Knit Happens

Every season has a certain “type” of knitting coveted by everyone: a couple of summers ago, it was lace; two winters ago, it was Clapotis; this winter, it seems like Fair Isle is the thing to do. It seems like one big knitalong – whether you actually joined one or not. For example, if you type in “fair isle” in the pattern browser on Ravelry, 55 pages of projects come up. It seems like everyone is knitting in color this winter – sweaters, vests, hats, scarves, shawls, dresses – the possibilities are endless!

One big hit this season has come from one of our favorite magazines, Interweave Knits. Many of you know of our love of the new editor, Eunny Jang (I truly want to knit like her when I grow up), so it’s hardly surprising that a few of us have decided to knit her Ivy League Vest from the current issue. The yarn called for, Harrisville Designs New England Shetland, is a wonderfully “wool-y” fingering weight wool that is incredibly easy to work with and affordable, to boot!

The colors Eunny chose for her vest are beautiful and earthy and will go with just about everything in your closet. Oatmeal, White, Loden, Woodsmoke, Pearl and Sandalwood – they just sound yummy, so they must look great, right? I immediately placed a large order for the Shetland colors used (and others, of course) and kitted up the yarn once it came in. Made to pattern, the yarn cost is only $69.30 – such a great deal!*

Really, once Elspeth and I looked at the pattern, we had to knit it – however, we had very different visions of the vest. I wanted mine to be similar to the original pattern, but not use the exact same colors. So, I picked colors that I knew would look well on me: Oatmeal, White, Hemlock, Loden, Teak (surprisingly, very similar to the original pattern); put them together in the right color order and cast on. (See the first picture above.)

Elspeth visualized the vest knit in two colors, so we spent an hour playing with color combinations. We knew that there needed to be some high contrast of the colors with the intricate stitch pattern, and finally, the Hemlock and the Wedgewood made the cut. (See the second picture above.) Aren’t the colors great together?

Have we inspired you to knit something in Fair Isle yet? No? Yes? Keep an eye here – we’ll have you knitting Fair Isle in no time! (There are oh-so-many patterns we can tempt you with…)

*If you’re interested in the yarn and can’t come down to see us, we’ll be happy to kit it up for you and ship it out! Or, you can send a significant other in with the pattern and we’ll send them home with the correct amounts… and we’ll even point them towards Paper Source for fab wrapping paper!

Yes, I know that it’s not even Thanksgiving yet and we’re already throwing out gift ideas, but it’s never too early (or late, as the case may be) to start with the knitted gifts!

Take the hat pictured to the left. That hat was knit using just one ball of Debbie Bliss Superchunky – and there was yarn left over. I started that hat on a Sunday afternoon here at the shop and finished it later that same night. Instant gratification, it’s a good thing.

We collaborated with Danielle Romanetti (of Knit-a-Gogo) and scheduled a class to make that very hat – in just 3 hours. How easy is that? Have you wanted to branch out from knitting scarves or blankets to knitting a hat but were just too intimidated by the thought of knitting in the round? Does the thought of reading a pattern scare you just a little? Then, this class is for you! Danielle will walk you through the techniques needed to make this hat – and you’ll go home with a completed hat. You’ll want to knit one for everyone this holiday season.

The Cashmere Beanie class will be held Monday, November 26 from 6-9pm right here at the shop. The class cost is $50 and does not include materials – however, the register will be open during class to purchase materials for this hat…. and a few others. Give us a call at the shop (703-836-0039) to sign up – spaces are going fast!

Edited to Add: A few of you have asked where to find the Cashmere Beanie Pattern. Danielle has put the pattern in her blog – I will ask her if we can type it up and distribute it in the shop, but until then, click here for the pattern. ~ H

As I’ve gotten more involved in knitting, I’ve often found patterns where I’d like to change just one part: a cable, perhaps, or a center panel. Sometimes, when I’m considering my stash, I like to brainstorm ideas about sweaters, scarves and hats and my favorite way to do that is to think about a yarn in a stitch pattern. A stitch pattern can be anything from a yarn over lace pattern to a cable pattern, a rib to a gansey detail. Stitch patterns can be as simple as garter stitch and as complicated as an entire back of a sweater: the sky’s the limit!Finding all these ideas, though, can be challenging. A great pattern library is a good idea, but what to do when you’re considering that perfect alpaca that called your name?

Open your Stitch Dictionaries.

Like the Merriam-Webster, Stitch Dictionaries are great for browsing, answering specific questions or gathering inspiration. And the most famous stitch dictionaries? The Harmony Guides!

The Harmony Guides were a series of paperback books from the days of Elizabeth Zimmerman. Often handed down from knitter to knitter, these out of print books were precious, beautiful and inspirational. Responding to knitter demand, Interweave recently acquired the rights to these amazing books and with the talents of amazing designer and tech editor Erika Knight at their command, reissued these books with huge color photographs, clear written directions and concise charts. For any knitter, these are an absolutely incredible resource!

The new Harmony Guides have three specialties: Knit and Purl patterns, Cables and Arans and Lace and Eyelets. When the books arrived yesterday, we were all drooling over them and I may have even wound up with one or two in my bag! I hope you’ll come down and check out these amazing books for yourself. Whether you love one, two or all three, the Harmony Guides are a great gift for yourself. Look up some inspiration!

(all cover pictures are from Interweave’s website. Check it out for some great sneak peeks!)

With the Holidays coming, we’re starting to get lots of questions about good patterns for men. Finding patterns that your husband, brother and father might like is a tough process: everything that we like to knit, they think is too busy to wear!

Fear not, though. I’ve got a selection of patterns that I ran by my boyfriend last night. All of them got the Thumbs Up! from a boy whose definition of “dressing up” means a collared shirt. They might not be the most exciting knits in the world, but knitting for those we love? That’s a wonderful feeling.

First up, a great new book! Martin Storey, a long time Rowan designer, has taken the lack of great men’s patterns personally. His newest book, Knitting For Him, has 27 projects, ranging from introductory stockinette to a beautifully cabled cardigan. As my guy said, “These are pretty nice. I’d wear them for work.”

What makes these designs so nice is that they don’t shy away from a subtle use of color or stripes while employing luscious fibers in colors that any guy can love. I’m sure we’ve had the experience of taking a great sweater to our gentlemen and hearing “But it’s beige. I like grey.” That won’t happen here! All the sweaters are classically designed with a hipper, modern edge. (picture from knitrowan.com)

If you’re knitting for a twenty-something man, or a guy who does most of his shopping at stores like Urban Outfitters, a great source for men’s patterns is the archived Man Issue of Knitty. A favorite pattern in my house is Lucky, a mistake rib sweater knit great depth and drape. The best part? It’ll look just as great on you as on him!

Making a sweater like Lucky look smashing is easy when you knit with a yarn with a soft hand. This sort of sweater is a great splurge for silk and wool blends, or a pure merino, for a garment that makes the most of your guy’s shape and style. Picking a classic color, like white, grey or dark brown will expand the wardrobe options and look great at Holiday parties. (picture from knitty.com)

If you’re lucky enough to knit for a man with a funky sense of style, can I suggest the newest Rowan magazine? Packed to the brim with stunning cable and color work garments, this is my choice for absolutely show stopping knits. My absolute favorite? Leven (pictured at left, from the Rowan site), a dk weight sweater with cables, epaulets and bands of fair isle. Gorgeous! And the greatest part is that the sweater’s many elements can be separated, so if you love the cables, just work those. If color’s your game, the bands are a perfect addition to a simple sweater. I may just knit one for myself!

If you’ve got a man who trusts your style, try flipping through your favorite pattern books to see what can be reinterpreted for a man. My Dad’s birthday sweater this year was a Notre Dame de Grace, a “women’s” pullover from the Summer Interweave. By just changing the yarn to a dark brown woolen tweed and tweaking the collar, I made an elegant woman’s sweater into a great weekend man’s sweater. My Dad loves it!

And speaking of weekend sweaters, almost every guy I know has a totally beloved sweater, worn almost to pieces that your hand knit can replace. A new sweater to replace a worn favorite is a great option for the guy who just can’t decide. Borrowing his sweater, making measurements and talking to us about how you can recreate the pattern makes an incredibly thoughtful gift. One of our friends, Fidget Knits Ann, is recreating her husband’s favorite J Crew sweater in Rowan Denim, an easy care machine wash and dry cotton yarn. If you’re comfortable with taking measurements and creating your own patterns, this is a simple process. If not, a lesson will be all you need to get on your feet!

I hope this helps you find the perfect gift for the perfect guy in your life! And remember: man knitting makes for great tv knitting!

So, Karida and I were talking after Stitches East about what she was going to do with any yarn she had left over – not that there was much. (She went up there in an Explorer – and had a delivery of more sock yarn while up there – and came back in a much smaller car!) So, in a take-one-for-the-team spirit, I offered for us to take it all off her hands, once she was able to fill other orders, of course.

So, Karida stopped by the shop on Sunday with a box or two of some yarn… We’ve got some of her Studio Sock and Loft back in stock, finally! (Unfortunately, not in all the colors we’re out of, but be patient, Karida has an order from us to be filled!) She also brought along some of her Victorian Bulky (pictured to the left). The Victorian Bulky is a super bulky 100% wool yarn that knits up in no time at all! Remember those Scribble Lace scarves that were so popular last year? (You know, the ones we had kitted up?) One hank of this and one hank of the Loft would be a perfect substitute. Want to teach a child to finger-knit? One hank of the bulky will work perfectly. Last night Elspeth modified the Yarn Harlot’s Unoriginal Hat pattern and created a neck warmer – in just a couple of hours and one skein. (To knit the Unoriginal Hat, you will need two skeins.) The ideas of what to do with this are endless!