Some of you already know that one of the things I do besides dyeing yarn is design knitting patterns and in particular children's knitting patterns. It's not something I have done a lot of due to time constraints however if I can't quite find what I am looking for I will endeavour to design it myself. I also have another Etsy shop with a friend from Norway called Sprogs and Sprouts (more about that another day) where we sell hand knit children's clothing.
I have just finished knitting a really simple children's scarf that I was not going to write up a pattern for as it was so easy, but then I thought why not! Some knitters who are just learning may not know how to make a tapered end or get a neat edge and they may appreciate my efforts. It will be a free pattern because of its simplicity.
Not all my patterns are free and let me assure you that I am a very firm believer in buying and supporting the pattern designers amongst us and not going on a huge search to find a free pattern each time. There is nothing wrong with free patterns but if you are totally opposed to paying for one ever, that's different.
I think the time and effort it takes to design, write, test knit and release a pattern, particularly a complex one, deserves to be paid. I know many people get quite annoyed at having to pay for patterns but when it comes down to it they are only a few dollars, you get to keep it forever and you get to knit it as many times as you wish. Above all you are supporting a fellow crafter and promoting value in our hand skills.
One thing I really hate seeing is when other makers devalue our craft by complaining about paying for a pattern or comparing indie-dyed yarn to the price of store bought yarns. Designed patterns and hand-dyed yarns are both an art form, they are not mass produced in a factory somewhere by underpaid factory workers. Many hours of creative blood sweat and sometimes tears go into creating these beautiful items for you to get enjoyment out of in your chosen hobby. Okay rant over!
Back to the scarf pattern, I know Vanessa (my daughter that I introduced in the last blogpost that you can read more about here) is a fairly new knitter and has recently picked it back up. When I showed her the scarf she loved it and now wants to knit one for each of her two boys for this coming Winter. This easy pattern and once written up, will be great for her on her journey into the knitting world.
After I finished this little scarf I thought I should design a really basic simple slouch hat to add to scarf pattern as a set and while doing this I went looking for hat sizes for babies and children. That lead me to make this really simple easy to read infographic of hat sizes for knitters. Of course the same sizing would apply and could be used by crocheters too. That is how my days roll....I start doing one thing and end up doing something completely different and so now I find myself at the end of the day with a pretty infographic but I haven't cast on the hat I was looking to do hours ago. Anyone else get side-tracked like that? And now here I am writing to you about it lol!
I hope you find it a useful tool. I have shared it to my Pinterest board (Knitting Tips Board) so it is easy to save and then find again and refer to over and over. I know I will be.
This is the first of many infographics and tutorials I will be making up as I love to fiddle with IT creation as well. I will put them up here on the blog as I make them.
The scarf and hat pattern set will be available here as a free pattern download on my website under the Patterns tab once it is written up and test knit so hopefully that will be in a few weeks. I hope that you enjoy it whether you are a brand new knitter or have been knitting for many years and just need a mindless TV knitting project. Oh and it's very trendy at the moment being all garter stitch and pompoms :D
Happy knitting!
Cheryl
