Friday, February 11, 2022, Issue 235: Happy Friday! What is on your needles?

• Posted on 11 February 2022
• By Susan Wong-Tsang
• Posted in February 2022, Galantine's Day, KAL, knit-along, sweater weather, winter knitting
• 0

With the chilly sweater weather that we have been having, cozy sweaters, shawls and blankets make the best projects to reach for to work on and to wear or have you cast on a Valentine's project??

Metamorphic is Andrea Mowry's newest pattern where she plays with her love of stripes.

This little striped pullover lets the “wrong side” shine, because sometimes wrong just feels right! Faux seams adorn the center front and back of the sweater and encase the sleeves. Metamorphic fits like a classic, with details that make it anything but ordinary!

This sweater is knit from the top down (meaning you can try it on as you go and add length to suit your own personal style!), beginning with the collar. The beautiful reverse stockinette stripes are created by knitting the sweater inside out so you can avoid all that purling! Slipped stitch faux seams encase both the sweater and the sleeves. The sleeves are returned to the needle after finishing the body, picking up stitches for the underarm for a totally seamless sweater!

SIZES
1 (2, 3, 4, 5)(6, 7, 8, 9)

FINISHED BUST CIRCUMFERENCE
32.75 (37, 40.75, 44.25, 48.75)(52.25, 56.75, 61, 64.75)”
83 (94, 103.5, 112.5, 124)(132.5, 144, 155, 164.5) cm
Recommended ease is 0 - 4”/0 - 10 cm; sample is shown in Size 2 on a 35”/89 cm bust with 2”/5 cm of positive ease, she is 5’5” tall.

YARN REQUIREMENTS
These are just approximations. Total yarn usage will depend on the yarn you use (fiber content, ply, etc.), your personal gauge, and any modifications you may make.

MC - DK weight (400 yds/150 g)
226 (257, 284, 309, 347)(375, 406, 448, 489) g
603 (685, 757, 823, 926)(999, 1082, 1194, 1304) yds
552 (627, 692, 753, 847)(914, 990, 1092, 1192) m

CC - Sport weight (200 yds/50 g)
97 (110, 122, 133, 149)(161, 174, 192, 210) g
387 (440, 486, 529, 595)(642, 695, 767, 837) yds
354 (402, 445, 484, 544)(587, 636, 701, 766) m

SUGGESTED NEEDLES
Main Fabric: US 6/4 mm - 16”/40 cm to 40”/100 cm circular & preferred needles for small circumference (Magic Loop or DPNs)

Sleeve Fabric: US 7/4.5 mm - Preferred needles for small circumference (such as Magic Loop or DPNs) This is recommended for anyone whose gauge tightens up when knitting smaller circumferences (in comparison to the body of the sweater).

Ribbing: US 4/3.5 mm - 16”/40 cm circular for collar, 32”/80 cm to 40”/100 cm for hem & preferred needles for small circumference for cuffs.

Use the size needles you need to achieve gauge.

GAUGE
22 sts & 34 rows = 4”/10 cm

I saw this oh so pretty Romantika by Dominique Trad today! It is 50% off until Monday, February 14th! If you are planning on a Galentine’s Day cast on, this is a winner!

Galentine's Day lands on February 13th, the day before Valentine's Day.

Galentine's Day, you ask? It’s a day for celebrating the love you have for your lady friends, it’s a day dedicated to showering your closest friends with love and attention...more than you do every other day. Plan a Galentine's Day Cast On for your own KAL!

Romantika combines fingering (4ply) and laceweight (2ply) yarn to create a shawl that is as light and cosy, as it is warm and generously sized. It features lots of relaxing striped garter stitch interspersed with contrast panels of textured dots that will keep you engaged while knitting, and is floaty and pretty to wear.

This pattern contains full written instructions with stitch counts, charts, and a tick-sheet for tracking your progress. Please note that as with all my patterns, the written instructions include the charted sections so no chart reading is required if it is not your thing.

YARN
MC (solid, speckled, or variegated): 100g/ 3.5oz fingering weight (4ply) yarn approx. 400m/437yd 
CC (solid): 50g/1.76oz lace weight mohair yarn

NEEDLES
Pair of 4mm (US 6)

TENSION/GAUGE
17 sts x 26 rows to 10cm (4”) over striped garter stitch pattern after blocking

FINISHED MEASUREMENTS
87cm (34”) deep at centre x 230cm (91”) wide along top edge (blocked)

For your special Valentine, you might want to cast on this little hat with its hearts and Xs and Os to spread some love! Pattern is Ebba Hat by Kristin Drysdale. Ebba is knit in the round, with corrugated ribbing and colourwork from bottom to top. There are some rows with 3 colors, but most rows are worked with two color so is a little more challenging but is still a fairly quick knit!

Most of the Ebba Hats have been knit in colours similar to the designer’s but this one knit by @fumifumi1206 is striking!

Ambah O’Brien’s Knit Love Shawl is her newest of her Knit Love KAL patterns. Join the Knit Love KAL running February 12 - March 31, 2022.

Enjoy 20% off all featured Knit Love KAL patterns, full details here.

Knit up a big hug and keep this special piece for yourself or gift it to a dear friend. Worked from the bottom up, featuring alternating panels of lace and mosaic with sweet heart motifs, you’ll enjoy every stitch.
Use solid colour yarns or add extra love with gradient or colour change yarns for either C1 or C2 and create a heirloom piece to enjoy for years to come.
Choose between fingering weight and DK for your project and try to stop at just one!

Included are both charted and written instructions for both lace and mosaic sections.

DIMENSIONS
Fingering weight (DK)
Top Edge: 98 (118)“/245 (295) cm
Depth: 28 (33)”/70 (82.5) cm
Measurements taken after blocking.

YARN
Fingering weight (DK)
C1: 710 (950) yd/650 (869) m
C2: 215 (311) yd/197 (285) m

NEEDLES
US 5 (7)/3.75 (4.5) mm, long circular needle to hold a large number of stitches, project is worked flat.

NOTIONS
22 stitch markers to mark Lace repeats, 2 different stitch markers to mark centre section, tapestry needle

GAUGE
20 (16) sts and 26 (24) rows = 4”/10 cm in Knit Love Lace stitch
20 (17) sts and 60 (46) rows = 4”/10 cm in Knit Love Mosaic, blocked
Gauge is not crucial for this project, but variations will affect yardage and final measurements.

Join us over in Ambah’s Ravelry group for company and support while knitting your project.

By Tuesday of this week, I was working on the 3x3 ribbing on my The Twigs by Junko Okamoto. I have been knitting most of this since before the body and sleeves were separated using ChiaoGoo 60" circular needles and magic loop. It always felt much too tight with too many stitches on my needles when I tried using shorter needles.

I love the ease and length of my The Twigs by Junko Okamoto. Mine isn’t as oversized and big since my gauge is smaller than it should be. Using 2.25 mm needles for almost the whole project, I have a gauge of 32 stitches by 40 rows instead of the pattern gauge of 30 stitches by 32 rows. The widest part of the body is still 50" so I am not sure how big it would have been at the pattern gauge.

I still have 4 rounds to go before binding off the body. I will be starting the sleeves soon!

KNIT GROUP AND GALLERY

The newest Knit-Alongs are the Any Sweater / Shawl KAL and the Knit Any Project: our everlasting knit-along to encourage and support you to knit which is running from January 1 to April 30, 2022. I will get a thread started soon!

Remember to post photos to the finished object (FO) thread when you finish a project during the Knit-Along so that you will be included in the next draw! We will also add the option of posting your finished project to Instagram using the #sue2knitskal so that I can find them!

Linda (lmcnorton) finished her Terra Nova by Jennifer Beale! I can’t believe she finished such a complicated pattern... 175 hours in a one month period!

Just look at the amazing details! Linda used this project as a stash buster to use up much of her fingering weight leftover yarn stash.

Debbie (@love.knit.spin.weave) hand spun alpaca (white) and Corriedale Stripey sliver to knit herself this fabulous shrug!

Paulette (@psknitting50) finished this beautiful pair of Foxy Mittens from the book Winter Knits from Scandinavia by Jenny Alderbrant. Her (JennyPenny) Ravelry Foxy Mittens pattern has different palm and wrist detail.

This one isn’t a recently finished FO since she knit it a couple of years ago but Bev (Bevyknits46)  came to our Tuesday Knit Afternoon group wearing her Navelli by Caitlin Hunter.

Diane (@boujeeknits) knit several pairs of Follow Your Dreams by Vinene Sestry using Jamieson & Smith 2 Ply Jumper Weight yarn to gift at Christmas.

Here’s another one of Diane's Follow Your Dreams fingerless mitts.

Diane (@boujeeknits) knit this pair of The Atlantis Twins by Designs by Delz for her son.

Beverley knit this pair of socks for her sister (who knits hats) using ZenYarnGarden Serenity 20 in Mento and Silver Moon.

Jean knit herself this striking Little Norway Pullover by Kiyomi Burgin.

Kelle (TedsMom) wove this beautiful scarf using Madelinetosh Tosh Merino Light for both her warp and her weft.

SHOP UPDATE

Look what arrived from SweetGeorgia Yarns!!! Tough Love Sock,

Party of Five Sets,

SGY Corriedale Fibre and...

  SGY Polwarth+Silk Fibre.

Happy Friday, Happy Knitting, Crocheting and Crafting! Keep calm and keep on knitting and making!