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Stitch up Some Medals for Olympics Pretend Play

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knit olympic medalsIf you have little kids you know how much they love to pretend, and if they’re watching the Olympics they probably want to pretend they’re winning medals, too.

You can stitch up some easy medals for them to play with and wear in no time flat while you’re watching the Games, and they are sure to keep playing with them long after the flame has been extinguished for another couple of years.

I found two patterns for knit medals, including the Olympic Gold Medal Ribbon designed by Studio Knits SF (check her blog for a video tutorial of the pattern). Hers uses red, white and blue for the ribbon bit, which you could change to your nation’s colors if you like or knit in lime green, which seems to be the color they are using in Rio.

Another option is the pattern from the Homemade Mama, which uses an interesting but simple technique to knit a circular shape flat. She shows medals of different colors, and hung hers on ribbon to make the knitting portion a little faster so you can get on to playing.

Would you make these for your kids? I’m rooting around for gold yarn as soon as I finish typing this.

Next Pattern:

Have you read?

A Short and Sweet Top to Knit for Summer

I think one of the things that keeps me from wearing some of the summer tops that I have knit is that when they use worsted weight yarn, they’re actually heavier and warmer than a normal T-shirt would be. Which sometimes is fine, since I tend to be cold, but it’s not always what you want from your warm-weather gear.

That’s why shirts and tops knit with fingering (aka sock) yarn are so great. They’re super light weight and honestly they don’t take as long to knit as you probably think they will.

I’m sure that’s true with the Maya Top from Gavriella Treminio, especially if you choose the cropped length option. This top down sweater has a textured circular yoke with bobbles and eyelets, while the rest of the body is worked in stockinette stitch. Other than the integrated ribbed neckband, other edges are left in stockinette so they will roll slightly to finish the casual look. 

The design comes with seven different size options, ranging from 36 to 62 inches in the chest. The pattern page doesn’t say how much ease is meant to be included in the pattern, but starting at size 36 would leave it pretty roomy for folks in the smaller sizes.

I don’t think the suggested yarn is made anymore, but it looks like a top that would be lovely in a mercerized cotton or a linen and silk blend, something with a little bit of shine to it. This is one of those times when the yarn suggestions on Ravelry can be super helpful because you can see what yarn other people used and how their finished projects came out.

You can get this pattern on Ravelry.

Looking for more summer top patterns? I’ve collected some lacy top knitting patterns here, and a few great tank top knitting patterns here.

[Photo: Gavriella Treminio.]

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