Tuesday, December 18, 2007

Free Pattern: Case In Point

I love to knit with double points, which means that I have a number of sets in a range of sizes. With such a large collection, it soon became apparent that I needed a practical way of storing and organizing all of them. Being a thrifty knitter, I set out to knit my own double point case and this pattern is the result of that effort.

Case In Point is a knitted version of a rolled double point case, with seven pockets in varying sizes. It can comfortably store 10 sets of dpns; I usually have a few sets of socks needles and other dpns up to size 11 in mine. While this version is knitted out of Schoeller + Stahl Ole, any sport weight yarn in a sturdy wool or cotton will suffice.


Gauge: 24 stitches = 4”, 36 rows = 4” in stockinette
Yarn: Schoeller + Stahl Ole (sport weight cotton-wool blend, 50 g/ball)
2 balls pink (MC), 1 ball off-white (CC)
Needles: US #5, straights and double points

ABBREVIATIONS
LK2tog: Lift corresponding stitch from “case body”, place on left needle. Knit together with 1 “pocket” stitch.
LEK2tog: Lift stitch from “case body” inner panel edge (next to seed stitch border), place on left needle. Knit together with 1 “pocket” stitch.

CASE BODY
In main color, CO 73 st. Work 5 rows in seed stitch. (You can run a lifeline through the stitches at this point, which will aid in picking up the pocket stitches later).
Main pattern:
Row 1: K1, P1, K1, P1, K across to last 4 stitches, K1, P1, K1, P1
Row 2 and all even rows: P1, K1, P1, K1, P across to last 4 stitches, P1, K1, P1, K1
Row 3: K1, P1, K1, P1, K1, [K3, P1] to last 8 stitches, K5, P1, K1, P1
Row 5: Repeat row 1
Row 7: K1, P1, K1, P1, K2, [P1, K3] to last 7 stitches, P1, K3, P1, K1, P1
Work these 8 rows for a total of 8 repeats of the overall pattern.
Work 5 rows in seed stitch. Bind off, weave in ends.

POCKETS
Pick up 65 st on WS on bottom edge of case body, just above seed stitch border and between side seed stitch borders. Each pocket stitch will correspond to one case body stitch (excluding seed stitch border). With contrast color, work pockets:
Row 1: LEK2tog, K12, LK2tog, K11, LK2tog, K9, LK2tog, K9, LK2tog, K7, LK2tog, K5, LK2tog, K4, LEK2tog
Row 2: Purl
Repeat these 2 rows 21 times.
Row 43: LEK2tog, [K1, P1] 6 times, LK2tog, P1, [K1, P1] 5 times, LK2tog, P1, [K1, P1] 4 times, LK2tog, P1, [K1, P1] 4 times, LK2tog, P1, [K1, P1] 3 times, LK2tog, P1, [K1, P1] 2 times, LK2tog, [P1, K1] 2 times, LEK2tog
Row 44: P1, [K1, P1] to end
Repeat these 2 rows once.
Bind off, weave in ends.

TIE
With contrast color, work 30 inches of 3 stitch I-cord. Sew middle of I-cord to large pocket end of case body, halfway up the seed stitch border.


Questions or errata? Contact me at brineydeepdesigns_at_gmail_dot_com!

Friday, December 14, 2007

Blog.v3

I have been thinking a lot lately about this blog and what content I want to present here. The internet is full of wonderful knitting blogs and I feel that my contributions to this community have been mediocre thus far. 'She Knits It' simply lacks focus as a knitting blog and, despite being an updated version of my first knitting blog, it never really fit.

These concerns were prompted by my desire to share some of my patterns with other knitters. They are not new ideas, but have gained momentum in the recent week as I am starting to jot down notes for my first pattern. I was in the midst of this writing when a Ravelry user asked if I was going to write up something for a previous, unrelated project. I was completely flattered that someone expressed interest in the things that I make and decided right then to take steps toward building a better blog and putting out my own patterns. So thank you ForestStryfe for being my spark.

And now, may I present Briney Deep Designs.

Monday, December 03, 2007

Goodbye November: Project Update

So the DH's first sweater is finished and I HATE it! The chest is not wide enough, which consequently makes the body to short when it stretches to fit. I also do not like the saddle shoulder look on him. Needless to say, I haven't touched it since finishing the neckline over Thanksgiving. When I have the heart, I will rip out the yoke, adjust the body, and make a raglan out of it. Then we will both be happy to show it in public.


So while ignoring the sweater, I have been working on a few smaller projects. I finished the Jaywalkers over the weekend and I think that they turned out nicely, thank you very much. I finally got them onto some KP Options and had no more drama with my DPNs. Whew! Also, I have to note that I don't understand the obsession over Socks That Rock. My Jaywalkers were done in the Fred Flintstone colorway, and while the yarn was quite nice to work with, it didn't live up to the hype. Still, a nice FO.


Another project that I have been working on is the Twist scarf from "Knitting New Scarves" by Lynne Barr. This book is amazing, with some intriguing architecture made into scarves; I want to knit half of the projects just to see how the 3D effect is acheived. For the first try, I settled on Twist, which turned out to be an ingeniously constructed pattern. It was also the perfect project to use up the last half of my handspun (original seen in the Two-Tone Shrug). I love how everything is progressing!


I am also working on a pair of Thudjas at the moment because I seem to have a strong case of Startitis. I blame Ravelry. Hopefully this will become a full-blown case of Finishitis before Christmas rolls around. One can only hope...