Watch out for the Monsters!

I finished these little monsters! I have to say they were one of the most enjoyable knitting projects that I have done thus far. However, the project does require a few techniques. I took some notes to share with you:

1. Yarn: Although I enjoyed working with the Red Heart Stitch Nation yarn and think the colors are so beautiful, I don't recommend it for beginners. This yarn can split easily, so if you are new to knitting, save yourself the trouble!

2. This pattern calls for Magic Loop and I learned that the longer your circular needles, the better! I used 32", but wish I had used 40". I used the Magic Loop method to knit the mommy monster and dpn to make the baby. Here is a good tutorial on Magic Loop: http://www.knittinghelp.com/videos/advanced-techniques

3. As you can see, this project is stripy! Here is what I learned... when you are about to switch color, make sure the old color is always on top of the new color (or the new color is always under the old color). By doing so, you are "catching" the old color as you knit along with the new color. Does this make sense?

4. So when you make something that is stripy on circular needles, you will inevitably get the "ladder" look (because you are knitting in the round so your rows are like upper spirals, therefore, when you switch color, it's obvious where you switched). Therefore, to avoid this, I use the jogless method. Here is how I did it:

First round of new color: knit all stitches
Second round of new color: slip the first stitch as to purl, then knit the rest of the stitches
Third round of new color: knit all stitches

Here is a picture of the side of momma monster where I attached the arms. See, not too bad huh?

5.  The pattern recommended three-needle bind off, here is a good tutorial: http://www.knittinghelp.com/videos/casting-off
I really like the look from three-need bind off; I used this technique to bind off the Spring Forward socks as well. I think it's much easier than "grafting." I mean "grafting?!" PLEASE!

6. I will be giving this to a 16 month old baby, so I choose to use felt for the eyes. That's it, a simple solution. I used felt glue and it worked super well. 

7.Lastly, I learned that I should have just stuck my knitting needle through the stitches to "pick up" stitches needed for the pocket vs. using a crochet hook! It was so difficult with the crochet hook, what was I thinking?!

 This would have been much easier!

Here is another picture of them playing in the backyard!