Category Archives: pattern design

WIP Wednesday

Posted on June 12, 2024 | 3 comments

I’m so happy with my current WIP (work in progress). It’s brioche knitting with Knit Picks Chroma Fingering in Drawing Room and Bare. I love the gentle color shifts in Drawing Room. This was yarn I found in my small stash.

Of course it can’t be just plain brioche rib, right? So there’s some syncopation going on, plus some increases and decreases to make it pretty and engaging to knit. Because this yarn is single ply, it’s knitting up to be a fluffy wonder, but probably too warm to wear until this fall. I think the plied version is going to be be perceived as lighter weight, even though they’re both fingering weight yarns.

Yarn still surprises me!

3 Comments

Posted in Knit, pattern design, yarn

Tagged Brioche knitting, Knit Picks Chroma Fingering, knit picks yarn

DIY yarn sleeves!

Posted on June 11, 2024 | 6 comments

Side craft: I saw Romi Hill do this on Instagram, so I wanted to try it.

You know those bath poufs for scrubbing? They’re made of a long tube of nylon net, which is pretty much the same as a very long yarn sleeve. I had a pink one at home, but decided that I wanted a more neutral color. This pale green was as close as I could get to neutral. I snipped the string that held the center together, and was rewarded with 3.5 yards (3.2 meters) of usable tube.

I like mine to be about 5.5 to 6 inches long; they shorten up when stretched. I’ll get at least 20 sleeves from this inexpensive (less than $2) pouf. I’m finding that these are a little looser/wider than the commercial ones, but they’ll do. (Edit: Romi says that steaming them can make them a little narrower/tighter.) Why do I like these sleeves? They keep the ball tidy, no yarn unwinding from the outside of my center pull ball.

Knit Picks Chroma in Bare and Drawing Room

Do you prefer a center pull ball/cake, or working from the outside? I usually like center pull. But I’m knitting one of my projects with Knit Picks Chroma, and it’s easier to knit from the outside of those balls, no sleeve needed.

This monogamous knitter just said “one of my projects,” haha! I kind of have two right now. They’re related; the green one is an brioche and assigned pooling project but I made an math error in my decrease rate, whoops! It was bottom up, so while I was re-figuring, I also decided to make it top down. And to save the yarn from many more froggings while I work things out (it’s holding up amazingly well through several different design ideas), I decided to do a non-pooled version with the Chroma.

I’ve just frogged the green project, so I really do have only one project on my needles!

6 Comments

Posted in Knit, Other craftiness, pattern design, yarn

Tagged Knit Picks Chroma, yarn bras, yarn management, yarn sleeves, yarn snob yarns

Knitting in public, but not while biking

Posted on June 11, 2024 | 5 comments

Knitting at a Portland Pickles baseball game

Well, I didn’t manage to knit in public on Worldwide Knit/Craft in Public Day, but I did knit at a baseball game last Thursday. I’ll knit anywhere, on MY schedule. That piece of knitting has since been frogged; I decided I wanted it to be narrower. Each cast on is a swatch, until it’s not!

The previous cast on went along for quite a while until I realized that I made a math error on the decrease shaping. Along the way I decided to flip it from bottom up to top down because increases are prettier than decreases, and I’d start with fewer stitches. Bonus! That’s what I was experimenting with at the baseball game.

No knitting while bicycling! DH and I went on a bike ride along the Columbia River. We had great views of the river, birds, Mount Hood (see it at the top of the picture?). This is an urban ride on a path alongside Marine Drive, which is very busy! I’m glad we could be off the road for most of it.

Fundraiser for Parkinson’s support

We’re participating in a fundraiser for Parkinson’s Resources of Oregon this month. DH was diagnosed with Parkinson’s Disease last year (early, mild symptoms, doing great). Parkinson’s Resources of Oregon has very helpful programs including informational seminars, activities, and support groups. If you’d like to donate, here’s my link. Thanks for considering it! And here’s a link to DH’s Parkinson’s blog, if you’re interested.

We’re making the most of a string of perfect summer days. Not too hot, not too cool. I hope your weather and knitting are…perfect!

5 Comments

Posted in Knit, pattern design, Portland area fun

Tagged bicycling, bike, knitting, parkinsons disease, Portland Pickles baseball, WWKIP Day

Introducing Bellini Bubbles

Posted on May 21, 2024 | 7 comments

Bellini Bubbles is a triangular shawlette, knit on the bias from the point to the wide end. It features assigned pooling and bubbly eyelets.

Bellini Bubbles is knit with a single skein of fingering weight yarn that is dyed for assigned pooling. You can also extend the size with another skein of yarn, if you like a bigger shawl.

I knit mine with Yarn Snob’s Bellina colorway, which inspired this design’s name.

This pattern is available on Ravelry, link here, and also on Payhip, link here. Use coupon code BELLA for 15% off on either platform.

Thanks to tech editor Jen Lucas, test knitters Ann Berg, Carolyn Crisp, Alaina Foster, Sarah Gallegos, Ann Harting, Jacqueline Lydston, Lenore MacLeod, Ellen Peters, Jamie Peterson, Kristin Smith, Crystal W., and model Sharon Hsu.

Special thanks to Keith Leonard of Yarn Snob/Knits All Done for this beautiful yarn to design with!

7 Comments

Posted in Knit, pattern design, yarn

Tagged bellini bubbles, yarn snob yarns

If at first you don’t succeed…

Posted on April 20, 2024 | 8 comments

I worked very hard at not working on my current design project during the week before I went to the coast. I wanted to have an established work in progress so I could be sociable while I knit.

I want to combine brioche and assigned pooling, two of my favorite types of knitting! I was planning to use a V’d stitch like in Fanfare. In my imagination, they’d be airier because there would be the brioche purl stitches between the knit stitches, and I was going to dip down and out to the side to make upside down Vs. But I found out pretty quickly that it would not be very much fun to make those Vs if the pooling color happened on the wrong side of the fabric. I need a pooling stitch that will work on both right and wrong sides. And it needs to fit into the rhythm of brioche.

I used brioche increases to make my Vs instead. So sweet! I set the project aside, ready to knit at the coast.

It took 70 rows of coastal knitting, but I finally realized: All of those cute stitches *really were* increases, and they were going to throw off my shawl shaping. You can see in the picture above where all the increases have thrown off the straight edge on the right. Oops. Also, I had elongated the Pear Leaf edging from 10 to 12 rows, and it didn’t really look like a leaf any more. Double oops.

So this is my project, frogged, at the coast. Since then I’ve knit and frogged and restarted it at least 5 more times while settling on the syncopated cream colored edging pattern (not pear leaf after all) and how to handle the pooling stitches. Remember, I make the mistakes so you don’t have to! And now I’ve figured out where it’s going. I’m kind of obsessed, and all I want to do is knit this gorgeous yarn. Why yes, that’s Yarn Snob Keith’s Bellina colorway again, this time paired with cream. I love the combo; it tones down the green just a little bit. No previews yet.

What are you knitting for spring?

8 Comments

Posted in Knit, pattern design, yarn

Tagged assigned pooling, Brioche knitting, knitting, yarn snob yarns

Coming soon: Bellini Bubbles? (Test knit?)

Posted on April 18, 2024 | 15 comments

I thought I was done with assigned pooling for a while, but during my Starfall KAL with Yarn Snob Keith I fell in love with a colorway used by one of the participants.

The colorway is Bellina, named after one of dyer Keith’s orchids. When I saw it, I had to have it. I knew exactly what I wanted to do with it.

When I asked Ann Berg to test knit Prosecco Pop in a smooth yarn, she used a pooling yarn instead of a slubby one. I loved the idea, but I wanted more pooling, and fewer eyelets. It took a few tries to figure out the proportions, and I even changed my mind after my sample was finished, but here’s the basic idea.

I was going to use a different assigned pooling stitch, but these star flowers are so perfect here. This was knit with one skein of fingering weight yarn, dyed for assigned pooling.

The pattern has been tech edited, and now I’m looking for a few test knitters. Is that you? Let me know!

Edit: Test knit is full, thank you!

15 Comments

Posted in KAL, pattern design, yarn

Tagged assigned pooling, bellini bubbles, knitting, test knit, yarn snob yarns

Introducing Prosecco Pop!

Posted on February 25, 2024 | 2 comments

When Shannajean (Shannon Squire and Lorajean Kelley) asked if I’d like to collaborate on a design with Knitted Wit Summer Slubbing to feature during Rose City Yarn Crawl, my answer was a big YES.

The slubby texture of Knitted Wit’s Summer Slubbing fingering weight yarn shines with simple stitch patterns in this triangular shawlette, knit on the bias. Alternating waves of nubbly stockinette and lacy eyelet bubbles make this chic piece perfect for warding off summer’s air-conditioned chill.

Prosecco Pop in Aquamarine, photo by Shannon Squire

The pattern is available through Ravelry, link here. It’s also available through Payhip, link here. Use coupon code FIZZ for 15% off through March 11, 2024.

If you’re local, come visit me and Shannon at For Yarn’s Sake from 10 am to 3 pm on March 7, the first day of the Rose City Yarn Crawl. We’ll have trunk shows with design samples including Prosecco Pop and Starfall, my book Brioche Knit Love, and some Knitted Wit Summer Slubbing so you can make your own Prosecco Pop!

2 Comments

Posted in events, Knit, pattern design, Portland area fun, yarn

Tagged for yarn’s sake, knitted wit, knitted wit summer slubbing, Prosecco Pop, rose city yarn crawl

Introducing: Fuzzy Memories

Posted on February 14, 2024 | 2 comments

I’m back from VKLiveNYC, playing catch up, and on the move again. I’m now in Tacoma for Red Alder Fiber Arts Festival. I’ll catch up later! For now, here’s a little something to amuse you. And I’m offering a buy one/get one deal!

Fuzzy Memories is designed to use one precious skein of souvenir laceweight yarn. My souvenir yarn was a one ounce skein of qiviut (muskox yarn) purchased on the Vogue Knitting Alaska Cruise in 2023. This fuzzy yarn needed an unfussy stitch pattern to complement the dreamy fluffiness, so I chose a stockinette variation of Old Shale Lace.

Fuzzy Memories in Manos del Uruguay Cabrito

This cowl will also work with a 25g skein of laceweight mohair such as Rowan KidSilk Haze or Manos del Uruguay Cabrito. A fuzzy yarn will help keep the cowl’s shape at this loose gauge. Savor your warm fuzzy memories!

The pattern is available on Ravelry, link here. I’m having a BOGO sale; put Fuzzy Memories and one other pattern or ebook in your cart, enter the coupon code FUZZ at checkout, and the Fuzzy Memories pattern will be free. This offer is good through February 21, 2024.

I finished my Fuzzy Memories cowl on vacation in Hawaii in December. That’s another fabulous memory!

Is there a precious skein of souvenir yarn in your stash?

2 Comments

Posted in Knit, pattern design

Tagged fuzzy memories, fuzzy memories cowl, Knit, laceweight, qiviut, yarn

Introducing: Whale Conga Line

Posted on January 3, 2024 | 7 comments

I thought a lot about whales last summer, while on the Zodiac Schooner trip, and on the Vogue Knitting Alaska cruise. I didn’t see a single whale, but they were definitely on my mind!

The Whale Conga Line cowl is the result of those whale-centered expeditions. It’s knit flat from the bottom up and seamed, using 2 skeins of DK weight yarn in contrasting colors. I used Anzula Luxury Fibers Lucero, which is a sparkly blend of superwash merino, cashmere, and stellina. So pretty!

If you’re not into whales, choose a different color and you’ll have migrating birds on the wing, or Jack’s beanstalk reaching for the sky.

The pattern is available through Ravelry, link here, and Payhip, link here. Use coupon code FLUKE for 15% off through January 10, 2024.

Thanks to tech editor Jen Lucas, test knitters Ann Berg, Debbie Braden, and Erica Erignac, and model Sharon Hsu. And thank you to newsletter subscriber Shauna, who came up with the winning name for this pattern! I’ll be sending her a copy of the pattern.

Whales, birds, leaves…what speaks to you?

7 Comments

Posted in Knit, pattern design, yarn

Tagged Anzula Lucero, anzula luxury fibers, anzula yarn, Knit, knitting, patterns, Whale Conga Line, Whale Conga Line Cowl, yarn

Ring in the New Year with a new project

Posted on December 31, 2023 | 1 comment

I forgot to add the biggest knit thing I did in 2023, which was also a second chance: I re-published my sold out, out of print book, Brioche Knit Love: 21 Skill Building Projects from Simple to Sublime! It’s for sale through Amazon.com and through select yarn shops including For Yarn’s Sake and Northwest Yarns and Mercantile. Get a copy and enjoy brioche knitting!

To ring out the old year and ring in the new, I’m having a sale on my 2023 individual self-published patterns on Ravelry. These are the eight designs you see above (not the book, which is not on Ravelry). Here’s a link to the Ravelry bundle so you can find them easily. Get 20% off any of my 2023 patterns from now through January 5, 2024. Explore assigned pooling, play with brioche, or just have a simple knit and let a gradient yarn walk you through Ebb and Flow! (If Ravelry is not accessible for you, message me and we’ll work it out.)

Happy new year…are you doing something fun for New Year’s Eve? We’re staying home with the cats. That’s enough excitement for us!

1 Comment

Posted in Knit, my book project, pattern design

Tagged assigned pooling, Brioche Knit Love, brioche knit love book, Brioche knitting, Knit, knitting, pattern sale, ravelry