Saturday, December 19, 2009

Chunky Monkey...

Chunky Monkey Baby/Toddler Vest is my latest design and the pattern is available for sale. It's a cardigan-style vest and knits up super quick.





The pattern is sized for a large range of baby & toddler sizes: 3-6 mo (6-12 mo, 12-18 mo, 18-24 mo, 2T, 3T, 4T). It's knit using Cascade 128 superwash, a wonderful chunky weight yarn that's soft and offered in beautiful colors. You can purchase this yarn at The Knitting Experience in Brunswick, Maine (but they also have an online store for those of you who don't live in this area).
Other chunky-weight yarns will work well too--so long as you get 3.5 sts per inch.

The pattern costs $5 and you can purchase it by clicking the "buy now" button. Here are some additional details about the pattern:





Construction: Chunky Monkey is knit in one piece from the bottom to the underarm using circular needles, then the back piece and each front piece is worked separately. Shoulders are attached using the 3-needle bind off technique, although notes are given if you’d prefer to seam shoulders together by hand instead. Buttonband, neckband, and armband ribbing is created by picking up stitches at the end.

Sizes: 3–6 mo (6–12 mo, 12–18 mo, 18–24 mo, 2T, 3T, 4T)

Finished Chest Measurement: 19.75 (20.75, 22, 23.25, 23.25, 24.25, 25.5) in/50 (53, 56, 59, 59, 61.5, 65) cm

Gauge: 14 sts & 22 rows = 4 in/10 cm (3.5 sts & 5.5 rows = 1 in/2.5 cm)

Supplies:
• Yarn: Cascade 128 Superwash or any chunky weight yarn that provides gauge

-Main Color (MC): 1 (1, 2, 2, 2, 2, 2) skeins/118 (128, 138, 148, 158, 168, 178) yds/108 (117, 126, 135.5, 144.5, 154, 163) m

-Contrasting Color for Ribbing (CC1): 1 skein/128 yds/117 m

-Contrasting Color for Stripes (CC2): 1 skein/128 yds/117 m (Although only approx. 10 yds/9 m will be needed, so if you have scrap chunky weight yarn lying around, that will work.)

• Size US 10 24 in (6 mm 61 cm) circular needles (or size needed to provide gauge)
• Size US 9 16 & 24 in (5.5 mm 41 & 61 cm) circular needles (or 1 size smaller than size needed to provide gauge)
• Extra size US 10/6 mm needle (circular or straight, for 3-needle bind off)
• 2 stitch markers
• 3 stitch holders
• Tapestry needle to weave in ends and attach buttons
• 4 (4, 4, 5, 5, 5, 5) buttons, size ¾-1 in/2-2.5 cm