Vasalong Success: Summer is for Sweaters!

Summer knitting. It's the best. It goes so fast without those pesky sleeves and there are so many amazing summer yarns out there with linen, cotton, or hemp in them. If you're not knitting right now, you are missing out on some amazing summertime yarn action. My newest summer knit is the Vasa tee and I love it. 

Pattern: Vasa Tee by Paper Tiger
Yarn: Madelinetosh Dandelion in Dust Bowl (main color) and Nectar (stripes)
Size made: 38
Alterations: I altered the pattern to knit it in the round. Also, with my gauge the size 38 is really a size 36

We recently started carrying Paper Tiger knitting patterns by Dianna Walla. She has classic style and smart, interesting designs. When she announced a Vasalong (a knit-a-long for the Vasa tee) I was in. We also had just gotten in the new Dandelion yarn by Madelinetosh - it was a match made in heaven! Dandelion is a single ply fingering weight yarn, exactly like Tosh Merino Light but with 10% linen added. The linen gives a more rustic look and a bit more drape - perfect for this pattern.

I'll let you in on a secret: this tee is just two rectangles sewn together. That's it. This is the perfect first sweater project for a new knitter or anyone who says, "I just knit rectangles." The pattern is meant to be a loose fitting tee and Dianna suggests at least 4" of positive ease. This is what size I made, but after measuring my finished gauge, my sweater was a bit smaller than intended at 36". It still looks great, but I think the extra 2" of positive ease would be great for next time.

My cute little 3 needle bind-off shoulder seam.

I altered the pattern to knit the tee in the round (I couldn't have all those purl rows slowing me down). The sweater is knit bottom up. I knit it in the round until the bottom of the sleeves. I put half of the stitches on hold for the back of the tee and knit up to the top of the front. I cast-off the center stitches for the neck and then put the remaining shoulder stitches for each side on hold. I then repeated this process for the tee back and used a simple 3-needle bind-off to join the shoulders. This bind off creates a raised seam, which I thought would be a cute added touch, but you could also use the kitchener stitch for a seamless join. 

Another reason I love this pattern is that it uses 2 colors - this makes it so fun to pick out your yarn! You could also easily play with your stripes to have skinnier stripes or thicker stripes. Check out #vasalong on twitter and instagram to see more adorable knit tees. Summertime knitting, people. #thebest

Follow Your Arrow Mystery Knit-along

I just finished a mystery knit-along (MKAL) from Ysolda Teague called Follow Your Arrow! A mystery knit-along is a KAL where you don't know what the pattern is and the pattern is usually released in sections so its a surprise as you knit it. A MKAL can be scary to commit to, so its good to know you like a designer before you sign up. Ysolda Teague is one of my favorite designers and this was her first MKAL so I knew it would be a win. The project was a shawl that used about 680 yards of lace to fingering weight yarn and that's all I knew going into it. Ysolda did her MKAL with a new twist - it was also a choose your own adventure MKAL! Each of the 5 clues would have 2 options for a total of 32 different shawls that could be created. WHAA?!

The nature of this MKAL was a little stressful for me. Each week I had to choose which pattern to follow without knowing what the finished result would be! I really had to let go of my control and attachment and just go with the flow. It ended up great. In the beginning I chose to follow the more geometric options and I love the unique shape that this produced.

I knit my Follow Your Arrow out of Meadow lace yarn by the Fibre Company. I've been itching to knit a shawl in this pale aqua color Pennyroyal since we first got this yarn in last summer so picking out the yarn was the easiest part of this KAL. Meadow is a light-fingering weight yarn that is a luscious blend of merino, llama, silk and linen. The yarn has a beautiful hand and drape and was dreamy to knit with. I knit the options ABBAA so my shawl only used about 620 yards of yarn.

My favorite perk that came with participating in Ysolda's MKAL was seeing what everyone's project was shaping up like each week as the clues were released. The number of possibilities of this shawl pattern made this so fun! You can go to Ravelry and check out tons of finished shawls here.

I can't even believe that Ysolda was able to write a pattern with so many options that worked out so well - she really is a knitting genius! I would totally recommend this pattern and yarn to anyone looking for a really fun knitting adventure!

Maenad KAL at Fancy Tiger Crafts!

Knit-along alert!
 
Jaime and I fell in love with Carol Feller's Maenad shawl when she recently came to the store for a trunk show. This lace edged shawl is extra long, perfect for wrapping a couple times around your pretty neck, or just draping over the shoulders.

We would love for you to join us in our Maenad KAL! We will be casting on next Tuesday, June 26th at Craft Night.

Come into the shop for your supplies and receive 15% off your yarns with the purchase of the Maenad pattern.

And here is a sneak peak at the yarns we chose for our shawls:

Jaime chose two colors of Madelinetosh Light--Cosmos and Lowlands--for her Maenad. The depth of color in this yarn makes us swoon.

I picked up two earthy hues of Sebastian by Anzula at their trunk show last night! I'll be knitting my Maenad in the colors Clay and Shiitake. Sebastian has a wonderful nubby, silky texture thanks to a blend of Seacell and Merino fibers. You can look forward to this pretty yarn being available in the store in August!

See you soon!
Amber & Jaime