Monthly Archives: September 2012

Keep in touch!

With chilly weather quickly approaching, it’s time to start thinking
about gloves. But one big problem with most gloves is that you have to
take them off (or make do with chilly fingertips in fingerless gloves)
to use your touch screen devices. What’s worse than missing an important
call because you can’t get your gloves off in time? Naturally the fiber
industry has stepped in with a fantastic material – Conductive Thread! We now carry the thread, and a great pattern that makes use of it. The In Touch gloves feature a circuitry-inspired motif and small pads of Conductive Thread on the fingertips.

The way the thread works is by completing the circuit between your
finger and the capacative touch screen of your phone, tablet or other
device. As long as the thread touches both your finger and the screen,
you can use the device just as you would with no gloves on at all! It
doesn’t take much, either…

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Podcast Episode 197: Interview with Audrey Knight

In this week’s podcast episode, Kelley gets a chance to talk with designer Audrey Knight about her newest book Reversible Scarves! Audrey began knitting in 2004 and quickly began exploring the world of design. Hear all about her transition from knitter to knitwear designer, and how she came up for the idea for her book which features reversible patterns that are sure to “cure the wrong side blues” as Audrey says. Kelley walks through each chapter of the book, and chats with Audrey about the unique patterns and techniques for creating your own reversible patterns and designs.

You can find Audrey’s newest book here:
Reversible Scarves eBook
Reversible Scarves (printed version)
And don’t forget, Audrey also has several designs in the IDP program which you can find here:
Audrey Knight’s patterns
3 easy ways to listen…
Subscribe in iTunes Episode 197: Interview with Audrey ...
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Embroidery: How to do the Satin Stitch

For last week’s technique of the week, we started our embroidery series with an introduction to the back stitch. This week, we are going to keep with our embroidery obsession and show off the satin stitch! This embroidery technique uses a series of flat stitches (short or long depending on your motif) to completely cover a section of your fabric or knitting. This makes the satin stitch a great technique for when you need to fill in an area of a motif that is already outlined with the back stitch or crochet chain stitch.

      
Here is Kerin’s finished motif that shows off the satin stitch to fill in the petals.

To help you get started, check out our new video tutorial that shows you how to do the satin stitch!

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Oregon Flock and Fiber 2012

This weekend was one of the Knit Picks staff’s favorite festivals – Oregon Flock and Fiber! I think pretty much all of us have gone every year to drool over pretty yarn and fiber and this year was no exception. And after a gloomy dark Friday, Saturday was full of gorgeous sunshine (but still cool enough for some knitwear!) so it was a perfect day to drive out the Canby Fairgrounds.

This year, since I’ve gone to a lot of yarn festivals this year, I actually was more interested in seeing the cute animals! Several of us met up before the duck herding demonstration to watch the herding dogs show off their skills.

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Choosing colors for Colorwork

A very common question I get is, “how do I pick colors for my
colorwork project?” The short answer is that that’s a really personal
decision. You know what colors you like or that you like to wear, and
there’s no set aesthetic regarding what colors ‘should’ go together.
(believe me, since art school, my personal color palette includes all of
them!)

Generally, a safe bet for a 2-color sweater is to go with a light and
dark version of the same color. So, that means a dark red and light
red, dark blue and light blue, and so on. These colors can be
interchangeable, so it can be a light or dark background. This is great
if you have a favorite color in mind, or want to be completely sure that
the colors will look good together. If you want to use two colors that
you know go well together, be sure to use a light version of one and a
dark version of the other.

That said, choosing a basic palette for a garment starts with a few basic steps.

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Designing a modern Bohus

Bohus sweaters are known for their subtle gradients of color and the
fuzzy halo that gives them an almost ethereal glow. The tradition of
Bohus sweater knitting is a recent and colorful one, inspired by many
other European knitting styles and the fashions of the mid 20th century.

The most recognizeable Bohus item is the yoked sweater. Though the
typical elements of a Bohus-style sweater can be applied to lots of
items like gloves and hats, a colorful stranded yoke really shows off
the techniques used. Careful planning of increases, multiple colors in
each row, knit and purl stitches and slipped stitches create a texture
unique to Bohus knitting. This texture can make even the simplest motif,
like stripes or dots, look exotic and unexpected. When I began thinking
about Tuva,
I wanted color to become the real focus, and let the stitches help to
show them off. I didn’t want this to be subtle – and immediately jumped
for a vivid rainbow.

With so many elements to balance, designing a Bohus-style yoked sweater presents some interesting challenges.

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Podcast Episode 196: Northern Lights Collection Interview with Kerin

This week, take a tour of Scandinavia as you hear all about Kerin’s inspiration for Northern Lights, a new collection of patterns inspired by the region and its cultures that are steeped in a rich history of knitting. Featuring six stunning patterns, Kerin walks you through the traditions of Norway, Iceland, Finland, Denmark, the Faroe Islands, and Sweden as she shares the stories and ideas behind each of the patterns. Naturally, Kerin put her special twist on each of the patterns by melding the traditions, color, and motifs of Scandinavia with updated shaping and elegant, modern details.
If you enjoy hearing about the design process and how ideas are transformed from sketches and swatches into finished patterns and pullovers – you’ll love hearing Kerin’s stories behind each of the six designs of Northern Lights. History buffs will also love hearing more about the cultures and traditions of these six Scandinavian …

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