Yesterday I came across a post from a maker of modern clothing encouraging fellow creators to wear what they make. This got me thinking about how seasons have a huge impact on what I am currently knitting or sewing and even cooking. When the temperatures are frigid, all I want is warm, wooly and fluffy. The recipes heavily in rotation are stews with lots of root vegetables and warm bread. Once the daylight shifts though, everything I do alters too. Lots of outdoor meals, bottles of infused ice water and of course, warm weather knits. I wonder if this is the same with other makers?
While crafting for the current season we are in sounds great in theory, it doesn’t always work out in practice. Given that I am a very slow hand knitter, the projects don’t always get made into finished wearable pieces quickly. I’ve made peace with the fact that speed is not the focus of my creative journey. Enjoying the process and relaxation are what I am after. But I love the seasonal craftiness of building a handmade wardrobe – whatever season it may be.
All this rambling is to say that my current project on the needles is a tried and tested pattern that I’ve knit previously – the Ankers Summer Shirt by Petiteknit. This is my third Ankers and I think, I’ve scratched that itch well and good, haha!
This time, I am knitting it with “Line” from Sandnes Garn which is what the original pattern was designed with. I’m made one modification for this iteration which is to knit the yoke using half twisted rib and I’m really glad with that decision. The Line yarn is a blend of cotton, viscose and linen and I wanted the ribbing to look crisp. I’m about a quarter of the way through the body and I want to get this finished in the next week or so.
Speaking of warm weather knits, I finished a cute Spring Sorrel. I absolutely love the texture on the yoke. And then, I cast on for a short sleeve version of the DRK Everyday Sweater. All I need to do is finish blocking these sweaters and weave in all the ends and then they will be ready to be worn.
This is not an April Fool’s joke. I’m actually dusting the old blog off to write a post!
What have I been up to? Well, everything and nothing. All the days smush into one big ball of busyness and yet, there is no singular, major event making said smushed ball. But such is life. Especially after the blur it has been over the past two years. But let’s not dwell on that because this is a season of newness.
Spring has definitely sprung in full force in these parts, so fresh and blossom-laden. It’s like once we said goodbye to February, everything woke up from a Rip Van Winkle sleep.
I’ve even cast on a new sweater. At this point, it’s just the ribbing on the neckband and I have to see if I like it enough to keep going. The yarn is the most gorgeous colour and this picture does not do it justice.
I’ve finished a few other sweaters and projects that I have yet to document. I always forget how much I love blogging until I begin writing a post… I should do it more often!
As soon as I finished my first Anker’s Shirt, I knew that I wanted a second one in a summer yarn. We added Sandnes GarnTynn Line to our summer yarn shelves at Black Sheep Yarns. I wanted to try this linen-cotton-rayon yarn but it is might skinny. I decided to double it and see if it would work for my summer Anker’s.
I knit a gauge swatch (which is how I begin every garment) to see if I liked the fabric and also to check if my stitch count works with what the designer specifies. My knitting tension is always tight so I usually have to size up to get the right fit or use bigger needles to get my numbers to match. In this case, my numbers were all over the place. I had to sit down and work out the math in the pattern to translate it to be the fit I wanted.
Since I had just knit this design with my first Anker’s, things were still fresh in my mind and so I was able to make tweaks and adjustments. For this version, I wanted it to be more fitted at the shoulders and yoke and comfortable in the body section. I also wanted to avoid the sleeves turning out too loose. I basically rewrote the pattern to suit my requirements and began this tee.
My row gauge was off and so I added an extra round of rib in each of the sections. I added a set of German Short Rows after the yoke to raise the back neck and I also added two extra raglan increases. I know that linen and cotton virtually have no give, so I had to be very precise with the math. All this technical blah, blah, blah aside, I love it!!
The result is exactly what I wanted!
The fabric is just lovely and cool and it makes a great addition to my summer wardrobe.
The Anker’s shirt knits up so quickly with the larger gauge. I love the combination of the rounded yoke with the more traditional raglan shaping at the bust. This will be my go-to summer shirt. Another win!
Summer is almost at an end and what a crazy, fantastical, different summer it has been! There were unbearable bits when British Columbia went through a heatwave like never before. A “heat dome” covered most of Western Canada causing loss of human and marine life and catastrophic forest fires. It was unbelievable that we went through something like this, in Canada of all places! 49+ degrees Celcius in BC – say what!! Our pup didn’t veer too far off his cooling pad and our family congregated near every possible air-conditioning vent during those scorching June days.
July and August were perfection, though!
We survived all that and now we are surrounded with gorgeous hints of fall everywhere and everyone’s favourite… Sweater Weather!
I love crafting seasonal pieces and this summer, it was all about knitting with cotton and linen.
My daughter tried on a store sample of the While in Medellin top by Lina Wu that was on display at Black Sheep Yarns. She wanted one right away and although she knows how to knit, she wanted me to make it for her 🙂 She picked out the yarn and I got to work on swatching and working out some customizations for her smaller frame.
My gauge was tighter than the designer’s which worked in my favour as my daughter didn’t want a lot of positive ease. I followed the instructions for the XS size and made a couple of minor modifications. I increased the length of the body slightly to 10″ and decreased the length of the straps to measure 10″ in total so that the neckline wouldn’t be too deep for her.
These minor changes worked out well and this top fits her perfectly! She is so happy with it and wore it a ton this summer. It is a simple wearable tank.
I’ve wanted to knit the Anker’s Summer Shirt ever since Mette of PetiteKnit released this design. There are so many versions of this tee popping up on Instagram and Ravelry and I knew that I had to make one for myself.
For my first Anker’s (yes, there is a second one), I used Sandnes Garn Duo which is a blend of merino wool and cotton. I knit this in the “Pudder” colourway #3522. This is my first time using Duo or any Sandnes Garn and it’s a lovely yarn with a nice stitch definition.
I made some modifications to my top so that it fits me better. For this version, I went for a relaxed fit and knit a size larger than I normally would. The fit is lovely but I think that the sleeves are a tad bit too big. I also added a modified increase on my last raglan round so that I could get the final stitch count I wanted for the body without elongating the raglan yoke too much.
The biggest modification I made was to raise the neckline on the back by about an inch using German short rows. I added 3 sets of short rows between the ribbed section and the raglan increases. I like this style where the neck is slightly raised on the back compared to the front – just like with a store-bought t-shirt. I love short rows and I almost always add them to my sweaters. I think most modern knitwear patterns incorporate this feature into the design.
I am not usually drawn to peachy tones but this colour feels perfect for spring. I love this top so much that I have cast on a second one for the summer!
I am definitely on a PetiteKnit kick. I knit the Anker’s Shirt, then a Balloon Cardigan for my daughter and I’m knitting a second Anker’s. Mette’s designs are simple and classic and that’s so great for my handmade wardrobe. While I was getting a few pictures taken for my Ravelry project page, my little furry friend wanted in on the action 🙂
When a maker is asked by a family member for a specific handmade item, they put everything down and fulfill that desire, stat! My son requested me to knit him a black beanie. He showed me a picture of a fisherman’s rib beanie that he had found online. He also had some “specific” requests – it couldn’t be slouchy, it needed to be quite short so that it didn’t completely cover his ears, he wanted a wide-ish brim so he could roll it up if he wanted it shorter and he wanted the colour to be black or almost black. Hmm, quite specific 😀 I was up for the challenge! We browsed through Ravelry’s pattern databank before he shortlisted some options.
The winning beanie turned out to be a pattern by Gudrun Johnston for BT called “Ribsy”. I had a skein of Brooklyn Tweed’s Peerie in “Fleet” which is a dark, dark navy. This pattern called for this specific yarn and my son ok-ed the colour. Off to the races I went.
I’ve never knit a hat with such thin yarn and so many stitches before. But I trusted Gudrun’s directions and began. The pattern uses a new cast-on method that I found really effective to make a stretchy brim. This helped because I’m usually a very tight knitter. I’ve never knit fisherman’s rib before. This airy rib pattern produces a thick, warm fabric. Fisherman’s rib sweaters are traditionally worn by fishermen from the British Isles to keep warm as they are out at sea. The body of the hat also uses a couple of twisted rib combinations that add texture and interest to the beanie.
It took me less than two weeks to get this done and actually would have taken me less if I had not ripped out a whole section.
My son loves it and I highly recommend the pattern. Peerie is an all-American merino wool and comes in so many gorgeous colours. The yarn is nice and bouncy and the fabric is warm and cozy.
I love the crown decreases at the top which finish things off quite nicely. 5 stars for this pattern from Gudrun.
February’s colour for this challenge is Dark Pink or Red. I choose to incorporate a few dark pinks in my socks in keeping with the theme.
The pattern is written for two lengths – calf length or boot socks and I opted for the regular boot socks length. The socks begin with a purlwise Turkish cast-on at the toes and go upwards incorporating colour fading. The heel is a “Fleegle heel” which was a new technique for me. The fading sequence is continued up the leg and then a 2X2 rib for the cuff. A stretchy bind-off to finish these socks off is a must and I used this tutorial by Knitting Blooms.
Initially, I had picked out different yarn colours, but I ended up going with a more pink-centric palette to keep with February’s theme. I’m glad I chose these colours from my stash.
The meditative knitting of the fading stripes and happy colours have brought me lots of comfort in what has been a difficult February.
All the yarns I used are scraps of Hedgehog Fibres sock from my stash. The only thing I would change if I were to knit this pattern again would be to keep my needle size the same for the cuff. With my tight knitting tension, the smaller needles make a tighter cuff. For most knitters, the needle sizes listed in the pattern should work.
Sometime last fall, I had a YouTube channel recommendation pop up. It was a crafty podcast by Jooles Hill under her brand Sew Sweet Violet. Jooles had an idea for 2021 through community activity and she called it, The Rainbow Sock Chronicles. Rainbows make everyone smile and her suggestion was that this could be a year where we seek out “rainbows”. I don’t think that we can deny the continued devastation on our globe as this pandemic rages on. However, could we somehow seek solace in creativity and a sense of accomplishment through activity? I say, yes!
The challenge is for a person to knit a pair of socks every month in a particular colour theme determined by Sew Sweet Violet and Lay Family Yarn. At the end of twelve months, you would have created a rainbow of handknit socks. On an impulse, I decided that I was on board with this idea thinking, socks are tiny compared to sweaters. I was determined that I would get this done in a week. I wound up some pretty pink yarn and cast on.
A week! Hah, how naive!! I had forgotten about Parkinson’s Law…
“Work expands so as to fill the time available for its completion”
– C. NORTHCOTE PARKINSON, The Pursuit of Progress
When I next looked at the calendar, we had about ten days left in January and I had a forgotten sock at the bottom of my knitting basket. The finishing frenzy began and I completed them two days ago, whew!
From the sock chronicles logo, January is colour pink. My socks are pink, well, pinkish with a bit of pizzazz thrown in with neon and black speckles.
Socks aren’t my only creative goal for this year. I’ve got a bunch of sweaters lined up, of course. And maybe a class or two on how to do watercolour. A lofty goal because my artistic ability is only of the stick figure variety. Then again, I never thought I would be knitting socks for a whole year, so there’s that!
For some technical knitting related stuff… I knit these toe up using what Jooles calls a “beanie toe”. So they are a bit rounded at the toes compared to traditional socks. Also, the heels are knit using a “godet heel” which is another new-to-me technique. It produces a textured wedge shape to accommodate the heel very nicely. They turned out a tad bit big so if I were to knit these again, I would adjust my heel placement. Overall, I love these cozy and oh-so pretty socks!
Here we are, closing the final chapter of 2020. While a lot of this year was upside-down and inside-out, there were many things that went right. I’m choosing to remember the good things. My heart is filled with gratitude for all that has been and I look forward to all that is to come.
Though this is blog post is different from the way I usually write about my finished projects, I wanted to document my creative 2020 makes. With all the uncertainty that filled our days and months, each project gave me solace through the process of creating and a sense of accomplishment when I was done.
My creative mojo was strong this year right from January 1. Every new years’ day, I begin a new project. This year I chose to knit a Cumulus Blouse by PetiteKnit using Shibui Silk Cloud.
This sweater is definitely cloud-like. I have a bit of the sleeve and neckline left to complete and then I can wear this fluffy sweater… we do still have a bit of winter left to go 🙂
Sweater #2 is really close to being finished and is knit using Brooklyn Tweed’sDapple. Dapple is a merino wool-organic cotton blend and is dreamy!
There were a couple of projects that were started in previous years and finished during lockdown. First up, The Weekender by Andrea Mowry. Knit using Shelter, this pullover is the perfect oversized cozy sweatshirt.
The next finish was this tee by Caitlin Hunter called Navelli. This was my first real foray into stranded knitting or colourwork. I’m on the fence about this technique and I clearly need more practice with my tension. I loved working with the yarn – a cashmere/merino blend from Stitch Mischief.
A quick project next – a pair of socks in a fun rainbow speckle. The pattern is by Christine of Sweet Lavender Knits and the yarn is from Hedgehog Fibres. My daughter ended up swiping these for herself and can you blame her?
Then came spring and summer knitting. This sweet tee from Lete’s Knits called Chonita is one I enjoyed knitting and love wearing. Yarn is from Sweet Fiber Yarns in the loveliest shade of pink.
A project that flew off my needles was Ranunculus in a linen/silk/wool blend yarn called Twig from Shibui. Such an interesting pattern to knit. There will definitely be more Ranunculuses (Ranunculi?) in my knitting future.
Rift was another fun project to make. The designer, Jacqueline Cieslak, has this pattern laid out like a workbook and it was so interesting to see how everything comes together to produce a great fit. The yarn I used was Luma from The Fiber Co.
Knit using Zooey from Juniper Moon Farm, this lacey tee can be modified to be really unique. I subbed some of the lace patterns with interesting designs I found online.
Still with summer knitting is this Rock It Tee using Willow a linen/silk blend from Tanis Fiber Arts. Cool and breezy all ready for next summer.
I have to block this and attach the buttons but the knitting is done and boy, is it one cozy sweater!
The last project of 2020 was the adorable Adventure Gnome called Gnutmeg. Full of whimsy, Gnutmeg was my advent knitting project for 2020. The fun pattern is from designer Sarah of Imagined Landscapes that came as “clues” each day in December leading up to Christmas Eve. So much fun!
I read a pile of books and did some sewing too. My sewing consisted mostly of drawstring bags – some for my projects and a few that were gifted to friends.
Despite all the curveballs in 2020, doing the things that I love helped to keep me grounded and content. Here’s to a new beginning with 2021 and many good things to follow!
** All the projects that I have mentioned in this post are linked to my project pages on Ravelry with details about yarn, needles and any modifications. **
I hadn’t knit socks for a while but last year, I knit 3 pairs! Two pairs for the men in my life and one for myself. I owe my daughter a pair of ankle socks but I haven’t started those yet.
Today, I want to talk about the socks for the guys. I knit them both the Coffee Talk sock pattern by Tracie Millar from the Grocery Girls podcast. I liked this pattern so much that I knit it twice. Now, that’s rare for me but I really enjoyed it.
For both socks, I used Hedgehog Fibres Sock yarn for the body and contrasting cuff, heels and toes. I knit the large size using US 1.5 / 2.5 mm needles. They turned out fitting the guys’ feet perfectly.
Knitting socks is no small task. Knitting socks for men definitely ups the ante. My son wears a size 10.5 shoe, say what?!!! I have to give total credit to the yarn colours though because I really enjoyed knitting both pairs and didn’t have second-sock-syndrome with either pair.
For the first pair, I used the colour Anime for the body and Shamrock for the contrast. The Anime is a lovely grey with neon speckles throughout. The bright green Shamrock worked out to be the perfect contrast.
For the second pair, I fell in love with this colourway called Kimono. It is a vibrant blue yarn with gorgeous stripey speckles. I went with a neutral contrast for the cuffs, heels and toes using the Typewriter colourway.
A few technical pattern-changes for the second pair that — I ran out of Typewriter for the toe of the second sock and so I striped it with Kimono. I extended the textured stitch pattern throughout the top of the foot omitting the bands of reverse stockinette on the sides and on the toes.
I literally had 3 inches of the Typewriter colourway left after I wove in the ends on my second sock. Close call!
If I had to knit this again, I would definitely follow the pattern as written as it has a better fit. Also, I won’t be playing yarn chicken and have the stripes transitioning nicely into a solid-coloured toe.
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