Six Degrees of Babies

In my post about the original Baby’s Joy Cap, I complained about not having any family or friends in the age group to have babies to knit for (all those baby patterns just look *so* cute, are quick to knit and don’t use huge amounts of yarn). Well, as it turns out, finding babies is like playing the game, “Six Degrees of Kevin Bacon”. I may not have a first degree of contact with any baby mommies, but I’m finding I have a number of second, third and fourth degree contacts as my friends turn out to be aunts, great-aunts and grand-mothers, most of whom are looking for original baby gifts like hand-knit items. My little French-knit cap with the bow on top turned out to be a big hit. So, I just finished a second one, this time for an aunt instead of a great-aunt. I have enough Baby’s Joy sayelle in my stash to do one more of these caps before having to switch to a different yarn

Baby's Joy Cap

When a friend told me she was about to become a great aunt, I quickly volunteered to whip up a baby cap for her. At my age (don’t ask), I don’t know many folks with little ones to knit for, so this was an excuse to pull out my trusty set of Knifty Knitter looms and pounce on the smallest one, used for making caps for newborns and small babies. I find it wonderfully restful to sit and watch TV while creating a cunning little cap in no time flat and with very little effort or thought. Yes, this type of French knitting (also called "looming") is that easy.

I've used the little blue Knifty Knitter loom and the cap-making instructions that come with it to make a number of baby caps already, but this time I wanted to experiment a little. I'd seen something called the "double stitch" on a number of looming websites, so I decided to try that, otherwise I followed the pattern exactly as set out in the pamphlet. Double stitching consists of wrapping the pegs three times instead of twice, then lifting the bottom loop over the top two. This produces a tighter, thicker knit.

The yarn I used was a remnant from my stash – Zeller’s Baby sayelle in a variegated colour called Baby’s Joy. I could not find any references to this specific colourway anywhere on the net, so I am assuming it is no longer in production. I acquired it a long time ago for a crocheted edging project that I never finished and then forgot about.

I loved the multi-coloured stippling of the finished product, but it still felt a little incomplete when I looked at it. I don't like adding handmade pompoms to baby caps because I find that the cut yarns can come apart too easily if the baby tugs on it. Then I thought of the pattern for a knit bow that I obtained as part of a pattern for knitting slippers. So, I knit up a bow (using 3.25 mm needles), and that turned out to be the perfect finishing touch.