We’re down to the final three classes of the year: Reading Your Knitting, Saturday December 1st, and Be the Boss of Your Yarn and A Knitter’s Bag of Tricks, both on Saturday December 8th. All three are cram-packed with useful hints, suggestions, and techniques for all knitters. If it’s time to kick your knitting skills up a notch, flip over to our Classes/Upcoming Events page for more information!

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Bingo Funky Print: a name that may be hard to remember but a yarn that’s easy to love. The popularity of this Lana Grossa worsted weight has surprised even us! Bonnie topped one of her hats in Bingo Funky Print with one of our new fur poms…

…and another Bonnie beanie in Bingo was crowned with a contrast yarn pom made by Marsha. Bonnie used her own patterns for both of these hats.

Berroco Millefiori has been another sleeper hit this season. Again, not the easiest yarn name to recall but lots of fun to work with. Here, Bonnie used aran weight Millefiori with the Lorcan Hat* by Tracie Taggart, switching out the pattern’s moss stitch brim for traditional 2×2 rib.

She chose the perfect “Electric Blue” pompom for it.

Rebecca used Millefiori to great effect in her Basic March cardigan. A simple, classic design lets the yarn colors really shine. It looks absolutely great on her, too, but Maude the Mannequin got the job of modeling.

This sweater is a beauty, right down to the buttons.

Steven’s Origami Top Hat* took one skein of our Urth Uneek Worsted. He cleverly used the helical striping technique, working with a strand from the outside of a center-pull ball alternately with the inside strand, to get all these very cool skinny stripes. If the yarn had been knit in the conventional way, its color patterning would have been more like that of Millefiori. Pattern from Lori Versaci.

And I’ll close with one more of Bonnie’s imaginative hats; this one is done in soft Manos del Uruguay Maxima. As of press time, I don’t have the name of the pattern she used, but will update this post when I do!

Note: patterns marked with an asterisk (*) are available at Gosh Yarn It!

 

 

…and the winning yarn/pattern pairing this season is Malabrigo Rasta and the Perky Little Hat. Seems like I see a new Perky every few days, hot off the needles! We have our customer Joanne to thank for introducing us to Sharon Lentsch’s free pattern. (I slurped the photo below from the designer’s project page to show how it looks pom pom’ed.)

 

Be sure to come see our Rasta selection soon. We can also give you lots of ideas for other quick projects to make with Rasta and US 13-17 needles. Joanne’s hat, the one at the head of the Perky parade, is below. One skein makes it with enough left over for a pom pom, if you are so inclined.

If you’re good with real fur, we have some great fox and racoon pom poms. They’re selling quickly, and a second order for both natural and dyed poms is already on the way.

Joan scored one of the last red pom poms from our first order. It now lives happily atop her Photographer Hat, another free Ravelry pattern. The designer is Lavanya Patricella. Joan’s yarn is our self-striping Urth Uneek Worsted.

I went back to one of my favorite (also free on Ravelry) patterns, the Rikke Hat from Susan Young when I wanted to make a new warm hat for my daughter. The slouch built right into Rikke only gets better with alpaca, so I used our Classic Alpaca from The Alpaca Yarn Company, based close by in York, PA.

Catherine found a bag that had been tucked away and, well, forgotten. What was in the bag? Treasure!

There were socks she had made for Ravelry’s Sock Madness competition plus “a few” more. What a find! Mostly made from Opal yarn, her bestie sock yarn.

If you want to start your own love affair with Opal yarn, you’re in luck! All the colors of the latest Handwerk & Hobby 3 Collection are now in stock.

Linda continues to outfit the  N.Y. Giants fan in her family with warm hand knits in team colors. Fortunately, our Berroco Ultra Wool has just the right blue and red for the job. Here is her Head Hugger by Gail Tanquary and Tiennie’s Ribby Neckwarmer.

And finally, stash yarn went into my Ballydesmond* fingerless gloves from Irish Girlie Knits. These were made for a recent class I gave on cabling. The discussion strayed into other topics, such as Magic Loop technique, altering patterns, and – ahem – the careful reading of instructions. By happy accident, i.e. my cursory reading of the instructions, I knit each round of the cuffs with the charted cable pattern twice, when I was supposed to follow the chart only once for just half a round. My goof allowed me to rib the palm, rather than have it be plain stockinette, and to adjust the placement of the thumb gusset for a better fit.

I do think my “custom” thumb gussets, which begin in the center of a cable cross, are pretty neat.

If you’d like a copy of my modifications, please ask when you purchase the Ballydesmond pattern at GYI. And remember to love all your projects, even the “mistakes”!

Note: Patterns marked with an asterisk (*) are available at Gosh Yarn It!

We can’t get enough of the Simple Slouch Hat by Robyn Devine and Hat in Slipped Stitch Ribbing for a Lady by Yelena Chen. They appeared on the blog a few posts ago, but they look even cuter in this shot with their buddy, the Churchmouse Fisherman’s Rib Beanie*. Catherine made the Slouch, Brigid the Hat…for a Lady, and Jill made the Beanie, which is conveniently sized for four different weights of yarn.

All three patterns are easy. All three are free. All three yarns are really fun to work with. Shown below, clockwise from left: Bingo Fun Print and Gomitolo Merino from Lana Grossa, and Brielle from Berroco. (And, yes, I had to look up “gomitolo.” It’s Italian for “ball of yarn,” pronounced go-MEET-oh-low. We are so much more than a yarn store.)

Three years ago, Catherine introduced us to Violet Waffles from Halldora J, which has become a huge customer favorite. Now she has tracked down mitts to match: Cozy Thermal Mitts by Karen Everitt. Brilliant! She made the complete set recently with Madelinetosh Tosh DK.

Crystal fell in love with our shop sample of Antonia Shankland’s Bubble Wrap Cowl*. Not finding the exact peacock blue she wanted, she dyed her own with Wilton’s Food Coloring using Woolstok from Blue Sky Fibers. Even though still on the needles, I had to take this UFO shot.

Stephanie finished her stop-and-stare-worthy 2018 Rhinebeck Sweater in plenty of time. Here is her Hadley Pullover from Veronik Avery, also in Woolstok.

Stephanie said she could be quoted: “I just have to say, this is the softest wool I have ever felt!”

Bonnie was among the first to snap up some of our new real fur pompoms and some of our new Millefiori from Berroco and voilà! Her Lorcan Slouch Hat* from designer Tracie Taggart.

Beloved* is one of those wonderful Tin Can Knits patterns that is sized from newborn to adult. Linda sent us this snap of her itty bitty Beloved in La Jolla fingering from Baah Yarns.

I admit to slurping this next shot from Ravelry of Julia’s Pumpkin Spice Hat* from Cutie Patootees in our Berroco Ultra Wool. How could I not share this much cuteness?

Joanne is scary good at customizing her knitting. First, she modified the Bankhead Hat for a deeper cuff using DK weight Classic Alpaca held double to make the worsted weight called for in the pattern.

Then she modified Katya Frankel’s Timber Trail Hat* pattern for a heavier yarn than called for in the pattern. She substituted worsted weight Berroco Vintage for the recommended sport weight.

 

THEN, she made up her own sock pattern for Manos del Uruguay Alegria to incorporate lace, eyelets, and multiple textures. Talk about fearless knitting – wow!

 

Note: All patterns marked with an asterisk (*) are available at Gosh Yarn It!

 

 

 

 

 

Oh, look, another grey day. What’s a good cure for the overcast blahs? Color! Here are Wanda’s Kite and Zanette Shawl to cheer us up.

Kite* comes from designer Ann Klimpert. Wanda used La Jolla from Baah! Yarn and Alegria from Manos del Uruguay.

The Zanette Shawl* was designed by Katy H. Carroll, a.k.a. Katinka Designs. Wanda’s yarns here are Shalimar Paulie and, again, Alegria from Manos.

Now, a word about the colors: the light pink of the garter section and dark pink of the lace edging weren’t Wanda’s idea. The latter bled onto the former, despite her using the (usually foolproof) trick of soaking a project worked in both very light and very dark colors in icy water liberally doused with white vinegar. The Alegria was originally white with speckles of pinks, reds, and blues. Alas, sometimes bad things do happen to good knitters. But if I hadn’t spilled the beans, would you have ever guessed it wasn’t exactly what she’d planned all along?

Now, some beautiful cable work. Suzanne made her Two Roads shawl from Melanie Berg in Berroco Vintage DK. She has it pinned at the shoulder poncho-style. Lovely.

I’ll end with a plug for another of our yarns, fingering weight Coexist from Urth Yarns. It’s an 80% silk/20% Extrafine Merino blend. Brigid created our shop sample scarf in the classic seafoam stitch.

Full disclosure: perhaps not the best choice for beginner knitters, since silk is famously slippery and inelastic.

But, that said, wow! Doesn’t it make a super wearable scarf? It will definitely attract both compliments and that comment we all love to hear, “You made that yourself?”

Note: Patterns marked with an asterisk (*) are available at Gosh Yarn It!

You don’t need to be a technique geek (like me) to want to learn a new knitting trick now and then. This fall’s classes are filled with tweaks and tips to make your knitting more enjoyable. Here’s what’s on the schedule so far (all dates are Saturdays):

Beginner Cables: Ballydesmond Fingerless Gloves with Ann Ross; November 3
So You Want to Knit a Sweater with Stephanie Hogan; November 10
Reading Your Knitting with Ann Ross; December 1
Be the Boss of Your Yarn with Ann Ross; December 8
A Knitter’s Bag of Tricks with Ann Ross; December 8

For full details, see our Classes page. Please check back often, as more classes may be added to the schedule. Individual instruction is always an option, and we’ve created a menu of the most frequently requested knitting techniques. Also ask about designing your own private lessons. We’re happy to customize a class to meet your specific need.

• Cable Knitting
• Cast-ons and Bind-offs
• Double Knitting
• Fixing Mistakes
• Horizontal and Vertical Seaming
• Increases and Decreases
• Intarsia
• Kitchener Stitch Grafting
• Knitting in the Round – Circular Needles, DPNs and Magic Loop
• Knitting from Charts
• Log Cabin Knitting
• Math for Knitters: How to Get (or forget about) Gauge
• Provisional Cast-on: Making It and Making It Disappear
• Short Rows
• Toe-up Practice Socks – 2 sessions
• Top-down Practice Socks – 2 sessions
• 2-Color Brioche Knitting (Flat or In-the-Round)
• 2-Handed Stranded Colorwork

Our last post featured one of our new yarns, Trendsetter Pure Collection New York. We now have two trunk show samples of New York on loan from the yarn company; here is the Get to the Point Pullover*.

This stylish intarsia sweater was designed by Barry Klein of Trendsetter Yarns. We love this versatile DK weight 100% organic wool. It’s also beautifully represented in the new Fall/Winter 2018 issue of knit.wear magazine with Norah Gaughan’s Sloane Dress.

Another of our new favorites is bulky Topas from the German yarn maker GGH (another Trendsetter import). For a chunky that’s happy on US 10-11 needles, it’s airy and light because it’s a hollow-cored chainette and soft because it’s a wool/alpaca/acrylic blend.

 

If you receive our emails, then this picture could be familiar:

It’s a collage of 9 of our 10 newest yarns, which all seemed to arrive at once!

The shop was a beehive of activity for a couple of days as yarn was unpacked, tagged, and put out on display. Although the best way to get to know a yarn is to hold it in your hand (and then swatch it, of course!), here is a brief introduction, left to right, top to bottom:

• Lana Grossa Bingo Funky Print / Bulky, 88 yds/50g
• Schoppel-Wolle Zauber Flower / Fingering, 656 yds/150g
• Madelinetosh Twist Light / Fingering, 420 yds
• Trendsetter Icon / Aran, 165 yds/50g
• GGH Topas / Bulky, 125 yds/50g
• HiKoo Llamor / DK, 109 yds/50g
• Urth Yarns Coexist / Fingering, 400 yds/100g
• Lana Grossa Gomitolo Merino / Aran, 120 yds/50 g
• Lana Grossa Gomitolo Versione / Worsted, 770 yds/200g

It’s easy to say, “something for everyone,” but our Fall 2018 selection of yarn is all that and more. (Especially when you count in Berroco Brielle and Millefiore, plus re-stocks of Berroco Ultra Wool, Blue Sky Fibers Woolstok, Isager Alpaca 2, and Ewe Ewe’s Ewe So Sporty.)

And where’s the tenth new yarn? Here it is, Trendsetter New York (DK, 190 yds/50g)…

…the star of Catherine’s Heavenly* sweater. As mentioned in the last post, she is the first on the GYI staff to finish her “Fall for Sweaters” project. Congratulations, Catherine!

This stylishly simple pattern comes from German designer Ankestrick. Woolen-spun New York makes a perfect between-seasons sweater with light warmth without weight. Love that intense sapphire blue. Catherine chose another can’t-miss blue for her elegant Horai Scarf by Hiroko Fukatsu.

Her yarn is Sugar Bush Drizzle silk/mohair.

“Horai” is a paradise in Japanese mythology. Easy to imagine, wrapped in this lovely stole!

Stephanie is also under blue’s spell; her toe-up socks are knit in Urth Uneek Sock, and, yes, they’re a perfectly matched pair.

Note: Patterns marked with an asterisk (*) are available at Gosh Yarn It!

 

 

It’s sweater weather at Gosh Yarn It! This is a first: all four members of the GYI staff are working on the same kind of project at the same time: SWEATERS.

And, yes, well, to be honest, Catherine has already finished. Jill’s as far as separating stitches for her sleeves. Brigid is ahead of me with casting on and will probably be done before I’m halfway through, but I found my tubular cast on mojo over the weekend and am happily knitting the ribbed hem. Four knitters, four patterns, four yarns. We can’t wait to share our sweater stories with you, from swatch to success. If we can do it, you can, too!

Jill

Pattern: Mountain High by Heidi Kirrmaier
Yarn: Ultra Alpaca Natural from Berroco (50% Super Fine Alpaca, 50% Peruvian Wool; 215 yds/100g; worsted weight)

Catherine

Pattern: Heavenly by Ankestrick
Yarn: New York from Trendsetter (100% Organic Merino Wool; 180 yds/50g; DK weight)

Brigid

Pattern: Cromwell Pullover by Bobbi Intveld
Yarn: Woolstok from Blue Sky Fibers (100% Fine Peruvian Highland Wool; 123 yds/50g; worsted weight)

Ann

Pattern: Weekender by Andrea Mowry
Yarn: Luma from The Fibre Company (50% Merino Wool, 25% Organic Cotton, 15% Linen, 10% Silk; 137 yds/50g; DK weight)

All yarns are either currently in stock or will be arriving shortly. All patterns are available at GYI.

Now that September is back-to-wool time (not back-to school), it could be one of my favorite months. New fall yarns are filling up our shelves (see below), and projects worked on over the summer are arriving in the shop to have their pictures taken to be shared here with you.

Because it really is still summer, if you’re looking for one last project for linen or cotton yarn, make it the Windom Silk Wrap*. Brigid had the brilliant idea to make this pattern from designer Virginia Sattler-Reimer out of our Solo Lino linen yarn, then a second in Modern Cotton from Berroco. All knitting, no purling, and it is self-fringing – what could be better. First, Brigid’s in Solo Lino…

And her Modern Cotton version…

Really any yarn would love to be an elegant Windom Silk Wrap. It would be a great way to blend yarns with different textures, use up scraps, and play with alternate stripe patterns.

I also had a case of the stripes myself this August. I needed less than a week to make a Honey Cowl in Urth Uneek Worsted, color 4007. I used helical stripes, following Jen Arnall-Culliford’s clever instructions. We have a free shop handout on “helicalising” if you’d like more details on the technique. Uneek, both fingering and worsted weights, is a pleasure to work with.

Did I mention new yarns for fall? Just arrived, Millefiori, a wool/acrylic worsted weight from Berroco that makes soft fabric splashed with random bands of bright, happy colors. Got hats and cowls and scarves on your to-gift list?

Above, Millefiori color #7885.

Below, Berroco’s Brielle in color #6506. I made the swatch in the suggested needle sizes, US 7 and 8. I LOVE this Italian import. It’s fuzzy, it’s shiny, it’s cozy and comfy. Five different fibers make Brielle so yummy: cotton, polyester, acrylic, wool, and alpaca. (Those Italian spinning mills really know their stuff.)

And, of course, new Opal sock yarn is here. All 8 colors of the latest Rainforest collection (#14) are in.

Those summer projects? Here we go:

Joan’s gorgeous Hipster Shawl* from Joji Locatelli in mYak Baby Yak Medium will be a wardrobe staple, as soon as the thermometer notices the calendar, that is…

Stripes strike again! Brigid’s Split Personality, knit from her beloved Manos del Uruguay Maxima scraps.

Super simple, knit in the round (so no purling), starts and ends with 2×2 ribbing. Endless ways to stripe and wear.

 

And, finally, to match the Gooseberry Hat I made with helical stripes, a pair of Lovebug Booties*. This is now my default bootie recipe. Carrie Bostick Hogue’s pattern is easy, quick, and fun.

Note: Patterns marked with an asterisk (*) are available at Gosh Yarn It!

Our knit-along (KAL) for Marin Melchior’s Butterfly/Papillon shawl began yesterday and runs through the end of October. Catch up with our technique/pattern tips anytime by checking in with the KAL conversation in our Ravelry group, here. Please join us and post your comments and questions!

Our sample (below) uses 2 skeins of Urth Uneek Fingering and one skein of solid color Urth Harvest. You can use self-striping yarns such as Uneek, gradients, or make it all in solids. Either way, the project takes approximately 420 yards of a contrast color (usually a solid) and a total 770 yards of main color(s).

Recently, my Instagram post of Jill’s completed Danzig* shawl was in the spotlight when it was reposted (with permission, of course) by a certain yarn store based in Reno, NV. We enjoyed our 5 minutes of fame! Justyna Lorkowska’s design was chosen to be our latest sample to show how beautiful Uneek Fingering can be even when it isn’t knit into a Butterfly.

The solid background is Wonderland Yarns Mary Ann in White Rabbit. You’ll need one skein.

The Uneek shade is #3004. You’ll need two skeins.

Oh, those colors!

And is it soft. Ellen chose Harvest, the naturally-dyed solid version of Uneek, for a woven scarf. How absolutely lovely is this?

Larissa Brown’s On Off Shawl* is one of my favorite patterns. It can be made with just about any weight yarn, to any size you want. It sits securely on your shoulders without pinning or tying, so it’s very easy to wear. Laurie wanted to make hers for cool summer-into-fall evenings and chose non-wool Berroco Remix. She made it gloriously all her own by choosing a lace pattern from a stitch dictionary and adding it to the hem of the shawl in a contrast color.

For my On Off Shawl in Lana Grossa Solo Lino, I made single row stripes with my three colors: a right side row in A (drop A), add B and work the next wrong side row in B (drop B), add C and knit the right side in C (drop C), pick up A to knit the wrong side, then B again for the right side, and on and on.

I am crazy about Solo Lino’s stitch definition. (More Solo Lino goodness coming in the next post – Brigid’s just-finished Windom Silk Wrap*.)

Last FO comes from Rebecca, her delightful Sailor’s Delight socks from Melissa Morgan-Oakes’ book 2 at-a-time Socks. Her yarn is Frolicking Feet by Done Roving Yarns. Talk about flashy!

Note: Patterns marked with an asterisk (*) are available at Gosh Yarn It!

 

We have a cast-on start date for our Butterfly/Papillon shawl knit-along: Tuesday, August 21. That’s one month to pick your colors, pick up the pattern at the shop (saving $3), and get wound up and ready to go.  You’ll find lots of color inspiration among the 594 projects for Butterfly. We already have a knit-along (KAL) discussion thread in our Ravelry group.

If you’re unfamiliar with knit-alongs, they are an opportunity for knitters to work on the same pattern at the same time. Starting with yarn and color choices, it’s a chance to share your progress with each other, as well as your questions, observations, and suggestions. Most importantly, you can get and give plenty of support and encouragement along the way, with a prize for one lucky finisher.

In the last post, there were pictures of a Butterfly in a blue/purple colorway. Of course, all skeins sold out immediately, so we’ve ordered more! Here is another combination of Urth Yarns Harvest (solid) and Uneek (self-striping) that’s just as stunning…

Below, a vibrant color of Uneek and several of the naturally-dyed Harvest shades. (Which solid would you choose to go with that Uneek?)

 

Our final shipment is in from indie dyer Knitted Wit. Grab these round and bouncy skeins of Big Sky Worsted while you can. They’re spun from 100% Targhee wool, ideal for hat and mitten patterns calling for worsted to aran weight. The yarn is both hearty and soft and 100% made in the U.S.A.

Maybe you’ve noticed this summer we’ve re-ordered quite a few old favorites in new shades. First, there were the new 2018 colors of  Fibre Company Luma…

…and now Solo Lino from Lana Grossa yarns. Linen? Yes. Starchy and stiff? No way!

A slinky, silky sport weight, Solo Lino is 80% linen viscose/20% linen flax. The happy little group of yarns shown above is one of several colorways we’ve created for a pattern Brigid found for Solo Lino, Windom Silk Wrap* by Virginia Sattler-Reimer.

 

This is such a genius yarn/pattern pairing! I can’t wait to post pictures of Brigid’s project, which is being made in this cool, blue palette:

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Now for your FOs.

Ann sent along this photo of her daughter wearing the June’s Favorite Cardigan she made for her. Pattern is from Hannah Fettig. She used Blue Sky Fibers Woolstok in the color Driftwood. She says it “was a dream with which to work.” She mentioned that she substituted stockinette stitch for the original diamond pattern alongside the cable.

Stephanie made her graceful Greenwich Dunes Wrap from Raven Knits Design with Knitted Wit Single Fingering in Great Smoky Mountains.

A second FO from Stephanie, here is Martina Behm’s classic Hitchhiker* done in Dream in Color Smooshy. Wait for it… the color is Burr.

Don’t you love the way the colors fall into different patterns, depending on the length of the rows?

And I’ll close with more pretty Smooshy colors chasing each other, this time ’round and ’round Rebecca’s Beaded Koigu Beret*, made without beads and without Koigu. The shade is Morning Glory.

Note: Patterns marked with an asterisk (*) are available at Gosh Yarn It!