Friday, May 1, 2009

Window Cat Family - revised for humans to follow

I keep forgetting that people just can't read my mind. Thank you to KittyDobson for pointing out the confusion inherent to the instructions for the window cats posted here previously.

Yikes!

Apologies, y'all. It was one of my first attempts at writing things down and I'm still figuring out how to do it smoothly and with some elegance... or at least not littered with editor foibles.

I am always open to questions and editing suggestions. Seriously. Please let me know.

Here's the revised version: (free PDF availabe at my section of the Ravelry store)



Window Cats

C. A. Lira 2008 (rev 2009)

Note: crochet thread size 10
hook size 9 (1.75mm) (1.25mm)  oops - apologies

Wider Window Cat - finished height 1 3/8”
1) ch3, slst into 2nd ch from hook, hdc in 1st ch worked, ch5, slst into 2nd ch
from hook, hdc sc into next ch (3rd ch of ch5) , ch2 t   yet another correction thanx KAT
2) sc in sc of previous row, sc in each of next 2 sts, 2sc in next st, ch2 t
3) skip 1st sc, sc in next 4 sts, sc in turning chain of previous row, ch2 t
4) scdec (include 1st sc), sc in next 2sts , scdec (include turning ch of
previous row), ch2 t
5) sk 1st st, (scdec) twice (include turning chain in 2nd dec), ch2 t
6) sc in each of 1st 2sts (including 1st sc), 2sc in next st, ch2 t
7) sc in each of 1st 3sts (including 1st sc) , 2sc in next st, ch2 t
8) sc in 1st 5sts (including 1st sc), 2sc in turning ch, ch2 t
9) sc in 1st 7sts (including 1st sc), 2sc in turning ch, ch2 t
10) sc in 1st 8sts (including 1st sc), 2sc in turning ch, ch2 t
11) sk 1st sc, sc in next 8sts, ch2 t
12) scdec (include turning ch), sc in each of next 5sts, scdec, sk turning ch of
prev row, ch2 t
13) sk turning ch, scdec, sc in each of next 3sts, scdec (include turning ch),
do not turn
14) ch12, hdc in 2nd ch from hook, sc in next ch, 2sc in next ch, sc in each of
next 7 chs, going up toward head sk last 2 Rows of body, slst to next st
on side of body, end off

Rounded Window Cat - finished height 1 ¼”
1) ch3, slst into 2nd ch from hook, hdc in 1st ch worked, ch5, slst into 2nd ch
from hook, hdc into next ch (3rd ch of ch5), ch2 t
2) sc in sc of previous row, sc in each of next 2 sts, 2sc in next st, ch2 t
3) skip 1st sc, sc in next 4 sts, sc in turning chain of previous row, ch2 t
4) scdec (include 1st sc), sc in next 2sts , scdec (include turning ch of
previous row), ch2 t
5) sk 1st st, (scdec) twice (include turning chain in 2nd dec), ch2 t
6) sc in each of 1st 2sts (including 1st sc), 2sc in next st, ch2 t
7) sc in each of 1st 3sts (including 1st sc) , 2sc in next st, ch2 t
8) sc in 1st 5sts (including 1st sc), 2sc in turning ch, ch2
9) sc in 1st 7sts (including 1st sc), 2sc in turning ch, ch2 t
10) sc in 1st 8sts, 2sc in turning ch, ch2 t
11) sk 1st sc, scdec, sc ineach of next 5sts, scdec, sk turning ch of prev row,
ch2 t
12) sk 1st sc, scdec, sc in each of next 3sts, scdec (include turning ch), ch2 t
13) sk 1st sc, scdec, sc in next st, scdec (including turning ch), do not turn
14) ch12, hdc in 2nd ch from hook, sc in next ch, 2sc in next ch, sc in each of
next 7chs, working up toward head sk last 2 Rows of body, slst to side of
next Row on body, end off

Window Kitten Kitty - finished height 1 ½”
1) ch3, slst in 2nd ch from hook, sc in next ch (first ch worked), ch5, slst in
2nd ch from hook, sc in next ch (3rd ch of ch5), ch2 t
2) sc in 1st sc of previous row, sc in each of next 2sts, 2sc in next st, ch2 t
3) sk 1st sc, sc in each of next 5sts, ch2 t
4) sk turning ch of previous row, scdec, sc in each of next 2sts, scdec
(include turning ch of previous row), ch2 t
5) sk1st sc, (scdec) twice (include turning ch in 2nd dec), ch2 t
6) sc in each of next 2 sts, 2sc in turning ch, ch2 t
7) sc in 1st 3 sts, 2sc in next st, sk turning ch, ch2 t
8) sk turning ch, sc in each of next 6sts (include turning ch), ch2 t
9) sk 1st st, sc in each of next 6 sts, do not turn
10) ch12, sk 1st ch, 2sc in each of next 3chs, sc in each of next 7chs, slst to
body at end of Row 9, end off



Enjoy
Cecinatrix

15 comments:

KittyDobson said...

thanks so much!

Tejaswini said...

Hello there.
Thanks so much for the pattern. I am planning to make these for a friend of mine as a Christmas gift.
forgive my ignorance. can you please explain ") scdec (include 1st sc), sc in next 2sts , scdec (include turning ch of
previous row), ch2 t"

Cecinatrix said...

Hello Tejaswini

You are welcome for the pattern. My apologies for its lack of clarity. I sometimes use terms that describe the stitch to me but not others. ;-)
No problem decoding the "Cecinatrixese": the biggest confusion comes from the fact that I count the turning chain as the 1st stitch of the next row (which is how I learned but may not be standard). So a normal sc row for me would be:turning chain, skip the stitch that the turning chain is attached to, sc in next sc, etc.

So....

"scdec" is what I call what others call sc2tog: ie insert hook into 1 sc,yo,pull loop through,insert hook in next sc,yo,pull loop through, yo and pull through all loops on hook

By "scdec (including the 1st sc) I mean insert the hook into the same sc as the one with the turning ch,then continue as for a "regular" scdec

sc in next 2sts: work one sc in each of the next 2 sts

scdec (including turning ch of previous row): is my way of trying to make it clear that the dec (sc2tog) includes the ch on the very end because not everybody counts that turning ch as a st

ch2t: the turning chain and turn that get you to the next row where that ch2 becomes the first st of the next row

Whew. Sorry if I over-explained, I didn't know how much needed explaining but always consider it a good idea to explain everything in excruciating detail - just in case. :-)

That's the hard part of writing patterns for me - I personally don't like cluttered instructions so I never know if I've included enough information in the descriptions.

So, not ignorance on your part, just a dubious attempt at brevity at the expense of clarity on my part. Please let me know if I can explain anything else or even this very entry again. I love to talk. ok type.

Always
C

Anonymous said...

Great pattern! As I was crocheting I could not for the life of me figure out how this was going to look like a cat...but it did. Except my cat has a smurf hat instead of ears. If at first you don't succeed....LOL

Thanks a bunch!

Anonymous said...

Success!!!

Cecinatrix said...

Heya noirness,

Glad it worked out for you. I love to play with my string and figure things out but I'm never sure if I am able to explain my odd little hook antics clearly enough in the pattern. Happy to hear that at least one more fellow hook fiend is enjoying making the cats.

Thanks for leaving a comment.

Unknown said...

hello, wonderful pattern! c:
they're so cute!
I was wonderthing though, all of the t's mean Turn, right?

Cecinatrix said...

Hi there Jocelyn

Thanks for stopping by and dropping a note. Yes the t's mean turn. oops. Sorry about that. Early on in my pattern writing efforts I posted instructions in my cryptic note taking system instead of something completely straightforward.

Thanks again for asking.
C

Unknown said...

I was wondering, the hook size? I have a hook size 9, but it is no 1.75 mm. When I google that size it gives me a size 0.

Cecinatrix said...

Oops. My apologies Miriam. I do use a size 9 hook but you are right - it is not 1.75mm but 1.25mm, a Susan Bates US9 steel crochet hook.

I have to remember that relying on my memory is a bad way to present hard number data. Again, sorry.

Oh and you needn't necessarily sweat accuracy of the gauge for these cats - it shouldn't alter the appearance of the motif, only the size. I've seen people work them in yarn with much larger hooks and they turn out fine just bigger and bit fuzzier.

Thanks for calling this to my attention. I'll go back in and fix that.

Thanx again
C

KAT said...

I am confused! For the Wider *and* the Rounded Window Cats, Row 2 says: "sc in sc of previous row". But there is NO sc in Row 1. ??? Can you decipher this for me please?
~Kat~ [9/16/2014]

Cecinatrix said...


Hiya KAT.

At one dizzying point of the retool/edit I tried making the base of the second ear wider to match the 1st ear which would read make the pattern

1) ch3, slst in 2nd ch from hook, sc in next ch (first ch worked), ch5, slst in 2nd ch from hook, hdc in next ch (3rd ch of ch5), ch2 t
2) 2 sc in 1st sc hdc of previous row, sc in each of next 2sts, 2sc in next st, ch2 t

I didn't like the new look so I went back to the original pattern as seen in the charts... and, of course, I subsequently forgot to alter the written instruction:

1) ch3, slst in 2nd ch from hook, sc in next ch (first ch worked), ch5, slst in 2nd ch from hook, hdc sc in next ch (3rd ch of ch5), ch2 t
2) sc in 1st sc of previous row, sc in each of next 2sts, 2sc in next st, ch2 t

My apologies for the mess. Thank you for both spotting the error and bringing it to my attention.

If you decide to try the wider ear base version please note that the rest of the written instructions would need altering to compensate for this change.

Please let me know if you spot anything else that doesn't sync up.
Hope this helps.

Always, C

George said...

Hello,

Thank you for beautiful patterns.

How do I enlarge the body of Window Kitten Kitty (gray one) to be 2.5". Any idea how I can do that?

Thank you,
Nancy

Cecinatrix said...

Hi there George. Thanks for stopping by. I really appreciate that you took the time to comment.

Do you want the Kitten bigger overall? I'd go with a larger hook with the same thread size. Gauge is such a sneaky thing. It has no direct answer - just trial and error.

Do you just want the Kitty wider but the same height? For that I suggest that you alter the distribution pattern of the dec and inc at both ends of the rows:

Step5 - don't dec at ends of row
work(1sc into the turning chain,sc in each next 5 st including prev t-chain ch2 turn.

Step6 - no decs at ends of row
Step7 - no dec at ends of row
Step8 - dec both ends of row
Step9 - dec both ends or row
Step10 - work tail as is

for above count prev rows t-ch as a stitch

Hope that helps. Feel free to ask for any clarification. My notation system can be confusing. ;-)

Thanks again,
The C

Unknown said...

You have another cat pattern that I just love! It's the one on a wood background with white thread that looks more yellow because of the photograph. The cat is looking back towards its tail. My problem is I can't figure out the chart! Is there any way you can help? Thanks in advance, Karen