Little Stockings to Knit by the Bunch

This time of year we really do have to be realistic about the amount of time we have for knitting and the things we can actually get done.

It’s not the time to decide to stitch a pair of fingerless gloves for everyone in your office, or scarves for all your husband’s coworkers.

But maybe, just maybe, you can still knit something for those people who didn’t quite earn a handknit garment this year but still deserve a little something nice.

Like these mini dotty stockings from Frankie’s Knitted Stuff.

They’re so cute, and just 9 cm (or about 3.5 inches) long, so they stitch up in no time and are just the size to hold a little sweet treat. Or make a bunch for a wreath or a bunting.

Also, these are knit in fingering weight, so if you adjust the yarn and needles accordingly, you’ll get a bigger stocking that will hold a slightly larger treat, which could be perfect for office gifting, holding gift cards for the teachers, or whatever else you might need adorable stockings for.

[Photo: Frankie’s Knitted Stuff, via Ravelry.]

I guess I must have had this pattern on my mind, because I had chosen this log cabin blanket recipe to write about, promptly forgot about it and a couple of weeks later started knitting a log cabin blanket using all my pink yarn.

It might stay pink if it makes it to baby blanket sized, or I might add in some pastel green and blue, too, to make a bigger blanket. We’ll see. I’m also holding several strands of yarn together to make a kind of bulky yarn, which means it’s deeply satisfying how much yarn is used even as the project is still relatively small.

In Kristen Finlay’s version, DK weight yarn scraps (or fingering/sock yarn held double) are used to make a simple scrappy log cabin blanket that’s lighter weight than my version. Log cabin is a great technique for knitters of any skill level because it’s worked in garter stitch. The only not completely basic technique you need for log cabin knitting is picking up stitches.

If you’ve never worked a log cabin knitting project before, this is a good introduction, and it is really nice to use all your yarn scraps in one big project you’ll use for years to come.

If you use a lot of DK weight yarn you can keep building on it whenever you finish a project, or if you use more worsted weight you can do the same thing with it, it will just be a little bigger starting out than the pattern calls for. How big it gets is totally up to you.

I have really been enjoying working on my log cabin project, and it’s my current sitting at my desk and need a break knit (do you have one of those or is it just me?).

Ready to start your own log cabin blanket knitting project? You can grab the free pattern from Kristen Finlay on Ravelry.

Need more log cabin inspiration? Check out more log cabin knitting patterns.

[Photo: Kristen Finlay]

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