Lightweight and Cool

I find myself continuing to struggle with finding appropriate knits for things I want to make.  Also, I continue to find various challenges using cover stitches on knits and various other aspects of working with them.  So I keep trying to work on a really regular basis with the techniques and fabrics until I feel I have truly conquered them (if that ever happens!)

I found this really light knit on one of those tables of pieces of fabric at Beverly's.  (They almost always have a piece or two I'm interested in).  The pattern was fine for both grandkids, and of course the color is perfect!

Their mommie usually buys Hanna Anderson's for them.  I think they are pretty awesome, but the fabric is the same weight year-round and it's fairly heavy.  I wanted to make something similar, but light weight, and after five years or so I've finally done it!

Hint:  Be sure your needles are SHARP!  One of these hems has a funny sort of "break" about every two inches, caused by the fact that I needed to change needles and did not know it.  And one leg hem I had to completely pull out because on the the needles threads had broken; I had the stitch length set too short on that one and it was not fun to remove!

By now, you will know that I really get into the challenge of matching stripes...  Unlike the "apples' nightie I made a couple of weeks ago, this stuff is quite stable.  I would never make stripes in ultra-unstable knit.

V-Neck for him:

(I will always wish I had made the front "vee" with the opposite side on top, but, oh well...  That side matching was not intentional on the neck binding.  Since it was cut on the bias I was surprised it all came out looking like this.)

Longer shorts like Hanna's

Round neck for her (I should have tugged those front curves a tad tighter--it is sometimes really hard to gauge, because you don't want to "draw up" the top.)

Finished!

I always mark the front inside the shorts so they can tell which is front and back--usually I use a tiny satin ribbon.  In hers I make a tiny bow and in his I make a "loop".  This time it will also help their mom know which ones belong to which child...

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Later:

They fit, and were pronounced "soft", so another success story.

I asked their mom if a full-length pair of pants to match would be a good idea as they are so light weight--good for our weather.  She thought so, so here they are:

(I think I need a pair!)