Universal Yarn Creative Network
Inspiration By Design
Love it or hate it, Pantone has just announced their 2019 color of the year: 16-1546 Living Coral. Personally, I love it! My own closet is full of black and gray. Coral is that perfect pop of color against a background of neutrals.
We happen to have varying shades of coral in many of our yarn lines. A lot of them are spot on to Pantone’s specific coral pick. Here’s a sampling:
Anyway. Coral. It’s so fun and vibrant. It makes me happy because I have a few designs coming down the pike for spring that incorporate this color, and I can’t wait to share them with you. But in the meantime, let’s look at some other coral-y goodness.
And of course, you can crochet or knit anything you want in coral or any other color! If you’re thinking you’d like to start with a pop of coral rather than using it all-over in a project, how about the Citron Scarf in Cottonwood? You could crochet the body of the scarf in a neutral, and add color 41107 Monica (coral) as the fringe?
Happy making!
This is part 5 in a 12 part series highlighting designs from our 12 Days of Winter, Series 2 Edition.
Meet your new best friends: the Snowfolk (pattern link)! Agnes, Dorothy, and Maureen are a trio of knitters made from Deluxe Worsted. I love this yarn because it’s great for so many things – garments, accessories, home decor – you name it, Deluxe Worsted has you covered! This group of frosty friends is a joy to make, and you’ll have plenty of yarn to make more than three. We encourage you to have fun customizing your very own wintry knitting circle!
Snowfolk is a collaboration between Amy (our amazing creative director) and myself (Rachel – Amy told me to add that I am also amazing). Between the three snowpeople we designed and the collaboration involved in this pattern (not to mention by our entire team who have made this collection possible), I started thinking about knitting in the company of others. I asked some of my colleagues what their favorite things about knitting with others are.
Here is what Amy had to say:
“I travel to a lot of knitting shows, and so I find myself knitting amongst strangers (or friends) quite often at these events. I love how this one thing that we have in common paves the way for such a strong bond between people. I have made many dear friends through knitting.”
Heather told me:
“My weekly knitting group is a great way to decompress. I can share my worries with sympathetic people while also doing something soothing. Dropping in my with local knitting group has brought me lifelong friends – and a cat when a knitting buddy needed to move!”
Most of the time  I’m someone who revels in knitting at home in the company of my pets, but there is something so nice about knitting with friends or seeing someone you don’t know knitting in public. That commonality often creates an instant bond. I love visiting my local yarn shop to catch up with the owner and her employee as I pass stitches from one needle to the other. Once or twice a year I treasure the moments when I can join one of my dearest friends in person to gush about what we’ve been knitting. A great friend who lives nearby joins me each week to knit and chat. If I’m honest, I don’t accomplish much when knitting with others! I may get through a few rows, but spending that time with those I care about while doing something we love is what’s truly special.Â
What do you love about knitting with others? Do you have a weekly knitting circle? Maybe you love attending shows. We’d love to hear about it!
Remember, you can find Series 2 of the 12 Days of Winter Kit patterns on Ravelry.
Perhaps my favorite collection we’ve released for fall so far is Light & Shadow. It’s a collection of gorgeous, incredibly wearable patterns knit in anti-pilling Uptown DK.
A lot goes into planning our pattern collections, and it’s always so exciting to see designs develop. Amy and I begin with a mood board. Then we move on to creating rough sketches. You can see a few of mine from our recent collections below:
Naturally not every sketch makes the final collection. Amy and I work on numerous ideas separately, then we meet to share our ideas, select the designs that will be a part of the collection, and choose colors. Then we get hard to work on making these ideas a reality.
So, which designs made the final cut for Light & Shadow?
I have three designs in the collection. First up: Crossroads.
If I had to choose a favorite, this might be it. This design started with a bold cable from Norah Gaughan’s Knitted Cable Sourcebook. I didn’t want to just slap the pattern onto a sweater. I opted for a relaxed, cozy fit with drop shoulders, garter ridges, a split hem, and understated bishop sleeves.
The sleeves sit at bracelet length on our fantastic model, Jarin, however; it’s super simple to lengthen them as the shaping occurs just before the cuff.
Next, we have Northbound.
I wanted to create the perfect, infinitely wearable turtleneck. I know not everyone loves turtlenecks, but I sure do! Northbound was initially imagined as a proposal for a print magazine before I started working at Universal. I loved it, so I held onto the idea – the Light and Shadow collection seemed to be a perfect match.
Northbound has some of my favorite design elements: set-in sleeves, saddle shoulders, seed stitch, and cables. If you love a simple design with thoughtful details, this pattern is for you.
My final design is perhaps the most unique: Topography.
Topography features sculptural welts that move diagonally across the sleeves. The effect is simpler to construct than you might expect.
The sleeves feature traveling twisted stitches that are used as a guide to creating the welts. After you’ve knit the sleeves, stitches are picked up stitches along the legs of the twisted stitches. Then you simply knit and graft. Easy-peasy. Not a fan of the welts? Just stick with the twisted stitches and you have a simple wardrobe staple.
