Thanks to its loose fit and elegant waterfall silhouette, it’s easy to make a statement with the stylish Peony Vest.
How pretty is this texture? It’s a simple slip stitch pattern, but in cotton/silk Papyrus it adds a lot of depth.
It’s got such a rich, almost nubbly look and feel. The added sheen of silk adds to the complexity of the yarn.
The Peony Vest is worked in three pieces – back, left front, and right front – and then seamed. This comfortable and elegant design includes thoughtful details like twisted ribbing at the bottom, and a tidy I-Cord edging to complete the look.
All together, the Peony Vest is a wonderful warm-weather accessory that will serve you well.
Designer Aubrey Busek took her inspiration for this design from still waters, kissed by a breeze that ripples the surface. It’s apparent in the lace elements…
…and in the choice of twisted rib, a stitch which gives a dimensional element to the body of the piece.
Also adding to the texture, the choice of yarn. Fibra Natura Papyrus is composed of a light and luxurious cotton/silk blend with a fascinating feel. Easy on the hands to work with, Papyrus is a great yarn for warmer weather. It adds a certain 3D quality to your fabric.
I’ve got some stashed away, waiting for me to cast on for my Beechnut Pullover. But looking at this wrap, maybe I should go ahead and make this instead. Or both. Yep, that’s it, both.
We hope you have a fantastic weekend, full of love and joy.
Celeste is a lovely springtime layering piece with a straightforward construction.
Two rectangles are worked, with a tidy double double crochet at the borders for a neat finish. The rectangles are seamed, leaving space for the arms and neck (of course) to create a simple, classic silhouette.
As for the stitch pattern, it’s a gorgeous all-over lace that’s written and charted. You’ll get the rhythm of it in no time.
We used Fibra Natura Papyrus for this design. It’s a luxurious warm-weather blend of cotton and silk with an interesting texture.
The poncho is shown in 229-13 Celestial, but because I’m a sucker for blue-green, I’d probably make mine in the 229-19 Ether shown above. Either way, with that stitch pattern, the final result will be divine.
We hope you have a fantastic weekend, full of beauty and joy.
It’s Free Pattern Friday!
Today, the Beechnut Pullover in Fibra Natura Papyrus (pattern link here).
This week, we’re thrilled to have a new design from Amy Gunderson. The Beechnut Pullover is an elegant square-necked pullover with a unique construction.
The sleeve panels are knit first, then the body stitches and sleeve stitches are picked up along the panel edge and worked from the top-down.
With the challenge of the lace sleeves out of the way, it’s stockinette down to the hem. This will obviously be an easy one to lengthen, if you wish. Our model is wearing the Small size, with 4 1/2 inches of positive ease.
Let’s take a closer look at those sleeves. The depth of color in Fibra Natura cotton/silk Papyrus adds a touch of shimmer to the fabric, without obscuring the design. It’s one of the things that makes the yarn a designer favorite. We love that Amy decided to do a double column of the leafy lace, to help make this piece a three-season standout.
We hope you enjoy this sophisticated piece. Have a wonderful weekend.
Happy crafting!
In what feels like no time at all, January has nearly passed and February is already upon us. With that in mind, and with freezing temperatures outside, we’d like to warm your heart with something special.
Remember the Be Mine Shawl? It was our 2018 Valentine’s Day project (link to blog post here). We’re excited to share that it has been knit up in a fresh combination of colors – one that reminds us of the transition from the icy winter to first signs of spring peeking through the snow.
Fibra Natura Papyrus has become a well-loved yarn, and for good reason! It’s a luxurious blend of ultra-soft cotton and silk. The muted palette is perfect for delicate projects, and we particularly enjoy using it for lace, twisted stitches, and textured patterns. The new sample features Cloud as the main color, Lily Pad and Ether for the contrasting heart repeats, and Tempest for a pop between each lace repeat.
Just look at that lovely drape!
Although I design with pink, it’s not actually one of my favorite colors. Don’t get me wrong, it is a fine color, but it’s earth tones and autumnal colors that I’m most drawn to. In any case, I love this crisp, new color combination. It’s a nice change. Plus, I love seeing our designs knit in different colors. Sometimes knitters are tempted to stick to the original sample – but with all the possible color combinations, I have to ask why?
Swatching is an excellent way to play with color.
Play with different colors when you’re visiting your local yarn shop. Put them side by side – add a color, subtract a color, try something unexpected – you never know what lovely combinations you might create. Even if your yarn shop doesn’t carry the color you’re looking for, they’re usually very happy to order a color for you. Visit our website (link) if you want to plan your color combinations before paying a visit to your LYS. Whatever colors you come up with, we hope you’ll share images of your beautiful shawls with us!
There’s a sweet story behind today’s sweet design, so I’m going to let designer Rachel Brockman tell it in her own words.
“The Tamara Triangle is named after a dear friend of mine – one who inspired me to learn to knit (and one who has been pining for an oversized shawl).
“As such, this pattern goes out to all of the people in our lives who have inspired and encouraged the craft of knitting – whether it’s a family member, a friend, a local yarn shop, or yourself – I think we can all agree that it’s great to reflect and feel grateful for those influences. ”
The shawl is worked from the top down in cotton/silk Papyrus, beginning with a garter tab cast-on. Most of the shawl is worked in stockinette stitch, making it excellent for a knit night with friends.
The edging requires a bit more concentration, as the lace is worked on the right and wrong sides of the work. Fear not, though, the pattern is a repeat of just six rows. As a bonus, the lace is aesthetically reversible. If you prefer the look of reverse stockinette, flip it around.
We hope you have an excellent weekend, and find time to connect with old friends.
Papyrus is one of those yarns that we can’t get enough of – a textured cotton/silk combination that’s light and interesting. Crafters seem to like it too, and are putting it to good use. I really hadn’t thought of using Papyrus for Amy Gunderson’s Silver Blossom Tee, but after seeing the beautiful job that Raveler Sally9 did on hers, it’s going in my queue.
The Pathways Poncho looks more complicated than it is. The key here is mock cables, giving the illusion of cabling with no actual cable needle required.
Knit the front and back flat, then join the two pieces and add edging and buttons, and you’re done. With the yarn’s cotton content, this piece will work well in warmer weather.
We hope you have a fantastic knitting, full of fun projects.
Whether you love it or hate it, Valentine’s Day will be here in about a week. What better way to prepare than by knitting yourself (or someone else who is sweet) a shawl? We’ve got you covered – to celebrate Valentine’s Day, we’re offering the Be Mine Shawl for free!
You could ask anyone in the office and they would probably tell you that I have an unrelenting sweet tooth. It is just so difficult for me to turn down sugary sweet snacks. What does this have to do with our Valentine’s freebie? Well, the inspiration for the Be Mine Shawl came from conversation heart candies. (In case you were wondering, I prefer the white, wintergreen flavored hearts.)
Be Mine is a triangular shawl comprised mostly of garter stitch. It is knit in Fibra Natura Papyrus, a yarn with a luxurious blend of cotton and silk. This yarn is velvety soft and creates a beautifully drapey fabric.
After working the body of the shawl, three bold stripes featuring a lace heart motif are worked to create a lovely border. Small, brightly colored stripes break up the lace sections. Finally, the shawl is finished with a delicate crochet-picot edging. (By the way, back in December Amy posted a tutorial on a Crochet Picot Edging here, but please note that instead of entirely skipping a stitch between picots as directed in the tutorial, you will instead work a slip stitch in the stitch between picots.)
Because Be Mine uses garter stitch, it’s nice to have a beautiful, elastic bind off. As a bit of a tight knitter, I like to use the Suspended Bind-off whenever I want a neat, elastic edge. I highly recommend this technique for this shawl design, and I call for it in the pattern. The method is nearly as simple as your standard bind off. It really just involves holding onto a stitch just a moment longer. If that sounds confusing, don’t worry, because I’ll show you exactly what I mean.
Begin as you would when using a standard bind off by knitting the first two stitches.
Step 1: Slip the first stitch you knit onto the left-hand handle.
Step 2: Do not drop this stitch. Instead, pass this stitch over the second stitch on the right-hand needle as you normally would when binding off, except keep that first stitch “suspended” on your left-hand needle.
Step 3: Next, knit the second stitch on the left-hand needle (note: leave the stitch from the previous step suspended).
Step 4: Now you will slide the stitch you’ve just knit into and the suspended stitch (outlined above) off of the left-hand needle.
Repeat Steps 1-4 until you have two stitches remaining on your right-hand needles. Finish by binding off these stitches as usual.
Ta-da! You now have a neat, elastic bound-off edge.
Note the giant spring the model is holding. It’s a “spring” collection. :/
As the cover promises, this collection contains patterns all containing peplums, pleats, and ruffles, all knit in new yarn Papyrus. There is actually just one project that utilizes pleats, and that is the Kaizen cardigan.
The pleats are added just to the sleeve cuffs here for a touch of feminine playfulness to an otherwise classically shaped cardigan.
Though I did my best to give accurate written instructions of how to make the pleats, this is one of those techniques where pictures really do speak a thousand words. There are a few photos of how to join pleats included in the pattern file, but the following is a much more detailed instruction.
This small swatch shows the cuff prior to the pleat joining. Stitches are reduced by almost two thirds after the pleating process.
First, the edge stitches are worked.
Next, the following 3 stitches (the eyelet column) will be slipped to a double pointed needle.
Eyelet column is now on a spare needle.
Next, the following 3 reverse stockinette (purl) stitches are slipped to a second spare needle.
Now the first 2 stitches of the row on the right needle. We’re going to be ignoring those stitches. After that, we have dpn 1 with the Eyelet Column sts, dpn 2 with the purl sts, and then the working left needle with all remaining stitches.
Rotate dpn 2 counter-clockwise, so that the wrong side of these sts is against the wrong side of the 3 sts after it (the 3 sts on the working left needle)
Wrong sides are now together. Slide the sts from this dpn toward the tip.
Place dpn 1 behind dpn 2 without rotating. Align the tips of all 3 needles in preparation for joining.
Now we’re going to be working k3tog – 1 st from each needle. Insert the tip of the right needle into the first st on the front needle.
Continue by inserting the tip of the right needle into the first stitch on the middle needle, and then the back needle.
Yarn over and pull through all 3 stitches.
Slip the stitches from the needles – k3tog complete. You will be working k3tog 2 more times to finish this pleat.
All com-pleated. Sorry, I couldn’t resist.
If you thought this looked complicated at the beginning, I hope I’ve changed your mind. It’s just a matter of arranging some stitches and working some k3togs.
