freebies « GOODKNITS // a knitting & crochet blog

Knitting: Bulky Zig-Zag Cowl (pattern)

By Lisa Gutierrez on 12/01/2014

I keep mentioning that I’ve knit a whole bunch of cowls over the past few weeks. It all started with the #bulkyhatkal and my brand new set of interchangeable needles.

I received the Knitter’s Pride Trendz Chunky Set to work the KAL and they have been the best addition to the set of interchangeable needles I bought from Knit Picks, a few weeks ago. Those only go to size US 11, so I needed bigger sizes to work with bulkier weights of yarn.

I used the US 17 needles for my hat and then switched to the US 15 (seen above) for my cowls. The needles are fantastic! I’m new to interchangeables, so I don’t know how the cords compare, but I can’t imagine them working any better. They have the perfect amount of flexibility and the needle part is a great length–not too long or short. My hands didn’t get that sore feeling that usually accompanies bulky knitting.

I picked up a few different colors of super bulky yarn at Michael’s and just took off! One of the very first patterns I tried was the Swirling Cowl by Signe Marie Ricter. That pattern is for even bulkier yarn than I’ve got, so I increased my CO to 50 and started. When I got about 5 rounds in, however, I decided I wanted to make the swirl go the other way, so I changed things up a bit. Working alternating repeats of left and right leaning stitch patterns, I ended up with a really cool zig-zag cowl!

I wrote up an explanation of my modifications, so you can make one for yourself! If you’d like the original swirly cowl, check out the link I posted above! It is really pretty. Make both?!

Knit with Loops & Thread Cozy Wool

Yarn: One skein of super bulky yarn: Lion Brand Wool-Ease Thick & Quick (6 oz/170 g equals 106 yd/ 97m) OR Loops & Threads Cozy Wool (4.5 oz/127 g equals 90 yd/82 m)
Needle: 10 mm (US 15) 16-24″ circular needle

Right-leaning stitch pattern
*YO, K2tog; rep from * around.

Left-leaning stitch pattern
*SSK, YO; rep from * around.

CO 50, place marker and join to work in the round.

Start right-leaning stitch pattern and work for 5 rounds.

Switch to left-leaning stitch pattern, as follows: remove stitch marker (left photo), place first stitch on to right-hand needle without twisting, replace marker (right photo).

Start left-leaning stitch pattern and work for 5 rounds.

Switch back to right-leaning stitch pattern, as follows: do NOT make last YO, instead slip the stitch marker to the right hand needle (left photo), YO, and knit the first stitch (right photo). Resume right-leaning stitch pattern.

Continue switching between right and left-leaning stitch patterns to desired height. I worked 3 repeats each, then finished with another section of the right-leaning stitch pattern.

Bind off loosely, weave in ends.

Cowl knit with LB Wool-Ease Thick & Quick

Ta-da! I think it takes me about 2 hours, or a movie, or 3 episodes of my favorite TV show, to work one cowl. That’s pretty sweet instant gratification, don’t you think? I want to make one with a 100 stitch cast-on and a few less pattern repeats, to loop around my neck a couple times. You only need to remember to CO an even number and the pattern should work out. Perhaps you want to make some boot cuffs? Try casting on about 24 stitches. The good thing is if you have to frog a project to adjust the size, you aren’t working on an incredible number of stitches, so it won’t hurt too much.

Disclaimer: I was sent a set of Trendz Chunky Interchangeable Needles for review. All opinions are my own. No monetary compensation was given, but the link above is an affiliate link from Amazon.

Pin It

Christmas: doily ornaments (FREE pattern!)

By Lisa Gutierrez on 12/11/2013

Two years ago, I posted a tiny collection of tiny doily ornaments. I’m happy to report that pattern is now FREE! Yes! Go on and crochet an ornament (or three) for your Christmas tree. They’re super quick to make, even working with thread.

You can find the link to Ravelry or Craftsy on the pattern’s blog page, HERE.

Enjoy!

Pin It

Crochet: Sly Fox Hat

By Lisa Gutierrez on 10/01/2013

October is here! I love October because it means that MAYBE cool weather is on its way to Houston. Probably not, but a girl can dream, right? October also means it’s costume time! Last year, I composed two sweet costumes for my boys’ book character parade (see here) at school.

Combine cool weather and costumes and you get…animal hat! Specifically, a sly little fox hat.

It features some interesting shaping to create the point at the front and long sides to cover the ears. It is definitely inspired by Ganomy, which, if you’ve been reading long, is my favorite knit hat pattern. This crochet hat is worked from the top down, though, and, like I said, has a point at the front. Instead of two sets of increases and decreases, there eventually are three. I hope you guys like it! I’ll put some notes at the END with suggestions for changing the size. Please read through before asking questions! Have fun!

Materials
1 skein Vanna’s Choice in brick or other worsted weight yarn in a foxy color
Small amount of white and dark gray yarn in same weight
5 mm (US H) crochet hook
4 mm (US G) crochet hook
yarn needle

NOTES
Abbreviations (U.S. terminology)
Ch: chain
DC: double crochet
slst: slip stitch
sp: space
rep: repeat
DC2tog: DC 2 together
SC: single crochet
SC2tog: SC 2 together

Gauge
About 3.5 DC and 1.5 rounds per inch with larger hook.

Each beginning ch-3 counts as 1 stitch.

Pattern
HAT
With large hook, Ch 3, 11 DC into a magic circle. Cinch circle shut. Slst into top of beginning (beg) ch-3. (12)

Round 2: Ch 3, 1 DC in same sp, 2 DC in each st, slst to top of beg ch-3. (24)

Round 3: Ch 3, 2 DC in next st, *1 DC in next st, 2 DC in next st; Rep from * around, slst to top of beg ch-3. (36)

Round 4: Ch 3, 1 DC in next st, 2 DC in next st, *1 DC in next 2 sts, 2 DC in next st; Rep from * around, slst to top of beg ch-3. (48)

Round 5: Ch 3, DC in next 7 sts, [3 DC in next st, DC in next 15 sts] twice, 3 DC in next st, DC in last 7 sts, slst to top of beg ch-3. (54)

Round 6: Ch 3, DC in next 8 sts, [3 DC in next st, DC in next 17 sts] twice, 3 DC in next st, DC in last 8 sts, slst to top of beg ch-3. (60)

Round 7: Ch 3, DC in next 9 sts, [3 DC in next st, DC in next 19 sts] twice, 3 DC in next st, DC in last 9 sts, slst to top of beg ch-3. (66)

Round 8: Ch 3, DC in next 10 sts, [3 DC in next st, DC in next 21 sts] twice, 3 DC in next st, DC in last 10 sts, slst to top of beg ch-3. (72)

Round 9: Ch 3, DC2tog, DC in next 9 sts, [3 DC in next st, DC in next 9 sts, DC2tog, DC in next st, DC2tog, DC in next 9 sts] twice, 3 DC in next st, DC in next 9 sts, DC2tog, slst to top of beg ch-3. (72)

Rounds 10-11: Repeat Round 9. (72)

Round 12-13: Repeat Round 9, but switch to white after the third decrease and work with that yarn, carrying the MC, to the stitch before the next decrease. You will have to attach the new color every round. Finish the round in the main color, attach white at the end.

Round 14: SC around in white, making [1 SC, ch 2, 1 SC] in the center DC of the increases of the previous round, slst to first SC. Fasten off. Weave in ends.
————————–
Ears
Note: the ears are made up of two pieces each– a solid piece in the MC of the hat and a piece that is white + the MC.

Make 2 solid pieces for the back of the ears
Ch 10
Row 1: SC in second chain from hook and each of the rest. Ch 1, turn. (9)

Row 2: SC2tog, SC 5, SC2tog. Ch 1, turn. (7)

Row 3: SC in each st. Ch 1, turn. (7)

Row 4: SC2tog, SC 3, SC2tog. Ch 1, turn. (5)

Row 5: SC in each st. Ch 1, turn. (5)

Row 6: SC2tog, SC in next st, SC2tog. Ch 1, turn. (3)

Row 7: SC in each st. Ch 1, turn. (3)

Row 8: SC2tog, SC in next st. Ch 1, turn. (2)

Row 9: SC2tog. (1)

Ch 1, SC 9 down the side of the triangle. At bottom corner, ch 3, then turn triangle clockwise to work across the beginning chain, SC 9 to next corner, Ch 3, then SC 9 back to top of the triangle. SC in the sc2tog stitch from last row, ch 3, SC in same st, slst to first of the SC you made down the side of the triangle. Fasten off.

Make 2 pieces for the front of the ears.
Work pattern as above, but switch to white for Rows 2-9. Switch back to main color after last SC2tog and work border in MC. Leave a long tail at the end of these pieces.

Stitch a front and back together, then sew in place on your hat.
————————–
Eyes & Nose
With smaller hook, make 6 SC into a magic loop. Cinch loop shut. Slst to first SC.
Round 2: Ch 1, 2 SC into same space and each stitch, slst to first SC. Fasten off, leaving a 12-18″ tail for attaching. (12)

For Eyes only
Slst into each st.

Sew eyes and nose in place with tail yarn.

Notes on size
As-is, the pattern fits a child size heads. My son is 5, but his head is about the same size as his 8 year old brother. For a larger hat, I increased my hook to a 5.5 mm (US I) and added some more repeats of Round 9 before making the last 3 rounds. It would be possible to make some more complicated increases, but I can’t give any specific advice on that. Try working the pattern through once, so you can see where the increases are placed and then work it again, adding an increase round after Round 4 (increase to 60) and then some round(s) after 8 (remember–Rounds 5-8 are increasing stitch count by 6 DC each round). The last 5 rounds are the same, so you would just need to figure out where to put the decreases that balance out the increases. Good luck!

[Download the printer-friendly version.]

Pin It

Fall is here! 5 free crochet patterns

By Lisa Gutierrez on 09/23/2013

Fall has arrived and I thought I’d re-share some of my favorite Fall patterns. All five of these patterns are FREE, so go nuts! Click the photos to get to the patterns.

The simplest wreath pattern out there.

Ever notice how crochet pineapples kind of resemble leaves? Make a garland in your favorite fall colors!

Perfect for Halloween! These masks are really quick to whip up. Start making a bunch and pass them out at Halloween instead of candy.

Another sweet Halloween pattern. It’s not even October and I want it to be October 31st already.

‘Rube’ is now FREE! Go make your hands cozy!

Pin It

Print it: Christmas “cross-stitched” signs

By Lisa Gutierrez on 12/07/2011

Last year, I printed this Christmas sign on kraft card stock. I couldn’t find it in my box of Christmas stuff, so I can only assume I put it in the recycle bin after the holidays. This year I went with white cardstock and decorated it with reg gingham washi tape. I like the brightness! If you would like to print your own, click the image below (or right-click, save as…). Let me see where you put it!

——————————————————————————————————————————————————

I used the same Photoshop “cross-stitching” technique for our Christmas card. I already had the word “Christmas” so adding the “merry” was simple and quick. I also used kraft card stock for that. I think it looked awesome! If you would like to print it out, click the link below. If you would like to use it on a card like I did, you’ll have to download it and use a photo editing program to arrange it properly for your printer.