Still Summer – Cotton Supreme

Look, I know it’s September, but here in the South we still have hot and humid days where the great outdoors looks like a melting Dali painting.  True story: I once saw my cousin get stuck in an overheated parking lot when her high heels sank into liquefying asphalt, like a very fashionable mastodon caught in a tar pit.  For this reason, I’m not giving up on summertime projects yet.  Luckily, we have a really great selection of cottons, and some fabulous free patterns!

First up: The Little Sailor Pullover (pattern link here).

This cute top is sized from 1-10 years, and features a solid Cotton Supreme body with Cotton Supreme Batik for the stripes and the anchors on the sleeves.

The original black and white Cotton Supreme Batik has been retired, but there are some nice options available.  What about this in a different shade of blue, with 41 Navy Salute (below) for the detailing?

Actually, since Cotton Supreme and Cotton Supreme Batik have exactly the same gauge, you could choose to go solid for both, or striped for both – there are a lot of options here!

Next, the All-Star Pullover (pattern link here).

This one’s quite similar to the Little Sailor – the differences are, a smaller needle for the ribbing (my edges tend to flare if I don’t do this!), and a different design on the sleeve.  I like these two interpretations of what is essentially the same pattern because it shows what a difference the details make!

Team Cap all the way.

You can see how this could also become a fantastic superhero costume if you shifted that star onto the chest and made the design in red, white, and blue.  Who wouldn’t want a tiny Captain America pullover?

Don’t get me wrong, we’re gearing up for Fall and winter.  There are some great designs in the works.  But as long as we’ve got some cute things to make, maybe it’s not so bad for summer to hang around a little longer.

Free Pattern Friday – Mars Tee

It’s Free Pattern Friday!

Smiling woman in jeans and crochet red Cotton Supreme DK Seaspray shirt

Today, the Mars Top crocheted in Cotton Supreme DK Seaspray (pattern link).

How’s your summer going?  Are you still looking for that perfect project that will be satisfying to make but not stifle you in the heat?

Side view of woman wearing red crochet top standing outdoors

Voila!  Amy Gunderson’s Mars Tee!  Crocheted in the round from the bottom up, this beauty is sized from XS to 4X, with shaping that starts out a little bigger at the base, for those of us with a bigger… um… base.  The point is, this is comfortable and cool.

Detail of red crochet stitchwork on woman's shoulder

Double-crocheting three together makes cute little eyelets without making the fabric too lacey-loose.

Red top crocheted in Cotton Supreme DK Seaspray

From personal experience, I can tell you that the Cotton Supreme family is easy on the hands to use. Go with either the called-for Cotton Supreme DK Seaspray, or try solid Cotton Supreme DK.  How cute would this look striped?

Cotton Supreme DK Seaspray

We hope you have a great weekend, with lots of time for you to take care of yourself.

Happy crafting!

Woman walking away wearing red crochet cotton top

Free Pattern – Cancer Comfort Cap

We are proud to share this free pattern with you, although we wish there were no reason to do so.

This is the Cancer Comfort Cap in Cotton Supreme DK (pattern link here).

We designed this cap at the request of Yonca, our sales director.  When she requested this cap, it was for a friend who is about to undergo chemotherapy for breast cancer.  Unfortunately, since then, another friend of hers has also been diagnosed.  According to breastcancer.org, 1 in 8 American women will develop invasive breast cancer in the course of her lifetime (as well as 1 in 1000 men).  This is a disease that hits close to home.

Yonca wanted to write something for her friend to add to this post, but she finally had to admit defeat. She felt that everything she wanted to say was inadequate.  In the face of a life-changing diagnosis, it can be hard to find the words to express our pain and love.  But just reaching out to say “I’m here, I’m with you,” can sometimes be enough.

We offer this hat as a way to say “I’m with you” when words won’t quite do the trick.  It’s knitted in the round in our Cotton Supreme DK, which we picked because it’s very soft, and chemo scalps can be quite sensitive – something to keep in mind when choosing yarn.

If you have questions about breast cancer detection and treatment, the American Cancer Society has a helpful page.  Mammogram guidelines can also be found at CancerCare.org.

To all of our generous-hearted crafting friends, we wish you good health and every happiness.

Free Pattern Friday – KISS Scarf

It’s Free Pattern Friday!

red lace cotton scarf on a tan dressform

Today, the KISS Scarf in Cotton Supreme Splash.

red lace cotton scarf tied at the neck on a dressformA while back, we had a request for a super-simple lace scarf for a beginner.  Well, it doesn’t get much simpler than this.  The KISS Scarf is a few rows of garter stitch, followed by a one-row k2tog,yo repeat with a garter stitch border on the edges.  It’s fully reversible, and it only takes one half of a ball of Cotton Supreme Splash (100g/180yds) meaning it won’t take forever, even for a beginner.

(Edit: I was so excited about this pattern that I accidentally wrote  k2, yo instead of k2tog yo*.  The pattern was right, but the article was wrong – it would have led to a dramatically increasing row every time.  Thanks to all of you eagle-eyed knitters!)

This pattern would work well with any of the yarns in the Cotton Supreme family.  Cotton Supreme and Cotton Supreme Batik both have the same yardage per ball, so they could be used interchangeably here.  Go down a needle size for a slightly skinnier scarf (or just cast on more stitches in an even number) and use Cotton Supreme DK or DK Seaspray.

 

The remaining half a ball of Cotton Supreme Splash is sitting on my desk right now, tempting me.  I could knit another… or I could use it to teach someone else to knit.  Decisions, decisions.

Happy knitting!

A red lace scarf with one end thrown over the shoulder of a dressform. A silver shawl pin fastens the scarf together.

 

Halos of Hope – Healing Vibes

One of the nice things about going to crafting shows is that we get to see in person how generous our crafting community can be.  We were reminded of this again with the Halos for Hope booth at StitchesWest.

Halos of Hope partners with LYSes and local guilds to collect and distribute chemo caps.   These caps are practical, and also serve as a personal reminder to a person going through a difficult time that yes, they are cared for.

We were moved to design new patterns for our Cotton Supreme family, which is a great choice for chemo caps.  It’s incredibly soft and won’t irritate chemo patients’ scalps, which are often more tender than usual.

Amy Gunderson brings us our first offering, Healing Vibes in Cotton Supreme DK.

Amy says she thinks of this as a knitted representation of rays of radiation zapping cancer away.  Such a lovely idea – meaningful, but still very pretty in its own right.  We hope someone wearing this will feel the strength and energy Amy has put into this design.

This pattern has a bit of personal significance to me.  It was released on the 9th anniversary of the day my mother was declared free of ovarian cancer.  Mom has had no recurrence – she’s still energetic enough to run rings around me.   She’d be the first to tell you to know the signs, and to go see your doctor if you have any concerns.  I, for one, am very glad that she took early action.

If you’d like to l earn more about Halos of Hope, their website has info.  Their Facebook page is also chock full of patterns and ideas.

We hope that you enjoy this free pattern, and that while you take care of those around you, you take care of yourself, too.

Happy and healthy knitting!

Free Pattern Friday – All-Star Pullover

It’s Free Pattern Friday!

Cotton Supreme Little Star Top blog square

Today, the All-Star Pullover in Cotton Supreme.

Recently we had a shop mention that we hadn’t had a Free Pattern Friday in Cotton Supreme lately.  Well, we can’t have that; we love this yarn!

I don’t know about you, but I’ve knitted with some cottons that left my hands feeling like they’d been through the wringer.  Nobody should feel like crafting is something to slog through.  It should be a pleasure.  Fortunately, I’ve never had that problem with Cotton Supreme (180yds/100g).  It’s easy to work with, machine washable, and the colors are to die for.  All of which makes it a great choice for this little kid’s pullover.  Knit it flat, seam it up, and send your little all-star out to play.

This one would be really easy to customize, too.  Can’t you imagine this in team colors?  Or… and this is just my inner geek talking… move the intarsia star to the chest and you’ve got a little Captain America.

Captain America colors blog
Sky Surf 927 and White 502, and add 509 Red if you wish. I could knit this all day.

I’m filing this idea away as a potential gift for superhero-loving parents and kids.

We hope you have a safe Memorial Day weekend.

Happy knitting!

Cotton Supreme Little Star needles crossed_Instagram

Free Pattern Friday – Reversa-Lace Scarf

It’s Free Pattern Friday!

CS Batik Reversible Lace Scarf over shoulder blog

Today, the Reversa-Lace Scarf in Cotton Supreme Batik.

Self-striping yarn can be a blessing or a curse.  It looks so pretty, but sometimes when you actually knit it up it does unexpected things… and not in a good way.  That’s one reason Cotton Supreme Batik is a great choice for this pattern.  The striping repeats are very predictable, and they don’t overpower the lace pattern.

CS Batik Reversible Lace Scarf one wrap blogThis two-ball scarf in color 37 Mint Flower uses k2tog and yo to create its eyelets, making this a good basic lace pattern for beginners.  It’s more sophisticated than a simple netting, but there’s nothing too fiddly to deal with.

I love the way the striping matches up on both sides, and the way the lace shows rather than the yarn.  If you’re going to bother with a pattern, you want your work to show!

We hope you have a great weekend, with plenty of time to enjoy this beautiful May weather.

Happy knitting!

CS Batik Reversible Lace Scarf passthrough square

Free Pattern Friday – Jump for Joy Hoodie

It’s Free Pattern Friday!

CS Batik Jump For Joy Hoodie blogToday, the Jump for Joy Hoodie in Cotton Supreme Batik.

We heard recently from a shop owner in Southern California, talking about how cute a pair of mittens in Amy Gunderson’s Crocheted Mitts and Mittens were – and how little use she’d get out of them in her neck of the woods.  True!  It may be snowing in some places, but in others it’s bright and sunny.  Enter this adorable cotton hoodie.

Cotton Supreme Batik (180yds/100g) is a self-striping 100% cotton that’s very easy on the hands to work with.  The bright colors lend themselves well to kid knits as well as adult pieces (Michael del Vecchio’s Poppies Scarf is definitely on my wish list).

This cute hoodie is sized from newborn to eight years.  It’s constructed in pieces and seamed, with the button band garter edging added afterward.

If you want the stripes to match on the sleeves, you may want to pick up an extra ball, just to be sure you can hit the same spot in the color repeats.  That shouldn’t be as much of an issue in the colorways of Cotton Supreme Batik that feature fewer shades per ball.  Wouldn’t 39, Green Apple, make a great Spring piece for a toddler?

We hope you’re staying warm – but not too warm!  Happy knitting!

Jump For Joy Hoodie open blog

Free Pattern Friday – Dip-Dyed Cardigan

It’s Free Pattern Friday!

DipDyedCardigan 2 blog

Today, the Dip-Dyed Cardigan in Cotton Supreme DK Seaspray.

Love this breezy, casual short-sleeved cardi!  And love the choice of Cotton Supreme DK Seaspray (100g/230yds) for it.  It’s variegated but not wild, making it a perfect choice for those who want a balance of color and conservatism in their wardrobe.

Knit this cardi in pieces from the bottom up, starting with the contrasting band of reverse stockinette at the bottom.  Work the raglan shaping, neck, and sleeves, then add the neck and sleeve edging and the button band.  I like the way the color bands are staggered on the front – the asymmetry is interesting!

I’m not usually a pink person, but this might be nice with a band of 301 Carmine for the contrasting bit.  There’s not really a wrong choice for this sweater.

Here’s hoping you cast on for something fun and exciting this weekend, just for you!

Happy knitting!

DipDyedCardigan back blog

Free Pattern Friday – Summer Leaves Cloths

It’s Free Pattern Friday!

Cotton Supreme Washcloths horizontal_blogToday, the Summer Leaves Cloths in Cotton Supreme.

Blue washcloth blogThese patterns come to us by special request from Jackie in Customer Service, who asked if we could add another one-ball project in Cotton Supreme (180yds/100g).

“The yarn is so soft!  When people touch it, they fall in love with it.  If we had another small pattern for it, then when I send kits as little prizes to our stores and customers, they’d get a chance to work with it and love it too.”

Mustard washcloth blogJackie’s wish is our command.  Voila, three lovely washcloths using leaf motifs.  One is an all-over lace pattern, the second is four leaves rising from a central column, and the third is a single leaf in the center of a field of reverse stockinette.  All three leaf lace patterns are charted, and all three cloths can be made from just one hank of Cotton Supreme.

Orchid washcloth blogWhen I look at these cloths, I can’t help but feel that they’d also make great afghan blocks, perhaps in Uptown Worsted or Deluxe Worsted Superwash on slightly larger needles.   There’s nothing wrong with re-envisioning a design for your own purposes.

Thanks for the great suggestion, Jackie.  We can always use another quick-to-knit pattern in our library.

Happy knitting!