Free Pattern Friday! :: Play Collar ::

Weew its been a hectic week. But now finals are finally over! I'm not sure when I'll be able to see my grades but, I should be able to see them soon. I do already know that my final grade in my morning math was a 97! But enough about that...

This week, I thought I'd follow the theme and make a play collar to go along with the Play Leash from last week. My daughter is in love. She puts her favorite stuffed puppy dog on that leash and pulls him along all over the house and yard (I know right... good thing he's washable!).

So here is what you need:

• A couple yards of worsted weight yarn
• A small key ring
• 3 Size 8 DPNS

Instructions:
CO 6 provisionally knit 2 or 3 rows and put your cast on stitches on one of your DPN.
Work in garter stitch (knit all rows) until you have about half the desired length, maybe around 3.5 inches or so. Keep in mind, garter stitch has an incredible amount of stretch and you want it big enough to stretch over the head of the toy but not so much the toy will slip out of the collar while being pulled around.

At the half way point on your next row k1 then holding your key ring knit through it for the next 4 stitches then drop it and knit the last one outside of it.
Continue knitting a length equal to the first half (doesn't have to be perfect) ending with a right side row, pick up your needle holding your cast on stitches. Be sure that both yarn tails are on the right side and graft together with Kitchener stitch.

Weave in ends, add some embellishments if you like and you are done! Super easy and should be lots of fun for your little one. Happy knitting!

THANK YOU for your support! Please show continued support by using this pattern only for your non-commercial, personal use. Please do not knit and sell designs from this pattern without express written permission. Copyright © 2012 A Flight of Sparrows; all rights reserved.

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Free Pattern Friday! :: Play Leash ::

Hello and Thank Goodness It's Friday! Because that means this is my first ever (hopefully of many more to come), free pattern Friday. If you have kids or maybe like in my case just one kid, you know all too well that at some point one of those stuffed animals is going to become a real animal. Who am I kidding... we all know they will all be real for the majority of the duration of their childhood. If yours is like mine its mostly the 'doggies'. My girl loves her some doggies, and we can't just have all these doggies running loose in the yard! So I was asked to devise a plan to tame those wild doggies, a challenge to which I met with this simple - yet effective! - doggie leash.

Notes: I don't recommend using this for actual live animals or babies and very small children who might get tangled up in it. The intended purpose is just for playtime fun. That being said this is not an exact science and it by no means needs to be perfect. Add your own flair and have fun with it.

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Not so glass slipper

I am on a mission to find the perfect slipper! I have been scouring Ravelry and even done some google searches. There are plenty that look nice in their picture but the pattern doesn't seem to stand up to it. Is it just me or does it feel similar to the smoke and mirrors of the legendary "myspace pic" -i.e. taking a picture in the most extreme downward angle to provide the most slimming possible- ? Well aside from that I've found two contenders. I may end up combining them somehow. There are elements of each that I both like and dislike. So it would go something like ... 'make the sole like this one, make the sides like that one, make the heel like this one, make the cuff like that one..." Confusing right? I thought so too. Time for eye candy? Yes.

This first one I like A LOT the pattern is Moon Socks by DROPS design - They always come up with some of the cutest stuff right?

The second here is Desert Boots by Elise Brand. I like the look of both and I've knit up one of both and wear them around the house together (haha what makes it funnier is one is in rusty orange and the other in a deep eggplant purple). Why you ask? To compare how they feel as I wear them around, see how I like them. I think once I decide how I like them best I will compile the pattern for Ravelry... Just in case there are any other's out there with mismatched slippers.

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