Stitch up Some Medals for Olympics Pretend Play

If you have little kids you know how much they love to pretend, and if they’re watching the Olympics they probably want to pretend they’re winning medals, too.

You can stitch up some easy medals for them to play with and wear in no time flat while you’re watching the Games, and they are sure to keep playing with them long after the flame has been extinguished for another couple of years.

I found two patterns for knit medals, including the Olympic Gold Medal Ribbon designed by Studio Knits SF (check her blog for a video tutorial of the pattern). Hers uses red, white and blue for the ribbon bit, which you could change to your nation’s colors if you like or knit in lime green, which seems to be the color they are using in Rio.

Another option is the pattern from the Homemade Mama, which uses an interesting but simple technique to knit a circular shape flat. She shows medals of different colors, and hung hers on ribbon to make the knitting portion a little faster so you can get on to playing.

Would you make these for your kids? I’m rooting around for gold yarn as soon as I finish typing this.

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There’s always room for more stitch dictionaries on your shelf, but Andrea Rangel’s Knitovation Stitch Dictionary is unlike those stitch pattern books you might already own. That’s because this one is full of colorwork stitch patterns rather than textured stitches, lace or cables, so the designs are ripe for adding to hats, sweaters and other projects with a stockinette stitch background.

The book starts with a quick introduction to knitting colorwork that’s also unlike what you’ve probably seen before, because it’s less about the colors themselves and more about the kinds of fibers you choose, how the yarn is prepared and the gauge you’re working at and how those things all change the look of a design.

Most of the book is filled with motif designs and swatches. The motifs were designed and named by Andrea’s husband Sean, who is an artist and brings a bit of whimsy to the designs.

You’ll find some classic looking leaves and flowers, mosaics and waves, but also rubber ducks, penguins, puzzle pieces, cherries and cows, snails and teapots, eyeballs and chess pieces, to name a few. Many of the designs also have funny names, like a fish named toilet bound, or cats in suits called corporate fat cat.

Of course you can use the designs in any way you want on any project you like, but there are also three patterns in the book — for a hat, a sweater and a pair of fingerless gloves — plus discussion of how the motifs were added, adjusting patterns for a different size or gauge, and adding your own motifs.

If you like adding a bit of colorwork to otherwise plain projects that other people have designed, or you’re ready to start making your own designs with fun motifs, this book is a great place to start. The fun and funny motifs are sure to inspire you to want to pick up your needles and add a little more color to your projects.

About the book: 160 pages, hardcover, 150+ motifs and three knitting patterns. Published 2023 by Interweave, suggested retail $28.

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