Quiet

The long hiatus will become a more - or less, who knows - permanent break, I'm afraid. I still knit but due to complicated life circumstances, I need to put designing on hold. Thanks for reading and happy knitting!

You will want to knit: QUICK gifts

I have an annoying tendency to set my heart on complicated patterns when planning knitted gifts for other people. It's wrong. It's never right. Most importantly, it's not worth it if you don't know the recipient very well. If they're not a knitter, a fairly uncomplicated but effective gift is what you should go for.

Like these two - one of them off, the other one still on my needles at the moment, so the photos below belong to the designers:

Brioche Hood Hat by Valdis Vrang (FREE on Ravelry)

pattern photo - click on it and it will take you to the pattern page

Why it's fab: great introduction to brioche stitch, engaging, fast (short rows are more-ish)
The difficult bit: seaming at the end. There's not much to seam but you need to pay attention Still, a minor minus; don't let it turn you off.

Miss Marple Scarf - available under different names, by different designers

Here are two of my favorites (both FREE on Ravelry):

click on the photo

click on the photo

Why they're fab: Short scarves with a smart tie idea. Need I say more? They're pretty and could go with so many different clothes.
 The difficult bit: Haven't found it yet, so that will likely be parting with the knit.
Can you recommend some go-to quick knits?

In which I talk about fixing cables (for lazy knitters who don't want to rip back)

I am knitting Norah Gaughan's Beatnik. Along with at least 298 other knitters, according to Ravelry, so I'm in good company. I'm betting most of those knitters have more patience and reverence for the knitted fabric than me but there's a chance there's at least one lazy knitter out there who decided to do what I did with those pesky mis-crossed cables.

The back is done - and let me tell you about it

I'm rushing on this sweater. While I'm waiting for the erratum for Kenzo, I'm dead set on making myself a sweater as a birthday gift (whether it actually makes sense or not). I'm rushing and hence the mishaps.

Yesterday was a big day for cable fixing... And I believe that Sunday was the big day for messing those up, judging by the placement of the wrong twists.

I feel I should also clarify that I'm not that lazy a knitter, I'm not averse to ripping back work to fix major issues. It's the yarn that I was taking into consideration when deciding on the quick fixes.

I'm making this sweater in Cascade Softspun, which is a soft (as the name implies) single-ply worsted wool. The strands are delicate but give a good, elastic fabric with a decent stitch definition. I've knitted a sweater with this yarn before and I'm very pleased with it. For a yarn this soft, it doesn't pill much.

But what you don't want to do with it is frog. The strands stick together very well and are quick to felt together slightly.

I first noticed one mis-crossed cable. It seemed to me that the most effective fix would involve cutting. I remembered a post from the Yarn Harlot that showed her cutting into cables. For whatever reason, her blog was unavailable at the time when I wanted to attempt it, so after looking at a few unconvincing tutorials elsewhere I decided to wing it.

It worked but I prefer not to offer too specific an account because it wasn't brilliant. It was just OK.
I caught the stitches of the wrong cable with two DPNs, cut the yarn, put the cable in the back, behind the other twist (which should have been in front in the first place). Since it’s wool, I felted a new strand together with the end of the cut strand and grafted the stitches on the DPNs together. Almost invisible.


... And then I noticed that I mis-crossed A WHOLE ROW below… The cutting made me even more reluctant to rip it out, so I decided to duplicate stitch over the wrong twists. This is more visible, yes, but it’s going to be on my back anyway, and we’ll see if blocking makes a difference.

Two pictures for comparison:

Can you spot the fixes? (You probably notice at least
three pretty quickly, I see all four, always.)

The full confession

Right now I'm working my way up the front. Hoping (perhaps naively) that I can get it finished tomorrow, block both parts quickly, join, and make the sleeves over the weekend to have a finished sweater by Monday. I'm deluding myself, right?

The inspiration for my sweater comes from the 1960s girlsband Alibabki.  They're biggest hit was ”Kwiat jednej nocy” (The flower that blooms for one night only) but their most amazing record, in my opinion, is the one on which they explore Jamaican music, ”Jamaica Ska”. Have a listen.

Emi Mitts

I'm very happy to present this new pattern.


Knitted with a good friend mine in mind, Emi Mitts make a good introduction to colorwork and a fun quick knit for more experienced knitters.

Enjoy the pattern and try it out with different pattern combinations!

Copyright notice: please feel free to use this pattern to make mittens for yourself and friends. Don’t sell items knitted from it, and don’t sell the pattern itself. I reserve rights to the pattern but am happy to share it with other knitters free of charge.

Emi Mitts

colorwork fingerless mitts in three sizes, knitted in worsted or aran yarn

(c) magic-photographer.com

(the pattern is written for double-pointed needles)

Sizing:
small (hand circumference of 7”/ 17.5 cm at widest point, not counting the thumb):
needles: US 8/ 5.0 mm (mitten body), US 7/ 4.5 mm (cuff)
gauge (not crucial): 18 sts, 23 rows in 4”/ 10 cm in colorwork pattern (stockinette stitch in the round)
(the mittens pictured are all in size small)

medium: size up to US 9/ 5.5 mm needles (mitten body), US 8/ 5.0 mm (cuff)

large: in aran or bulky yarn rather than worsted, size up to US 10/ 6 mm (mitten body), US 9/ 5.5 mm (cuff)

all sizes - spare needle for bottom stitches of the thumb

(c) magic-photographer.com

Directions:
The number of stitches to cast on depends on your chosen type of cuff. I recommend the long-tail cast on because it will give you a stretchy edge. Choose among three cuff patterns (or more, if you wish):

CUFF:
1x1 RIB CUFF:
CO (cast on) 32 sts with smaller needles in main color (MC), distribute stitches evenly on four needles and join to knit in rounds.
Work 8 or more rounds.

STRIPED GARTER STITCH CUFF:
CO 32 sts with smaller needles in MC, distribute stitches evenly on four needles and join to knit in rounds.
Round 2: purl (p) all in MC
Round 3: join contrast color (CC) and knit all stitches
Round 4: purl all in CC
Repeat the rounds above in any color combination you want, as many times as you wish.

PETIT WELTING FANTASTIC CUFF (a smaller version of the Welting Fantastic pattern from Barbara Walker’s A Treasure of Knitting Patterns):
CO 33 sts with MC on smaller needles, distribute stitches evenly on three needles and join to knit in rounds.
Round 1 (MC): k all
Round 2 (MC): p all
Round 3 (MC): k all
Round 4 (CC): *k2tog (knit 2 sts together), k2, kfb (increase by knitting into the front and the back of the same stitch) twice (i.e. do this over the next 2 stitches), k3, ssk (slip two stitches as if to knit, slide them back onto the left needle and knit them together through the back loop)* repeat the section between the * twice more
Round 5 (CC): k all
Round 6 (CC): same as round 4
Round 7 (CC): same as round 5
Round 8 (MC): same as round 4
Repeat rounds 1-3 once more
First body round (for this cuff only): switch to larger needles, decrease one stitch and distribute the 32 stitches evenly on 4 double-pointed needles.


MITTEN BODY:
Switch to larger needles, knit one or two rounds.
Next round: start the Emi Mitts chart (PDF download). Pay attention to thumb placement (both mittens are identical).

THUMB SETUP (round 16 of chart): k 5 sts in MC onto the spare needle, CO 5 sts with backwards loop method onto the right needle, continue working the remaining rounds of the chart

SMALL CUFF OVER FINGERS:
After you finish the chart, cut CC and work 2 or more rounds in 1x1 rib. Bind off purlwise.

THUMB:
The thumb is knitted on three double-pointed needles, in MC.
Needle 1: attach yarn, pick up and knit the 5 bottom stitches from the spare needle
Needle 2: pick up one st on the side of the thumb opening, pick up 2 sts from the top cast on
Needle 3: pick up 3 sts from the top cast on, pick up one additional st on the side of the thumb opening

Join to knit in rounds. Knit 6 rounds.
Work 2 rounds in 1x1 rib. Bind off purlwise.

FINISHING:
Weave in ends and block mittens in your preferred method.

(c) magic-photographer.com

Enjoy wearing the mitts.

LINKS:
Pattern page on Ravelry (If you're posting your project on Ravelry, please link to it)
My project pages for Emi Mitts: 1 and 2

In which I talk about finding a mistake in a knitting pattern and discovering that a designer is not only brilliant but a lovely person as well

My Kenzo, paused

After rushing like crazy to increase the chances of finishing Kenzo for my birthday later this month, I suddenly had to put it on hold. I discovered a mistake in the instructions. At first, I decided to give the instructions a try in spite of doubts. This sweater has a very unusual construction and the schematic didn't quite capture the shape of the section where I hit the snag - the final rows of the upper back. One of the pattern photos shows a portion of the back from the side, but I'd need a picture of the whole back to - maybe - grasp what I was making.

I retried it two more times, fiddling with the instructions, but nothing came of it.

So I messaged the designer, Olga Buraya-Kefelian, on Ravelry. I used to be shy about such messages. I mean, I honestly don't expect designers to have their patterns memorized like songs, but I thought that maybe some notes might have gotten jumbled in editing and she might be able to help.

It turned out a little more complicated than that. What's important, though, is that Olga sent me a really lovely reply and gave me the contact info for people at Brooklyn Tweed who could help me resolve the problem.

I got a reply from BT pretty quickly (thanks!). There is indeed a mistake in that section, so I'm looking forward to that getting resolved. I'll keep you posted here, on my project page. For now, Kenzo's waiting tucked away in a bag.

You will want to knit: Thistle Garden Cardigan

My recent conversations with Teresa coincided with the release of her newest pattern, and that's how this post series finally came to be. There are fantastic patterns out there and while we can't knit them all (or can we? ;-)), they're always worth a mention. I'm going to try and keep up with great new patterns.

Thistle Garden by Teresa Gregorio is one of such great patterns: it has a beautiful lace motif on the front paired with seed stitch, which makes the yarn color pop. The pattern was written with Zen Yarn Garden Serenity Worsted in mind and it really makes the most of the yarn. (Check out Canary Knits for details on sweater kits!)

Photo by Teresa Gregorio, used with permission

I love lace and I'm always curious about lace in heavier yarns, and in knits other than shawls. Thistle Garden incorporates lace in a very clever way, keeping the cardigan modern-looking with a touch of the romantic. I'm not a fan of pink, but this rich shade is quite eye-catching and it's a lively color - another unexpected pairing with lace that works perfectly in this design.

You can find the design on Ravelry here.

My Indie Designer Day

What an incredible start to the new year!

I'm happy and proud to be featured in the Canary Knits  Indie Designer Day series. I'm the first one in 2013 ;-)

My profile is here. I told Teresa about my knitting plans for the near future, and here's a sneak peek:

Emi Mitts - coming very soon!