knot another hat

New hat coming soon!

Our local teacher, Kirsten, is a tubular rockstar. She makes the tubular cast on and bind off look like magic. She's gearing up to teach her Tubular class this Spring, and she inspired me to get back on the tubular horse, so to speak. 

Earlier this Fall my youngest was given a great slouchy beanie. It's a commercial beanie, and very simple, but the look of the corrugated fabric (think a-la-Wurm) just begged to be turned into a handknit pattern. So when I decided I needed a medium to practice my tubular cast on, writing up a pattern for this beanie was the perfect solution! 

Et voila - the Carbon Copied to the Max, knit in Knitted Wit Big Sky Worsted, color First Frost. 

 

 

bunches of hats, or how I lost the best hat ever

Last October I was lucky enough to get away to McMenamin's Edgefield for a girls' night with my bookclub. We had a great time relaxing, drinking wine, and soaking in the Edgefield soaking pool. And in all that fun, I lost my favorite hat. The loss is made even more poignant by the fact that I somehow never took a picture of this hat. Let's take a moment of silence to remember the amazing gradient Wurm that I made with no less than five colors of Shibui Pebble.

The photo that never happened.

Losing a hat doesn't have to be a terrible thing for a knitter, right? After all, it's a great excuse to knit yourself a gazillion new hats to make up for the lost one. Which I immediately set out to do, starting with finishing this one: 

• Flora's Cap by Churchmouse Yarns
• 1 skein each Shibui Pebble and Shibui Silk Cloud, in Brass
• US 2 (3.25mm) needles

 I like my Brassy Flora, but it didn't float my boat like my lost hat, so I made this:

• Corral by Justyna Lorkowska
• 1 skein Schoppel-Wolle Cashmere Queen in Purple
• US 6 (4mm) needles
• Mod: added a half repeat of lace motif for more slouch

And I like my Corral well enough, but, meh. So I made this:

• not another Wurm, by Katharina Nopp
• Shibui Baby Alpaca DK and tosh DK
• US 4 (3.5mm) and US 6 (4mm)

And this one is good, but...well, you get the picture. The lost perfect hat is always better in memory than three new ones. 

And, since I was apparently on a hat kick, I also made these:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I guess that was a lot of hats for a three month period. I can't say that I've found my replacement yet, but continuing to try is half the fun, right? 

A Project Club is Born...

I have designed some things in the past. Periodically, inspiration strikes. I really love creating new things - I love finding a yarn or a stitch pattern so compelling that the ideas start flooding in and broadcasting their potential all over my brain. The only problem is this: I'm usually too busy to ever let those design seeds sneak in and start talking. Running the shop, maintaining the website, preparing for the 5th annual CGFF (save the date!) - - all of those great things conspire to keep creativity at bay.

Until last Friday. Finding myself home alone with a few free hours, I decided to update my Ravelry library. As I paged through all of my knitting books, my eye caught on the shelf with all of my stitch dictionaries. Vogue Stitchionary's and Harmony Guides...they just called to me. I started paging through ... and ... BOOM! 6 designs were born.

Once I got started it just kept snowballing! And best of all, when I would see a stitch that appealed to me, or a motif, I almost immediately pictured a yarn in the shop that would be perfect. After sketching out some plans, I ran down to the shop Saturday morning and grabbed up a bunch of goodies and got started. By Saturday night I had one prototype knit and 2 others underway. Because the yarns I chose were so much a part of each design, I decided the perfect vehicle to get these great designs in my customers' hands was through a "club" that provided the pattern AND the yarn together - and here we are. Presenting ....

Knot Another Hat 2015 Project Club! Think of it like your trusty farm CSA - investment now will provide fresh and inspiring projects for the next 6 months! Each month (beginning in June and running through November) Club Members will receive a goodie bag from Knot Another Hat with an exclusive* club pattern, the yarn to make the project, and a special treat. All 6 projects are accessories - fingerless mitts, hats, home decor, scarves, and more, and they use between one and four skeins of yarn. The fibers used will vary from wool to alpaca to silk to cotton, and techniques used include basic lace, basic cables, and basic two-color stranding. The value of the 6 months' worth of goods is over $285 - and the club price is only $250 (plus $30 for shipping if not local pickup).

Enrollment runs now through May 31st. All you have to do is choose from one of our 9 color palettes. These palettes serve as the inspiration for your Project colors, and are not exact representations of the colors that will be included. Each project will reflect that palette's general "feel".

It feels so good to have CREATED again! I hope you'll be able to join me in the next 6 months of fun! 

*Club patterns will not be available to the general public until 3 months after the club release date.

a new fave...

Introducing Tea with Jam and Bread. 

 

Tea With Jam & Bread

This quick little top-down raglan is the quintessential Saturday sweater and my new fave FO. (But don't tell - I wore it this week on a Thursday. In fact, I bound off my second sleeve Wednesday afternoon and didn't even wait to block it - that's how excited I was to wear it). There is so much to love about this design, first and foremost being the comfortable, I-just-threw-this-on-but-isn't-it-fab style. Coming in a close second, really more like a first-and-a-half, are the pockets. I LOVE POCKETS. Pockets on tunics, pockets on skirts, pockets on dresses - pockets pockets pockets. Finally, this is a really well-crafted design, with lovely back neck shaping thoughtful raglan increases (no armpit poofing happening here). 

 

My timing on this sweater was perfect, since we woke up to a crisp 38 degrees this morning - fall is here. Luckily this lovely little number is knit out of another new fave: Classic Elite Majestic Tweed. We've had MT here since last Fall, but this was my first chance to get it on my needles and I quickly fell in love. The fiber combo is perfect: wool, angora, silk, nylon. Strength, shape memory, softness, and the inimitable angora haze. 

 

Tea, Back View

 

If you know me at all, you know that I very, very rarely make anything twice. But I would do it in a heartbeat with this sweater. 

I just need to pick out the colors. ;)

• Pattern: Tea with Jam and Bread by Heidi Kirrmaier
• Size: L1, 42.25" bust - ~3.5" positive ease on me (availalbe from children's size 4 to women's 54" bust) 
• Yarn: Classic Elite Majestic Tweed, 7 skeins violet #7256, 3 skeins charcoal #7275, 2 skeins butterscotch #7206.
• Gauge: 19 sts = 4" on US 7 (4.5mm) needles. 
• Upcoming class beginning October 17

My love affair with the clapotis

Aah, the Clapotis. The scarf/shawl that swept the nation, right? It debuted in the Fall 2004 issue of Knitty, and its popularity soared into the stratosphere and never came back down. It only boasts a mere twenty thousand projects on Ravelry, and that number doesn't even include all the people in the world that have made one and NOT bothered to add it to Ravelry.  

Clapotis #1, 2009

I, myself, have contributed four Clapotis (what's the plural of Clapotis? My French isn't that good) out of the twenty-plus thousand walking the Earth. My first was way behind the times; after all I knit it in 2009, a full five years after the pattern was first published. The second was a gift for my friend Nichole, and I made it in my friend Paula's handspun yarn. The third was more recent, and it is this Clapotis that reignited the flame.

Clapotis #2, 2009

Last Fall we brought in Dream in Color Starry, a fingering weight hand-dyed yarn with a subtly sparkle. I looked and looked for the perfect one-skein project to show off this yarn and couldn't find anything to my satisfaction. The colors of this yarn are deep and saturated, and anything with too much pattern going on was going to fight against both the dark colors and the sparkle. I don't know when or how the Clapotis came to mind, but once it did, it was clearly the perfect solution.

There was one problem - it was fingering (the Clapotis is for light worsted), and I didn't have enough yardage. So I did a little reconfiguring and turned that puppy into the perfect scarf. 

Clapotis #3, 2012

This past summer I found myself in need of a "brightly colored scarf" (I sing in a local choir, and this was a dress requirement for our Memorial Day concert). It was going to be hot in the concert venue, and Noro Taiyo Sock had the ideal mix of bright colors and cotton content - it took about 10 seconds for me to decide to make another modified Clapotis. 

Clapotis #4, 2013

I couldn't love it more. 

• Project: Clapotis, by Kate Gilbert from Knitty, Fall 2004
• Yarn: Dream in Color Starry, color Amethyst Ink (upper pic), and Noro Taiyo Sock, color 09 (lower pic)
• Needles: US 5 and US 7, respectively

Re-visiting an old favorite...

Fall has finally arrived here in Oregon. After weeks of temps in the upper 80s to low 90s, the wind blew in cooler air and rain and it is time. 

Time for sipping hot beverages, layering clothes, watching football, but most importantly, time for wool. This can mean different things to different people: spinning, knitting, weaving - or if you're me, all three. (No, not at once, although if I could figure out how...)

Since I have an unprecedented quiet weekend at home, I kicked off my personal celebration of Fall by going through the sweaters in my closet. There were over 35 of them, all hand-knit (OK, one was crocheted). A lot of them were made to be samples in the shop, and since I almost always make my own size, they come home to Chateau Le Keller when their usefulness has expired. I knew that the time was past due to sort out the winners from the losers, the lovelies from the fuglies, and PURGE. 

In the end, about 15 are headed to the Used Sample Sale coming up at the store (stay tuned for more on that!). About 3 went into my oldest's closet (yes, my oldest - at age 10 - is pretty near to being my same size). The rest are pretty evenly split between I-love-them-and-wear-them-all-the-time and I-don't-love-them-nor-wear-them-but-they-have-sentimental-value-and-I-can't-get-rid-of-them. 

And this long preamble is how I arrived at the old favorite...The Rogue Hoody. Do any of you remember this pattern? It was big news back in 2005/06 - pre-Ravelry days. I chose it to be my project for the very first ever Knitting Olympics, created by the Yarn Harlot for the 2006 Winter Olympics. Talk about a throwback: the shop was in its first year of existence and my youngest wasn't even a twinkle in my eye.

This sweater has it all going on - creative cables that give excellent shaping to waist and cuffs, beautifully tailored turned hems, a lovely hood with the perfect fit. I chose Cascade 220 in Cream to keep it classic and simple and durable - and it has held up well (here's my FO post from back in 2006 - cracks me up).  

 

Rogue, re-visited in 2013

Today, I put it on (I put on all of them in turn). I think I need to make this again . . . an updated Rogue, maybe in NatureSpun, or even (mmm) Debbie Bliss' BFL Aran. Don't you all agree? 

 

it's a velvet kind of morning

I have been wanting to knit with Classic Elite's Portland Tweed since bringing it in to the shop almost three years ago. I can't believe it took this long, but I knew it needed to be just the right project. When I saw this in the Winter Knitty, I knew I had "the one".

• Pattern: Velvet Morning by Julie Crawford, from Winter Knitty bis 2011
• Yarn: Classic Elite Portland Tweed, 13 balls Tidal Foam, 1 each Best Teal, Amarinth, & Gull Gray
• Needles: US 7 (4.5mm)
• Mods: top-down sleeves knitted in the round

I really, really loved knitting this. So much so that I am making another one. {gasp!} I never, ever, hardly ever make anything twice. In fact, I've already casted on (see below). The only mod I made was to three needle bind off the shoulders, then pick up the sleeve stitches around the armhole and knit the sleeve from the top-down in the round, using the short-row set-in sleeve method. Why sew if you don't have to, right?

BUT! There's always a but. I do have a problem with the architecture of this piece: the lack of neck opening. When I first realized that the shoulders and back were going to have no neck shaping, I thought it was a mistake. But then I took a closer look at the pictures on the Knitty pattern page and realized this was indeed the intent of the design. So I went with it. See?

I find the result to be quite awkward to wear. I know the design is meant to be a "slouchy" sweater, but without a neck opening you can see how the shoulder seams are forced to hang way back on the shoulders. It's just not for me.

So on Round 2 I am going to add a wee bit 'o neck shaping to the fronts and the back so that the whole piece will sit more squarely at the top of my shoulders. I think the rest of the design still gives off enough of that "so comfy and slouchy you'll wear it every day" vibe. :)

Here's a sneak peek of Round 2:

imperial yarn trunk show happening now!

We are very honored to be hosting the latest and greatest from our farm neighbors to the southeast, Imperial Stock Ranch.    The trunk show features the runway designs from Portland designer Anna Cohen, as well as classic Imperial Yarn house designs. You will find socks, tunics, snuggly bolero jackets, scarves, hats, and more!   For those of you unfamiliar with Imperial Stock Ranch, it is a family owned and operated ranch located on more than 30,000 acres of Oregon’s beautiful high desert. Originally a homestead for pioneers of the western frontier, the ranch has been steadily producing Northwestern products since 1871. Current owners Dan and Jeanne Carver say, "It is on this vast landscape that our stewardship practices — of the land, of the animals and of our family — are cultivated and the strong foundation of our business has been forged. It is also here that we produce grains, hay, grasses, cattle and sheep, allowing us to create the variety of consumer products you are familiar with."    The Imperial Yarns are made from locally native Columbia sheep, which produce Columbia wool. The wool is custom milled without harsh chemicals, leaving it comfortable, soft, and pure. From their Sport weight yarn, Tracie, to the bulky 2-Strand Pencil Roving, there is a yarn for every kind of project. We even carry their Sliver Roving, which is perfect for making the thrums that go in their Retro Thrummed Slippers.    Now through the end of February, when you make in Imperial product purchase we will enter you in our drawing to win the Petal Necklace Kit from Imperial Yarn, recently featured in Vogue Knitting Magazine (pictured at left). Don't miss this extraordinary chance to knit with a piece of the Western Frontier!

quick and dirty

There's nothing better than a little quick and dirty knitting to make you feel like you've accomplished something. I had two such projects fall into my lap last Friday, when the much-anticipated order from Rowan finally arrived!

 

• Pattern: Rowan Kidsilk Creation Scarf by Gemma Atkinson
• Yarn: 1 sk Rowan Kidsilk Creation (I used color #02, Dewberry)(limited edition yarn!)
• Needle: a sharp-pointed US 7-9 (I used an US8 lace-tipped needle)
• Time: 30 minutes.

No joke - I knit this one up in front of customers here at the shop in about a half an hour. Kidsilk Creation is a knitted tube of the long beloved Rowan CrackKidSilk Haze. There's only 11 yards on one ball of Creation - almost all of the knitting as been done for you! All you have to do is poke your needle through one edge of this amazing tube of Haze - just two stitches - and blubber along. It doesn't have to be clean, or even, or anything. It just works. And ruffles itself up into a lather. This scarf is downright frothy. I love it.

(A tip: wind this one up by hand, around a cardboard support like a paper towel tube or a postcard. Keep the yarn-tube flattened as you wind and it will be much easier to knit.)

(Oh - and limited edition means when it's gone, it's gone!)

The second project wasn't quite as quick or dirty, but a delicious cowl in one weekend of knitting and made with just one skein of yarn is pretty darn close.

 

• Pattern: Kidsilk Stripe Cowl, by moi
• Yarn: 1 sk Rowan Kidsilk Haze Stripe (I used color #002, Cool)
• Needles: US 8 (5.0mm) 16" circular

This is another new yarn from Rowan and Kaffe Fassett, the color genius. They took Kidsilk Haze, doubled the size of the skein, and dyed it in amazing, slow-striping colorways. This little cowl is a pattern I whipped up to show off the stripey colors. It's welts are made with all knit stitches (how'd she do that, you wonder!), so it's the ultimate in mindless knitting. The colors contained in each skein are impossible to see from the outside of the ball, so the entertainment comes from seeing which colors pop up next!

can't wait!

Our madelinetosh merino light was re-stocked just in time to choose my colors for this:

 
 
This will be my first mystery KAL!

Here are my colors:

 
(from top to bottom: cherry, tart, & blackcurrant)

I'm wound up and ready to go - can't wait for Monday!

let's update some pics, shall we?

Remember this?

Well, I decided this amazing knit needed some better, updated pictures. And here they are.

 
All project details can be found in the original post.

 
I still love this yarn, and still stand by my claim that this was the most entertaining thing I've ever knit.

aidez, how l love thee...

One fateful Friday in late September, Berroco released one of its Free Patterns via the KnitBits email. That was the day I met Aidez (ravelry link). We had just received our first shipment of Berroco Peruvia Quick, a light and lofty 2-ply bulky peruvian wool. It kind of screamed - KNIT ME! And......many of you know of my weakness for a good red color . . . . entonces, empece mi Aidez Rojo.

• Pattern: Aidez, by Cirilia Rose, free from Berroco
• Yarn: Berroco Peruvia Quick (100% peruvian wool), 9 skeins in 9135, Caliente
• Needles: I got gauge on US 10 (6,0mm)
• Size: 40" finished chest
• Mods: many - see below

I decided right away that since this was a raglan-sleeved design, I would modify it to knit it in one piece.

I casted on for two fronts and back at once and placed a LOT of markers to differentiate between the different motifs until I had a visual on them. When I hit the underarm bind-off areas, I instead placed them on hold to graft to the sleeve underarms later.

After knitting most of the first sleeve, I decided it was too snug for my taste and ripped it back. I changed to have almost the full number of stitches needed at the top of the sleeve down at the cuff, and consequently only worked 3 sets of increases up the length of the sleeve. I knit the first sleeve up from cuff to armhole in the round, then placed underarm bind offs on hold as well, then joined that sleeve to body. Ditto for second sleeve.

With all the pieces joined together, I knit the whole yoke up to neck incorporating the raglan shaping as written. The collar was just a touch trickier. Basically I left all neck and shoulder stitches live, and knit each half of the collar on as I went, attaching it to the live stitches using a ssk/p2tog join at the end of every other row. When each half was the right length to meet at the back neck, I grafted the live collar stitches together.

And then (and this is why I make these changes) IT WAS DONE! No sewing! Ha HAH! Blocked, and worn. To the beach on a stormy weekend - oh Aidez, how I love thee!

assemblage is now assembled

I am back on track - still finishing up those WIPs I committed to finishing after having too many drinks on this girls' weekend. One of those WIPs was my Assemblage cardigan.

• Pattern: Assemblage by Norah Gaughan, from Berroco Norah Gaughan Collection #3.
• Yarn: 7 sk Cascade Eco Alpaca in Natural (100% baby alpaca, 220yds/100g)
• Needles: US 6 (4,0mm)
• Size: 40" finished chest
• Mods: just a few  . . . (more below)

This whole Norah Gaughan booklet is out of this world, and Assemblage was just one of many sweaters I wanted to make from its pages. The stitch pattern on the collar and sleeve cuffs was just the perfect touch of "interesting" in an otherwise all-stockinette-stitch sweater. And when I started it we had just received our first shipment of the Cascade Eco Alpaca, a buttery soft 100% alpaca with amazing yardage and all natural colors - it was just way too easy to make 2 plus 2 add up to 4!

 
That stockinette stitch simplicity that drew me to the pattern is what ultimately did me in. I busted right through the back, and then lost steam about 5 inches into the fronts (I worked both at the same time). I set the project down somewhere around August of last year, and didn't pick it up again until mid-Sept (THIS year).

But fortunately for me, it all went together pretty quickly thanks to a new technique I learned from a Carol Feller pattern for picking up sts in a set-in-sleeve armhole and using short-row shaping to make a sleeve cap and knit the sleeve down in one piece. Now that I have discovered this - - - no more sewing in set-in sleeves for me! Ha ha! 

 
 
The only other mod I made was to change the stitch pattern to the round for the sleeve cuffs (since I was knitting the sleeves in one piece from the top-down), and I found that to be a bit challenging. Once I could "read" the pattern I just worked it visually, rather than following the pattern. I actually found it easier and more intuitive in the round than back-and-forth, like the collar (no surprise there).

 
 
This sweater is SO aboslutely wearable, I just am in complete love. And I had the perfect buttons in my stash, thanks to Erika W. Three little slices of reindeer antler from Canada - perfect for the design and the overall feel of the sweater. (And I'm sorry - I know - same outfit as the last post's pics - what're you gonna do about it???) It's comfy, cozy, stylish, and gosh darn it - I made it!

:)

rosamund re-worked

For almost two years I have been on a hunt for the ultimate sweater project for this yarn. I fell in love with the Natural Charcoal colorway and ordered 6 skeins from the ranch. I even wound them up, sure they would be put to immediate use.

And true to form, I did nothing with them.

Until this summer! While trolling Ravelry for a pattern for some different yarn, I came across this sweater. It was from the Fall 09 Interweave Knits, and I hadn't given the design in the magazine a second glance (for many reasons - more on that below). But on Rav, so many people had knit it up and shared such nice pictures, it won my heart over--- and my Columbia Rosamund was born.

 

• Pattern: Rosamund's Cardigan, by Andrea Pomerantz, from Fall 2009 Interweave Knits (now out of print, but you can download pattern here)
• Yarn: 4 skeins Imperial Stock Ranch Columbia (200+ yds/100g, 100% columbia wool)
• Needles: US 8 (5,0mm)
• Size made: 37-->40.5-->44
• Mods: LOTS!

If you remember the Rosamund's Cardigan in the magazine, it has short-sleeves. That was the major reason I had skipped right over this pattern when I originally saw it. The other reason was that it is styled very poorly in the picture - it looks too tight on the model, and the color of the yarn with the color of her shirt underneath is all very, very blah. So my major modification was to make the sleeves 3/4 length. For the sleeve cuffs, I did a provisional cast on at the beginning of the round and worked 2 repeats of the reversible cable pattern around the cuff, knitting it onto the sleeve as I went, then grafted the end together with the live stitches left from the cast on.

 
 
The other mod I made was in sizing. Knowing my body the way I do (and believe me, it's a STEEP learning curve!!!!), I knew that I needed to combo size the bust and hips. But after casting on at the neck for the size 40.5", I worried that my neckline was going to be gigantic. So I casted on again for the size 37", then worked the raglan increases out to the size 40.5", and then after the waist shaping I worked the hip increases out to the size 44".

(Oh - forgot to mention that I also scrapped putting in the 8 hook&eye's down the front after trying unsuccessfully to sew them in 3 times.)

In hindsight I know now that the 44" is just a tad too big for me, or at the least I should have worked those hip increases in a dart placement rather than all at the side seams. But -

I don't care! I love this sweater, love the assymetrical design, love the 2 big buttons at the top!   

 

I actually crocheted a garment!

Some of you die-hard knitters out there (like me) have never thought about crocheting yourself a sweater. Maybe a hat, something small and finish-able. But never a garment that has to fit when its done, and where the stitches TRULY have to be even to look right.

But I did it!

I got a bee in my bonnet last January to challenge myself, and I felt that my crochet skills were finally approaching garment-worthy. So I started the Spring Shell from Interweave Crochet Spring 2009 (rav link). In my haste I made some terrible beginner mistakes in judgement (the kind I warn my customers about almost daily). First one? I chose a sport-weight gauged project: small hook, fine yarn. Not a terrible problem, just more challenging for a beginner. Second mistake? I chose a nearly black yarn. Now I don't know if this goes away with experience, but crochet is a artform that requires looking. Unlike knitting, which I hardly need to glance, crochet (for me) takes constant vigilance, especially for certain stitch patterns that require entering the stitch in unusual ways. And using a nearly black yarn most definitely complicated that process for me. Let's just say that good light was required, not just a good option.

I got off to a fairly good start, and was even achieving gauge. But true to form I set it down somewhere around mid-Spring when it was about 20% finished and promptly forgot about it. It took almost six months, but I finally picked it up, and found that it was quicker and easier to finish than I had built it up in my mind to be.

And now it's done!

• Pattern: Spring Shell by Simona Merchant-Dest, from Interweave Crochet Spring 2009
• Yarn: Mirasol Nuna in Ebony, 6 skeins
• Hook: Bryson Palmwood size E (my favorite hooks, hands down!)
• Size: 40" finished chest

(In the spirit of being honest, I have to tell you that I made one big huge mistake. On the drop shoulder sleeve cuffs, I attached the yarn and went in the wrong direction for the entire sleeve cuff, resulting in one sleeve being "inside out", so to speak. But damn, I am NOT fixing that!)

olympic resolution

No - I'm not about to make some sort of resolution of olympic-sized proportions. I'm going to tell you about how my 2010 Winter Knitting Olympic project turned out! I've been putting it off for too long due to poor photography, but what the hell...

If you remember, I chose my Knitting Olympics project from the 2009/2010 Winter Vogue Knitting. I started off with a bang, but I lost a lot of steam about 2/3 of the way in...

...I didn't win Gold. Or even Silver or Bronze. But I did finish my project, and I finished it in time to wear it to dinner at the 2010 YMN Smart Biz Conference in Seattle, which was my ultimate goal anyway.

• Pattern: #29, Wrap with Belt by Shiri Mor, from the 2009/2010 Winter VK
• Yarn: 4 skeins Handmaiden Fine Yarns Great Big Sea in Pewter
• Needles: US 7 (4,5mm)
• Time to complete: 4 weeks

Personally, I think Shiri Mor is a design genius. This was my second time knitting one of her designs, and both times were highly entertaining. She has a knack for creating the most interesting combinations of stitch patterns, and often uses the varying gauges of different stitches to achieve shaping that defies the laws of mathematics. The only thing that slowed me down on this one was the 60-some inches of the wrap panel - basically one big scarf.

But it was worth it!

(I didn't talk about the yarn. It's Handmaiden - what do I need to say? It speaks for itself, and it's worth every penny of its high price tag.)

oldies but goodies: one down, many to go

Remember in the last post when I told the story of my "knittervention"? This FO is one of my long-forgotten WIPs from the epic list.

• Pattern: Jada, by Sarah Hutton, from the Lenpur Linen Collection (Rowan)
• Yarn: 9 balls Rowan Lenpur Linen (75% viscose lenpur, 25% linen) in #565, Lagoon
• Needles: size US 6 (4,0mm)
• Time to complete: almost one year

I cast this beauty on right before I left for Scandinavia last year, and packed it up in my suitcase for travel knitting. I diligently worked on it my first week abroad, when I had hours during the day to myself while Jason was attending a conference. We were in a sleepy little town in Northern Sweden (Skelleftea), and the weather was warm and beautiful, so I knit!

But (did you feel the "but" coming?), when we returned, I just plopped the little project bag with my 25% completed shawl into the bottom of my knitting basket and forgot about it. Or more accurately, abandoned it on purpose. The pattern called for SO MANY INCHES of the lace repeat. It was soooo boring. It was also the time when the new fall mags come out and I was so tempted by new and exciting projects.....

So, long story short: after the knittervention I dug this out and finished it up! And it's beautiful! And just in time for summer!

This yarn is such an interesting way to make a linen yarn - instead of wet spun linen that we are used to with yarns like Louet Euroflax, "lenpur" is processed in the same way a viscose yarn is made (like bamboo, etc). The result is a slinky, soft yarn that is still very cool and has great stitch definition. It was great to work with, and when washed the drape and swing of the fabric is perfect for summer. Yay!

More FOs (and more distractions) coming soon!

aww, isn't it cute?

Welcome to Spring! I don't know about you all, but I have been walloped these last couple of weeks with a nasty Spring cold, on top of lovely Spring allergies. Yay! I've been knitting through it all, but I just didn't have the energy to talk about the knitting.

So what have I been working on?  Let's back up a bit.

In March I was lucky enough to get away with my two girlfriends on a knitting weekend to central Oregon. Somehow while we were there, the other two zeroed in on my inordinate amount of WIPs...Works In Progress. So many. So many that we couldn't list them all. So many that I had to refer to Ravelry just to see what I had lurking in my dark corners. This exercise morphed into some kind of "knittervention".

They proposed that in order for me to earn a reward of casting on a new project, I had to finish TWO projects already on the needle. Those two WIPs had to be one larger project (i.e. sweater) and one smaller project (i.e. baby something, hat). And in addition to my casting on reward, they'd buy my a drink. And somehow I accepted this (maybe it was the margaritas agreeing).

So - what I've been doing since early March is tearing through my oldies but goodies. I'll share all the things I've finished up (and YES! I've been finishing them!) in the next few weeks.

But first - this! This doesn't count! This is little cutey is a shop sample - and casting on shop samples doesn't count as casting on for me!

• Pattern: Design H from Sirdar #323, Baby Bamboo booklet (cover design)
• Yarn: Mission Falls Merino 136 Superwash (100% merino; 136yds/50g), 3 balls Mallow, 1 ball each Damson, Crocus and Sprout
• Needles: US 6 (4,0mm)
• Size shown: 6-12 mos
• Sizes available: 0-6mos (6-12mos, 1-2yr, 2-3yr, 3-4yr, 4-5 yr, 6-7yr)

This was such a quick and fun knit! The only thing I would change if I did it again would be to increase on the front edges of the collar to make it angle downward slightly. And this yarn? Loved working with ti. It was my first time using the Merino 136, and it is so amazingly soft.

All those cute little stripes left a lot of leftover yarn - so I worked up a cute little hat pattern to go with! I call it Stripes & Ruffles, and you can download it for free here. It's also offered in the size range of the pattern, so you can make a matching hat for any of the sizes of the cardigan!

spring/summer vogue trunk show is here!

Come on down anytime from today to next Wednesday to see the lovelies from the Spring/Summer 2010 Vogue Knitting on display in the store! Try them on, ooh and aah, and get yourself some summertime projects!

Also - we'll be having a special Trunk Show Knit Night next Wednesday, April 14th from 5-8pm. Join us for relaxing knitting time and one last farewell to the trunk show before we have to send it on to the next store!

 
  

so stinkin' cute!

We have a new yarn!

Bambino Taffy, from be sweet, is just like regular Bambino - except it stripes into five coordinating colors! And even better? The free one-skein baby hat pattern on the ball band!

• Pattern: Sweety Pie Hat by Tanis Gray for be sweet (free on the ball band!)
• Yarn: 1 ball Bambino Taffy (70 organic cotton, 30 bamboo) in Sweet and Sour, #882
• Needles: 4,0mm (US6)

I whipped up this beauty in under 24 hours - very quick, very entertaining! Try it!

how's austria doing in the olympics?

Who cares?!?! Sorry, Austria, I mean no disrespect. But right now I'm really more concerned with my knitting that how many Golds Austria is taking home in Vancouver. I just wanted a snappy title to today's post about THESE FREAKING ADORABLE LEDERHOSEN!

• Pattern: Emmitt's Lederhosen, by bluegirl knits, available for download here
• Yarn: Berroco Suede, 3 balls 3737 Roy Rogers, 1 ball 3734 Mattunuck
• Needles: 4,5mm (US7)
• Size: 6-12mos (available from this size to 4-5 yrs) 

The story of these Lederhosen makes them a must-knit. The designer, Nichole Reese, is married to a first-generation Austrian. As a boy he had the real deal - little leather lederhosen, and by all accounts he lived in them! The originals now reside with the designer and her husband, and his childhood love of the little pants inspired her to re-create them in a knitted version.

These are authentic - right now to front placket, button, and pocket details! I test-knit this particular size for bluegirl knits, and it's just too bad that I don't have a little boy to put them in! But lucky for all of us, we have Mr. Ripley here to model them so well.

Don't you think you need some Lederhosen in your life???
 

wham bam thank you ma'am: the big-ass hoody

When the Winter 09/10 Vogue came out I was pleased with what I saw. I scoffed at a few patterns (namely the superchunky who-could-wear-them monsters from Twinkle), and saw several that I wanted to make. To me, if you can find 2 or more patterns that catch your eye on first perusal, the magazine's a keeper.

Then, I went to TNNA. The lovely Trisha M, editor of Vogue, started pulling the sweaters in the magazine off their rack and and had me try them on - especially the ones I thought I liked least. And guess what? The Big-Ass Hoody, AKA B.A.H., AKA #15 Hooded Cardi Vest, looked adorable. And I knew then on the show floor that I had to knit it when I got home.

There's much pleasure to be found in knitting with superchunky yarn on size 15 needles. (There's also a LOT of hand cramping - but let's ignore that for now and focus on the fun parts.) The work just flies off the needles. When your directions say to "cont until piece measures 15 in" that's only 45 rows!!! Ha! And so, after beginning the B.A.H. last Tuesday evening, wham, bam, THANK YOU MA'AM!, it's finished:

• Pattern: #15 Hooded Cardi Vest by Wenlan Chia, Winter 09/10 Vogue Knitting
• Yarn: Cascade Magnum, #4008 Ruby, 6 skeins
• Size: 60" (yes, I wrote that right and you read it right - SIXTY INCHES AROUND)
• Needles: US 15
• Start to finish? 6 days!

This was easy-peasy to finish, by the way. Cute little pleats at the yokes on front and back, cute little hood. I did hesitate for several minutes over the yoke instructions - if you are planning on making this beware that they look severely asymmetrical...but oddly enough they come out correctly. I had someone message me on Ravelry about this and I told her that I went ahead and knit as written and even though the decrease rate on one side does not match the increase rate on the other side, somehow it works out. Maybe someday I could be lucky enough to meet Ms Chia and she can explain it to my thick head. :)

So! If you're looking for a quick distraction with high satisfaction, knit this monster today! You too can be the proud owner of a B.A.H.!

dusting off an oldie-but-goodie

I hope you all had a swell Thanksgiving weekend - I know I did.

This is the hardest time of year to blog, because there is so much gift-knitting going on that cannot be shared in a public forum because of prying eyes! You will just have to wait until the New Year to see some of the beautiful things coming off my needles right now . . .

. . . But in the meantime, I have a new shop sample and pattern to share with you! Many of you are familiar with my Raglan Bolero, a sample I worked up for the now-discontinued Debbie Bliss Cashmerino Superchunky. For a long time now that pattern has needed to be re-worked to add some important sizing - namely anything bigger than a 36" chest. So when the new Cascade 128 Superwash Merino arrived at the store, this was just the excuse I needed!

• Pattern: Bulky Raglan Bolero, by moi! Available for $5 as a download here.
• Yarn: Cascade 128 Superwash Merino (128 yds/100g, 100% merino), 2 skeins (pictured in #893, Ruby)
• Needles: US 10 1/2 (6,5mm)
• Gauge: 14 sts = 4" 

 So - this new and improved pattern has four sizes (32", 35", 39", 42") and takes just 2 to 3 skeins of the Cascade 128 Superwash Merino. It is so quick to knit on size 10 1/2 needles - it just flies.

This bulky merino from Cascade, new this Fall, has me more excited than most recent arrivals to the market, simply because of its utter softness and its washability. I have repeatedly pulled it for project after project since its arrival a month ago. And because it is slightly bulky, projects knit with this yarn go so quickly! It is my new go-to baby yarn. And you can take it from me: this yarn is SOFT. Truly, truly soft. AND: my new sample bolero was washed in the washer - so I can attest to this yarn's ability to be washed and dried in the machine! And with such a great palette of colors - including heathers - you can knit one for each holiday outfit this season - fantastico!

Don't despair - the previous pattern is still available, but it has been renamed "Superchunky Raglan Bolero" due to its gauge of 2.75 sts =1". You can download it as well! Enjoy!

#27

I have a new sweater!

Most of you probably remember my post about my dear friend, Nichole, and the excitement surrounding her first pattern in Vogue Knitting: #27, Fair Isle Collared Jacket. Well, I have just finished my very own #27!

• Pattern: #27, Fair Isle Collared Jacket by Nichole Reese from Vogue Knitting, Fall 2009
• Yarn: Debbie Bliss Donegal Luxury Tweed Chunky, 4 skeins 01, Charcoal; Debbie Bliss Donegal Luxury Tweed Aran, 2 skeins each #15 charcoal and #16, maroon, and 1 skein each #07 natural, #19 deep violet, and #21 fuschia
• Needles: US 10 1/2 and US 8 from my Click set
• Size: 36" finished chest
• Mods: longer sleeves - read below
• Note: Don't forget to check VK's errata for this - they WAY overstated the yarn requirements.

First up: let's talk sleeve modifications. Nichole's version is short-sleeved and super cute. I, however, didn't want my sleeves to end at the widest part of my upper arm, so I brainstormed ways to elongate the sleeves but keep the knitting interesting. I decided to make a 3/4 length sleeve, and add the same fair isle motif from the collar around the cuff.

The change was an easy one to make since this is a top-down pattern (thank god for top-down patterns, right???). I just returned my held sleeve sts to the needles and kept knitting, putting in 2 decrease rounds as I went to bring them in slightly. Just past my elbow I put in the contrast color edging from the bottom of the sweater, increased sts and change to the size 8 needles, worked the fair isle chart (center bolded repeat only), then decreased back to the bulky sleeve stitch count and size 10 1/2 needles and worked the contrast edging once more. Voila!

I love everything about this sweater. The yarn is delicious and worth every penny. The pattern is great and the perfect mix of straightforward, fast, easy knitting and colorwork entertainment. The swingy shape is dead-on for fitting my big 'ole hips but staying flattering around my waist and chest. This whole project was a big fat WIIIINNNER in my book!

 

benched.

Things are quiet here at the KAH blog because about 6 weeks ago my knitting came screeching to a halt. Some of you may remember waaaaay back in 2006 when I first mentioned I might have carpal tunnel syndrom in my hands? While it has come and gone most of the time since then, mainly flaring up when I go through a period of intense knitting, it came on strong during the month of September.

I could tell the problem was getting worse - both arms/hands completely asleep all night long, going to sleep while I was knitting, etc - but I was in heavy denial. It's Fall! The shop is SO busy! There are samples to be made! Computer work at the store is never-ending! How on EARTH could I be expected to STOP knitting?

But stop I did, after one grueling 24 hour period of a lot of twining. I finished a twined hat (I'll talk about it below) and then promptly began the earflap version out of the orgasmic Rowan Lima. (Yeah, I went there. And yeah, Lima is that good.) I was knitting in the shop and in pain, and stopping frequently to rub my arms, and Nichole looked at me and said, You have to stop. Now. Put down the needles.   

So I did. For almost four long, long, weeks.

It seems so obvious in retrospect, both the clear need to stop knitting and rest my hands, and why I was in such denial about needing to stop. Knitting is my sanity. 100%. I'm sure you understand. When I'm supervising the medium level of constant chaos that goes on in my house at any given moment, it's easy to not let it get to me because I can knit. I'm in my happy place. When we have to watch Hannah Montana or Suite Life on Deck on the living room TV because Campbell wants some veg time, I can knit through it to tune it out. And without the knitting - all of that stuff makes mommy kind of grouchy.

It's not just the lack of knitting, either. I also missed that constant hum in the background of my brain that I never knew was there. It's that thread of thought that is ALWAYS thinking about the project I am on, planning the next project, thinking about a new sample, going over a technique to make it better, etc etc. There is a constant knitting imagination at work, and when the knitting gets turned off solidly (not even a stitch, people) for that long, it's like everything goes quiet, in a very dull and not-good way.

Rest seemed to work, for now, and I've seen a nuerologist who says surgery is probably in my future when I finally get to the point that I can no longer bear/afford to do the resting. I went back to knitting after Terri Shea blew through the Gorge and shattered my world with her Selbu mittens and gloves, which I'll post more about in the future. I'll do some alternative things in the meantime to help manage it.

But can I tell you how good it feels to knit again? Like coming home.

OK - on to the twining that did me in.

• Pattern: Basic Twined Hat by Lisa Ellis (available in .pdf format)
• Yarn: 1 ball Crystal Palace Taos, color 04, Mirage
• Needles: US 9 (5,5mm)

Despite the pain this caused, I love twining! The effect achieved is so fun, so entertaining (especially the twined ribbing!). I started this little guy a year ago when I first taught the Twined Hat class, and for no reason in particular didn't finish it until now.

The method of twining creates a thicker, wind-resistant fabric that is excellent for outdoor use in the winter - great ski wear! And for this basic version of the hat, you can get all sizes out of only 1 ball of Taos. I was skeptical as I approached the top of the hat and my ball was looking so teeny, but it's true! If you haven't tried twining yet, I highly recommend it!  

 

 

beautiful new sample

We have a gorgeous new sample here in the shop, just in time for our last week of savings with October's Yarn of the Month!

• Pattern: coco knits Katarina
• Size: Small (33-36") (available up to size 46")
• Yarn: Nashua Handknits Creative Focus Worsted (75 wool/25 alpaca, 215yds/100g) 5 balls in Lavender Heather #0712
• Needles: US 7

 My amazing sample knitter, Maribel, finished this just in the nick of time! Creative Focus Worsted has one more week as the yarn-of-the-month, plenty of time for people to grab some great savings. Regularly $8.90 a ball, it's currently on sale for $7.20 - for 215 yards!

The wide garter stitch edgings around the neck and fronts create an easy-to-wear look for a wide range of sizes. You can close it up tightly by overlapping the fronts, or let it hang open casually for a drapier style.

The cuffs widen at the bottom in a repeat of the garter motif of the shawl collar.

(We have ours closed with an Annie Adams Shawl Stick in Twig)

A little spot of Spring on a dreary rainy day!

the trunk show that almost wasn't

WHEW! That's the sound of me (and Soho Publishing) breathing a huge sigh of relief!

On Wednesday I was supposed to receive a trunk show from Soho (publishers of Vogue Knitting) that included all of the even-numbered garments from the Fall 2009 Vogue Knitting.

I received a box. That was leaking soil. (Yes, soil.)

I opened the box (in front of my FedEx guy, thank goodness). Inside was this:

No sweaters. No paperwork. Nothing even resembling a passing whif of knitwear. Just seedlings - lots and lots of seedlings. Four flats worth of 1cm(square) cells of Primrose seedlings. And lots and lots of dirt. (Can you imagine now how I might have started to feel kind of sick?)

Phone calls were made, weird, bizarre circumstances were imagined, the worse was expected. The worse being, of course, that all the sweaters/pieces (HALF THE ISSUE!) had been stolen somehow during its overnight trip from the Soho offices in NY to my door in OR.

And wouldn't you know it? In the course of 24 hours FedEx tracked down the lost and lonesome and boxless sweaters, and this morning, merely 48 hours later, they arrived.

WHEW!

And now we are enjoying these lovely pieces through next Tuesday (more literally, in the above picture I am enjoying #30, Loose Fitting Cardigan). Stop on by and say Hello, and try on a sweater or two. While the trunk show is here receive 10% of your purchase of the supplies to knit a project in the Fall Vogue or Holiday Knit Simple.

After all, they went through quite a lot to come see us!

new shop sample

This is a new sample in the shop to spotlight a oft-overlooked but fantastic yarn: Nashua Natural Focus Ecologie Wool. This thick-n-thin yarn is all naturally dyed, and is named for its dyes with shades such as Indigo, Brazil Wood, and Acacia. The yarn has a subtle variegation, making for great-looking depth and texture in plainly knit fabric.

 

• Pattern: Victory Vest, by Natalie Wilson of iknitiative
• Needles: 24" circular size US9 (5,5mm) and 16" circular size US8 (5,0mm)
• Yarn: Nashua Natural Focus Ecologie Wool (100% naturally dyed wool, 50g, 87yd), 8 balls Curcuma 

• Size: 36" finished chest (I'm a 37" and wearing it not closed in the front, as intended)

This was a quick knit, in mostly garter stitch. The construction is way cool - two halves with mitered corners in front and back, sewn together up the center back. There are small sections of stockinette stitch around each sleeve, which is a nice touch.

The mitered lines meet in the back in a "V" (hence the name of the pattern), which is very flattering (my pictures, with glaring flash, don't show this very well). Overall a quick and satisfying knit - let's hope you all think so, too!

flip that switch!

It's taken me years to figure this out, but I have a switch in my brain. You know, like a light switch. Somewhere around mid-Summer, with no correlation to weather, the switch gets flipped. And once it's flipped, there's no turning back. I am fully in FALL SWEATER KNITTING MODE.

Last year it happened after the Fall Vogue came out in early August. I saw the Cabled Hoody and had to cast on right away. So, a couple of Thursday ago, my switch flipped for 2009. I honestly can't tell you what did it. It's been hot, so it wasn't some onset of cooler weather. And the Fall magazines hadn't come out yet, so it wasn't a batch of new inspiration. But who cares why! Let's look at WHAT:

First sweater casted on: my Get Down Cable Down.

• Pattern: Cable-Down Raglan by Stefanie Japel, from Interweave Knits Spring 2007, or available from Interweave as a pdf download
• Yarn: Cascade Venezia Worsted (220 yds/100g, 70 merino/30 silk), 5 skeins in Charcoal, #131
• Needles: US6 (4,0mm)
• Size: 38"

This was so much fun to knit that I cruised through it in a week and a half. Loved the cables, loved the way Stefanie placed the waist cables just right to achieve waist shaping without having to actually knit shaping. I love the way the center panel of cables diminishes my Ladies (OK - not exactly in profile view - but definitely in head-on view!) and draws a vertical line. Lots of love here, folks! (BUT - don't miss the errata for this pattern. And personally, the 2nd error listed is still not fixed to my satisfaction.)

Of the three sweaters that caught my fancy when the switch flipped, this is the only one I've finished so far. The second sweater cast on is Diminished, AKA the Diminished Rib Cardigan, by Andrea Pomerantz from Interweave Spring 2009. I am knitting this in some BEAUTIFUL handspun merino by Paula Webb, one of my local customers who also sells her handspun in the shop. I'm not quite ready to put the sleeves on hold with this one.

The third sweater has been swatched, but not started. It is Assemblage, by Norah Gaughan from Norah Gaughan Vol 3. I swatched (successfully!) in Cascade Eco Alpaca, and I can't tear myself away from knitting it in the same cream color that it's pictured in the booklet. Oh well. Worse things have happened!

"must.make.this" is now "must've.made.this"

So - LONG overdue FO post here. Remember this?

Well, I knit it up pretty darn quickly. But I wasn't crazy about how it looked on me (which has nothing to do with the knit itself and everything to do with my own self-image), and it took me a while to warm up to some photos of me in the sweater. Photo credits here go to my 6-year-old Campbell.

• Pattern: Botanica Medallion by Shiri Mor, from Vogue Knitting Spring/Summer 09
• Yarn: 7 skeins Blue Sky Alpacas Skinny Dyed Organic Cotton, color Mallard #308
• Size: M/L
• Needles: US6 (4,0mm) and US7 (4,5mm)

This yarn? Delicious! I've had it in the store for a year and hadn't used it before now. It feels fairly "regular" in the skein, but knitting with it one can feel its absolutely squishiness. Mmm. Love it.

And I'm not exaggerating to say that this was the most compelling thing I've knit in years. The center medallion is so captivating that I knit it in about an hour (not surprising, considering it only uses 1 skein out of 7 required). And Shiri's real genius lies in the outer band - her use of multi-row-gauged stitch patterns to acheive the circular shape - amazing. For such a stunning finished object, the pattern itself is really very accessible to the average, intermediate knitter. Genius.

 

Unfortunately, I struggle with the area of my upper arms' backside that feels so exposed when I'm in this cardigan/bolero/wrap/shawl. What I really need to try is a long-sleeved tissue T...maybe this Fall. For now, I'll settle with letting the knit speak for itself on my dress forms in the shop.

I would definitely encourage anyone with a little bit of knitting under their belt to give this a shot - for the entertainment if nothing else!