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KALs

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Or Knit-A-Longs

I’ve taken part in a few of these, they’re fun. The problem I have is time. With working and farming I don’t have a scheduled amount of time to knit (funny how hobbies are like that!).

But, I want to do another one.

This time, rather than surfing the internet to find just the right KAL for my hockey project, I want to hear from you. If left to my own devices, I’d choose something like Rowan’s Helsinki, which is a “hat scarf” with armholes. It’s gorgeous. There is a picture here: https://colorfulstitches.com/store/DisplayProduct.php?sku=Helsinki

And Rowan’s Cocoon yarn, chosen for this project, has names like Tundra, Shale, Mountain, and Polar. Who wouldn’t want to knit with that? The problem here is that for my lifestyle this yarn isn’t really practical, only because it would need to be durable, and “farmy” rather than soft and elegant. So I’ll head over to www.yarndex.com to see what I can find there. Or, I could visit my stash where I have a lot of Lopi. But what I have enough of is dark brown. Yuk. Actually that is really pretty yarn, just not for this project.

And here are knitting.craftgossip.com we are all about matching our yarns with our lifestyles. Yeah right!

Ok, I have a long, long, snowy cold winter coming up. I need to get all of my ducks in one puddle. And all of my patterns and yarns matched up. No one has ever had too many WIP’s so that’s not really an issue is it?

So, what do you think? A hat scarf knit-a-long? Something else? How about a stash-a-long?

I’m waiting….. 

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Have you read?

A Knit Vest to Get You Ready for Summer

I know that my posts can be read at different times of year and in different years by different people, but as I write this we’re on teh cusp of summer. And I know a lot of people don’t knit as much, and certainly don’t wear a lot of knits in the summer, but I want to encourage you to make and to wear your makes no matter the temperature.

To introduce you to the joys of summer garment knitting, I offer the Tied Vest from Lion Brand Yarn.

This easy project is great to make and wear throughout the year but it’s especially good for summer. It’s worked flat in one piece from the bottom up, mostly in stockinette stitch with a seed stitch edging. The I-cord ties are worked directly onto the garment so you don’t have to sew them on.

The project uses worsted weight yarn, and calls for a blend of cotton and hemp that’s great for warm weather.

There are eight size options, ranging from a finished chest measurement of 35 to 62.5 inches, or 89 to 159 cm. That makes it sound like it should be worn with at least a few inches of positive ease, but the pattern doesn’t specify.

The ties at the front give it a casual look and make it great to wear over a tank top or T-shirt when the weather is warm.

I also think this one would be good to knit in wool or a warmer fiber, too, to make a version you could wear more comfortably in the winter months, too. Though of course you could layer the summer version over a long-sleeved shirt and wear it throughout the year, too.

The tied vest is a free pattern available from Lion Brand. You can also purchase a kit that includes the yarn and optional needles and stitch markers if you need them.

[Photo: Lion Brand Yarn]

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Knit Vests to Help Transition to Warmer Weather