Friday Favorites: AMAZING Knit Wallpaper

from Spoonflower blog

I totally want this - knit wallpaper devised and installed at the Brooklyn Craft Company!  Just amazing.  More photos and details here.

For the Birds: Getting Ready

In celebration of the beginning of Spring, as promised, I pulled together my scrap yarn and put it out for the birds to use to build nests.

I had planned to buy a suet cage like Susan uses for her scrap yarn, but then I remembered that the previous owners of our house had left an old deer corn feeder behind.  I thought it might work for my scrap yarn too!

I had been holding on to bits and pieces of yarn in a little pouch to use to tie on tags, etc.  I tried to pick the most colorful yarn to put out for the birds, so I could see it if they used it in their nests.  Any long pieces of yarn, I cut down to 5 to 8 inches in length.

My scrap yarn has been out in our yard since last Friday.  So far, there's been little activity around it.  I'm not sure that our feeder is going to work well for the birds, since it doesn't really have anywhere for them to land on to access the feeder.  I also might have packed the yarn too tight for the birds to pull and get out of the holder.

I'm going to keep it out for a couple more weeks, then I might upgrade to a suet cage :)

New Project: Great Spring Idea for Scrap Yarn

Photo from Susan at Juniper Moon Farm at
http://www.fiberfarm.com/2011/03/the-first-day-of-spring

If you read this blog, you know I'm a HUGE fan of projects that use scrap yarn.  We knitters all have a tone of it, and are always looking for ways to use it.  Well, Susan at Juniper Moon Farm has a great Spring idea for scrap yarn.

She filled a suet feeder with her scraps and put it out for birds to use for building their nests!  I really love this idea!  Get all the info on her site here.  

I'm definitely going to do this.  We might be a little late, because I've seen some birds busy in our trees building their nests.  But I'm going to put out a collection of scraps and see what happens.  I'm going to be semi-scientific about this and document the process to see whether I find any scraps of yarn incorporated in nests nearby.  Stay tuned :)

Drops Yoked Sweater: Update 1 & An Unveiling

I'm hard a work on a couple of knitting projects, but wanted to post an update on my Drops cardigan with the textured yoke.

I'm almost up to the armpits and will be starting the sleeves soon(ish).  I changed the bottom hem of the sweater from seed stitch to k2, p2 ribbing by following the directions for a different Drops sweater.  

To do this, I cast on 204 sts for the second size (The rib pattern calls for casting on 210 sts, but that's with a 7 stitch button band on each side - I'm knitting a 5 st band.  So I subtracted 4 sts to delete the extra sts from the button band, then subtracted another 2 sts so I could begin and end my k2, p2 ribbing with knit stitches).

I knit my ribbing to the length I wanted (about 2 1/2 inches), then decreases 31 sts across to get me to the stitch count I needed for the first yoked sweater (173 stitches).  From there I plan to follow the pattern as written.  But I am going to make the sleeves full length (again by following the ribbed Drops pattern).  I'll post more info on that when I get to the sleeves.

In the meantime, I wanted to give you a sneak peek at the BEAUTIFUL variegated yarn I plan to use for the yoke.  I bought this yarn at SAFF this past fall.  I had no plans for it, but fell in love with the gorgeous colors.  I hope the textured stitches in this cardigan's yoke will make the most of showing off all the various colors :)

Long Term Knitting Project - Drops Yoked Sweater

With the doldrums of winter, I had started feeling kind of blah.  But there's nothing that perks a knitter up like a new knitting project :)

pattern: http://www.garnstudio.com/lang/us/pattern.php?id=4098&lang=us

I've had this Drops sweater pattern sitting in my queue on Ravelry for quite a while.  I love sweaters with circular yokes and this particular pattern has such a lovely textured stitch pattern around the neck.

pattern:  http://www.garnstudio.com/lang/us/pattern.php?id=4944&lang=us

I've made Drops patterns before - I made a similar sweater for my mother-in-law a few years ago, also with a very pretty yoked neckline.  I like elements of both patterns, so I'm going to incorporate a little bit of each in my sweater.  I'm mainly going to follow the first pattern, but I'm changing the bottom band to ribbing as in the bottom (pink) sweater.  I'm also going to make the sleeves full length, as in the bottom pattern.

I have some lovely hand-dyed variegated yarn that I'm going to add in for the textured stitches of the yoke, but I'm keeping that as a surprise for now :)

I'm excited about this new sweater, but it's going to be a long-term project for me, since I have other projects (and new patterns!) that I'm working on.  I plan to post updates to this sweater as I go along.  

  

Free Knitting Pattern/Tutorial: Field of Flowers Recycled Tote

This project has long been on my list of things to do.  I'm so glad I finally tackled it, and I am THRILLED with the results!

I'm sure we all have those random, maybe beat up,

tote bags that are great for carrying things, but often feature logos or slogans that aren't necessarily what we want to be seen carrying around.

Using my Flirty Flower Pin as a starting step, I knitted up a full bouquet of varying size flowers from scrap yarn, added some button centers, and used them to cover over the graphic on my old tote to create a whole new bag!  Ta-da!  Love it!

I'm calling this my Field of Flowers Recycled Tote Bag.  You can get the instructions for different sized flowers and a tutorial for putting the bag together on my Hubpages!

Knitting for Men (Who Don't Like Knits)

As Valentine's Day approaches, some of us may be considering knitting something for the men in our lives.  But be wary - some men just don't like knits (my husband and father among them).

I'm not sure what their aversion is - my husband says he often gets too hot in knitted items, and I think he doesn't want the responsibility of handling and caring for a handmade item.  These are somewhat understandable reasons for not wanting handknit goods.  But most knitters *enjoy* knitting things for the people we love.  And so we persist.

So, if you are considering knitting something for your man, here are a few suggestions for some small accessories that are guy-approved.  And you still have time to make them before Valentine's Day!

First up - Scarves:

Karin's Gansey Scarf  (free pattern) by Tina Hees - I made this scarf for my dad, and...he's never worn it :(  However, I do love this design and think it's very guy-appropriate.  I think a lot of men would like (and wear) this scarf.  It has just enough design to be interesting, but can be worn in both dressy and casual settings.  You could knit it in a bright color for a sporty look, or in a neutral for a more casual style.

P.S. - I added the fringe.  I have posted a fringe tutorial on my Hubpages.

Another great men's scarf pattern is the Campus Scarf by Fiona Ellis from the book Scarf Style.  The pattern for this scarf calls for about 8 different colors of yarn to create stripes in the pattern.  I made this for my hubby using a kettle-dyed denim colored yarn and let the design create the interest.  A fun project to knit, I really like this scarf and so does my hubby.  He actually does wear it (I wish I made it about 12 inches longer though).  Highly recommended!

Hats:

Hats can be a bit trickier - there are SO MANY designs.  If you are going to make your guy a hat, I would suggest a basic design knit in a dark color.  Some ideas:

Keep it simple, like a ribbed Man Hat (free pattern, not pictured) by Haven Leavitt

For something with a little design, try Berruti by Wendy Neal.  I made this hat for my husband out of the same yarn as his Campus Scarf.  He wears it *occasionally.*

Some other interesting hat patterns:

Antler Hat  (free pattern, not pictured) by Alexa Ludeman

Quest for Man (free pattern, not pictured) by Laura Nelkin

Now, on to Socks:

Honestly, I've never knit socks.  But my advice is similar to that for hats - choose a simple design and make them in a solid neutral color.  Here are some patterns I find interesting and designed with men in mind:

Simple Skyp Socks (free pattern, not pictured)) by Adrienne Ku - basic, but with a little pattern to it.

Escalator Socks (free pattern, not pictured) by Sara Armoroso - such an interesting design!

Java Socks (free pattern from Knitty.com) by Cailyn Meyer (not pictured)  Gosh, I do love these!  *If* I were to knit my husband some socks, I think these might be the ones!

And for something a little fancier, Boyfriend Socks (free pattern, not pictured) by Alice Bell.  I love the use of cables, but my husband would never wear them.  Boo :(

Well, I hope I've given you some ideas and fair warning :)  Happy Knitting!