knitalong

Summer Knitalong: Home and Away

June 24, 2015

For those of you who listened to the most recent podcast episodes, specifically Hannah’s episode, may have been anticipating the newest Woolful Knitalong. We’ll be knitting a pattern from Hannah Fettig’s newest book, Home and Away, and the best part? It’s your choice! You pick the pattern that will best fit your upcoming Fall handmade wardrobe, and join along!

Will you choose the Sycamore vest, the Georgetown cardigan or maybe the Boothbay cardigan? I’m having a hard time deciding between Georgetown and Boothybay…which one are you going to pick? I’d love to hear what you choose, so share in the comments below and if you’re on Instagram, make sure to share your work-in-progresses with the hashtag #woolfulkal or post to the Ravelry thread HERE.

So what else do you need to know about this knitalong? We’ll start July 1st, and while there is no hard deadline, we’ll aim to wrap it up by Sept 1st. Already started a pattern from Home and Away? Great! You can join in as well.

Throughout the next couple of months, there will be special stories, tips and tricks here on the blog and we’ll have a few fun giveaways for those that join.

Find…

Print and digital Home and Away books HERE.
Quince and Co yarn for all the patterns HERE.
Home and Away Ravelry page HERE.
Woolful knitalong Ravelry group HERE.

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Uncategorized

April knitalong: Beau the Bunny

April 1, 2015

I love April. Partially because my birthday takes place in April, but mostly because it means Spring is here.

Growing up in Washington state, almost every year we visited the tulip fields and festival in Skagit Valley. This often took place as part of my “birthday” celebration along with the fact that my grandparents visited every year at this time also and that was their favorite thing to do. I remember at times being a bit disgruntled to be going to the tulip fields “again”, but looking back on it now, I’m so thankful for those memories.

Also as a child I had a bit of a fascination with bunnies. When other girls liked dolls and Barbies, I preferred the bunny variety. For a period of time my entire room was decorated in anything bunny. Wall hangings, comforter, stuffed animals, clothing, etc. It was dusty rose, dusty green…and bunnies. My first pet was a bunny named Cottontail. All white and had been sold to us as a dwarf, it was indeed not a dwarf we soon found out. My second pet was a bunny, a dwarf I named Smokey. I’m not sure where this fascination began and ended, but it wasn’t until having a child of my own that I realized how much bunnies were a part of my childhood.

So when it came to dreaming up the next toy pattern for Little Woolens, it made sense with both Spring and Easter coming, that a bunny was the perfect choice. And that is how Beau the Bunny came to be.

I thought it would be nice for the April knitalong, to have a fun and shorter project…something you’ll indeed be able to finish in a months time, if not a day or two’s time! A great gift for a little one or bunny lover, and something you can be sure to find enough yarn from your stash for. And if you’re looking for a more girly “Belle” version, knit a pink bowtie. You can find the pattern HERE.

So I hope you’ll join us for this month’s #woolfulKAL…and I can’t wait to see all your Beau’s and Belle’s.

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Knitting

March Knitalong: The Moto Vest

March 3, 2015

Each month we host a knitalong, something that can be completed in a month’s time and features a special small farm yarn.

I have been anticipating this knitalong for a couple months now and although I wanted to start early, I held off so I could knit it along with all of you. This pattern, the Moto Vest designed by Shelli Westcott, is the perfect layering piece, versatile in both design and material. I’ll be knitting mine with an alpaca blend from Radius Yarns, though I already have plans for another in a lighter weight yarn as well. When I was visiting Knitterly, the yarn shop that Shelli owns and operates in Petaluma, I kept eyeing different variations of this pattern and was surprised how simple it was to alter and knit up. I asked Shelli to share a little about this pattern, her Radius yarn and the alterations you can make to the pattern to fit your needs and likes. I hope you’ll join us! Visit our Ravelry group to share your progress and ask any questions…

I was inspired to design this pattern with the Radius Lopi bulky, a yarn I just fell in love with but felt it really was too big and too heavy to make a sweater out of that would work in the Bay Area climate. I wanted to create a project that would be simple and any level of knitter could make it…whether it be your second or fiftieth project. Because I was using this bulky weight, I wanted to keep it small. The bulky yarns have less yardage and are heavier, so again, something versatile was key. I designed the Moto Vest, the perfect layering companion, for under a jacket or over a flannel shirt. The collar can act as a scarf, keeping you warm, and lays outside of your jacket, but the body keeps your torso and spine warm, where you can lose a lot of heat. The pattern was really well received so I began using all thicknesses of yarns I found in the shop, from light worsted on a size 10.5 needle, to bulky on a size 13, and knit several different lengths, from your waist to below your front pockets. Of all the one’s knit, the long vests are the most popular. Another fun thing to do is adjust the number of stitches cast on for the scarf and the back, resulting in either a thicker or thinner scarf and back.

Here are some fun combinations we’ve made up, all with yarn you can get from shop.knitterly.com…

Radius Light Worsted
3 skeins – size 8-10 needle
Cast on 58 for scarf,
46″ long (scarf)
Cast on 30 for back,
11″ long (back)

Radius Bulky
3 skeins – size 13-15 needles
45″ long (scarf)
12″ wide (scarf)
12″ wide (back)

Woolfolk Far
5-6 skeins – 8 to 11 size needles
50″ long (scarf)
13″ wide (scarf)
13″ wide (back)

Plymouth Colca Canyon (nice thin alpaca)
5 skeins – size 15 needles
Cast on 30 for scarf,
58″ long (scarf)
Cast on 26 for back,
15″ long (back)

Twirl Petals (held double)
4 skeins – size 10-10.5 needles
Cast on 30 for scarf,
52″ long (scarf)
Cast on 20 for back,
20″ long (back)