BPL's Thursday Night Knitters

Yeesh, I guess I've been neglecting this site for awhile.  However, I'm not going to dwell on it: onward and upward, as they say.  A lot of you are knitting stuffed toys, so you may want to take a gander at this article on how to properly stuff them.  You should read the whole thing because it has some good tips, but the major takeaways are to (1) not overstuff your toy; and (2) stuff it so it's even.  (via craftstylish).

Here's something different from the usual construction paper and doilies: knit Valentine's Day cards!  It's a very quick pattern, you can knit them up lickety-split.  The hearts begin on Row 8 and you make them by  following the Heart Chart below (via About.com Knitting). 

 

 

A woman in England knits sweaters (which they call "jumpers" across the pond) for chickens she rescues from battery farms.  When she receives the birds, they are often missing feathers, and the sweaters keep them warm until the feathers grow back.  Read the full Telegraph article here. 

[via About.com Knitting]

I am not a fan of the DPN's.  They're awkward, your stitches tend to fall off more readily than they would from a straight or a circular needle, and you get those ladders if you don't knit the first stitch tightly enough.  In spite of this, I also knew that the DPN's and I had to find a way to co-exist peacefully, or there would be no legwarmers or sweater sleeves in my life (I haven't done socks yet--someday!).  Not anymore: meet the Magic Loop!  I haven't actually tried this yet, but instead of using DPN's to knit your narrow tubes, you use a long circular needle looped in on itself instead.  I have to experiment with this soon. [via Knitting Daily]

Some of you have expressed an interest in learning how to cable.  As I've proclaimed on numerous occasions, cables are much easier to knit than they look.  If you don't believe me, here's a quickie little owl pattern that you can turn into a hair clip or a brooch.  Just in time for Halloween!  [via Ysolda]

Halloween is right around the corner.  If you celebrate it, knit up one of these cheery-faced jack-o-lantern cloths for your kitchen or bathroom [pattern here at Purple Kitty].  Remember, you should use 100% cotton yarn when you are knitting cloths.  Acrylics, wool, or cotton-blends will not absorb water the way cotton does.  [via Knitting]

Now that I've finished my beret and my sweater, these are what I'm knitting next!  If you want to knit them, too, you'll need size 10 double-pointed needles, and a fine weight yarn with which you can knit double-stranded [pattern here].  By the way, the site where these originate from is in two languages:  the first is obviously English, but I can't figure out the other one.  Is it Norwegian, Swedish, Dutch?  If you recognize it, please let me know!  [via Whip Up]

Here's another solution to that common knitter's dilemma, "What can I possibly do with this last two yards of yarn?"  Braid it, young knitter!  You can sew the braid onto another knitted project as trim, or you can repurpose it into a necklace or bracelet [instructions here].  Do you know how to make friendship bracelets?  Use some of those knots on your scrap yarn, and see what happens [via Craft]

 

 

Everyone winds up with those little scraps--one yard here, three yards there--and you may think there's nothing you can do with them.  Guess again, knitters!  Try playing with different fibers and textures and make a pincushion [pattern here].  This would be a much-appreciated gift for the knitters and sewers in your life  [via Craft].

Knitting cables is one of those skills that looks harder to do than it actually is.  Basically, you move a number of stitches off of your needle onto a cable needle, knit the next stitches as you normally would, and then go back and knit the stitches on the cable needle so they cross over and form a cable.  Watch cabling in action right here with this video [via Craft]