Midnight Knits

Meet the second item in the Pit Stop Collection: The Track Limit Socks. The name speaks for itself. These mimic the iconic red and white track limits found on the edge of famous racetracks. The colours were originally part of a Marlboro sponsorship but it soon became synonymous with F1. This is a two-in-one pattern as each sock is different. The sample is knit with two colours of recycled DK weight yarn. Though you can adapt this to as many colours as you like. Gauge: 22 sts in 4 inches in Chart 1  when blocked.  (You may struggle to get gauge if your floats are too tight.) You will need: Approx 60g of DK yarn (35g MC, 25g CC) 3.25mm DPNs / short circulars (or magic loop) Tapestry needle Techniques: Colourwork - This is done by carrying floats (Fair Isle). Make sure the floats are not too tight. It will warp the design and make the sock difficult to put on.  Trapping floats - You may find it useful to twist your floats when carrying a colour over more than four stitches. ...

Version 2 is out now: Last Lap Socks 2.0 The DK weight Last Lap Socks are the first item in the Pit Stop Collection, perfect for any motorsport fan from F1 to NASCAR to Sim Racing. Reminiscent of the checkered flag if in black and white, or the track limits if in red and white, you can make this pattern in a range of designs. Sample 1 is knit with main colour blue and contrast colour white. The charts are designed with this colour scheme too. Sample 2 has a white MC and red CC. Both samples were made from recycled material. My local charity shop was about to throw out some old crochet garments. I bought any I thought I could harvest yarn from. All acrylic. They got a good scour in soapy hot water, and then came the unravelling process. Most was salvageable. That's why I find it hard to recommend a particular yarn to copy the first sample. Sample 2 (the swatch) was knit in Scheepjies Scrumptious, which is 50% recycled bottles, and James C Brett Second Chance, which is made of entire...

When a designer creates a new pattern they will grade it up and down, making it available in many sizes. It's not as simple as just doubling stitch numbers all over. People's measurements are proportionally different at different sizes. Usually they don't have the time, energy or yarn to knit it in all the sizes. That's where test knitters come in. We provide a service, usually for free, to these designers, making the item in our own size so they can check it fits right. And for those who can’t afford a tech editor we also check syntax and make sure things read right.  There are so many reasons to become a test knitter. Here are some of my reasons: - The first and most obvious: we get a pattern for free that would otherwise cost money. It’s also arriving in your inbox a few months before it’s even available to purchase so you feel extra special. My brain computes that 40 hours of work in a tight deadline is better value than £7 for the pattern when it finally comes out....

This hand-warmer, sometimes known as a hand muffler or simply just a muff, is designed to be worn on cold days when you also need easy access to your hands for things like fingerprint ID or to touch a screen that doesn't work with thick gloves. You can pair it with your gloves for extra warmth or a small reusable heat pack/ hot water bottle. This pattern is double thickness, fully lined and constructed in the round. It's can be knit with any yarn that knits up to gauge, though I recommend a non-scratchy wool (as plastic will make you sweat and cotton is cold) and something approximately aran weight (as an airier knit will let in too much cold).  The sample is knit with two strands held together: a 4 ply and a DK. I used a wool/alpaca blend from Yarnoncone held with James C Brett Shhh. Ironically I think these yarns are both labelled incorrectly. The Brett is much too thin to be DK and the alpaca, although advertised as 4ply, is definitely more like a DK. That goes to show you n...

These weren't originally designed to be Christmas sock. The star motif was inspired by an old Fair Isle jumper and the foot was just made of all the same colours. It's entirely made of yarn from stash: whatever colours that clashed enough to be noticeable from a distance. My actual goal with these socks was to create a design that was twice as thick as a regular DK sock. That's why every round has some type of fair isle colourwork: The floats pad out the sock. Mum in her new favourite socks If you've been following my patterns you will know that my mum has Raynaud's and needs the extra material to keep the warmth in her fingers and toes. You can check out the last pattern I made for her here . This pattern uses 5 colours. Try to make them all very different so the pattern will stand out and not blend together. A great way to test if they are going to blend together is to take a picture of all the balls of yarn in a black and white filter. Anything that has the same ...

Named after the yarn used, I spun this Kent Romney into a heavy Aran yarn last year to made a jumper, and this is how I made use of the scraps. The contrast colour is a natural Jacob (also handspun). This of course can be made with any yarn from commercial to handspun. Anything that fits the gauge will do. The sample is a gift for my mother and so this pattern is designed with a small hand in mind and may not suit a man. Though if you are confident knitter you are welcome to experiment changing the stitch counts to fit your intended hand. The pattern repeats are very simple and easy to extend over a wider stitch count. Adding length can also be done by simply repeating the chart as needed. Gauge: 16 stitches per 4 inches You will need: 6mm DPNs or circulars Tapestry needle Stitch marker Abbreviations: MC - main colour CC - contrast colour st(s) - stitch(es)  R - round k- knit m1r - make one right ssk - slip slip knit *Pattern starts here* Using the main colour, cast on 24 sts and ...