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I finished yet another collared striped poncho for my American Girl Doll.
I decided to add a bit more yellow after the red variegated stripe and more seed stitch edging on the bottom rather than adding fringe. Otherwise it's the same as this pattern.
Remember the last American Girl Doll poncho I knit on the Boy Scout walking tour of Philadelphia? One of the Scouts asked me "Ms. Jackson. Why don't you make one in yellow and red?". So of course, I started to make another poncho is some remnant unlabeled yellow yarn (I think it's Dale Baby Ull). I picked up some red variegated yarn from the sock yarn stash. Here it is, nearly done, but slightly forgotten.
I only need to knit about one more inch in the yellow and then make the seed stitch edge. I weave in the loose ends; add fringe and voila! I'll be done. I wonder what's taking so long.
My friend Mary sent me these pictures of her Barbie dolls of yesteryear. Her mother knit clothes for her dolls using knitting patterns from the 1950s.
Look at this great dress with a blue jacket with white trimmed collar. Gotta love that hat!
How about this little number? Is it a sweater under a coat or is it a collar and sleeves for this great coat. Love this hat, too.
What treasures do you have lurking in your Barbie doll suitcases of yesteryear?
Here's the finished striped poncho for my American Girl Doll
My friends are always looking out for me. Adam and Erika, who were visiting us last weekend, have become subscribers to my RSS. It's always funny when I find a friend, and non-knitter, who is a regular reader. It's a very nice surprise. Here's the best part. Adam sent me this link to Facehugger. How cute is that? I also discovered that there is a whole group on Flickr for Knitted Toys.
Thanks Adam for the link. Lord only knows what kind of Knitted Toy I'll come up with.
AmeGiDo is all dressed up and ready to celebrate Christmas.
This is a quick and easy knit for your favorite little 18-inch doll owner. I'm going to spend some time tomorrow drafting the actual pattern. In the meantime, get your DK wool out and some US Size 5 needles. I used 1 skein of Zara by Filatura di Crosa. I really love the way it knits up.
I hope everyone had a very Merry Christmas!
I had a lot of fun knitting last night. I managed to knit the front and the back of the American Girl Doll sweater. This morning I woke up and made a beeline for my project. I sewed the shoulder seams and the side seams and picked up the neckline stitches. AmeGiDo (my new nickname for my American Girl Doll) tried on her WIP and she seems to like it. She's just waiting for Santa's elves to finish the sleeves and fill her stocking.
BF pointed out that it would be really cool if I made a sweater for AmeGiDo that matched something I already own. You know - like 10 black sweaters! I like the way this man thinks. The funny thing about this sweater, is that I thought I was making a plunging neckline. The AGD has a large head, which, unlike the Barbie Doll of my youth, does not pop off for easy dressing. This requires either a large neck opening, an extra slit in the back of the neck, or a cardigan sweater for easy dressing. My plunging neckline for AmeGiDo does the trick, but once finished, it really just looks like a normal crew neck. C'est la vie.
Now I'm off to work on those sleeves. Maybe I'll scrounge around for some black yarn in my stash.
I'm done, for now, with my American Girl Doll shawl series. I've come up with 4 miniature very easy knitting patterns for shawls and knit them up in miniature sizes. Now I have to finish the patterns - both for the AGD and for adults. Doesn't she look great in orange?
Here's a view from the back. Does this pattern look familiar?
Yes - it's a variation of the basic dish rag. I wanted to add the eyelet edge for a bit of interest. Optional fringe could be added, but I thought it was interesting just like this.
When I get on a roll, I really get on a roll. I decided to make a miniature version of the first prayer shawl pattern - Garter Stitch Stripes - for the American Girl Doll. This time I used the Lion Brand Micro Spun in magenta.
Here's a better view of the garter stitch stripes from the back
Doesn't she look warm in her shawl on such a dreary April Shower day?
And just for giggles, I'd like you to know that the shawl can be wrapped on the side. I think she needs a fancy Moving Mud shawl pin like the ones I saw at my LYS
Here's another simple shawl for the American Girl Doll. This time it's knit vertically in stockinette with a garter stitch border.
I have to tell you a funny story about this doll. This is the one you order to match the recipient. So, I went about ordering one for myself - same hair (OK - this seems a bit darker), skin, etc and then all of a sudden I decided I wanted to have BLUE eyes. Is that wrong? If you don't remember, I have brown eyes.
Sorry I've been quiet this past week. It's been a very busy week at home, school, my 1,001 volunteer jobs and, of course, there was that little April 15th date hanging over my head. But I did manage to get in a little bit of knitting.
You probably think it's just a regular shawl for my American Girl Doll. Well, I suppose it is. But the truth is, I realized that many of the knitters in the Prayer Shawl Group at my Church needed some very simple patterns for prayer shawls. Many of them are knitting shawls in garter stitch. I decided to draft some easy patterns. This one is knit horizontally in stockinette with a garter stitch border. I'm working on the patterns in both adult and AGD size.
I was so thrilled to actually finish a project that I quickly picked up something new. I started it and finished it all in one day. How great is that? I've had numerous requests to publish the American Girl Doll ribbed cardigan pattern that I decided it was time to recreate it. I made the second Beta test of the pattern using worsted weight yarn (Red Heart) and US size 7 needles. Here's what I came up with.
It's a bit bigger than the original blue/light blue cardigan as I moved up to size 7 needles instead of size 6. I'm not sure which I like better. I'll test the pattern a few more times and let you know.
Ladies. Ladies. Puh-lease. It's time to hit the runways and show off that new Curly-Q.
On the American Girl Doll, it's actually a scarf. Looks smashing dahling. Simply smashing.
On the Bratz doll, it's a slinky Curly-Q Wrap. R-R-R-R-r-r-r-r-r-r.
OK - I haven't got a decent wardrobe for Barbie.... but she can wear it as either a wrap or a scarf - just not with beach attire.
Good job ladies. Strut your stuff!
I went into the city today. Can you believe it? Of all days! The forecast was for lots of snow. In fact many schools were closed in the area (except ours). But since I planned my day in the city about 6 weeks ago, I didn't dare cancel. I had a blast. I haven't gotten up at the crack of dawn to take an early train into the city in ages. I LOVED IT. I had so much fun knitting on the commute that it almost made me want to go back to work in the city. Almost.
I had breakfast with good friends. We discussed this great magazine cover. Don't you just love the way the cupcake pops? Makes you want to reach out and grab it. Excellent photography. Now where's my cupcake. I'm hungry.
After breakfast, I went to knit for a bit and make some phone calls at my office in the city. Yes, you guessed it - my office away from home is Starbucks. I'm quite original, don't you think? This is the Bratz project I worked on during my morning commute. It's a Curly-Q Wrap done in US size 1 Turbo Addi's and this lovely light blue and green fingering weight yarn by Lorna's Laces.
After my coffee, I wandered over to my favorite Midtown knitting store - Stitches East
I was having so much fun knitting up the Curly-Q Wrap that I decided to make a Curly-Q scarf for myself. So I said hello to Joyce, Pat and Irene at Stitches East and bought six skeins of pretty pink LLH Amelie yarn.
After that I walked out in the wet thick snow to my lunch date at Cafe St. Barts. While I waited for my friend to arrive I was able to finish the Curly-Q Wrap.
Lunch was delicious and my friend and I were able to catch up on work, families and friends. After that, I had to rush downtown to meet up with Beverly Katz for another knitting session. What a day! I'm just loving it. Knit. Knit. Knit. We had planned to meet at The Point NYC, but changed plans at the last minute (weather and all). Beverly modeled her newly completed "Jaywalking" by Twisted Sister made with this wonderful wool she bought on a recent trip to Argentina.
Here's the back. Doesn't it look like the kind of sweater/wrap that you'd want to wear all day long?
Beverly is always making wonderful sweaters for herself or for charity. My kinda gal! She was making hats for charity during our knitting session. She also showed me this lovely collared blouse she knit up in a jiffy.
The collar is amazing and absolutely perfect. I forgot who Beverly said taught the class on collars and finishing techniques for this sweater, but I definitely want to sign up. You can't tell by this photo, but it's awe inspiring. Anyway, it was time to call it a day and head home in the snow. The City was a wet slushy mess, but the forecast said 4-8 inches of snow in Connecticut. So off I went. But first, I had to visit the fanciful toy land - Kidding Around - next to Beverly's apartment. I'm sure the cute lambs in the window had nothing to do with my desire to enter the store. But I did buy 3 of the cute little critters.
And, I made a quick trip to Gotta Knit! which is just around the corner from Beverly's place. Fortunately for me, they had the Turbo Addi's I was looking for (because I needed them for that pink yarn I just purchased).
They were so sweet at Gotta Knit! and invited me to stay for their Thursday night knitting session - wine and munchies - but it was time for me to head home, so I declined. I headed to the Subway to Grand Central to get on the Metro North home. Just one problem. I ended up at this train station.
Yup. You guessed it. Not my train station. I accidentally got on the express train to Fairfield, CT - which is inconveniently located two stations stops after mine. I got off the train, looked at the train schedule, boarded the next return train to Westport and headed home.
Finally, I got home. I made a delicious dinner of teriyaki chicken and sauteed mushrooms, chopped asparagus and pine nuts in olive oil, salt and pepper. Yum. Yum. It was fine that I got the wrong train. I got a great deal of knitting accomplished on the train ride(s). See --
Here's my progress on my Denim Blue socks. I'm working on the heel flaps now. I hope to have these finished for tomorrow's Finishing Friday.
BF, Primogeniture, Secundogeniture and I celebrated Christmas on the 23rd. The boys got to play with their new toys and games all day today. Tomorrow morning they're off to their father's house for Christmas Celebration #2. Since my preparation was done early, I got to just enjoy the day and the boys. We watched movies and enjoyed the day. I managed to knit a few final gifts. I'm making this American Girl Doll poncho in turquoise blue.
Voila! I finished this in time for tonight's meeting. It was a big hit as a door prize, although there was some confusion as many people thought the doll was included. Not this time. The poncho matches the Westport Young Woman's League logo (seen on the wall behind the doll).
Madison came to SNL today with her new American Girl Doll. I gave her both her American Girl Doll sweaters as a birthday gift. This is the one that she designed (er, picked out the yarn combination) about 6 weeks ago.
Tomorrow is Madison's birthday, so I finished a pink cardigan for her as a birthday gift. I'm going to let her pick out the buttons at tomorrow's SNL.
I still haven't perfected the pattern, so I'll make it a few more times before publishing the pattern. I got the dimensions right this time, but I felt that that last time the button band pulled a bit too tight. This time I overcompensated by using larger needles and picking up more stitches. Oops! I guess I should have done one or the other needle, but not both. It takes a few tries to get these original patterns right, but I feel in the end, it's worth the wait.
I finished the American Girl Doll cardigan that I made on the car ride home from Thanksgiving. Since I didn't have my American Girl Doll with me, I decided to create the pattern from the far recesses of my mind. That's all good and well, except it does mean that the cardigan is a bit to big and the sleeves are a tad too short. Oh well. Back to the drawing board.
On the ride home Friday, I decided to knit another sweater for the American Girl Doll. I used the same Paton's Classic Wool Merino in the pink, purple and taupe and crafted a striped cardigan sweater. It's not quite done, but almost. I haven't touched it since we got back on Friday. In fact, we had lots of friends and family this weekend, plus a big birthday bash, so I didn't get any more knitting done since that car ride home. I decided that a cardigan sweater would be a nice addition to the American Girl Doll wardrobe. I feel they are easier for little girls to manipulate. The turtlenecks and crew neck sweaters can be a bit difficult to pull over the doll's head. They look great once on, but sometimes require a bit of tugging to fit. The cardigan will be much simpler to dress - no tugging required. I hope it turns out nicely. I created the pattern without the actual doll handy. Let's hope it's not too big.
I gave the Barbie Poncho to Melanie's mother Madeline yesterday and she was thrilled. I asked if Melanie liked dolls, Barbie, etc, and Madeline told me all about the fact that she's going to buy her daughter an American Girl Doll for Christmas. So, of course, I went back to my knitting bag and looked for some extra yarn to make another American Girl Doll poncho. I've never used my own blog to make a pattern, but this time it certainly came in handy since I didn't bring my personal pattern book with me. I made the poncho using Paton's Classic Merino in a deep eggplant purple. Madeline is going to save the purple poncho until Christmas so Melanie can open it with her new American Girl doll.
Merry Christmas Melanie!
The fun never ends. I designed an American Girl Doll sweater in the colors of my Alma Mater - the University of Iowa. I am going to post it on a group blog where I also post called Iowa Chicks Knitting.
Here you go. I finished the pink crew neck sweater for the American Girl Doll. Have you decided which ones you'll be knitting up for gifts yet?
I used the camouflage and the hunter green yarn to test the upside down pattern one more time and I'm happy to report that this time everything came out perfectly.
Here's D.I. Jane sporting her camouflage sweater. In the Marine Corps, DIs are "Drill Instructors" and you don't want to mess with them. Semper fidelis!
Post Script - I had to reformat my digital memory card for the camera as it had become corrupt. Now I'm able to take pictures again. Thanks for your concern.
I guess I just can't get enough of these American Girl Doll sweaters. I created this ribbed cardigan for my doll using scrap worsted weight yarn from the stash.
I tested the Upside Down Knitting Primer with the pumpkin spice colors. It turned out OK... but I still need to fine tune the pattern one more time before publishing. Who knew the tech check took so long?
Madison asked if I would teach her how to make a dress for her favorite stuffed animal - a Starbucks "Bearista" named "Cheetah". She came over with her Mom today and we picked out some Red Heart Grande (in honor of Starbucks, perhaps?) in a creamy butter color. Madison had US Size 15 straight needles. We needed to knit 12 inches in stockinette stitch, and at 2 stitches to the inch, it was easy to see that we needed 24 stitches. We knit for about 2 inches then added the skirt by making two rows of increases (Incr 1, K1 - repeat across). Madison caught on so quickly that it was hard to remember that she's only six years old! Together we finished this dress in an hour. Here it is.
And here's the pattern - Download bearista_dress.doc
I picked up some Gedifra Techno Hair Oro (you could pick up about any eyelash yarn that catches your fancy) and made this quick and easy top for Barbie's night on the town. She can wear this off the shoulder, as a tank, or just off one shoulder. Now I think she needs some black leather pants and some spiked heels. Ooh la la!
Well, now that she's a Top Model, it's hard to keep her in one spot long enough for a fashion shoot. Here's what we caught Barbie wearing today.
Barbie Doll meets Velma Dinkley at the Iowa State Fair. It's that time of year again when Midwesterners gather at the Iowa State Fair in Des Moines, Iowa. I really, really, really wish I could be there. But Barbie is ready to go and be judged (well, maybe next year!). Here she is modeling her Scooby Doo Velma Dinkley orange ribbed turtleneck sweater on my book shelf with my hometown books to remind me of my roots. Like Zoinks! Doesn't Barbie look smashing?
I've been busy making up the myriad patterns for the 12" doll poncho patterns, but since they all look oddly similar, I have been loathe to post about every single variation of Barbie's latest poncho.
I was having some problems uploading documents into the photo albums, but Typepad Customer Service gave me some complicated directions about how I can do this. I'm going to try to figure it out and I'll keep you updated. Once complete, you'll be able to click on the FREE PATTERNS photo album and upload the full patterns from there. Yippy!
Well, it's nice to have your very own action figure. Here is Major Knitter on patrol with her camouflage utilities and her M-16.
For any of you conducting a Marine Corps uniform inspection, please be aware that Barbie is actually wearing GI Joe's uniform - and it's IMPOSSIBLE to make Barbie's awesome hair conform to Marine Corps Uniform Regs (that's Regulations for short).
Anyway, here's Barbie after work in her brand new poncho and civilian attire. Doesn't she look smart? This poncho will also work for any 12 inch doll. You might have to make an open collar for BRATZ dolls or any other dolls with oversized heads.
Jane Gfrerer wrote to share with me this picture of her two nieces and their American Girl Dolls modeling the ponchos she made using my pattern. The girls decided they liked the ponchos worn backwards. Variety is the spice of life!
Jane - thanks for sharing this picture and happy knitting!
Here's a finished shot of the poncho I made for Tara's charity event. I used US size 3 dpns and some leftover Red Heart baby yarn - in plain pink and blue sparkle - that was just lying around the house. I think it turned out nicely. I used the same pattern idea as the Barbie poncho that Caroline requested a few weeks ago. I guess it seemed worth repeating. I should probably make some more Barbie ponchos to take home to Iowa next week for my youngest nieces.
BF and I were invited to our friends' home this past weekend to help them inaugurate their new home and its special feature - a wood burning pizza oven -- in the kitchen! It was so incredible. Matt is the pizza maestro with 5 different types of dough ready to go = 5 different secret recipes he was testing. Joleen was busy holding young 18-month old Ellie, and older sister Caroline and I were enjoying the Easter jelly beans.
All of Matt's pizzas were A-OK! BF and I gorged ourselves immensely and loved every minute of it.
I also promised Caroline and Ellie that I'd make them each a poncho for their Barbie dolls. Caroline told me that she likes pink and blue. She showed me her favorite shirt for Barbie and I knew exactly what to make. I asked little Ellie what her favorite color was and she said "pink". I asked her what her second favorite color was and she said "pink". OK. I got that one figured out, too. Pink with Pink. No problem.
Here's what I made. I hope the girls like their new Barbie doll ponchos!
PS - I'm going to fine tune the patterns, but they will be available shortly here and here.
Many of you have asked me for all sorts of free patterns for the American Girl Doll. I'm currently working on assembling my own patterns, but in the meantime, I searched the net for free patterns and found these freebies. I've tried to credit the designer in each case. I hope I didn't omit anyone. Of course, I placed my own pattern first.
I also found a few sites that sell kits and patterns.
Good luck. Please let me know what you think of the list or if you have any other suggestions. Happy knitting!
It was Bingo night at the boys' school. I donated several prizes, toys and of course a hand knit item. I made another American Girl Doll pattern. This time I made a cap and poncho using Paton's Classic Merino Wool. A certain unnamed primogeniture, who wishes to remain anonymous, snapped this artsy picture of the creation which we then packed in a celophane envelope. It looked quite professional, if I do say so myself. It was one of the items raffled off at tonight's elementary school Bingo Night. Tara (from SNL) was organizing the Bingo, so all of our friends were there in force to help out. She said that the girl who won the poncho and hat set was so thrilled. Yeah!
Oh, BF, the boys and I had a great time at Bingo Night. We each played about 4 cards, so we kept on winning and winning prizes. I think the Sea Monkeys were the favorite prize.
I present to you - Mr. Pikachu - wearing his new scarf and sitting atop the antique Coca-Cola cooler. Michael was thrilled with his new scarf. No requests yet for a life size version for himself.
And here is what Blackie thought of all the attention Pikachu was getting.
Leave me alone! I'm very comfortable sleeping here among the forgotten sleeping bags, torn pillows and other blankies.
