Amy Gunderson – Page 9 – Universal Yarn Creative Network

February 13, 2016February 11, 2016

Amy Answers – Hole in One Scarf

A few weeks ago I got an email from a customer who was struggling to wrap her head around the pattern for our Hole in One Scarf.

This popular one-ball project uses self-shading Classic Shades yarn and is thoroughly visually entertaining.

Part of my job at Universal Yarn is emailing and talking with folks over the phone regarding pattern problems they’re having. This can be frustrating at times, because I can’t always “see” what they’re seeing. Often times, if I could only show the knitter or crocheter in person how to do a certain thing, it would be totally easy to explain. Or if I could take a look at their project in progress, I could spot the issue with no problem. Without this ability, often the best course of action is to take photos to try and illustrate. That is what I did in the case of this scarf.

Basically, the holes in this scarf are formed by binding off stitches on one row and then casting on stitches over the gap on the next row. I cast on for the scarf, worked a full pattern repeat, and then worked up to and through the first “action” row of stitches being bound off. Here is a photo of my scarf in progress:

The real trouble this particular knitter had was with the following row. So I worked across that row, took a picture, and then identified each stitch in the row:

And that’s all there is to it! Having trouble with one of our patterns? Let me know!

January 26, 2016January 20, 2020

Amy Answers – Going Places Shawl

We got a question recently about how to do a technique in our Going Places Shawl, this lovely triangular shawl knit in anniversary yarn, Universe.

If you look closely at the diamond motifs in the shawl, you’ll see that there is a little decorative “blip” in the middle of each.

To achieve this “blip”, you will knit 3 stitches together, yarn over, and then knit the same 3 stitches together. If you’ve never done a seemingly acrobatic knitting maneuver like this before, it can seem a little daunting! Check out this video for a demonstration of the stitch in question:

And be sure to check out all of our beautiful patterns in Universe. We think you’ll be dazzled!

January 22, 2016January 25, 2016

Free Pattern Friday – Warmth Wrap

It’s Free Pattern Friday!

Today, the Warmth Wrap in Rozetti Yarns Allore.

Folks, I don’t think we could have planned this week’s free pattern better if we’d tried! As I write this, the weather here in North Carolina is doing some sort of sleeting-icing-freezing rain kind of thing. And baby, for the south, it’s cold! This is a perfect day for wrapping handknitting around ourselves, no?

The Warmth Wrap is a relatively simple knit and goes pretty darn quick in bulky weight Allore and size 10 1/2 needles. The Eyelets lace pattern is just a 4 row repeat and is easy to memorize and keep track of.

Allore is a yarn that is right on trend. It’s also brushed, which we’ve been seeing a lot of in the yarn world this past year. Plus, it incorporates a metallic strand for an understated sophistication. It’s a complex light and lofty yarn and very easy to work with.

As shown, the Warmth Wrap requires 6 balls of Allore for a large, snuggly, almost blanket-like wrap. If you prefer a narrower scarf, just cast on 35 stitches instead of 65, and you’ll only need 3 balls.

And look – if you can’t find a shawl pin to close your wrap, just skewer in your needles and call it done. Stay safe and warm this wintery weekend!

November 16, 2015July 18, 2022

It’s the Neck’s Big Thing!

From time to time, I see a pattern that makes me think, “Man, I wish I’d thought of that!” The Neck’s Big Thing is just such a project. Developed a few years ago by Shelley Brander of Loops Knitting in Tulsa, OK, this scarf transforms just one skein of special yarn into a wearable art piece.

Our dear friend Susan Whitmore who used to own Rainy Day Yarns in Pineville, just a hop-skip-and jump from our office here in Harrisburg, NC, introduced us all to the Neck’s Big Thing a couple of years ago at TNNA. Then, recently I saw someone making one of these fabulous designs again it was reminded of how great a gift-project this is. It’s got everything going for it:

quick to make
easy to knit (or crochet!)
requires just 1 skein of yarn
attractive

What is there not to love?

I whipped up a couple of NBTs the other day using two of our yarns that are just perfect for it: Classic Shades Big Time and Bamboo Bloom Handpaints.

The one on the left is Bamboo Bloom Handpaints in color 317 Sensei. I held the yarn double throughout and followed the pattern exactly, except I cast on 11 stitches instead of 5. I also cut the fringe longer, at about 80″.

The version on the right uses Classic Shades Big Time color 817 Natural Glow. As you can see, I was going for an autumn theme! I love how Heather styled these. This project looks cool with the fringe hanging free, braided, wrapped, and no doubt many other ways!

Though I later found out Shelley created a crochet version for the Neck’s Big Thing, I just kind of winged mine. For anyone interested, here is the pattern I came up with:

US Size N/15 (10 mm) hook

Ch 10. Sc in second ch from hook and each ch across, turn.

Row 1: Ch 1, sc in first sc, [tr in next sc, sc in next sc] across, turn.

Row 2: Ch 1, sc in each st across, turn.

Rep Rows 1-2, 9 more times. Fasten off. Attach fringe as for knit version.

I could see this project in many other stitch variations as well, both knit and crochet. Other yarns that would make great Neck’s Big Things are denims, Poems Chunky, and Poems Puzzle. It takes around 30 minutes to complete one of these – holiday gift-giving score!

November 14, 2015November 12, 2015

IRL – Sail Away with Good Earth

Buket (pronounced “boo-keht”) is one of my favorite smiling faces to see around the office here at Universal Yarn. She works part time in bookkeeping helping to make sure all of those pesky numbers and inventories make sense. Buket also happens to be a fantastic knitter.

I passed her in the hall recently to see her wearing this lovely top made from Good Earth Multi in color 203 Sail. She knit this from the bottom up, adding her favorite lace pattern at the hem to keep herself from dying of boredom. This was a pattern she completely made up on the fly, deciding upon final details only when she needed to. I love this!

Good Earth is a true three-season yarn. It’s a blend of linen and cotton which makes it a no-brainer for summer knitting. But it’s heavy enough that when worked in a solid fabric can be suitable for spring and fall knits as well.

Good Earth is also available in Solids:

And an awesome spray print called Adorn:

The Billow sweater would make a fantastic fall sweater. I could see this working up nicely in the new Adorn print.

Happy fall knitting!

October 10, 2015October 9, 2015

IRL – Llamalini Love

I was so excited to see Katie this week in her Miranda Cardigan.

This is a project from the spring 2015 issue of Interweave Knits. It’s worked seamlessly from the top down, beginning at the back collar. I am so proud of Katie! She knits a lot of accessories but not as many garments. And she tends to have a bit of a wandering eye when it comes to WIPs (who doesn’t?!), hence my pride at her finishing it.

The best part about this sweater (aside from Katie’s perseverance) is that it’s made in Fibra Natura Llamalini. It takes very little prompting to get me to start gushing about this yarn. A blend of royal llama, silk bourette, and linen, it has a very unique feel. It is delicate, warm yet breathable, scrumptiously diverse, and drapes well. If you’re not ready for a garment in this luxury yarn, check out our 3-skein accessory project, the Ellery Reversible Cowl.

Way to go Katie!

August 29, 2015August 28, 2015

IRL – Gradient Garden

Talented Jen has done it again! Our Garden 5 + a tie-dye kit = awesome!

By nature I am a cool colors kind of girl. Jen’s color choices really speak to me in this crochet masterpiece. I also love the color-block effect and the definitive lines. Here is Jen in her own words on this striking shawl project:

I had a bunch of white Garden 5 laying around the house, you know, like you do. I couldn’t think of anything I wanted to make with plain white cotton so I decided to play around with dyeing it. I bought one of those three color tie-dye kits at the local big box store and went to town.

I split my yarn into three hanks and dyed each hank with a separate color so that I could crochet a shawl with super long color stripes. Once the yarn was dry I Russian joined all of them together and wound a big giant ball on my ball winder. I don’t recommend doing that since it broke my ball winder, but I had an absurdly giant ball of yarn at the end, which was kind of cool.

There is a fantastic free shawl pattern on Ravelry called the Seraphina Shawl by Doni’s Stuff. It’s super easy once you have the repeat down and it looks awesome in just about any yarn and gauge. This is the third time I’ve used it and I really love how it came out. The shape of the shawl makes it easy to wear over your shoulders without it falling off and depending on the yarn you use it can be super warm for cold weather or a great layering piece for in-between weather. I’m excited for the weather to cool down a little so I can wear it.

Thanks for sharing, Jen! We bow down to your fine crochet skills.

August 1, 2015July 31, 2015

IRL – Templetop Cowl

I was surprised when Jen told me she had never done Fair-Isle knitting before. I was surprised for two reasons: 1) Jen is always knitting or crocheting. Or spinning. She always has a variety of projects going on from lace to cables and more. With all that stitching, I couldn’t believe she’d never done colorwork like this. And 2), her knitting in this piece is gorgeous! It was hard to believe this was her first attempt at stranded knitting.

This is Jen’s version of the Templetop Cowl knit in Amphora, one of my favorite new yarns of ours. I really like the colors Jen chose for hers. That marsala red looks great on her. Jen kept her floats nice and even along the back of her work which can be the hardest thing to manage when venturing into Fair-Isle.

She told me the only modification she made in the pattern was to add one extra pattern repeat, so she cast on 162 stitches instead of 144. If you’re the kind of person who knows just what kind of circumference you like in a cowl, a pattern like this is very easy to adapt. At 144 stitches around, the original cowl measures 27 1/2″. The gauge is 5 1/4 stitches per inch. Jen knew that if she added one more pattern repeat which is 18 stitches, she’d be giving herself an extra 3 1/2″.

Even when adding in the extra pattern repeat, Jen still had plenty of yarn leftover. Amphora’s 100 gram ball clocks in at 306 yards; not shabby for a DK weight yarn! The reason for this is because Amphora is incredibly light and lofty. Brushed yarns are really trending this fall making Amphora a timely addition for us. I love haloed yarns in colorwork projects. They have a kind of romance to them. Have you fallen in love with Amphora yet?

July 27, 2015July 24, 2015

Uptown Favorite Afghans Book 2

Earlier this week we launched our latest ebook, Uptown Favorite Afghans Book 2. This is a sequel to Uptown Worsted Book 1: Favorite Afghans, a popular print book we released several years ago. All of the projects in this latest Uptown book use one of the members of the Uptown family, including Uptown DK, Uptown Worsted, and Uptown Bulky.

As a person who knits and designs primarily garments and accessories, it was refreshing to do a collection of afghans and throws. Afghans don’t have to fit. They don’t have to be flattering on some certain body type, and they make great gifts! Our Uptown is really the perfect yarn for an afghan. It is made of 100% anti-pilling acrylic, it comes in a ton of colors, and it’s machine washable.

Something I’ve noticed is that when knitters and crocheters see a project in a certain color or combination of colors, that is THE color they want to make their project in. I wanted to try something different for this collection and show the afghans in different colors. For all the projects (with the exception of one), we have a large/adult version, and then a smaller/kid version. For the projects that use multiple colors, there is a “coloring book” page with the pattern that can be printed out for the planning of different color combos.

First up we have Woven Rectangles. If you’re a beginning knitter or are more experienced and need a quick gift, this is the afghan for you.

The knit-purl texture gives maximum impact in Uptown Bulky. Tassels on each of the 4 corners are cute and whimsical, and also make it (I think) easier to fold them up to store.

Color Shift is knit in Uptown Worsted, but 2 strands are held together throughout making this actually a bulky-weight project. Shown in blues or pinks, this could look fun in contrasting colors too!

Blooming Chorus also comes in two sizes. The smaller size is good for babies or as a lap throw, and the larger size is great for snuggling up under. The whimsical dimensional effects are made more-so by crocheting with Uptown Bulky.

There are 2 versions of pi-shaped circular afghan, Burst. Knit from the center out, the smaller one uses Uptown DK, and the larger uses Uptown Worsted. 5 different lace patterns are both charted and written.

Our other crochet afghan, Flying V, also comes in 2 color schemes. This is one I could see in any number of colors to match a child’s room or your living room decor. Use the enclosed coloring book page to plan yours!

Though I feel like we typically see motifs done in crochet, knit motifs can be fun, too! Swirled uses hexagons, knit from the center out and attached in a modular fashion. No seaming! Make yours in a single color or wild with lots of different colors. Or what about using one color for every motif except for a single oddball motif?

On the Edge is a classic cable and texture throw with a cable running up each edge. The larger version uses Uptown Bulky while the smaller version uses Uptown Worsted. It’s amazing what a difference gauge can make!

Lastly, there is Beached, the only project done in a single colorway. I can definitely see this working brilliantly in other colors, so there is a coloring book page included for you to plan your own. Each of the three blocks (Polka Dots, Stripes, and Waves) uses a different method of changing colors – simple stripes, intarsia, and fair isle.

July 25, 2015July 24, 2015

IRL – Lovely Llamalini

I was delighted to return home from work one day recently to find a package from Interweave sitting on my doorstep. I opened it up to find the sample of my Miranda Cardigan from the spring issue of Interweave Knits. I promptly put it on to shelter against the blast of the A/C and have hardly taken it off since.

Sometimes I feel like the luckiest person in the world to be able to knit sweaters in Llamalini for Interweave and then have them shipped back to me so I can wear them. If you’ve never worked with this yarn, I have to tell you you’re missing out big time. A member of our Fibra Natura line, it’s comprised of nothing but yumminess. Silk bourette, Royal Llama, and linen come together in a soft but rustic, complex yet refined, 100% gorgeous yarn. The fibers all take the dye a little differently so the finished yarn ends up taking on a little bit of a tweedy look.

If you’re not ready for a garment in Llamalini, check out some of our great accessory projects in this yarn. What are you waiting for?