'Lily Bear'

^{This cuddly 'Lily Bear' is made up of an assortment of different coloured and textured double knit yarn.}
 'Lily Bear' was designed as a mascot for 'Lily' Love In the Language of Yarn  a charity started in memory of my granddaughter Lily Iris Gibson born sleeping 18th July 2010.

The features are hand embroidered (no loose objects). 100% acrylic, stuffed with polyester fiberfill and can be machine washed and dried on cool setting. Measurements are approx 15inches (38cm) high.

30 turkish Lira which is approx 11 pounds sterling (17 USD) price includes p&p

I will ship all items via  First Class mail within 3 business days of receiving your order. Each item will come with a postal tracking number.

I want you to be 100% happy with your purchase. If it is not exactly what you imagined, I am happy to work with you to make it right! I take great pride in my handcrafted treasures and want you to love them as much as I loved creating it.

I will accept items for return, repair or exchange (if available) within 5 days of receipt. However, buyer will be responsible for all shipping costs. Please contact me first to discuss the details of the situation so I can be prepared and give you an appropriate timeframe on repairs. Again, shipping charges are not refundable.

Exception : Custom orders are NOT returnable or refundable. I make all items myself and many hours of love, hard work and attention to detail goes into each and every item. I take great pride in what I make and endeavour to make every item perfect.

'Lily Bear' makes a  great gift for special occasions such as birthdays, Christenings, Christmas, Thanksgiving etc and also “just because”.

I use high quality materials to ensure 'Lily Bears' have a long life span and live up to the high demands of children and equally  want to provide you with great value for money. I aim for my products to be reasonable priced; and all proceeds will go to help fund 'Lily' Love In the Language of Yarn a non profit organisation providing hand knitted and crochet items for children in need. 
All items are well packaged and protected for posting.

If for any reason your  mailing address does not match your Pay-Pal address, please leave a note upon checking out to avoid any confusion and delays in processing your order.

IMPORTANT NOTE: Please be sure you provide me with your correct delivery address, as I cannot be responsible for your items once they are have been shipped, thank you for understanding.

Please contact me if you  would like an item making in specific colours / have any special request. I am more than happy to make items to order. You can contact me by leaving a comment on this page, knitting Galore facebook page, Lily facebook page or email dbjones5559@hotmail.co.uk

Purchase Pattern Only If you would prefer to knit your own 'Lily Bear' you can purchase the knitting pattern here for 

only  4 Turkish Lira (under 1.50 pounds, 2 USD). Again all proceeds will go to help fund 'Lily' Love In the Language of Yarn a non profit organisation providing hand knitted and crochet items for children in need. 

 All efforts are made to make these patterns effort free.

This is a knitting pattern in PDF document format.

The pattern will be e-mailed to you within 24 hours of receiving payment. So please ensure that you provide your correct e-mail address.

Saturday Stitch: Ribbed Mesh

Every Saturday I will share with you a new stitch.
Today's stitch is: Ribbed Mesh.

A very simple mesh stitch with thin vertical ribs. Great in a light scarf or a summer throw project. You need a stitch number multiple of 2 + 2 + 2 edge stitches. Repeat the pattern between the * as many times as you like.

Instructions :

Row 1: edge st, * yo, sl1kw, k1, psso; repeat from * to last 3 sts, yo, sl1kw, k1, psso, edge st
Row 2: edge st, yo, p2tog, * yo, p2tog; repeat from * to last st, edge st

Repeat rows 1 through 2.

sl1kw - slip 1 knitwise

psso - pass the slipped stitch over

Difficulty level: Easy

Wednesday Question: How To Sew Buttons Onto Knitting

All knitters have questions about the best way to do things, why different things happen while they are knitting, how to fix knitting mistakes and more.
Here is this weeks question  From Eileen in Ireland - What is the best way to sew buttons onto a knited cardigan?




Answer: First of all don’t use the project yarn, it’s best to use sewing thread, just about any thread fine enough for machine sewing will work. Some people will insist on polyester because it’s strongest but cotton-wrapped polyester, cotton, or even silk is probably okay. You can use buttonhole thread or upholstery thread if you’ve got it lying around, but I like to buy thread to match if I can.

Once you have the buttons and thread ready, what I like to do first is find the position for the button by closing the garment, lining up button band and buttonhole band just where I want them. Then, I mark the spot with my needle and thread by making a first stitch on the far side of the garment through the buttonhole.

I like to have my thread doubled and knotted at the far end. This makes sewing on the button faster (twice as strong with fewer passes!) and gives me an easy way to secure the first stitch, rather than having to make a knot. You instead attach the thread by looping the needle through the loop created by the doubled thread.

Slide the button into place.

Now for the sewing: Go through the back of the button band, then back up and through the button three or four times, not too tightly. Make sure to go around both "legs" of one knit stitch to help your button lie flat and avoid pulling too much on one strand of yarn; this can distend your stitch.

On the back of the button band, give your button a wide base to help it lie flat and to protect your knitted garment. If you just can't avoid tightening up, try putting a toothpick or crochet hook between button and garment, then slip it out before the next step. Bring the needle back through the garment to the space between the garment and button. Wrap the thread around the sewing, creating a shank. Now pull the needle back down through the shank and wrap it around the shank crosswise. I like to do this three or four times to assure security. Pull the thread to the back of the button band and tie a knot—again, I tend to wrap and knot a few times. Now you can snip the thread and you’re done!

If you have a knitting question for Knitting Galore, please email it to : dbjones5559@hotmail.co.uk  or  Please  post it as a comment here.  All questions will be answered, and many are selected and answered each wednesday here on the Blog. 

Cables and Pocket Scarf

If you work somewhere that's a little cold, a pocket scarf is a great winter accessory. Like a regular scarf, it will keep you warm as you go about your day, but when you're up and about, chatting with coworkers or at meetings, you can use the pockets to keep your hands warm.

The little pockets are also a great place to stash a travel size tissue case, your lip balm or anything else you need to keep close at hand in the winter months.

MATERIALS

3 balls 100 grm Alpaca yarn Cream

Size 6mm (U.S 10) or size to obtain gauge.

Cable needle.1

GAUGE

15 sts and 20 rows = 4" [10 cm] in stocking st.

MEASUREMENTS

Approx 11" [28 cm] high x 60" [ 152.5 cm] around.

SPECIAL ABBREVIATIONS

C8B1 = Slip next 4 stitches onto cable needle and leave at back of work. (P1. K1) twice, then K4 from cable needle.

C8B2 = Slip next 4 stitches onto cable needle and leave at back of work. K4, then (P1. K1) twice from cable needle.

K1below = Knit into next stitch,1 row below, at same time, slipping off stitch above.

INSTRUCTIONS

Scarf

Cable Panel (worked over 12 sts)

1st row: (RS). P2. K4. (P1. K1) twice. P2.

2nd row: K3. P1. K1. P5. K2.

3rd and 4th rows: As 1st and 2nd rows.

5th row: P2. C8B1. P2.

6th row: K2. P4. (K1. P1) twice. K2.

7th row: P2. (P1. K1) twice. K4. P2.

8th row: As 6th row.

9th to 16th rows: As 7th and 8th rows 4 times more.

17th row: P2. C8B2. P2.

18th row: As 2nd row.

19th to 24th rows: As 1st and 2nd rows 3 times.

These 24 rows form Cable Panel pattern.

Cast on 54 sts.

Foundation row: (WS). K4. *(K1. P1) twice. P4. K11. Repeat from * once more. (K1. P1) twice. P4. K4.

Proceed in pattern as follows:

1st row: (RS). K1. K1below. *Work 1st row Cable Panel. (K1below. P2) twice. K1below. Repeat from * once more. Work 1st row Cable Panel. K1below. K1.

2nd row: K2. (Work 2nd row Cable Panel. K7) twice. Work 2nd row Cable Panel. K2.

These 2 rows form pat. Cable Panel pattern is now in position.

Keeping continuation of Cable Panel pattern, continue until work measures approx 60" [152.5 cm] from the begining, ending on an 8th row of Cable Panel pattrn. Cast off in pattern.

POCKETS (make 2).

Cast on 54 sts, work 48 rows of cable panel pattern as given for Scarf, ending with a WS row. Cast off.

Sew pockets to each end of Scarf.

Happy Knitting!

Saturday Stitch: Stockinette Brioche

Every Saturday I will share with you a new stitch.
Today's stitch is: Stockinette Brioche.

The Stockinette Brioche Stitch is another easy and fast reversible stitch, perfect for beginners. The only thing you need to have in mind is that as with any brioche stitch, the fabric will use a bit more yarn than usual.Stockinette Brioche Stitch makes a fluffy, squishy, adaptable pattern that's fun to knit and even more fun to play with. It's great for scarves, afghans or even as ribbing on a sweater. You need a stitch number multiple of 2 + 1 + 2 edge stitches. Repeat the pattern between the * as many times as you like.

Instructions :

Row 1 (foundation): edge st, * sl1pw with 1 yo, k1; repeat from * to last 2 sts, sl1pw with 1 yo, edge st
Row 2: edge st, k2tog (1 st + yo), * sl1pw with 1 yo, k2tog (1 st + yo); repeat from * to last st, edge st
Row 3: edge st, * sl1pw with 1 yo, k2tog (1 st + yo); repeat from * to last 2 sts, sl1pw with 1 yo, edge st
Row 4: same as row 2

Repeat rows 3 through 4.

sl1pw - slip 1 purl wise.

yo - yarn over

Difficulty level: Easy

You can find this stitch and more at craft cookie

'Thoughtful Thursday' Syrian Children Out In The Cold

Photo: AFP

As I lay in my bed last night, listening to the storm outside (torrential rain, thunder, lightning), I was thinking of the Syrian refugees. Thinking of the children who have already been through so much suffering and now having to live in tents as winter conditions set in. Yesterday I read a report from Save the children Out In The Cold a compilation of testimonies and photos laying out some of the challenges Syrian families face as they prepare to endure a cruel winter, out in the cold, and it broke my heart. There is a photo of a little boy aged 5 with his hands all chapped from the cold saying ' I want a blanket'. That image won't leave me! 
I am so proud and amazed by all we (LILY) have achieved - 10 months since I founded LILY - Love In the Language of Yarn and I put out a plea for knitted and crochet squares to make blankets for the Syrian children in the refugee camps in Turkey we have sent off an amazing 4,225 blankets to help warm the children. But it's not enough! there are at the moment 154,705 Syrian refugees in Turkey and at least 60% of them are children.

Please Help LILY

I am asking if everyone can send just 3 squares! I realise the cost of sending items by post especially to Turkey can be costly but  3 squares  would fit easily into an envelope and postage shouldn't be too great. 

 So please if you could just knit or crochet 3 x 8inch squares, pop them in an envelope and send them to the address at the bottom of this page, we will sew them together to make blankets and a child with nothing will get a warm and colourful, cover for their bed!

We work with reputable, experienced relief agencies to securely transport and distribute our hand-knit and crocheted blankets. 
You can also find us at:  https://www.facebook.com/LilyLoveInTheLanguageOfYarn

Please Help If You Can!

'Lily' is supported by businesses and individuals in Turkey, whether it be donations of yarn, Knitting and Crocheting or transportation of completed blankets to receiving agencies.

'Lily' has no paid employees.  All the good work is done on a strictly volunteer basis.

'Lily' wishes to thank all those private individuals and businesses which support us.  Without you, there would be no 'Lily' - Love In the Language of Yarn.  We work hard for the day when we are no longer needed to help keep Children warm.

Dianne Jones - Founder of  'Lily'- Love In the Language of Yarn.
Address - 'LILY' C/O Dianne Jones
                   Türkmen Mahlesi
                    Ünlü sokak No 10 D4
                    Kuşadası
                    Aydin
                    Turkey.

Wednesday Question: How To Knit 1 Below

All knitters have questions about the best way to do things, why different things happen while they are knitting, how to fix knitting mistakes and more.
Here is this weeks question  From Maggie UK - The pattern I am using say k1b which I believe is knit 1 below.  How do you do this?




Answer: Normally you insert your right needle into the first stitch on the left needle. A new stitch is formed by pulling the working yarn through that single stitch. To knit into the stitch below, you insert your right needle into the stitch one row below this first stitch, as shown in the photo:

When you pull the working yarn through to create a new stitch, it is pulled through one row lower than normal. After the new stitch is completed, there are two strands of yarn around its base. One strand is the stitch from the "row below" and the second strand is from the stitch you normally knit into. The strand from the "row below" is lifted higher than the other stitches in its row, making an inverted "V."
When these Vs are repeated in a knitted piece, they add visual interest because the diagonal lines they create, add more depth to the piece and make it thicker and softer. When they are worked on both sides of the fabric, they can create a very deep rib. 

If you have a knitting question for Knitting Galore, please email it to : dbjones5559@hotmail.co.uk  or  Please  post it as a comment here.  All questions will be answered, and many are selected and answered each wednesday here on the Blog. 

2013 Dishcloth

Materials:

50 grm Cotton type yarn

4mm (US 7) needles

Yarn needle

(Finished size approximately 8-1/2" x 7-1/2")

Knitting Tension
20 sts - 26 rows = 4" (10 cm)

Instructions:

Cast on 43 sts

Row 1 (and all odd rows): K

Row 2: K

Row 4: K

Row 6: K

Row 8: K

Row 10: K

Row 12: K

Row 14: K9, P25, K9

Row 16: K8, P27, K8

Row 18: K7, P29, K7

Row 20: K6, P31, K6

Row 22: K5, P33, K5

Row 24: K4, P3, K7, P3, K3, P3, K6, P3, K3, P4, K4

Row 26: K3, P4, K7, P2, K5, P2, K6, P2, K5, P4, K3

Row 28: K3, P4, K3, P5, K3, P1, K3, P3, K2, P3, K3, P1, K3, P3, K3

Row 30: K3, P6, K2, P4, K2, P3, K2, P3, K2, P3, K2, P3, K2, P3, K3

Row 32: K3, P7, K2, P3, K2, P3, K2, P3, K2, P8, K2, P3, K3

Row 34: K3, P8, K2, P2, K2, P3, K2, P3, K2, P6, K3, P4, K3

Row 36: K3, P9, K2, P1, K2, P3, K2, P3, K2, P6, K3, P4, K3

Row 38: K3, P4, K2, P3, K2, P1, K2, P3, K2, P3, K2, P8, K2, P3, K3

Row 40: K3, P4, K2, P3, K2, P1, K2, P3, K2, P1, K4, P3, K2, P3, K2, P3, K3

Row 42: K3, P4, K3, P1, K3, P1, K3, P1, K3, P1, K4, P3, K3, P1, K3, P3, K3

Row 44: K3, P5, K5, P3, K5, P3, K3, P4, K5, P4, K3

Row 46: K4, P5, K3, P5, K3, P5, K2, P5, K3, P4, K4

Row 48: K5, P33, K5

Row 50: K6, P31, K6

Row 52: K7, P29, K7

Row 54: K8, P27, K8

Row 56: K9, P25, K9

Row 58: K

Row 60: K

Row 62: K

Row 64: K

Row 66: K

Row 68: K

Bind off. Weave in ends and block. 

Pattern taken from One Crafty Mama

Beginers Knitting part 3: Cast Off and First Project.

When you reach the end of your knitting project, you must get the stitches off the needle. The method of doing this is known as casting off or binding off.

There is one main method for casting off, which involves knitting or purling as in the pattern and slipping the finished stitches over each other until you have only one stitch left, which is then closed with the tail end of the yarn.

To start casting off, stitch two knit stitches (or you can also stitch two purl stitches if that works better for your pattern – either one).

Now you should have two loops on the right needle.

Take your left needle and push it through the second loop on your right needle (the first loop you made).

Pull the loop up and over the first loop and off of the right needle.

Now you will have One loop on the right needle and it will look something like this.

Knit another stitch so you have two on the right needle again.

Pull the loop up and over the first loop and off of the right needle again.

Continue repeating this down the row.

Now you should have all of the stitches off of both needles, except for one left on the right needle.

Pull the loop off the needle and cut the yarn, leaving several inches to work with.

Push the excess yarn through the last loop.Pull it tight to tie off the end of the row.

Now you should know how to do all the basics of knitting to get going on some fun projects!

When you're a new knitter it can be difficult to decide what patterns to knit. How do you know which ones are easy enough for you to manage and which ones require skills you don't yet have?

This Garter Stitch Scarf is the perfect first knitting pattern because all you have to know to complete it is how to cast on, knit and bind off. The bulky yarn makes it a really quick project, too, which is super-satisfying for a new knitter. More experienced knitters should take a look at this pattern, too. It makes a handsome scarf that you can complete in just a couple of hours--perfect for last-minute gift giving.

Materials:

One skein super-bulky yarn, around 100 yards 

Size 13 needles, straight

This makes a scarf about five inches wide and 60 inches long, depending on the yardage of your chosen yarn.

Instructions:

1. Cast on 12 stitches.
2. Knit every row until you have about a yard of yarn left.
3. Cast off leaving a tail of 6inches.

Once you've cast off you'll want to know what to do with the tail, well this needs to be hidden by weaving in. This was covered in a previous post so if you click on the link you'll get all the info.
This is a wonderful all-purpose scarf pattern. You can make it with any kind of yarn or with a couple of different kinds of yarn held together. If you want to use a different weight of yarn, check on the label to see what sized needles are recommended and use them instead of the size 13s. You might also need a few more stitches if you're using lighter weight yarn in order to get a nice width. Or you can make a super-skinny scarf. That's fun, too!

Next Lesson - Basic stitch patterns 

Beginers Knitting part 2. Cast on and first stitches.

Slip knot and Cast On:

The slip knot is the stitch to start all stitches, the one that anchors the yarn to the needles and makes it possible to cast on. Before starting the slip knot, decide which method of casting on you want to try. If you choose the long-tail cast-on method, leave approximately an inch for every stitch that you’re about to place on the needle. For the knitted cast-on, leave eight to ten inches between the end of the yarn and the slip knot.The knit cast on is an easy way to get stitches on the needle to begin to knit. It's one of the first cast on methods I teach because it basically teaches you how to form the knit stitch at the same time that you're learning to cast on. This cast on isn't just useful for beginners, though; it's also a great choice when you're casting on a lot of stitches and don't want to risk having too short of a long tail, or when you're adding stitches in the middle of a row.
Like all cast ons, the knit cast on begins with a slip knot.

Leave about a 4″ tail and flip the tail over the yarn coming off of the yarn ball.

Flip the tail under the loop that was created so that it is going down the center of the loop from behind.

Pull the tail slightly through the loop.

Place one if your needles into the new top loop created (the smaller of the two loops).

Pull the loop tightly around the needle and this is your slip knot, ready to cast on the first row.

Once you've made your slip knot, put the needle with the slip knot in your left hand and the empty needle in your right.

To begin the cast on: Holding the needle with your slip knot on it in your left hand, push the needle in your right hand through the slip knot and behind the other needle.

Wrap the yarn coming from the yarn ball around the right hand needle and between the needles.Hold the yarn loosely in your right hand as you do this. This is known as English knitting, right-hand knitting or "throwing," which is different from Continental or left-hand knitting, in which the yarn is held in the left hand. Be careful not to loop the yarn over both needles, and don't pull too tightly or your stitches will be hard to work. Your loops should be tight enough to stay on the needle, but loose enough to slide the second needle through with ease. This is a concept known as tension, and like in other parts of life, too much tension is bad. As you become a more experienced knitter, you'll learn what feels like the right amount of tension in your work.

Here's the only tricky part in mastering the knitted cast on and knitting, push the right hand needle against the left hand needle and pull the yarn you just wraped around through the slip knot loop.

Now you should have the slip knot loop still in the left hand, and another loop around the right hand needle (so one loop on each needle).

Push both loops to the top of the needle by keeping hold of the yarn with your right hand so it doesn't get away from you. Slowly slide the right-hand needle down so the loop gets close to the tip of the needle, but does not slide off. At the same time the right-hand needle will be coming out from behind the left-hand needle. When the right-hand needle just comes out from behind the left-hand needle, give the right needle a little push with your left index finger to push the needle in front of the left needle.

 You're almost done! Now all you have to do is slide the loop that's on the right-hand needle onto the left-hand needle, above the slip knot loop. 

Now you should have two loops on the left hand needle.

For the next loop, wrap the yarn around the right hand needle again.

Pull the yarn through the first loop on the left hand needle again so that you have one loop on the right hand needle.

Transfer the right hand loop to the left needle so you now have three loops on the left hand needle.

Continue doing this until you have casted on as many stitches across as you would like. For this tutorial I have casted on 20 stitches (not including the slip knot).

Knit Stitch:

After you have casted on your first row, you pretty much have just been knitting already, but it is slightly different after you get the loop on the right needle so I’ll go through the first regular row.




The first step in forming the knit stitch is called opening the loop. With the needle with the stitches on it in your left hand and the empty needle in your right hand, the working yarn should be to the back of the work. The stitches are facing you, with the bumpy part of the loops facing in toward you body. Make sure you're working through the single loop, and not the bumpy part, when you form your stitches.Slip the tip of the right-hand needle into the first loop, from front to back, just like you did in the knitted cast on.




Once you've got the needle in place, simply carry the working yarn over the right-hand needle, going counter-clockwise around the needle and making sure the working yarn slides between the two needles. It is this yarn that makes the new loop that enables your knitting to become a full project. What you're doing is sliding the right-hand needle from the back to the front of the left-hand needle, keeping the loop of yarn on the left-hand needle for now but punching through with the working yarn so that it makes a loop on the right-hand needle.To do this, just slide the right-hand needle down so that the loop gets close to the tip of the needle but doesn't slide off. When the tip of the needle gets close to the edge of the left-handle needle, give the right-hand needle a little push so it can move in front of the left-hand needle. 




Pull the yarn through the loop so it is on the right needle (like above).




Once you've gotten this far, actually finishing the knit stitch is easy. All you have to do is slide the right-hand needle up so that the first loop on the left-hand needle slides off. That stitch is now "worked."




Now you’ll have less stitches on the left needle, and one on the right.




Now move on to the next loop on the left-hand needle and do the exact same thing, repeating until you are out of stitches.




Once all of the stitches are off of the left needle and on the right needle, that row is done.You just knitted your first row!
One of the biggest questions people who teach themselves how to knit often have is: how do I keep going once I've finished the first row?
When all the stitches are gone from the left-hand needle, how do you continue? Actually, it's very easy and it's a concept called turning the work.



 All you have to do is literally flip the work over. The side that you just had in front of you becomes the back temporarily. Move this needle from your right hand back to your left hand and you'll see you're right where you started again.




Continue stitching the next row as you did the first.




When you have the next row done, you will begin to see the pattern forming.

Purl Stitch:

For the next row I’ll be showing you how to do a purl stitch. You can alternate between knitting and purling in the same row as well as in different rows to form different patterns.




The main difference between a purl stitch and a knit stitch is that the right needle is put in front of the left needle instead of behind. So to start, hook the right needle into the first loop on the left needle, but in front of the left needle this time.




Wrap the yarn around the right needle counter clockwise , but this time in front of the back needle and around the front one. Just remember that you will always be wrapping the yarn counter clockwise around the needle in your right hand.




Pull the yarn through the first loop in the left needle, creating a new loop on the right needle.
Continue this same technique down the row.




When all of the stitches are off of the left needle, that row is done.




Continue stitching, rotating between the knit and purl stitch as you’d like so you can see the patterns they will form.

Knitting is a wonderful craft because even when you are first starting to learn to knit, you can make projects.

Even if all you know is how to make a knit stitch (and cast on and cast off, of course) then you can make a project. Don't believe me? Try this.

Get some worsted weight yarn, or whatever kind of yarn you've got lying around the house. If it has a label, find some knitting needles close to the size recommended on the label. If not, pick up some needles somewhere in the range of size 4mm to 6mm.

Cast on 30 stitches. Knit every row until you've got basically a square (it should be about six inches all around). Bind off.

Congratulations! You've just made your first ever knit project! And what can you do with it? Use it as a washcloth or a hot pad, send to Lily,or make a bunch of them and stitch them together into an afghan.

This tiny project might not seem very impressive until you learn that this "pattern" (knit every row) is so popular it actually has a name: garter stitch. So now whenever you see "garter stitch" in the title or instructions for a pattern, you know that's just a fancy way of saying knit every row.

Tomorrow we'll learn to cast off and follow our first pattern.