Cute Stuff for Kids

A few adorable projects for little ones have come across my radar lately, so if you’ll looking to stitch something sweet for someone small, check these projects out.

The Jelli Beenz Baby Cardigan (from Plymouth via Noble Knits) is a really simple shape but it ups the skill level and the interest by working one side of the sweater in one color and one side in another. Yes, it’s intarsia. No, it’s not hard.

The Tumbling Blocks Blankie from Lion Brand Yarn is super cute in pastels as shown, but could be worked in more grown up colors for a modern baby on the go. Either way, it’s a great way to practice entrelac on a big scale.

When I posted my heart hat knitting patterns the other day, I completely forgot that I had been saving up this one, from Cascade via Love Knitting (free registration required). It’s worked from the bottom up and the colorwork is all near the beginning of the project, so once you get through that it’s smooth sailing. The ear flaps are pretty adorable, too.

When peeking at the recently published projects on Ravelry the other day, I spied this adorable cowl for kids from Blue Highway Hand Dyes. Called Castilleja, the genus name of the Indian paintbrush flower, it’s perfectly sized for a preschooler who won’t wear a scarf.

Toys are always a great choice for little ones, too, so check out a roundup of toy patterns at Love Knitting, and don’t forget to stop and ooh and aah over Barrison, a lovely little bear from Berroco.

Have you come across any cute knits for kids lately? I’d love to see them!

Not too long ago I did a test knit for another designer that was for a cabled cardigan. It’s really cozy and nice but it just about broke me in a ton of different ways. I couldn’t get gauge, which I suppose is my own problem, but mainly I was somehow both bored and forced to pay attention at the same time.

Because it used the same cable all over, I always had to know what row I was on, but nine out of ten of those rows, nothing in particular was going on. So I couldn’t stop paying attention, but what I needed to attend to was boring.

It may have ruined me for knitting cabled sweaters, but maybe I just need something that’s more engaging. Like this Modern Aran Cardigan pattern from Lion Brand Yarn.

This is a reworking of an old pattern from their archives, and you can tell that form the classic look of the cables and the oversized feel (nothing cropped about this one!). It has allover cables, but like a classic Aran sweater it’s not the same cable, so you’ll have to pay attention to what row you’re on and what cable turns happen for which cables on that row.

Because of this, it’s considered an intermediate knitting pattern, but if you’re comfortable working from multiple charts at once it shouldn’t be a problem for you. There are three different charts and seven different cable moves.

Also because the pattern is so big and boxy there are only two sizes available, with a finished chest measurement of either 49 or 63 inches (that’s 124.5 or 160 cm). It’s up to you to decide how much ease you would like and whether that will work for your body.

The pattern uses worsted weight yarn (and calls for another classic, Lion Brand Fisherman’s Wool). It calls for six buttons and includes pockets to make it extra cozy.

This one looks like a great winter project to make and to wear if you’re up for a bit of a challenge. You can grab the free pattern or buy a kit with the yarn needed direct from Lion Brand Yarn.

[Photo: Lion Brand Yarn]

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