Welcome to SpinKnit 2011 from Interweave!

Look at the cover! Spindle, plus sheep equals hat! Love. It!

Well, we all know there’s more to it, that’s why the folks at Interweave bring us these mouth watering magazines! In this issue articles discuss traditional textiles (cedar fibers) from the Pacific Northwest (Forks, WA to be specific – sound familiar, Twilight fans?) and Mexico, the science and skill that go into creating beautiful, yet functional spindles, sheep that are double coated and subsist on seaweek (yes, really!), and a spinning technique called “tail spinning”. Patterns too! I love these books, even the ads are enticing. And, since it’s an EMag, it’s totally interactive.

Click on the links that give you videos and slideshows on spinning trees into yarn. And I’m pretty sure that if this pail of spindles arrived at my house I’d think I died and went to heaven!

I just love reading about the rare sheep breeds, you know the ones, they take what little food they can find and turn it into the most exquisite fleece imaginable, and the shepherds and shepherdesses who tend these flocks, where they are, how they live, it’s all in here, and great reading.

And then when you think you’ve extracted every ounce of yummy goodness out of this emag, there’s the video at the end. Watch the lamb races, and the poor sheep mothers who have to try to keep up with them. Cute!

Available as a digital download for both PC and Mac, you HAVE to see this one!

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

Have you read?

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