I just found a few free knitting patterns, thought I'd pass them on. Maybe you've seen these already?
Small Dolls - Jezze's pattern for "small dolls," which in this case are more like monster-creatures. This pattern is technically written for the "magic loop" (a circular knitting needle, generally used by people who are afraid of DPNs), but I don't think that's necessary... it looks like you could just as easily use it with DPNs, if you put 10 stitches on each needle. The dolls look a little odd, and therefore, of course, are adorable. (via CRAFT.)
Yeah, DPNs can be a pain to cast onto. I usually cast onto one DPN and distribute the stitches, or else cast onto a long, non-DPN and distribute the stitches from there. But other than that, if you get the needles arranged properly, they're not that hard to knit with. It frustrates me that certain designers say, "I made this a non-DPN project so it would be a little easier!" (not the case with Jezze here, just something I saw the other day).
Well, DPNs aren't hard, and if you fear them, you should give them a try, rather than taking a designer's word for it, or the word of people on some board somewhere online. I used to knit socks on a 12" circular needle, using DPNs only for the heel and toe, but I don't do that anymore - it's DPNs all the way now, and DPNs for hats and other things knit in the round. There's a way to hold DPNs that makes knitting with them easier, something I'll try to post about the next time I'm working on something in the round.
Still, I wouldn't blame you for using a circular needle to knit a sweater in the round! And circs do help avoid the "ladders" that can happen between needles.
Mead Scarf - downloadable pattern for a lace scarf, from a blog called Stash Amassed Beyond Life Expectancy. The blogger/designer, Elizabeth Morrison, may be familiar to a few people from her patterns that have been published in Knitty over the last few years. (via Knitting Pattern Central.)
Also - just a quick thing - I am SO THRILLED that Eunny Jang is the new editor of Interweave Knits! I've long thought that Eunny is the best knitblogger out there... lots of focus on the craft itself, from someone who has good technique, great ideas, and a wonderful sense of design. There are other knitting bloggers who have at least two out of three of these attributes, but sometimes the lack of the third can be a problem for me, and sometimes the bloggers lose focus and go from knit-blogging to just... blogging. Like, pictures of pets and kids, descriptions of trips to the lake with the sister-in-law, not that much knitting content past an occasional picture of what they're making. And some of the knitting bloggers I loved a few years ago essentially abandoned their blogs.
The publishing industry has been cherry-picking bloggers for the last few years, and for a while I thought, "Why hasn't anyone snatched Eunny up? If she wrote a book, I'd definitely buy it." Then I saw her design and article in this past winter's IK, and I thought, ah, it's nice to see that they're publishing her stuff, I hope they keep publishing more. And then... boom, they put her in charge! How wonderful. (I think I have a bit of a knitting-crush on her, if you can't tell. :)
[this is good] I love the Mead Scaf - have to make a red one! thanks for the link.
Posted by: Binkypoo | 06/26/2007 at 10:06 AM