Customer Project - Skylark

We love Rowan Lima yarn because it is so soft and luxuriously squishy. Our customer Lisa stopped by to pick out buttons for her Skylark sweater and it made us swoon. This is going to be a wonderful sweater to cozy into next fall!

Skylark is a lace ribbed cardigan with a soft neckline from Cherished: 21 Designs by Kim Hargreaves.

Enchanted with Enchanted

Two new Kim Hargreaves books have been delivered to the shop and as usual, they are full of wonderful pieces to make!

The books are named Quirky and Enchanted, and they each have instructions for 21 beautiful designs. There are so many that I'd love to start right away! There are 4 in the Enchanted book that I'm seriously considering.

The Covet cowl is made with Rowan Kidsilk Haze. Lightweight, yet cozy, it can be worn and a cowl or pulled up around the head as a hood.

The Mystic Sweater is also made with Kidsilk Haze. It's got beads and is absolutely elegant, but would also look nice without the beads. Your choice!

Fate is a long collared sweater made with Rowan Alpaca Cotton. This worsted weight yarn is soft and warm... and machine washable. It's one of the coziest yarn in the shop.

Siren is a contour hugging ribbed sweater knit with Rowan Lima. This yarn is a worsted weight chainette construction. I like it both ways - with and without the belt!

Time to make some decisions!

Fuzzy Mitten Lamb

We just love to make knitted toys!  Do you need a small gift for a child? (This one can even be used on top of a baby shower gift, instead of a bow!) Or do you just need a quick & fun project?

Sometimes you have a pattern you want to make, but you can't find the perfect yarn... we understand!

Here's a project where the pattern and the yarn are perfect for each other!

The loveable Fuzzy Mitten Lamb (waiting to great you at our checkout counter) is a great example of a project where the pattern and the yarn were made for each other! 

Rowan Alpaca Cotton is soft and fuzzy and comes in perfect colors for this little lamb! It's even washable. (Of course if you are making this for a small child you will want to embroider the eyes rather than using buttons.)

The pattern is free on Ravelry, get it here!

Kidsilk Haze Stripe Collection

We're loving the Rowan Kidsilk Haze Stripe yarn. Obviously it makes a gorgeous striped scarf (with NO work on your part!) 

but did you know we've got a pattern booklet for some gorgeous sweaters in this yarn?

More and more people are making sweaters out of lace weight yarn, and we think these are beautiful:

Cost Cutting Ideas

One of our most popular shawl patterns last year was the Alder Wrap from Rowan. It's gorgeous and featherlight, and is a perfect accessory for throwing in your bag. Who knows when you just might need to throw something warm and cozy around your shoulders?

We had a number of customers make this wrap, but also a good number who were a bit put off by the price. It calls for 12 balls of Rowan Kidsilk Haze yarn, plus the Rowan Magazine. That's over $200! WOW!

Our shop model

These days, we're ALL keeping a close watch on the wallet, so I'm thrilled to offer you an alternative to this great shawl.

Rowan has since come out with Kidsilk Haze Stripe yarn, which stripes all on its own and has twice the yardage of the original Kidsilk Haze yarn.

Just two balls will make a gorgeous scarf that's quite generous at 11" x 75". You could even make it wider by casting on more stitches and sacrificing a bit of the length (since 75" is huge!).

This is a free pattern (just register at Rowan.com to download it!) and the cost is under $60!

And if you are still in love with the Alder Wrap, why don't you use the Kidsilk Haze Stripe yarn? It will probably take just 3 skeins. That pattern can also be accessed for free on the Rowan website, which brings the cost down to just under $90. That's a savings of over 50%!

What to knit when it is hot

contributed by Emily

This time of year it can be a little hard to stay motivated when it comes to knitting. I know I look at my blankets and sweaters in progress and I sigh, knowing that there is absolutely no way I am going to be able to knit on them until September or October, at least!

But I can’t not knit. It is just not within the realm of possibility for me. So I usually take the opportunity of these hot months to restock my supply of market bags! I love the Fruit and Vegetable market bag made in different color combinations of Tahki Cotton Classic. 

Yarndance Fruit & Vegetable Bags

And I recently took home a few skeins of the Rowan Revive to make the Everlasting Bagstopper. This is a free pattern from Knitty Summer 2007.

Free Spring Scarf Pattern

It's getting warm out, but that doesn't mean you have to pack up all of your scarves. Make a scarf that you can wear year round! Rowan Purelife Revive is a blend of recycled silk, cotton and viscose. This yarn is absolutely gorgeous and softens nicely after a little blocking and a little wear.

Here's a super easy (and free) pattern for a spring scarf that will be in your wardrobe for years.

• Take 2 balls of Rowan Revive yarn and a size 8 US needle. 
• Cast on 30-34 stitches.
• Knit 6 rows.
• *Next row - work Twisted Drop Stitch (see instructions below) across the entire row.
• Knit 7 rows**
• Repeat from * to ** until you are almost out of yarn. Bind off on a row 7.
• Block - we recommend a wool wash like Eucalan or Kookaburra.
• Wear, wear, wear!

Twisted Drop Stitch: Insert right needle into stitch as if to knit it normally. Wrap yarn around BOTH needles and then around just the right needle. Pull the needle through as you would with a normal knit stitch, taking it through the existing stitch and the extra wrap.

Over the Moon

The Cherished Book by Kim Hargreaves is a top seller in the shop. It seems like every couple of weeks we have sold out and I am receiving another shipment of this book.

Each time I receive it, I get a chance to flip through all of the wonderful patterns in this book.  One of my favorites is the Moon Hat. I've loved the Rowan Cocoon since last winter when I knit the Quincy Hat. I've been looking for another hat pattern to show off it's silky texture, and I knew this could be the one!

The hat is knit flat so that it is easier to work the lace pattern. However, since every other row is a purl row you could easily adapt this hat pattern to be knit in the round.

The pattern calls for 2 skeins of Cocoon.  I had just one skein to start with so I went ahead and began the project. Somehow I managed to squeak it out of one skein. I didn't have much yarn left as you can see.

I would recommend starting with two skeins to be sure you aren't a couple of rows short on yarn!  The hat is super warm and just a bit slouchy.  Remember our mannequin head has no hair so hats look a little bigger on her! 

Yep. I saw the Queen. Twice.

This morning we arrived at Buckingham Palace over an hour early to see the Changing of the Guards. The crowds were already 4-5 deep at the gates, and we knew we wouldn't see much of the actual ceremony. The actual "changing" procedure starts at 11:30am, with some other stuff starting to happen at 11:15am. But we got the best spot we could, and proceeded to wait. Fortunately it was a beautifully sunny day. While we waited, we watched some men do a little "touching up" to the paint on the gates. I guess everything needs maintenance from time to time.

At about 10:45am, the Horse Guards rode by and went down the Mall, and few minutes later we noticed some activity inside the gates of the Palace. The crowd started cheering and all of a sudden some cars (including a Bentley with a flag on it) & security people drove by. In the car was a woman (wearing a hat) who was waving. I didn't see her face, but come on! Who rides in a Bentley, wears hats, and waves as she is driven from Buckingham Palace?  I assumed it was the Queen. But it wasn't confirmed. Yet!

I didn't last through more than 5 minutes of the Changing of the Guard. Perhaps it was the poor view I had, or the thousands of people crushing me forward into the royal gates. Helen and I ditched Marc (with Sophie on his shoulders) and went to sit near the Golden Gates for a calmer scene and a bit more oxygen. When they finally joined us, I had been chatting with a woman from Germany, who had captured a picture of the woman in the car. Even though she was shooting directly into the sun, she captured a wonderful photo. It was clearly the Queen, waving to the crowd and sitting with Prince Phillip in the back of the car. 

When the ceremony was over, Marc and Sophie joined us. We rested a moment or two and then got up to walk over toward Westminster Abbey and Big Ben. All of a sudden, the motorcade came into view again and we ran over to the road to get a better look. Sure enough, there she was, the Queen of England, back from her little jaunt and returning to the palace, waving to the crowds.

Ok, my photo is blurry. But there she is!

Of course Helen and Sophie are beside themselves that they got to SEE the Queen. Honestly, the were hoping to see Prince William and the Duchess of Cambridge (good old "Kate" to them) but I think the Queen will do.

We basked in the gorgeous weather (after all, we know what we're in for when we head back to Finland on Sunday) and took in some classic London sights.

And since this is not a travel blog, there are knitting related things as well. I found an adorable hand knit purple Aran sweater on the lawn by the Golden Gates. I tried to find the little owner or her parents, but had no luck. Very sad!

I saw this easy-to-knock off chunky cowl at Buckingham Palace. I love it, and may just have to make one. I'm thinking Spud & Chloe Outer would be perfect.

And then I saw this gorgeous bulky shawl at Westminster Abbey. I'd make this one in Rowan Alpaca Cotton.

And then we found this really cool knitted bag with fringe and leather straps at the Michael Kors shop on Regeant Street. 

But 195 British pounds? What the...!?!? For those of you not up on currency conversions, that is about $300! I'm seeing a much more reasonable DIY hand knit version in my future. It was double stranded, and I think Berroco Ultra Alpaca or Plymouth Galway would be great choices for this.

And look at all the yummy Rowan yarns at Liberty!

Here are the girls with Laura, who works at Liberty and was so sweet. (PS She's NEVER seen the Queen, so she made us feel special!)

Only one shopping bag, and small. I showed serious restraint.

And I knit all the way home.

Progress!

Remember this?

Well now it's finished, and I love it! Of course it's going to be making it's way back to the shop this week, so it will not get buttons until it arrives there.

I had enough yarn leftover that I decided to make a super cute jester hat. I found the pattern on Ravelry (it's free) and it is a great project for self striping yarn like the Liberty Wool. It's called the Baby Jester Hat.

I've also completed one preemie hat for our preemie hat drive. (Notice how I'm working a lot with yellows, greens and blues? Hmmm.)

I whipped it up pretty quickly the other day, and then paused for a bit to make the jester hat. I'll be making more... and hey, that jester hat might be a good idea...

Now I'm about to start the Storm Cloud Shawlette, another freebie on Ravelry. I am going to try combining the Blue Heron Rayon Metallic with the Rowan Kid Silk Haze. I love lace weight yarns like the Kid Silk Haze, but I'm not fond of using them by themselves. I thought that blending it with the Rayon Metallic would be more up my alley!

A quick peek at some of the new fall yarns

New yarns, new yarns! From novelties, to super bulkies, and ruffles to chainette, we’ve got em!

This year novelty yarns are back, but they’re not like the novelty yarns of 4-5 years ago. They’re packed with different colors, fibers and textures. A couple of my favorites are Trendsetter Venus and Trendsetter Rendezvous. These are colorful and soft, and great for quick hats and scarves. (Excuse the watermarks!)

Another popular trend this season is using super chunky yarns like Berroco Link and Trendsetter Orbit… We’ve got size 35 and 50 needles for these yarns. Talk about instant gratification!

And ruffles are everywhere… We’ve got Knitting Fever Flounce, Knitting Fever Triana and Trendsetter Flamenco to satisfy all of you ruffle fiends. These yarns can be knit by themselves, but try adding in a few rows at a time to accessories for a really great look.

Another big thing this year… chainette construction yarns that knit up quickly and a warm and are super lightweight. Rowan Alpaca Chunky and Plymouth DeAire are two examples, and are both great for cozy accessories and sweaters.

New Book Excitement

We just got a new book in the other day by Kim Hargreaves. It's called Cherished and is full of some really incredible items! Barb and Shawn and I were looking at it yesterday and we all agreed that it passes the 3 project test... where a book has to have at least three good projects in it in order to consider purchasing it. I think there are way more than 3!

Like the River skirt... a ribbed mini skirt with shaping done in Rowan Lima:And Moon, a slouchy lace paneled hat done in Rowan Cocoon: And Skylark, a lace ribbed cardigan with a soft neckline, done in Rowan Lima: And Luna, a gorgeous raglan cardigan with beaded lace edging done in Kidsilk Haze (which we will soon be carrying again!): And Fayer, a relaxed sweater with a generous neck, done in Rowan Alpaca Cotton: It's kind of like going into a new store, and finding a ton of clothes that you LOVE... all in the same spot!

Manic-In Monday

It's official! Spring break has started in these parts... and our gal must have some big travel plans. Anyone sense a safari, or something like that? She's definitely ready for an action packed trip with a flattering (and fun to knit!) vest, a hot shawl pin and a versatile bag. Vest: Desert Vest knit with Rowan Savannah yarn. Pattern is in the Rowan Savannah Pattern Book. Desert Tank Shawl
Pin: Bamboo Leaf Coconut shawl pin
Bag: Lantern Moon Swing Bucket Bag in Black/Tan colorway

Free on Friday

Michele recently made this gorgeous scarf for her son Andrew, who is a junior at the University of Vermont. If you're familiar with the UVM campus, or downtown Burlington, Vermont, you know that the wind can be CRAZY cold during the winter months. Michele wanted to make Andrew a nice scarf that would be stylish and warm. She thought about making a Jade Sapphire Cashmere Scarf for Him Kit, but wanted a yarn with a little more depth.

She ended up choosing the Blue Sky Alpaca Worsted yarn because it's got such gorgeous colors, and they are hand dyed with subtle color variation. She used 4 skeins, and the pattern below. It's gorgeous! Pattern:
4 skeins Blue Sky Alpaca Worsted yarn
Size 9-10 US Needles (Michele is a tight knitter and used 10s!)

Abbreviations:
C6B: move next three stitches to a cable needle, hold to the back of work. Knit 3 stitches from left hand needle, then knit 3 stitches from cable needle.

Instructions:
Cast on 42 stitches.
Work in Cable Pattern (below) for desired length, bind off. Block.

Cable Pattern:
Rows 1, 5, and 7: (K6, P6) repeat to last 6 st, K6
Row 2, 6, and 8: (P6, K6) repeat to last 6 st, P6
Row 3: (C6B, P6) repeat to last 6 st, C6B
Row 4: (P6, C6B) repeat to last 6 st, P6

Enjoy!

Shared Projects

I started the Shallot Sweater with the Rowan Purelife Revive a couple of months ago. It's in the Purelife Recycled Collection pattern booklet. The Revive is a gorgeous yarn and even though it just arrived in the shop last week, I had ordered a bag of it earlier in the winter so I could get started on this top for a shop sample. I'd hoped to finish it, but you know how that goes...

It's normal for me to go down one needle size with pretty much every project I do, and my gauge swatch on this yarn proved no different. So I ended up on US size 2 and 5 needles. I worked the ribbing on the 2's and about 4-5 inches of the pattern on the 5's. The pattern calls for you to yarn over and then purl 4 together. On the next row, you work a K1,P1,K1 into the YO to maintain your stitch count. The P4 tog was tough, despite the sharp tips on the Addi Lace Needles I was using. It did me in and so the sweater sat.

When the yarn came in last week and I was photographing it for the website, Barb and I were talking about how beautiful it is. I mean check out these colors:Barb asked me how my sweater was coming along. I had to confess that it wasn't.

So Barb offered to work on it for me. Fortunately she was without a project at the time, so I brought it in the next day for her to take home. She didn't like that P4 tog either, but she figured out a way to make it easier (slip 2 purlwise, p2 tog, pass 2 slipped stitches over) and she's cruising on the sweater.
Remember, sometimes it takes some higher level thinking to find a workaround. At least now I know that even if she gives me this sweater back to finish, I will have an easier time of it.

Manic-In Monday

We're a day behind this week - sorry! We arrived to work yesterday to find that all the heavy snow we received on Saturday night had fallen from the roof onto our front walks. Imagine a foot of heavy wet snow from the entire roof, all coming down onto the sidewalks and making a 2 foot high SOLIDLY PACKED snow banking. It was all hands on deck (actually, all hands on shovels and ice picks!) to clear the walks in time for the shop to open. After that, today's 4 inches is nothing!

It would have been nice if our gal could have helped us with the shoveling, but she didn't want to perspire in her beautiful new sweater. I tried to convince her to help out - the yarn is machine washable for crying out loud - but she'd have none of it. Sometimes she's a little too cool for school... especially when there is manual labor involved. Anyway, she does look great in this cardigan. It's lightweight, but warm, and such an easy stitch pattern, you'll be doing it in your sleep. The scarf is also simple, and adds a splash of color.
Sweater: Hester sweater in the Rowan Homestead Classics pattern booklet knit with Rowan Alpaca Cotton Yarn
Scarf: Instant Gratification Scarf knit with Noro King yarn

Free on Friday

This week's free scarf pattern was inspired by a sweater that Barb is knitting for the shop. It's the Hester cardigan in the Rowan Homestead Classics pattern book. She's knitting the sweater out of Rowan alpaca Cotton - which we LOVE... it's lightweight and airy, super soft and warm, and comes in great colors! Oh, AND it's machine washable. My selling point!

The stitch pattern is actually all knit stitches, but you'd never believe it. That's right, just knitting and slipping with the yarn in front. It's so pretty, and totally reversible, so Barb grabbed a few balls of Rowan Lima and worked it up into a scarf.Since it's technically garter stitch, but not really, we're calling it the Garter "Not" Scarf. Free pattern is here. Enjoy!

And stay tuned for the sweater debut... it's almost finished.