New Petite Purls is Live!

It’s been a big week for online knitting magazines, and with all the excitement about Knitty’s 10 anniversary issue I missed the fact that a new Petite Purls is out, too.

If you don’t know Petite Purls, this is a really cute magazine devoted to knitting (and sewing, and crochet) for kids. The latest issues includes cute projects for summer and fall, including two dresses that are part fabric, part knitting, a knit polo-style shirt, a baby’s shirt with a pocket for a sewn owl friend and a cardigan with OX cables running down the sleeves, to name a few.

The project that first caught my eye when I was scanning Ravelry this morning was Aisling the Elf, a cute little knit doll with fabric fairy wings and a tulle skirt.

There are also patterns here for sewn aprons, patchwork shorts, a summery skirt and a felt playhouse built on a set of bunkbeds, among other projects. So much fun!

[Photo by Rachel Borello Carroll via Petite Purls.]

If you take a look at the issue I’d love to know what catches your eye. Spill it!

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Knitwear designers can get inspiration from almost anything when it comes to re-creating a color scheme, an image or a texture in stitches. Sometimes the inspiration isn’t always obvious in the finished project, but sometimes it’s more literal.

That’s the way it is with the Tin Ceiling Blanket from Purl Soho. Not just because the inspiration is in the name, but if you’ve ever seen one of these old ceilings you can see that the design of the blanket is quite similar to the pattern of the tin tiles.

This is also a good example of the idea that you don’t have to use fancy stitch patterns or lots of color to make a big impact with your knits. This single-color blanket (designed by Gianna Mueller and inspired by a washcloth and towel set designed by Sandi Rosner) is made completely with knits and purls, other than slipped stitches at the beginning of rows to make neater edges.

The pattern is written out row by row, but there’s also a chart, which means this project is a great opportunity to practice reading a chart where you can check your work against the written pattern if you need to.

It comes in two sizes, a crib blanket and a throw. The yarn used in the sample is an organic cotton sold by the cone, which is a great way to get a large quantity of yarn and have fewer ends to weave in. In fact, you can knit either size of the blanket with just one cone of yarn, which isn’t inexpensive but makes you a great, sturdy, heirloom quality but still washable blanket you’ll use for years to come. (Of course you can use any sport weight yarn you like to make this blanket.)

Check out all the details and grab the free pattern from Purl Soho.

[Photo: Purl Soho]

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