Faux i-cord

My newest pattern has been hibernating since June. I'm not sure why. It was fast, fun, and easy to knit. The pattern probably can fit onto one page. Which reminds me, where are my notes anyway? Darn it, see what happens when things just sit around for ever?

But one part of this new pattern has me pretty excited. For the straps I made an i-cord. But not the traditional kind that takes forever doing three or four stitches, one row at a time, or the kind that hurts your hands from trying to pull that yarn tight in the back.

Ladies, hold onto your needles. Gentlemen too, but I don't think there are any of you out there since I haven't heard from you yet! (Hint, hint.) I am about to present you with a groundbreaking knitting technique. (I checked.)

This is a faux i-cord. I'm sorry to say that it only works if it is felted, but it works like a dream and is so much easier to do!

For this particular one, I cast on about 250 stitches (you don't really need to count) and joined in the round. Keeping the stitches straight for the join is the hardest part, I promise! Then just knit away for 4 rounds or until your work naturally curls back onto itself (I was using worsted weight for this project, you may have to adjust rows depending on your yarn). Bind off.

Yes, that's it. Do not weave in yarn tails! Do not sew tube closed! Throw it in your washing machine and give it a nice strong tug when it comes out. When it's dry and you are ready to use it, cut it to the length(s) needed!

I'm starting a search party for the missing notes so I can finally get the pattern out. Soon!

Edit:
I have been asked a few times about making this on straight needles.  Yes, you can! 
There are two reasons why I didn't.  First, I wanted to get as many stitches as possible on the needles and the best way (for me) to accomplish this was to use a circular needle.  And the second reason is that if you work in the round, there is no purling!  Yay!

Braided Cable Handle Tote A Free Pattern!

Also available as a free Ravelry download.

An easy tote with braided cables that continue into the handles.
A perfect first cable or felting project.
Available in three sizes!

Finished Sizes:
Large: 13” wide x 9-1/2” high x 3” deep. Handle height is 10-1/2” from top of bag to shoulder.
Regular: 12” wide x 8-1/2” high x 2” deep. Handle height is 10” from top of bag to shoulder.
Mini: 11” wide x 7-1/2” high x 1-1/2” deep. Handle height is 9” from top of bag to shoulder.

Skill Level:
Advanced beginner
Gauge:
Not extremely important. This will be felted.
Yarn: about 450 yards of worsted weight feltable wool
as pictured: Patons Classic Wool in Sage, Black, Natural Mix
Materials:
US 8 (5 mm) circular needle, 24" or 36" in length
US 8 (5 mm) double pointed needles
Cable needle
Markers in two colors
Stitches/abbreviations:
cn cable needle
dpn(s) double pointed needle(s)
k knit
p purl
sts stitches

Cable Abbreviations:
CF: Slip 4(3, 2) sts onto cn and hold in front. Knit 4(3, 2) sts, then knit 4(3, 2) sts from cn.
CB: Slip 4(3, 2) sts onto cn and hold in back. Knit 4(3, 2) sts, then knit 4(3, 2) sts from cn.

Pattern is written for Large(Regular, Mini) and worked with one strand of yarn.

Bag Base
Cast on 72(64, 56) sts.
Working in rows, knit in garter for 32(28, 20) rows.
At end of last row, do not turn.
Place marker, pick up and knit 16(14, 10) sts, place marker, pick up and knit 72(64, 56) sts, pick up and knit 16(14, 10) sts, place beginning of round marker. You now have 176(156, 132) sts. Markers are located at bag corners for reference.

Bag Body
Note: You may have to use dpn’s for a few rounds until you have enough room for the circular needle.
Round 1: *k4, p2, k12(9, 6), p2, k32(30, 28), p2, k12(9, 6), p2, k4, pass marker, k16(14, 10), pass marker. Repeat from * for other side.
Rounds 2-4: Repeat round 1

Begin knitting in Bag Cable Pattern.

Bag Cable Pattern:

Round 1: *k4, p2, CF, k4(3, 2), p2, k32(30, 28), p2, k4(3, 2), CB, p2, k4, k16(14, 10). Repeat from * for other side.
Round 2: *k4, p2, k12(9, 6), p2, k32(30, 28), p2, k12(9, 6), p2, k4, k16(14, 10). Repeat from * for other side.
Round 3: repeat row 2.
Round 4: repeat row 2.
Round 5: *k4, p2, k4(3, 2), CB, p2, k32(30, 28), p2, CF, k4(3, 2), p2, k4, k16(14, 10). Repeat from * for other side.
Round 6: *k4, p2, k12(9, 6), p2, k32(30, 28), p2, k12(9, 6), p2, k4, k16(14, 10). Repeat from * for other side.
Round 7: repeat row 6.
Round 8: repeat row 6.

Knit Bag Cable Pattern for a total of 8 (7, 6) times.

Handle set-up rounds: (garter stitch rounds)
Round 1: *p4, p2, CF, k4(3, 2), p2, p32(30, 28), p2, k4(3, 2), CB, p2, p4, p16(14, 10). Repeat from * for other side.
Round 2: Repeat round 2 of cable pattern above.
Round 3: *p4, p2, k12(9, 6), p2, p32(30, 28), p2, k12(9, 6), p2, p4, p16(14, 10). Repeat from * for other side.

Bind off, removing markers as you go, as follows:
Round 4: Bind off stitches until you get to the two purl stitches of the cable pattern.
*Bind off first purl stitch, purl one stitch, knit across the cable, purl one stitch. Keep the live stitches on the needle and continue to bind off until you get to the purl stitches of the next cable pattern. Repeat from * until you have bound off all stitches. Cut yarn and pull through last stitch. Each handle should have 14(11, 8) stitches; your cable stitches and one purl stitch on either side.

You now have four handles on one circular needle.
Mark the first handle by placing a permanent stitch marker somewhere at the beginning of the handle below where you are working. This is for visual reference, so you know which one is handle 1.

I strongly suggest that you take a moment to wind your remaining yarn into four fairly equal balls. This is extremely important if you are making the large bag, as you will be knitting to the end of your yarn! It is very helpful for all of the sizes so that you can work on all four handles at the same time. That way you will be sure they are all the same size. I used four zipper bags and thread my yarn through a snipped corner to keep everything from getting tangled. They fit nicely inside the bag too!

From now on you will be working in rows.

Finish this cable repeat as follows:
Row 5: [handle 1] attach new yarn, p1, k4(3, 2), CB, p1
[handle 2] attach new yarn, p1, CF, k4(3, 2), p1
[handle 3] attach new yarn, p1, k4(3, 2), CB, p1
[handle 4] attach new yarn, p1, CF, k4(3, 2), p1
Row 6: k1, p12(9, 6), k1 for all handles
Row 7: p1, k12(9, 6), p1 for all handles
Row 8: repeat row 6

Continue knitting the Handle Cable Pattern, remembering to change yarn with each handle.

Handle Cable Pattern:
Row 1: [handle 1] p1, CF, k4(3, 2), p1
[handle 2] p1, k4(3, 2), CB, p1
[handle 3] p1, CF, k4(3, 2), p1
[handle 4] p1, k4(3, 2), CB, p1
Row 2: k1, p12(9, 6), k1
Row 3: p1, k12(9, 6), p1
Row 4: repeat row 2.
Row 5: [handle 1] p1, k4(3, 2), CB, p1
[handle 2] p1, CF, k4(3, 2), p1
[handle 3] p1, k4(3, 2), CB, p1
[handle 4] p1, CF, k4(3, 2), p1
Row 6: k1, p12(9, 6), k1 for all handles
Row 7: p1, k12(9, 6), p1 for all handles
Row 8: repeat row 6

Knit 9(8, 7) full cable repeats, not including the handle set-up round, or to your desired length (or until you are about to run out of yarn!).

Finishing
Row 1: p1, k12(9, 6), p1
Row 2: k1, p12(9, 6), k1
Repeat rows 1& 2 once.
Move handles 3&4 to another circular needle or holder.
Working with handles 1 and 2, make sure straps are not twisted. Kitchener stitch together.
Repeat for handles 3 and 4.
Weave in ends.

Felt carefully, checking often! Tug and pull out the braid sections in the handles and bag and check to make sure the handles have not felted themselves into a tube.
Block with an appropriate sized book wrapped in a plastic bag.

There are lots of felting tutorials out in cyberspace. If you still have questions or prefer one-on-one help feel free to comment, e-mail me, or contact me through Ravelry.

Post your pictures! If you are not on Ravelry, e-mail me a picture or send a link to your bag. I’d love to see it!

Cable charts are included in the Ravelry download. Contact me if you want them but are not a member of Ravelry.

Enjoy!

Braided Cable Handle Tote

by Amybelbags
amybelbags@gmail.com

This pattern is offered for personal use only. The pattern, photos, and products made from this pattern are not to be used or sold for personal monetary gain without the written consent of the designer. Do not copy, cut, or paste this pattern. Links back to this pattern are always welcomed.

How to make a Ninja Turtle weapon!

Donatello, the first of my knit Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles is complete. I say first because kidster has already asked for the other three guys. I can understand. They are a team. A matched set. Like socks. You wouldn't make just one of those would you (at least not on purpose!)? I told him that I had other knitting to do first. Which I do. But I'm going to try to get the other three guys done and surprise him.

His other request was that Donny have his weapon. What good is a mutated superhero turtle without his weapon anyway? I didn't want anything hard that could cause bodily injury (to his brother, for instance) but wanted it to look like a pole and not a piece of spaghetti. I thought a bit and came up with this solution. I'm already noodling how to make nunchucks, a long sword, and battle forks. Battle forks? Yup. Not sure what the technical term for them is, that's just what we call them.

So if you are making or have a Donatello and want a weapon to go with him here's what you do:

Pierce the end of one arm with your knitting needle. This makes a little hole through the yarn and stuffing. Take a drinking straw and cut off the bendy top portion. If you don't have a bendy straw, just cut down a regular one to about 6 inches. Fold the end a little and insert it into the hole you made. You will just get it through and need to pull from the other side. Straighten out the folded over part. Position the pole how you like. With the needles you used for the turtle (I used 5's) and the dark green yarn for the shell, cast on 5 stitches. Make a 5 stitch I-cord as long as the part of the straw that is below Donny's arm. Cast off and fasten end closed. Set aside. Make another I-cord as long as you need it for the top portion of the pole. Stick each end of the straw into an I-cord. Attach the cast on edges to Donny's arm using the cast on tails.

Viola! A Turtle and his weapon!

Checkerboard Dishcloth

I'm one of those people who like things symmetrical. And linear is pretty good too. I wanted a dishcloth that was the same on both sides and I didn't like any of the checked cloth patterns I found so I made this one up. It is so easy you don't even need to print out the directions. Oh, and very textured so it does it's job quite nicely!

The border is done in garter but you could easily change it to seed stitch or another stitch of your preference.

Skill Level: Simple

Materials: US 7 needles (or appropriate for your yarn)

Yarn: Worsted Weight cotton (I used Lion Cotton)

CO 36 stitches

Knit three rows in garter stitch

Pattern:

Rows 4-10: Knit 3, *knit 5, purl 5*, repeat 2 more times, knit 3

Rows 11-17: Knit 3, *purl 5, knit 5*, repeat 2 more times, knit 3

Repeat pattern two more times.

Knit three rows in garter stitch.

Bind off.

Remember it's a dishcloth. Don't worry about gauge or blocking or any of that fussy stuff. And if you can make enough of these to earn a small fortune, then by all means have at it.

I'd love to see you add your project to Ravelry.

Door Thongs Free Pattern

Exotic name for a simple gadget.
I can only wonder what the search engines will do with this one! Sorry, but this is only a knitting pattern ;).
I made these last summer out of necessity. It was hot and the A/C's were on in our bedrooms. I had to be able to open and close our sticky painted doors at night without waking up the kidsters. They've stayed on the handles ever since, quietly hanging out, waiting for when they get put into action again. And they have lots of other uses (ask me how I know)! They are great for:

• Keeping toddlers from getting locked in their rooms when they can't quite do the handle thing yet.
• Keeping kidsters from locking themselves in their room when they do have the handle thing down and start experimenting with the lock.
• Saving a mother's sanity when kidsters decide to have a door slamming contest.
• Keeping the door from getting blown shut by open windows (and leaving the cats stranded far away from the litter box!).
• And the original intention, air conditioning door helpers!

I kept calling them Door Things, but Hubster thought they looked more like Door Thongs. The name stuck. Oh cast on, you know you want some!



Skill Level: Easy
Gauge: 6 sts = 1”in ss (but not overly critical, knit 'til it fits!)
Yarn: scrap amounts of worsted weight
as pictured: multi: an acrylic blend, green: wool
Materials: US 4 ( 3.5 mm) double pointed or circular needles
Stitches/abbreviations:
k knit
k2tog knit two stitches together
kfb knit into front and back of the stitch (making an increase)
p purl
ss stockinette stitch
(knit every round)
sts stitches
Finished Size: Approximately 2.5”w by 7” long including loops
Easily adjustable to fit your type of door and handle!

Measuring for the Base
To figure out the size you need measure from the edge of the door hardware on one side, wrapping around the door, to the edge of the hardware on the other side of the door. You don’t have to be exact, your yarn will stretch just enough. See pictures below to see how it should fit.

Base
Cast on 8 stitches onto one needle.
Row 1: knit
Row 2: knit (creating garter stitch)
Row 3: *k1, kfb*, repeat to end (12 sts).
Row 4: k1, *kfb, k2*, repeat 3 times, kfb, k1 (16 sts)
Row 5: knit
Row 6: k3, p10, k3
Repeat rows 5 & 6 (ss with garter edges) until piece is 1” less than desired length, ending on a right side row.
Next row: (on wrong side) knit all stitches.
Start decrease rows:
Row 1: k1, *k2tog, k2*, repeat 3 times, k2tog, k1 (12 sts)
Row 2: *k1, k2tog*, repeat to end (8 sts).
Row 3: knit
Row 4: k3, bind off 2, k3

Loops
Place last three stitches on a holder.
Working with the first three stitches, knit an I-cord 5” long (see tips below).
Knit one row straight.
Kitchener stitch these three stitches to the three stitches on the holder.
For other end, pick up the first three stitches onto working needle, and the last three stitches onto a holder.
Repeat as for first loop.

Tips
You might want to check the I-cord on your door handle a few times. You want it to be able to fit around the handle with just a little stretch. If you have a lever type handle, you should make a longer body and shorter loops.

You could use wool and lightly felt it to fit.

Hang from the inside handle when not in use.

Enjoy!

Door Thongs
by Amybelbags
amybelbags@gmail.com

This pattern is offered for personal use only. The pattern, photos, and products made from this pattern are not to be used or sold for personal monetary gain without the written consent of the designer. Do not copy, cut, or paste this pattern. Links back to this pattern are always welcomed.

Also available as a free Ravelry download!

Around About Free Pattern

It's finished! Also available as a free Ravelry download, or a printer friendly link is provided at the bottom.

Around About

A round bag, knit in the round,

perfect for hauling your stuff about!

Skill Level: Easy
Gauge:
Not extremely important since this will be felted.

Yarn: about 450 yards of worsted weight
feltable wool
as pictured: "Chocolate Covered Raspberries"
Patons Classic Wool
1 skein Petal Pink
1 skein Rosewood

Materials:
US 8 (5 mm) circular knitting needle
US 8 (5 mm) double pointed needles
Markers in two colors
Stitches/abbreviations:
dpn(s) double pointed needle(s)
k2tog knit two stitches together
ss stockinette stitch (knit every round)
sts stitches

Finished Size:
Approximately 8” diameter by 9” tall.

Bag Body
Using solid color yarn, cast on 136 stitches.
Place marker to indicate beginning of the round.
Join to work in rounds.
Rounds 1-6: knit in ss
Round 7: knit 32, cast off next 36 sts, knit 32, cast off next 36 sts.
Round 8: knit 32, cast on 36 sts, knit 32, cast on 36 sts.
Rounds 9-14 knit in ss
Change to contrasting color or variegated yarn.
Continue knitting in rounds until yarn is used up (or until bag measures between 10” and 12”).
Change back to solid color yarn.
Knit 5 rounds.

Bag Base
Setup round for decreases: *knit 34 sts, place alternate color marker*, repeat two more times, knit 34 sts.
Decrease round 1: *k2tog, knit to next marker, pass marker*. Repeat three times.
Continue decreasing per round 1, until there are 12 sts remaining, switching to dpns (or Magic Loop) as required.

Finishing
Cut a long tail from yarn and thread onto needle. Pull needle through remaining sts as they are dropped off the needle and pull tight. Sew in securely in the inside of bag.
Sew in any ends from cast on and color changes.
Felt. There are lots of tutorials out in cyberspace. I would be happy to help, so drop me a line if you have any questions!
Find a nice big plastic container or plate to put in bottom of bag for shaping while drying. Use it to draw a circle on some sturdy cardboard or plastic canvas for your base. Cover in pretty fabric or leave it out for a more natural appearance.

I would be thrilled if you would send me a picture so I can add it to the photo gallery.

Enjoy!

Around About
by Amybelbags
amybelbags@gmail.com

This pattern is offered for personal use only. The pattern, photos, and products made from this pattern are not to be used or sold for personal monetary gain without the written consent of the designer. Do not copy, cut, or paste this pattern. Links back to this pattern are always welcomed.

Click here for printer friendly version!