Knitting

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Knit Picks “Swish” and “Wool of the Andes” In New Tonal Colors!

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So I tried out one of Knit Picks newest yarns, Swish Tonals in the Deep Water’s colorway. It’s a Superwash Merino, worsted weight so I invented myself a project. See, I had a problem. Had a water bottle that I loved, with no sweat cover. Too small to fit in the cup holder of my bike (why yes, my motorcycle has a cup holder, doesn’t yours?) and it would fall out occasionally, so I decided to kill two birds with one stone and knit myself a water bottle cozy. Not too hard, eh? Well, let’s just say it’s not so much a cozy as it is a scrunchie, and it may turn into a leg warmer if I get a chance to knit another one to match.

Anyway, on to the Swish. This yarn knitted up beautifully, no splits, unbelievably soft and luscious, and the colors are gorgeous. Now I haven’t washed it yet, and it would be awesome if it shrank a whole bunch, but like I said it’s Superwash, so that’s not likely.

15 different colors with 7 different tones in each skein, it’s lovely. And being a worsted weight, knits up quick. The ribbing I did really stood out, and the stockinette was soft and even, unlike a lot of the nicer high end yarns I’ve tried. This one’s a keeper!

I also scored a skein of Wool of the Andes in the Nevermore Tonal colorway.  Again, 15 different colors with 7 different tones in each of the hand painted colors, worsted weight and felts beautifully. For this yarn I chose a pair of Croc Socks from Tahki Stacy Charles. The pattern is over at Knitting Warehouse. I haven’t gotten very far on these yet, except to say that I’m using a bit bigger needle, and making them a bit bigger so I can felt them down a bit.

More on this later….

Comments

  2. Would you have 1 skein of this yarn that I could purchase from you to finish a project??? The place I bought them from says it is discontinued…..
    thanks
    Paula

Have you read?

The Bunny Sweater Knitting Pattern that’s Actually for Cats

I don’t often share knitting patterns for pets, mostly because I don’t think of it. I don’t have a dog, and I’ve never knit for my cats except a knit couch and a little cat bed I made on a knitting machine, both of which were pretty much ignored. 

I have shared some pet bed knitting patterns, and both hats and sweaters for dogs. 

But I don’t think I’ve shared a pattern for a cat sweater, until now. 

This one is the Bunny sweater by Sarah Zhou, so named because her cat is named Bunny, of course. 

It’s a made to measure pattern because cats come in all shapes and sizes, and you can also use any yarn you like and whatever gauge you are getting with that yarn. 

The design is knit from the bottom up, that is, from the tail side up toward the head. Pairs of decreases shape the body as you work toward the armholes, which are made by binding off a few stitches. Then the belly and the back are worked flat, then joined and worked in the round for the chest part. 

There are some design options in the pattern, from the look of the photos they include using a contrasting color for the edging, working a scalloped edging, maybe a foldover collar? But of course you can add your own embellishments, stripes, make it in team colors or for a Halloween costume. I’m sure they’re quick to knit so you can make a bunch if you have a cat who is willing to submit to such torture. 

Bunny looks like a very good and mostly tolerant girl; I don’t think either of my cats would be willing to wear a sweater. But if you make one (the pattern is available on Ravelry) and successfully get your cat to wear it I would love to hear about it!

[Photo: Sarah Zhou]