Fig Cottage

Kitimat Toque Pattern

Hello my dears! Today is the day! I was hoping to have shared this pattern yesterday but my test knits weren't quite finished. This is my first (blog) published knit pattern ever, and I'm hoping it receives the same enthusiastic response as last week's Little Stars crochet pattern/tutorial.

This toque was inspired by the climate of British Columbia's north coast, a region that experiences long winters and receives a great deal of rain each year. The original colours used were white and grey, to represent the chilly weather, but I thought it would be fun (while test knitting) to swap the grey for some more cheerful colours. Don't they look lovely!

"Kitimat" toques, in size small, large, extra large.

Knit in the round and employing simple stranding colourwork, Kitimat includes instructions for FOUR sizes, to fit most heads in any family. Small will likely be too big for infants, but if you roll up the brim it may work! Otherwise, small is for toddlers. Medium should fit most children, or teens with small heads. Large will fit an average adult head. And extra large will fit well on.... well, extra large noggins (like mine)!

To view, download or print the pattern please click HERE!

EDIT: I've gotten messages from a couple people stating that they were unable to view the PDF. I have added the pattern here, please see below for written instructions.

Materials
Patons Classic Wool Worsted, 1 skein each of colours 202 Aran (A) / 224 Grey Mix (B)
4mm and 4.5mm circulars (40cm) or DPNs
Stitch marker, tapestry needle

Size
Small (Medium, Large, Extra Large)

Gauge
20 stitches = 10cm/4 inches, on 4.5mm needles

Abbreviations

K knit \ P purl \ st(s) stitch(es) \ M1 make one (with L needle, lift bar between sts from the front and knit through back loop) \ k2tog knit two together \ [ ] repeat to the end of round

Special notes
The largest size requires no more than half a skein of each colour so full skeins aren’t necessary, but do take care to ensure you have enough if using scrap yarn! If using Patons Classic, you should be able to make two XL hats and have a bit of each colour left over. For the stranded body of the hat, the instructions indicate how many stitches to knit in a given colour. Example: [K1B, K3A]. This means knit one in colour B, knit 3 in colour A, and repeat to the end of the round.

Instructions
With 4mm needle and colour A, cast on 72 (80, 88, 96) stitches using the long tail method. Join to work in the round, placing stitch marker at the start of the round. Knit 9 (10, 11, 12) rounds of 1x1 ribbing. Switch to 4.5mm needle.

Increase round: Knit 9 (10, 11, 12), M1. Repeat to the end of the round. 80 (88, 96, 104) stitches on the needle.

Work 3 (4, 5, 5) rounds of stockinette stitch, then follow the steps below to complete the stranded portion of the hat.

BODY

1. [K1B, K3A]
2. Knit 4 rounds in A
3. K2A [K1B, K3A] K1A
4. Knit 3 rounds in A
5. [K1B, K3A]
6. Knit 2 rounds in A
7. K2A [K1B, K3A] K1A
8. Knit 1 round in A
9. [K1B, K3A]
10. Slip 1 purlwise, K1B, K1A [K3B, K1A] K1B
11. Knit 1 round in B
12. [K1A, K3B]
13. Knit 2 rounds in B
14. K2B, K1A [K3B, K1A] K1B

15. Knit 3 rounds in B
16. [K1A, K3B]

17. Knit 4 rounds in B
18. K2B, K1A [K3B, K1A] K1B

Crown
Cut the yarn for colour A only, leaving a tail to weave in.

You’ll now be working strictly with colour B.

Small (Medium, Large, Extra Large) = begin decreases with
step 4 (3, 2, 1)

Knit one round then:

1. [K11, k2tog] (96)
2. [K10, k2tog] (88)
3. [K9, k2tog] (80)
4. [K8, k2tog] (72)

5. [K7, k2tog] (64)

6. [K6, k2tog] (56)

7. [K5, k2tog] (48)

8. [K4, k2tog] (40)

9. [K3, k2tog] (32)

10. [K2, k2tog] (24)

11. [K1, k2tog] (16)

Finishing
Cut yarn, leaving a tail, and draw it through the remaining stitches. Pull the tail gently to close up the top of your hat. Weave in all ends. If desired, block to relax the fabric and smooth out any ripples.

The pompom is optional, but it does add a nice touch! Make one in any size you wish, fluff it up, trim any stray/long bits, and use the tails from tying it together to attach to the finished hat with a simple knot. Weave in the tails and wear! ♥

I'd love to see your finished hat, please share a photo or two with me if you make one for yourself! ♥

TGIF

Woohoo, happy Friday! I'm absolutely delighted to tell you that I made my designer debut on Ravelry last night with my Little Stars pattern. In only 12 hours it had over 20 favourites and was added to a few queues! It's a small accomplishment but I am absolutely over the moon about it!

I went yarn shopping today and stocked up a little for some other design ideas. I am taking the weekend off from blogging to do some swatching and to finish writing my first knit hat pattern. I hope to have it published here on Sunday or Monday. So excited!

Have a lovely weekend!

Little Stars

Do you have an abundance, even a just a little, of scrap worsted weight yarn? You do?
Well, today I prepared a tutorial/pattern on how to make lovely little crocheted stars. I've tried out a few other patterns in the past but didn't like them, so I created this one instead! Here are a couple photos to get your creative cauldrons bubbling...

Little Stars can be crocheted in one or two colours, and they are so quick and easy to make. Just today I made nearly enough to make a little garland! If desired, you could also make smaller or larger stars by increasing/decreasing the size of the crochet hook and weight of the yarn.

In addition to using them for a garland, they would also look great stitched onto a plush toy, or onto a child's sweater as wee elbow patches. Another nifty idea would be to felt them, but I haven't tried that yet. If you do, be sure to send me some photos!

To view, download, or print the tutorial PDF, click HERE!

Happy crafting! ♥

Bake Day: Chewy Ginger Cookies

Mmmmmmm, soft ginger-packed cookies are my absolute favourite. Normally I save making them for christmas but the weather here has been so dreary of late that I think I may have to make them again very soon. These cookies take more work than the ordinary chocolate chip or peanut butter cookie, but the sweet spiciness of them is sure to warm and comfort you. They are a labour of love, and they are SO worth the effort.

Ingredients

2¼ cups all purpose flour
1½ tsp baking soda
2½ tsp ground ginger
½ tsp ground cinnamon
½ tsp ground nutmeg
½ tsp ground cardamom
½ tsp salt
¼ tsp ground black pepper
½ cup crystallized ginger, finely chopped
2 tsp fresh ginger root, peeled and finely grated
¾ cup (packed) dark brown sugar
½ cup butter, room temp
½ cup vegetable shortening
½ cup molasses
1 large egg, room temp
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 cup of raw or sanding sugar

Instructions

Arrange racks in lower and upper thirds of oven, then preheat to 350F.
Line two baking sheets with parchment paper (or use a silpat if you have one).
Chop up the crystallized ginger into fine pieces and put aside.
Peel the fresh ginger (I use this method), then finely grate it and put aside.
To a medium bowl add flour, baking soda, ginger, cinnamon, nutmeg, cardamom, salt, and pepper. Give these ingredients a good whisking and then put aside.
To a large bowl, add butter, shortening and brown sugar. Beat on medium/high speed with an electric mixer until light and fluffy (about 2 minuets). Scrape down the sides of the bowl with a spatula and mix again for a moment.
Add the grated ginger, vanilla, egg, and molasses to the large bowl. Beat on low speed until just combined. I switch from electric mixer to wooden spoon at this point, but it's optional.
Add the bowl of dry ingredients and stir until just combined.
Finally, add the crystallized ginger and stir through. The dough should be soft and sticky.
Put the raw/sanding sugar in a bowl, and prepare to get your hands a bit dirty!
With a regular teaspoon, scoop dough by the heaping spoonful and drop into the sugar bowl. Turn to fully coat each blob, then gently roll each one into a nice ball.
Place balls on cookie sheets, 2-3cm apart, fitting 12 to a sheet.
Put in both sheets, one on the top rack, one on the bottom rack, and bake for 12 minutes.
Make sure you rotate the cookie sheets halfway through baking!!
Cookies are done when the edges are firm and the centres appear cracked. Transfer to wire racks and let cool. Let the sheets cool a bit before putting new cookies on them.
Repeat steps 11-14 until dough is used up. Feel free to have a sample or two while you bake the rest. If you run out of raw/sanding sugar, don't despair -- use plain white sugar, or leave them naked!

These cookies freeze very well, so they are a great option to make ahead of a special occasion or event. I hope you love them as much as I do! Happy baking. ♥

WIP: New Hat Sneak Peek

Hello dear figs! I've been anxiously waiting to show you this week's WIP, a new toque design that I started over the weekend, and am quite happily making good progress on it despite a short interruption from the local internet fix-it fairy today. This lovely head topper will be finished tonight, and I'll be blocking it tomorrow to open up those swooshy, curvy cables a bit. I just love cables, how about you?

I have a few name ideas for this one, all inspired by certain families/locations from the Game of Thrones series. The completed pattern will be available for this toque soon(ish), so be sure to pop back in within the next couple weeks to check it out! ♥

Peace, Rest, Quiet

Today is a slow day. A day of solitude, cozy blankets, and quiet activity. Considering it still looks like this outside....

.... I figured it a great day to make a big pot of warming, hearty soup, full of chicken and rice, lots of leftover vegetables and a good punch of garlic and ginger...

... and to enjoy some simple pleasures.

Tomorrow I'll be sharing a new knitting WIP. I hope you'll come by and sit a spell. ♥

Sunday Funday

Whew, what a week!

Over the past few days I've been quite busy and so was very happy to have a really good sleep in today. Sunday Funday began by enjoying a couple episodes of Adventure Time while still in bed... it is fast becoming one of my favourite shows!

After getting up and enjoying a large cup of tea, I proceeded to enjoy some serious cuddle time with the cottage's furry inhabitants, (clockwise from top left) Itsy Bits, Bella, Kelso, and Gizmo.

After tea and snuggles I decided to be somewhat productive and managed to get some fabric pressed and cut to make more of these hot/cold relief packs. The ones pictured below were given as Christmas gifts and everyone loved them! I've been trying to come up with a cute name for them... Cottage Comfort Packs? I don't know. Do you have any ideas? Feel free to make a suggestion in the comment section at the bottom of this post! :)

After the fabric prep, I enjoyed a nice Skype date with my lovely mom before heading out to support our local hockey team. (We won, 5-4. Tense game.)

Now it is past 7:00 pm, dinner is cleared away, and I'm settling down for the evening to continue knitting. I hope you've had an enjoyable, relaxing weekend as well! ♥

Show + Tell: Header and Knit Design

I have been knitting since 2008 but, sadly, in the past I didn't take the time to prepare patterns for any of my own designs. I'm happy to say that I am working to remedy that lack of pattern-y goodness, because I want to share my work and love of knitting with others. Starting now (let's call it a belated resolution), I have vowed to myself that I will keep good notes and draft up proper patterns as I create new knits. In time, all of my patterns will be available here on the Fig Cottage blog, and on Ravelry as well.

Now! On to the show and tell part!

First, the pretty new header/banner that graces the top of this blog. I wanted to keep it neat and simple, so there wasn't too much going on to clash with the floral wallpaper, and (I think) I accomplished that. The font was a lucky find, and the branches/pine cones seemed appropriate to represent where I live. In the future I may revise the banner but for now it's pretty great!

Second, I'm so happy to share this recent knit design. I'm still making a couple little tweaks to my notes but this lovely toque is one of my favourite FOs of recent months. I'll be publishing the pattern here next weekend. (So excited!) ♥

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