Fall Knitting Plans

Welcome to the first of a monthly, written newsletter. I’m not sure what this will end up looking like, but for now I write about, and show some finished projects, WIPs (works in progress), and maybe some of my favourite notions and accessories.

First up, I FINALLY finished my Idlewild Wrap. It took way longer than expected, but it’s finished and the pattern is available for purchase (on Ravelry, Love Crafts, and here on the website). This was a pleasure to knit. I choose to knit a rectangle on the bias, where you are increasing at the beginning of the row and decreasing at the end, only on the right side row. This creates a parallelogram. Figuring out the math of the patterns was fairly easy, until I came to the butterfly stitch. This stitch took some figuring out to the and get a good pattern repeat that didn’t result in writing out every single row. Once I figured that out it was smooth sailing. When designing a pattern, one thing I try to do is make the pattern rows repeat nicely, so that I’m not writing out every row of the pattern, and in turn you don’t have to read every row, it becomes something you can memorize.

Here is an image of the lace on the Idlewild Wrap. It took some time, but the butterfly lace, knit in the colour Azure, was finally in a place where the pattern rows were easy to repeat. With this section sorted the wrap could be finished. 

Up next on the design list is a new shawl. This summer a collaboration came out with The Kitchen Sink Shop and Pine & Purl. Both are women owned, small businesses, The Kitchen Sink Shop making and selling project bags and designing patters, while Pine & Purl hand dyes yarn. They collaborated on a mystery sock club, based on a book. The Kitchen Sink Shop made project bags, and designed sock patterns (which are a mystery), and Pine & Purl dyed the yarn. Now, the theme/book was not a mystery, nor was the colours of the yarn. It’s a 3 month mystery club, with the patterns being a mystery and releasing on the 1st of the month, Oct, Nov, Dec. The theme/book this year, was none other then Anne of Green Gables. Now you know I just HAD to have it. Each yarn colour way and sock pattern is inspired by a character, Anne, Gilbert, and Diana. When I saw the yarn I knew it had to become a 3 skein fade shawl. I’m currently working on this new design, and am excited to use other sock yarn to knit the sock patterns.

This the Anne project bag, and yarns, Anne, Gilbert, Diana (from L to R) from the mystery sock club.

That’s all for now. The start of the new design is going so well, all I want to do is knit it and write the pattern all day long. Come back next month for an update.