Recently, we’ve had requests for simple free patterns that are quick and easy. Well when it comes to lace, it doesn’t get much easier than this!
The Draft Scarves use a simple two-row repeat to create an airy, open mesh that’s perfect for summer. The wider black version above takes two balls of Fibra Natura Unity in color 110 Darkness…
…while the green, skinnier version takes just one ball of 103 Sage, and is still a generous 63″ without the fringe.
We chose Fibra Natura Unity as the yarn for this pattern for a couple of reasons. First, its thick and thin texture lends extra textural interest to the simple design. Second, the blend of wool, cotton, linen, and bamboo provides the perfect drape for a summertime scarf.
Unity 113 and Unity Beyond 208 Sunrise
If you were in the mood for extra color, Unity Beyond would make a great choice. Or what about Unity Beyond for the body, with a coordinating solid for the fringe? There are plenty of options for customization here!
We hope you have a fantastic weekend, with time to sit and relax with some beautiful yarn.
It’s Free Pattern Friday!
Today, the Sparkler Shawl in Fibra Natura Unity (pattern link here).
We like going red, white, and blue around the 4th of July. Remember last year’s Independence Tank in Flax? This year, we’re sharing a burst of color in linen blend Unity.
This four-pointed shawl has a shape that’s incredibly easy to wear. It begins at the center, increasing to create three triangles that sit easily on your shoulders.
Summery blend Unity is paired with an open stitch pattern, making this the perfect shawl for warmer days.
One word of caution: the sample shown here weighs exactly 200g, meaning exactly two skeins of Unity. If your gauge is a little off, or you’re not a fan of “yarn chicken,” you may wish to purchase an additional skein to ensure you have enough yarn. Alternatively, you could work fewer garter rows along the border, though it will naturally result in a slightly smaller shawl.
We hope you have a wonderful weekend, full of light and joy.
Happy crafting!
It’s Free Pattern Friday!
Today’s free pattern is Saltwater in Unity and Unity Beyond (pattern link here).
Earlier this month, we released an e-book of designs in our Fibra Natura family of yarns.
On the cover: Jetton by Amy GundersonLakeside Retreat is a generously sized collection of both knit and crochet patterns in natural fibers. With 16 designs included, we realized we had enough to lift out a pattern to release for free. The choice was Saltwater by Rachel Brockman.
This beautiful triangular shawl is knit from the top down in solid Unity and variegated Unity Beyond. These yarns are a unique blend of cotton, wool, bamboo, and linen designed to drape beautifully and lend an earthy texture to finished pieces.
Lightweight and airy, Saltwater combines garter and stockinette with simple striping to create a lovely understated shawl.
To finish it off, a crochet border is added. Rachel was thinking of little sandcastles when she added this charming design touch.
I’m eyeing this for myself, but we just released some brand new colors in Unity and Unity Beyond, and I’m loving the way they pair up. What do you think of solid 113 Alizarin and multi 208 Sunrise? It would certainly be a dramatic take on the design!
Or maybe let the sun shine in with 115 Cob and 207 Springtide. What a decision!
We hope you have a relaxing weekend. Happy crafting!
It’s warm here today, so it seems like a good day to highlight the most popular design from our summer collection Desert Dreams.
As the cover says, this is a collection of six knit and crochet projects in wool/linen/cotton/bamboo blend Unity and its self-shading sister Unity Beyond.
Last year we introduced a very special yarn called Unity, along with its patterned counterpart, Unity Beyond.
Unity/Unity Beyond is made up of linen, cotton, bamboo, and wool. Man, I love a good blend, especially when it’s the best of both plant and animal worlds, as is the case with Unity. This yarn is bursting with character. Let me give you a closer look:
Color 204 Boardwalk
The bamboo, wool, and cotton are combed together and twisted, and a fine strand of linen is wrapped around. The strand is just a bit thick and thin, but subtly so. In the Unity Beyond colorways, the dye is printed on just one side of the yarn giving an organic, washed out appearance.
This collection was photographed just blocks from our office here in Charlotte at an old-timey general store called Davis General Merchandise. The owner, Silas, kindly allowed us to shoot around the grounds to take advantage of the aged, rich texture of the building materials. Our own Rachel Brockman did the photography, so every shot is through the knitter’s eye.
All patterns can be purchased via Ravelry as individual downloads or together as an ebook. (Ravelry link)
And that brings me to our giveaway! Crochet expert Ellen Gormley released a swatching video featuring Unity Beyond. I work with our yarns every day, so it’s always interesting to me to hear another’s take on our products. Ellen does not disappoint! You can see her video here:Â (link video)
And if you’re interested in brushing up on some crochet techniques, follow Ellen’s youtube channel. She has lots of instructional videos.
But back to free yarn! Here are the details:
Two lucky crafters will win the Atacama Scarf pattern and the yarn to make it with (3 skeins of Unity Beyond!)
For a chance to win, leave us a comment on this post. Keeping in line with our Unity theme and Ellen’s commentary about why one might like to work with a yarn like this that has such rich character, in your comment, tell me something unique about yourself
Leave this comment before Monday, July 3, 12 pm EST
Winners will be announced on July 4
Eligible for US crafters only (no offense, international peeps!)
And that’s it! Craft on, and keep on doing whatever it is that makes you, you!
The team is in Cleveland at the National Needlearts Summer Show, setting up booth 1032! We’ve got a lot of brand new things to share with our LYS friends, so we thought we’d tease folks a little with a glimpse of what we’re bringing.
Of course, we don’t want to give too much away. If you’re at the show, swing by booth 1032. We’d love to see you. Everybody else… stay tuned – there’s lots of good stuff on the way!
You may have heard that Mother’s Day is nearly upon us. It’s kind of hard not to know, as commercialized as this holiday has become over the years. But mothers do need to be celebrated so truly I’m glad for the reminder as the day approaches.
Over the years I’ve given a wide variety of gifts to my mom for this special day. I usually try to give her something handmade, because she’s my mom, and I know she appreciates the thought behind it. At this point in her life, I can think of all kinds of things she doesn’t really need. She doesn’t need a scarf or a hat or a sweater. She doesn’t need knick-knacks or other little trifles, though I’m sure I could find something that would amuse her. What she does treasure are memories.
I decided to make her a little something to hold these memories, and settled on a small woven pouch. My life is so busy it’s tough to find a spare moment. Weaving goes so quickly, especially on a rigid heddle, so this made it easy to decide how I would make the pouch.
For anyone wanting to duplicate this, here are the specs for my piece of woven fabric:
Sett: 10 epi/10 dent reed
Weaving width: 14″ (though I didn’t end up using the full width of my fabric in the pouch. You could easily get away with less width, depending on your desired finished pouch size)
I warped with Unity Beyond, using the direct method.
I then wove about 3 inches of plain weave with #109 Natural, switched to #107 Purple Fog until the last bit of warp, and then finished out with 3 inches of #109 Natural.
I cut my fabric from the loom, finished the ends with a machine zig-zag, and then washed and pressed my fabric.
For the pouch pattern, I roughly followed this very simple tutorial:Â (link). If you’re not super comfortable sewing, this would be a great project for you. And if you’re more experienced, this will be a total breeze.
Before getting to the sewing part, I had decided that I wanted to add a little personal touch. I had a little ball of Cotton Supreme in my stash that coordinated well, and decided on a little heart. My embroidery skills are quite rudimentary, so use your imagination to come up with something better than this!
One thing to keep in mind with handwoven fabric, is that your weaving will likely want to come apart if you cut into it. Handwoven fabric, especially using handknitting yarns, does not have as high a thread count as commercial fabric on a bolt. Before cutting into my fabric, I used a fusible interfacing which I just ironed onto the back side of the fabric. The interfacing has an adhesive which helps to secure the fibers in the yarn.
After doing this, I cut out two pieces from my woven fabric 7″ x 9″. I also cut two lining pieces from some stash fabric (an old pillowcase, actually!) also 7″ x 9″.
At this point, I followed the tutorial that I mentioned above (here it is again:Â (link)Â And voila, just a short time later, I had a pouch:
In the papercrafting section at my local store, I found some pretty watercolor looking paper in a cardstock weight that coordinated with the colors of my yarn. I cut some pieces that were about 3″ x 4″. I spent some time one evening writing down positive memories about my mom, one memory per card. It was fun and quite therapeutic.
One memory was: “when you threw up after riding the tilt-a-whirl at the fair”
I think my mom will enjoy reading through these, perhaps being reminded of things she’s forgotten or things she never thought I noticed.
Whether you’re a parent or a child, I hope this Mother’s Day is a good one for you!
