Day 10 of Winter – Series 2 Edition

Deluxe Worsted Superwash

This is part 10 in a 12 part series highlighting designs from our 12 Days of Winter, Series 2 Edition.

Today I’m happy to introduce the Cardamom and Clove Cover – an ultra-cozy wool blanket that’s perfect to wrap around your shoulders while drinking a warm and wintry beverage!

I grew up in a place where it actually snows (when I say “actually” I mean unlike the meager, quick-to-melt amounts that we receive here in Charlotte, NC). To this day I find there is a lot of magic to snow days, and that was especially true when I was a child.

Living in a rural area, just by the border of a state park, snow days first meant shoveling the driveway followed by playing in the snow-covered woods for hours and hours. I rarely came inside until the tips of my hair were completely frozen and my feet couldn’t hand the cold anymore. Then, I’d make my way back home. While my siblings and I pulled off the six million layers we wore to stay warm, my mom prepared hot cocoa.

Deluxe Worsted Superwash

What’s nicer than enjoying a warm beverage with a cozy blanket on your lap after spending hours in the cold? So, to accompany this design reveal I thought it would be fitting to share a perfectly spiced hot cocoa with a touch of cardamom and clove. This recipe isn’t overly sweet, but it is very rich. 

Ingredients – serves four 

12 Days of Winter Kit Collection – Cardamom and Clove Cover Kit

6 oz very dark chocolate (I used 90% cocao)

4 cups of coconut milk (or your milk of choice)

1 pinch cayenne

1 pinch ground cloves

1/4 tsp cardamom

1/2 tsp cinnamon

1/4 tsp freshly ground sea salt

1 Tbsp maple syrup

First – knit, knit, knit! How are you going to cuddle up and drink hot chocolate under your blanket if you haven’t knit it?! Okay – I admit, hot chocolate is just as good for knitting this kit, so you don’t need to complete this step first!

Pour the milk into a saucepan. Set the stove to low heat. Add the chopped chocolate and stir, slowly bringing the temperature to medium. When the chocolate is melted add the cayenne, cloves, cardamom, cinnamon, sea salt, and maple syrup. Stir, sip, and adjust spices and sweetener to taste.

Add marshmallows – or don’t, it’s up to you! It’s a pretty basic recipe that can be adapted however you’d like. I encourage you to have fun. Heck – add some nutmeg in there if you’re feeling really crazy!

Universal Yarn 12 Days of Winter Kit Collection
Never enough knits – the Mistletoes and Cardamom and Clove Cover are perfect companions for hot chocolate.

Worried about spilling your cocoa on your beautiful blanket? Don’t! The Cardamom and Clove Cover Kit uses Deluxe Worsted Superwash, so it’s incredibly easy to care for.

Remember, you can find the 12 Days of Winter Series 2 patterns on Ravelry.

Free Pattern Friday – Cichlid Hats

It’s Free Pattern Friday!

Today, Cichlid Hats in Deluxe Worsted Superwash and Bamboo Bloom Handpaints (pattern link here).

Want a little color on a drab day?

Like the super-popular Hanasaku Cowl, this hat uses just one skein of variegated Bamboo Bloom Handpaints. Here it’s paired with a coordinating color of  Deluxe Worsted Superwash for the base and pompom that tie it all together.

A long, twisted rib upturned brim gives way to a basic stockinette body.  The difference in gauge between the two stitches means that the rib fits snugly, but the variegated Bamboo Bloom section is slouchy.  A neat solution to achieving the perfect fit.

We’ve shown it in two color options here, but I’m about to cast on for one for a friend, using an orange Deluxe Worsted Superwash for the base and Bamboo Bloom Handpaints 317 Sensei for the body. 

It should be very autumnal.

We hope you have a colorful and fun weekend.

Happy crafting!

Free Pattern Friday – Mod Tiles Cardi

It’s Free Pattern Friday!

Woman in crocheted jacket leaning against wall

Today, the Mod Tiles Cardi in Deluxe DK Tweed Superwash (pattern link here).

This one’s a bit of an ugly duckling story, although of course the duckling was never ugly at all.

We had this garment in our studio for a long time, and kept looking askance at it.  Squares on a jacket?  We just weren’t sure about it, so it stayed on the shelf.

Then one day we were discussing upcoming Free Pattern Fridays, and someone picked up this cardi and put it on.  Wow!  It looked great!  The ugly duckling had been a swan all along – we just couldn’t see it until it spread its wings!

We love how the tweedy gray grounds the piece, but the colorful flowery motifs work with most anything.  This was a lucky discovery, with sweater weather finally here!

The Deluxe DK Tweed Superwash motifs are made separately, then seamed together.  The pattern is written and charted, and contains a schematic for piecing it together.

There’s a lesson here about looking past first impressions.  We’re certainly glad we gave this beauty a second chance.

Happy crafting!

Free Pattern Friday – Cosign Cap

It’s Free Pattern Friday!

Today, the Cosign Cap in Deluxe DK Tweed Superwash (pattern link).

Why cosign? Two reasons.  1, when I first saw this hat it was sideways, and the patterning looked like little cosine waves.  2, someone mentioned that they loved this pattern, and I immediately cosigned on that.

The pattern is written and charted, and contains a variation on cabling you might not have seen before – the right slipped cross and left slipped cross.  You’re using a cable needle as with traditional cables, but instead of knitting both stitches, there’s a slip involved.

It creates an elongated stitch that slants left or right.  Neat effect, and a useful tool to add to your cabling repertoire.

The crown keeps using slipped stitches without cabling, to continue the elongated stitches into the gathered top.  A lovely finish to a charming topper, made even more charming by the little nubs in the Deluxe DK Tweed Superwash.  Only one ball required.

We hope you have a wonderful weekend, full of beauty and warmth.

Happy crafting!

Who Likes Free Yarn?

Digital magazines I Like Knitting and I Like Crochet are giving away our beautiful yarn to make projects from their October issues. Yes, that’s right: FREE yarn!

The Mew and Me Sweater is worked mostly in Tunisian crochet, with sideways ribbed edges. It looks knit, but it’s not. Crocheters – this one’s for you!

Done in three different shades of Deluxe DK Superwash, it works up quickly. The yarn is machine washable, so there are no worries if your little one gets a little Halloween chocolate on it. You can head over to I Like Crochet to enter: LINK

 

October means we’re heading into scarf season, and the Blaire Reversible Scarf doesn’t disappoint.

This knit scarf begins and ends with reversible cables that grow in and out of ribbing, and it looks great on both sides. Deluxe DK Tweed Superwash adds a bit of rustic texture and interest without distracting from the stitch pattern. This project would make a great gift, too!

Enter to win at I Like Knitting: LINK

 

Free Pattern Friday – Sailing Stone Shawl

It’s Free Pattern Friday!

Today, the Sailing Stone Shawl in Deluxe Chunky Naturals (pattern link).

Are you familiar with the phenomenon of sailing stones?

In the early 1900s, a prospector noticed large stones leaving meandering tracks across a section of Death Valley, as if they had decided to go travelling.  The paths baffled scientists until 2014, when the mystery was finally solved with the use of GPS and time-lapse cameras.

At times, the area would flood and freeze, and as the ice broke up, it would be blown across the  shallow floodwater pond, with embedded rocks dragging paths along the desert.  The ice melts, the pond evaporates, and all that’s left is tracks in dry sand behind rocks that aren’t where they used to be.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5u_hy3BR9UM

The natural  colors and meandering paths involved in this phenomenon reminded us of twisting cables in our Deluxe Chunky Naturals.  These tones are undyed – the color you see is the color of the sheep.

Which brings us to the Sailing Stones Shawl.

One nice thing about this shawl – the cables are reversible.  Take a look at the “wrong” side.  Still quite lovely.

Five skeins in the main color, 50003 Musket, makes a generously sized 52″ x 38″ accessory.

Contrasting color applied i-cord and tassels set this design apart.

This would be lovely to wrap up in on a chilly day or night.

We hope you keep a little mystery in your life, and that you make time for yourself this weekend.

Happy crafting!

Free Pattern Friday – Kenan’s Hoodie

It’s Free Pattern Friday!

Today, Kenan’s Hoodie in Deluxe Worsted Tweed superwash (pattern link).

Everybody say hi to Yonca!

Yonca is our Sales Manager, and an excellent knitter and crocheter.  That’s her, sporting the Lace Leaf Pullover that she modified from the free Lace Leaf Cardigan in Garden 10.

Yonca’s kids are off at college, and like many crafting parents, she’s sending them a couple of things to help keep them warm while they’re away.  She gave her daughter a beautiful cardigan – the one we shared last week – and now her son gets his turn.

Kenan’s Hoodie is worked in pieces from the bottom up in Deluxe Worsted Tweed Superwash. It’s made in one of our newer colors, 915 Cloud Blue, which just straddles the line between blue and gray.

The design features a dropped shoulder and roomy hood for a casual look.  Although we’re calling this a men’s sweater, there’s no reason it wouldn’t work for a woman as well.

We love hearing stories of all the knitted and crocheted “hugs” that people send to loved ones far away.  They’re so satisfying to give and to receive.

We hope you stay warm and cozy this weekend, and that you’re able to reach out to someone you care about.

Happy crafting!

Free Pattern Friday – Penelope’s Cardigan

It’s Free Pattern Friday!

Today, Penelope’s Cardigan in Deluxe Bulky Superwash (pattern link).

If ever there were weather that called for a big, comfy sweater in 100% bulky wool, this is it.  Say hello to Penelope’s Cardigan.

Amy Gunderson designed this warm and relaxed hug using our Deluxe Bulky Superwash on US size 10 1/2 (6.5mm) needles.  Knitted seamlessly from the top down, this raglan-sleeved long cardi is perfect for a night in.

We hope you bundle up snug and cozy this weekend, with a fun project in your lap and a warm mug by your side.

Happy crafting!

Free Pattern Friday – Almas Poncho

It’s Free Pattern Friday!

Today, the Almas Poncho in Deluxe DK Tweed Superwash (link here).

Fall is upon us, and we felt the need for something toasty!

Almas is knit seamlessly in the round from the top down. It can act as a shoulder/bust warmer for a brisk walk in the woods, or can be scrunched up and worn as a cowl paired with your favorite winter coat.  We like the rustic quality that Deluxe DK Tweed Superwash gives this cozy piece.

As a short poncho or capelet, it can be worn collar up or down, as you wish.

With just a touch of stranded knitting, this project is a nice introduction to the Fair Isle method of changing colors in your work.

We hope you have a delightful weekend.

Happy knitting!

Free Pattern Friday – Suddenly, Gradiently!

It’s Free Pattern Friday!

Today, it’s Suddenly, Gradiently! in Deluxe Bulky Superwash.

We loved the way this simple color-changing scarf looked, so we knitted up several options to see how it looked in different colors. It was no hardship.  The pattern is easy enough for a beginner and is worked on US size 10 1/2 needles in our Deluxe Bulky Superwash wool.

I’m a sucker for blues and greens, so the five-color version in those tones really speaks to me.  Those who want to go bolder might try the six-color version, shown in purple, pink, and green.  And those who want something classic and understated can knit the three-color version in shades of white and gray.

We’re not kidding when we say the welting pattern on this is easy.  It’s a four row repeat knitted flat which goes: knit a row, purl a row, purl a row, knit a row.  Great for beginners, or for those who want a project to knit that doesn’t require their full attention.  (I still haven’t gotten to see the latest season of Sherlock; this would be ideal for that!)

As I look at this scarf, I also wonder how it would look with a couple of different colors of a self-shading yarn, like Poems Chunky.   I’ve been searching for the perfect project for our newest color.

Hm.  I think my queue just got longer.

Happy knitting!