2nd of 5: Aqua “After Skiing” Sweater and Hat
I found a stitch pattern called Seeded Rib Check which is completed in 8 rows with a Multiple of 6+3 or 6 in the round. Gotta’ find small patterns for these doll clothes.
 |
| Closeup of stitch |
I’m making a note here as to how I knit the buttonhole.
RS or WS of 4 stitch Seed;
Row 1: K1, P1, YO twice, K1, P1.
Row 2: K1, P1 with the 1st loop of YO, K1 with the 2nd loop of YO, P1.
This buttonhole looks nice worked on either the right side or the wrong side and is the perfect size for doll clothing.
And a matching hat...
I’m knitting these winter hats bigger; this one could have used six more stitches in the main part.
_______________________
New project underway-02.02.2014
I saw this photo and decided to reproduce it for one of the dolls.
This design has incorporated beads in the open area above and between the Fleur de Lis. I left it open in case I might find some really tiny blue beads to add.
Aspen and Cream yarns were in my stash of DK Acrylics and so I began. First, though, I had to get the Multiple of the design and decide on row placement.
Then I worked out the Multiple, 6/10, followed by centering the design and making sure it would work for the necessary number of stitches for the sweater size. A minimum of fudging was required (there is one extra column with no design under each of the underarms) so on to the knitting.
See the gray yarn? I want to knit another one in Gray and White when I am finished with this one. Silly? But some, not a lot, but some, work went into stitch and row counts and buttonhole placements for this design and I love Gray and White, so why not knit another one? Anyway, there is no shortage of AG dolls here. Both sweaters will get worn.
I am on the sleeves now and hope to post a picture when it is finished and, of course, will have to work out a hat.
________________________________________________________________
December, 2013
Christmas Casual
Since it took too long to knit five complete Autumn outfits for the dolls, I decided to do some sewing to speed things up. It turned out to be something of a chore because it has been so long since I sewed doll clothes. My self-imposed (hoped for date of completion) deadline was December 15, but that didn’t happen for several reasons. My first choice of embroidery designs was put aside after all the preparation when some new designs came out at emblibrary.com. The new ones were just what I wanted so I had to start over, sizing, choosing thread colors, loading, embroidering again (yes, I have five “extras” sitting around) and shopping for more fabric.Luckily the fleece available at the first store was just the right color and the cutting and sewing went smoothly. One thing about sewing for these dolls is that the clothes all fit; I have had no trouble with purchased patterns. It took some time to choose the right features on my Sapphire 870, still pretty new to me, but once that was accomplished the sewing went so fast.
I did want to knit hats for their outfits and even started out with a Santa hat--it was frogged as I just decided five of those was not something I wanted to do or had time to do. I went digging in my stash and found a skein of Red Heart Buttercup yarn in White I had bought on a whim and didn’t know if I would ever use. I thought it might work and it did...after a day of swatching to figure out needle sizes, etc. I used three sizes of needles: #4 for the lining, #8 to transition to #10 for the band and back again to finish with the #4. I think these hats turned out so cute and look so cute with their outfits. I may knit more in colors to match the sweaters for my "Winter Ski Resort” line.
Pink and Light Teal worked for me this year as I wanted to avoid the traditional red and green after my Santa Hat failure (meaning I didn’t have a green yarn that would have worked).
They all showed up for the photo op and Miss M. helped with the props.
 |
| McKenna |
 |
| Samantha |
McKenna, on the left, sports a hat knit with the Red Heart yarn and King Cole DK in Nil - one of two. The Pom-Pons were made with a meat fork and turned out just the right size.
Samantha’s hat is knit with I Love This Yarn Sport Tweed and the Red Heart yarn. I knit it last when I was tired of working with Pink and Nil.
 |
| Maddie |
Maddie’s hat, one of two, was knit with Stylecraft Special DK in Candy Floss. And notice her cute boots. After knitting ten of these they lose their cuteness and become a real drag.
 |
| Allie |
 |
| Kit |
 |
| McKenna |
___________________________________________________________________
And here are five Autumn Outfits:
First up is Kit...
 |
| Kit in her stranded Poncho with matching Headband |
 |
| She has matching Capri’s and Brown Boots |
Next is Allie...
The pieces of her outfit are knit with Stylecraft Special in Parchment, Meadow Green and Lipstick.
I knit the different color band along with the body of the sweater twisting the yarns to prevent holes. That is a normal knitting technique, but I hadn’t done it before in a finished item. I like to learn new techniques as I knit these small items.
The apple was done in duplicate stitch twice as the first position was not satisfactory. I really like how it turned out.
The buttons are 10mm--7mm would be better for a doll, but they are hard to find--buttons from Hobby Lobby “painted” with fingernail polish.
She has matching Capri’s with a Picot Hem and coordinating Beret and Boots.
Now for Samantha...
 |
| She loves pumpkins in the Fall! |
I wish the picture was better...
Duplicate stitch was used to make the pumpkin.
The 10mm buttons from Hobby Lobby were painted with acrylic paint and then had a final coat of clear fingernail polish.
Neither picture shows her really cute pumpkin hat, modified from several free patterns on line, or her matching orange boots.
I think this doll is so cute! I love her hair as well as Kit's. I wish we had Kirsten, Molly and Ruth.
Maddie is up next...
She is ready to do some kicking through the leaves in her outfit knit with Stylecraft Special DK in Mocha and Parchment. After a long search, I finally found a beanie pattern for preemies that gave me a good stitch number to begin. I was going to knit more stripes but liked the way it looked at this point.
I knit ribbing on the sweater and the bottom of the capri’s. I really like Seed Stitch better.
I could have searched for a better leaf and branch design, but for some odd reason, I really liked this one. Miss M. didn’t think too much of it but since she didn’t want to design one of her own, this one was used.
And last is McKenna.
The knitting season was too long and I was running out of ideas for sweaters and hats. I switched to somethings with stitch interest and found a slipstitch pattern I thought would work for a long-sleeved sweater for Fall. I love the way it turned out--both the sweater and the hat.
The knitting season was too long and I was running out of ideas for sweaters and hats. I switched to somethings with stitch interest and found a slipstitch pattern I thought would work for a long-sleeved sweater for Fall. I love the way it turned out--both the sweater and the hat.
INSERT BETTER PICS HERE...
______________________________________________
I bought my own American Girl Doll. Her name is Allie and she has blond hair which I braided. She also has saddle shoes which I love.
I intend to make her clothing, bedding and many knitted sweaters, hats and miscellaneous items. She will get things I would have been glad to have had when I was nine but they won't necessarily be era specific. In other words, the things I make will not always be year specific to 1950. I like to try techniques and/or stitch patterns and knitting for her will enable me to do this and still have a finished item to use.
I will get some pictures as I go, but right now she has her own knitting basket filled with wool, two Christmas Stockings-she shared one with sister, Kit-, a white sweater and hat.
I hope to make a double knit scarf trying a new technique for me that is like stranding, but should be easier.
I hope to make a plaid knit sweater but will have to design the pattern first-should be fun and a challenge.
 |
| Allie's Knitting Basket |
 |
| Allie's Fun Fur Hat (needs a trim) |
No comments:
Post a Comment