Last month I started working on designing some knitted items for Mother’s Day gifts. My Mom loves to read and loves candles, and she has a big, whirlpool bathtub in her new house. My idea was to create a “Mother’s Day Trio,” which would include a bookmark, a decorative sleeve for a clear glass votive, and a bath mitt. I envisioned my Mom relaxing in the tub and reading a favorite book while soft candlelight flickered through the votive sleeve’s beautiful lace. And if she wanted to actually bathe, then she’d have the bath mitt (with some nice-smelling soap I’d include) as well. ((Personally I’d add a glass of wine to the scenario also. But since I’m not knitting anything directly associated with it, it only warrants a footnote.))
But, of course, I wasn’t going to design just one set. ((In my defense, there is an economies-of-scale argument to be made when designing since once you work out all the gauge and measurement issues you could somewhat easily create another similar pattern.)) My brilliant idea ((It really wasn’t brilliant.)) was to design three sets, in three different color schemes and with three different “styles.” I was very ambitious. ((And, no doubt, that was my fatal flaw.))
Needless to say my designing did not go well. I made many swatches–3 for the votive sleeves, 3 for the bath mitts, and I lost track of how many bookmarks I started, but I know it was at least 4. And this was all after looking at literally hundreds of patterns and narrowing it down to a handful to swatch. I got discouraged and stopped working on everything.
Blocking the swatch of Diagonal Madeira Lace
However, out of all my efforts, there were two designs that I liked a lot and thought would work for my intended purposes. The first, and my overall favorite, is for a votive sleeve. The pattern is Diagonal Madeira Lace, and I just love the color of blue mercerized cotton I found–it is exactly the shade I wanted. ((The yarn is Sienna by Rowan Classic Yarns in the color Pacific. Alas the color has been discontinued. Such a shame; for me it was the perfect shade of aqua.)) I love that the pattern is simple but open and “lacy,” and I also love that it is diagonal so it’s more visually interesting even though it is a simple pattern.
Small Quilted Cross-Stitch (on the bottom) with Stockinette Stitch (at the top)
The other pattern that I really like is called Small Quilted Cross-Stitch. It has wonderful texture and creates a thick, sturdy fabric. Thus I thought it would be a great candidate for the bath mitt. However, after knitting up a swatch combining Small Quilted Cross-Stitch with Stockinette Stitch, ((The yarn I used is a beautiful, organic cotton: Blue Sky Alpacas Worsted Cotton in the color Slushie.)) I wasn’t sure if a bath mitt was the best choice–the Cross-Stitch pattern has a really nice reverse side, so I wouldn’t mind it showing, and the Stockinette stitch in the hand-dyed yarn is quite pretty by itself.
Seeing the swatch made me question whether I should change my original idea of doing the entire bath mitt in the Cross-Stitch pattern and instead do Stockinette Stitch with a border of Small Quilted Cross-Stitch. And questionning that made me wonder if a bath mitt was even the right thing to be designing. Would a washcloth or bath puff be better? What would my Mom, and other ladies for whom these gifts might be made, prefer? I still haven’t decided what avenue to take. Let me know your thoughts by participating in my Poll (it’s at the top of the page, underneath the Search box).
