Knitting News: Knitting More than Your Bit, Knitting for Pets and More

May 1, 2015 by Sarah White Leave a Comment

With the celebration of ANZAC Day, the Southland Times uncovered the story of Janet Bowie, a knitter who completed 736 pairs of socks for men fighting in Gallipoli and throughout Europe during World War I. In 1919 she was awarded a Member of the British Empire for her feat, which was considered a record for New Zealand and, perhaps, the world. She arrived in New Zealand in 1876 and lived there until her death in 1926. Her medal can be found in the Otago Early Settlers’ Museum.

To support the Australian wool industry and local knitters, a company in New South Wales has formed to sell woollen jumpers around the world. Wool With Love was founded by Annabel Scott, a sheep farmer who was frustrated at the lack of good quality wool clothes for her children. She enlisted the help of about 20 local women to knit sweaters, and the knitters say they love the social aspect as well as the knitting itself.

And finally I’ve got to say I’m a little disappointed I didn’t receive a review copy of Cats in Hats: 30 Knit and Crochet Projects for Your Kitty by Sara Thomas. I like humiliating my cat as much as the next person, and apparently, the book has really taken off, whether among knitters or lovers of cat humor it’s hard to say. Thomas never really set out to become a famous creator of feline chapeaus, but one year she sold 300 on her etsy shop. She says she hopes the success of the book will allow her time to create other things. If you don’t feel the need for a full book of cat hats, check out her Happy Birthday cat hat on her blog.

[Photo by Skye Manson via ABC.net.]

Next Pattern:

Have you read?

Knit a Cozy Sweater with Lots of Options

If you’re looking for a sweater knitting pattern that uses up some of your stash and allows you to make just the sweater you want, the Marlina Rib by Shay Johson might be just the thing.

It’s worked with two strands of fingering weight yarn held together to make a DK weight gauge, so you can use the same two yarns throughout or change one or both regularly for an even more colorful look.

The pattern has options to make it either a crewneck or a henley style with buttons, tapered or relaxed sleeves, and a straight hemline or a split hem with buttons (which sounds so cute if you do the henley with split hem and match the buttons on both parts).

It’s also knit from the top down so you can make the body and the sleeves as long as you want. There are 10 sizes available in the pattern, with a chest circumference ranging from 32 to 68 inches, or 81.5 to 172.5 cm. It’s meant to be worn with 4-6 inches/10-15 cm of positive ease at the chest.

The pattern page on Ravelry includes tons of measurements and yardage estimates so you can make sure you’ll get a good fit for your body before you even buy the pattern. Shay also shows a few variations of the sweater so you can see how different options look before you decide how you want to put them together.

The stitch pattern is 1×2 ribbing, which is really easy to do and gives a look almost like fisherman’s rib that’s relaxed and easy to wear.

This sweater looks like a great option for people who are somewhat new to sweater knitting or those who love to have lots of customization options (because it’s like getting multiple sweater patterns in one!).

Check out all the details and grab a copy of the pattern for yourself at Ravelry.

[Photo: Shay Johnson]

Next Pattern:

Have you read?

Leave a Reply