Month: March 2018

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Free Pattern Friday – Reversible Cable Blanket

It’s Free Pattern Friday!

Today, the Reversible Cable Blanket in Major (pattern link here).

If you’re like me, you love cables. Cables are especially exciting when the fabric is reversible. Yep, the Reversible Cable Blanket really is reversible (did you think we were kidding with that name?).

The backbone of this pattern simply is K2, P2 Rib framed by a border of garter stitch. Every 8 rows two sets of K2, P2 stitches are crossed, creating an elegant cable and reversible fabric. That’s really all there is to this pattern!

Cables, glorious cables!

Major is a perfect medium for this pattern. It’s quick to knit, incredibly soft, and easy to care for. Major is a bulky weight, 100% acrylic yarn that comes in a generously sized 200-gram ball. There are many beautiful, self-shading colors of Major ranging from perfect pastels to bold, vibrant beauties, and no-nonsense neutrals. It’s no wonder that this yarn is a customer favorite.

Better yet, this pattern is written in two sizes: a baby blanket and throw blanket size. Make one as a gift and another to keep for yourself. After all, you surely deserve to cuddle up to a squishy, cabled blanket.

Have a wonderful, craft-filled weekend!

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Bunny Socks

There are so many things to love about Easter: dip-dyed eggs, the first blooms of the year, chocolate filled baskets. And really, Easter candy is the best seasonal candy of the year as far as I’m concerned. But for me, the overwhelming bunny imagery is my favorite part of this spring holiday.

I had a pet bunny as a child named Fuzzy. What can I say? Toddlers are not always great at naming things. But Fuzzy was a great bunny. She hopped around the house, snuggled, and got along great with our dog, Fluffy (do you see a trend in pet naming here?). As a young adult, I had a mini lop bunny named Emma and even managed to litter-box train her.

I gave just one of my bunnies a floppy ear. Customize these and make them your own!

Bunny Got Back socks (pattern link) are my homage to Easter and to my dear departed pet bunnies. They are knit toe-up and it’s easy to customize foot length. I kept them anklet length in order to add useless but adorable pom-poms to the back, but you could easily keep on knitting for taller socks.

I thank Rachel Brockman for her superb foot modeling skills, and Heather Hill for her masterful flavor text at the beginning of the pattern:

I! Like! Warm! Toes and I cannot lie!

You other knitters can’t deny!

When you go toe up with a little short cuff

And a cottontail full of fluff…

BUNNY GOT BACK!

This pair is knit in one of our newer yarns, sport weight Bella Cash. It works wonderfully for socks. Bella Cash is a blend of washable fine merino, cashmere (mmmm), and nylon for strength and elasticity. We’ve been mostly using this yarn in kid projects, but I see sweaters in my future and definitely more socks using this scrumptious blend.

I hope you enjoy this gift for spring. Happy Easter!

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Free Pattern Friday – Scruncher Scarf

It’s Free Pattern Friday!

Today, the Scruncher Scarf in Whisper Lace and Cotton Supreme Batik (pattern link here).

I. Love. This. Pattern.

Look at how simple that is.  This is exactly the kind of pattern that I would have loved as a beginner, and that I still love when I want to make something beautiful and not look away from binge-watching Jessica Jones.

Because it’s dropped stitches on a larger needle (US size 10 1/2), this pattern makes the yarn go a long way.  One ball of Whisper Lace wool/silk for the solid bands, two balls of self-striping Cotton Supreme Batik for the wider variegated stripes.

Because the fabric is so loose and drapey, it scrunches up effortlessly – hence the name Scruncher Scarf.  Here it is in an alternate colorway, folded in half and wrapped for an accessory that straddles “skinny” and “full.”

Obviously, this would be a great one to experiment with, colorwise.  I’ll bet your LYS could put together some fantastic color combos.

We hope you have an amazing weekend.

Happy crafting!

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Happy Birthday, Amy!

It’s Amy Gunderson’s birthday today, and we’re celebrating!

From now until Monday 3/26/18, grab one pattern from her e-book Bamboo Pop Adult 2 for free on Ravelry!  Just use code BIRTHDAYGIRL at checkout, where it asks if you want to apply a coupon.  This is a great collection of knit and crochet designs for Bamboo Pop, a lightweight bamboo/cotton blend perfect for (hopefully) warming weather.

Why are we doing this?

Amy’s the driving force behind our creative team – not only does she knit, crochet, weave, and sew, but she goes out of her way to nurture new talent and form partnerships that help bring our crafting community closer.  We want everyone to appreciate her as much as we do!

(Plus, she’s travelling to Germany for the H+H handcrafting show right now, and every time someone downloads one of her patterns it sends a message to her phone, and I think it’d be funny to blow up her inbox while she’s on the road. )

Have a happy birthday, Amy!  And many more!

 

 

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Free Pattern Friday – Left of Center Cardi

It’s Free Pattern Friday!

Today, the Left of Center Cardi in Little Bird and Little Bird Colors (pattern link here).

How adorable is this?

Sized from 3 months to 2 years, this clever cardi uses machine washable Little Bird and its self-striping sibling Little Bird Colors to easily create a bright little jacket for baby.

The front and back are knit flat, as are the sleeves.  Then, they’re seamed together.

Add the edging, and your favorite buttons, and you’re ready to go.

What a cute little cardi for Spring!

We hope you have a fantastic weekend.

Happy crafting!

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It’s Pi Day!

Though we like to celebrate Pi Day with a slice of cherry here at the office, that’s not actually what this math holiday is all about. But I will take any excuse to eat pie. Not that I need an excuse.

But seriously, Pi day is the annual recognizing of the awesome constant number we know as Pi, and that is recognized by this Greek symbol: π. Pi is approximately 3.14, and is the ratio of a circle’s circumference (the length around the entire outer edge of a circle) and the diameter (the width of a circle).

I am a pretty big math geek. Math is logical, useful in so many facets of life, and it never lets you down. Pi is especially cool because it helps to solve the mystery of the unknown. For example, by knowing the formula for pi, and, say, the diameter of a circle, you can calculate the circumference of said circle.

As a knitting designer, I have relied upon Pi on many occasions. Here are a few examples:

The semicircle shawl in Deluxe Worsted begins with a sideways, short-row lower edge, and is then worked upward from there. In order to make a half circle shape considering all of the other aspects of this piece, I applied my love of Pi and magic was made.

Semicircle Shawl

A few other similar examples:

Around the World

Navigate
Sunrays Shawl

Perhaps the most common and well know way of shaping a circular shawl is called the Pi method. Developed by knitting genius Elizabeth Zimmermann, this shape is worked from the center outward and involves only a handful of increase rounds. The basic principle involves doubling the stitch count as the diameter of the circle increases. Typically, a pi constructed piece of knitting begins with 9 stitches, doubles to 18 on round 3, doubles to 36 on round 7, up to 72 stitches on round 13, and so on.

The Burst blanket is purely pi knitting. There are just 6 increase rounds in the entire thing, allowing you to focus solely on the repeating stitch patterns.

Burst

The Energize shawl uses this concept in the center, but in later rounds the increases are incorporated into a lace pattern.

Energize

Have a fantastic Pi day. Eat all the pie!

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Free Pattern Friday – Hazy Hat and Pullover

It’s Free Pattern Friday!

Today, the Hazy Hat and Pullover set in Uptown Worsted Mist (pattern link here).

I actually have a lot of thoughts about this pattern, because

1) I love cables, and

2) I heard the “colorful language” around here as the pattern swelled to 4… 5… and finally to 9 pages.  That’s what happens with extended sizing (although we don’t really consider it “extended”), and full charts and written instructions.

The consensus is that it was worth it.

There are quite a few things to love here, like sizing from Small to 4X in the pullover…

detailing like twists along the sleeve and texture within the front cables…

and how nicely this does in Uptown Worsted Mist, which is variegated enough to add interest but not so much that it overwhelms a lovely design.

We hope you have a wonderful weekend, and that you take time to do something for yourself.

Happy crafting!

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Free Pattern Friday – Bellissima Cardi

It’s Free Pattern Friday!

Today, the Bellissima Cardi in Bella Cash (pattern link here).

Such a beauty.  The Bellissima Cardi is a classic lightweight cardi with classic construction.

Knit it from the bottom up in pieces, then seam.

Bella Cash superwash merino/nylon/cashmere blend creates a soft, lightweight material that moves with you and looks flattering.  We love it on size 2 (2.75mm) needles for the Fair Isle yoke.  Crisp and well-defined, with a beautiful, smooth texture.

Even though the stitches are delicate, the fabric is machine washable and durable, thanks to the nylon and superwash merino content in Bella Cash.  Sized small through 4X, this is a great wardrobe staple. Hard to believe it’s a free pattern!

We hope you have a fantastic weekend.

Happy crafting!