Sock Yarn One-Skein Wonders: 101 fun knits, including my Clover Honey Shawlette!

Cover Courtesy and (c) Storey Publishing

Sock Yarn One-Skien Wonders: 101 Patterns That Go Way Beyond Socks!, edited by Judith Durant--the latest edition in the popular One-Skein Wonders series--is now available (review coming soon!).

I have to tell you, even if I didn't have a pattern in this book, I'd have been happily anticipating its release. I do, however, have a pattern in this latest knitter's goodie bag: the Clover Honey Shawlette...

Clover Honey Shawlette in Shalimar Yarns' Zoe Sock (color: Snow Pea)

When I designed the prototype for the Clover Honey Shawlette, back in October 2008, "shawlette fever" hadn't yet begun to spread. Since then, however, they've become wildly popular. (Please don't misunderstand...I am not suggesting that I had anything to do with this.)

In my opinion, the appeal of these little wraps is well-founded: They're versatile, quick to knit, and most use only a skein or so of fingering-weight yarn. Plus, their smaller size makes them less "granny-ish," a concern of many women, especially those of un certain age ;)

A close-up of the "prototype" shawlette in Zoe Sock (color: Dirty Sand)

The beads are applied when you bind-off, and add a little sparkle that really makes the shawl stand out. Also, their weight (the beads I used were Czech glass) -- along with the Faroese shaping -- helps keep the shawl on your shoulders. Adding the beads is easy, easy, easy! For the visual learners among us, I wrote a tutorial, illustrated with photos by Kristi Johnson, dye-genius behind Shalimar Yarns. You can find the tutorial here.

Sure, you're going to rush out and buy the book. But until then, here are some particulars, so you can get ready to knit up a Clover Honey Shawlette of your own:

• Size: 46 in. wide at top edge; 16 in. long from top (at neck) to bottom of lace panel
• Yarn: One skein Shalimar Yarns' Zoe Sock (100% Superwash Merino Wool, 100g/450yd)
• Needles: US #5/3.75mm 32-in circular needles
  

The Book
Sock Yarn One-Skein Wonders: 101 Patterns that go way beyond socks!
Judith Durant, editor
Published by Storey Publishing.

Preserve our small businesses: Please purchase this book at your local yarn store or independent bookseller!

PS> You may also purchase the Clover Honey Shawlette pattern here :)

Sock Yarn One-Skein Wonders: 101 fun knits, including my Clover Honey Shawlette!

Lace Knitting Tutorial

Kristi (from Shalimar Yarns) and I put together a lace tutorial for her blog this week. She snapped some awesome pictures, and I helped craft some clear (we hope!) instructions for basic lace knitting.

Here's a sample (using Zoe Sock in Blue Raspberry):

K2tog tbl (an alternative to SSK): This is a left-leaning decrease. Insert your right needle tip into the first two stitches on the left needle from right to left (back to front)...

... and knit them together.

To read the rest of the Lace Tutorial, just head on over to Shalimar Yarns' blog. Enjoy!

Lace Knitting Tutorial

What's your pleasure? - Studying the Top 10 knitting patterns

Classic Elite Yarns Alpaca Sox

Mulling over new design ideas, I've lately found myself thinking about existing knitting patterns: Socks, mittens & gloves, scarves & shawls, sweaters, hats... I'm also wondering what knitters (and crocheters) want more of, and what gives them that "been there, done that" feeling.

These days, one can hardly think about knitting patterns without heading straight for Ravelry. After all, it's ubiquitous, a gathering place for patterns new and old. And its pattern database is so wonderfully "searchable".

So I searched.

Harrisville Designs' New England Shetland

I searched all knitting patterns in Ravelry's database (Aug. 20, 2009), filtering out those rated less than four stars (out of five). The results? Telling, though not surprising. The following patterns comprise the Top 10:

1. Fetching (fingerless gloves by Cheryl Niamath)
2. Monkey (socks by Cookie A.)
3. Baby Surprise Jacket (by Elizabeth Zimmermann, available from Schoolhouse Press)
4. Calorimetry (headband/ear warmer by Kathryn Schoendorf)
5. Clapotis (shawl/scarf by Kate Gilbert)
6. February Lady Sweater (by Pamela Wynne, based on Elizabeth Zimmermann’s classic “Baby Sweater on Two Needles,” from Knitter’s Almanac)
7. Saartje's Bootees (baby bootees by Saartje de Bruijn)
8. Noro Striped Scarf (not designed by Jared Flood; he claims only to have written up how he made his lovely 1 x 1 ribbed scarf)
9. Ballband Dishcloth (from ball bands on Pigsah Yarn & Dyeing Co.'s "Peaches & Creme" yarn)
10. Swallowtail Shawl (links to page with PDF download of this beautiful design by Evelyn Clark)

Surprised? I'll admit I was, a bit...

Zephyr Laceweight Wool-Silk

I guess I was expecting a more homogenous result, one showing mostly socks and fingerless gloves, for example. Perhaps with a few lacy knits and sweaters mixed in. Mais, non! What a lovely surprise!

For the Top 10 list includes an intriguing blend of patterns for adults and babies, laces and solids, new and old designs. Most are relatively simple, straightforward knits, proving that a design doesn't have to be complicated to be chic.

And I'm thrilled to see that these are primarily classic designs -- devoid of tricks and fads -- that will last a lifetime (with good care and a wise yarn choice, of course). By classic, I don't mean to exclude the newer designs, like Clapotis, Monkey, or Fetching. Rather, these are new interpretations of generations-old patterns, garments worn by our ancestors to stay warm in cold, drafty houses.

These new interpretations, though, were created with a nod to history -- useful, yet romantic, fingerless gloves, and a scarf inspired by those famously flaunted by Parisian women, for example.

Peach Blossom Scarf ... on a non-Parisian woman.

Luxury must be comfortable, otherwise it is not luxury. -- Coco Chanel

Where is all of this leading? Well, I'm not entirely sure. For me, it's reassuring to see proof that classic designs are ever in vogue, as they're what I enjoy wearing and designing. How this information will affect my upcoming creations, well, we'll have to see...

But I want to know: How about you?
What do you enjoy knitting, wearing, giving, and receiving as gifts?
What turns your head when you see someone wearing a hand-knit on the street?
What would you like more of in knitting patterns?
What designs/techniques are you tired of?

Something to think about... Feel free to PM me on Ravelry or just leave a comment here with your answers. Because while I know how I feel -- I'd love to know more about you!

What's your pleasure? - Studying the Top 10 knitting patterns

Destash: Let the yarn sale begin!

Blue Moon Fiber Arts' Socks That Rock medium weight in Gingerbread Dude

Ever since I began designing, my stash has been feeling neglected. As has my, um, bank account...

A firm believer in palliative care, and after careful consideration, I decided to alleviate further yarn-suffering while funding my ongoing design ideas. How, you may ask, do I plan to do this?

Well...I’m having a stash sale!

You think this is a lot? Well, guess what: It's a two-year-old photo!

Are you on Ravelry? If so, here's a link to my destash page. For the "non-Ravelers" among us, here's a list of yarns and prices:

• Blue Moon Fiber Arts Socks That Rock Lightweight in Blarney Stone: $18 SOLD
  
• Blue Moon Fiber Arts Socks That Rock Medium-weight in Gingerbread Dude: $19
  
• Claudia Hand Painted Fingering Weight in Pink Dot: $18 for 2 sks
  
• Cherry Tree Hill Supersock Select in Moody Blues: $19
• Classic Elite Alpaca Sox in color 1856 (pink, green, blue): $18
• Hand Jive Knits Nature’s Palette Fingering Weight in Lupine: $18 for 2 skeins
• Margaret Stove Artisan NZ Merino Lace (blues and greens, like a tropical sea) $15
• ONline Supersocke 100 City Color 80: $10
• Cascade Fixation (light blue): 2 balls (enough for a pair of socks) for $10
• The Wool Peddler Silk Solids and Hand Picked Hues in "Dark" (very soft, in deep burgundy, teal, etc.): 2 skeins for $20
• Debbie Bliss Cathay in pink: 1 skein, $5
• Karabella Yarns Kiko in pink/brown/cream colorway: $6
• Brown Sheep Lamb's Pride Worsted (1 in gray, 1 in black): $5 each
• Lorna’s Laces Lion & Lamb in Irving Park: $20 ea OR 4 skeins for $72 (that's enough for a Clapotis!) SOLD

Margaret Stove Artisan NZ Merino Lace

I’m willing to ship to addresses outside the USA (we can work out the postage). And you can pay via PayPal, which is very secure.

Please drop me a line at KnitSix@gmail.com or PM me on Ravelry (I'm KnitSix) if you see something you'd like to have in your own stash. Thank you!

Hannah

Destash: Let the yarn sale begin!

Rainy Saturday = Playtime Show-and-Tell

Blurry photos courtesy of Charley, who finds playing with the camera strap good fun

Today I got up, turned on my local NPR station, and played around with a couple of projects totally unrelated to my "work knitting" (if you can call knitting work...well, designing - with all its math - isn't exactly knitting, but you know what I mean, right?). Anyway, I hung out in the studio, crocheting and hand-sewing, throughout the Saturday lineup: Car Talk, Wait Wait Don't Tell Me, This American Life, Studio 360, and The Splendid Table.

This is what I have to show for it:
My stash of Repro-Depot fabric has been calling my name, siren-like, for the past few weeks. So in the midst of beginning a crocheted scarf (which I'll talk about in a minute), I decided to make myself a new project bag. I love making project bags. You can use fun material and be as creative as you like, and after just an hour or two of stitching (if you, like me, lack a sewing machine), you have a fun new toy that you can actually use!

For this one, I pulled out some turquoise embroidery floss to highlight the top (and hide my hem), some blue and gold lampwork beads, and a couple of remnants of burgundy ribbon. (The latter was cut off a 9 West tank top I bought two years ago. You know the ones: those annoying ribbons that are supposed to keep the top on the hanger, but hang from your armpit or slip out the back of your shoulder if you don't cut them off...)

I like the result a lot. But I'll probably end up changing the ribbon. Time will tell.

Now for the crocheted scarf:

This is a project I'm working on as part of the Shalimar Yarns Spring Knit- (or Crochet-) Along* (KAL). The pattern is: Echarpe Pointes Violettes/Violet Points Scarf, by Annette Petavy, one of my all-time favorite designers (if you go to her site, please do cliquez sur les images to see her lovely designs).

The yarn is (of course) Shalimar Yarns Zoe Sock, in the delicious Lychee colorway... Love it!!! (The yarn or the color, you ask. Yes, I reply.)

This is only Row 3 of a 60+ inch scarf, and because it's lace, it will be blocked (wet, stretched, and dried). So use your imagination -- flowing, fully-blossomed lace in this rich colorway, made from ultra-soft Merino fingering-weight yarn. Mmmmm....The KAL goal is to finish by June 15th, though, so I'd better sign off and get back to my hook and yarn!

Hope you all have a wonderful weekend, with at least a little bit of time to play :-)

* Here's a link to Shalimar's Ravelry group, where you can join the KAL.

PS. Just as an FYI: Our Internet issues continue, so I am unable to be online as regularly as I'd like. Thanks for bearing with me!

Rainy Saturday = Playtime Show-and-Tell

Vienna: A Sweet Little Shrug

(Modeled, with some trepidation, by my friend Kristi. Isn't she pretty?)

Allow me to introduce you to Vienna, a simple-but-sweet little shrug to ward off the chill of a spring evening or a summertime movie theater.

First of all -- three important facts you'll want to know about this pattern:

Vienna is...
1) One. Quick. Knit.
2) Available in a full array of sizes
3) Flattering on everybody and every body

Want to know more about the sizing? Well, Kristi would usually knit a Medium for herself. But in these photos she's wearing the size-Small sample I knitted up for display at Eleganza Yarns.

A bit of ease might be more comfortable. I know I, for one, would also appreciate just a little more coverage in front, since I'm, well, more ample than the lovely Kristi. One day soon, I'll knit one for myself in a different colorway. So if you keep coming back, you'll get to see what Vienna looks like on another Real Person, in a larger size.

On the other hand, you may prefer a snug fit. Well, you need only look at these photos to see how good Vienna looks in a more, um, body-conscious size. The lace and ribbing is quite stretchy, and the ultra-soft, washable wool bounces right back.

Beyond the stretch factor, I designed Vienna so that it'd be easy to customize. And easy to wear. Truly, at the risk of sounding conceited, I LOVE this shrug!

In fact, this might be the only sweater you need this spring and summer -- it goes from office to picnic with ease. But be warned: Once you look at the Shalimar Yarns colorways, you may want to knit one in every shade!

Here are the specs:
Needles: US #8 & #10
Yarn: 2 to 4 skeins Shalimar Yarns' Honey Worsted (100% superwash Merino wool; shown here in Damson)
Notions: The usual suspects (e.g., scissors, yarn needle, stitch markers...)

For more information, or to order Vienna check out Shalimar Yarns on the Web, or e-mail ShalimarYarns@aol.com

Vienna: A Sweet Little Shrug

Villette: A lacy new sock pattern for spring (and a great novel, too)!

Permit me to introduce Villette, my latest sock pattern, now available as a Shalimar Yarns exclusive. Created especially for the Maryland Sheep & Wool Festival, Villette features a ribbed cuff that flows into a gorgeous rippling lace, reminiscent of the flowing lines so popular during the Belle Epoque.

In my opinion, a special sock deserves a special heel. In this case, the lace melts into a delicately braided pattern framed with garter stitch, which mimics the ridges in the leg pattern...
A simple Dutch heel is easy to turn and creates a slim line along the ankle and foot. From there, the knitter returns to the lace pattern--centered along the instep and set off with purl and twisted stitches--down to a traditional wedge toe with two finishing options.

Shamelessly, I must admit that I LOVE this sock! It speaks to me in the language of a bygone era, one which I often wish I could have experienced--as a Vanderbilt or Astor, of course ;-)

The name I borrowed from the title of the lovely, melancholy Charlotte Brontë novel, in which an independent young woman beset by grief and financial woes begins anew in the French town of Villette.

An aside: If you are unfamiliar with Bronte's work (beyond Jane Eyre, of course), please do yourself a favor and pick up Villette. If you love English Lit, you'll may find, as I did, that it's a page-turner. Honestly--it kept me up late at night, wanting to know what would happen next!

The specs

• Height: 9 inches from floor to cuff
• Circumference: Approx. 8.5 – 9.0 inches around foot (lace pattern is quite stretchy) Gauge: 8 sts x 10 rnds = 1” in stockinette stitch
• Needles: US #1 / 2.5 mm 32” circular needles (or DPNs or any other method you prefer)
• Yarn: Shalimar Yarns Zoe Sock (100% Superwash Merino Wool; 100g / 450 yds); one skein in “Passion Fruit”
  

This is a Shalimar Yarns pattern. Which means all you need to do to order it is to contact Kristi (yarn-dyer extraordinaire) at Kristi@EleganzaYarns.com or on Ravelry, where her user name is KnitorDie.

In other news
Another Maryland Sheep & Wool Festival has come and gone. Saturday dawned rainy and gray, but by 11 a.m. or so the skies had cleared. Sunday, on the other hand, was truly dark and wet.

But reports were positive, and a good time was had by all--especially my husband, who ate lamb while I wandered through the barns, finding some great bargains among the smaller yarn dyers (like Shalimar and Three Irish Girls, to name two favorites), fiber farmers, and wool vendors.

Despite the fact that their spinning fiber and yarn is often breathtakingly beautiful, many of these so-called "mom-and-pop businesses" and small start-ups don't have Web presences and don't offer their wares in "real stores." Discovering these treasures are, to me, what this is what fiber festivals are all about.

After all, I can always order Cascade, Blue Moon Fiber Arts, and Interweave Press books online right?


PS. We've been experiencing some problems with our Internet connectivity, so my posts may be a bit sporadic for a few more weeks. Thanks for bearing with me!

Villette: A lacy new sock pattern for spring (and a great novel, too)!

Indigo Lace Ribbons: UFO #1

Oh, beautiful Lace Ribbons, flowing like a summer stream over my needles! Yes, the very same needles that I bought especially for you just a few days after I casted on. All this love, and yet you're not flourishing. "How can this be?" I ask myself...

Too many projects, says my critical mind.

I'm spending so much time designing my own patterns that I don't have time to knit other items, says my rationalizing mind.

Oh, I'm too tired to focus on a lace chart, and way too tired to memorize this 12-row repeat, says my woe-is-me mind.

The truth? All of the above, I guess.

But this isn't just an ordinary FO to me. It's a project I really, really want to finish so I can wear it. The Malabrigo Lace yarn is soft as a kiss, shimmering with tones of azure, amethyst, and indigo. And it's not a boring knit, by any stretch of the imagination--it's even kinda fun. Just slow going, unless I'm feeling particularly sharp.

In fact, I see a finished "Lace Ribbons" scarf in my not-so-distant future...Maybe by October? It would make wonderful vacation knitting, and we're planning a week away in September. So, in the end, this little beauty is probably my "FO Most Likely To Be Finished" (FO-MLTBF). Someday, it will be blocked and ready to wear.

And when that day comes, you, my friends, will be the first to know.

Indigo Lace Ribbons: UFO #1

Destressed, Distressed Neck Warmer: New Knitting Pattern

Now available for download on Ravelry!

This is a simple lacy little cowl that you can pull over your head when there's a chill in the air. And the lovely colors available in laceweight yarns these days means everyone can find a flattering hue! I love this neck warmer/smoke ring/scarf/wimple/what-have-you: It's nostalgic and sweet, yet it imparts an air of intrigue and mystery...

I hope you like it, too!



DESTRESSED, DISTRESSED NECK WARMER
Difficulty level: Easy

Finished measurements: Approx. 17 inches long; 35 inches around.

Yarn: One skein Rowan Kidsilk Haze (70% mohair/30% silk, 229 yds/25g)

Needles: One set 24” US#8 and one set 24” US#10 circular needles

Notions: Yarn/tapestry needle

Gauge: 24 sts x 30 rows = 4 inches (Gauge is not crucial for this project.)

COST: $5.00

You can use PayPal (my account: KnitSix@gmail.com) or send me a check. Once your payment's complete, I'll send you a PDF file. If you don't have means to print the pattern, I will be happy to mail you a paper copy. Thank you!

Destressed, Distressed Neck Warmer: New Knitting Pattern