Things That Make You Go…. “Awwwwwww…”

Imagine if every baby was this happy wearing hand knit garments!

This adorable set is from Red Heart and uses Heart and Sole with Aloe yarn from Red Heart.

For sock lovers looking for an affordable sock yarn with something special, Red Heart “Heart & Sole” yarn is a terrific option. Infused with all the wonderful properties of aloe vera, “Heart & Sole” can soften your hands as you work with it, and you’ll notice your needles & hooks gliding even more smoothly along each strand of this fiber gem. Effortlessly create socks, scarves, gloves, shawls, tops, sweaters and more with auto-striping & faux Fair Isle patterning. Also with a higher nylon content than most sock yarns, easy-care “Heart & Sole” has incredible snap-back features for excellent shaping & long wear. Beautifully crafted in Italy of 70% superwash wool & 30% nylon.

The pattern for the baby vest and socks is free here: http://www.bargainyarns.com/yarn/Heart_Sole-Babys_Holiday_Vests_Socks_WR1960_Free-5151.html

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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