Friday, September 18, 2020, Issue 166: It is sweater weather!

• Posted on 18 September 2020
• By Susan Wong-Tsang
• Posted in Fall Knitting, KAL, knit-along, September 2020, sweater weather
• 0

The shop is now OPEN again with regular hours again! Masks will be mandatory and hand sanitizer is to be used on arriving with no more than four people at a time. No putting yarn against your face please! If you want to continue to order online for curb side pick up that is also more than welcome. If you are a group of 4 and would like to book our social table to be yours exclusively on a Tuesday, Wednesday or Thursday afternoon, please give us a call ...For now, classes will not be offered unless my teachers agree to the smaller class size needed.

Can we officially say it, that it is sweater weather? The days haven't been too different yet but the evenings are already cooler and the sun is going down earlier too! Of course sweater weather also means sock weather with shawls, cowls and hats...What do you like to knit at this time of the year?

Lise (Mattedcat) has finished her Pinewood Pullover by Ela Torrente. The Pinewood Pullover features a pine-needle stitch motif on the front that was inspired by the crisp, clean forest. The top-down raglan shaping makes this pullover with no seaming a knitter-friendly project. Use tweed to enhance the rustic charm of this design.

The pattern was originally  to be found in Interweave Knits, Summer 2016 issue. Both Lise and I knit two of the patterns from this issue.

The pullover shown in the magazine measures 34″ and is modeled with 2″ of positive ease. I used Rowan Felted Tweed DK for mine and Lise knit hers using Berroco Remix Light. Both of us feel that the neckline is too wide! I picked up the bound off stitches around the neck using 24” 3.25 mm needles and then worked a 3 stitch i-cord bind off to tighten up the neckline.

Caitlin Hunter’s High Lonesome came live today (September 18) on Ravelry. She and her husband are modeling theirs on the pattern page. She is offering 30% all of her self-published patterns until the end of September with no code necessary.

High Lonesome is a classic unisex sweater with a timeless colourwork yoke design. This pattern is approachable for knitters of all levels. She designed it using just one color of self-striping yarn for the colourwork pattern, paired with a rustic sport weight wool! Combining worsted weight for the colourwork with a lighter sport weight for the body gives the pattern just a little extra “oomph” in the colourwork but is not required. The top-down design means you can try this sweater on as you go, so you can alter the length as needed for your perfect fit.

Yarns that the shop carries that I would recommend are Lichen and Lace Rustic Heather Sport, Cascade 220 Sport, or Kelbourne Woolens Andorra. For the self-striping, I would suggest Schoppel Wolle Edition 3 or Starke 6.

The gauge is 20 sts and 28 rounds over 4” 10 cm in colourwork and stockinette after blocking. The suggested needle sizes are 3.5 mm (US 4) for the ribbing and 3.75 mm (US 5) for the main body or as required to get gauge.

Letho by Natasja Hornby came live in August! It is a striking cardigan with an interesting, seamless construction perfect for warding off chilly weather and easy layering!

The edges of the cardigan are adorned with welts and slip stitch colourwork to provide interest and structure. The cozy brioche collar and cuffs add drama, but also invite you to cocoon in the warm embrace of the cardigan. Directions for tailoring the fit of Letho to your personal flair are given in the pattern.

The cardigan is worked sideways, in two halves, starting at the brioche sleeve cuffs to the center of the back. The body is constructed using a double sided provisional cast-on for an invisible side seam. The pattern contains a phototutorial on this technique. Once the right and the left half of the cardigan are worked they are joined by a three needle bind off on the outside. The stitches for the body ribbing are then picked up and worked down to the lower edge of the cardigan. After finishing the ribbing the colorwork, the welts and a brioche collar are worked around the fronts and back neck.

The gauge is 18 stitches and 25 rows = 4 inches in stockinette with needle A after blocking and 14 sts and 44 rows = 4” in brioche after blocking. The pattern calls for four needle sizes,  3.75 mm (US 5), 4.0 mm (US 6), 4.5 mm (US 7) and 5.0 mm (US 8) or as required to get gauge.

Suggested yarns are Istex LettLopi and Lichen and Lace Rustic Heather Sport held double with Garnstudio Drops Kid Silk.

Maschen-Marie’s Letho test knit for Batasja Hornby is fabulous!

Monument Valley Shawl designed by Caroline Sommerfield of Ancient Arts Fibre Crafts using their Revival! The pattern is 50% off on Ravelry until September 25th with no code required.

The inspiration for this asymmetric bias triangle shawl is the stunning landscape of Monument Valley, most of which lies in a Navajo Tribal Park in the Southwestern USA. In this area, majestic red rock canyons, pillars, and mesas rise out of the desert landscape, all over-seen by glorious blue skies. Hardy shrubs and trees endure the blowing sand that sculpts the landscape, and tumble weeds have plenty of room to roam. Garter stitch, slip stitch, mosaic, and some easy-to-work lace all combine to echo the elements of the landscape. This fun-to-knit shawl can be made in two different sizes and is easy to wear with many styling options!

The medium shawl needs two skeins (one skein MC and one skein CC) and has a finished measurement of approx. 68” x 38-1/4 inches. The larger shawl needs three skeins (two skeins MC and one skein CC) and has a finished measurement of approx. 82-3/4” x 50 inches. Gauge is 21 sts / 40 rnds = 10 cm / 4” in garter stitch, blocked using 3.5 mm (US 4) needles or as required to get gauge.

WIP's and FO's

Here I have just a row to go before separating the sleeves and the body of my Susurrus by Joji Locatelli for the #jojifallkal2020! I really love the lace detail and mohair stockinette in it.

I got to a few inches after separating the body and the sleeves so that I could try it on...

Now I am even farther along! I have about 5.25" or less to go before the hem ribbing! For anyone who is interested, there are three Susurrus Kits remaining in the shop!

KNIT GROUP AND GALLERY

The current Knit-Alongs are the Any Sweater / Shawl KAL and the Knit Your Project: the everlasting knit-along to encourage and support you to knit is running from July 1 to September 30, 2020. Post you finished projects to the Sue2Knits and Yarn Ravelry Group to the Finished Objects thread or to Instagram using the hashtag #sue2knitskal to be included in the next quarterly draw.

Thank you to all of you who were able to make it to Local Yarn Shop Day last Saturday! It was an amazing day with the perfect weather for a little bit of social distance knitting and yarn therapy!

Angela came to LYS Day wearing her Arctic Cathedral by Natalie V knit in Rowan Felted Tweed in Ginger.

Angela came to LYS Day wearing her Rock It Tee by Tanis Lavallee knit using Hikoo Cobasi! Most of didn't come wearing your knits though!

Lorraine came to LYS Day wearing her Meridian Top by EweKnit Toronto knit using Berroco Remix Light.

Congratulations to the winners of the LYS Day draws!! Linda won one of the draws! She won a tee shirt from Joji & Co.

Jan (@janatkinson49) and Lorraine A (not on IG) both won a Joji & Co #jojifallkal2020 bag and pin.

Melissa (@melissadebevc) won a @shetlandwoolweek project bag 2018 and Bev (@bjubenville) won a @shetlandwoolweek project bag 2020!

Zeenat knit this bright and happy skirt for a 4 year old using Noro Kureyon striped wool and size 8 US needles

Vanilla socks knit by Jen (@seaturtlecraftco) to be gifted!

Another pair of birthday socks knit by Jen (@seaturtlecraftco). Pattern is Shortie Sock Set by Summer Lee.

Playdate by tincanknits sized 3-6 months knit by Kathy (knotty64) using Malabrigo Mechita.

Playdate #2 in the same size knit by Kathy (knotty64) using Madelinetosh Sock.

Kathy (chantrykathy) knit this year cozy! It is Elegant Oak Leaf and Acorns from Nicky Epstein’s Knitted Embellishments book!

Diane has been having a lot of fun with her loom! Here is a scarf that she wove using stash yarn! Even what you can see on her loom in the background looks lovely!

VIRTUAL SOCIAL KNITTING

Virtual social knitting using the Zoom app! It has been a great way to knit together through social distancing! Join in with us either Tuesday afternoon from 2 - 4 pm or Thursday nights from 7 - 9 pm. We are continuing to hold our Zoom meetings each week until we can meet again in person. Clicking on the link will take you to our Zoom meeting.

Join our Cloud HD Video Meeting
 
Meeting ID: 407820804

Please note that the Zoom meetings will be cancelled once booked social knit afternoons or evenings start up!

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