Two more leafy patterns

To complete my mini-collection on the leaf theme, I recently released two more patterns: most recently, the Petites Feuilles Vest, and a couple of weeks ago, the Petites Feuilles Boots.

The idea behind the vest was that it had to be truly unisex, with a simple yet well-thought-out design. There are a couple of techniques in there that even more experienced knitters might enjoy. I thought the addition of an optional secret pocket would allow knitters to have fun with color pairings as well as use up small amounts of leftover yarn. I like that the pocket bind-off hints at the color of the hidden lining. Also, little kids are usually enthusiastic about pockets, and I’m always thinking about what they’d like, too 🙂

When it comes to the boots, the main idea was to make booties that would stay on little wriggly feet, so that meant that ties were a must. In my experience that’s really the only way a bootie will stay on a tiny foot.

I chose garter stitch for the bootie because picking up stitches is so easy and clean with garter stitch (you need to pick up stitches around the sole to work these booties seamlessly), and also, garter is very stretchy, which means that the booties should get a maximum amount of use.

Finally, I wanted the booties to be tall, not only for my leaf motif to fit, but also to make them extra warm and easy to put over pant legs. I also had a vision of my daughter wearing her boots with striped stockings underneath and a short skirt 🙂

I have to say I am not 100% satisfied with the photos I took for the pattern page, my daughter is constantly on the go and it was very difficult to get a decent shot that would show off the boots properly. Some of my testers, however, made some adorable versions and I made a little montage because they are just too cute (photos used with permission, clockwise from top left, boots by marthajane73, serendipitystitch, sweetbasil and t-a-n-y-a):

These two patterns, as well as the Petites Feuilles cardigan and the Petites Feuilles bonnet, are available individually and also as part of a 4-pattern bundle with a discounted price.

All patterns are available in my Ravelry, Etsy and Craftsy stores.

 

Pour Mila

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Petit cadeau de naissance pour Bébé Mila, qui était très impatiente de naître! J’espère que le colis arrivera à bon port et que la maman aimera!

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Modèle perso, laine Debbie Bliss cashmerino, biais Liberty Fairford

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Modèle 3ème Bébé de la Droguerie modifié, laine Debbie Bliss Cashmerino, biais Liberty Fairford

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Here’s a little present for Baby Mila, who was in a hurry to come into the world! I hope the package will make it to its destination safely and that mom will like it!

The ballerina pattern is my own, the bonnet pattern (I modified it slightly) comes from a French book called “Le 3ème Bébé de La Droguerie”

Yarn: Debbie Bliss Cashmerino

Liberty Bias: La Droguerie

I’m baaack: le retour!

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Ouh là là c’est un peu sporadique ces temps-ci chez Frogginette, non?

Pour me faire pardonner, et en attendant que l’inspiration revienne, je vous laisse en offrande deux petites paires de chaussons de garçon (une commande d’une amie):

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Modèle: Le 3ème Bébé de La Droguerie, laine: Rowan Cashsoft

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Modèle: chaussons Kiholo by Muriel, alias La Pelote Masquée, laine: Rowan Cashsoft

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Pour le modèle (gratuit! Merci Muriel!) on clique ici. A noter que Muriel propose des modèles de tricot pour enfants absolument ravissants sur son nouveau site, Kids Tricot. Foncez-y!

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Oh my, time does fly, has it really been this long since I last posted? Erm. I promise I’ll be better now. To show you that I mean well, here are two pairs of small-teeny-bitty-cute baby booties for two brand new baby boys (this was an order from a friend)

Etsy boutique!

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Où ça? A droite! Regardez il y a du nouveau!

Voui, il faut bien écouler les milliards de chaussons que je tricote sans relache (au lieu de finir mon Trico’13 – ahem…) C’est une vraie manie!

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Bien sûr, vous me direz les chaussons c’est bien mimi mais il faut diversifier, tout ça, et je suis bien d’accord avec vous, il y a d’autres choses dans le pipeline figurez-vous!

Ça vous plait?? J’attends vos avis avec impatience! Tous les modèles sont réalisés en mélange cachemire/mérinos et Liberty (Cliquez sur l’image dans la colonne de droite pour voir tous le modèles)

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P.S.:

Je peux tout à fait expédier en dehors de l’Amérique du Nord, mais il faudra que je me renseigne pour savoir quels seraient les frais de port selon votre destination… Donc le mieux c’est de m’envoyer une “convo” sur Etsy si vous êtes intéressé(e)s

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That’s right! And there is a link on the sidebar, so check it out!
What can I say, I had to find an outlet for all the baby booties I’ve been knitting (instead of finishing this month’s Trico’13…)

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Of course, I can hear you saying that it would be nice to see other things beside baby booties, and I hear you, I do have other projects in the pipeline, so stay tuned!

I eagerly await your opinions/suggestions! All of the booties are made with a cashmere/merino blend and Liberty (Click on the image in the sidebar to see all of the items)

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P.S.:

I will ship outside of the US/Canada but I’d have to get a quote, so the best thing is to convo me on Etsy so that I can let you know what the specific shipping cost would be for your destination.

Prairie Boots for Gabe

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Et oui, la patience est un plat qui se mange froid! J’ai enfin fini une de mes choses informes en cours! Ces chaussons étaient prévus comme cadeau de Noel pour Gabe, comme quoi, tant va la cruche à l’eau qu’à la fin, euh.

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One of my WIP has morphed into a FO! Woohoo! I’ve been working on these for a while, they were supposed to be a Christmas present for Gabe… a tad late, that’s all.

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Le modèle c’est donc Prairie Boots par Cocoknits. Chouette, facile et rapide (enfin, quand on a pas des petits soucis à calculer le montant de laine requise). Le seul hic, il m’aurait fallu plus de photos pour expliquer le processus par endroits. Oui, il est absolument INADMISSIBLE de devoir mettre un ou deux petits neurones à contribution! Non mais! Sinon, un modèle sympa qu’on peut faire pour toute la petite famille (quand on en a une).

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The pattern is Prairie Boots by Cocoknits. I like the design a lot, and it was an easy and (for normal people who don’t have trouble with yardage estimations) quick knit. On teeny criticisim: I would have loved more process pictures in the pattern. I actually had to THINK in a couple of places, which is, you know, totally unacceptable!

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La laine, c’est Knitpicks Cadena, que vous avez déja vue là. Mes customisations: j’ai raccourci les bottes, parce que bon, Gabe n’a pas besoin de cuissardes non plus! Et j’ai décidé unilatéralement que les chaussons seraient portés repliés, donc tant pis pour les boutonnières, j’ai juste mis 2 boutons en cuir style tweed coat sur l’exterieur, pour faire joli. Et puis pour être sûre que les chaussons resteraient bien accrochés aux pieds, j’ai mis un élastique à l’intérieur:

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I used Knitpicks Cadena in Leaf and Mahogany, and managed with a pair of #9 straight needles for the sole and a set of #10.5 DPNs for the rest of the boot (the pattern called for 2 circular needles). I made the boots shorter than called for in the pattern, and decided that since they would only be worn folded over, the buttonholes were a bit useless. The buttons I put in are only decorative.

Oh, and I added some elastic in the inside at the ankle level so they would stay put:

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Baby Leather Slippers

We are tiny but stylish

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Trop de tricots en cours, pas assez de laine pour les finir… Grr. J’ai tout envoyé balader (temporairement!) et je me suis dit que j’avais besoin d’un petit projet ultra simplex, mais potentiellement mimi quand même, et bon sang mais c’est bien sûr! Des chaussures de bébé! En cuir! J’avais un mini coupon de cuir rouge tout doux acheté dans un marché aux puces de Londres, et aussitôt dit, aussitôt fait!(le patron est home-made, pifomètre total)

C’est la première fois que j’essaie de coudre du cuir avec ma machine à coudre, et ma foi, en utilisant une aiguille spéciale “cuir” ça s’est passé comme sur des roulettes.

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J’ai hésité à ajouter des lacets ou broder quelque chose sur le dessus par exemple, mais dans l’attente d’une bonne idée ou d’une suggestion de votre part, je les laisse telles quelles!

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My knitting ADD has been getting way out of control: I have three WIPs, thanks to my habit of misjudging how much yarn I actually need in order to finish any given project.

So I needed a little break from all the fluff. I didn’t really think about these, I just wondered what was the easiest, quickest and potentially cutest project I could make with this leather remnant I got in London. Teeny baby shoes of course! This was also my first experience with sewing with leather… Well, not biggie! After improvising a quick pattern, these took about 2 minutes to assemble. I used a leather needle, so it was like sewing through butter.

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I was debating adding laces, or possibly hand-stitching something somewhere, but until I get a brilliant idea, I thought I’d just leave them as is… Unless I get any good suggestions from you guys??

Bootie Fever!

Yep, this was the mystery project!

I’m having so much fun with these! And I’m excited that I was able to make these designs actually come to life, even if they are just very simple baby booties. I can’t stop! I’m coming up with a new variation on these every five minutes, I swear. Without further ado, let me introduce my budding bootie collection:

Depuis quelques jours c’est le bonheur! De nouvelles idées de tricot (chaussons de bébé en tête comme vous le constatez!) me viennent en continu. Et en me fixant des objectifs simples (vive le point mousse!) , miracle, j’arrive à réaliser les modèles imaginés! Je ne peux plus m’arrêter, en fait! Voici donc un début de “collection,” que je vous présente sans plus tarder:

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Bayswater Knee-Highs:

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Side buttoning is a stylish touch I think . And the booties can fold over for a more boho look.

Boutonnage sur le côté, c’est la classe! Mais les chaussons peuvent se porter repliés aussi, pour un look plus décontracté.

(The yarn is Rowan Felted Tweed in Cocoa. Buttons were liberty-covered by yours truly.)

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Liberty Lace-ups:

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These are sweet little lace-ups that can  be worn either up or folded-over, depending on mood and outfit.

Ce modèle est aussi repliable, selon l’humeur et la tenue.

(Yarn is Cascade 220 and ribbon is made out of liberty)

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Gavroche Kicks:

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I like these little guys, there is something mischievous about them. And they can be worn as loafers too!

Ceux-la me font craquer, avec leur côté titi parisien. On peut les porter en bottines ou en mocassin!

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Cloud Walkers:

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I wanted these to have a softer side, with the grey/blue sole and trim. I also add a wee flower for extra cuteness and made an removable i-cord.

(The grey/blue yarn is Rowan Cashsoft)

Ceux-la sont plus tendre, avec la bordure et la semelle bleu-gris et toute douce (merci Rowan Cashsoft). J’ai fabriqué une micro-fleur et un cordon pour aller avec.

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All of these booties are without their match at the moment. Obviously, I’m having major second bootie syndrome… as well as a garter stitch fixation.

But I’ve got to complete at least two pairs and ship them to the latest newborns around me. Which one would you start with?

Un accès de flemme majeure font que ces petits chaussons sont orphelins pour le moment… Il faut quand même que je finisse au moins 2 paires pour cause de naissances récentes dans mon entourage. Je commence par lesquelles à votre avis?

FO: Beribboned hobbit slippers

Gabe kept grumbling that I was stealing his slippers every morning, so I thought Id’ better knit something for myself.

I had some yarn leftover from the Nob Hill collar, and before you know it, Gabe was modeling these puppies for my bloggy-blog (I am mentioning this lest you think French girls have furry legs):

They were a little too massive-looking, like hobbit-feet, so I thought I’d add a bit of ribbon to make them more girly.

Pattern: This is a free pattern I first saw on Ravelry, it’s called “Side Cable Slippers” and you can find it on freepatterns.com – you have to register first to access the pattern though.

Yarn: Wool-Ease Thick & Quick, 1 ball in Taupe

Needles: US 13 circulars

Time to complete: 1hr30

Mods: none

My opinion: I made these so quickly, and they are really comfy. This would be a good way to use up odds and ends in the stash – you can make these holding several strands or yarn. Good gift idea, too.

I’ll leave you with some action shots:

FO: Saartje’s Booties

How totally adorable is this? I think a newborn would be able to wear these for no more than a couple of weeks, they are so tiny. But why be reasonable and knit bigger ones? These are so quick and easy, you could knit one custom-sized pair every week.

Most of you already know this pattern, I’m sure, but if not, the added bonus is that it’s completely free and readily available here.

These are being promptly shipped to my friend’s brand new little girl, Léonie, who was born 3 weeks ago… I hope they will fit her!

Pattern: Saartje’s Booties (free pattern)

Yarn: Debbie Bliss Cashmerino Aran (Denim and Mauve), leftovers from various projects. Very little yarn was needed, a 3-4 yards maybe

Needles: US 2

Time to knit: a couple of hours while watching TV

Buttons: translucent white from Joann’s

More Booties

I was strong at first: I only bought the size 2mm dpns at the “Art et Laine” LYS (there were no needles that exactly match a US size 2 but you can’t really tell the difference) and I used some left over yarn from the Ribbon-Tied Dress (Debbie Bliss Baby Cashmerino) to make these. I did buy the cute bunny buttons, but that was it. I was proud of myself for being so reasonable.

The pattern was from one of the French magazines I bought last week. I was easy enough, and made for very stretchy little booties. I obviously made the mistake of making two identical booties, instead of making the second bootie’s strap on the opposite side, but that is another story. So the baby who will inherit these will have to have two left feet — or is it two right feet?

Of course, once the booties were done, I did go back to the Art et Laine store, cracked under pressure, and bought some delicious yarn, which was reasonable, but not exactly cheap (the Euro is so strong these days.) I’m using it to make a scarf. I don’t want to say too much yet about the exact pattern I’m using, or the yarn itself, as I want it to be a semi-surprise for Gabe (he does know a scarf is coming his way).