Afifa Sayeed – Page 62 – Universal Yarn Creative Network

June 19, 2014June 19, 2014

Throwback Thursday – Baby Squares Blanket

It’s Throwback Thursday!

Our Uptown Worsted “Don’t Be A Square Afghan” knitalong has inspired us to look at other samplers! For those looking for a lighter-weight option, we present the Baby Squares Blanket. You knit all six squares of each tier at once – casting on 24 for the green, 24 for the white, 24 for the purple, etc. It’s an interesting construction that steps away from “one square at a time.”

Originally knit in Bella DK, this would look great in popular Uptown DK (273yds/100g), the little sister to Uptown Worsted. Its softness and machine washability make it a great choice for pieces that you want to last a long time. We love Uptown DK for grown-up garments too, as featured in e-book Mountain Ridge Knits (right).

While this baby blanket would look great in primary colors or pastels, I’d be tempted to try it with a little neon pop in some of the center squares, just for kicks. Baby blankets don’t need to be boring!

Happy knitting!

June 15, 2014June 15, 2014

Sunday Swatch – Bamboo Pop

Today’s Sunday Swatch is in Bamboo Pop colors 108 Lime Green, 208 Pink Joy, and 102 Cream.

Today’s swatch started as an experiment to see just how thick various i-cords were in Bamboo Pop. Bamboo Pop is one of our most popular yarns, a lightweight blend of 50% cotton and 50% bamboo.

The entire flower was knit on size 4 needles. The petals of the flower are one long 4-stitch i-cord, the stem is a 3-stitch i-cord, and the center is a 2-stitch i-cord curled around itself.

I took a picture of the back side so you can see how it’s assembled. I had hoped to put a chenille stem (pipe cleaner, for those of my generation) into the center for stability, but the i-cord was just a little too narrow to fit the jumbo-sized chenille stem that I had on hand, so instead I used some very thick floral wire for stability. The extra wire extending from the bottom lets it stand upright without causing the i-cord to push up on itself and wrinkle.

The leaves were a last-minute addition, but they’re a nice touch. Here’s the leaf pattern, done on size 4 needles:

CO 4

Row 1: k1, (kfb) twice, k1. (6 sts total)

Row 2: purl

Row 3: k2, (kfb) twice, k2 (8 sts total)

Row 4: purl

Row 5: k3, (kfb) twice, k3 (10 sts total)

Row 6: purl

Row 7: k1, k2tog, k4, ssk, k1 (8 sts total)

Row 8: purl

Row 9: k1, k2tog, k2, ssk, k1 (6 sts total)

Row 10: purl

Row 9: k1, k2tog, ssk, k1 (4 sts total)

Row 10: purl

Row 9: k2tog, ssk,(2 sts total)

Row 10: purl 2 tog (1 st total)

Pull yarn through remaining stitch to bind off.

I have some bits of Bamboo Pop in other colors, so I’m considering making an entire bouquet for an empty flowerpot. It would be a nice maintenance-free addition to the front porch.

Happy knitting – and gardening!

June 13, 2014June 13, 2014

Free Pattern Friday – Bodrum Beach Cover-up

It’s Free Pattern Friday!

Everybody say hi to Yonca!

Yonca is our sales director, and also the designer of today’s free pattern, the Bodrum Beach Cover-up in Garden 3. You may recognize part of this pattern from this past week’s Sunday Swatch (right).

Yonca wanted to make a gift for her sister-in-law in Turkey, so she whipped up this colorful number in our Garden 3 cotton thread and graciously shared her pattern with us. Garden 3 ( 136yds/50g) is 100% mercerized Egyptian Giza cotton, a favorite for durable and beautiful garments and a great pick for this breezy summer project.

It’s called the Bodrum Beach Cover-up after the town of Bodrum in Turkey, a beautiful resort with gorgeous weather, a medieval castle, and of course the beach. I was so happy Yonca told us about this place – it’s one more spot to put on my bucket list.

We couldn’t resist sending Yonca on a virtual trip there, if only for this blog post. Have a great time, Yonca, and keep crocheting!

June 12, 2014June 12, 2014

Throwback Thursday – Ruffled Shoulder Bag

It’s Throwback Thursday!

The Ruffled Shoulder Bag is a great project any time of the year. Originally knit in Links cotton from our Fibra Natura line, we suggest substituting another non-wool yarn like Cotton Supreme (100g/180yds) or Uptown DK (100g/273yds).

The frills are simple semi-circular strips sewn on after knitting the bag proper, making it easy to customize with or without ruffles as you wish.

I’m thinking this might be a good thing to work on at my local Worldwide Knit In Public Day – making a bag big enough to hold my WIPs seems like a fitting project!

June 9, 2014June 10, 2014

Afghan Knitalong – Block Seven

Block Seven is live!

Cables! I love ’em. They can give flow and movement to a piece that is hard to achieve any other way. But they’re also one of those things that some knitters never try, just because they seem intimidating. Nothing could be further from the truth!

For Block Seven “Echolate” we’ve got a video to walk you through the process of knitting both right and left-leaning cables using a cable needle. If you don’t have a cable needle, grab a spare double-point and use that instead!

In this block, I’m particularly fond of the little rippling cables at the left. I may incorporate that into more of my knitting!

This block also calls for a few M1 (make one) increases on row 7. As a bonus, Amy Gunderson has put together a short video demonstrating exactly how this kind of increase works. Easy peasy!

We hope you enjoy this foray into the world of cables. We’ll see you in a couple of weeks with another block that builds on this technique.

Happy knitting!

June 8, 2014June 8, 2014

Sunday Swatch – Garden 3

Today’s Sunday Swatch is in Garden 3.

This crochet swatch in Garden 3 is actually a WIP by a member of our sales team. It’s a piece that she’s made the front of already, and is now making the matching back for. I’ve seen it in person, and it’s beautiful!

Garden 3 is excellent quality 100% mercerized Egyptian Giza cotton, smooth with a bit of a sheen. Garden is part of our popular Nazli Gelin line and is available in both 50 gram balls and 500 gram cones perfect for larger projects.

Our diligent salesperson is using a US E/4 (3.5mm) hook and it’s working out beautifully, as you can see above. Another of my favorite Garden 3 designs, Sarah Read’s Love Ewe Nesting Dolls to the right, works up on smaller hooks. It’s available as a free download (yay!) with website signup from CrochetMe.com. Here’s the link.

Happy crafting!

June 6, 2014June 6, 2014

Free Pattern Friday – Sunflower Dress

It’s Free Pattern Friday!

Today, something bright and summery for the crocheters! The Sunflower Dress in Garden 10 is a sunny delight.

Written and charted, this crochet confection uses our Garden 10 100% mercerized Egyptian Giza cotton thread. Garden comes in both 50 gram balls and in 500 gram cones, handy for larger projects.

This is exactly the kind of design that inspires me to stretch my wings when it comes to crochet. Just gorgeous.

Happy crocheting!

June 5, 2014June 5, 2014

Throwback Thursday – Rainforest Cardigan

Welcome to the first Throwback Thursday!

Starting this week, we’re going to be featuring designs in retired yarns that would still look great now!

Today we’re featuring the Rainforest Cardigan, originally in Sea Song.

Sea Song was a member of our Fibra Natura line of luxury organic yarns. It consisted of cotton and seacell, both plant fibers which give this garment a relaxed feel. We’re recommending another plant fiber yarn for this garment, Bamboo Pop.

The sideways construction of this cardi makes it especially well-suited for variegated yarns like Bamboo Pop, which also comes in solids. Although slightly thinner than the original yarn, Bamboo Pop will still give 5½ stitches to the inch, the required gauge for this pattern.

This is an easy to knit, easy to wear piece that would be a great accent for mild weather. It’s a classic design with a current look.

Happy knitting!

June 1, 2014June 1, 2014

Sunday Swatch – Bella Chenille

Today’s Sunday Swatch is in Bella Chenille colors 109 Blueberry and 111 Clover.

Bella Chenille is a superbulky supersoft chenille. I dare you to pick up a skein and not squeeze it. It’s also available in a multi version with sweet pastel tones.

We love this yarn for baby knits. Not only is it very soft, but it’s also machine washable. The swatch shown above ran through my front-loader before being laid out to dry, and as you can see it came through with flying (vibrant!) colors.

The pattern above was originally meant to be a circle, although unblocked it came out more of a soft flower shape – it almost reminds me of a poppy. It’s based on instructions in the Alyoops! blog post linked here, although this swatch used two size 10 1/2 (6.5mm) circular needles rather than double-points. Wouldn’t this make a great throw or baby blanket? I can even see sewing a few ribbons on the edges to make a “wooby” for a toddler to carry around.

There are more free ideas for kid projects on our website, like the Lil’ Lightning Baby Blanket in Bella Chenille and Bella Chenille Multi at right.

We wish you soft, sweet, pretty things in your life. Happy crafting!

May 30, 2014May 30, 2014

Free Pattern Friday – Netted Tank in Cotton Supreme

It’s Free Pattern Friday!

Today’s offering is the Netted Tank in Cotton Supreme.

I don’t know about where you are, but here in North Carolina today it is hot with a capital H-O-T. Great timing, then, for a breezy cotton tank!

The Netted Tank uses Cotton Supreme 100% cotton and a simple (k2tog, yo) repeat to create an open and airy mesh that’s a great coverup on a warm day. The twisted ribbing hem in a contrasting color is a great touch!

A great summertime knitting project is just the thing to distract from the heat. I’m thinking I may whip up a batch of something cool with my very favorite lemonade recipe (hint: cut the sugar just a bit), then sit out on the back porch and sip and knit. Ahhhh…