Knit Accessories Inspired by Ballet

November 24, 2023 by Sarah White Leave a Comment

This week’s free pattern is actually four free patterns, all from Wool and the Gang, all inspired by accessories a ballerina might wear, but that you can also enjoy even if you’re not a dancer.

First, there’s the ballet scrunchie pattern, which uses two colors and a ribbed pattern. It’s rated for intermediate knitters and the post says it takes about two hours to knit, which makes it perfect as a stocking stuffer for girls and ladies of all ages in your life. Make them in different colors and fibers to bust some stash, too.

Pair that with the Perfect Sense wrap, which is basically a long-sleeved shrug, or an extremely cropped pullover. It has a funnel neck and a relaxed fit through the arms. It’s worked from the top down so you could make the body as long as you like if you want more coverage.

If you like a more traditional ballet style sweater look, check out the Elliot Sweater, a classic wrap sweater beloved by ballerinas and others who want to be cozy and stylish at the same time. This intermediate knitting pattern is worked in a super fluffy alpaca blend yarn for extra coziness, and you’ll want to slip it on over everything all season long.

Of course you can’t talk about ballet-inspired patterns without having some legwarmers (though honestly I think legwarmers should be more popular than they are; that little extra bit of warmth always makes me happy when I wear them). The Wilkinson leg warmers pattern calls for the same yarn as the Elliot sweater above, and uses two kinds of ribbing for a stretchy, slouchy fit that still holds onto your leg where it needs to. This pattern is easy and a great one for newer knitters.

[Photo: Wool and the Gang]

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Use Your Sock Yarn Scraps to Knit a Colorful Scarf

Using your yarn stash is important to me throughout the year, but as I start to feel the end of the year coming on I get more excited about using things I already have in the house. Maybe that’s because I don’t want to go to a store in the thick of holiday shopping times, or I like the idea of having a little space in my stash when the new year rolls around.

It’s super satisfying to use up all the little odd balls you’ve made over the year (or years), and I have several stash busting blankets I work on when it’s cold and will maybe finish someday.

If you’d like to start a stash busting project that’s perfect for using up odd balls, check out the Soukish pattern from Neisha Abdulla. This pattern is made for fingering weight/sock yarn, and it’s worked in a tube with allover color work.

This is great for a couple of reasons. You don’t really have to weave in your ends when you can hide them in a tube (this is one time you might even get by just tying a knot when you change colors!) and you can change colors whenever you run out of yarn and it will look good.

Of course the pattern is made with blocks where the designer changed colors, but you can change yours more or less often as you need to make it work for your stash. You can use blank charts to design your own color combinations, or even your own stitch patterns if you like. You can also adjust the length of the scarf as needed or turn it into a cowl based on the amount of yarn you have.

This project looks like a lot of fun and would be a great thing to have on hand to stitch up and then to wear during the cold, gloomy months.

You can get a copy of the pattern on Ravelry.

[Photo: Neisha Abdulla]

Another Way to Use Up All Your Sock Yarn Scraps

Gather Your Scraps for a Fun Wrap

A Scrappy Shawl Knitting Pattern to Use All Your Odd Balls

Use All Your Yarn Scraps on This Great Cardigan Knitting Pattern

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