Socks, Suspense, September 2017! Part 1

Hello Everyone!

This is an exciting month! We have a wonderful free class with yarn purchase for easy roll-top ankle socks using pattern Rose City Roller by Mara Catherine Bryner. This sock project is portable, has some different stitch techniques to make it interesting, and helps us prolong the warmer weather as we transition into Fall. And they make great yoga socks!

We are also working  on the What the Fade?! Mystery FADE Along by Andrea Mowry, www.dreareneeknits.com. Everywhere you look, local yarn shops, knitting groups, and individual knitters are participating in Andrea Mowry’s first ever FADE Along where six different gradient colored yarns “fade” into each other as each clue is revealed. There are eight clues in all, with the first clue dropping on August 31^st and the eighth clue coming out in October. Here, at Yarns by HPF, we are using Mrs Crosby’s Fade Kits, which includes six individual colors of her Satchel yarn chosen to play off of one another.

But first, here’s a little bit about designer, Andrea Mowry. Who is this tattooed, engaging, prolific and talented, beautiful designer? She literally burst onto the knitting scene with great force and has been designing unique and fabulous-to-wear knits since 2014. In an interview on the Woolful podcast when it was new (2014), Andrea said that she wanted knitting to be her life and she was taking the leap to do just that. Now she’s arguably one of the most popular pattern designers around. Taught as a child by her grandmother, she says it is rarely a day that passes without yarn in her hands. She also bakes and embroiders, as well as sews. She says on her website that she believes in enjoying every stitch and wearing at least one hand knit everyday – which she obviously does! She emphasizes style and quality, focusing on designing accessories and garments to fit the modern wardrobe. Her patterns are fun to knit and stylish to wear with clear directions for every level of knitter. Her patterns’ embedded videos are fantastic. By her own account, she greatly loves learning new techniques and skills and luckily shares with knitters through her patterns. She believes that one of the fabulous aspects to knitting is the multitude of ways you can end up with the same result. Andrea creates and supports a handmade life through knitting and sewing garments for herself and her family. A stay-at-home Mom, she cooks from scratch and tries to shop locally and support small businesses. She says that when she began designing, it was very important to incorporate her feelings into her work. She is definitely the real deal! Knowing a bit more about Andrea Mowry makes knitting her designs even more special and fun.

Now onto knitting The What the Fade?! Mystery FADE Along. This is my first MKAL and first fade project. I am someone who reads a pattern through a couple of times before I begin knitting a project. To knit in “installments” is a bit outside my comfort zone. But, I really like Andrea Mowry’s designs, I learned Brioche in August, and Mrs. Crosby’s yarns, www.mrscrosbyplays.com, were calling to me to come “play”, so there was nothing stopping me. In this blogpost, I will talking about starting the Mystery FADE Along and my progress so far. I am in the middle of Clue Two, working towards finishing it by the time Clue Three comes out on September 14^th. To set up for this project, I picked out my yarn - I chose Mrs. Crosby’s Speckle Fade Kit. The colors are also outside my comfort zone. They are bright and pronounced, not my usual dark neutrals. I have my color-coded pens to yarn color to keep track of the pattern rows as I knit. I do write down what I knit from the pattern because I have found through much trial and error, my knitting is better off for it. This is my methodology to keep track of rows. It is a bit over the top, but it works for me. As always, use whatever method makes you comfortable. My tiered plastic containers to stage my yarn helps prevent tangling, which is inevitable in this project where at any one time you can have as many as four skeins going at once.  Yes, it is quite the production!

When I began with Clue One, I decided to go with a color arrangement of a lighter to darker fade, like the yarn is set up in the package.  This is in contrast to what is suggested in the pattern, but like Andrea says, the same knitted project can have different outcomes. At first I couldn't see how the color combinations worked. Colors A & D, B & E? And then, a blinding flash of the obvious or BFO for short - Brioche is reversible, two fades in one project, one for each side! And then it all made sense. I highly recommend viewing the pattern's embedded videos, especially for the Brioche increases. The videos are very well shot and Andrea's sparkly pink fingernails contrast well with her green hand tattoo!!

The pattern growing from the center spine is intricate and magical at the same time. Bringing in two additional colors through Clue Two makes knitting this shawl like reading a good mystery. I want to see where this clue leads and I am anxiously waiting for the next clue to drop! I am also waiting to see if I can reach Brioche Rock Star status?!?! 

So for now until the next installment, I am going back to finishing up Clue Two. Clue Three will be here before we know it! I am thoroughly enjoying decyphering the clues to this mystery. Check out our Instagram @yarns.by.hpf for a look at our wonderful knitters working on their What the Fade?! projects. 
Stay tuned for the next What the Fade?! installment!

Knit On! Lisa

Summer Wrap Up 2017

Hello Everyone!

Can you believe we are already in September?! It seems that no sooner the Summer started, we are into September, past Labor Day, and heading into Fall. That means crisper temperatures in New England with glimpses of the warmth still enjoyed in the South. Summer is a great time to knit and crochet and we were quite busy keeping out needles moving during these past three months. We started off with “Juvie June”, onto “Christmas in July”, and then to “A is for August, B is for Brioche, and C is for "Can-Do Attitude.”

Juvie June was all about knitting for the smaller set. So much of clothing for children are miniaturized versions of adult clothing. We saw this play out with our adult sized Camden Cap by Wooly Wormhead and our child sized Newsboy Cap by our very own Linda B. While these caps look similar, they were constructed differently. The Camden Cap was wrong side knitted and purled with bulky yarn, turned inside out to the purl side, with a sew on brim. The Newsboy Cap was knitted and purled on the right side with a knitted on brim. The techniques both have their merits. The Camden Cap definitely knitted up faster and sewing on the brim stiffened with internal mesh, was easy. I made a braided trim but did not add a button on top of the cap. By contrast, the Newsboy Cap went a bit slower, but I actually liked knitting it better, Because the cap is knitted on the right side, purling does slow the process somewhat. I think the knitted in brim looks great. Not only do you get a brim, there is also a band in back of the cap. I did top the cap off with a covered button mostly because it just looked so cute!

Our other projects included the Seamless Baby Hooded Pullover by Maggie van Buiten, the Milly Tank Top by Millamia Sweden, and Work Sock baby (Monkey) Snuggler by Shelley Hilton. I knitted both the pullover and tank. One of our knitter, Shronda, knitted a beautiful snuggler that she posted to our Facebook page and featured in this blogpost.

The pullover pattern is very well written and to see the pullover grow as I knitted was a lot of fun. My grafting skills came in handy for the hood. I have not knitted buttonholes before but the instructions were very clear and my sheep buttons with the dangling feet fit perfectly. The tank, on the other hand took patience on my part (not well developed in me!). Colorwork flat takes concentration, but the results are worth it. Working the tank flat ensures that it fits properly. The pattern accommodates seaming through stitch placement. I came to this revelation of knitting flat because I did try to knit this tank in the round. No matter how loosely the carried yarn is, it still pulls enough to affect the fit and pattern definition. Knit the tank flat and you will have a tank that not only fits but is very adorable.

Christmas in July embraced taking advantage of time in the Summer to knit for the very busy holiday season. Although July proved to be quite busy all by itself, we held Design Your Own Stocking, Sock Hat, and Fa-La-La Fred & Fanny or Fritz Ornament Classes. I opted for the knitting the Sock Hat and Fa-La-La Fred (or Fat Freddy as my Husband, Linda’s Dad, calls him). The Sock Hat is called Aipfelmuetzen-Bommelscarf by Sabine Vogelpoth. This hat does include endless knitting, with a twist. The design is a traditional German style. Using sock yarn makes for a soft hat/scarf and will be perfect for the New England snow that is just around the corner. The twist in knitting the Sock hat is centered around the stitch decreases shaping the hat. I use circular needs over double pointed needles. Circs work better for me with my 4 inch interchangeable and 8 inch cord. And did I mention I get to use my favorite knitting notion, stitch markers?! I have a great affinity for stitch markers and the ones I am using are now carried in the store. A very creative designer beautifully creates them in intricate detail. I’ll bet you can’t stop at one set. I know I can’t!! I am still knitting my hat/scarf and it is one of my Works In Progress (WIPs). WIPs deserve their own blogpost. Interchangeable needles and cords greatly help with managing WIPs, but more on that in a later blogpost.

Perhaps one of my favorite things to knit are stuffed animals, ornaments, or “stuffies”. Fa-La-La Fred is happiness on your needles. My Fred is chubby, because he needs the extra stuffing to keep him warm while he’s making all those toys. I used a cotton blend for his skin and variegated yarn for his body, feet and arms. I did some striping and color work for his had and he now hangs on my knitting light, waiting for me to knit Fanny and Fritz. They’re in the queue, Fred, I promise!

“A is for August, B is for Brioche, C is for Can-Do Attitude!” brought us Brioche!!!! Brioche is beautiful, intricate, and reversible! We had the Brioche Bandana Cowl where you knitted Brioche in the round and flat, and three different Brioche Hats 0 Beginner, Intermediate, and Advanced.  I am new to Brioche so I knitted the DK Brioche Bandana Cowl by Lavanya Patricella and the Cappuccino and brioche hat by Knitting for Breakfast. I knitted the hat first because it is the perfect project for beginning Brioche. The pattern’s detailed instructions and pictures makes Brioche easy to understand while wading through “barks” and “burps”. For me, it was exciting to see the pattern come to life with the gray and ocean colored variegated yarns I chose. The key for me again is patience. Knitting Brioche too quickly means backtracking or ripping out, with neither an option I wanted to repeat (as I did a few times!). Once I got the rhythm though, the attraction to Brioche became very clear. I love knitting Brioche and I found patience pays off – an ongoing lesson that keeping Brioche and Yoga in my life will continually reinforce. I had to pay close attention when decreasing because that is where losing stitches can easily happen, but is not inevitable. I am happy to say that I did not drop any stitches, but my powers of concentration were in full gear. The DK Brioche Bandana Cowl would further my skills by knitting Brioche fat as well as in the round. I chose more muted colors but they were still distinctly displayed in the Brioche stitches. I suggest adding cast on stitches for a more draped cowl. I know my cowl will be warm and soft once those cold New England winds blow (not yet please!).

And so, when asked “How did you spend your Summer?”, look back and take stock of all the knitting and creativity you brought to  a season not necessarily associated with knitting and crochet. The variety of yarns and projects lets us knit and crochet all year ‘round. And knitting (and crochet) brings happiness and nothing says Summer better than happiness!!

Knit On! Lisa