i like lemons

So, the Scooped knit ice cream cone pattern has been posted and I’m happy to be able to kick back, dust my hands and not look at it for a while. Don’t get me wrong, I enjoyed designing and knitting it. I wouldn’t have done it if I hadn’t (life’s too short and all that). But now it’s time to do a final clean-up and get all those bits and pieces that are floating around in my brain, out.

Scooped was originally suppose to be just for the dipped scoop and sugar cone. I don’t know why, but I used to really like Drumstick ice cream cones when I was little. Honestly, there were more peanuts left in the wrapper than stuck to the chocolate coating, the cone was always soggy and the ice cream was little more than vaguely flavored air, but it’s one of those unexplainable childhood likes. The test knit went really well and I pretty much got both on the first try. I did the test knit on US sz 7s, but decided to go down to 6s to make the final product a bit more life-sized. The scoop part did undergo one small revision (taking out a couple of rounds) for the final knit, but the cone worked up just as I had hoped.

That’s when my brain started to get big ideas. “You can’t just do the dipped scoop, you should do a classic scoop. And what about those cake/wafer cones? Mom always made you get cake cones instead of sugar cones at the ice cream parlor. And you only liked cake cones when they were from the soft serve place.” Plans grew and I ended up designing the other patterns. The classic scoop was the most difficult for me. It went through four revisions before I was satisfied. Soft serve was easy (first try) and cake cone went through two revisions. A couple of other ideas that I tried but didn’t pursue: waffle bowl and styrofoam dish (maybe later, maybe not).

I’m always interested in other people’s design methods, so it’s only fair that I share my process. I usually start out mentally conceptualizing how I want the finished object to look. Once I have that image in mind, I break down the components of the object into basic shapes and stitch patterns: spheres, cones, broken rib, scallops, etc. Then, I write out the pattern the way I think it should work. From that pattern, I start knitting, making adjustments to the written pattern when it becomes clear that something is not going to work. I rarely frog during the design process, preferring to knit all the way through so I can check that the subsequent rows/rounds behave the way I want. I like to have that swatch to refer to when I’m knitting the next revision.

To rewind, when I first thought about knitting ice cream, I checked for existing patterns, hoping I could just modify one if it wasn’t exactly what I wanted. While there were many examples of crocheted ice cream cones, I couldn’t find patterns for knit ones. By the way, I am so jealous of people who can crochet. I have tried to learn several times in my life but I just can’t get it. I found a few pictures of knit ice cream cones, but they all seemed to be personal patterns or done on a loom.

In the larger scheme of things, Scooped didn’t take that long to design. A couple of weeks. It felt longer, I think, because I had a bunch of ideas flooding my brain and I wanted to get everything down on paper (errr, in pixels) before they disappeared. Getting everything recorded meant working on it every chance I could, which meant not much downtime for two weeks.

I also want to say thank you to the people who have left comments at the usual places and to those that have queued or downloaded Scooped. The response and feedback I’ve received has been wonderful. I’m happy with how the patterns turned out, but when others take the time to knit Scooped, well that’s just the cherry on my sundae!

Ah ice cream! What is it about you that casts a spell over us?

As children we gobble you down with innocent glee. As adults we sneak you at midnight as a guilty pleasure. We try to figure out someone’s personality by analyzing which of your flavors they choose as their favorite. You make a sticky, melty mess in the summer and you make us shiver in the winter, but no matter the season, we can’t resist your call.

There’s no need to worry about ice cream going straight to your thighs with these guilt-free knit ice cream cones. Included are patterns to make a sugar cone, wafer/cake cone, classic scoop, dipped scoop and soft serve. Mix and match the tops and cones, and make some no-calorie treats.

Scooped

Do not reproduce this pattern elsewhere. This pattern is for personal use only. In other words, please don’t try to make money off of it.

Materials
Set of US size 6 double pointed needles
Worsted weight yarn (your choice of colors for cones and ice cream scoops)
Stitch marker
Material for stuffing (yarn scraps, batting, plastic grocery bags, etc.)
Yarn needle, for weaving in ends and sewing scoops to cones
Beads/sequins or embroidery thread, to act as sprinkles, nuts or other add-ins (optional)
Needle and thread, to attach beads/sequins or to embroider (optional)

Patterns

Sugar Cone
Cast on 6 sts and knit one row as for I-cord.
Divide sts equally among 3 dpns. Place stitch marker and begin to knit in the round.

Rounds 1 & 2: *k1, p1; repeat from *
Round 3: k all sts
Rounds 4 & 5: *k1, p1; repeat from *
Round 6: kfb into first and last stitch on each dpn, k all other stitches (you’re increasing by 6 sts each time you knit this round)

Repeat rounds 1-6 six times (42 sts)

Round 7: p all sts
Round 8: bind off knitwise

Turn the cone inside out. Keep the little nubbin at the bottom tucked on the inside to help stabilize the point of the cone. Weave in ends and set the cone aside while you work on the scoop.

Wafer/Cake Cone
Cast on 6 sts and knit one row as for I-cord.
Divide sts equally among 3 dpns. Place stitch marker and begin to knit in the round.

Round 1: kfb all sts (12 sts)
Round 2: k all sts
Round 3: *k1, kfb; repeat from * (18 sts)
Round 4: k all sts
Round 5: *k2, kfb; repeat from * (24 sts)
Round 6: k all sts
Round 7: p all sts

Rounds 8 & 9: *k1, p1; repeat from *
Round 10: k all sts

Repeat rounds 8-10 five times. Turn the cone inside out and proceed to round 11.

Round 11: *k3, kfb; repeat from * (30 sts)
Round 12: *k4, kfb; repeat from * (36 sts)
Round 13: *k5, kfb; repeat from * (42 sts)
Rounds 14 - 19: k all sts
Round 20: p all sts
Round 21: bind off knitwise

Sew shut the little hole that probably formed when you turned the cone inside out. Weave in ends and set the cone aside while you work on the scoop.

Classic Scoop
Cast on 80 sts, leaving a 30-inch long tail. Divide sts among 3 dpns (if you prefer, you can use a 16-inch circ for the first several rows). Place stitch marker and begin to knit in the round.

Round 1: p all sts
Rounds 2 - 5: *k1, kfb, ssk, k1, k2tog, kfb; repeat from *
Round 6: p2tog all sts (40 sts)
Round 7: k all sts
Round 8: *k4, kfb; repeat from * (48 sts)
Rounds 9 & 10: k all sts
Round 11: *k4, k2tog; repeat from * (40 sts)
Round 12 - 14: k all sts
Round 15: *k8, k2tog; repeat from * (36 sts)
Round 16: k all sts
Round 17: *k4, k2tog; repeat from * (30 sts)
Round 18: k all sts
Round 19: *k3, k2tog; repeat from * (24 sts)
Round 20: k all sts
Round 21: *k2, k2tog; repeat from * (18 sts)
Round 22: k all sts
Round 23: *k1, k2tog; repeat from * (12 sts)
Round 24: k all sts
Round 25: k2tog all sts (6 sts)

Cut yarn, thread needle with yarn tail, pull through remaining stitches, knot discreetly and pull tail through to wrong side. Weave in the cast on tail towards Rounds 6/7 (this is the scoop opening). If you would like to embellish with sprinkles or nuts, now is the time to sew them on.

Dipped Scoop
Cast on 40 sts leaving a 30-inch long tail. Divide sts among 3 dpns, place stitch marker and begin to knit in the round.

Round 1: k all sts
Round 2: *k1, kfb; repeat from * (60 sts)
Rounds 3 - 7: k all sts
Round 8: *k1, k2tog; repeat from * (40 sts)
Round 9 - 12: k all sts
Round 13: *k8, k2tog; repeat from * (36 sts)
Round 14: k all sts
Round 15: *k4, k2tog; repeat from * (30 sts)
Round 16: k all sts
Round 17: *k3, k2tog; repeat from * (24 sts)
Round 18: k all sts
Round 19: *k2, k2tog; repeat from * (18 sts)
Round 20: k all sts
Round 21: *k1, k2tog; repeat from * (12 sts)
Round 22: k all sts
Round 23: k2tog all sts (6 sts)

Cut yarn, thread needle with yarn tail, pull through remaining stitches, knot discreetly and pull tail through to wrong side. If you would like to embellish with sprinkles or nuts, now is the time to sew them on.

Soft Serve
Cast on 40 sts leaving a 30-inch long tail. Divide sts among 3 dpns, place stitch marker and begin to knit in the round.

Rounds 1 - 10: k all sts
Round 11: k2tog all sts (20 sts)
Rounds 12 - 21: k all sts
Round 22: k2tog all sts (10 sts)
Rounds 23 - 29: k all sts
Round 30: k2tog all sts (5 sts)

Transfer sts to a single dpn

Rounds 31 - 33: I-cord
Round 34: Still working as an I-cord k2tog, k2tog, k1 (3 sts)
Rounds 35 - 37: I-cord

Cut yarn, thread needle with yarn tail, pull through remaining stitches, knot discreetly and pull tail through to wrong side. If you would like to embellish with sprinkles or nuts, now is the time to sew them on.

Assembly
Stuff the cone and scoop. Place scoop on top of the cone and see if the openings match up. If the opening of the scoop and opening of the cone aren’t the same size, weave the long cast on tail along the edge of the scoop opening as a running stitch. Pull the running stitch and gather until the openings match. Knot and evenly distribute the gathers. Sew the scoop to the cone using the scoop cast on tail. Knot discreetly and weave in ends.

Enjoy your guilt-free ice cream!

This probably doesn’t need to be said but… please do not embellish with beads, sequins or other small objects if you intend to use the ice cream cones as child toys. It’s best to embroider with yarn or thread to keep the possibility of choking hazards to a minimum.

If you aren’t going to embellish the scoop by sewing on sprinkles and nuts, you can knit the cone and dipped/soft serve scoops in one piece. Knit the cone as instructed, however, don’t bind off on the last round (remember to turn the cone inside out if necessary). Switch to your scoop color and knit Round 1 of the scoop pattern, but work two k2togs somewhere in that first round to get your stitch count down to 40. Continue working scoop pattern, being sure to stuff the cone and scoop before closing up. I personally prefer the look of the sewn together cones, but this one-piece method is an option if you are concerned about things being pulled apart.

Sprinkles and nuts can be knit in as you go. Before casting on, thread beads onto yarn. While knitting, randomly pull up a bead and knit it in (see this tutorial from Knitting-and.com). Using this method also allows you to knit the ice cream cones in one piece and still add embellishments.

Variegated yarns work great to create swirled flavors of ice cream.

Craving double (or triple) scoops? Just make multiple classic scoops and sew them on top of each other. You may wish to stuff the stacked scoops a little less than the one that is attached to the cone.

If the wafer/cake cone is going to be used for decoration (or light play), you can insert a piece of cardboard tube from a roll of paper towels into the lower portion of the cone to help stabilize and shape it. The double scoop cone in the pictures has the cardboard insert to help support its top-heaviness, while the soft serve and orange creme ones don’t.

Want to make these ice cream cones smell like the flavors they are suppose to resemble? Dab a bit of extract, scented oil or perfume (Demeter and Bath & Body Works are a couple of places to find food scents) onto a cotton ball and tuck it in with your stuffing. Or cut one of those car air fresheners into bits and hide a piece or two inside.

Sugar cone measures ~4″ high. Wafer cone measures ~3.5″ high. Classic scoop measures ~2″ high (not including the scalloped “skirt”). Dipped scoop measures ~2.5″ high. Soft serve measures ~4.5″ high. All are ~3″ wide at their widest point.

Pattern available for download as a pdf file.

I couldn’t resist these little bowls that were by the checkout at the grocery store. They’re so cute, bright and only $2.50 for the set of four. Then I couldn’t resist my favorite candy bar (Violet Crumble) at the drugstore. Seems like color is my impulse buying trigger right now.

The toy food pattern I’ve been working on will be posted this weekend. Most of my free time has been devoted to working on it the past couple of weeks and it’s left my brain a bit fried. The design process took on a life of its own and has grown into multiple patterns. I think I’ll write up a head-clearing blog entry after the pattern is posted.

I’m going to need to take a knitting break (except for olives) once the pattern is posted. I want a bit of a recharge before I try to tackle the Lelah Top and before I get back on track with knitting more mini Kitschmas Trees. Recipe posts will fill in for knitting posts.

Does the world need another basketweave scarf? Probably not, but every year I knit at least one more. And let’s call these “checks”. “Checks” sounds so much cooler, right?

The grey scarf in the above picture is the first item I ever knit that I didn’t frog. It’s the first thing I knit where I figured the pattern out for myself. This is a good unisex scarf and a good choice for charity knitting. I’ve been participating in the Red Scarf Project for three years now, and knit at least one of these scarves for them each year.

There must be a ton of patterns for basketweave scarves out there, but here’s my basic pattern. I’ve kept it on a scrap of paper for almost six years. Time to commit it to pixels.

Check? Check! Scarf

Do not reproduce this pattern elsewhere. This pattern is for personal use only. In other words, don’t try to make money off of it.

Materials
Your choice of size US 7-10.5 straight needles
Your choice of worsted weight yarn (~325 yds, for a 65-inch long scarf)
Yarn needle, for weaving in ends

Pattern
Cast on 32 stitches. Knit one row.

Row 1: k2; *k4, p4; repeat from * to last six sts; k6
Row 2: k2; *p4, k4; repeat from * to last six sts; p4, k2
Row 3: repeat row 1
Row 4: repeat row 2
Row 5: repeat row 1

Repeat rows 1 through 5 until scarf is desired length. Cast off knitwise, weave in ends, and you’re done!

You can adjust the width of the scarf with needle size. For example, using the above directions, US 10.5 needles gave me a ~7-inch wide scarf and with US 7s I got about a 5-inch wide scarf.

Width can also be adjusted by casting on any number of stitches that is a multiple of 4 and is divisible by an even number.

If you intend to fringe the scarf, I would recommend knitting two rows after casting on and knitting one row before casting off.

The two knit stitches at the beginning and end of each row creates a garter stitch border. If you prefer, you can eliminate these stitches to create a slightly curled/wavy edge.

A good first scarf for beginners. It looks a bit more polished than plain garter, while allowing the practice of knit and purl basics.

Pattern available for download as a pdf file.

Just an “omgsogood” tip. Make your favorite shortbread recipe, adding a couple pinches of cinnamon to the dough. Ten minutes before the shortbread is finished baking, spread on some apricot jam and continue baking. Cut into wedges while still warm. Really wonderful with a cup of tea.

Could it be?! Will I actually knit my first non-accessory, wearable item this year? I added the Lelah Top (website seems to be down - try the Wayback Machine) to my Ravelry queue. I’ve been looking through the projects and reading the notes of what modifications people have made. I intend to give the pattern a try using some Caron Simply Soft before I decide to throw down some $$$ for cotton yarn. I’m a little concerned about the lace pattern. I don’t like it when you can see skin and then jeans/skirt/pants through eyelets or sheer tops. I’m going to be trying to get away with using the 29-inch circulars (10.5s and 7s) I bought 5 years ago and haven’t yet used. Hopefully the 7s will create a denser fabric, to avoid “show through” in the chest area (go double thick for the bust?). Maybe just line the whole thing.

New toy pattern coming within the next month or so. The concept is pretty well set and I’ve written the first draft of the pattern, so I should be able to test knit this weekend. I’m keeping what it is under wraps for now, but I will say that it’s food related and it will, as usual, be a free pattern.