Free Knitting Pattern:Flower Fairy Baby

This little jacket design has been inspired by a pattern in this book

The publishers have kindly given me permission to adapt the pattern with the proviso that I share the source.

The colours of this version of mine have been inspired by the Sweet Pea Cal colours designed by Lucy of Attic24.

I shared the Pixie Point Hat Pattern with you here.

Size: Newborn – 3 months old

There is a pattern for the Jacket for aged 1-2 years old in my Ravelry and Etsy Shops.

So here goes – the pattern for the

Sweet Pea Flower Fairy Jacket

(So far untested, so please let me know how you get on)

The pattern is entirely knitted. The pixie points and cuffs are knitted.

Materials:

Size 13 (2¼mm) (only needed if you are making knitted buttons)

10 (3¼mm), 9 (3¾ mm) and long Size 8 (4mm) Needles or a circular needle, 2 small stitch holders (or safety pins)

Gauge: 22st and 29 rows for a 10cm, 4 inch square using Size 8 or 4mm needles in stst.

Approx 150 gm Stylecraft Special DK yarn

This pattern can be made in all one colour.

The colours I used:

Cypress, Meadow, Pistachio, Clematis, Wisteria, Bluebell (Lucy uses Lavender) , Violet, Fuchsia Purple, Pomegranate, Blush, Candy Floss, Soft Peach, Cream.

Abbreviations:

St         stitch                           dec      decrease

WS      wrong side                  inc       increase                                  K          knit

RS       right side                     yon      yarn over needle                P          purl

Yfwd   yarn forward              K2tog   knit 2 together                  tbl          through back of loop

Stst      stocking stitch             SlP       slip one st purlwise                 rpt        repeat

Mk1      make one st by picking up loop between sts and k into back of st

 

The Hem is made up of 9 V-points

V Pattern.

With Size 9 needles in Cypress:

Cast on 1 st.

Row 1(WS) inc one st by knitting into this st twice. (2sts)

Row 2 K

Row 3 yon, K2 (3sts)

Row 4 yon, K1, yfwd, K2 (5st)

Row 5 yon, K2tog, P1, K2

Row 6 yon, K2tog, K to end

Row 7 yon, K2tog, P1, K2

Row 8 yon, K2tog, yfwd, K1, yfwd, K2 (7sts)

Row 9 yon, K2tog, K1, P1, K3

Row 10 yon, K2tog, K to end

Row 11 yon, K2tog, K1, P1, K3

Row 12 yon, K2tog, yfwd, K1, yfwd, K2tog, yfwd, K2 (9sts)

Row 13 yon, K2tog, K2, P1, K4

Row 14 yon, K2tog, K to end

Row 15 yon, K2tog, K2, P1, K4

Row 16 yon, K2tog, yfwd, K1, yfwd, K2tog, yfwd, K2tog tbl, yfwd, K2 (11sts)

Row 17 yon, K2tog, K2, P3, K4

Row 18 yon, K2tog, K to end

Row 19 yon, K2tog, K2, P3, K4

(stop here for the 2 smallest points)

Row 20 yon, K2tog, yfwd, K1, yfwd, K2tog, K2, yfwd, K2tog tbl, yfwd, K2 (13sts)

Row 21 yon, K2tog, K2, P5, K4

Row 22 yon, K2tog, K to end

Row 23 yon, K2tog, K2, P5, K4

(stop here for 2 of the points, 2^ndsize)

Row 24 yon, K2tog, yfwd, K2, yfwd, K2tog, K2, yfwd, K2tog tbl, K1, yfwd, K2 (15sts)

Row 25 yon, K2tog, K2, P2, K3, P2, K4

Row 26 yon, K2tog, K to end

Row 27 yon, K2tog, K2, P2, K3, P2, K4

(stop here for 2 of the points, 3^rdsize)

Row 28 yon, K2tog, yfwd, K2, yfwd, K2tog, K4, yfwd, K2tog tbl, K1, yfwd, K2 (17sts)

Row 29 yon, K2tog, K2, P9, K4

Row 30 yon, K2tog, K to end

Row 31 yon, K2tog, K2, P9, K4

(stop here for 2 points, 4^thsize)

Row 32 yon, K2tog, yfwd, K2, yfwd, K2tog, K6, yfwd, K2tog tbl, K1, yfwd, K2 (19sts)

Row 33 yon, K2tog, K2, P2, K7, P2, K4

Row 34 yon, K2tog, K to end

Row 35 yon, K2tog, K2, P2, K7, P2, K4

(make just one, largest size, for the centre back)

 

Arrange the V patterns, RS facing on to Size 8 (4mm) needle in the following order:

11st, 13st, 15st, 17st, 19st, 17st, 15st, 13st, 11st. = 131sts

Do not break the yarn of the last 11st V Point.

Make sure all the points are lined up in order with RSs facing.

(The first st of each row from now on is slipped purlwise to create a neat selvedge)

 

Keeping the tension firm, join the V-patterns:

Row 1: SlP, K to end.

Row 2: SlP, K3, P5 , K4, P9, K4, P11, K4, P13, K4, P15, K4, P13, K4, P11,K4, P9, K4, P5, K4 (131sts)

Row 3: SlP, K to end.

Row 4:SlP, K3, P6, K2, P11, K2, P13, K2, P15, K2, P17, K2, P15, K2, P13, K2, P11, K2, P6, K4.

131sts

Keeping the selvedge and garter st border on both sides, work 22 rows stst.

7 rows of Meadow, 5 rows of Pistachio, 4 rows of Clematis, 3 rows of Wisteria, 3 rows of Bluebell

(Start decreasing towards waistline:)

Next Row: RS in Violet.

SlP, K14, K2tog, K1, K2tog tbl, K9, K2tog, K1, K2tog tbl, K11, K2tog, K1, K2tog tbl, K13, K2tog, K1, K2tog tbl, K13, K2tog, K1, K2tog tbl, K11, K2tog, K1, K2tog tbl, K9, K2tog, K1, K2tog tbl, K to end.

(117sts)

Working the edges as before work 2 rows stst in Violet.

Change to Fuchsia Purple and work 3 rows stst

(5 rows st st. in all)

Change to Pomegranate

Next Row: RS

SlP, K13, K2tog, K1, K2tog tbl, K7, K2tog, K1, K2tog tbl, K9, K2tog, K1, K2tog tbl, K11, K2tog, K1, K2tog tbl, K11, K2tog, K1, K2tog tbl , K9, K2tog, K1, K2tog tbl, K7, K2tog, K1, K2tog tbl, K to end.

(103sts)

Working edges as before, work 2 rows stst in Pomegranate,

4rows stst in Blush, one row in Candy Floss

(7 rows stst in all)

Change to size 10 needles.

[To Make the buttonholes:

on the right hand side of the Jacket with RS facing: SlP, K1, yfwd, K2tog, K to end.

Work 7 rows.

In the next Row, make another buttonhole.

Work 7 rows.

In the next Row, make another buttonhole.

3 buttonholes in total.

[I hope this means one buttonhole in the Candyfloss stripe, one in the Soft Peach stripe and one in the Cream, I have not made one with buttonholes yet, I will make button loops for mine]

Work 4 more rows stst in Candy Floss, and 4 rows in Soft Peach

(8 rows stst worked on Size10 needles in all)

Change to size 8 needles

Work 3 rows more st st. in Soft Peach. (7 rows in all in Soft Peach)

Change to Cream and work in Cream from now on.

Work one row.

Bodice:

Next Row: RS

SlP, K23, cast off 4 sts, K46, (there will be 47 sts on the needle in this section)

Cast off 4 sts, K to end.

Left Bodice: SlP, K3, P to end.

Wind off 14gm of wool from another ball and join wool to the set of 47sts and cont in st.st.

Join yarn to Right Front and P to last 4 sts, K to end.

Work across all three sections in st st for 5 rows, keeping selvedges and garter st borders.

Shaping the fronts:

Row A:

Right Front (RF): SlP, K3, K2togtbl, K to end.

Back (B): K

Left Front (LF): K to the last 6 sts, K2tog, K4.

 

Row B:

LF: SlP, K3, P to end.                           B: P                              RF: P to last 4 sts, K.

Row C:

RF: SlP, K to end                                 B: K                             LF: K

Row D:

LF: SlP, K3, P to end.                         B: P                              RF: P to last 4 sts, K.

 

Repeat the last 4 rows once

RF: 22sts                B: 47sts              LF:22sts

 

Keeping garter st and selvedges repeat Rows A and B until RF and LF have 17 sts.

Next Row: Right Side facing,

RF: SlP, K3, K2togtbl, K to end

B:   K16, K2togtbl, K1, K2tog, K5, K2togtbl, K1, K2tog, K to end.

LF: K to the last 6sts, K2tog, K4.

Next Row: as Row B

Next Row: as Row A.

(Armholes measures about 10cm)

Next Row:

LF: Slp, K3, P to end.

Fold LF back so that the RS is next to the RS of the back and with a 3 needle cast off, cast off 6 sts. Put remaining 8sts of LF on to a stitch holder (or safety pin).

B: P

RF: Fold RF so that the RS faces the RS of the Back and with a 3 needle cast off, cast off 6 sts. Put remaining 8 sts of RF on a stitch holder.

 

K across the Back, and then working across the 8 sts from the LF stitch holder, K2, K2tog, K2.

Next Row: SlP, K3, P to end of the Back, and work across the 8 sts from the stitch holder: P4, K4.

46 sts

Collar

Change to number 10 needles and SlP and K to the end of the row.

Starting with a P row, work 8 rows of stst. (without the garter st edge)

Sleeves

Size 10 needles.

Cuff edging: Picot Point Chain:

If doing the Sweet Pea Colourway, Start with Candy Floss

Cast on 6sts using cable method.

* Cast off 4 sts, slip the st. on RH needle onto LH needle, cast on 5 sts* rpt from * to * until you have 28sts on needle.

Next row: K

Sweet Pea: change to Clematis and work one row P, one row K

Change to Cypress

Work 1 row P

Moss st for 8 rows.

Change to size 9 needles and continue in st st.

Sweet Pea: Work next 4 rows in Meadow, 2 rows Pistachio, 3 rows Wisteria,

Next row: K

Next Row: P

MK1 st each end of the next and following alt K rows.

After 10 rows using No 9 needles, change to size 8 and cont in st st and continue increasing at beg and end of every alternate knit row.

For a straight sleeve: Continue in this way in stst and increasing on alt K rows until there are 44 sts.

Increase each end of every K row until there are 48 sts.

Next Row: P

Next row: Cast off

Sleeve measures approx. 16cm (6¼”)

Buttons (optional)

Make 3 buttons.

With size 13 needles cast on 3 sts

Knit into front and back of each st. 6sts.

K 2 rows.

Next row K into front and back of first st., K3, K into front and back of next st., K1. 8sts.

Next row K

Next row: K2tog, K4, K2tog. 6sts

K 2 rows

Next row: (K2tog) 3 times.

Cast off.

Thread the end of the yarn around the edge of the work and pull thread tight to form a ‘ball’ and fasten off. Leave long thread for securing onto the jacket.

Making Up

I sew in the ends diagonally at the back, they are less obvious that way.

Sew the sleeve seams together, making sure the colour stripes match. I like to sew them with the same colour using mattress stitch from the Right Side.

Pin the sleeves into the armholes, Right sides together, with the sleeve seam slightly to the back, so that it does not show at the front. Pin and sew using a back stitch.

Sew on the buttons opposite the button holes.

 

Ta Dah!

The Cocheted flower on the Bluebell hat is a pattern Flora Flower designed by Lucy.

I do hope you have enjoyed this pattern.

Please let me know if you have any difficulties.

You can buy a patten for a toddler size here.

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Patterns and Pineapples

….. continuing the story of my Sunny Sunday with Noelle and Alison

After meandering through the gardens Noelle led the way into the buildings of the Bishop’s Palace …. we were wowed by the way the sunlight played with the stained glass windows in the chapel

There was even a Stained Glass jigsaw

and more spectacular patterns in the wallpaper on the staircase

and then joy of joys – Pineapples!

Anyone who has been reading my blog for a while knows I have a bit of a thing for pineapples, you can see more here, here and here

Although the wallpaper in the photo looks grey it was, in reality, a rich blue

Seeing my delight in the pineapple pattern, Noelle hatched a plan …. and on her way home she popped into the shops to buy ……

a pineapple

Noelle then showed us this marvellous way of carving a pineapple to get rid of all the spiky brown bits AND to make the pinepapple look spectacular – a fabulous ‘Crafty Trick’ 

just see how spendid it looks

Alison and I were in for a treat

A delicious lunch awaited us in the oh-so-cosy conservatory

Home-made soup and foccacia. I felt thoroughly spoilt – it was a day to please all the senses.

I can’t leave this post without showing a close up of Noelle’s knitted jumper – her knitting is superb and in such soft yarn and gentle colours

It makes me want to get back to knitting again.

The warmth of the day stays with me – thank you so much Noelle for your wonderful hospitality.

Before posting I checked with Noelle that she was happy with my photos and she told me of more delights she has in store for you on her blogs:

Here is Noelle’s Pineapple Chutney

and

Pineapple Carving

Enjoy!

Wings

………Continuing to share our lovely bright Winter’s walk around the Bishop’s Palace, Wells, Somerset, England.

There is a smaller wings sculpture in the South Garden.

here, viewed from the ramparts

from where one also gets this glorious view across the Somerset countryside

Peeping through the ramparts

you can see the moat below

There are some videos of the gardens and last year’s cignets here.

Like us, the swans were basking in the sun

(Noelle and Alison in the Whispering Gallery)

And so was a cheeky little robin

sitting on his favourite posing post

All of us glorying in that clear blue sky and the warmth the sun gave us

Noelle suggested this photo of me trying out the wings, it was such a fabulous day our spirits were certainly soaring

and I must show you Noelle’s marvellous hand-knitted hat and scarf/shawl, which looks like wings to me

more to come …..

Dark

The Kaffe Fassett exhibition, currently on at Mottisfont, Hampshire is beautifully staged.

Some of the rooms are light and bright and some are dimly lit with rich and cosy colours – so dark it was difficult to take photos of the wonderful quilting.

My entry in our One-a-week Photo Challenge.

Please leave a link to your entry in the comments.

Comfortable

Kaffe Fassett exhibition at Mottisfont.

His colours and cosy chunky sweaters say ‘Comfortable’ to me.

To join in with our Photo Challenge just leave a link to your Comfortable photos in the comments.

Also joining the Daily Post: Knit

and

Cee’s FunFoto Challenge: Letter ‘O’

Must have the letter ‘O’ anywhere in the word.

 

Yarn Along with Orpheus and Cruella

Joining in with Ginny’s Yarn Along

Ginny asks us to share what we are making and the book we are reading.

I don’t seem to read books anymore but I do listen to the radio as I knit, sew, or crochet and whilst knitting a new Cruella Deville Hat/Wig as an order for Halloween,(you can find a pattern here) I have just listened to the BBC Radio 4’s play: Orpheus and Eurydice, a modern take on the mythical story.

Such a moving expression of the way grief can feel and the kind of madness it can take us to.

As some of you know, there have been a few deaths in our family, each one brings reminders of the ones before, so many mixed emotions. After listening to the play this poem just seemed to write itself:

After Orpheus

*

When difficulty goes

One remembers the good

The void is filled

Without effort

*

The songs, the sounds

The sights, the scents

Waft in and out

In random shuffle

*

Loss is deep

Gain is there but distant

It takes a while to settle

Each of us alone in our experience

*

The ground shifts

Where has normal gone

Time, friendship and the love of living

Bring us back together

*

New Year, New Pattern

Ta Dah!!!

New year, New Pattern! I am proud to announce a new pattern for my Ravelry and Etsy stores!                                 Exciting!

This fun Chemo Cap or fancy dress wig joins 5 other designs and is

modelled here so beautifully for me, back in the summer, by my lovely niece. 

It takes me absolutely ages to get a pattern from idea to online shop.                                This one was requested by a customer in America. All my patterns were in Chunky weight yarn, but she wanted one in Double Knit.

It took a while to work out something suitable and then  knit it – those are the two easy, fun stages.

 

 

The hard part is writing a pattern for others to follow. After that painstaking, brain-aching procedure, I have to put the pattern aside for a few weeks or months and come back to it afresh to test knit it – it always amazes me how many mistakes there are! A punctuation mark in the wrong place and it can all go horribly wrong!

This one has been waiting in the wings for a while as I needed a few quiet days to test-knit and put the finishing touches to it – and this mid-winter break has given me that vital quiet time – hurray! I love my hibernation years. (I only ‘do’ Christmas in alternate years!) You can see what I did with these precious days 2 years ago here.

These knitted wigs are such fun to create and I get such lovely responses from knitters and crocheters, who are often making them to cheer up a loved one who is going through chemo. It is heartwarming to know that a pattern I created just to see if I could, and for a laugh, is larking around the world cheering people up and bringing in some lightness during a difficult time in their lives. We never know what we are really doing do we – we just have to keep doing what makes us feel happy, or what we feel compelled to do as artists, and see what happens – sometimes with happily serendipitous results!!

Happy New Year one and all!

Yarn

 

found on KeKe’s  Off the Hook blog

A Good Day

Some days go by and I feel I have done very little and then other days – like today, I feel full of energy having achieved much – it is no coincidence that the sun has been shining ALL day:

I woke early and cleared out some 150 or so emails from my Inbox – my how they increase when you are not on it! (up to just over 900, which is ridiculous!).

Checked in on Ravelry and Etsy and answered emails and messages.

Finished off a knitted Hat Wig (or Wig Hat – which sounds better? hmmm?) with a 3 needle cast off, my new favourite finishing technique,

I rarely get up before doing a bit of knitting or crochet, with my first cuppa of the day – green tea.

Charged phone, lap top, and camera ready to go to a meeting at work (this is some work I do with groups of children) and set off for the weekly market in my local town to buy snowdrops ‘in the green’, and some wonderful local produce.

I bought 20 little bunches of snowdrops from a local grower

and he kindly threw in a few extra and some advice to plant them at least 5″ deep to prevent them from being dug up by mice and squirrels for a tasty snack.

And then to work – I was a bit earlier than I needed to be so I sat in the car listening to ’12 Years a Slave’ on BBC Radio 4. and carrying on with some knitting – I was so engrossed in both that I was nearly late for my meeting – oops!

I’ve come up with this kinda wavy pattern for the Flick Wig – it’s probably a well known pattern, but it pleases me because it is a cable that does not need a cable needle,

and it gives the wig a bit of texture and creates a snugger fit, which is especially important for chemo caps/hats/wigs.

A very productive meeting at work, and then back home to plant snowdrops in the sunshine

I am planting them in front of my new espalier pear trees – Concorde, Conference, Clapps Favourite and Baronne de Mello which I got from Thornhayes Nursery in Devon. They were planted in early December.

And in front of the snowdrops will be a mass of forget-me-knots, from the seeds I was given last year and grew in my fabulous Veg Trugs

The heart is made of poppy seedlings, the ‘kisses’ are black cornflowers, and the sprinkling around the edge is the forget-me-knots.

I love how the shapes grew

I planted the snowdrops with a little of my own home made compost to give them a good start – you can see the amazing whizzo black rotary compost maker in the background

There is very little that gives me more pleasure than using my own compost! It ticks so many boxes for me – using up waste (the hoarder in me LOVES this!), environmentally fabulous, creative, and just so magical how kitchen waste can turn into rich earth so quickly to give my food and flower plants such a good start. Heavenly bliss!!! My children roll their eyes at my glee and delight!!!

And now the sun is going down so it’s back inside for a currant bun, vanilla chai and a cosy log fire – and more knitting of course!

How was your day?

Abu Dhabi

This blog had been a bit quiet recently due to a little bit of hibernation followed by a self styled knitting retreat in Abu Dhabi – oh boy was it WONDERFUL to get some sun on my bones this winter:

My favourite knitting spot

Just soak up those sunny warm peaceful rays!!!!

I went for a fortnight – Now how much yarn would you pack for 14 days of virtually uninterrupted knitting

Of course I took far too much and hoped the airline would not Xray my case to see a severed head and umpteen dodgy looking balls of something.

I went to stay with my brother-in-law who is working in Abu Dhabi. He was at work all day and I had the place to myself to work on my Hat Wig designs.

I thought I was taking so long to get new ones finished because I have so many other calls on my time at home, and a fortnight away would see a batch of new patterns ready to put in the Etsy Shop and on Ravelry. It turns out it just does take me AGES to finish writing a pattern. Ideas, creating designs, knitting new creations – easy, but actually getting them down on paper for others to follow – that is HARD work. If anyone has any tips or computer programmes that can help PLEASE let me know!!!

I like to add photos to the patterns to make them easy to follow

and that does take time of course, but it is the methodical, ordered, organised careful writing of knitting patterns that my grasshopper mind resists.

 

And then of course the view could be a bit distracting ……

 

 

 

A new baby!

My Godson and his very clever, lovely wife had their first baby today! There is always a touch of apprehension waiting for a new arrival, but she arrived safely and Mum, Dad, and baby are doing very WELL!

I have had a little coat waiting for her:

with crocheted edging

 

 

 

and a vintage flower button.

I have adapted a Debbie Bliss pattern.

 

I really like it as you knit the whole thing, back and both sides together, from bottom up and decrease for a raglan sleeve effect.

Then all you have to do is sew up the side and sleeve seams – magic!

Happy Day!

Knitting for Fairies

Last week was bit of a knit-a-thon! (I was happy to take a break at the weekend and go gardening) I have been trying to create a pattern for this darling little jacket:

The style was inspired by one of Annette Hefford’s doll’s designs.

I have added touches of my own, like the picot and moss stitch cuff

and simplified the decoration above the pixie points and added some crocheted daisies (of course!)

I contacted the publishers, Search Press, and they are happy for me to sell my pattern and jackets so long as I credit Annette Hefford for the original idea and Search Press, which, of course, I am very happy to do.

Creating a pattern is a LONG job!!!! I had NO idea!

It is SO easy to make mistakes and so the pattern has to be checked and  double checked and knitted several times. And then I find a better way to do things by the wonders of You Tube and whole sections need to be re-written and re-photographed.

Full respect to all you designers out there – Phew!!!!

It took me most of last week, working fairly solidly on the project and still the pattern is not completed. But hurray! the jacket is!

and there are 2 sizes: newborn and age 1 – 2,  now on sale in Wild Daffodil

I’m hoping the pattern will be ready in a few days time. . . .

The wool I used is a machine washable, hand-dyed, 100% Merino wool DK by Colinette.

If you have any tips for making the process less time consuming I’d love to hear them!

Daisy wig finished

The wig adorned with crocheted daisies is now finished and in the shop!

(The original inspiration for this wig came from a picture I found on Google Images when looking for inspiration for a pixie hat. The picture did not lead me to a pattern so I created one for myself. I have only just discovered the designer Megan Reardon on Ravelry. Thank you Megan! You have inspired some fun projects!)

So many of you seemed to like my Daisies post, so I hope you like the finished article.

And now to finish the cushions …

Daisies

Daisies, daisies everywhere

Can’t stop making daisies and finding things to put them on – they turn out all different because I make them up as I go along – counting when crocheting is SO boring – and I like the variety

small ones on the green knitted fun wig

 

and big ones on cushions

 

 

 

 

If you would like to knit a fun wig yourself you can find my PDF pattern with photo tutorial in my Etsy shop.