A small haul from Rose City Yarn Crawl! I didn’t really need another tote, but this year’s was so cute, I had to have it.
I also bought 2 skeins of MadeleineTosh Twist Light in their exclusive colorways for For Yarn’s Sake: Queen’s Chair (pooling), and Night Swimming, which is the most delectable velvety midnight blue. There’s more in the shop if you need some, too.
This zipper pull from Swanky Raven Studio features a rocket, and Melvin the Hedgehog, the mascot of Hook and Needle. Swanky Raven has lots of beautiful jewlery and stitch markers; check out her Instagram. And I bought a much needed bottle of Soak Wash, which is great not only for washing and blocking knits, but I also use it on my swimsuit three times a week. I bought a BIG bottle.
That’s it!
I spent Thursday, the opening day of the crawl, at For Yarn’s Sake with Shannon Squire and Lorajean Kelley (Knitted Wit). So great to catch up with them. Check out my Instagram to more pictures from the day.
I’m currently playing with this, trying to get something going so I have travel knitting on my way to Nashville tomorrow. Yes, it’s time for Nash Yarn Fest!
The Starstruck shawlette combines two of my favorite knitting techniques, brioche and assigned pooling. This asymmetric triangle is knit from the narrow end to the wide end. The syncopated edging evokes swirling nebulas, and the body of the shawlette features assigned pooling stars.
The shawlette requires two skeins of fingering weight yarn, one of which should be dyed for assigned pooling. The assigned pooling yarn is featured in the body of the shawlette and stars, and the other yarn is featured in the syncopated edging.
Your pooling yarn tells you when it’s time to make the stars. I knit my shawlette with A Chick That Knitz Singles Fingering, in Hibernation and Caramel.
This pattern is available on Ravelry and Payhip. Use coupon code NEBULA for 15% off through March 5, 2025.
Thanks to tech editor Meaghan Schmaltz, test knitters Ann Berg, Debbie Braden, Diane de Souza, Nancy McNally, Annette Morsing, Lynn Murphy, Brynn Riordan, Tammy Pelfrey, Anna Zeigler, and model Sharon Hsu.
Special thanks to Tammy Pelfrey/A Chick that Knitz, for the beautiful yarn for this design.
And yes, I did change the name of this design from Stardust Nebula to Starstruck. Shorter, punchier, easier to remember? I hope so!
The Peekaboo Shawlette is a 2 color brioche shawlette, knit flat. It features assigned pooling/algorithmic knitting motifs that peek between the brioche ribs. When your pop color arrives, you begin a Peekaboo motif, which is worked over the next several rows.
Right side and wrong side, both lovely
Peekaboo is reversible, with a different motif on the “wrong side”. Choose 2 skeins of fingering weight yarn, one of which should be dyed for assigned pooling. I used A Chick that Knitz Singles Fingering.
Gauge is not critical, work to get a fabric you like. A video tutorial for the Peekaboo motif is provided in the pattern. Most of the knitting is simple 2 color brioche.
Peekaboo Cowl
You know I love brioche, and you know I love assigned pooling! I’m thrilled with both the Peekaboo Cowl and this new Peekaboo Shawlette.
The Peekaboo Shawlette pattern is available on Ravelry, link here. It is also available on Payhip, link here. Use coupon code PEAKING for 15% off on either site through January 10, 2025.
I finished the knitting on this entrelac piece, but I haven’t decided if I want to seam the ends for a loop cowl, or keep it as a shortish scarf. The light and airy fabric doesn’t want to be a single loop, so I’d have to make sure it’s long enough to be a double loop. Or I could leave it as a shortish scarf, held with a shawl/scarf pin. I think that would show more of the little squares, which is the whole point of this piece! So I may have just talked myself into a scarf. Onward!
I’m still on my brioche + pooling kick. Yarn Snob’s Black Orchid is so pretty! I chose Silver Fox to go with it, but after I started knitting the two together, I’m not so sure about the combo. The black is really more like a deep dark purple, and the gray feels “cold” next to it. It doesn’t help that I haven’t actually seen my knitting in daylight! But I think I’d like it better with Winter (cream) to warm it up a little. I’ll have to take one more look in the morning before frogging. I do have Winter waiting in the wings.
In the meantime, I also have this yarn from A Chick That Knitz; it’s Hibernation, with a choice of either Caramel or Silver Fox (yes, another Silver Fox!) to go with it. I’m starting with Caramel, but as you can see, everything is up in the air until the swatching is done.
Are you gift knitting for the holidays? I’m shopping my samples; that takes a lot of pressure off!
You know I love assigned pooling. And I love brioche. Test knitting is under way for my new shawlette.
I’m designing another shawlette using brioche and assigned pooling, and the pooling was starting to…pool! At the ends of the row, over and over again. This left a big center with no stars.
Highly annoying.
So I frogged back to where there were just two stars at each end, and then I skipped a bunch of yarn so that the next star would be in the middle of the row.
It took me two tries to get it right, so I’m glad I didn’t cut the yarn first. I’ll leave this big loop on the back until I’m fully committed.
I think of assigned pooling as a dance between the yarn’s suggestions and what I want. But ultimately I’m the boss. If we have a disagreement, I WIN. I make the rules for this game!
Have you tried assigned pooling? Who’s the boss of YOUR knitting?
Oh, one more thing!
I’m teaching Thrill of the Thrum, my Thrumbelina thrummed slippers, this Sunday at 2 pm at For Yarn’s Sake in Beaverton. Come learn how to make and knit fluffy thrums into your knitting! This is an in-person class, the better to get a feel for those squishy thrums. Register here.
I love my little peekaboo motif so much. I couldn’t let it go yet. Brioche plus assigned pooling is my current obsession. (Did you see my Peekaboo Cowl?)
With a little fiddling, I can work it from the right side *and* the wrong side. Again, reversible, and different yet attractive from either side. This shawlette is knit with two skeins of fingering weight yarn, one of which is dyed for assigned pooling. I used Singles Fingering from A Chick That Knitz in Forget Me Not (pooling) and Glenhaven. It’s light and cozy at the same time.
I’m looking for a few test knitters for this shawlette. Are you interested? Let me know!
The Peekaboo Cowl is a 2 color brioche cowl, knit in the round. It features assigned pooling/algorithmic knitting motifs that peek between the brioche ribs. The pattern includes a video tutorial for the Peekaboo motif.
Peekaboo is reversible; the motif looks completely different on the inside. You can wear it with a bit of both sides showing, for maximum fun. I do!
Choose 2 skeins of fingering weight yarn, one of which should be dyed for assigned pooling. You can make the cowl close to the neck, longer for double looping, or anywhere in between. I knit a short cowl because I wanted a quick project!
The Peekaboo Cowl pattern is on sale 15% off through October 29, 2024 with coupon code PEEKING. The pattern is available through Ravelry, link here. This pattern is also available through Payhip, link here. You can use the coupon code on either site.
This pattern has been professionally tech edited. Thanks also to test knitters Ann Berg, Carolyn Crisp, Diane Kay Gelder, Rhea Kohlman, and Diane O’Brien. Thanks to Keith Leonard/Yarn Snob for the beautiful yarn for the design.
I’m working on more brioche plus pooling…can’t stop, won’t stop!
I left town before dawn last Thursday to teach for the Minnesota Knitters’ Days retreat. Our topics for the weekend: brioche, more brioche, and assigned pooling. All my favorite things!
Look at all the smiling brioche knitters! We worked on Brioche Pastiche, my choose your own adventure pattern for hat or cowl, plain or embellished. (I’m teaching this class again at Hook and Needle on Saturday; if you’re local and want to learn to knit brioche, please sign up!) We also worked on Whale Conga Line, as an introduction to brioche knit flat and syncopated brioche. That’s a lot of brioche!
Ursula and Beth finished their hats over the weekend.
And Janet simplified and fancied up the cowl pattern. I love it!
On Sunday morning we played with assigned pooling, which was a great palate cleanser. It’s fun to let the yarn boss you around…a little. You’re still the boss of your knitting, overall.
The knitters were a great group, with lots of mad skills! (Thanks to Stacey for recommending me; she was in my class at YarnOver Minnesota a couple years ago, and here too.)
Kris’s purple sweater on the left is amazing; I love the lively ribbing pattern on the collar and cuffs.
Sheryl (on the right) is the organizer of this well-run event. This is the 40th anniversary of this retreat; Sheryl was a long-time participant and took over when the previous organizer retired. Many of the participants have known each other through this event for a very long time!
Sheryl’s show and tell sweater was a fantastic example of yarn color dominance. Those stripes aren’t ribbing; they’re 1×1 stockinette stripes.
Linn brought her cardigan to show me what she did with Yarn Snob Keith’s Cabana Boy pooling colorway. I love how the white stripes lightened things up; you can see on the bottom band that the colors are pretty intense! And look how the hot pink pooled on one sleeve, and the orange pooled on the back of the other. You could never get it to do that if you were planning it.
Cabana Boy yarn
We were at a Franciscan retreat center in Prior Lake, and the grounds were lovely.
Labyrintha quiet place for tai chiOne of Minnesota’s 10,000 lakesSame sunsetMount Hood on the way home
Why yes, I choose my seat for the Mount Hood view! And now I’m home, and prepping for this weekend’s classes. Brioche Pastiche at Hook and Needle, and a stranded colorwork class at For Yarn’s Sake on Sunday, based on the Shetland Wool Week Islesburgh Toorie.
Who says you can’t have it all? I’ve been dreaming of combining brioche knitting and assigned color pooling since January. After working through many design ideas, I’ve finally found one that lets both of these techniques shine.
Peekaboo Cowl, WS
This is my new Peekaboo Cowl. It’s 2 color brioche rib, knit in the round with fingering weight yarn. It features assigned pooling peeking out between the ribs. The Peekaboo stitch is reversible, and the inside of the cowl looks completely different! You get two looks with one knit.
I knit this with yarn left over from one of my Trailing Leaves cowls. The small cowl only uses 165 yards/38 grams of each color. You can easily adjust the pattern for length and height if you like longer/taller cowls.
The pattern is back from my tech editor and is ready for test knitters. Let me know if you’re interested in test knitting this lovely little cowl! (Or bigger cowl, if that’s your jam.)
Remember this? It was worth frogging, re-skeining, soaking, rewinding.
I’ve been dreaming all year about a way to combine brioche and assigned pooling/algorithmic knitting in a way that pleases me. I’ve done a lot of knitting and frogging along the way.
I love this color pooling yarn from Yarn Snob/Knits All Done; the green/purple is Bellina, which is named for an orchid. I wanted to make it sing! Bisquee thinks it looks good, too. Do you see peacock feathers? Flames?
Trailing Leaves
I had first used some of this yarn to design Trailing Leaves (coming soon!). It’s lovely, but you can’t see the pooled stitches, so Trailing Leaves will be just brioche. And no, I didn’t frog this cowl!
I frogged this one, that I knit with the remaining yarn. And I’m glad I did.
Side note: Test knitting for Trailing Leaves is wrapping up, and I’m planning to publish it next week. I have a wonderful group of test knitters; we’ve had a great time working on this. I’ve knit two more samples along with them. Stay tuned!
Find my patterns on Ravelry: Michele Bernstein Designs
Here are some of my favorites, and the newest. Many of my designs are also available through my Payhip store.
PDXKnitterati 