Experimenting with new ways to play with yarn, in large-scale installations.
I used raw wool roving for the cores, then wrapped Holst Garn 100% wool yarn around to create each ball. I put the balls into panty hose, knotted between each ball.
I had to run the balls through the hot cycle in the washing machine 3-4 times to get them to felt enough, then a final run through the dryer.
Secured to foam core board with tacky all-purpose glue.
Pattern: Improvised combination of knit and purl rows in the round
Yarn: Long Island Livestock Company Alpaca Silk Merino Worsted (60% alpaca, 30% merino, 10% sari silk) – 4 skeins (100 yds/ea) in Purple Twilight
Needles: US 8s
This was my one impulse purchase at Rhinebeck this year 🙂
Pattern: Achikochi
Yarn: Biches & Buches Le Petit Lambswool, 4 skeins in Light Grey, 1 skein in Dark Grey (271 yds/ea)
Size: Medium
Needles: US 5s
Pattern: Songbird Shawl
Yarn:
Biches & Buches Le Petit Lambswool – 2 skeins color Dark Red (270 yds/ea)
Biches & Buches Le Petit Silk & Mohair – 2 skeins color Dark Red (230 yds/ea)
Needles: US 6s
Created as part of my “make something every day” goal, and a chance to free my brain up from pattern writing and complicated math with a little fun with clay.
I love autumn and I’m always looking for ways to preserve fall colors, because they’re so brilliant but so fleeting.
I used Crayola Air-Dry Clay – at first I tried leaf imprints, but no matter how firmly I rolled them into the clay, the detail was too fine to make much of an impression. So, I decided to experiment with leaving the leaves in the clay.
After they air dried, I sealed them with Mod Podge.
The 2mm rawhide cord is from Etsy – I think it adds the perfect finishing touch.
I made these for the By Hand Makers Retreat in September and I love how they turned out! Simple but effective 🙂
Materials:
Leather (English Chestnut from Springfield Leather on Etsy)
Matching thread and contrast thread
Leather sewing machine needle
Branding iron and brand
Pinking shears
Instructions:
1. Cut leather into pieces 2 1/2″ wide x 13 1/4″ long.
2. Fold in half and scratch a line 5 1/8″ from open short end on both sides (this is to mark where the stitch line will be).
3. Brand across one short end.
4. Stitch zigzag stitch with contrasting thread from the scratched line on one end to the scratched line on the other end (along the long side of the leather strip). Repeat along the opposite long side.
5. Cut both short ends with pinking shears.
6. Fold leather strip in half, making sure the two short ends match up. Hold in place with craft clips. Using matching thread, stitch two ends together along scratched line.
This was my third version of this pattern – I love how it creates garments that look so different, just by changing yarns!
Pattern: Gallatin Wraparound (my design for Issue #10 of By Hand Serial)
Yarn: Tot le Matin:
Tot MCN (70% SW merino / 29% silk / 10% cashmere) – 1 skein (437 yds/ea) in colors Anna, Perle, and Quimper
Tot Kidsilk (72% kid mohair / 28% silk) – 1 skein (431 yds/ea) in colors Anna, Perle, and Quimper
Needles: US 6s
Size: M
I created the subtle striping effect by alternating using the Tot MSC, single-stranded, the Tot MSC and Kidsilk double-stranded, and the Tot Kidsilk double-stranded. This yarn is unbelievably soft and light – it’s like wearing a cloud 🙂 I love the colors, and how the stripes run vertically (and diagonally, when buttoned across the front).
I couldn’t resist sewing new jammies with this “PJ-perfect” fabric!
Fabric: Knit Thermal by Robert Kaufman – 4 yards (57″ wide) in color Natural
Bottoms: Hudson Pant by True Bias in size 12
Top: Lark Tee by Grainline – size 12-14 (graded in between)
I chose both sizes to be nicely oversized, but I may have gone a little overboard! On the plus side, they’re really comfy 🙂 I thought about dyeing them in Rit Dye, but for now, I’m going to just enjoy them as they are – maybe if they get too dingy at some point, I’ll try for a faded indigo look.
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Pattern: Niamh by Isabell Kraemer
Yarn: The Wool Barn Cashmere Sock 4ply – 4 skeins in color Violets
Needles: US 3s
Size: M1 (37.75″)
I picked a smaller size because I was getting a little bigger gauge, and I was hoping for an oversized pullover. In retrospect, I wish I had stuck with my usual size (M2) – the pullover fits me perfectly, but it’s not the slightly oversized, baggy look I was hoping for.
I was surprised how much I loved TCI, even in the height of summer – yes, it was warm, but warm at the beach with a light breeze is really wonderful! I especially liked being able to dive without wetsuits, and to walk into the ocean without feeling like it was the least bit chilly.
Our stay at Amanyara was perfection – beautiful grounds, a lovely and peaceful pavilion as our room, and beach bikes to ride along the quiet roads. Plus, probably the most beautiful (and largely deserted) beach I’ve ever seen, with some pretty fabulous snorkeling right off the sand and around the rocky point.
We had a great day diving and cliff jumping with Big Blue, the very best ecotourism and dive company on the Island!
Most of all, it was a wonderful opportunity to spend time with my youngest daughter 🙂
A different variation on my Candy Stripe Cardigan pattern, perfect for showing off the natural hues of A Verb For Keeping Warm’s beautiful Gather yarn.
Pattern: Candy Stripe Cardigan
Yarn: A Verb for Keeping Warm Gather (75% Rambouillet / 25% alpaca) (sport weight, 200 yds / 50 g per skein):
— MC Quartz (5 skeins)
— CC Doe (1 skein)
— CC Smoke (1 skein)
— CC Lighthouse (1 skein)
Size: Medium
Needles: US 6s
I used broken rib on the cuffs and increased the buttonband ribbing to 2″, but otherwise made no modifications. This yarn is wonderful when knitted up, light and bouncy but warm 🙂
I love this hat pattern (although I feel a little silly modeling it in the middle of the summer!)
Pattern: Oslo Hat
Size: Women
Yarn: Polka Dot Sheep Iron Horse (75% merino / 25% mulberry silk) – 1 skein (438 yds) in color Fathom
I love this yarn – good structure and bounce, but still soft and silky. The color is deeply saturated, with just a little bit of shine. Because it’s fingering weight, I knit double-stranded. I ran out of yarn before I even began the top shaping, so I finished it up much more quickly than the pattern called for, completing all of the decreases in just a few rounds. I love how it turned out, but I’d also like to finish off the pattern as written (next time I find two skeins of fingering weight yarn that I can’t resist!)
Needles: US 3s (16″ circulars and DPNs)
This is my second sweater pattern in By Hand Serial Lookbook No. 9. It is a beautiful way to use rustic, woolly yarn in natural colors, and perfect for a summer afternoon out boating on the water!
Pattern: Mahone Bay Pullover
Yarn: HW WoolWorks Downeast Woolly – MC Natural Grey (5 skeins) and CC Natural White (1 skein) (200 yds of worsted weight yarn per skein)
Needles: US 8s and US 7s (ribbing)
Size: M
The name was inspired by my oldest daughter, who took one look at the soft, lovely color and commented that it was the iconic color for bridesmaids’ dresses 🙂 Knit double-stranded with a yarn comprised of baby alpaca, silk, and cashmere, it’s no wonder that this is just about the softest, yummiest thing I’ve ever worn around my neck!
I love this stitch pattern both front and back, which makes the cowl completely reversible.
Yarn: Bleu Poussiere Noble (70% baby alpaca / 20% silk / 10% cashmere) – 2 skeins (400m/ea) in color Amulette, naturally dyed with madder and hibiscus
Needles: US 4s 16″
Notes: Knit with yarn held double-stranded throughout.
DIRECTIONS:
Cast on 136 sts. Join in the round, being careful not to twist.
Garter stitch (knit one round, then purl one round) for 9 rounds total.
Begin four-round stitch pattern:
R1-3: Knit
R4: *Sl 1 purl wise to cable needle and hold in front of work, k2, slip st from cable needle to RH needle, k1. Rep. from * to end of round.
Work until ” from cast-on. Starting with a purl round, work in garter stitch for 9 rounds. Bind off loosely knit-wise.
I think of this top more as a popover than a sweater, because of it’s shape and because I think it looks so much better with a longer tank top underneath. I was inspired by the designer’s images and volunteered to test knit; the pattern is lovely, but I’m not sure it’s the best shape or fit for me. Right now, these short boxy tops are really “in” and you see them all over knitwear designers’ pages, but I think I’m too short and boxy myself to wear them well!
Pattern: Dune by Eri Shimizu
Yarn: Mythica Fibers (100% rustic silk) – 2 skeins (470 yds/ea) in color Je Te Veux (I ran out when finishing the sleeve and neck edges, but I could have left them unfinished, or I could have kept the top its original length, instead of lengthening it by an inch or so).
Size: M-L
Needles: US 5s
Pin ItTen days traveling for Issue #11 of By Hand Serial – most of the photos were taken by our professional photographer, but here are a handful of snapshots that I managed:
I had hoped to get the perfect soft pink by combining two strands of Purl Soho’s Cattail Silk, but instead the two colors just muddied each other . . . I’m happy with how the yarn knit up as a tee, and the rustic silk makes it wearable in warm weather, but I’m disappointed in the color.
Pattern: Clarke Pullover by Jane Richmond (modified sleeve by knitting for 1.5″ and then .75″ of ribbing)
Yarn: Purl Soho Cattail Silk (100% silk) – 2 skeins (470 yds/ea) in colors Porcelain White and Cherry Blossom, knit double-stranded (unfortunately, I needed only a very little of the second skeins, so now I have a lot of leftover yarn from this project!)
Needles: US 4s
Size: 36″ (this size would typically give me zero positive ease, but likely my gauge is a little on the large size, so this probably comes out more like 38″
My second go-round knitting one of my new patterns from By Hand Serial Lookbook No. 9. This time, I wanted a completely different look, so instead of a rustic, “sheepy” yarn, I used fingering weight, knit at a fairly open gauge, double-stranded with mohair. The result is a soft, warm yet light pullover that drapes beautifully and looks like a soft spring morning 🙂
Pattern: Mahone Bay Pullover
Yarn: The Wool Barn Cashmere Sock 4-ply (80% super wash merino / 10% cashmere / 10% nylon) – 2 1/2 skeins (383 yds/ea) in color Smitten, knit double-stranded with La Bien Aimee Mohair Silk (70% mohair / 30% silk) – 1 1/2 skeins (547 yds/ea) in color Bois de Rose
Size: M
Needles: US 8s and 7s (ribbing)
Notes: I used a small bit of stash yarn for the CC (unlike the original, I knit the ribbing in MC and used CC only for the garter bump accent).
Pattern: Lunenberg Cardigan – my design, published in By Hand Serial Lookbook No. 9
Yarn: The Wool Barn Cashmere Sock 4-ply (80% super wash merino / 10% cashmere / 10% nylon) – 4 skeins (383 yds/ea) in color Favourite Jeans
Size: M
Needles: US 4s and 3s (ribbing)
To me, there’s no place in the world more beautiful than the coast of Maine – even when the spring has been unusually cool and slow to arrive! My oldest daughter and I spent a week exploring to celebrate her successful completion of her freshman year of college 🙂
Scenes from Rockport Harbor:
Hiking in Acadia National Park:
Scenes from Cape Porpoise:
