This pattern shows you how to knit a bow, which can be made into a necklace, headband, pin for your lapel or anything!  This is the mini version, which measures 4.5” x 2.25” (11.43cm x 5.72cm).  I also have a pattern for the bigger knit bow.  Below you’ll find the instructions to knit your own…or if you’re not feeling inspired, you can buy a mini bow necklace from the shop.  

Also, each Monday I’m going to post a new pattern, tutorial, or DIY project here on the blog.  Until I run out of ideas…or get lazy.  

For the Pattern…

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This week was huge pretty big.  I’m now on Tumblr (yay).  Things did not collapse, as I feared they would.  And I bought new yarn and started a new project (no one is perfect).  

In other news, here are some of my favorite things happening on the internet and my train ride.  Herschel Supply is coming out with these here bags with birds on them!  I think one of these will go nicely with my horsey weekend bag.  

Next, Celia Birtwell is the next designer to put together a collection for Uniqlo, for Spring 2013.  I’d never really heard of Celia Birtwell before, but I love everything about the prints.  

And finally, on the train ride to work this morning, I was thinking of which knit stitch I wanted to use for my new scarf (see above re new yarn purchases), when this girl on the train was wearing the perfect striped scarf, in the stitch pattern of my dreams (some type of a rib stitch).  THEN, I get to work and see this set of sweaters on the internet, in the same stitch (see the stripey one in the photo).  DOES ANYONE KNOW WHAT STITCH THAT IS?

Happy Friday and have a great weekend!

I’m going to pretend like I haven’t been working on this little number for over a year now.  I think the important thing is that I am finishing one of these blankets, instead of starting a new one. I mean, look at all of this progress I’ve made!  

The one thing starting to concern me are those two (soon to be four) black wool stripes on an otherwise cotton/linen blanket.  Like a dummy, I worked some similar wool into a cotton dishcloth, which felted into a fuzzy mess when I threw it into the wash. Now, I’m going to have to handwash this massive thing for those stupid stripes.  Why don’t I have this kind of forethought before making silly choices?

When I see things like this, it makes me want to rip my sleeves off and knit some new ones. Like I said yesterday, I love mixing media. I feel like tiny details like, ‘oh yeah I sewed this dress, and knit the sleeves’ make it EVEN BETTER than just handmaking something. Details are everything.

arabella ramsey fall 2012

In addition to adding some fun elements to an existing garment, I also came across this cap sleeve lattice top knitting pattern. Again, from purl soho. I swear I don’t work for them, I just love all of their stuff! I feel like it’s rare to find fashionable knitting patterns, and this one is done so well!



I could seriously live in this thing in the summer. The pattern looks pretty great, but I think that I would modify it to be knit in the round, to eliminate the seaming. I could also see a version of this in 2 colorblocked colors as well, or half in neon. So many options!

i’ve recently re-discovered my pinterest account. and realized there is so. much. good. stuff. on there. here are some of my very colorful knit favorites. most of these are courtesy of the very wonderful knitter and pinterest extraordinaire, meredith.



1. fair isle slippers by toast
2. knit hangers by leroyandperry via daily candy
3. cabled socks
4. ripple blanket
5. knit underwear (!)
6. colorful blanket
7. color blocked mittens
8. chevron baby blanket by purl bee

p.s. don’t you love these collages? since picnik is closing down (tear), all premium services are free. meaning, you’re going to be seeing a whole lot of fancy collages until the ants carry away the picnik.

i discovered a few trompe l’oeil patterns and love them! trompe l’oeil is the 3D illusion created on a 2D surface. i think my favorite are these knit armenian bow sweaters (below)! they are adorable. although the hermes painted on cuffs and pockets (above) would be a much quicker and easier DIY to make a boring dress a bit more interesting.



photos via eattarantula, petit tricotage, milly and katespade

this is the finished rag bath mat for my new black and white bathroom, which is made from one half of a duvet cover, and 2 contrasting pillow cases. i created the ‘yarn’ from the duvet/cases using the rag bath mat tutorial then knit up the mat using the pattern below. you could just as easily use sheets or old tshirts for this project as well. in the end, the mat is super plush, and a great way to recycle your old linens. and, you get a fresh new look for your bathroom floor!




to make this, I only needed 1 side of a king size duvet cover and 2 pillow cases (and still had leftovers). when making them into ‘yarn’ i kept the pillowcases separate to easily make the fair-isle stripes, and 1 continuous ball for the main color.



to knit, i started with my main color, used 1 pillowcase for the first stripe, carried over my main color for the middle stitches, joined in my second pillowcase for the 2nd stripe, then again carried over my main color for the last set of white. since there is a fair amount of carrying over, i made sure to keep my yarn loose, and always carry over on the wrong side. the knitting on this is pretty simple — just stockinette stitch with garter stitch borders (on all edges).

Striped Rag Bath Mat Pattern

Bottom Edge

Middle

Top Edge

i have a sickness. a starting-blankets-that-I-never-finish sickness. i seriously don’t know what’s wrong with me. BUT, I did rip out (or I plan to rip out) a feeble-attempted-start of a crochet blanket, in order to start this new one, so they pretty much cancel each other out. this all started when in my new bedroom linen planning, i saw an old hudson bay blanket on ebay. it was perfect. and, i waited patiently for 7 days watching people slowly bid on it, with 1 problematic person who kept outbidding everyone as soon as someone new would come along. in the final 20 minutes, i got scared of this person’s desperation and thought that they could possibly win it, so I needed a backup plan blanket. so, i went on ravelry, and started hunting down similar looking blanket patterns that i could knit to ease the anxiety. i started this blanket here.



so, i sat there knitting this thing (more like casting on) while the ebay countdown happened, telling myself who needs that one when you’ll have this nice handknit one. you don’t have to win. of course, i won the blanket, and now i can’t stop knitting this one…so i’m going to have a knit replica of a hudson blanket. how does this happen??



i came across a baby blanket from purl soho that they made replicating the multicolored hudson bay blanket, and thought i’d try a regular sized one, in just black and tan. the only downside….it’s garter stitch. making a full sized blanket in garter stitch is mind-numbing. however, i never knew i could knit so fast. and it’s really easy to do while i do other things (watch tv, ride trains) so i’m not really complaining too much. i was a little scared thinking it would look sort of beginner-ish (associate garter stitch with new knitters) but I kinda like it’s basic-ness. the stripes help too.

i plan to finish this one. i promise.