Is your color choice influenced by the season?

Do you pick colors based on the season? As I've pulled yarn from restock lists over the past few weeks, I've noticed that we've been selling a LOT of greens, reds, browns, oranges and yellows. And since those colors have been in abundance here in Vermont over the past month, I made the connection that maybe people are buying what they see out in nature? I don't know if it's true of not, but it's my own little study! 

These groupings of yarn were pulled from actual restock lists. So somewhere out there, fall colored items are being made!

Fall inspired colors of Berroco Vintage

Autumnal shades of Berroco Comfort

Plymouth Encore

Manos del Uruguay Wool Clasica

Brown Sheep Lamb's Pride Worsted

We love it that people are making sweaters, shawls and afghans in fall colors. It's my favorite time of the year in Vermont. How can you look at the foliage and NOT be completely inspired?

Baby Chucks

contributed by Shawn

Remember these?

Well I recently came across a pattern for Crochet Baby Converse sneakers by Suzanne Resaul on Ravelry and COULD NOT RESIST. They are amazing!

I used Knit One Crochet Too DungarEase yarn for the soles. I don’t usually enjoy knitting with cotton especially at the tight gauge required for stiff fabric like these little shoes. However, the DungarEase yarn is wonderful to crochet with. I enjoyed using it even on a small hook at a tight gauge. The yarn is made in a way that gives it a nice cushy feel and it has some elasticity to it when you work with it. My hands definitely did not complain about crocheting with this cotton blend like the usually do when I knit or crochet with cotton.

The uppers are Berroco Comfort DK. I was going to make little red Chucks, but we were out of the bright red color so I settled for the lime green. They are still awesome!

These little Chuck Taylors are an easy project and everyone who sees the finished shoes is enthralled. I highly recommend making up a pair for the next baby gift you plan to give.

Simple & Sweet Baby Sweaters

Each day we see customers in the shop searching for sweater patterns for newborn babies. It's no wonder - don't you always get the urge to knit a little sweater for a close friend or family member when you hear she's expecting? I know I do!

And as yarn shop employees, we've handled this many, many times, so we're always prepared to recommend a good assortment of patterns.

Like the Wee One Welcome Set from Knitting at Knoon.

This pattern is simply adorable. It calls for 400 yards of DK weight yarn. In our shop sample (above) we chose Sirdar Snuggle Crofter DK that knits up with a fair isle striping effect. This yarn is reasonably priced (it costs just $21 to make the set), comes in really sweet colors and is soft and machine washable.

We've got other great DK weight yarns that work really well for this little set. Berroco Comfort DK now has really fun variegated colors, and Manos del Uruguay Silk Blend is also a popular choice.

The Puerperium Baby Cardigan is precious! And it's easy and fun to make. This sweater is pretty hard to resist, once you see the (and feel!) the shop sample (shown below). We used Misti Alpaca Pima Silk and this yarn is just the perfect choice for a newborn. The color choice is spectacular, and it's heavenly to knit.

Another pattern that's been getting a lot of attention is brand new from Yankee Knitter. The Baby Sweaters, Hats & Blankets Pattern #31 is a great addition to the Yankee Knitter offering. The sweaters and hats are sized from preemie to 6-12 months and the blanket is a generous 33"x35". And they knit up quickly in heavy worsted weight.

Our top recommendations for this pattern are Plymouth Encore, Berroco Comfort Worsted, Berroco Vintage and if you'd like a soft wool, then Dream in Color Classy or Classic Elite Liberty Print.

And finally, one last recommendation for a great newborn sweater. We came across this one a few months ago and thought it was beautiful in its simplicity. It is more suited for little girls, but it's a top choice on our list for newborns.

In Threes: A Baby Cardigan is a pattern that's available on Ravelry. We also sell it in the shop through Ravelry. It's the sweetest little sweater. All worked from the top down, in one piece. It's absolutely precious!

We had some Putty colored Brown Sheep Cotton Fleece laying around and I knew it would be perfect for this sweater. It just needs buttons now, but the best part about using such a neutral color is that you can really be creative with your button selection!

Beautiful yoke detail

Customer Project - Comfort Kitty!

Check out this child friendly 'comfort' sweater!  This project (sorry, pattern source unknown) was knit on request using machine washable Berroco Comfort Worsted yarn. Kitty is worked mostly in intarsia and details were added using duplicate stitch.  Our favorite part? 

Kitty is coming and going!

We're sorry... the shop was busy the other day when we chatted and snapped these pictures. We neglected to get the knitter's name!

Customer Project - PEACE Blanket

Sydney, the 9 year old daughter of our customer Claudine, arrived home one day with a colored pillowcase and said "Mom, I want a blanket with these colors, and I want the peace symbol on it".  So Claudine got out her graph paper and started designing. Then she came into the shop and picked out some beautiful colors of Berroco Comfort Worsted.

Berroco Comfort Worsted

When all the squares were completed, Claudine came back in to get some help putting everything together. We love to show people how to seam properly!  And then, because she wanted the blanket just a bit larger, she decided to crochet around the edges. But she didn't crochet! So we taught her.

It was great learning opportunity for her, and she certainly knows how to do it now! And the blanket it amazing. (We're sure Sydney agrees!)

Claudine's Peace Sign Blanket for Sydney. LOVE IT!

Five superb colors, 20 squares (and no two squares alike!), an amazing job finishing and a HUGE amount of crochet for a first time crocheter! 

GREAT job Claudine! 

We love to see unique, hand designed success stories like this one. Do you have one to share with us?

Great new colors of Comfort Worsted

Our new fall Berroco yarns have arrived, and so have the awesome new colors of existing yarns. We just received 5 really fun new shades of Comfort Worsted. They're all prints, and as you can see, they're perfect additions to the already huge color offering of this yarn.

Any of these would be great as a baby blanket. But which pattern you ask? I'd recommend either the simple Building Blocks Baby Blanket pattern 

or the Ann Norling Crib Blanket II pattern.

They'd also be great for baby sweaters. How about the Cottage Creations Lillie's Little Sweater?

Or the Cabin Fever Tasia's Cardigan?

Need more ideas? Stop in to the shop or drop us a line!

Greenway

contributed by Shawn

This year I have a lot of wedding knitting to do.  Each summer for the last couple of years I've had one wedding amongst my friends and I've picked out an afghan project to be the gift that I give.  A couple of weeks ago I got this years' invitations. Yep, plural, as in the same day two invitations arrived for two separate weddings. (Fortunately, the weddings are not scheduled for the same day even though the invites arrived on the same day... whew!) So with 2 wedding gifts to knit, let the pattern choosing begin!

I like to choose the patterns first and then pick out the yarn. I think it's easier to do in that order even though I know I will need to use something machine-washable for both of these gifts.  In the past I've used Berroco Comfort yarn and I really like knitting with it so I started my pattern search in the Berroco Comfort Knitting & Crochet Afghans book.

When this book came out I started a list of the afghans in it I wanted to try.  I've already done a couple of them and I just couldn't decide on the style for the next one.  Barb has been teaching a lot of crochet students recently and this inspired Emily's suggestion to me to look more closely at the crochet patterns in the book.  I know how to crochet but I am much more likely to pick up a knitting project as I have much more knowledge and experience with knitting than I do with crochet techniques.   

So until now I haven't really considered the crochet patterns in the book. Several of them have been quite popular with our customers and when I took a closer look I really liked the colors and the striping diamond pattern in the Greenway pattern. Better yet, the stitches used in this afghan are basic ones and I knew this would be something that I could attempt myself with maybe a bit of help from Barb along the way. 

I picked out colors and I really like how it is coming together! I'm using Berroco Comfort in the following colors: Navy Blue (9763), Rabe (9754), Olive (9781), Sprig (9721), and Barley (9703).

The Wedding Swirl Afghan

contributed by Shawn

A long time ago  a couple of my friends announced their wedding date. I decided to make them an afghan as a wedding gift, but didn't want to spoil it for them. I asked them what colors they liked and I decided to make the Swirl Afghan with Berroco Comfort yarn.  

After my color consultation, I quickly knit up the first hexagon for the Swirl Afghan of 2011 using Berroco Comfort yarn. This was one of the patterns I've wanted to try since the book Berroco Comfort Knitting & Crochet Afghans came out.

Meanwhile back at the knitting design ranch I enlisted logic minded associates to help me with another facet of the project.  The original pattern is written for a hexagonal blanket the size of a baby blanket. I had two issues. 

• I wanted to make mine larger. 
• I didn't want any hexagons to share a side with another hexagon of the same color. With 6 sided hexagons and 5 colors in the afghan, it was far beyond me to figure it out. Once I started going larger than the original pattern, I couldn't find a way to arrange the colors so that it would work out.  Because these hexagons are attached as you knit, I needed to figure this one out pretty quickly!

So on a campout this summer, I had some sodoku brained people help me figure this out. It kept them busy for a while!

Original afghan pattern (left) with expanded chart (right)

I admit I got distracted on this afghan and neglected it for a while. But I pulled it out again as fall approached and realized that the wedding was nigh.  (No, I didn't make the deadline.  I had plenty of hexagons left to finish at the end of September.)

But once I got close to the end, I couldn't wait to fit the last pieces together!  When I finished the last piece I decided it needed a border.  I pulled out my crochet hook and added a row of single crochet and then a row of double crochet to finish it all off.

 

It might be January 2012, but the finished piece is amazing and lovely. And the recipients LOVE it!

Now my other friends have started asking when they will get their afghans. I've told them all that as soon as I get the invitation to their weddings I'll get started.

Big Kids, Little Kids is a Winner!

Berroco Book #320 Big Kids/Little Kids is packed with TWENTY SEVEN (27) patterns for kids ages 2 to 12. When I first saw the designs in this booklet a couple of months ago I figured it would be at least twice the price of a normal Berroco booklet, but it's not. It's $8 for 27 patterns... so 30 cents a pattern! And there are so many great designs in this booklet, that you're bound to make a number of them.

These designs are in 5 great easy care yarns: Comfort, Vintage, Weekend, Remix and the new Berroco Circus.    

There are always great patterns available for girls, but customers sometimes feel that boys get left out... good designs for young gentlemen can be really hard to find. Book #320 is a good choice for those of you who have boys in this age group (2-12) who need some good hand-knits!

Felix sweater: Rambunctious colors and contrasting sleeves add pep to a color-work pullover with a v-neck

Denison Sweater - With sporty details reminiscent of a varsity jacket, this zip-up hoodie works up quickly in chunky-weight yarn.

Westcott Sweater - A timeless crew-neck pullover with a handsome twisted cable pattern and classic ribbed edgings.

Nestor Sweater - Crisp-looking stripes run across the body and sleeves of a simple drop shoulder pullover with a relaxed rolled neck.

Lyman Sweater - Convenient flap pockets make this half-zip hooded pullover the perfect garment for any outdoor adventure.

Kent Sweater - The cozy knitted version of a classic athletic sweatshirt, this pullover hoodie is worked in a perfectly speckled shade.

The girls' patterns don't disappoint either:

Tolmie Skirt - Cheerful stripes of stranded color-work and texture are topped with a stretchy ribbed waistband, while crocheted scallops trim the bottom.

Rosaria Sweater - Knitted flowers are sprinkled across the front of a sweet long-sleeved cardigan with garter stitch detailing around the yoke.

Marymere Poncho - Four pompoms add a playful touch to the front of a short poncho, while an extra big pompom tops off the hood.

Kendall Vest - Knitted flowers and a matching textured edging are the perfect finishing touches for a stylish open vest.

Josette Sweater - A charmingly over-sized bow adorns the front of a crew-neck pullover with contrasting sleeves and edgings.

Brook Poncho - a whimsical poncho made from alternating stripes of easy Fair Isle stitching and stockinette

Bristol Sweater - A long hooded cardigan with short sleeves looks effortlessly cool knit in an easy textural stitch pattern.

Blake Sweater - Ladylike pleats along the neck and clean-looking fold-over hems are elegant finishing touches for a long-sleeved cardigan.

 

 

This is just 14 of the 27 patterns... the other 13 are just as good. Check them out!