Tag Archives: effner

“Christmas Wishes”

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Happy Sunday to you all.  I am writing this blog post at my kitchen table with a cup of coffee at my side and twinkle lights lighting up this grey morning.

Thank goodness my Little Darling, Alice, is here to add a little sunshine to this grey day, and offer some seasonal wishes of joy, peace, and love.

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Alice’s garland of wishes includes charms that say joy, love, and peace.  In addition, heart-shaped charms and snowflakes (for snowy wishes) decorate the sparkly icy white garland.  Alice’s garland is all ready to her to hang on her tree.

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All of the whites in this ensemble are pure white to pick up the very white snowflakes on the dress.  The delicate English cotton Cluny lace gives a peek at the white cotton lawn lining below.  Tiny vintage red bugle beads have carefully been sewn on the center of each lace motif.  Both bright red and deep red accents highlight this ensemble.

Pure white mohair/silk lace yarn was used to knit the 3/4 length sleeved cardigan.  Tiny botanical holiday motifs are embroidered on the front neckline using beads and embroidery thread.

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Alice’s other accessories include a beaded headband, bracelet, and tights.

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“Christmas Wishes” will be available tonight (November 12, 2017) at 7:00 pm CST, cindyricedesigns.com

Wishing you all a peaceful day filled with joy and love. ❤

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Christmas Ensemble Availability Dates

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Hello, from frosty Illinois.  Boy, we had a good frost last night.  It’s sooo cold here, but it’s very pretty too.  When I look out my windows I see blue sky, frosty white grass, trees of red, yellow, orange, and yes, some are still green.  I don’t think our magnolias will ever give up their green leaves.  I don’t know what they’re thinking! 😮

I spent the last two days getting my 6 Christmas ensembles ready for market.  It was a lot of work, but the majority of it is complete.  It’s a peaceful feeling to have weeks and weeks of work all wrapped up.  I’d love to sit and breathe it in, but I cannot wait to start on something new!

I have decided to offer one ensemble every evening for 6 days in a row.  They will start on November 11 and go through November 16.  The time that the sales page will be live on my website will remain unchanged at 7:00 pm CST.

Here is the order, so you can plan, if you’d like.  As a reminder, I’ll also send out a blog post and Facebook post in the morning on the day each one will be available.

November 11:  “Frosty Festivities” for Rose (10″ Boneka by Dianna Effner)

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November 12:  “Christmas Wishes” for the Little Darlings.

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November 13:  “Little Frosty” for Kaye Wiggs ‘illies’ (Millie, Tillie, Lillie)

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November 14:  “Classic and Cozy” for the Little Darlings.

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November 15:  “Christmas Snow” for Patience.

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November 16:  “Miss Cookie Elf” for the Little Darlings.

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All my girls say “thank you, with ❤ ” for taking the time to admire them in their finery today.  (I do, too, of course!)

I hope you all have a beautiful day!

❤

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New Knitting Pattern for the Little Darlings

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Finally, after 4 sample/test knits this pattern is ready for you!  I am just a wee bit tired of knitting jumper pinafores at the moment, but I wanted to plough through and get this one to you for your autumn knitting pleasure. 🙂  I hope you enjoy knitting it.

If you’ve been following my posts, you’ll know that this design was inspired by a vintage   jumper I saw quite awhile ago on Pinterest.  I’ve no idea who the original designer was.  If anyone knows, please let me know.

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This pinafore is quite easy to knit with minimal shaping.  It’s knit flat with plackets for buttons and buttonholes on the back.  You’ll start at the bottom with a seed stitch border and go up.  Stockinette stitch is used for most of the skirt.  As you get to the fitted high waistband, you’ll make decorative decreases which look like soft gathers or pleats.

When the entire skirt is finished, stitches are picked up for the straps.  I don’t like picking up stitches, probably because I haven’t practiced enough, but these are a very small number to pick up, and they’re picked up along a straight edge.  It wasn’t hard at all, and I’ve included tips.  If you really don’t want to pick up stitches simply knit the straps then sew them on.

Working buttonholes are added to the straps and for the first three buttons.  The remainder of the buttons are sewn through both plackets, as they’re not needed for dressing.

The Little Darlings have sloped shoulders, and the straps are meant to fall right at the shoulder/arm joint, so the straps need a fabric blouse or t-shirt to “grip” onto.  I’ve used quilter’s cotton which works nicely.  If you have the top already made you can adjust the straps when you get to this point in the pattern.  The straps could be lengthened and criss crossed in the back too.

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The buttonholes are made with a yarn over.  These buttonholes are just a tiny bit larger than the ones on my sweater patterns.  Four millimeter beads will still work, but five millimeter beads or 1/4″ buttons are a better fit.  If you’re using the smaller size, making good thread shanks is important.

I’ve use Knit Picks fingering weight yarn for these three pinafores:  Stroll Tweed Sock in North Pole Heather, Palette in a blue heather, and Gloss in cranberry.  The gauges came out slightly different for each, but all three different yarns worked with the same pattern.

I wish all of you a wonderful day!  Thanks for visiting with me today. ❤