So, as several friends have had babies recently, and pretty much all of them knit or crochet, I hit Google to see what sort of cute things were out there. I found the essay "Baby Knitting as an Ideal Gift, and to the right of the page, a resource list of informative articles for getting started (somewhere to point your non-knitting but soon-to-be-knitting friends?). I tend to knit or crochet blankets (two this year so far, much to my continued amazement), but, there's the less-traditional option (but still amazingly cute) - Wacky Baby Knits! (There's a giveaway for the book over on Mason/Dixon today, too.)
The little Bear Feet slippers - a good use of Fun Fur if ever I saw one!! Back to traditional, there's Vintage Baby Knits, including the adorable Stella Hat (click link for a how-to!)...
... and, if the wee one is a girl, there's Anouk from the Spring '04 Knitty:
Here's ADORABLE baby sweater - there's kits for it out at Fancy Image Yarn in Washington state. (Anyone been there/know about them?) I, of course, would make it in the Halloween option. But it really is cute, as is the model, see?
Now, once the child is past the dress-it-up-as-a-cute-animal stage, or expresses his or her complete distaste for the colors that make up the majority of his or her wardrobe, knitted garb may not work so well. So, along other avenues, it's important to lay down an early foundation for "wool = friendly", and a lot of littles don't have a chance to see actual sheep in their habitat. So, the lovely folks who brought us Wallace & Grommit bring us Shaun the Sheep. (I came really close to picking these up for a recent newborn, then realized I should really check the desired future video-viewing habits of said newborn with her mom first. I still might get myself a set, though...)
Sheep on the Loose  | Back in the Baa-aa-th  | Off the Baa!  | Box set - Off the Baa and Shape up with Shaun  |
There are always books about knitting - storybooks, rather than how-to's. Through MotherReader.com, I found Shall I Knit You A Hat?, a "Christmas Yarn". I also found Susan B. Anderson's book-inspired hat. Very cute!
The Long Red Scarf is a fun one as well:
If the little is bit older? And has some semblance of manual dexterity? Get 'em playing with yarn & thread! Singer is offering a combo sewing and knitting machine set. I'm totally jealous - I would've loved this when I was a little girl.
... and if they're actually ready to start knitting? I suppose you could spring for a set of Lion Brand "For Kids" needles:
They're cute, they're fun, and they're color-coded for right and left (assuming the child has figured that one out - it STILL gives me trouble) ... but seriously. You're a knitter (probably) or have friends who knit (definitely, or you wouldn't be reading this) - so you can probably teach them just fine on grown-up needles.
So, there you have it, subtle tricks to encourage a burgeoning knitter. Now the only trick is keeping them out of your stash!!
I want that knitting machine and those knitting needles.
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