Pretty little trees

-
This is the perfect time to start knitting Christmas decorations, if you haven't yet done so. They are fun, quick knits and you still have time to finish before it's too late.

Today I have a cute little pattern for you.

Needles and yarn: Drops Big Merino and 4mm/8UK/6US needles.
Gauge: 20 sts = 10 cm, 4 inches.
Note: this yarn's recommended needle size is 5mm, but by using 2 sizes below I obtain a stiffer fabric that hangs flat. If using another yarn, use a smaller needle than recommended as well. It is easy to adapt the pattern by continuing to increase until the tree is the desired size and binding off a proportional number of stitches in each section.

Abbreviations:
CO: cast-on (long-tail or your favourite).
st(s): stitch(es).
kfb: knit front and back, 1 st increase.
k: knit.
slkwyf: slip knitwise with yarn in the front.
BO: bind-off (loosely, your favourite one).

Note: this pattern includes a selvage stitch (slkwyf). This is optional and I think the trunk (knit in orange) may look better without it.


With green yarn:
CO 3 sts, leaving enough tail to make a loop to hang the tree.
Row 1: kfb, k to last st, slkwyf (+1st).
Repeat row 1 until there are 8 sts total.
Row 6: kfb, k to end (9 sts).
Row 7: BO 2 sts, k to end (7 sts).
Row 8: BO 2 sts, k to last st, slkwyf (5 sts).
Repeat row 1 until there are 12 sts total.
Row 16: kfb, k to end (13 sts).
Row 17: BO 3 sts, k to end (10 sts).
Row 18: BO 3 sts, k to last st, slkwyf (7 sts).
Repeat row 1 until there are 14 sts total.
Row 26: kfb, k to end (15 sts).
BO all sts.

With orange yarn:
Pick the 5 central sts of the BO.
All rows: k4, slkwyf.
Repeat above row a total of 5 times.
BO all sts.
Weave in both BO ends.
With CO end, to make a loop with the desired length, use a darning needle to make a knot in the wrong side of the tree.

Optional: sew a few shiny things (for example sequins, or simply use a bright coloured yarn), to the tree as decoration.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Addi vs. Knit Pro: a review

-
The short version of this post: The difference between Addi and KnitPro is relatively small, so you'll be happy with which ever you buy. I personally prefer Addi Lace. KnitPro Synfonie and Nova being second best, in my opinion. Do not buy KnitPro cubics. Basic Addi have rounded tips that make knitting (knit and purl) easier and faster, but knitting lace (making increases and decreases) a lot more difficult. So I do not recommend them (even though I use these needle the most often), because sharper tips are simply more versatile. Metal vs. wood or bamboo: metal has less friction, thus knitting with this is faster and more pleasant. But, for the same reason, stitches are more prone to drop off metal needles. I'd recommend wood for beginners, metal for more experienced knitters. Metal needles are less prone to breaking. Long story told short, I own both a set of Knit Pro interchangeable Symfonie wood needles and the Basic set of Addi interchangeable metal needles. I also...
Read more

Converting patterns for Portuguese-style knitting: a tutorial, part 1

-
A few years ago I wrote a post about converting increases and decreases from German or English-style knitting to Portuguese-style knitting. Do you need to do that? Not really, there is nothing to stop you from just going ahead and knit a pattern exactly as it's written. Then, why would you want to do that? Because most patterns written for German or English-style knitting include as much knit stitches and as little purl stitches as possible, since the former are much easier to work than the latter when you keep your yarn behind the needles. On the other hand, when working in Portuguese-style, you keep your yarn in front of the needles and thus you would like to purl as much as possible. The best example of this is, of course, garter stitch, as used in the microplastic ban pattern . There are two ways of converting this pattern to Portuguese-style: Straight-forward conversion: use the stitch dictionary and invert the order of stitches . Then, Increase row: k2, yo, knit to end. D...
Read more

Kissing fish

-
Image
I have already written quite a few posts on socks and even a few on sock heels in particular. And this is another one to add to the list. The Fish Lips Kiss Heel by Sox Therapist is fast becoming the most popular patterns on Ravelry. This is not a standard pattern but rather a (very long) full tutorial on how to knit almost any sock integrating this heel including extra advice on making sure the sock fits perfectly. Costing only a little bit more than $1 USD, it is not free but a real bargain. What is the Fish Lips Kiss Heel? You may want to know before spending your money on a pattern you may very well dislike. It is basically a short-row heel method that uses a very particular type of stitch replacing the traditional wraps-and-turns. The author of this pattern calls them twin stitches and there are two of them (or more exactly there are two ways of working the same twin stitch). The knit twin stitch (a twin stitch worked on the right side): and the purl twin stitch (a...
Read more