Search Results for: designer

Sweater Class Show and Tell

Knitters in our Sweater Class
are doing some wonderful work! I was really excited to see all the
progess and resources that were shared over the last week. Many of us
are discovering that sweater knitting can be easier than we though, and
even those of us who are not ready to knit a sweater have been able to
follow along, ask questions, and bookmark the lessons for future
reference! Follow the link above to view the whole class archive.

This
week, while we’re finishing the body and sleeves of our sweaters, I
have some reader-submitttedmaterial to share–some progress pictures,
some sweater knitting tools, and some design resources! The first is a
progress shot from Linda (poodlechick on Ravelery.) She’s making a
brilliant red seweater with a seed-stitch hem and swatched, cast on,
and knit through the waist decreases all in one weekend! Linda is using
Comfy in Serrano and I love the way this is knitting up!

Next up are progress pictures of the TWO sweaters that Cellogirl is
working along with the class. I have to say, she is a knitting
overaceiver in the best way! Read on to see what she’s done…

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Design A Sweater. Lesson 4: Sleeves!

I raced through the body of my sweater in order to stay ahead of the
class, but even if you haven’t finished that sections, you can always
start on a sleeve!

Knitting sleeeves can be a welcome break from
working the torso of a sweater–they are more portable, and smaller, so
each round goes much faster and the length gows perceptibly, for a real
feeling of accomplishment! In this lesson, we’ll go over the math
behind sleeve shaping, and discuss some potential modifications that
allow you to get custom sleeves!

Click the link below for the handout:

Lesson 4: Sleeves

And
check out our videos, where I (somewhat tiredly–apologies! I should
maybe not shoot these lessons on Monday!) walk you through the math and
show how the formulas in the handout gave me the sleeve I want!

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Design A Sweater, Lesson 1: Swatching and Measuring

Ok, are we all ready to start swatching? Last week we discussed yarn
choices and design dreaming, and this week we are going to solidify our
yarn choices (if you haven’t already!) and find the right needle to get
the fabric that your design requires! I’ve done some extensive
swatching (the results of which I share in the videos below) and have
settled on knitting my Swish Worsted on US 6 Zephyr needles.

Swatching can seem boring when you’re itching to cast on a
project, but it is one of the most essential parts of the design
process, so it deserves a lot of time and attention! In this lesson,
I’ll be giving tips on how to swatch for the fabric your design needs,
and then covering the measuring of gauge from your swatch, and the
measurements needed for a succesful knit. All this information ins
contained in the pdf linked below, which also has diagrams and blanks
for you to fill in with your personal gauge and measurments. Don’t
worry if you’re math-phobic; I’ve done my nest to keep it simple and to
walk you through all the claculations step-by-step!

Lesson 1: Swatching and Measuring

Read on for more info and Videos…

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Design a Sweater, Lesson 3: Shaping the Torso

Hi there! As you’ll see in this week’s video, my sweater is coming
along swimmingly! Now that I am deep in the process of working the waist
shaping, I am remembering why my row counter is my best friend!

This week, we’ll be discussing how to calculate the increases
and decreases that will shape the torso of your sweater to the finished
dimensions you desire. It may be helpful for you to look over and print
out this week’s handout so that you can follow along with the video
lesson, in which I’ll be walking you through all the math required in
this step. I promise, it’s not terribly hard 🙂 Click the link below to
get the handout:

Lesson 3 – Shaping the Torso

And check out the videos below!

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Lace for All Seasons

I love lace projects, for several reasons.

1. Lace can be big and dramatic and ornate in a way that is hard to pull of in regular garments.

2. Lace accessories can be colorful without overwhelming the wearer.

3. You can wear the same lace scarf every day for a whole season without your coworkers wondering why you never do laundry.

4. Lace shawls make great gifts and you don’t need to know a person’s exact measurements to make them one.

5. Lace is super fun and engaging to knit!

6. Lace yarn is delicate and beautiful and you get a whole lotta yards in just one little ball.

All
of these are reasons I love lace, and all of these reasons inspired
these two new lace kits, which I spent almost a year thinking about
before actually writing the pattern! The Seasons Shawls, one for Spring and Summer and one for Fall and Winter:

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So Many Layers of Dye

I’ve been talking about overdyeing a lot for the last weeek, but
today I want to share the results of a dye project I did on Bare yarn.
I’ve been admiring Kristen Rengren’s Zora
Cardigan ever since the design was published last winter, and really
want to make one this summer. I love the effect of the hand-dyed yarn
in the original, too, and didn’t have anything like that in my stash in
the right quantity, but I also have too much stash (and not enough in the budget!) to justify buying so much yarn for a new sweater!

I did, however, have 5 skeins of our Bare Merino/silk yarn just waiting to be dye projects.

That’s
what it looked like after the FIRST round of dyeing. I had to go
through two more to get what I wanted! Read on to find out more…

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Desperately Seeking Sheldon…


Sheldon’s been out of the office and on a whole slew of adventures since he got back from Japan. He made this slideshow of his latest travels so you could see what he’s been up to.
On a more serious note, I know a few of you have noticed that the Sheldon career and animal outfit kits are no longer available, and are probably wondering where he went. We sold out!!!
But don’t worry, all of the patterns from both kits will be available as free downloads by the end of April. We posted the first one, along with the pattern for his body (with permission from Sheldon’s designer, Ruth) on our patterns page. If you’d like to be notified every time we add a new free Sheldon pattern, become our fan on Facebook to get our updates.
And for those of you in the Sheldon career …

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When life gives you snow, make mittens!

Okay, so I only made one mitten when I was snowed in at home last week, but it’s all a part of the plan. You see, I’ve long admired all the cute colorwork mitten patterns out there, but I don’t wear mittens (or know anybody gift-worthy who does). I’m a devoted glove gal because of what I refer to as “finger claustrophobia”–fellow glove wearers probably know what I’m talking about!
Anyway, so a while back I decided that I would make mittens, but I would make one each of several different cool patterns using different combos of the same colors and frame them as an art display in my home. I think colorwork is art, don’t you?
The yarn I chose was my personal favorite, Palette, and the colors I picked for my little art project are Pimento, Golden Heather, Green Tea Heather & …

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