A Short and Sweet MKAL: Gnatalie the Gnome in Rowan Denim Revive

Meet Gnatalie, the adorable result of the mystery "Gnome MKAL" by Sarah Schira of Imagined Landscapes!

I only knew 3 things about the project before I started. First, that she was a girl gnome. Second, that she had a BRAND NEW BEARD compared to the rest of her family... 😁

... and third that she was an avid gardener. That certainly became clear after the second of four total clues -- the leaf at the tippy top of her hat is darling! TIP: Tug the tip of the leaf hard, and it will come to curved little point.

The pattern calls for 4 colors of fingering weight yarn, but I had just received 3 tempting skeins of a new Rowan yarn called Denim Revive. It's DK weight and made of 95% recycled cotton. (Yes, for you Rowan fans, it is like a thinner version of vintage Rowan Purelife Revive). The recycling gives it a great organic look, with the remaining 5% comprised of small bits of "other fiber" tweed popping up occasionally in other colors.

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You can see that I really pressured the yarn by knitting it with US 2 needles, ouch! But even at that gauge, the yarn has a nice squeaky cotton feel. Always cool to the touch and -- as far I can tell -- very hard wearing. The DK weight certainly made for a BIG gnome hat though!




The first two clues will get you through the hat. The body is then picked up from the inside of the hat in the next clue, using an easy-to-see purl bump row.

It's a brilliant way to hide the pick-up row and feature a rolled brim!

The body and hat are stuffed when you are halfway through. You can stuff it as much as you like! Check out #gnomeMKAL on Instagram to see how gnomes have been stuffed into all shapes and sizes. I decided to make mine on the skinnier side.

You might wonder how she is standing up by herself! The pattern calls for poly pellets, which I didn't have and was too lazy to buy. Instead, I stuffed her butt with a coaster 😂.

You can also use a jar lid. TIP: If your inserted circle is a too large, instead of decreasing every row, alternate decreases every other row or every three rows.

Next comes the BIG REVEAL: her beard. A bunch of people have asked me why a girl gnome has a beard. I have no answers for this. There might be a little "parallel evolution" going on here between Norwegian gnome lore and J.R. Tolkien's dwarves, but I'll take it because it means I get to make one more fun piece.

It comes out super curly.

You could get it wet, pin it and wait overnight. BUT WHO HAS TIME FOR THAT?! I just steamed the bejeezus out of it. It's cotton, it can take it! (by the way, wool can too. I iron my sweaters all the time)

Her little arms are i-cord. I had a dilemma because I only had 3 colors and she needed a 4th for her nose and hands. Then I thought -- she'd be cute if she had a big schnoz. Why don't I just hold 2 strands together? The added bonus of this move was a chunkier rounded hand.

Ok ok, let's talk about her Pippi Longstocking braids, which I'm sure you've noticed! So, I wasn't really paying attention to the pattern when I cut the strand lengths TOO SHORT. I thought -- and now I wonder why this seemed logical -- that if I braided them REALLY REALLY TIGHT they'd lengthen. Not only is that wrong, but it time warped me back to elementary school days when tight braids would always flip up! doh!

It was too cute not to keep them. Man, the whole thing is absolutely adorable. Go get the pattern and make one!

If you do check out #gnomeMKAL on Instagram, you'll see some delightful alternate versions of Gnatalie with colorwork, rasta braids, kilts, super-long hats, etc. Or you can see all the gnomes entered to win prizes on the KAL Ravelry board!

You'll also see a lot of pictures of gnomes in actual gardens with actual <gasp> flowers. LOL! Not in Bar Harbor, Maine. My Gnatalie will continue to wait patiently for Spring.

Hey -- are you interested in Rowan Denim Revive? Let me talk a little bit more about it. Currently it comes in 8 shades, at 100m/skein.

My Gnatalie was made with Lipstick 214, Griege 215 and Cream 210. There is a book of patterns by Martin Storey, as well. You can see all the patterns here, and buy them as single .pdfs.

Here are some of my favorite patterns.

Dover

Monyca

Oceana

Waverly Cowl

I know I usually pick out the complicated stuff -- but do look at the other patterns as all experience levels are covered in the book.

Until next time!
XO
Dayana Knits

See my Gnatalie on Ravelry

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