Free Pattern Friday – Yiasou! Hat

It’s Free Pattern Friday!

Yiasou social media graphic

Today, the Yiasou! Hat in Dona.

I designed this hat because I’ve been thinking about my father a lot lately.  He has a milestone birthday coming up soon.  I’d tell you what it is, but the running joke is that every birthday for the past mumble mumble years he has turned 39.  Since I myself have passed that age, this is quite the feat.

When I was a kid, I loved going with my father to the many Greek restaurants here in Charlotte, NC.  My father is an outgoing and friendly person, so he learned enough Greek to be able to greet the proprietors and to say “thank you.”  I can still his his hearty “Tikanis!” (How are you?) as we would come through the doors.  Dad makes friends wherever he goes.

This hat is named after his friendliness, and also our city’s huge annual Greek festival called Yiasou! (Hello!).  It’s a fun event with friendly people.

Yiasou Crown selfie 1For this hat, I worked 64 stitches on a size 7 needle.  You could increase or decrease by 8 and have the Greek Key chart and the top decreases work out.  (Picture of crown at right.  Hey, you try to take a selfie of the top of your head.)

Dona (126yds/50g) was a good choice for this.  It’s exceptionally soft and springy, machine washable, and the colors are vibrant and bold.  I had enough Dona left over that I’m considering making another hat, but with the colors reversed.

Here’s hoping you connect with someone this weekend, whether an old friend or a new one, who puts a smile on your face.

Happy knitting!

Yiasou Hat blog laugh

Free Pattern Friday – Sunblock Hat

It’s Free Pattern Friday!

Yashi Sunblock Hat blog

Today, the Sunblock Hat in Yashi.

Yashi ball blogWe are looking forward to summer, partly because it gives us more excuses to use this great raffia yarn.  Yashi (40g/99yds) has a papery texture, but is much softer and more pliable than others we’ve seen.  It’s easy to work with and is proving a fast favorite around the office for crochet.

Because it’s so soft, with a project like this very wide hat, we’d suggest you crochet it tightly and maybe give it a little starching to stiffen the brim.  You’ll start at the top and work your way out.

I can see myself lounging in a chair by the pool in this hat, reading a good book and sipping… uh… tea.

Yes. That’ll do nicely.

Happy crafting!

Bamboo Pop Adult

BambooPopAdultCover_final

It’s here!  Our new e-book Bamboo Pop Adult is finally available for download from Ravelry and Craftsy.  Patterns are also available individually.

Bamboo Pop is one of our most popular yarns.  Our e-books Bamboo Pop Kids and Bamboo Pop Dolls were well-received, but we had a lot of people requesting grownup designs.  Here they are!

Craftsy Boho1

 

The Boho Tank is an A-line top worked from the bottom up.  Sandi Rosner provided the embroidery detail, showing once again that what designer Charles Eames said is true – “The details are not the details. They make the design.”

 

Craftsy Dewdrops1

 

The crochet Dewdrops Tank is worked in two pieces and seamed.  While I love the bright contrasting colors Amy Gunderson chose for the “dewdrops,” this would be a great piece to customize.  Just use your favorite colors as accents!

 

Craftsy DrapeFront1   Craftsy DrapeFront3 back

The Drape-Front Cardi above may be a candidate for “most wearable design.”  The flow of the fabric flatters a range of frames.

Craftsy Hospitality1Here’s my favorite – the Hospitality Tee! Down South, the pineapple is the symbol of hospitality, so as a native Southerner this feels like a very welcoming design to me.  As a knitter, I appreciate details like the corrugated ribbing at the sleeves and hem and the pink applied crochet chain stripe that gives it an extra pop of color.

 

Craftsy Staggered1   Craftsy Staggered3

Love love love.  The dramatic Staggered Shawl has the graphic styling that is so popular, and it’s so easy to knit.  No purling – just garter stitch!

Craftsy Steeple1The Steeple Pullover has been an early favorite on Ravelry.  Work it bottom-up in the round, then separate for the armholes.  The pattern is written and charted, like all patterns in Bamboo Pop Adults (except the super-simple Staggered Shawl). Sized from extra small to 3X, this is a great breezy design to dress up or down when the weather has just a hint of chill.

 

Craftsy Surf1

 

Surf ‘n Stripe is a simple eyelet design accented with bands of color.  Knit in two pieces and seamed, this slouchy and comfortable dolman-sleeved top strikes me as great vacation knitting!

 

 

Craftsy Tennis1

 

The Tennis Vest  is a classic design.  The twist cable and rib pattern is quite stretchy, making it a perfect layering piece.  I hate feeling like a stuffed sausage when a sweater over a shirt doesn’t breathe with me – this is a great vest for looking as cool as you feel.

 

 

Craftsy ColorworkCardiHat2

 

From the cover, the Colorwork Cardi and Colorwork Hat featured on the cover are two super-cute coordinating patterns.  The cardi is a top-down seamless sweater (with pockets!) and the hat can be customized to be taller or shorter as you wish by adding or subtracting pattern repeats.

 

I’m not sure what I’m going to knit first.  I’m thinking maybe the Staggered Shawl.  I’ve been wanting a very modern accessory, and that looks fabulous.  We’d love to see what you make!

Happy knitting!

Warm It Up!

Confession time!  When it’s cold outside, sometimes we break into the trunk show garments.

Trunk Show warmup 1

But come on!  How could we resist?  We are so fortunate to be surrounded by so many beautiful yarns and garments, and as knitters and crocheters we truly appreciate them.  The happy knitter above is me, Heather.  I’m wearing my own hat in Poems (1 ball of color 590 Sakura, US size 8/5mm needles, 84 stitch caston).

The cowl and mittens are part of Sandi Rosner’s Rose Quartz Set in Deluxe Worsted 100% wool.  There’s a hat, too, but mine matches so well I stuck with it.

Sandi’s Rose Quartz set is available as a single pattern or part of the Walk in the Woods e-book, full of gorgeous colorwork and felted designs in Deluxe Worsted and Deluxe Chunky.  It’s perfect for this time of year.

Also in Deluxe, I spotted our Design Lead in this stunning sweater the other day.  Valentina is one of my favorites.  It uses Deluxe Chunky 100% wool.  The pattern is written and charted with design features like lovely saddle shoulders to show off the cables.  It comes in sizes from 34″ to 54″ bust, and – believe it or not – is a free pattern.   Home run!

 

Our Sales Manager can frequently be found in designs by Yumiko Alexander like Braided Fog, recently made available online as a download or as part of Yumiko Warm Earth Book 3.  It also uses Deluxe Worsted.  Are we wearing a lot of Deluxe?  That’s not surprising – it’s great for cold weather.  I suspect, however, that our sales manager wears this not because it’s warm but because it looks fabulous.

The best thing about being surrounded by these designs is that it’s inspirational.  We find that seeing beautiful things awakens a desire to create something beautiful ourselves.  We hope you find inspiration and happiness in your crafts throughout this new year.

Happy knitting!

Trunk Show warmup 2

Throwback Thursday – Santa Hat

It’s Throwback Thursday!

TT_Santa Hat_blog

Today, the Holiday Santa Hat by Michael del Vecchio!

Originally designed for Classic Worsted Holiday, this would look great in any worsted weight yarn.  Naturally you’re not limited to red and white – be a psychedelic Santa if you want! – but we do have recommendations in our solid color worsted weight yarns.

Uptown Worsted has 312 Racecar Red and 302 White Glow.

Deluxe Worsted has 3691 Christmas Red and 12270 Natural.

Deluxe Worsted Superwash has 738 Christmas Red and 728 Pulp.

This pattern is designed to be knit flat, handy for those who aren’t comfortable with circular needles.

I love Michael’s use of bobbles in this pattern to give texture.  Make a provisional cast-on and knit the bobbled brim, then attach the red to the cast-on edge and knit the rest of the hat.  A festive pom-pom finishes it off.  I’m still backed up on my holiday knitting, so I might just use a Luxury Fur Pom-Pom to save time rather than making my own.

Wishing you a festive holiday season – and happy knitting!

Free Pattern Friday – Coffee Beans and Sugar Cubes

It’s Free Pattern Friday!

Uptown Bulky Two Hats_blog

Today, Coffee Beans and Sugar Cubes.

Two hats that can be completed with one ball of each color of Uptown Bulky 100% anti-pilling acrylic (100g/87yds).  Cute!  Knit on  size 11 needles, these go quickly and are a good way to practice your Fair Isle.

I’m loving the color, too.  That Uptown Bulky 416 Iron coordinates well with 421, Coral.  The coral is at the forefront of style at the moment – Sherwin Williams just picked Coral Reef as their color of the year.  Pretty!

We hope you enjoy this satisfying quick project. Happy knitting!

 

Throwback Thursday – Celebrate Autumn Flora with Deluxe

It’s Throwback Thursday!

Deluxe Worsted e-book Big Leaf Mittens 1 - Fitzgerald

Autumn Flora E-book-1 coverWe’re not throwing back that far today, just a couple of years.  But it’s the perfect time of year to highlight the free e-book Autumn Flora with Deluxe.

This e-book features eight patterns perfect for staying toasty, all using the Deluxe family of 100% wool.

All the patterns below are part of this cozy collection of colorwork and cables.  Enjoy!

 

Wraparound Leaves Beret and Mitts

Pattern: Wraparound Leaves Beret and Mitts

Yarn:  Deluxe Worsted

• 12176 Teal Viper – 1 ball (MC)

• 41138 Brown Sugar – 1 ball (CC)

 

 

 

Deluxe Worsted e-book Sheaves of Wheat Scarf 2 blog

Pattern: Sheaves of Wheat Reversible Scarf

Yarn: Deluxe Chunky

• 3704 Gold Spice – 2 balls

 

 

 

 

Deluxe Worsted e-book Poplar Beret 2 blogPattern: Poplar Beret

Yarn:  Deluxe Worsted

• 12182 Gold Spice – 1 ball (A)

Universal Yarn Deluxe Worsted LP

• 06 Harvest – 1 ball (B)

 

 

Deluxe Worsted e-book Felted Leaf 1 blogPattern: Felted Leaf

Yarn: Deluxe Worsted

• 1 ball will make multiple felted leaves

 

Deluxe Worsted e-book Big Leaf Mittens 2 blogPattern: Big Leaf Mittens

Yarn:  Renew Wool (Substitute Deluxe DK Superwash)

• 101 Sand – 1 ball (MC)
• 107 Cedar – 1 ball (CC1)
• 113 Garnet – 1 ball (CC2)

 

 

 

Deluxe Worsted Stranded Seed Pillow 1 blog

Pattern: Stranded Seed Pillow

Yarn: Deluxe Chunky

• 91901 Oatmeal Heather – 2 balls (MC)
• 3749 Forest – 1 ball (CC)

(There’s a gorgeous cabled edge on this one!)

 

 

 

Deluxe Worsted e-book Autumn Leaves Cap 1_blogPattern: Autumn Leaves Cap

Yarn: Deluxe Worsted

• 71601 Blue Ombre – 1 ball (A)
• 12501 Oatmeal Heather – 1 ball (B)

• 3649 Forest Green – 1 ball (C)
• 41138 Brown Sugar – 1 ball (D)
• 91477 Red Oak – 1 ball (E)
• 12188 Heather – 1 ball (F)
• 12180 Eggplant – 1 ball (G)
• 12282 Hunter Green – 1 ball (H)
• 12181 Bronze Brown – 1 ball (I)

Free Pattern Friday – Go-Go! Hats

It’s Free Pattern Friday!

Gray hats grid blog

Or should we say Free Patterns Friday?  Because today, we have a quartet of toppers:  the Go-Go! Hats.

Four different styles in one yarn, Uptown Worsted 100% anti-pilling acrylic.  You can see how well the yarn lets the stitch patterns show through.

What really makes these hats, though, is the colorful fluffball topper on each of them.  Those are our Luxury Fur Pom-Poms.  They’re very handy for finishing off a garment that may need something a little more polished than a yarn pom-pom.  Each pom-pom has a string attached to let you tie it right on to your work.  Easy-peasy!

Gray hats bottom 2 blogI’m not sure which of these is my favorite.  I guess it partially depends on whether I’m in the mood for knit or crochet.  For myself, I’m leaning toward the Lace Beanie on the lower right.  Then again, the Honeycomb Ski Cap (with the pink pom-pom) would also be fun to make.  Decisions, decisions.

Which one’s your favorite?

Free Pattern Friday – Superwash hats!

It’s Free Pattern Friday!

Parfait and Here and There hats_DeluxeWorstedSuperwash_blog

Today, a little love for both the knitters and the crocheters!  Both use Deluxe Worsted Superwash (220yds/100g), the popular machine washable version of our Deluxe line of wools.

Here and There hat_DeluxeWorstedSuperwash_blog First, the knitted Here and There Hat.  Amy Gunderson uses right and left twists to create colorful slanting columns up the length of this cap.  A Luxury Fur Pom-Pom tops it off with an extra pop of color.  I love these pom-poms.  They’re pre-made with an attached thread that you can just tie onto your work.

Parfait Hat_DeluxeWorstedSuperwash_blogNext, the crocheted Parfait Hat.  Two colors of Deluxe Worsted Superwash topped off with a Luxury Fur Pom-Pom.  Adorable!  I tried this one on, and it looked really cute.  Sometimes it’s hard not to steal the garments for myself!

On the other hand, making my own would be another excuse to crochet, and that’s always a good thing.

Happy crafting!

 

Free Pattern Friday – Idyll Hat and Cowl

It’s Free Pattern Friday!

_DSC0075_Ariana hat and cowl_blog

Today, the Idyll Hat and Cowl in Ariana.

We just got a new yarn in, and as so often happens, we got super excited and had to make something new!  Ariana (100g/91yds) is a unique yarn.  It’s a kind of a mesh tube made of bamboo with a squishy polyamide filling.  Based just on the pictures I’d seen, I knew it would have excellent stitch definition, but I wasn’t expecting it to be so soft to the touch.  I’m always up for a bulky-weight squeezable yarn!

The pattern is both written and charted, and works up quickly on US size 10 needles (size 9 for the hat).  Maybe my “to knit” list is getting too long, but I don’t care, this is getting added.  There’s always room for a super-soft hat and cowl!