Bloom

> I love clothes that grow with your > kiddies. I tend to fall in love with > pieces of clothing and find it sad > when my littlies outgrow them. This is > particularly so with handmade items > which I have created with love and a > coveted fabric or fibre. Bloom is > designed to bloom, or grow with your > little girl. From birth it looks > particularly cute as a beautiful > dress. In white or cream it makes the > perfect christening or naming dress. > As the little girl in your life grows > the ribbing in the bodice and shaping > of the cap shoulders allows the dress > to bloom into a cute little peasant > style top. I love how it looks totally > different on different ages; a cute > little baby dress for the wee ones, > but not babyish at all for the bigger > girl. **Construction:** This is a seamless garment knit entirely in the round on circular needles. It is knit from the top down using raglan shaping for the bodice construction. **Sizing:** Bloom comes in three sizes; achieved by varying both needle sizes and yarn weight; small in 4ply/fingering, medium in 8ply/dk and large in 10ply/worsted. Each size fits a wide age range, for example, the medium size fits from a 17 to 23 inch chest. It is shown in the pics (the pink one) on a 9 month old and slight 4 year old. **Small: Chest:** 13”/33cm to 19 “/48.5cm [newborn to 12 months] **Medium: Chest:** 17”/43cm to 23”/58.5cm [6 months to 4 years] **Large: Chest:** 21”/53.5cm to 27”/68.5cm [2 years to 8 years] **Skill Level:** Intermediate **Techniques used:** knit and purl Increasing and decreasing Working in the round on circular needles Working small circumferences in the round Lace knitting Working from a chart The pattern includes both charts and written instructions for the lace as well as a link to a tutorial for neat underarm finishing. **Yarn Requirements:** **Small** • Bendigo Woollen Mills Luxury 4ply (100% merino; 787 yd[720m]/200g). - 1 ball. • OR WOOLganic Organic Merino 4ply/Fingering (100% organic merino; 227 yd[208m]/50g) - 2 balls. • OR 4ply/fingering weight yarn of approximately 300 yards/ 275 metres. **Medium** • WOOLganic Organic Merino Knitters Yarn 8ply (100% organic merino; 113yd[103m]/50g) - 3 balls. • OR Bendigo Woollen Mills Luxury 8 ply (100% wool; 437 yd[400m]/200g) - 1ball. • OR 8ply/DK weight yarn of approximately 390 yards/360 metres. **Large** • Swan Island Natural Colors Merino Worsted (100% organic merino; 250yd[229m]/100g) - 3 balls. • OR Bendigo Woollen Mills Luxury 10 ply (100% wool; 328yd[300m]/200g) - 2 balls. • OR 10ply/worsted weight yarn of approximately 540 yards/ 500 metres. Garment shown in WOOLganic Organic Merino Knitters Yarn 8ply in Blossom. A yarn with good memory and elasticity is recommended for best results as the bodice relies on both negative ease and firm ribbing. A doll sized version of bloom can be found [here.][1] [1]: http://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/dolly-bloom