Knitting

Free Patterns, Tutorials and Project Ideas

Pam Allen joins the Classic Elite Team

by

Did you wonder where Interweave Knits Magazine editor Pam Allen was moving to? Well, here is the news:

Classic Elite Yarns is proud to announce that Pam Allen has joined the company as Creative Director. Pam has been a knitwear designer for 25 years. Her designs have been published in Vogue Knitting, Knitters, and Interweave Knits magazines. She was featured in Melanie Falick’s Knitting in America and is the author of Knitting for Dummies, Scarf Style, Wrap Style, Lace Style, and the upcoming Bag Style. For the past four years, Pam has been the editor of Interweave Knits magazine. Pam’s duties will include creating the bi-annual pattern collections, online communications, and sourcing of yarns. Pam, who admits to being a long-time fan of Classic Elite yarns, is anxious to meet with retailers at trade shows and other knitting venues. Besides being a yarnaholic, Pam likes to hike, listen to books on tape, and to swatch.

And then over at Interweave Knits is the announcement about the new editor Eunny Jang

Loveland, Colo., March 12, 2007: Interweave Press announced today that Eunny Jang, knitwear designer and popular knitting blogger, will be the new editor of Interweave Knits magazine, effective March 15. The announcement was made by Interweave Press President Marilyn Murphy at the same time as her announcement that Interweave Knits editor Pam Allen is resigning to pursue other interests in the needlecraft industry.

Interweave Knits, celebrating its 10th anniversary this year, has experienced several consecutive years of phenomenal newsstand growth, and its subscribers have grown by more than 25 percent in the last year and by more than 200 percent in the last five years. Ms. Murphy says, Eunny Jang is the perfect match to be the new editor of Knits and to build on Pam Allen’s success. She totally understands Interweaves sensibility and aesthetic, and she has incredible respect in the knitting community among designers, enthusiasts, and a new generation
of knitters who are active online.

As a contributor to Knits, Ms. Jang has connected with readers across a wide range of subject matters. She is beyond brilliant in her understanding of knitting techniques, and we are confident she will continue to forge the indelible bond Knits has with its readers.

Ms. Jang says, Residing as the editor of Interweave Knits is my dream job’s an iconic category leader, and I’m absolutely thrilled to have the opportunity to work on it. Im looking forward to leading Knits into the future, as we bring the magazine’s reputation for excellence to
Interweave’s other media platforms including books, online, and television

Comments

  1. I need HELP please.
    I am a fairly new knitter…Knitting Pam Allens Knitting Needle Knitting Bag and I need to know where to get the yarn used in that bag…I have tried so many others for weeks and have many problems…yarn thread splitting etc.
    The name of the yarn is Nashua Handknits Creative Focus Chunky..color dried rose.

    Thank you so much,
    Camilla Nelson

    PS Pam Allens book Knitting for Dummies is awesome…knitted my first pair of socks from that book.

Have you read?

Patchwork Blanket Knitting Patterns

Any time of year is a good time for stash busting, but if you can combine it with knitting a blanket that will keep you warm when it (finally!) gets cooler that’s even better. Let’s take a look at some fun patchwork blanket knitting patterns. 

If you want to keep it super simple, you can just make blocks of garter stitch and sew them together, like the beginner’s patchwork baby blanket from Mini Baa Baa or the color block blanket from Make and Do Crew. Both projects are worked in strips and sew together, with the baby version calling for two strands of DK or light worsted weight yarn held together and the larger one using bulky yarn. 

Add a little more texture with the mixed blocks of the cottage quilt throw from Mama in a Stitch. This one combines garter stitch and seed stitch and uses worsted weight yarn. She used a crochet join to make the chains on top of the blocks, but you can join them however you like. It calls for eight colors but you can use what you have, and there are three size options. 

Get a real sampler style patchwork blanket with this design from Knit Sew Make. It calls for worsted weight yarn and has four size options. All of the patterns just use knit and purl stitches so this one is still pretty easy for beginners. 

If you want a more complex colorwork project that will keep you entertained all season, try the Peace by Piece blanket pattern from Needle and Feather. This one is made up of two color colorwork blocks and calls for worsted weight yarn. You can choose to use just a few of the blocks and repeat them more often, or make multiples of the whole set. 

The knitted patchwork recipe from Martine Ellis (free on Ravelry) uses mitered squares in fingering weight yarn, so it’s perfect for using up all your leftover sock yarn and mini skeins. This one is a tutorial more than a pattern so you can make your blanket as big as you like or keep going until you run out of yarn. 

Susan B. Anderson’s 100 Squares blanket (find it on Ravelry) has a lot of mitered squares, too, but they’re arranged in fun ways and includes some quilt inspired designs as well. This one also is a bit of method more than pattern but it sure looks like a lot of fun for using all the leftovers. 

Of course you can totally improvise a patchwork blanket using the yarn and stitches you like, but I hope these patterns inspire you to look at your leftover yarn in a new way.