Friday, September 10, 2010

KAB Stocking Pattern



Here is Keith's Stocking! The beginning of our holiday traditions together. I'll post my (RFR/RFB) stocking tomorrow.

Materials
  • Knitting Needles: 5 - size 5 (3.75 mm) double pointed knitting needles
  • Yarn: 2 balls each of Telemark Yarn in Drift (MC; white) and Grass (CC; Green). This sport weight wool has 103 yards/50 gram ball. Small amounts of Bayberry (CC2; red), Skyline (CC3; blue), and black (CC4) to finish the Dinos.
  • Gauge: Not important.
  • Misc: Yarn needle
  • Finished Size: 6" wide, 20" cuff to toe.
The majority of the stocking was knit stranded with the green and white. Duplicated stitches with CC2-CC4 can be done where applicable. Inspired by the description of the Modern Classics Christmas Stockings, the stocking is knit as a tube and afterthought heel finishes off the stocking.

The Chart (Knit from the bottom up, right to left. The images can be opened larger if you open them in a new window.) There are 119 rows to the chart total. See the instructions below for where the afterthought heel goes!

You can also access the excel document of the chart so you can enter your own initials (Note: you will need to save the document as another file before you can edit it). Check out my tutorial on how to make knitting charts in Excel to help with making changes.




Keith's Stocking Pattern
PDF Printout of this page
  • Cast on 70 stitches in MC. I arranged the stitches on 4 double pointed needles as follows: 20, 15, 20, 15.
  • Join in the round, and begin to work the chart (see below). The first two knit rows are the first two rows in white on the chart. The chart is followed starting at the bottom, and working from right to left. When you substitute your own initials, make sure that you turn them upside down to knit. Since we are knitting the stocking from top down, if you were to leave the chart as you expect to see it in the finished product you would end up with upside down letters.
  • Setting up the Afterthought Heel: After the third section (squiggles) has been completed, we will use some waste yarn to set aside stitches for the afterthought heel. This occurs after row 76, and before row 77 of the chart (see the yellow stitches below). You will have completed one complete row in CC.
    Rearrange the stitches on the four needles as follows: 18, 17, 18, 17. Using waste yarn (I recommend using a color that is not MC or CC), Knit across needles 2 and 3. Turn the work and purl back across needles 3 and 2. The stitches that you are knitting are shown highlighted in yellow below. The stitches shaded in gray are not knit.
  • Resume the chart, starting with working one complete row in CC.
  • Follow the rest of the chart.
  • Do any embroidery or replicate stitching that remains.
  • Decreases for the toes using CC (starting with 70 sts)
    • *K5, K2tog* repeat across (60 sts)
    • K 1 row even
    • *K4, K2tog* repeat across (50 sts)
    • K 1 row even
    • *K3, K2tog* repeat across (40 sts)
    • K 1 round even
    • *K2, K2tog* repeat across (30 sts)
    • K 1 round even
    • *K1, K2tog* repeat across (20 sts)
    • K 1 round even
    • K2tog across (10 sts)
    • K2tog across (5 sts)
    • Cut yarn, pull through the remaining 5 stitches and weave in loose ends.
  • Knitting the Afterthought heel (in CC)
    • Pick up 70 stitches of the CC that is on either side of the waste yarn, cut waste yarn and remove from stocking. (I found it easier to pick up stitches from the inside of the stocking)

    • knit one round even, (70 stitches). To minimize gaps, I will sometimes pick up and decease extra stitches at the edges, or else you can stitch these closed after you finish the heel.
    • Decrease as instructed for toe decreases
  • Braided tie
    • For the tie, I cut 3 - 24" pieces of yarn (2 green, 1 white) and braided them. I then wove these into the hanging corner (I went in and out of the knit fabric more than one time so it would be sturdy when hung). T
    • Tie a bow, hang and admire! (I used a bow rather than a loop so I would not be limited to hooks to hang the stocking)

Pictures through the construction


The black accents on the dinosaurs were done with replicate stitches. Instead of purchasing a whole ball of black telemark, I used a double strand of palette.


Amount finished when the first ball of white ran out. The entire project requires less than 1.5 balls.


The colorwork is done! Here is the stocking before beginning the toe and afterthought heel.


The finished toe. Pretty cute with the space invaders dancing on it.


The toe is finished, and the blue stitches are where the after thought heel will go through.


Attaching the tie: Red line is where the braid is on the outside of the stocking, blue dashed line is where the braid is on the inside of the stocking.



Both sides of the finished stocking. Keith prefers the dinosaur in the hat, so that will be the visible side when it's hanging in our home.

References, Credits and Influences

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Abbreviations Used in this pattern:
K - knit
P - purl
SSK - decrease by slipping two stitches then knitting them together. Alternatively, you could slip one stitch, knit one stitch and pass slipped stitch over.
K2tog - decrease by knitting two stitches together.
MC - Main Color
CC - Contrast Color


This this pattern was created by ChemKnits for your personal or charity use. This pattern is not to be replicated, sold or redistributed without permission from ChemKnits. © 2010 ChemKnits
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