In New England This Weekend? Get Ready for a Yarn Crawl

The fourth-annual I-91 yarn crawl is happening this weekend, with 12 yarn shops from Vermont to Connecticut participating.

All participating shops will be open from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. on Thursday, Friday and Saturday and from noon to 5 p.m. on Sunday. Some of the shops will also be open later on Thursday for special events.

In addition to the great shopping and supporting local businesses, each shop will have a clue to a mystery yarn project. There will also be a passport for the event, and people who visit and get stamps from all 12 shops will be entered into the grand prize drawing, which includes yarn, books, tools and accessories as well as a $50 gift certificate from each shop participating in the crawl. In all it’s a prize package worth more than $600.

Two runners up will also receive six gift certificates and some other prizes, and daily raffles at each of the shops will provide even more prizes and fun.

Learn more about the event from the WEBS blog (they’re one of the participants) or check them out on Facebook.

If you are planning to go or have been before I’d love to hear about it!

Next Pattern:

Not too long ago my daughter and I had a discussion about what a chestnut really looks like. The nut itself is small and brown, of course, but on the tree they’re covered with this weird kind of spiky, kind of fuzzy shell. It’s a wonder anyone ever figured out they were edible.

If you didn’t know that, you might wonder why this project is call Chestnut balaclava, but now you know.

This fun design from Yevheniia Pyroh is covered with spikes just like a chestnut shell, and is even the same color, though of course you can make yours whatever color you like. It uses two strands of fingering weight yarn held together (which it says is fingering weight but you could try a light/DK yarn and see if you get gauge with it if you’d rather).

There are two different design options in the pattern. One is a more fitted balaclava style hat (it doesn’t cover the face but does go around the neck) and a looser fit hood.

It’s worked primarily in garter stitch, with shaping done by knitting and purling in the same stitch and through various decreases (including a knit 3 together).

The pattern is charted but also explained in words. It’s worked flat to the size you want, and then joined into a hood shape with ribbing at the neck. The opening for the face is finished with I-cord.

This hood/balaclava would definitely be a conversation starter and in different colors it might read more dinosaur than chestnut, which could also be fun. The sizing is totally custom so you can make it fit whatever head you’re stitching for.

If you want to try it for yourself (and I’d love to hear about it if you do!) you can download the free pattern from Ravelry.

[Photo: Yevheniia Pyroh]

Balaclava Knitting Patterns

Colorwork Balaclava Knitting Pattern [Knitting]

Next Pattern:

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