Monday, October 10, 2011

New design tuesday - designs for bigger little people

I've been giving some thought to children lately, namely 4 - 12 year olds and the dearth of knitting patterns suitable to the sensibilities of the young people I know.

Frills and bows and ribbons definitely have their place, especially with the 4-8 year old girls however this is a reasonably conservative age group, in a "fitting in with peers" type way, e.g. we would not think of rainbow striped tights as conservative, but your 10 year old is convinced that she will have no friends unless you buy them for her. Sometimes we have to conform before we can learn to be non-conformist.

So, I thought "what attributes do the clothes of a child need"?
they must fit - nothing worse than looking like you are wearing your sister's handmedowns
they must be comfortable - not itchy, nothing to pull up or down
they must free the body to run and jump and climb
they must be the wearer's definition of cool
layers are good

to this end here is the initial protoype of my Katie Snowflake hooded vest, there are definitely things that need changing...the armholes are not deep enough, the hood needs a better edge and the rib needs a change, either to 2x2 rib or twisted rib, but thats pretty much it! I love how this turned out ( the zombie baby is wearing the 4 year old size) the lace pattern is so easy to remember and makes you feel clever, and the vest meets all of my criteria. This version has a chunky zip, but there will be a button up version as well...for the zipper phobic.



the next vest in the works is named Cosset, it's a little love.

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

kewl. thats something brins would wear. Just a tad of lace, hoodie and short sleeved PERFECT

Shazzy
AKA Knitwytch on RAV

Unknown said...

I love it! C is getting ready to size out of all the cute baby (2T and under things) and I've also been struck by the absence of cute knitwear for little girl sizes. Looking forward to seeing more.