DINO knits: Stegosaurus

In honor of next week's haunted holiday, I thought we might talk about this bright orange shawl next! Stegosaurus is my favorite of the dinoshawls, and not just because she's my favorite color.

The most recognizable characteristic of Stegosaurus is certainly the large hexagonal plates jutting out of its spine. While their purpose is still debated, they do make excellent inspiration for a charming knitted-on border.

This crescent-shaped shawl begins at the top center and grows quickly with double increases at the beginning and end of each row. The scale-like lace pattern is more easily achieved than you might think, with only 6 pattern rows per repeat. And when you reach the end, all those stitches are bound off as you work the spikey border.

SIZE
One size

FINISHED MEASUREMENTS
Span: 50 inches
Height at center: 14 inches

MATERIALS
Miss Babs Yummy 2-Ply [100% merino; 366m/400yd per 113g skein]; color: French Marigold; 1 skein
US #6/4mm circular needle
Tapestry needle

GAUGE
20 sts/27 rows = 4 inches in Spade Lace Stitch (chart included in pattern)

BUY IT NOW on Ravelry!

We're half way through the parade of dinosaurs now, but remember, you can get all eight patterns right now in one e-book, also available for purchase through Ravelry, for half the total cost of all of the individual dinoshawl patterns.

DINO knits: Pterodactyl

Though not technically a dinosaur, the inspiration for this next shawl design is often lumped in with them. Pterodactyl was, in fact, a flying reptile.

Soaring through the air with the greatest of ease, its adult wingspan topped out at only about three feet, so you’ll have him bested with this shawl, which reaches over five feet!

This shawl's large swathes of stockinette stitch with simple shaping are easily memorized to keep you aloft for quite some time before having to refer to the pattern again.

SIZE
One size

FINISHED MEASUREMENTS
Span: 63 inches
Height at center: 14 inches

MATERIALS
Frabjous Fibers Cheshire Cat [100% merino; 468m/512yd per 110g skein]; color: Tea Tray; 1 skein
US #6/4mm circular needle
Tapestry needle

GAUGE
19 sts/37 rows = 4 inches in stockinette stitch

BUY IT NOW on Ravelry!

And as always, if you just can't wait five more weeks to collect the whole set of dinoshawls, you can get all eight patterns immediately in one e-book, also available for purchase through Ravelry.

DINO knits: Triceratops

Hooray, it's Friday! That means it's time for another dinosaur shawl! This week, I'm highlighting Triceratops.

A huge crest and three large horns made Triceratops one of the most recognizable dinosaurs. So too is this shawl distinctive with its six-pointed silhouette and stockinette stitch horns on an expanding mesh background.

Worked primarily from charts, the pattern begins at the center, first forming the middle horn as the simple mesh emanates from its sides. Once that horn is complete, the easily memorized mesh will give your brain a break for a bit before beginning the upper horns and progressing into the garter stitch diamonds along the edge of the crest.

SIZE
One size

FINISHED MEASUREMENTS
Span: 40 inches
Height at center: 20 inches

MATERIALS
Cascade Heritage [75% merino, 25% nylon; 400m/437yd per 100g skein]; color: #5617; 1 skein
US #6/4mm circular needle
11 removable stitch markers (optional)
Tapestry needle

GAUGE
21 sts/33 rows = 4 inches in stockinette stitch

BUY IT NOW on Ravelry!

And don't forget! If you just can't wait six more weeks to get your hands on the full set, you can get all eight dinoshawl patterns right now in one e-book, also available for purchase through Ravelry.

DINO knits: Dilophosaurus

Over a year ago, I had this brilliant idea to design a series of knitted shawls inspired by dinosaurs. Yep, dinosaurs. I was so excited, I finished the first one in under three weeks. Unfortunately, life gets in the way, and we don't always have as much time to devote to knitting as we would like. Or we get distracted by other knitting projects or sewing competitions. But I digress. Now, after a full year of doodling, swatching, knitting, ripping, re-knitting, over and over again, I now have eight completed dinoshawl patterns to share with the world! Each is made from a single skein of sock-weight yarn, using a wide variety of stitch patterns and techniques to capture your imagination and hold your interest.

I'm so thrilled to finally be finished with these babies! I think they deserve a parade! So that's what we're gonna do then. I'll be releasing each one as an individual pattern over the next eight weeks - a new dinoshawl every Friday throughout October and November!

It seems only fitting to start off with the original shawl that sparked this whole, crazy circus - the Dilophosaurus! There is no fossil evidence that Dilophosaurus had a vibrantly colored, retractable neck frill which would fan out as it spat venom in your face, as depicted in a popular 90s Hollywood production.

But a little creative license makes for a lot of knitting inspiration. Worked from the center out, this lacy shawl is perfect for those colorful cakes of ombre yarn that always seem to follow you home from the yarn store. Or is that just me?

SIZE
One size

FINISHED MEASUREMENTS
Distance around outer edge: 90 inches
Radius: 15 inches

MATERIALS
Vice Blurred Lines [80% merino, 20% nylon; 549m/600yd per 150g skein];
color: Goddess; 1 skein
US #6/4mm circular needle
Tapestry needle

GAUGE
24 sts/30 rows = 4 inches in stockinette stitch

BUY IT NOW on Ravelry!

And in case you just can't wait eight weeks to get your hands on the full set, I've also put all eight dinoshawl patterns together into one e-book, also available for purchase through Ravelry.

The Refashioners 2016: Denim Chanel-Inspired Jacket

My third and final "jeanius" project for The Refashioners community challenge is another attempt to replicate a popular style using an unconventional material - specifically a Chanel-inspired boxy, cropped jacket, typically made with tweedy wool, but here made with a pair of men's black denim jeans.

The Refashioners 2016: Denim Faux Shearling Vest

My second "jeanius" refashion for The Refashioners community challenge took a bit longer than anticipated, but it's finally finished! I was pondering the unique qualities of denim and how I could use those in unexpected ways to create something new. For inspiration and - copious amounts of fabric - I was perusing the men's section at Goodwill, when I spotted these rather large, sort of camel-colored jeans. The interesting wash gave these pants an almost suede-like appearance, and thus, an idea was born! A picture began to form in my head of a faux sheepskin vest with these brown jeans as the exterior and lots of frayed white denim (denim chenille, I believe it's called) on the inside to mimic the sheep's wool. So I grabbed the brown jeans and three pairs of white jeans as well, and headed home to plot out my course of action.

Weekend Wraps

The newest addition to my knitting library is Weekend Wraps: 18 Quick Knit Cowls, Scarves & Shawls by Cecily Glowik MacDonald and Melissa LaBarre. Every pattern inside uses worsted weight or heavier yarn, and most of the designs are smallish accessories that you really can whip up in a weekend. I was particularly drawn to the architectural aspects of Emma Welford's Post & Beam Cowl. I'll always have a soft spot in my heart for cables. They are deceptively simple to create, yet pack a pretty good punch in the final product.

I dove into the stash for the required aran weight yarn. The pattern called for 170 yards, and I just happen to have 176 yards of the discontinued Debbie Bliss Rialto Aran (color #21208) that's been languishing in the stash for, oh, 7 YEARS. It seemed like kismet... until my gauge swatch revealed the Rialto to be a slightly thinner aran than the recommended Quince & Co. Osprey. Unphased, I pushed onward, casting on enough extra stitches for a couple more repeats of the cable pattern to keep my cowl roughly the same circumference as intended.

Since I was casting on more stitches, I was a little afraid I wouldn't have enough yardage to obtain the correct height, so I flipped the cable chart too. Instead of starting with the posts and finishing with the beams, I began with the beams so I could just make my posts shorter if needed. In the end, I had more than enough yarn. So I just kept knitting until I was about to run out, and then bound off my stitches with the last little bits. It worked out perfectly.

It felt so good to get back to the yarn and needles after so many weeks of strictly thread and needles. And now to cap it off with my knitting mantra - It will get cool enough to wear this soon. It will get cool enough to wear this soon. It will get cool enough to wear this soon...

The Refashioners 2016: Denim Tunic

First things first - thankyouthankyouthankyou, everyone, for all your support during the Refashion Runway All Stars competition! I couldn't have achieved that silver medal without all of you!

I sort of suspected my sewing muscles would be super sore after that 5-week rigorous refashion regimen, and they were, but surprisingly, not as much as I thought they'd be. My machine and I only needed a couple days apart before we pined for each other's company again. Of course, I had The Refashioners community challenge and Portia's "jeanius" theme to encourage a speedy recovery. After all, I am a Texan. I may hate beans and fried things, but I do love me some denim. Hopefully, I'll have time to complete a few different ideas I have floating around in my head before the September 30 deadline.

First up was another tunic. I must admit, that Refashion Runway challenge showed me the light and I am now a total tunic convert! This tunic began with a pair of jeans a friend gave me when they got too big for her. You can see where I added a couple darts for her as she began to lose weight, but soon darts were not enough and she graciously gave them to me for refashioning.

Refashion Runway 4, Week 5: Riverside

Our final challenge for this season of Refashion Runway was Riverside Blue, predicted to be one the hottest colors for fall 2016 by the Pantone Color Institute. Have a look at what I cooked up below, then head over to The Renegade Seamstress to see the other competitors' project and vote for your favorite!

Photo credit: Pantone

I actually had quite a hard time finding something in this blue hue. Everything seemed to be too royal blue or too navy or too teal, but eventually I found this 100% cotton wrap dress with just the slightest hint of purple. Just what I was looking for!

Tunic Tee

In the search for the perfect tunic materials last week, I came across this linen blend skirt from a clothes swap a year or two ago. I never really knew what I was going to do with it until now. I only snagged it at the end of the night because no one else wanted it, and come on, quality fabric and hot pink?