Friday Fun: Hospice Yarn Bombing, Mr. Rogers’ Sweaters and More

It seems like I have a bunch of little things to talk about that have piled up from my vacation last week, so let’s do a bit of a lightning round, shall we?

The First Fall Knitty is out, which seems a little crazy when it’s not even officially summer yet, but I know we knitters need time to work on projects before the season hits. Lost of fun shawls and cowls, a knit tie, a really pretty hat and some sweaters and other good stuff, too. I like Bosco, and Romi’s gorgeous knit rainbow earrings. I might be making some today, even though I hardly ever wear earrings.

A tree and the lawn around Sue Ryder Leckhampton Court hospice in Gloucestershire were secretly decorated with knitting and crochet, apparently by someone who had used the hospice’s services. The tree was yarn bombed with flowers and little stitched people were set out beneath the tree having a tea party. What a lovely gesture of whimsy that brought lots of smiles to people’s faces.

All of us of a certain age probably love Mister Rogers, and as knitters we should love him even more for his cardigans (which his mom knit for him; cue the “awww”s). Owen Phillips at the Awl recently shared that Tim Lybarger at Neighborhood Archive has charted the colors of the cardigans worn by Mister Rogers in every episode of his show from 1979 to 2001. There were just three episodes in that time when he didn’t wear a sweater. His favorite colors? Green and red. I don’t know why we needed this information, but I’m still glad it’s available. Check it out!

[Photo: Gloucestershire Live.]

Looking for more knitting patterns for knitted Cardigans? Check out these Knitting patterns we found on Etsy.

Specific to knitters, you can join our Knitting Patterns Only group to get, well, knitting patterns, ask questions and gain inspiration for what to knit next.

Looking for Yarn online? Check out Lionbrand our preferred source for purchasing yarn online.

Getting ready for back to school makes me think about pencil crafts, so let’s take a look at some pencil themed knitting patterns!

I recently made a pencil on a circular knitting machine, and it was a fun, quick, easy project that uses little bits of leftover yarn (and if you don’t have yellow you can make it a colored pencil using whatever color’s your favorite). And if you want to make a bigger version check out this pattern from Orange Olive Road on Etsy.

If you want to knit a pencil pillow by hand, check out Sketchy, available on Ravelry from Shana S. Cohen. This one uses worsted weight yarn and has two size options and the choice to make a pencil with an eraser or a colored pencil.

Pencil scarves seem to be the most popular kind of pencil knitting pattern, and there are lot of cute ones. This one from Cosy Craft UK mostly uses garter stitch, with some welts to add texture and what looks like an I-cord edging. It calls for DK weight yarn.

If you want to go all garter stitch try this version from Emsley Co Creations, which uses five colors of DK weight yarn and just a little shaping to make the point of the pencil.

There’s also this fun, mostly stockinette so it looks like it curls a bit, pencil pattern that looks like it’s worked in chunky yarn from Little Knits Studio. This one uses just a little garter stitch and easy shaping for the point.

If you don’t want a pencil scarf, how about some pencil socks? The No. 2 Pencil Socks from The Yarn Enabler are available from Ravelry and use five colors of sock yarn. They feature wide ribs to mimic the texture of a pencil and have options to be worked from the top down or the toe up.

Needs Sharpening by Alexander Walker is a free pattern on Ravelry that uses five colors of sock yarn to make a sort of shortie sock. The little bit of black at the tips of the toes inspired the name. These, too, can be worked in either direction and are available in three sizes.

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