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Month: March 2010

Pink Baby Sweater Jacket

Cindy4 Comments

Here is my latest baby wearable I made for my granddaughter. I crocheted this cute pattern by Beverly called Cat’s Meow Toddler Jacket using Bernat Baby Jacquards. It is a fairly easy pattern but I did have some questions and I thought I’d clarify a few issues that I had as I worked the pattern.

First I wasn’t sure what the pattern was referring to when it read “Work over 26 patterns for 3 rows” after you finish the sleeves. I figured out it was talking about the vertically rows that this stitch pattern forms as you crochet the repeat pattern. I counted over 26 pattern rows which was about 10-1/2 inches from the sleeve edge and 4 inches from side edge in to neck.

Next I found that the border needs to start on the left side as you are looking at it which is the actual right hand side of sweater. I also found that it was easier for me to do the buttonholes on the right side of jacket by starting from the top edge and working down. Because I started at the top, I worked single crochet (sc) stitches in the first 8 stitches from the collar down to the first buttonhole. Then I worked the first buttonhole ch 2, skip 2 sts, and then worked sc in the next 8 stitches and repeated down to bottom of the right side.

I finished off the border by working a sc around in each st and 3 sc in corners the same as row 4 calls for in the pattern. I worked the collar’s first row by sc in each st and then skipping every 4th stitch but then I worked the remaining rows of the collar by sc in each stitch and 3 sc at collar points. I edged my sweater jacket with white contrasting yarn by working sc around the collar and cuffs and then I crocheted the ruffled edging around the rest of the sweater.

I hope my notes may help anyone else that may have questions working this pattern. It’s really an adorable finished baby jacket and I can’t wait to see my sweet granddaughter model it.

Thrift Store Sweater Upcycled

Cindy16 Comments

Recycling thrift store sweaters is a great way to reclaim some nice yarn at a reasonable price. I recently picked up this mohair blend sweater from my local thrift store with high hopes to unravel the yarn. Well I soon found out that this sweater didn’t want to unravel and appears to be an interlocked knit.

I put on my thinking cap in an effort to upcycle this old sweater into some new and useful items. First I used the lower portion of the sweater to create a scarf cowl. Using some scrap yarn, I added two rows of single crochet along the lower edges to finish off the raw edges where the sweater body had been attached. My upcycled cowl was finished off with some wooden buttons from my stash.

Next I tackled using the sleeve as a plastic bag holder. The natural cuff on the sweater was perfect for transforming the sleeve into a handy bag keeper. As shown in the pictures, I folded under the top of the sleeve to the inside. Using a basting stitch, I sewed around the top edge about 1 inch from the top to create a casing for the ribbon tie closure. I machine stitched the basting to hold the fold in place and also so I could crochet in a straight line to create my casing. I left the back of the casing open where the sleeve seam is. Then using a small D crochet hook and some scrap brown yarn, I worked a slip stitch over the basting and through both layers to create my casing for the ribbon tie closure. See photos below and you can click on any other them to enlarge the pictures.

I added a hook hanger at the back by chaining the length I wanted and then worked back down the chain by working a single crochet stitch around the chain and attached both ends into the back of the bag keeper. I threaded a piece of ribbon through the casing and tied it at the back with a bow to complete the plastic bag keeper. I present the upcycled thrift store sleeve which has been transformed into a plastic bag holder.