This Simple Knit Tray Will Have You Thinking Spring

I love having knit things in my home where I can use them all the time. It’s a reminder that what I do is useful, for one thing, but it also lets people know when they come to my home (if they didn’t already know) that making and using homemade things is important to me.

I don’t have any of the brilliantly colored Isaac Mizrahi yarn that Made by ChrissieD used for her Knitted Tray (alas, the nearest Michael’s is an hour away), but I think I may need one of these trays, anyway.

It uses exactly one skein of yarn (which is only 79 yards, so I’m sure I’ve got some super bulky in my stash that would work, and you probably do, too) and its worked in a square and for shallow rectangles for the sides, so it’s a super simple and quick knit, too.

Do use use knitting (or crochet, or sewing) to make baskets, trays or other storage vessels in your home? I’d love to hear about them!

[Photo via Made by ChrissieD.]

Last year I shared a roundup of shorts knitting patterns over at Our Daily Craft, and it’s consistently one of my most popular posts this time of year.

What that post lacked, though, was any projects of mine, because I have never written a shorts knitting pattern before.

And I guess technically I still haven’t, but I have written a detailed tutorial of how to knit shorts that fit you. Use whatever yarn you have, at whatever gauge you like, and knit using whatever stitch pattern you want to make the size you need.

The “pattern” walks you through knitting a swatch and the measurements and math you’ll need to do to make sure your shorts fit. Yes there is math. It’s not terrible, I promise. And because gauge is sometimes a liar, I talk you through all the points along the way where I tried the shorts on as I went to adjust the fit as needed.

This was actually a really fun project. I used yarn I’d salvaged from ripping up one of my husband’s old sweaters (with permission, of course!) and made a really simple pair of lounge shorts that’s all stockinette stitch with knit hems.

But it’s really easy to change it to make ribbed edges, or throw in an allover stitch pattern, or stripes, or whatever else you want to do. I love writing tutorials like this instead of patterns because I don’t know what your body is like or what kind of fit you want, or how long you’d like the legs on your shorts to be. And it’s really satisfying to be able to figure it out for yourself.

And once you know how to knit shorts that fit you, there’s nothing stopping you from keeping on with the legs and knitting a pair of pants in just the same way.

I’m actually really tempted to do just that. Good thing I’ve got another sweater to unravel.

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