Blog Tour With Donna Druchunas

We’re going to be part of a blog tour! Donna Druchunas, in promoting her newest book, Ethnic Knitting, Exploration has agreed to stop by on April 23rd. So, in honor of this event, I cast on for yet another project. Don’t laugh, I don’t need a reason, but really there was one!

At first, thinking of how much fun knitting with Lopi is, Iceland seemed the reasonable choice. Then I remembered how much I like cables so Ireland it was. But in the end.. Lithuania won out. So, one of the designs from this book in a Lithuanian pattern will be for one of my twin granddaughter’s birthday presents this year. The sweater, a cardigan, will be in a gorgeous heathery purple (the swatch above is not a true color) with a white pattern. Haven’t picked out the stitch pattern yet, maybe birds, maybe berries, maybe an elk, who knows, not there yet. I do know I have to make two of them though. The swatch above was knit in a simple k2 check pattern (k2 purple, k2 white…) just to get gauge with two colors, which when I knit with 2 colors is different than just knittng with just one color. The solid color purple on the bottom is with size 8 needles, as is the first of the checkered sections. The second checkered section I went up to a size 9 and the gauge is a lot closer to the solid, so 8’s and 9’s is what it will be. Measurements were taken, which when dealing with a pre-teen girl need to be subversive. When she was younger I could measure her and tell her I was making curtains and she’d belive me. Now, not so much.

Stay tuned for more of this fun sweater!

Looking for more knitting patterns for knitted Cardigans? Check out these Knitting patterns we found on Etsy.

Specific to knitters, you can join our Knitting Patterns Only group to get, well, knitting patterns, ask questions and gain inspiration for what to knit next.

Blankets are a great blank slate project that you can change up in a million different ways. From color to stitch pattern to size, the possibilities are almost endless.

Jared Flood, the designer behind Brooklyn Tweed, was inspired by a log cabin quilt his mother made in 1995 to re-create that design in knitting, which led to more blankets and ultimate Brooklyn Tweed’s Knit and Crochet Blankets, which includes 25 patterns from an array of designers using different skills and techniques to make cozy, pretty blankets.

The patterns are divided into three aesthetic themes: traditions, minimalism and colorplay. The patterns are rated on a scale of one to five, with one being the easiest, and there aren’t any pieces rated five. Two blankets are rated one, 14 are two, eight are three and one is four.

In addition, three of the 25 patterns are crocheted, but they either use single crochet or granny stitch, so they are pretty easy even if you don’t do a lot of crochet. You can see all the patterns on Ravelry.

Some of my favorites include Rattan by Rastus Hsu, a chunky blanket worked in knits and purls with simple crossing stitches to make a raised woven look; Homewood by Seth Richardson, covers in dramatic, loopy cables; Ainur Berkimbayeva’s Tessellate, one of the beginner projects that doesn’t really look beginner but is totally worked in knit and purl stitches; Warp + Weft by Aist? Butkevi?ien?, which is mostly knits and purls but makes a fun woven look fabric that blew my mind a little bit; and the same designer’s Canyonland, a multicolored blanket with wavy stripes.

The patterns tell you how to resize them for different dimensions and include information on pattern repeats where it is possible to make a totally custom size.

Many different techniques are included here such as cables, lace, shadow knitting, intarsia and other colorwork techniques, as well as modular knitting and lots of sewing pieces together. The patterns are all presented with charts, but there are line by line written instructions available on the Brooklyn Tweed website if you need them.

The book ends with a deep dive into log cabin knitting, telling the story of the quilt Jared’s mom made and how he made it in knitting, as well as the multitude of variations you can make if you want your own log cabin style design.

The back of the book includes a little written information about some of the special techniques needed, but there are no photos.

This is a lovely book full of inspiration for knitting and crochet blankets for any skill level. If you like to make blankets as gifts or aspire to have a handmade blanket in every room of the house, these designs would be a great place to start.

About the book: 192 pages, paperback, 25 patterns. Published 2024 by Abrams Books, suggested retail price $24.99.

Have you read?

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