Pattern Tip: Start with the Sleeves

Here’s a great tip from the knitting blog over at WEBS: when starting a new pieced sweater pattern, knit the sleeves first.

If you’re trying out a new technique, want to see how colors work together or just want to skip swatching (not that I’d recommend that!) starting with a sleeve gives you a quick way to see if you like the pattern or want to change something. And of course if your gauge is off it’s easier — meaning less heartbreaking — to rip out a couple of inches of sleeve rather than a couple of inches of body.

Speaking of WEBS, their annual anniversary sale is going on right now. It runs through the end of May, but there are some specials that are only available this month, and you’ll want to stock up early to get the best selection. This sale is the reason I have so much Cascade 220 in my house; it’s on sale for $5.59 a skein down from $8. There are tons of great yarns on sale form Berroco, Debbie Bliss, Rowan, Plymouth and WEBS’ own Valley Yarns, in addition to some needle sets. Check it out.

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I’ve shared a lot of Christmas stocking knitting patterns over the years (see posts 1, 2, 3 for example) but what if you want to knit a stocking for a non-human member of your family. If you’re looking for Christmas stocking knitting patterns for your cats or dogs, this is the post for you.

These large paw print stockings are perfect for either dogs or cats, so they’re great to knit if you have both. They are worked in the round using DK weight yarn, and the stocking measures about 17 inches/43 cm from the top to the heel. You can get the pattern from nicolaluke.

The K4 Project has a super cute Kitty Christmas stocking pattern, which is worked in worsted weight yarn. They also have a dog version, or you can buy both and get a discount if you have both dogs and cats to knit for. Both projects have two patterns, showing how to work the stockings flat or in the round.

Put your dog into a Christmas scene with this stocking pattern from ifanhourChild. It shows a dog in a dog house in the snow, and has room for the dog’s name at the top. It’s worked flat using worsted weight yarn and the pattern includes charts for many small and medium dog breeds (there’s a separate listing for bigger dogs) so you can stitch a dog that looks like yours.

Annie’s Woolens has both dog and cat stocking knitting patterns that are worked in worsted weight yarn in the round. You can change up the colors to suit your pet if you want, and they come with an alphabet chart for personalization. Or you can stick with holiday colors and buy a kit to make the dog or cat stocking.

Waiting for Santa Paws is a pattern from Kate Agner on Ravelry that would be cute for a dog or a cat. It looks like a leg with a paw print on the bottom part of the foot and more paw prints running around the top of the leg. This is a great option if you don’t want to mess with a heel turn because it doesn’t have a heel, because dogs and cats don’t have heels so why would their stockings?

Book Review – 20 to Knit: Tiny Christmas Toys to Knit

Book Review – Knit Christmas Stockings

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