Knitting

Patterns, projects and techniques

My Newest Project – Ooooh I’m In Love!

by 5 Comments

You know how some yarn is totally made for a particular set of needles and then a pattern jumps in the mix and you have Utopia? Well this is the story…

So I got some new yarn from Knit Picks, it’s the Wool of the Andes Tweed. Actually the color I got isn’t the blue that’s shown in my project, but more of a purple heather, (Indigo Heather below); not sure why my camera freaked out and changed it to blue. But, I’m totally in love with this newest yarn. It’s a worsted weight, so knits up nice and quick (as compared to the socks on 1’s and 2’s). It’s a cross between Peruvian sheep, Corriedale sheep and Merino. It also supposedly felts beautifully, this I don’t want to find out about just yet. The wool has a nice sturdy feel to it, meaning, it’s not flimsy, and it holds up really nicely to tinking (don’t ask… I’m not over it yet).

This is a lot closer to the actual color: Indigo Heather:

I’m knitting this vest pattern (more on the pattern later….):

Cool, eh? But what’s really neat is for the first real project, I’m using my new Harmony Interchangeable Needles, also from Knit Picks. I’ve used them for swatches before and to try them out, but didn’t have a “new” project to try them out on until now. (read between the lines: don’t switch needles in the middle of a project….).

I just love the Harmonys. Of course they’re pretty, but they just feel nice too. Don’t like to use steel or other metal needles, the Denise plastics are nice too but with a natural yarn, you need natural needles, no? The shafts seems to be a bit longer than other circs I’ve used (and yes, unless it’s dpn’s, I use circulars exclusively) and the tips are just pointy enough to capture the knits and purls, without being dangerous. And for some unknown reason, my hands don’t get tired quite so quick. I’ll be exploring this theory more in the future….. just sayin’……

My next project will be another pair of socks, this time on the Harmony DPNs rather than my bamboos. I’ll be excited to see if I love them as much as the interchangeables! Now, got to get back to my new love!

 

Next Pattern:

Comments

  2. The first knitting project I ever knitted was knit with Wool of the Andes, and I too am so in love with this tweed–must get some!!

  4. If I remember right, it was Knitting off the Axis, by Interweave. I totally love how it turned out, and I wear it all the time. Very pretty!

Have you read?

Stitch a Scarf with Dreamy Waves

As I write this, it’s probably time to start thinking about winter knitting if you haven’t already. And it’s definitely time to think about gift knitting if you have any of that you plan to do for the holidays.

The Dreamy Waves Scarf from Knit Picks, designed by Stacey Winklepleck, would be a great project to go in either category.

It uses two different multicolored yarns and a simple repeating wave pattern to make a project that looks a lot more complicated and dramatic than it is. The gradient look happens naturally just by switching which yarn you’re knitting with.

This pattern uses worsted weight yarn so it’s a pretty quick project even though a scarf is large and this one is pretty wide. It measures 8.5 inches (21.5 cm) wide and 63 inches or 120 cm long. Of course you can make it longer or shorter as you like. As written it takes one ball of each color so it’s a pretty economical project, too.

It’s rated for intermediate knitters but if you know how to do various increases and decreases you’ll be all set. The pattern uses knit 2 together, make 1 left and right, centered double decrease and slip slip knit. All of the stitches are explained in a glossary in the pattern so even if you haven’t done all of them it shouldn’t be too hard to figure out.

The pattern also includes tons of options for different colorways in yarn that Knit Picks sells,  so you can see how different combinations knit up before you buy the yarn. That’s such a great idea!

Of course if you already have two multicolored yarns with long color runs on hand, you can absolutely use them, too. It might also be fun, but would give you a totally different look, to use a solid color and a bunch of scraps or one multicolored yarn to see how the different colors play together. So many options!

You can grab this free pattern and check out all the color options at Knit Picks.

[Photo: Knit Picks]

Summer Shawl and Scarf Knitting Patterns

Take It Easy with the Bessie Scarf

Sweater Scarf Knitting Patterns

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *