Knit.Wear

I wanted to entice you all with photos from the second issue of knit.wear, but we only have a few copies left!  I'll show you my favorites anyway.

The magazine is divided up into beautifully-styled sections, each with a nice coherent theme.  Knit Minimal showcases some simple stitch patterns with big impact.  The Linen Stitch Jacket has a pretty shape.  This would be amazing in Cascade Venezia, a wool and silk blend with the perfect drape and shine.

The Chevron Vest would be nice in one of our many bulky wools, especially Debbie Bliss Glen for a little added color interest.  Classic Elite Sprout would make a great summer version.

The One-Seam Shrug is very weird and cool. 

The Tulip Sleeve Pullover is part of With Dimension.  Check out those amazing twisted sleeves.  This would be so pretty in Berroco Ultra Alpaca or Flicker for a little sparkle.

The Froth Moebius is knit with pretty Cascade Alpaca Lace, and would be perfect in Classic Elite Silky Alpaca Lace, too.

The Nonesuch Cowl is made with Rowan Lima, a luscious chained alpaca.  Just three balls and a relatively straightforward pattern...this looks like a winner.

The Twist Pullover can be worn twisted up or open, as shown on the cover.  It is knit with fingering yarn, so the possibilities are kind of endless.  We have a gorgeous silk blend from Kollage called Silk-a-Licious that would be amazing.

The Cinched Sweater Coat has a lovely little cabled back detail.  Oh, it looks so warm and cozy, doesn't it?

On Air is a lovely collection of lightweight pieces knit with pretty yarns.  The Medallion Edge Cardigan is knit with Scrumptious Lace, which we have in many shades.

I LOVE the Linen and Lace Cardigan, knit in Classic Elite Soft Linen.  Love.  Look at that beautiful detail.

Ruche is a collection of pieces with some interesting textural details.  The Crimped Cardigan is really pretty, don't you think?

The Origami Pullover begs to be knit with Elsbeth Lavold Silky Wool.

The Ripple Cowl is knit with your favorite sock yarn.

Seamless is a collection of interesting pieces, too.  The Deep-V Tee would be cool in Tahki Ripple, I think.

The Bias Lace Shell would be really great in Cascade Ultra Pima.

These are just my favorites.  Which ones caught your attention?

Little Sweetness

Looking for a little summertime project?  May I interest you in a sweet little dress?

This is the Spanish Dress from Debbie Bliss made with two balls of Debbie Bliss EcoBaby Fairtrade and some lovely coordinating cotton from our friends at Bolt.

What a perfect little project for these warm days which have finally arrived.  The pattern can be found in Design It, Knit It: Babies and the Spring/Summer 2012 issue of the Debbie Bliss Magazine, both available at the shop.

If you're not a knitter, we have a crochet version, too!  This sample lives at Bolt right now, and the top is crocheted with Classic Elite Firefly.  The pattern is a freebie from the HGTV website.

These patterns obviously work well for sweet and casual sundresses, and I think either one would also make a perfect little flowergirl dress or special birthday dress.  Come on up to our little corner and let your creativity run wild with yarn and fabric combinations.

Ripple-tastic

Seems like Ripple Fever is sweeping the shop.  A few of us are participating in a very low-key and highly unorganized knit-a-long using Tahki Ripple.  We were all going to make the same sweater, but that just isn't going to happen, so we are instead focusing on the yarn.

The pretty khaki piece in the background is Sally's work.  She is making the Myrtle Pullover.  

The sweater is knit on US7s, creating a fabric with lots of textural interest, even though it is all stockinette (knit one side and purl the other).  Your friends and neighbors will be amazed.

The kelpy green piece that vaguely resembles a fishing net belongs to me.  I am working on Anna from Cocoknits on a US11.  What a completely different look.  This pullover/coverup has an asymmetrical hem and is worked from cuff to cuff.  I had a little trouble with the sleeves in the round on US11 double-points, so I am knitting the sleeves flat, and I will seam them up later.  I'll give you full details when I am finished.  The first three sizes (up to a 44" bust) only require 4 balls of Ripple!

The last little bit up there is Ann's Summer Wisp scarf from last year.  This sample was knit on US10.5, but there are rows of dropped stitches, too, adding to the airy feel.

We will give you the pattern for free with the purchase of just one little ball of Ripple.  We have some great colors right now.  Here are the brights, including a very on-trend neon green/yellow.  I love that orange, too.

And the earth tones, including my green and Sally's khaki.  If Jenni decides to play along, she has the dark grey squirreled away for her Ripple project.  We have a nice backstock of the black, too.

The Urban Renewal book from Tahki has several great designs using Ripple, including Sally's piece above, the Clinton Vest, the Warren 2-Way Jacket, and the Remsen Twist-Front Top.  Collage has some pretties, as well, including a few flowy cardigans.  I showed you a few back in April.

Anyone out there want to join us in a Ripple-a-long?  If you're making a project with Ripple, we'd love to share it with the blog.  Just leave a comment and let me know what you're working on.  If you are finished, please load a photo onto our Flickr page or share it with our Ravelry group.  We love to inspire each other!

New Linen and Knit.Wear

A few new things for you!

We are trying out Marks & Kattens Linen in some great rich colors.  It's only $9.25 for 50g of pure linen.  Let us know what you think.  If you like it, we'll see about getting more.

We also have the second issue of knit.wear.  The first issue was AMAZING.  It also sold out in just a few weeks, and we had a hard time getting our hands on any more copies.  Eunny Jang makes an interesting point in her editor's note about finding the intersection of pieces that you'd like to knit and pieces you'd actually like to wear.  I agree that the designs in knit.wear more often than not fit nicely into both categories.  In addition, the magazine is beautiful, and the articles are interesting.  I'll show you more details and have yarn suggestions for you soon.  In the mean time, come grab your copy while we have them.

Also, we are on summer hours now.  We'll be open from 11-6 during the week (M-F), with Wednesday night Open Knit going until 9PM.  Saturday is still 10-5 and Sunday is still 11-4.  Also, please join us on Monday nights for Knit Night at Cruzroom, just a few blocks away!

Cleaning House

There is some good stuff in the sale bin, Close Knitters.  Everything is 50% off the price marked on the tag.

That's enough Louisa Harding Kashmir Baby to make several blankets.  There is a lot of pale blue, minty green, and sunny yellow, as well as a few browns and aqua blues.  If there is a baby in your future, perhaps this basket is for you.

We have a little bit of Classic Elite Princess in pretty green, enough for a hat and scarf set or little girl's sweater.

There are four balls of Ella Rae Kamelsoft in deep red and a whole bag in pretty chocolaty brown.  There is a smattering of Rowan Wool Cotton in some bright sunny colors.

We have some rich, man-appropriate colors in Karabella Margrite Bulky...green, browns, and a sky blue.  I used this yarn to make a simple hat for my mom a few years back.

Want a free pattern?  Here you go.  You'll need 2 balls of Margrite Bulky and a US10 16" and US10 double-pointed needles.  Cast on 68 stitches, join in the round, work 2x2 ribbing (knit2, purl2 around) for 6".  Work in stockinette stitch until the piece measures 10" from the cast on.  Then work the decreases as for the Turn a Square Hat, switching to the double-pointed needles when necessary.  There you go.

There is a basket full of bag handles and purse hardware, too. 

If you are knitting on a budget this summer, come take a look at all of these great yarns and help us clean house a little bit as we start thinking about fall yarns!

Taiyo Sock

Okay, so now for the Noro Taiyo Sock.

The fiber content and structure are very similar to the Taiyo, but this is much much finer, coming in at a light fingering weight.  Although this is called a sock yarn, I would be kind of hesitant to use it for socks due to the single-ply structure of the yarn.  It makes me worry that you would wear holes in it on your first wear.  If you have your heart set on socks, I would strongly recommend using a more traditional sock yarn for heels and toes.  That being said, many people on Ravelry have used this for socks, and the Noro Knitting Magazine has a lovely pair designed with Taiyo Sock.  Maybe it's just me.

So, moving on from socks.  Look at this gorgeous sweater, the Cropped Jacket from the Noro Knitting Magazine.  It was designed with Silk Garden Sock, but I have all the faith in the world that Tayio Sock would work just fine.

Part of it is knit sideways, and the front is shaped with some strategically placed short rows.  Two colorways are worked alternately to create the more bold stripes, and the subtle changes of the Noro are responsible for the cool ombre effect.

This skirt also really plays up the long color changes of the Noro.  I don't know about the stripes on the belly area, but I like the mitered rectangles at the bottom of the skirt.

When Sally told me that she was going to start stocking Taiyo Sock, my heart skipped a little beat, because I was reminded of this beautiful cowl.

Thank you, Streetsandyos, for use of your photo.

The Inspria Cowl is a Ravelry freebie from designer celerystalk, and she provides lots of options and room for modification.  This stunning version above is from Streetsandyos, and she paired the Taiyo Sock with Malabrigo Sock to tame it down a little bit.  I love every little thing about this piece.  In fact, one skein of Tayio Sock color #23A may or may not have already come home with me so that I may blatantly copy her.

I was also excited to see that someone had used it for the September Circle cowl, which I knit in Kauni this spring.  This lovely version is from Raveler oneknitwit, and she used color 28, which I believe we have at the shop, too.

Thank you, Oneknitwit, for use of your photo.

Look how well the color changes fit into the lace and garter sections.  This cowl was really fun to knit, and it would be great for a lace beginner.

If you love the scarf idea but not the lace, please please please try Windward from Heidi Kirrmaier (aka Pipibird).  I have seen a few solid versions of this scarf in person, and a few Noro versions online.  Let me tell you, this is a weird and very cool scarf.

Thank you, Knittyblue, for use of your photo.

To create her version, Knittyblue used Noro Sekku, a discontinued Noro yarn with the exact same fiber blend as Taiyo Sock.  The Noro shows off the interesting construction of this scarf and adds even more visual interest to an already interesting design.

As promised, lots of ideas for Taiyo Sock, and only one sock design in the bunch.  What are you going to make with Taiyo?

Noro Taiyo

We are carrying Noro Yarns again.  We took a little break, but Sally has decided to jump back on the bandwagon and stock some of our favorites.  Right now we have lots of Taiyo and Taiyo Sock, but there is more coming for fall.  Let me tell you about the Aran to chunky Taiyo first.

Taiyo is a really pretty cotton, silk, and wool blend (40%/30%/15%) with a little nylon added to strengthen the singly ply.  The colorways that Sally chose are beautiful, of course.

Want some project ideas?  I knew you would.  There are a few blankets that I have been ogling that just beg for Noro.  

Photo by Kay Gardiner.

The Mitered Crosses Blanket (above) and the Pop Blanket (below) work for me, because the solid background really highlights the Noro without letting it go too crazy.  You could use Cascade Eco Wool or Eco +, Cascade 220, Berroco Ultra Alpaca, or even Berroco Vintage for the background with much success.  (I have it on good authority that the natural Noro colorway seen above will be back on the shelves this fall.  I know several of you were pining away for it...I promise to keep you posted.)

Photo from Tin Can Knits.

If you'd like to embrace the full Noro color riot, Lizard Ridge from Knitty 2006 is a great design, too.  Each square is knit from opposite sides of the ball to create the more distinct stripes, and fun little short row sections create the bubbles.

Photo from Knitty, Fall 2006.

I made Rubble for my older daughter in the winter, and I am thinking the littlest daughter needs one in some crazy colors to match her personality.  The unusual construction of the sweater would really play up the striping since the whole thing is knit is one piece from the front hem to the back hem, with stitches cast on for the sleeves as you knit.  The horizontal stripes would continue uninterrupted from the front to the back.

Since Taiyo, Silk Garden, and Kureyon are all of similar gauge, you can interchange them in a lot of patterns without much trouble.  Taiyo would be great for something like the Striped Noro Scarf or the Turn a Square Hat.

Noro is also a natural choice for entrelac, since the color changes highlight the little squares so nicely.  Lady Eleanor from Scarf Style was an extremely popular design several years ago, and I can see this being just stunning in Taiyo.

The new Noro Knitting Magazine has a few great entrelac designs, as well, including these fun little pillows.  These would be a nice introduction to the technique if you are interested.

Okay, next time we'll talk about the Taiyo Sock.  I have lots of ideas for you, and very few of them are socks.