Shepherd Baby Set Video

 

My Shepherd Baby Set Pattern is for sale in all the usual places. 

 

https://www.ravelry.com/designers/ginny-sturdy

https://www.etsy.com/shop/GinxCraft

 

I thought you might like this photo montage. If you want to buy it as a Project Kit it is for sale by mail order at Blacker Yarns. The kit includes the pattern and 2 x 50g balls of lovely soft Blacker Swan yarn. Also your kit will be packed and posted by me.

https://www.blackeryarns.co.uk/shepherd-baby-set-project.../

Shepherd Baby Set

I'm not sure if anyone has noticed that so far I have not been very productive with pattern writing this year. I have been busy working away, and am finally ready with this new three patterns in one Shepherd Baby Set. For me this has been a bit of an epic, as I have not written a coordinated set before.

The set is knitted in 4ply wool, and the pattern contains instructions for all three items Hat, Shoes and Mittens and for three sizes: 0-3 months, 3-6 months and 6-12 months. All the examples in these photos are knitted from the lovely Blacker Swan 4-ply which is sold at my place of work Blacker Yarns. I would recommend this wool, which is very soft and lovely to knit with. If you wanted to gift the pattern and wool to someone, it is available as a kit, or you could gift it to yourself. 

The pattern is also available in my Etsy and ravelry shops, and could be made with other 4-ply wools. The shepherd’s baby hat is knitted in the round, and designed to be deep, and with earflaps to keep the baby really cosy. The pattern also contains instructions on a very easy method to make a little pompom.

The shoes and mittens are knitted on two needles, and by the ingenious method of shaping made by turning midrow, you will be amazed that the shoes are knitted in one piece, with just one short seam to sew up.

The mittens can be stitched to a length of icord, and then threaded through your baby’s jacket or cardigan, so they are always handy!

I am very grateful to my lovely little model, my great nephew, who was happy to be dressed in wool despite the nice weather. This pattern could also be for girl babies, or little shepherdesses.

I have made another of my little videos, from a montage of photos, and I will share here after it has been published on the Blacker Yarns social media.

Baby Sail Boat Hat

Another view of my new pattern - Baby Sail Boat Hat. Same cute little great nephew who was in my other photos, who came to visit and has grown a little.

Pattern is for sale on ravelry, Loveknitting and Etsy.

 

Baby Sail Boat Hat

 

I have been busy working on the three sizes for my new sail boat baby hat. I made this pattern up for a hat for my great nephew, which you can read about on a previous post. The pattern comes with instructions for three sizes: Newborn, 3-6 Months, and 6-12 Months.

 

You can see all three hats together below, after they were knitted. I then spent a little while considering whether to add pompoms or not. I really love my instant pompom maker. On the second size hat I knitted a cover for a button, which I also really like, and for the largest hat a plait with a tassel (but not so long that the baby could reach or get tangled with it). 

 

I had my usual problem with the lack of a baby model. Secret - some of the photos above involve a grapefruit and a kitchen bowl. So here again is my lovely great nephew modelling the original version of the hat. And now to work out sizes for the babysuit, so you may not hear from me for a little while!

The pattern will be published shortly in all the usual places, ravelry LoveKnitting and Etsy, and my sample hats will be for sale in my Etsy shop.

Babysuit and Hat

I've been knitting baby clothes, as my niece has had a new baby, and my nephew and his wife are also expecting. I thought I would have a go at knitting an all-in-one babysuit. I've not done this before, and am thinking I might have a go at a pattern. It was really quite a quick knit, and with wool left over I decided I would make a hat to go with it.

But what to do if you don't have a baby model? My first two models were considered a little creepy by my family, especially the doll. And although my cat was very patient, she does look a bit fed up. I did think a grapefruit might be good or even one of the pumpkins in my veg plot might work, but in the fourth picture I just padded out the hat with some tissue paper.

I've worked out this hat in three sizes, so there will be a bit more knitting before I publish the pattern. 

But this morning I got a photo of the perfect model!

 

Windy Day Cardigan - Baby Marble

I have been busy making just one more Windy Day Baby Cardigan from my new pattern. I am so pleased with how this one has turned out. It is in the largest size, 6-9 months. The wool is James C. Brett Baby Marble DK. It was fun to knit and see the colours change, and I think because the pattern is all garter stitch and fairly plain, it suits a pretty wool like this. I am very much looking forward to giving this cardigan to its new owner soon.

And just to mention the buttons, which are the reason it has taken me so long to get this cardigan to the finish. They are some more of my homemade applewood buttons. I am going to try and do some real close up photos in a separate post, but these buttons will be in a new section of my Etsy shop soon.

 

Just a reminder that there is still loads of time join in my Ginx Woolly Linx party for March. I would love to see what you have been working on.

 

 

 
 

Windy Day Baby Cardigan

 

I've been hinting for a little while that I've been working on a garment, and I am at last ready to publish my new baby cardigan pattern. For quite a while I had the idea to knit a cardigan in just one piece, really with the idea of minimising the sewing up, which a lot of people seem to really hate.

 

It has taken quite a while to get this pattern done, but it finally written up in 3 sizes (0-3 months, 3-6 months, and 6-9 months). I really wanted to write my pattern this time with the instructions for each size in brackets, but some how I couldn't manage this, so each size is written out separately, so you get a lot of pages in your pattern. The other complication is that the wrap over is different for boy/girl. Instead of writing these out separately, which would have made the pattern even longer, there are instructions for shaping, and at the end of each size instructions on which rows to make your buttonholes for either a boy or girl.

For some of my test knits I was in London, with my button supplies, but for the one above I had the added problem of no buttons available. When you can only go out for essential shopping, it does make you wonder about the definition of essential. So with a bit of help from my husband the buttons you can see above were handmade from some applewood. I am in the process of making some more of these for my shop, and will write about this more in another post.

Knitted in Rico Baby Classic dk Light Grey

 

You could knit this cardigan with any double knit wool, but I would recommend using Rico Baby Classic dk, or James C. Brett Baby Marble. I have almost finished another cardigan in the second wool, and will post a few pictures in a day or so. 

On some of my samples I have added a bit of embroidery on the neckline. This isn't included in the pattern, but there are tips on my blog on how to use some simple embroidery stitches on your knitting.

So the pattern for the Windy Day Baby Cardigan will be available on ravelry, Etsy and LoveKnitting later today. Fortunately a have had quite a few baby births among my friends and family, so all these cardigans have found homes. 

 

Just a reminder that there is still plenty of time join in my Ginx Woolly Linx party for February. I would love to see what you have been working on.

 
 

 

More Moss Stitch Booties (and My Photograph Spot)

It is hard sometimes to find a good spot inside for photographs. It is probably why I often take my photographs of knitting outside. The light has to be just right. Plenty of light, but not direct sunlight, which is usually too harsh. In my old house there was not a lot of choice, as there were no window ledges, and my favourite place was at the top of the house, under the velux window. Even that was difficult at times, and I might arrange a raised surface to get more light, or use material as a backdrop.

My new home is a cottage, so has its own problems. The windows are fairly small, but I have found my self a photography spot. One of these fairly small windows on the stairs has a deep window shelf area, all painted white, which is perfect. On a nice day (although we have not had many of those recently) there is light, but not too direct. I really like the plain white background. Positioning the camera is a bit difficult, as I am standing on the stairs, but I think I have found my spot.

 

 

As you can see I am still knitting moss stitch baby booties. I must thank my pattern testers, Jennifer and Jo, who have both knitted booties from the pattern, and helped me come up with some corrections. All they get is a copy of the pattern, but I am incredibly grateful for their help. It is very reassuring to know that someone apart from me has followed the pattern successfully.

 

Just a reminder that although we are approaching the end of the month there is still time left to join in my Ginx Woolly Linx party for August. Click on the photo above or at the top of the page to find the party. I would love to see what you have been working on this month.

 

Moss Stitch Baby Boots

We have had some dry weather, so I had to hunt around for a mossy place for my photo.

I have hinted at this new pattern for a while, but find it hard to believe how long it has taken me to write this one. I love the look of moss stitch, but found that working it into a pair of baby boots was harder than I imagined. These boots are like some of my other baby shoes patterns, Baby Bee Shoes and Baby Daisy Shoes, in that they are knitted in one piece, and the shape for the foot is created by turning mid-row. To do this, and work in increases and decreases, and keep the moss stitch, was not easy.

But don't let this put you off making a pair, as I have done the work, and they are an easy and fairly quick knit. There is just quite a lot of counting in your head. I do like how with PDF patterns you can print it off and then mark the rows you have knitted on the pattern to keep your place.

You can knit them in any doubleknit wool, and like my other shoe knits they are on quite a small needle (2.5mm), as I think this tighter knit helps give the shoe a better structure. I have gone for a mossy coloured wool, but may use some brighter colours for my next pair of boots. And unlike my other shoes, I have given these ones a little cuff to help keep them on the babies feet.

I also forgot to mention that the pattern include two sizes - 0-3 months and 3-6 months. These are written out separately, as I always find patterns with brackets for sizes a bit confusing. The pattern will be available on ravelry, Etsy and LoveKnitting.

Just a reminder that there is still loads of time left to join in my Ginx Woolly Linx party for August. Click on the photo above or at the top of the page to find the party. I would love to see what you have been working on this month.

Frog Baby Shoes

I have a new pattern for sale in my shops. I have made these frog baby shoes for Jennifer, who has just recently had a baby. Although we have never met in person, I have got to know her through knitting and the internet. Quite a while ago she made a Red-eyed Tree Frog, from my Frog Toy pattern. I was so impressed, and since she really seems to get my patterns, she has been testing them and proof checking. 

However thorough I think I have been she fairly often finds something. For me it is very reassuring to know that someone has tested the pattern, as before this I would often end of doing multiple test knits myself .... just one more to make sure. I used to do some proof reading myself in a previous job, but I do think that sometimes the eyes see what they expect, and not what is actually there.

So these shoes were posted to Jennifer for her new baby, and here are some adorable photos of him wearing them.

So having made the Frog Baby Shoes in one colour, my husband (who likes to give me helpful suggestions) thought that they might look nice with the frog knitted in a contrast colour. So the pattern contains instructions to make them this way as well. 

Although they are quite a quick knit because of the size, I would suggest that anyone making them has a go at the one-coloured version first. On the two colour version you also have to be careful to carry your main shade across the back. Not difficult if you are used to intarsia knitting, but it gets a bit complicated when you are also thinking about the cables. 

The beads for the eyes are not sewn on, but threaded on to the wool at the very beginning. I thought this would make them more securely attached to the shoe, so there was not risk of baby pulling them off.

So just to make sure I have done a second speckled frog version using some sock wool. Fortunately quite a few of my friends seem to be becoming grandparents, so I don't seem to have a shortage of babies to give these to. 

If you want to make some Frog Baby Shoes for a baby in your life, the pattern is available in my shops on ravelry, Etsy and LoveKnitting. It uses any brand of doubleknit wool, and ..... At the moment of pattern is only available in 0-3 months. 

Just a reminder that there is still time join in my Ginx Woolly Linx party for July. Click on the photo above or at the top of the page to find the party. I would love to see what you have been working on this month.

Baby Button Shoes

I've been busy working on a new pattern. Baby shoes, this time with a strap. I was going to call them Mary Jane's, but in the end decided Baby Button Shoes was a cuter name. The pattern is available on ravelry, Etsy and LoveKnitting.

In fact the button is simply there as a decoration, and the shoes are designed just slip on and off. I decided that mums of new babies have enough to do, without fiddling with tiny buttons and buttonholes. But if you wanted the button to be functional, it would be quite easy to make a buttonhole in the strap. But in my samples for the pattern the buttons are just sewn in place through the strap and shoe.

They are very easy and quick to make. I think most knitters could make a pair in an evening. The pattern comes in two sizes: 0-3 months and 3-6 months. I think they look cute plain, but have also jazzed some mine up with a bit of embroidery. 

Made with doubleknit wool, they only take 14g or 20g of wool depending which size you make. So they would also be a great way to use up any wool you have left over from other projects. 

On these green shoes I have embroidered a few daisies on the straps. 

... and on these I have used french knots to make some forget-me-not flowers. It is really quite simple to embroider with wool on wool. There are some tutorials of some of the basic stitches in my sidebar on the right.

The red shoes have gone to baby Scarlet, but the green daisy ones, and the forget-me-not shoes are for sale in my Etsy shop.

Just a reminder that there is still time join in my Ginx Woolly Linx party for May. Click on the photo above or at the top of the page to find the party. I would love to see what you have been working on this month.