Tag Archives: knitting blog

The Reverse Side Dishcloth Pattern

Posted in May 26, 2023 by


In knitting patterns there is a right side and a wrong side for a row or a round. It does not mean that the wrong side (the inner side) pattern can’t be reversed and be on the right side (the outer side). I sometimes like the reverse side of the pattern just as much as the right or outer side. The Comfy Hat Patterns are an example of patterns with both the right side and wrong side as the outer side of the hats. When I completed knitting the Spring is in the Air Dishcloth last month, I liked how the two different colors of yarn gave a striped textured pattern on the reverse (wrong) side of the dishcloth (pictured below). The striped textured pattern on the wrong side led to the Reverse Side Dishcloth pattern.


The Reverse Side Dishcloth pattern is the reverse side of the linen stitch pattern in two different yarn colorways. In this pattern I used Capri Eco Cotton™ by Loops and Threads® yarn made from recycled cotton in two different colorways. Stitches are cast on, the round joined and the dishcloth is worked by knitting towards the center with decreases every other round till 8 stitches remain. It is then finished with the duplicate crochet stitch running diagonally beginning at each corner and moving towards the center. Reverse single crochet stitch pattern is used as an edging for the border.

The Reverse Side Dishcloth Pattern (text and images for personal use only)

Yarn: Capri Eco Cotton™ by Loops and Threads® yarn in Yellow (Colorway 1) and Pewter (Colorway 2)
Knitting Needles: US #10 for cast on and US #8 circular needles to knit the dishcloth
Crochet hook: US size 7 or 4.5 mm crochet hook
Tapestry Needle to weave in ends
Gauge: 5 stitches/inch
Abbreviations:

  • K: Knit
  • P: Purl
  • K2tog: Knit the first two stitches on the left needle together
  • ssk: slip slip knit (slip 2 stitches to right hand needle then insert the left needle in front of the two slipped stitches and knit them together
  • pm: place marker
  • sm: slip marker
  • BOR: beginning of round
  • wyif: with working yarn in front
  • *…*: pattern repeats within a section
  • […]: repeat pattern for each of the 4 sections within brackets

With US #10 knitting needles cast on 148 stitches with Colorway 1 (Yellow) yarn using the long tail cast on or the thumb method.
Transfer all stitches to a 16 inch US #8 circular needles, place a BOR marker and join round to knit the following making sure the stitches are not twisted. 

  • Setup Round 1: With Colorway 2 yarn (Pewter): [P1, pm, ssk, (*K1, slip1 wyif* repeat *…* 16 more times), K2tog, pm] repeat […] 2 more times, P1, pm, ssk, (*K1, slip1 wyif* repeat *…* 16 more times), K2tog, slip BOR marker – place all the yarn tails on the right side of the knitting (pictured below)
  • Round 2: With Colorway 1 yarn (Yellow): [P1, sm, *K1, slip 1 wyif* repeat *…* till marker, sm] repeat […] 2 more times, P1, sm, *K1, slip 1 wyif* repeat *…* till BOR marker, slip BOR marker  
  • Round 3: With Colorway 2 yarn (Pewter): [P1, sm, ssk, *slip1 wyif, K1* repeat *…* till 2 stitches before marker, K2tog, sm] repeat […] 2 more times, P1, pm, ssk, *slip 1 wyif, K1* repeat *…* till 2 stitches before BOR marker, K2tog, slip BOR marker 
  • Round 4: With Colorway 1 yarn (Yellow): [P1, sm, *slip 1 wyif, K1* repeat *…* till marker, sm] repeat […] 2 more times, P1, sm, *slip 1 wyif, K1* repeat *…* till BOR marker, slip BOR marker 
  • Round 5: With Colorway 2 yarn (Pewter): [P1, sm, ssk, *K1, slip 1 wyif* repeat *…* till 2 stitches before marker, K2tog, sm] repeat […] 2 more times, P1, pm, ssk, *K1, slip 1 wyif* repeat *…* till 2 stitches before BOR marker, K2tog, slip BOR marker 
  • Round 6: With Colorway 1 yarn (Yellow): [P1, sm, *K1, slip1 wyif* repeat *…* till marker, sm] repeat […] 2 more times, P1, sm, *K1, slip 1 wyif* repeat *…* till BOR marker, slip BOR marker 

Repeat Rounds 3 – 6, seven more times. There are 20 stitches left on the needles after these repeats. For the next two rounds knit the following:

  • Round 1: Colorway 2 (Pewter): [P1, sm, ssk, K2tog, sm], repeat […] 2 more times, P1, sm, ssk, K2tog, slip BOR marker – 12 stitches remaining
  • Round 2: Colorway 1 (Yellow): [P1, remove marker, p2tog, remove marker], repeat […] 2 more times, P1, remove maker, p2tog, remove marker, P1, slip BOR marker – 8 stitches remaining

Cut the working yarn (yellow – colorway 1) and pull it through a tapestry needle. Remove the BOR marker and insert the tapestry needle through the remaining eight stitches and pull them tight to close the gap and secure yarn on the right side of the dishcloth.


The Duplicate Crochet Stitch*:

With size 7 (4.5 mm) crochet hook and colorway 1 (yellow) yarn make a slip knot and chain one.


Insert crochet hook from top to bottom and pull the chain 1 stitch through the corner stitch.


Duplicate stitch crochet by inserting hook top to bottom and pulling the yarn up and slip stitching it with the loop (stitch) on the hook.


Insert the hook for the duplicate crochet stitch in the colorway 1 (yellow) knit stitch and skip the colorway 2 (pewter) knit stitch. Continue with the duplicate crochet stitch till you reach the center, break yarn and pull it through the last stitch.


Reverse Single Crochet Edging and hanging loop* (Optional):

Reverse Single Crochet edging: Starting at the cast on edge and on the left of the center duplicate crochet stitch (see picture below),

pick up the cast on stitches and reverse single crochet in a clockwise direction with size 7 (4.5 mm) crochet hook all around the dishcloth edge with Colorway 1 (yellow) yarn. Slip stitch into the first reverse single crochet border stitch and crochet 12 chain stitches. Slip stitch into the reverse single crochet stitch on the other side of the center duplicate crochet stitch.

Weave in the ends, wash and block the Reverse Side Dishcloth.

* Several video tutorials for the duplicate crochet stitch and reverse single crochet are available on YouTube 

Happy Knitting!
~coffeeteaknits

 

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To Knit an Impromptu Custom Sweater

Posted in 2023, May 9, 2023 by


Knitting an impromptu custom top down sweater is much like an unplanned journey to me. The final destination is known but the path taken and the process to get there is not clear.

The cotton yarn for this project was meant for a weaving project that didn’t happen.

I quickly cast on enough stitches to begin a custom top down raglan sleeved cardigan. Since both the yarn were variegated alternating them in stripes to prevent too much color pooling seemed like the way to go.

Several rows in I changed direction and decided to knit a pullover instead of a cardigan. So some more stitches were cast on, the round joined and the journey towards a top down pullover began.

The journey to a completed sweater body and sleeves went pretty smoothly. I washed, blocked and photographed the sweater.

The finished pullover:


Those uneven horizontal stripes (arrows) at the beginning of round where the yarn for the stripe pattern changed were pretty noticeable to me. I had to get some help from the crochet duplicate stitch pattern. The crochet duplicate stitch placed vertically fortunately made the uneven horizontal stripes less noticeable.

The finished impromptu custom sweater was not at all how I visualized it to be when I first cast on some stitches for a top down raglan sleeved sweater.

Reaching my destination of a finished sweater took much longer than I had anticipated. I had expected a journey of simple stockinette and 2 x 2 rib stitch patterns but then had to add a more complicated crochet duplicate stitch pattern in the opposite direction.

Knitting this impromptu sweater was quite a journey for me. I am pleasantly surprised and satisfied with how this unplanned sweater turned out.

Now having reached my destination I look forward to a chance to wear this impromptu pullover.

~coffeeteaknits

Spring Is In The Air Dishcloth Pattern

Posted in 2023, April 2023 by


Somehow the birds chirping, the bright blue sky, the showers, warmer days, new leaves on trees and the vibrant Spring flowers refresh and lighten my mood. I get motivated to declutter, clean and of course start new knitting projects appropriate for Spring and Summer. As the weather gets warmer, I start knitting more with cotton yarn. Spring is in the Air Dishcloth reflects this cheerfulness that comes with warm weather. The dishcloth was knit in the linen stitch pattern with two different colors of cotton worsted yarn. It was knit in the round moving towards the center through a series of decreases every other round. The knitting technique for this dishcloth is similar to The Toward Center Mitered Dishcloth but was knit alternating two different colors of the cotton worsted yarn in each round.

Spring Is In The Air Dishcloth Pattern (text and images for personal use only)

Yarn: Any Cotton Worsted Yarn in 2 different colorways – I used some Lily Sugar’n Cream yarn in White (Colorway 2) and Yellow (Colorway 1)
Knitting Needles: US #10 for cast on and US #9 circular needles to knit the dishcloth
Crochet hook: US size H- 8 or 5.0 mm crochet hook
Tapestry Needle to weave in ends
Gauge: 4 stitches/inch but is not needed for this project
Abbreviations:

  • K: Knit
  • P: Purl
  • K2tog: Knit the first two stitches on the left needle together
  • pm: place marker
  • sm: slip marker
  • BOR: beginning of round
  • wyib: with working yarn in the back
  • wyif: with working yarn in front
  • *…*: pattern repeats within a section
  • […]: repeat pattern for each of the 4 sections within brackets

With US #10 knitting needles cast on 140 stitches with Colorway 2 (White) yarn using the long tail cast on or the thumb method.
Transfer all stitches to a 16 inch US #9 circular needles, place a BOR marker and join round to knit the following making sure the stitches are not twisted. 

  • Round 1: With Colorway 1 yarn (Yellow): [slip 1 stitch wyib, pm, K2tog, (*K1, slip1 wyif* repeat *…* 15 more times), K2tog, pm] repeat […] 2 more times, slip 1 stitch wyib, pm, K2tog, (*K1, slip1 wyif* repeat *…* 15 more times), K2tog, slip BOR marker
  • Round 2: With Colorway 2 yarn (White): [K1, sm, *K1, slip 1 wyif* repeat *…* till marker, sm] repeat […] 2 more times, K1, sm, *K1, slip 1 wyif* repeat *…* till BOR marker, slip BOR marker  
  • Round 3: With Colorway 1 yarn (Yellow): [slip 1 stitch wyib, sm, K2tog, *slip1 wyif, K1* repeat *…* till 2 stitches before marker, K2tog, sm] repeat […] 2 more times, slip 1 stitch wyib, pm, K2tog, *slip 1 wyif, K1* repeat *…* till 2 stitches before BOR marker, K2tog, slip BOR marker 
  • Round 4: With Colorway 2 yarn (White): [K1, sm, *slip 1 wyif, K1* repeat *…* till marker, sm] repeat […] 2 more times, K1, sm, *slip 1 wyif, K1* repeat *…* till BOR marker, slip BOR marker 
  • Round 5: With Colorway 1 yarn (Yellow): [slip 1 stitch wyib, sm, K2tog, *K1, slip 1 wyif* repeat *…* till 2 stitches before marker, K2tog, sm] repeat […] 2 more times, slip 1 stitch wyib, pm, K2tog, *K1, slip 1 wyif* repeat *…* till 2 stitches before BOR marker, K2tog, slip BOR marker 
  • Round 6: With Colorway 2 yarn (White): [K1, sm, *K1, slip1 wyif* repeat *…* till marker, sm] repeat […] 2 more times, K1, sm, *K1, slip 1 wyif* repeat *…* till BOR marker, slip BOR marker 

Repeat Rounds 3 – 6, six more times. There are 20 stitches left on the needles after these repeats.

  • Round 31: Colorway 1 (Yellow): [slip 1 stitch wyib, sm K2tog, K2tog, sm], repeat […] 2 more times, slip 1 stitch wyib, sm K2tog, K2tog, slip BOR marker 
  • Round 32: Colorway 2 (White): [K1, sm, slip 1 wyif, K1, sm], repeat […] 2 more times, K1, sm, slip1 wyif, K1, slip BOR marker
  • Round 33: Colorway 1 (Yellow) : [slip 1 stitch wyib, sm, K2tog, sm], repeat […] 2 more times, slip 1 stitch wyib, sm, K2tog, slip BOR marker
  • Round 34: Colorway 2 (White): Knit all stitches removing all markers except the BOR marker (8 stitches remaining)

Cut the working yarn and pull it through a tapestry needle. Insert the tapestry needle through the remaining eight stitches and pull them tight to close the gap. Secure yarn on the reverse side of the dishcloth.

Single Crochet Edging and hanging loop:

  • Crochet edging: Starting at the cast on edge to the right of the center knit stitch (see picture below), pick up and single crochet with H-8 (5.0 mm) crochet hook all around the dishcloth edge with Colorway 1 (yellow) yarn. Slip stitch into the first single crochet border stitch and crochet 12 to 15 chain stitches. Slip stitch into the single crochet stitch on the other side of the center knit stitch.

crochetborder

  • Weave in the ends
  • Wash and block the dishcloth

Enjoy your knitting this Spring!
~coffeeteaknits

The Interwoven Earwarmer Pattern

Posted in February 2023 by

One of the things I find interesting as a knitter is how some knit stitch patterns look so similar to certain crochet or woven stitch patterns. To me a plain weave is much like a garter knit stitch pattern. So when I wove this wrap in houndstooth weave pattern (pictured above) using 2 different colors of yarn, I wanted to see how the same weave pattern and yarn would translate into a knitted houndstooth stitch pattern.

The Interwoven Earwarmer is knit bottom up and in the round. It is knit with two different colors of yarn in the houndstooth stitch pattern that uses garter stitch pattern along with slip stitches. A crochet slip stitch is then used for the cast on and bind off edges. Lastly, a duplicate stitch is used to reinforce the stockinette stitch in the back of the Interwoven Earwarmer

Materials needed to knit the Interwoven Earwarmer:

Yarn: Loops and Threads Cozy Wool Merino DK weight yarn in Colorway A: Cream and Colorway B: Purple (The yarn has been discontinued but substitute yarns are listed here on Yarn Sub website)
Knitting Needles: US #6 16-inch circular needles; US #8 knitting needles for the cable cast on and bind off
Crochet Hooks: US F-5 and US G-6
Tapestry needle to weave in ends and for the duplicate stitch
Gauge: 5.5 stitches per inch in garter houndstooth stitch pattern with US #6 knitting needles 
Size: M – about 20 inches in circumference and about 3.75 inches in length without stretching 
Abbreviations:
K: Knit
P: Purl
pm: place marker
sm: slip marker
BOR: beginning of round
s1 purlwise: with working yarn in back slip 1 stitch purlwise from the left needle
[…]: stitch pattern repeats

The Interwoven Earwarmer Pattern (text and images for personal use only)

Cast on 112 stitches with Yarn Colorway A (cream) and US #8 knitting needles using the cable cast on method. Transfer all the stitches to US #6 16-inch circular needles. Place a BOR marker, join the round by knitting as follows:

  • Round 1: With Colorway A (cream), knit to the BOR marker, slip BOR marker
  • Round 2: With Colorway A (cream) knit the first stitch, switch to Colorway B (purple) yarn and  [K2, s1 purlwise] repeat […] till BOR marker, slip BOR marker
  • Round 3: With Colorway A (cream) knit the first stitch, switch to Colorway B (purple) yarn and purl all stitches till the BOR marker, slip BOR marker
  • Round 4: With Colorway A (cream) knit the first stitch, and with the same Colorway A [s1 purlwise, K2] repeat […] till BOR marker, slip BOR marker
  • Round 5:With Colorway A (cream) knit the first stitch, and with the same Colorway A purl all stitches till the BOR marker, slip BOR marker

Repeat Rounds 2 to 5, nine more times. 
Repeat Rounds 2 and 3, one more time.
Repeat Round 1, one more time
Bind off stitches with US #8 and Colorway A yarn. Insert the US F-5 hook in the last stitch for a slip stitch crochet edge.

  • With the last stitch on US F-5 hook and Colorway A (cream) yarn, chain 1 and then insert hook under the first bind off stitch, yarn over and pull the yarn over under the bind off stitch and slip stitch it with the first stitch on the hook. Repeat this with the next bid off stitches till one stitch left on the hook. Bring the working yarn through the last stitch.

Feb2023_a

Feb2023_b

Feb2023_c

Feb2023_d

Repeat the same with slip stitch crochet method as above for the cast on stitches with Colorway A yarn and US G-6 hook

Duplicate Stitch or Swiss Darning (optional):
Using a tapestry needle and Colorway A yarn reinforce the first knit stitch of each round with the duplicate stitch (to learn how to do this watch a video tutorial on duplicate stitch by Staci of verypink.com)

Earwamerback_Feb2023

Weave in the ends, wash and block the Interwoven Earwarmer

Feb2023pic

~coffeeteaknits

The Winterland Neckwarmer Pattern

Posted in 2023, January 2023 by

The Winterland Neckwarmer

Hello folks, it’s 2023 now and time to either plan or start working on our goals for this year. This year my goals are to write and learn more about rigid heddle loom weaving as well as complete my lingering knitting/crochet projects from the previous years.

The Winterland Neckwarmer is knit bottom up and in the round. The cable stitch pattern and the yarn used for this pattern are the same as the ones used for the Winterland Hat. These two knitted items can be worn together. The bulky yarn makes it a quick project to knit. The Winterland Neckwarmer is light and warm making it quite suitable to wear for the freezing temperatures of this month.

The Winterland Neckwarmer Pattern (text and images for personal use only)

Yarn: Lion Brand Scarfie® yarn in the Cream/Silver colorway
Knitting Needles: US #7 and US #8 16-inch circular needles; US #9 knitting needles for the cable cast on and bind off
Tapestry needle to weave in ends
Cable Needle
Gauge: 4.5 stitches / 6 rows per inch in stockinette stitch pattern with US #8 knitting needles without blocking
Size: M – about 20 – 21 inches in circumference and 8 inches in length without stretching (the width can be altered by increasing or decreasing ten stitches and the length can be changed by increasing or decreasing the number of rounds) 
Abbreviations:
K: Knit
P: Purl
pm: place marker
sm: slip marker
BOR: beginning of round
C4F: slip 2 stitches onto the cable needle and hold in front, K2 stitches on the circular needle then knit the 2 stitches on the cable needle.
C4B: slip 2 stitches onto the cable needle and hold in back, K2 stitches on the circular needle then knit the 2 stitches on the cable needle.
[…]: stitch pattern repeats

The Winterland Neckwarmer Pattern (text and images for personal use only)

Cast on 120 stitches with US #9 knitting needles using the cable cast on method. Transfer all the stitches to US #7 16-inch circular needles. Place a BOR marker, join the round by knitting as follows:

  • Setup Round: [K4, P2, K2, P2, pm] repeat […] 10 more times, K4, P2, K2, P2, slip BOR marker
  • Rib Pattern Round: [K4, P2, K2, P2, sm] repeat […] 10 more times, K4, P2, K2, P2, slip BOR marker

Repeat Rib Pattern Round, eight more times. Change to US #8 circular needles to knit the cable stitch pattern:

  • Round 1: [K4, P2, K2, P2, sm] repeat […] 10 more times, K4, P2, K2, P2, slip BOR marker
  • Round 2: [K4, P2, K2, P2, sm] repeat […] 10 more times, K4, P2, K2, P2, slip BOR marker
  • Round 3: [K4, P2, K2, P2, sm] repeat […] 10 more times, K4, P2, K2, P2, slip BOR marker
  • Round 4: [K4, P2, K2, P2, sm] repeat […] 10 more times, K4, P2, K2, P2, slip BOR marker
  • Round 5: [C4B, P2, K2, P2, sm] repeat […] 10 more times, K4, P2, K2, P2, slip BOR marker
  • Round 6: [K4, P2, K2, P2, sm] repeat […] 10 more times, K4, P2, K2, P2, slip BOR marker
  • Round 7: [K4, P2, K2, P2, sm] repeat […] 10 more times, K4, P2, K2, P2, slip BOR marker
  • Round 8: [K4, P2, K2, P2, sm] repeat […] 10 more times, K4, P2, K2, P2, slip BOR marker
  • Round 9: [K4, P2, K2, P2, sm] repeat […] 10 more times, K4, P2, K2, P2, slip BOR marker
  • Round 10: [P1, K2, P2, K4, P1, sm] repeat […] 10 more times, P1, K2, P2, K4, P1, slip BOR marker
  • Round 11: [P1, K2, P2, K4, P1, sm] repeat […] 10 more times, P1, K2, P2, K4, P1, slip BOR marker
  • Round 12: [P1, K2, P2, K4, P1, sm] repeat […] 10 more times, P1, K2, P2, K4, P1, slip BOR marker
  • Round 13: [P1, K2, P2, K4, P1, sm] repeat […] 10 more times, P1, K2, P2, K4, P1, slip BOR marker
  • Round 14: [P1, K2, P2, C4F, P1, sm] repeat […] 10 more times, P1, K2, P2, C4F P1, slip BOR marker
  • Round 15: [P1, K2, P2, K4, P1, sm] repeat […] 10 more times, P1, K2, P2, K4, P1, slip BOR marker
  • Round 16: [P1, K2, P2, K4, P1, sm] repeat […] 10 more times, P1, K2, P2, K4, P1, slip BOR marker
  • Round 17: [P1, K2, P2, K4, P1, sm] repeat […] 10 more times, P1, K2, P2, K4, P1, slip BOR marker
  • Round 18: [P1, K2, P2, K4, P1, sm] repeat […] 10 more times, P1, K2, P2, K4, P1, slip BOR marker

Repeat Rounds 1 to 18, one more time. Change to US #7 circular knitting needles
Repeat Rib Pattern Round, seven times
Bind off in pattern with a US #9 knitting needles removing markers.
Weave in the ends and wash the Winterland Neckwarmer.

~coffeeteaknits