Wait Out Summer with the Beach Scene Vest Knitting Pattern

It might not be beach weather just yet in most parts of the world, but you can warm up and dream of beach weather while you knit and wear the Beach Scene Vest from Lion Brand Yarn.

The pattern comes in two sizes and is rated as easy. The pieces of the vest are worked flat, with the back worked in stripes of stockinette stitch and the pattern on the front stitched using intarsia. Both are worked in stockinette stitch with ribbing at the edges.

The project uses super bulky yarn so it’s not really suitable to wear on the beach, but it will get you thinking warm and cozy thoughts.

Another fun thing about this one is that it’s actually part of a set of free patterns with scenes to knit. The designs are interchangeable so you can, for instance, knit the city scene on a vest or the farm scene on a pillow instead. Here are the other patterns:

This is a lot of fun because you can choose the thing you want to knit and the design that you want to include. The cardigan uses the design on the back and the stripes on the front, so it’s sort of the opposite of the vest. You could also knit all the pieces of the collection as they are shown or mix up the images to make the designs your own.

I kind of love the idea of making all the scenes as pillows for a person who loves to travel, or you could even make the panels and use them as wall hangings or the beginning of a blanket. How about a baby blanket for a wanderlust filled little one? There are so many options and lots of fun ways to use these easy and colorful patterns.

[Photo: Lion Brand Yarn.]

As we get into the part of the year with a lot of food-forward holidays, it might be time to start thinking about knitting some new things for your table. While a few of these are more fall/Thanksgiving focused, just changing up the colors would make others work for Christmas, or keep it neutral and use them all year long.

What got me started thinking about this was the lovely and simple Fresh Bread Dishtowel, a free pattern from Purl Soho. Worked in a lovely cotton and linen blend, the towel is mostly stockinette stitch with a bit of texture on the borders.

You could use this same kind of pattern to make anything from placemats to a table runner, but let’s look at some specific patterns for those kinds of projects as well.

The easy moss stitch table runner from Glass Bird Knits is beginner friendly can can easily be modified to fit your table (or, again, to make placemats instead of or in addition to a runner). This version is worked in macrame cord, but you could also use bulky yarn.

Emielle Design has a garter stitch runner pattern that’s made with braided cotton cord for a lot of texture without a lot of work. But be sure to take a lot of breaks when knitting with cord because it can be rough on your hands!

I also love the diamond pattern on the Hamilton Table Runner from Wyndlestraw Designs. It calls for a DK weight cotton and linen blend yarn and comes in three sizes with different widths and lengths. The pattern has both written and charted instructions.

Amy Marie’s Table Pumpkins (on Ravelry) is a fun mosaic knitting pattern that would be great to use as a table runner through the fall and for Thanksgiving. It uses a worsted weight cotton yarn in two colors, and you can make it as long as you like for your table.

The no cable knit placemats from Yarn Culture Studio have a fun faux cable look that would be great for the table through the fall and winter.

Or here’s another pattern from Wyndlestraw Designs, this time for an easy knit and purl stitch placemat pattern that looks different but still good on both sides. It calls for worsted weight cotton and comes in two sizes for placemats, but also has instructions for coasters, a hot pad and a table pad all using the same stitch.

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