Tag Archives: sheep in a jeep

New Pattern: Radish Pullover

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It’s almost Christmas, and I have a present for you!

It’s the pattern for my Radish Pullover!  It turned out so well, that I just had to write it up.  And I hope you like it, too.

IMG_2276It’s a fairly simple bottom up, seamless pullover with a V-neck and 2×2 ribbing around the cuffs, hem and collar.  There is a fully-charted stranded Radish motif that runs across the sleeves and belly, and the pattern is sized from 0-6 months up to 8-10 years.

This sweater is a great way to use up those partial skeins of sock yarn that I’m sure you have laying around your stash.  The brown doesn’t use more than a half skein, and the radish colors (green, red and white) are only used for a handful of rows each.

And the best part? Since the inspiration for this sweater came from my kid’s favorite book, Sheep in a Jeep, I’m donating all proceeds from this pattern to the Children’s Literacy Initiative, a fantastic organization that supports teachers and their students to help every kid learn how to read.   I’m trying a “Pay what you can” model this time, so you can get the pattern for free, or donate up to $15 (or whatever feels right to you).IMG_2257

So, head on over to Ravelry and pick up a copy of the Radish Pullover so you can make a sweater for your favorite little reader!

Sheep are done with their Jeep!

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It’s done it’s done it’s done it’s done!

My Sheep in a Jeep sweater is done in time for our big Midwestern Trip for Thanksgiving!  I’m going to have a very cozy (and dapper) boy.

Fair warning: these pictures are a little silly, because the kid is a little silly, and is incredibly interested in the camera clicking.  Honestly, most of the pictures looked like this:

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Looking for cars:  (You can actually see the knitting in this one, if only the back.  I’m so pleased with how the color work blocked out! I was worried it would be a little pucker-y.)

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Blue Steel:

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This is the face he’s started making when I ask him to “smile.” It’s not a real smile, but I love it very much.  Silly boy.

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Anyway, the verdict is: The sweater fits great, but still has a little growing room.  The floats on the cuffs caught both of his hands as we were getting dressed this morning, which will be something to keep in mind in the future (hopefully they felt up a little).  All together, I’d count it as a success!

 

Sheep (almost) in a Jeep!

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Ooh, guys!  My sweater is coming along great!  In fact, I’ve finished the knitting!  Woo hoo!IMG_2192

However, I’ve got two things standing in my way of being completely finished:

1. Ends.  So. Many. Ends.  5 colors, three sections of sweater, plus Kitchener for the underarms and a few other odd ends from sleeves and collar and such. I really don’t want to weave them in.  It seems unfair that you “finish” a project, then have to spend another three hours actually finishing it.  A smarter person would have woven in the ends as they went. Sigh.

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2. I’m a little worried about the floats, especially on the sleeves.  I was really on the fence about adding the color work on the sleeves, but decided to go ahead and do it (which I’m glad about- I think it turned out really cute).  But, those floats are kinda long, and my kid’s fingers are kinda small and prone to getting stuck in small places, so I worry about running into difficulty getting him dressed  The only thing I can hope for at this point is that they felt up a little bit with wear.  Because I’m not undoing and redoing them again.  I refuse.

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But, despite my whining and worrying, I really am pleased with how this sweater is turning out.  It’s probably the cutesiest thing I’ve made for my kid (usually I dress him like a little old man).  And the little radishes/turnips just make me so happy.  It’s funny how fast I can get something done when I really enjoy the project!

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Have you been working on anything particularly fun lately?

Sheep in a Jeep and a Sweater on my Needles

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I’m stoked, you guys.  I finished my work knitting (thank god), and that means I finally get to work on the sweater I’ve been thinking about for months now!

That’s right, I’m going to do it!  I’m going to make a Sheep in a Jeep sweater for my kid!

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I dug through my stash and, would you believe, I had all the colors I needed for my design!  (Except for white, which was easy enough to fix.)  I’m using Knit Picks Hawthorne, because it’s sturdy enough to hold up to a one-year-old, it’s machine washable and it’s fine enough that I can do color-work in it without it getting weird.  Also, it’s what I had in my stash, and you know I like knitting from my stash.

I’m kind of winging the pattern, basing it roughly on the measurements of a similar gauged sweater (Christmas in July), but making it a bottom-up, raglan, v-neck, instead of a top-down, yoked, crew-neck.  So basically it’s an entirely different sweater.

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The bottom of the sweater will be brown, with a row of radishes “growing” in the soil, then blue sky above.  I’m kind of on the fence if I want radishes on the sleeves, too.  I don’t know if color-work sleeves are a good idea for a toddler sweater.  But, I’ve got a while before I have to decide.

I’m so excited about this project!  And, if it turns out, I might just turn it into a pattern!

What are you excited about these days?

Sheep in a Jeep!

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As a stay at home parent, I spend a lot of my day reading kids books.  And, since my kid’s one and a half, and getting into the “Again! Again!” phase, I’ve been reading the same books over and over again.  Sometimes it’s an absolute chore (I’m looking at you, Follow that Truck!), but sometimes it’s great.  Especially when the book has a nice story, fun rhymes and detailed pictures.  Enter: Sheep in a Jeep by Nancy  Shaw.IMG_1973.JPGIt’s a delightful book about sheep who are remarkably bad at driving.  In 26 pages, they manage to 1. stall out their Jeep on the top of a hill,  2. get their Jeep stuck in a mud puddle, and 3. crash their Jeep against a tree.  It’s all very dramatic.

Anyway, on read-through 1,325, I noticed that one of the sheep has a knitting bag with her, and it goes flying when the car crashes.  She’s got 5 colors of yarn, and a half-finished… something.  Maybe it’s the beginning of a sweater or a scarf, or maybe it’s just a swatch.  Either way, it was super cute colorwork.  IMG_1977I noticed reddish ribbing on the bottom, then a row of… maybe blue and white circles, before a row of white triangles and red circles… and maybe some green on top with black dots? It wasn’t too clear, but I had a little time in my knitting schedule and some of the kid’s crayons to try to chart it out, so away I went.IMG_1981But halfway, through, I realized the red, white and green shapes weren’t just shapes… they were turnips!  (Or maybe radishes? It’s hard to tell the difference.)

I went back through the book to see if I could find another picture of the knitting.  And, wouldn’t you believe it- right on the back, clear as day, there was another view.  And now that I know they’re radishes, I can’t not see them.  Obviously- a row of radishes and a row of green dots.  How didn’t I see it before?IMG_1980Now that I was this far, I had to keep going- And another swatch later, I’ve got a very cute little radish design.  I’d change the colors so the contrast is there, but it’s a good start.IMG_1985Now I’ve just got to decide what to use this for.  Right now, I’m thinking a little pullover for the kiddo.  Maybe with a light blue background “above ground” and a nice chocolate brown heather for the dirt.  I think I might stagger the dots and the radishes,  and the leaves still need a little work, but I like where it’s going.

This whole Sheep in a Jeep project is getting a little out of hand (but maybe that’s fitting, considering the source material…).

Where’s the weirdest place you’ve gotten knitting inspiration from?