In the heat of summer, the staff here at Knit Picks have been busy knitting things for babies and kids. Whether it’s older patterns in new yarn colorways, or favorite yarns knit up in creative ways, this crop of baby knits made me want to upscale each one, for myself. See what you think!

Alison made adorable rainbow sweaters for her kids out Felici Rainbow and Bare. She didn’t use a pattern, but for the one on the left she knit the body, picked up stitches for the sleeves, and knit the kangaroo pocket last, stitching it on once the sweater was complete. For the sweater on the right, she knit and then steeked the body in order to keep the stripe width consistent. Can you imagine how cute her kids will look in these matching rainbow sweaters?

Speaking of stripes, Hannah worked up this Gingersnap in scraps of Swish Worsted in Honey, Twilight, White, and Wonderland Heather. If you like flat construction, this is the perfect way to work up a baby sweater on two needles, in no time!

If you like more unexpected construction, you’ve probably already knit up a Baby Surprise Jacket by Elizabeth Zimmerman. With over 24,000 projects on Ravelry, the Baby Surprise Jacket is an all-time fave, and addictive knitting at that. The pattern is found in a few Elizabeth Zimmernan’s books, but I prefer the one in The Opinionated Knitter, as it also contains line by line instructions. Hannah paired hers with a Bonnet by Elizabeth Zimmerman, for an adorable pair crafted in Chroma Fingering Yarn, colorway Manzanita.

I also used Chroma Fingering Yarn for a Baby Surprise Jacket in colorway Get Your Neon. The color looked pretty intense, so I finished the the jacket with a simple i-cord edging and I like the way it gave it a professional looking finish. To match the jacket, I crocheted an Annie Baby Blanket in Chroma Worsted (same colorway, Get Your Neon) and White. I love how you can make complementary items in Chroma, in different weights of yarn!