(In "Cool Machine Voice"): Marshmallow!

I watched Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs 2 today, and while I love all the foodimals, my favorites are the marshmallows. I think they're adorable, and after I saw the movie in theaters, I knew I had to have one. So, today, I made one. As you can see, the marshmallow can be a little shy...

But it's very friendly!

Knit in garter stitch, the marshmallow is soft and squishy and knits up in less than two hours (it was cast on when I started the movie and bound off as the credits rolled). Here's how you can have one of your own.

Marshmallow! (bet you read that the "cool machine voice!")
Materials:

• Small amounts of white and black yarn (I used a DK weight in mine.)
• US size 6 (4mm) DPNs 
• Safety eyes (approximately 8mm across-- I lost the packaging and had to estimate.)
• tapestry needle (for weaving in the end)

Gauge: specific gauge is not important in this project, but the fabric you make should be firm enough that the stuffing doesn't show through.

Pattern:
CO 4 sts and join in round being careful not to twist.
Rnd 1: *kfb; rep around. 8 sts.
Rnd 2 (and all even-numbered rnds): Purl all sts.
Rnd 3: *kfb; rep around. 16 sts.
Rnd 5: *kfb, k1; rep around. 24 sts.
Rnd 7: *kfb, k1; rep around. 36 sts.
Rnd 8: Purl.
Knit in garter stitch around (knit a round, purl a round) until your marshmallow is the desired length (mine is about 3.25 in long), ending with a purl round. Give your marshmallow a face and stuff it. Make sure it's plump and squishy, but not so much that the stuffing shows through.
Rnd 1: *k2tog, k1; rep around. 24 sts.
Rnd 2 (and all even-numbered rnds): Purl all sts.
Rnd 3: *k2tog, k1; rep around. 16 sts.
Rnd 5: *k2tog; rep around. 8 sts.
Rnd 7: *k2tog; rep around. 4 sts.
Cut yarn and pull through remaining 4 sts. Knot off and hide end inside.
Viola! You have your very own lovable, huggable marshmallow!

You could, of course, use bigger or smaller needles and yarn to adjust the size, or just keep increasing until you reach the diameter you'd like. Feel free to modify and customize the pattern to make an entire family of marshmallows!

Happy knitting! :)
P.S. Please let know if you find an error or anything that doesn't make sense!

In Sleep He Sang to Me...

It's done. Let me say that again: it's done. My Phantom of the Opera bag is done. I love it just as I knew I would, and I keep turning around to look at it, propped up in a corner of my room. It's been laying on my floor for the past two days, and now it's dry. Here, let me show it to you:

Isn't it marvelous? :) I'm very, very happy with it, though I was surprised at how fast it felted- a mere 15 minutes in the washing machine and I was a little afraid that I felted it too much. But it's good!

This is it before felting (and that purple thing next to it is a 12 inch ruler, for scale):

And this is the mask and rose after felting (one side felted better than the other. Oh well.):

And here is the bag after felting (the blue-green thing is another 12 inch ruler- I managed to misplace the other one in the two days that the bag was drying):

And now, to celebrate the completion of my Phantom of the Opera bag, I present to you the chart of the Phantom's mask!

I hope you enjoy knitting this chart as much as I did. :)

Now I'm working on the Swing Sweater from the fall 2010 issue of KnitSimple magazine using Bernat Softee Chunky yarn in Terra Cotta Mist. I finished the back of the sweater today and started the front, so it shouldn't be too long before it's done. :)

Until next time, happy knitting! :)

Cozy

I know it's been a while since I posted anything. I'm on spring break now, and I'm expecting my ACT results in the mail any day now (keep your fingers crossed for me!). I've been knitting a lot. I've got my mom knitting her first pair of socks, and on DPNs, no less! :) I'm also posting a pattern for you. My mom is a nurse, and I wanted to make her something, so I came up with this:

Stethoscope Cozy

Materials:
- Worsted weight yarn
- size 6 DPNs
- button

Instructions:
CO 16 sts, distributing them on needles in 4-8-4.
K1, P1 ribbing for 4 rnds.
Knit plain until piece measures 17 1/2 inches from CO edge.

Rnd 1: k3, kfb, kfb, k6, kfb, kfb, k3
Rnd 2: knit
Rnd 3: k4, kfb, kfb, k8, kfb, kfb, k4
Rnd 4: knit
Rnd 5: k5, kfb, kfb, k10, kfb, kfb, k5
Rnd 6: knit
Rnd 7: k6, kfb, kfb, k12, kfb, kfb, k6
Rnd 8: knit
Rnd 9: k7, kfb, kfb, k14, kfb, kfb, k7

Knit 3 rnds.
Work in k1, p1 ribbing for 5 rnds.

BO in ribbing 14 sts, k8, BO remaining 14. Reattach yarn and continue k1, p1 ribbing back and forth for 2 1/4 inches.

Next row: k1, p1, k1, p1, yo, slip 1, p1, psso, p1, k1

Continue in k1, p1 ribbing for 4 more rows.
BO in ribbing.
Sew on button where ribbing begins (see pictures below for clarification).


I will post pictures when I make another one. Let me know if there are any errors and I will correct them.

*Edit*
Okay, I tried to post the pictures of the stethoscope cozy I finished today, but I ended up with a bunch of HTML jargon instead, so maybe I'll try again later.

Happy knitting! :)

Bittersweet

I'm looking forward to Thanksgiving break (no school and pumpkin pie!), but I'm also very sad because my best friend, Stephanie, is moving to Arizona. Since wool socks and scarves aren't quite appropriate for the temperatures down there, I came up with something else for her (which she'll be recieving in the mail for Christmas).

Steph's Arizona Bag
Materials:
- Size 10 (US) straight needles
- Size 10 (US) circular needles
- Worsted weight wool (I used Patons Classic Wool in Currant [or maybe Burgundy; I'm not too sure] for the bottom and Rosewood for the body and strap)
- Tapestry needle

Pattern:
CO 40 sts.
Work in grater st., slipping the first st. of each row, until your work is approximately as wide as it is long (you want a square). This was about 9 inches for me.
BO all sts.

Using circular needles, pick up stitches around the perimeter of your square. The number you pick up isn't terribly important. I picked up 40 on the BO edge, 38 on the side, 38 on the CO edge, and 39 on the other side, coming to a grand total of 155 stitches.

Join in the round. Knit all rounds until bag reaches desired height (roughly 13 inches for me).

BO 17, k6, BO remaining sts. Attach working yarn to remaining 6 sts and work back and forth in stockinette stitch until the strap reaches the desired length (about 21 inches on mine).

Using the tapestry needle and your yarn, securely sew the end of the strap to the opposite side of the bag.

Weave in ends and felt lightly. Let dry (over a form, if you'd like [see below for an example]).

And now, pictures!


This is the base of the bag.


















Knitting the sides in the round.


















Finished the bag.


















Knitting the strap.


















Completed strap.


















Stitch definition pre-felting.


















Stitch definition post-felting.


















My sophisticated felted-bag drying apparatus (i.e., a cardboard box with a plastic grocery bag over it).


















The finished bag that Steph will get in the mail. :)


















Happy knitting! :)

Before I Forget...

Before I forget to post this again, I have a knitting pattern to share.

Easy Peasy Sleevies (Titles are not my forte.)
These sleeves started out a simple rectangular shawl, but I wanted something that would both keep me warm and stay in place. And so the sleevies were made.

Materials:
-Any worsted weight yarn
-Size US 8 needles
-Tapestry needle

Pattern:
(Gauge is not terribly important in this project)

CO 65 stitches.

Work in garter stitch until desired length (about 54 inches for me, but I'm short). You need it to be long enough to go from one wrist, across your back, and down to the other wrist.

BO all stitches.

Using the tapestry needle, sew the long edges of the rectangle from the end (CO or BO edge) for however long you need (Mine was about 15 inches from wrist to underarm) to form sleeves.

I will post pictures soon to clarify things. If you have any questions, feel free to leave a comment!

*Edit* Pictures! I hope these help to clear things up, but if you're still confused about something, just let me know!