Res Completa: Baby Yoga Pants

I went to a fabulous baby shower this weekend in Santa Barbara for one of my best friends, who is due to give birth to her first baby in late November. I had knit a few items for her this summer, but couldn't show them on the blog for fear of ruining the surprise. Now that she has them, I can release them into the ether!



Pattern: Baby's Denim Drawstrings Pants, from Last Minute Knitted Gifts by Joelle Hoverson
Yarn: Nashua Creative Focus Cotton, 3 skeins of black (031)
Needles: US5 16" Clover bamboo circular needle, US5 Crystal Palace bamboo dpns
Start to Finish: July 11-27, 2007

Modifications: First of all, I didn't use the shrinking Rowan Denim for this project, so I worked to the post-washing dimensions stated in the pattern. Secondly, I changed the little legs. Instead of the seed stitch cuff, I did the following for a flared leg:
- CO 48 stitches (instead of 41)
- Join for knitting in the round
- Knit 4 rounds
- Purl 1 round for turning
- Knit 9 rounds even
- On next round, k1, k2tog, k to last 2 sts, ssk
- Knit 3 rounds even
- Repeat the last 4 rows 3 times more (8 sts decreased)
- Continue in pattern
Also, instead of making just one hole in the waist band for the drawstring cord, I made two of them, each one of them three stitches on either side of the exact center. Also, my drawstring holes were simple yo/k2tog's -- I tried the method called for in the pattern and didn't like how mine looked.

Notes: I'm very happy with how these turned out. So cute! It wasn't completely without drama, however. After finishing one leg, and thus starting a new skein of yarn, I realized that the skein I had used was completely different than the other two I had bought. It was bizarre (see here for blog entry). So I ripped out that leg and used the weird yarn for the diaper section, which you can't really see in the finished product -- yay! I also actually finished the pants at one point, but the next day when I saw my mom and showed her, she pointed out that I had made the diaper area so small that a be-diapered baby butt would never fit into it. Thus, I ripped out again and added an inch (looking back, I had not followed the pattern directions). Two ripping sessions, but nothing major.

These pants are for a baby whose gender will be unknown until it is born in November. I figured I couldn't go wrong with black pants, and thought the idea of yoga pants for a baby was something that my ultra-hip friend would get a kick out of. I do think she liked them...now I hope they actually fit the baby!