for sales purposes. In this case, it took about 4 and a half hours - a fish in solid colors would have gone faster, though. Based on this, I have a question/poll for folks reading this:

How much do you think would be a reasonable amount for me to charge for Blub Blub the Amigurumi Fish (striped) - based on what you think it's worth, NOT considering the investment of my time/materials?
1: $20 or less
2: $21 - $30
3: $31 - $40
4: $40 or more

Next steps? Well, now I write up the entire pattern, edit it with my moms help, go over to Ravelry to find someone to test it (also will be a first for me!) and then...up on Etsy! I'm going to charge $2.50 for this pattern! :)

Cross Stitch Pattern Drafting Attempt 1: Perspective Squares

Without going in to depressing detail, I had a rough day yesterday. Very jetlagged, car broke down, failed to pick my grandfather up from the airport as a result, got an unexpected and imminent work deadline, generally felt I've got too much on my plate to do in too little time. HOWEVER. I'm not ABOUT to let that stop me from finding some time to get in some crafting! :) After me and the sad car limped home (I'll take it to the shop tomorrow...) I ate some dinner and mustered up the energy to get a little done. First, I made a few small in-roads on the Stash organization - picked which costume to make, put all the other cloth away (it all fit in to the existing cloth bin, yay!). Then, I went through the cross stitch, pulled out some things I don't think I'll ever make (and a double), and discovered that I DID have graph paper! This was essential, and prompted a YAY! And it prompted a short start on my aforementioned mosaic cross stitch pattern making!

SO! Brief history: I have attempted to make cross stitch patterns before. When I was in college, I briefly thought, "if I really want to make a living through crafts, this might be a way!" but my determined belief that I have no artistic talent (though flagrantly untrue) undermined this effort, and I stalled out pretty quickly (as the book of graph paper I found yesterday attests). I actually found both my past efforts at design while I was going through the craft bins, but that's a post for not now, cause I've got very little time.

Anyway. I had decided while I was away on a very modest, pretty easy first project, to get my feet wet, see if I liked it, and just give it a try. Based on this image:

I thought I'd try my hand at doing a book mark based on the perspective squares. It seemed pretty easy...

...and attempting it, I think it IS pretty easy. I was a little leery of it when I was working on it, but I think it's just about right, actually. To do this, I just drafted a little mini-version of the pattern - to see if it worked before committing to the entire design:


Then, I went through my thread very quickly and randomly assigned four colors I thought would like nice together, grabbed some scrap 14 cnt. aida, and sewed up a little section, to see how it would look:


The colors I picked don't really have enough contrast (though they do match, which given how quickly and arbitrarily I picked them, I'm actually rather proud of) but I do think that they achieve the "perspective box" phenomena. I pretty happy with how the sample turned out. After I did this, I messed around with some alternatives, just on paper, but I didn't like any of them as much. If I have the time today (I might have a little when I get back from a meeting that ends at 6...) I might draft the full book mark, and maybe even start to sew it. And consider colors with more contrast! :)

So, do folks think the perspective works? Just want to be sure I'm not fooling myself...input appreciated! Thanks! :)