GAP-Tastic Success!

Tah-Dah!  Our GAP-Tastic Cowl (pattern FREE via Ravelry) was a fantastic success!  We made it with 3 skeins of Malabrigo Chunky (colour Intenso) and 8mm-36" circular needles. 

Because we took the needle size down a bit to accommodate the yarn, we cast on an extra 10 stitches (total cast on 141 sts).  I think it would be absolutely sumptuous made with Misti Alpaca Chunky (3 skeins, 8mm needles)

If you don't want to shell out for the fancy yarn, you could also make this cowl using any of the following:

• 3 skeins of Berroco Peruvia Quick ($32.91) & 9mm-29" circular needles
• 3 skeins of Brown Sheep Lamb's Pride Bulky ($29.91) & 8mm-29" circular needles
• 4 skeins of Berroco Vintage Chunky ($31.88) & 6.5mm to 7mm-29" circular needles (cast on 151 sts)

For a narrower, shorter cowl, you can get away with using 2 skeins and casting on 111 sts. 

You can find us at Knitomatic.com!

Fair Isle Fumbles

Above is Drips. I was hankering to make one since I first came across the pattern late last spring. I didn't really have it in me until this fall. I dove in, thinking it would be easy to learn how to do the colour-work. You know that saying, when you 'ASSUME" you make an "ASS" our of "U" and "ME"? Yeah, I forgot about that. Hubris got the best of me. But let me explain ... I don't want to put you off Fair Isle knitting, just please learn from my foibles.  

So I figured it should be easy, sure it's a new technique, but I've seen other people do it, it's 2 colours, and an easy chart to read. What could go wrong? My tension, that's what. There are many projects where tension in fair isle isn't a huge issue, and it's ok if it's a little off. But a hat needs to stretch to fit a head, so the tension has to be consistent. If it's too tight, the hat won't stretch. If it's too loose, you'll see gaps between the colours when it stretches. 

Of course, I really had not thought about any of this, I just said "Hey! Lets make a cool looking hat! Wheeee!" (I did not actually say any of that, inside or outside of my head, but it illustrates my reasoning, or absence thereof). 

I looked up some videos on youtube about Fair Isle knitting, and took it from there. I found that I was most comfortable holding a strand in each hand, so I used that technique. Now, there was absolutely nothing wrong with the tutorials I followed, they were great. I did not learn anything incorrect or bad from them. My problem stemmed from the fact that my tension knitting with my left hand (continental technique) is a lot tighter than my tension knitting with my right hand (english technique). It makes sense, I have knitted English all my life. 

After a few attempts, I threw in the towel. The yarn, Malabrigo Worsted, is a single ply and not resilient. If I kept ripping it out I'd also wreck the yarn. I made a compromise, decided to add the drips to my hat using duplicate stitch (embroidery), and resolved to tackle the fair isle issue again after consulting with a professional. 

I've since consulted with the intrepid Liane, who learned from the all knowing Mairi, that for me, the best way to get a consistent tension on a fair isle hat is to use the method where I hold both strands of yarn in my Right hand. The 2 handed method was comfortable for me, but I could not control the tension. Problem solved, I'll give it another shot later.   

As always, you can find us at Knitomatic.com!

Big Red Cabled Cowl

Above, a finished object for the store. A sample of the Loose Cabled Cowl pattern, made with 2 skeins of Malabrigo Rasta and 15mm-24" circular needles. It was super fast & easy (once I sorted out the needle situation), and the Rasta feels super sumptuous! You know when people refer to things as "yummy scrummy" - that's how it feels.

The weave is loose, so it drapes really nicely (as well as merino will ever drape), and the aesthetic is nice & casual. It'll probably only cover your shoulders like the pic above if you are very small (the mannequin's shoulder only measure 15.5"/40cm - I am a medium, have small shoulders, and my shoulders measure 18" from side to side). 

As always, you can find us at Knitomatic.com!

Next Freebie: Simple Wristlets

Okey-dokey, so here's another of the fall pattern's I've been working on. More hand things - I'm really feeling the little hand garments right now. These ones are made with a skein of Malabrigo Gruesa (2 if you want a contrast colour).

Simple Wristlets

These wristlets are fast, simple, and very satisfying. They make quick, easy gifts that stand out. Designed with Malabrigo Gruesa, the yarn’s texture and depth of colour works with the simple design to create extra interest and a unique, handmade aesthetic.  

Read more about it on Ravelry

Download for FREE at http://www.knitomatic.com

They also knit up beautifully using Malabrigo Rasta, using 9mm needles. See the details for the ones we whipped up HERE. 

As always, you can find us at Knitomatic.com!

Pointy Elf Hats A-Go-Go

Pointy Elf Hat (green)

I'm sorry I have been absent lately, I've been hard at work designing and knitting Fall samples.  If I have really left you bereft (somehow I think not, there is A LOT of other stuff on the internet) you can always follow my progress through my Ravelry account. I'm pretty attentive to my Ravelry Project Page, it's the closest thing I have to a garden and I am constantly tending to it.  (That said, don't bother messaging me through Ravelry, I never read it. Just shoot me an old skool e-mail via knitomatic.com)

Pointy Elf Hat (pink)

Anyway, I've been getting into the book More Last Minute Knitted Gifts by Joelle Hoverson. Her first book, Last Minute Knitted Gifts is one of my favourite knitting pattern books of all time. Joelle used to work for Martha Stewart and she's got the touch. 

Above are a couple of Pointy Elf Hats. Both are toddler sized, and made with 1 skein of Malabrigo Gruesa and 8mm double pointed needles. They were fast, fun, and look really great. I made the green first, liked it so much I made a pink one thinking I'd give it to my niece, but I like the pair of them together so much I'm keeping the pink one in the store.  They are so charming that I'm feeling like I want one in every corner of the store.  Seriously, they're adorable, and they remind me of those little pointy hats that the kids wore on the first night at Hogwarts in the 1st Harry Potter movie.  Anyway, the Gruesa is only $14.97 a skein, they aren't a huge investment. 

As always, you can find us at Knitomatic.com!

Taking a Tunisian Tour

I have embarked on a Tunisian Crochet odyssey!  A couple of weeks ago I took a Craftsy online class  guru Jennifer Hansen (stitchdiva.com), and since then I've been exploring this new technique. 

The pillow above was my first experiment. As soon as I got to the lesson about 3 colour Tunisian Crochet I started playing around. Actually, I think I dove in even before that class - ever impatient to skip ahead. Don't worry, I did stop to learn how to do it correctly.  I set to work with a 12mm Tunisian Crochet Hook and 3 skeins of Malabrigo Gruesa in different colours. 

I actually took copious notes, the class was great, I loved the format and the platform, and the instruction was excellent. Currently I'm playing around with the basic 3 colour technique (Tunisian Simple Stitch), but I'm going to go back and complete my coursework and make the Tunisian Multi Garment (above). It's so Missoni, I think the textile design is so incredibly clever! Actually, it would make a dynamite blanket. Hmmmmmmmm ......   :-)  Anyway, Jennifer promises that by the end of the course I will be a Tunisian Crochet Ninja, and if I do my work I don't doubt her.

As always, you can find us at Knitomatic.com.

Quick Malabrigo Mitts

Silly me! I forgot to blog my Quick Mitts!  I made them because I thought they would be a great, fast little Holiday Gift, and also because I felt the Malabrigo Rasta would look great on hands. I was right on both counts. I wrote up the pattern and it's free, you can download it right HERE.

As always, you can find us at Knitomatic.com!

Herringbone Cowl

I`ve been working on a lighter weight Herringbone Cowl for the spring. It looks gorgeous, love it. I`m using 2 skeins of Malabrigo Worsted in colour no.9 Polar Morn. By the way, it will not actually look like a capelet, as above, the needles are just shorter than the total circumference of the piece. You can see what it will looks like HERE.

The Malabrigo is working up really fluffy and light on the 12mm needles. If you wanted it denser you could reduce the needle size, but I`m happy to have it light and airy.

The pattern is working well, although it does leave a slight jog. Also, follow the instructions and don`t play around with the placement of your stitch marker, or your jog will wander off (mine did, but I`m not going back to fix it). 

As always, you can find us at Knitomatic.com!

Leaf Lace Shawlette

Many of the links posted here are from Ravelry.com, a free website for knitters and crocheters. If you don't have your own account you can use ours: login: knitomatic2, password: knitomatic. But you should get your own account fast, 'cause you're going to LOVE it!

We made another sample of our Leaf Lace Shawette, this time with Malbrigo Chunky and 8mm/US11 needles. It's bigger, shawl size, and super cozy!  

As always, you can find us at knitomatic.com.

Little Samuel (Shmully) Hat

Many of the links posted here are from Ravelry.com, a free website for knitters and crocheters. If you don't have your own account you can use ours: login: knitomatic2, password: knitomatic. But you should get your own account fast, 'cause you're going to LOVE it!

I feel like this post is total filler, mostly because I don't think that this hat turned out to be particularly inspiring. Not that I don't like it, I made it to be VERY warm, and it is.  I've been calling it Shmully, which is the diminutive in Yiddish for the name Samuel. The pattern is of course, named Samuel, and i made it smaller to fit my little head. I also knit it in the round, instead of flat, on much smaller needles to make it dense to keep out the wind, and smaller to fit my head. At the end, it really doesn't resemble the original all that much, it doesn't really slouch properly, which is OK because I don't really look good in slouchy hats. I folded it over on the side and stuck a pin in it, and's it's all good!

In the end, it's a good hat and a achieve what I set out to do. I have a warm hat that doesn't make me look too ridiculous, that matches my cowl, and thus I have a warm matching set that I like. If I have the time and/or ambition, I might take out the crown of the hat, get rid of all the extra fabric, and just make it a beanie. Alternately, I`ll just make myself a new hat, maybe a Vintage Rib & Button hat,  in the same yarn and wear them interchangeably. Que sera, I have a sweater to make!

As always, you can find us at knitomatic.com!

The Ultimate Mobius Cowl

Many of the links posted here are from Ravelry.com, a free website for knitters and crocheters. If you don't have your own account you can use ours: login: knitomatic2, password: knitomatic. But you should get your own account fast, 'cause you're going to LOVE it!

Amid all the stuff I have to get done, I've snuck in a new cowl, and it's for ME!  

Despite what you might think, I'm always so busy making things for other people or the store that I don't really have much of a collection of nice handmade hats, mitts and scarves to get me though the long Canadian winter. It's driving me crazy, none of my accessories match, or I'm just not in love with them. 

So I'm making a new hat/scarf set, just for me!  Part one, above is a Long Mobius Cowl in Malabrigo Chunky - and I LOVE it!  I used 3 skeins (all worth it!), and alternated K3 rounds, P3 rounds, until I had 16 ridges total.  I used 8mm-36" needles but a bit longer (40" or 47") would have been good also. 

Love the yarn, it is PERFECT!  No shedding issues, soft, and lots of body, so my cowl has bulk without weight, and stands up nicely so I can snuggle into it when the wind kicks in.   Me Likey!

As always, you can find us at knitomatic.com!

Finished - Instant Gratification Scarf

I finished my Instant Gratification Scarf last week too - very fast, this one was also stuck in photography. It was super easy & fast! Used just 1 skein of Malabrigo Rasta in Solis with 12mm needles. I cast on 7 sts because I didn't know how far it would go, but in retrospect I could have done 9 or 11 easily. 

New FREE Knitting Pattern - Bulky Mobius Cowl!

We've written up the free knitting pattern for one of our latest store samples, the Bulky Mobius Cowl in Malabrigo Rasta!

Bulky Mobius Cowl

Free pattern by Haley Waxberg

The pattern is very simple, fast, and satisfying for time when you just need to produce something FAST. It is knit in the round using a really long circular needle and a nifty little cast on just for mobius knitting. To learn this easy new skill you can watch Cat Bohrdi’s great Intro to Mobius Knitting tutorial on you tube. Cat’s instructions are clear and easy to follow and you’ll be an expert in no time!

Size 
S/M(M/L) 
tighter (looser) 
6.5” high unstretched 
Approx 13(14) inches long at bottom, lying flat

Materials 
1 skeins Malabrigo Rasta, 150g-82m, colour 853 
Abril 
10mm/36” circular needles 
1 Stitch Marker

Gauge 
8 sts & 21 rows = 4”/10cm in K3 rows, P3 rows rib

Techniques 
Intro to Mobius Knitting tutorial by Cat Bohrdi on you tube: 
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LVnTda7F2V4

DOWNLOAD HERE

Malabrigo Rasta Cowl

This is the last mobius cowl - for now.  They are addictive little things for sure. This is a version of the Easy Mobius Cowl in Malabrigo Rasta.  I made some modifications because the yarn is a bit thicker than called for: used 10mm needles, cast on 50 sts, etc, etc ... click on the link to see all the details. I think I could have gotten away with 46 sts, but I have a little head and neck. 

The Rasta was beautiful, once again!  The colour is so beautifully stunning, the texture soft, and the bulk works so well for this little accessory. I managed to get the whole thing from 1 skein - go me!  :-)

By the way, the pattern will be available soon, I just have to so dome web stuff. If you can't wait the day, it's available on paper in the store: Knit-O-Matic.

Display Hats: Malabrigo Rasta

I thought it might be nice to knit up samples of new yarns as hats, and this was the first, my Toque in Malabrigo Rasta.  The yarn is so soft!  It is merino and thick and lovely. Laura says it has changed her life. Anyway, it was a pleasure and from what I have seen on Ravelry, it seems to make a stunning yet simple scarf or cowl! 

Unoriginal Hat

I've got an Unoriginal Hat on the needles in Malabrigo Chunky for my sister in law, Katie. I reduced the needle size to 5.5mm to adjust for the finer yarn, although it dawned on my last night that I could have doubled the yarn and worked the pattern as writen. Regardless, Katie will probably prefer something less bulky.

Pattern modifications included an extra 14 sts at the cast on, 2 extra set up rows, and 7 extra rows before the crown decreases (in a basic cable, no more big cable).

The tension is nice and firm on the small needles and I've taught myself how to cable without a cable needle!

Habitat-tat-tat

I finished my Habitat cabled hat late last week!  It seemes a bit short on John (DBF) so i blocked it, and now the band is not snug enough for his preference. I'm going to reinforce it with knitting elastic and we'll see. Anyway, it was great, except for needing an extra 1/2 inch or so in length. If you think you might also need some i suggest adding it in the ribbing, the cabling is to too complicated to go 'off-chart'.  The malabrigo worsted felt gorgeous to work with!

Habitat for Keppies

I haven't been accomplishing much lately because my arms have been hurting from all of the recent winter weather. I did get a bit done on John's Hat, Habitat. Actually, it's not bad work for 2 broken arms. BTW, a 'keppie' is yiddish slang for  a cute little head (the term is normally 'kepele', which would be pronounced 'kep'∙eh∙leh).

habitat cabled hat

for beloved boyfriend i am taking on Habitat, by Jared Flood. i'm using Malabrigo Merino Worsted and the stuff feels fabulous to knit with! it has such a nice squish, although that satisfying feeling is a little lost now that i'm into the cabling. the pattern is well written and relatively easy to follow, although i had to colour-code the symbols on the chart to keep track and i needed more than a full rainbow of colours. it requires some paying attention and a row counter, but other than that it isn't too involved. 

beret city

OK, I knit this Beret in Malabrigo Aquarella up and finished it before I got a chance to tell you about it. It is an Urchin by Ysolda. I was a little confused when I first started but once I got the hang of it it was really easy. One caveat, you will REALLY want to have a set of locking or split ring stitch markers at hand to keep track or your short rows. Every time i did a Wrap & Turn (w&t) I stuck a marker in the wrapped stitch. Listen to me now, believe me later. I'm not sure I love the Aquarella for this hat, it may be a bit thick. I should have made a size Small, I did a Medium and it's a bit big - although, if you have a big noggin it is probably just right. One thing I notice now, looking at the pattern pictures on Ravelry, I don't seem to have the ridges that bisect the sections. I must have read something wrong, but it's easy enough to adjust next  time (if there is one).

This is my Parisian Beanie Beret (raspberry beret) from Stitch Diva Designs - almost finished except for another round or two of decreases  and some ends woven in. I was working on it while in line at the flu clinic on Monday (don't go to the one at Yonge & Eglinton, what a mess). I made some good progress on it, almost finished except I RAN OUT OF YARN! I finished it yesterday, it is drying right now. It looks really big!  I think it may have been a mistake to knit it in a superwash yarn. After you wash a superwash it can often loosen up a bit, and I think that because this hat is knit on 6mm needles that a yarn that has a more consistent body would be a good idea. Maybe a Malabrigo Worsted or Lamb's Pride Bulky. Otherwise, i think it would be a good idea to change the needle size and use 5.5mm or maybe even 5mm. But I'll get back to you with the final pics and how I feel about it.

Hey, by the way, I taught myself how to knit with gloves on! The trick is to wear those thin, lycra stretchy one size mini-gloves. The ones at H&M are pretty good.