Knitting

Free Patterns, Tutorials and Project Ideas

Sheep(ish) Makes the Move to Bernat

by

sheepish bernatI don’t know how much you know — or care to know! — about the business side of the yarn world, but last year the yarn company Caron was acquired by Spinrite, the company behind Patons, Bernat and Lily (which also bought the Elmore-Pisgah Company, producer of Peaches and Creme yarn, not too long before that).

One thing that has happened as a result of that is that Vickie Howell’s Stitch.Rock.Love. line of yarn is moving under the Bernat umbrella rather than continuing to be a Caron yarn. (So far the only yarn in the line is Sheep(ish), but at least one more is in development.)

Howell says on her blog that nothing is changing about the way the yarn is produced, the colors that will be available or the way she interacts with users of the yarn through online knitalongs and crochetalongs.

To celebrate the change, Bernat is offering a sale on Sheep(ish), which means you can snag it for 25 percent off the regular price. The yarn regularly retails for $3.99 for a 167 yard skein. Enter the code GIFT4YOU upon checkout to receive the discount. The offer is valid through the end of the month.

Are you a fan of Sheep(ish)? Spill it!

[Photo by Bernat.]

Comments

  1. I actually find it really interesting. I collect old knitting pattern books and you can see over time companies that were separate and had their own line of books merging. Based on the dates of the books I could probably make a timeline that shows when the different companies merged with each other. One of these days I want to do that.

  2. I crocheted all of the items ordered from my friends for Christmas gifts last year using Sheep(ish). The fingerless gloves, scarves and wraps turned out so nice and my friends told me the recipients loved them. I appreciate the yarn is soft and durable. The single-ply makes it a no-fuss yarn to work with.

Have you read?

Knit a Classic Aran Cardigan with this Free Knitting Pattern

Not too long ago I did a test knit for another designer that was for a cabled cardigan. It’s really cozy and nice but it just about broke me in a ton of different ways. I couldn’t get gauge, which I suppose is my own problem, but mainly I was somehow both bored and forced to pay attention at the same time. 

Because it used the same cable all over, I always had to know what row I was on, but nine out of ten of those rows, nothing in particular was going on. So I couldn’t stop paying attention, but what I needed to attend to was boring. 

It may have ruined me for knitting cabled sweaters, but maybe I just need something that’s more engaging. Like this Modern Aran Cardigan pattern from Lion Brand Yarn. 

This is a reworking of an old pattern from their archives, and you can tell that form the classic look of the cables and the oversized feel (nothing cropped about this one!). It has allover cables, but like a classic Aran sweater it’s not the same cable, so you’ll have to pay attention to what row you’re on and what cable turns happen for which cables on that row. 

Because of this, it’s considered an intermediate knitting pattern, but if you’re comfortable working from multiple charts at once it shouldn’t be a problem for you. There are three different charts and seven different cable moves. 

Also because the pattern is so big and boxy there are only two sizes available, with a finished chest measurement of either 49 or 63 inches (that’s 124.5 or 160 cm). It’s up to you to decide how much ease you would like and whether that will work for your body. 

The pattern uses worsted weight yarn (and calls for another classic, Lion Brand Fisherman’s Wool). It calls for six buttons and includes pockets to make it extra cozy. 

This one looks like a great winter project to make and to wear if you’re up for a bit of a challenge. You can grab the free pattern or buy a kit with the yarn needed direct from Lion Brand Yarn. 

[Photo: Lion Brand Yarn]