Unpacking

Another new pattern for 2025. This is the Keep Dreaming Cardi (pattern purchased on Ravelry) from Boho Chic Fiber Co.

Life can be tough; please don’t give up hope, hang in there and keep dreaming! The Keep Dreaming Cardi was inspired by this sentiment, and my Keep Dreaming Shawl and Cowl patterns. The Body features two different lace motifs and V-neckline shaping. The sleeves feature the same lace pattern as the top of the body and cinch in at the cuff. The boxy, easy fit makes for easy knitting and comfortable layering. Knit up in Flora Adora Fibers naturally dyed chunky weight yarn, this cardigan knits up surprisingly quickly.

Annie suggests a bulky weight yarn for the cardigan. I haven’t swatched but here are a few yarns that I think would work

-Cascade 220 Superwash Grande

-Cascade 220 Superwash Merino held double strand

-Cascade Eco plus a strand of Mohair/Silk

It was a day of unpacking boxes. 

• 2 boxes from Biches & Buches. We received Le Petit Lambswool, Le Lambswool and Le Petit Silk and Mohair
• 2 boxes from Cascade - Cascade 220 Heathers and Cascade 220 Superwash Merino
• 1 box of needles - KnitPro (Knitter’s Pride) and Lantern Moon

I’ve been knitting and then it hit me that I forgot to post. It’s a quick one - Price is Right at Night is starting soon.

Moon Mint

Andrea Mowry’s first pattern for 2025 is called Moon Mint.

You can purchase the pattern on Ravelry.

A love letter to my favorite minty blues, this textured pullover uses slipped stitches to create a plaid effect that is perfect for playing with color palettes. Go high or low contrast, or pick a monochromatic duo like mine! This sweater is worked in the round from the bottom up. The shoulders are shaped with short rows and finished using the 3 needle bind off. The sleeves & collar are then picked up from the body and knit.

Photos © Andrea Mowry

The sweater is knit in fingering weight yarn. One test knitter used Le Petit Lambswool. A few test knitters used Dyed in the Wool for their contrast colour.

I met with our mover this morning. The dates are booked. Now we need to start packing.

I finished my knitting last night and this afternoon I soaked my sweater.

It’s wrapped in towels and I will pin out (if I can find my pins) on Styrofoam tonight.

Almost blocking

My second sleeve is almost finished - 13 rows to go. Then it’s time for blocking. My sleeve looks short but it’s the correct length. The sweater has dropped shoulders and the sleeves are supposed to hang above the wrist. 

I always use Soak when I’m blocking. Here are Soak’s instructions for handwashing that I follow when blocking my garments.

1. Soak  

Pour a capful of Soak into a gallon of cool water. Make sure there’s enough room for the water to move around and cover the item. Soak it for 15 minutes (longer is okay).

2. Squeeze

Gently squeeze out the water- there’s no need to rinse. Some colour may bleed into the water, but don’t worry, this won’t harm your garment. (But it’s always a good idea to test for colour-fastness before washing.)

3. Dry

Roll the item in a dry towel* and squeeze out moisture. Lay flat to dry.

*If your item (like an underwire bra) should not be rolled, just use a towel to press out any extra moisture before lying flat to dry.

I’ll be washing with Yuzu.

Yuzu: Clean with a peel.  Pucker up and give your laundry some love with a kiss of tart citrus + crushed eucalyptus—adored for its invigorating, zesty charm. 

Did you know that you can use Soak in the washing machine? 

We use Soak in the machine for all our favourite dresses, dress shirts, wool socks, store-bought sweaters, winter hats and mittens...you name it!

1. Load

Throw whatever you want to wash in the machine. For delicates, use the Soak Eco Wash Bag for extra protection: simply zip it closed and secure the zipper pull under the tab. Pour Soak into the soap dispenser – add one teaspoon per gallon of your machine’s capacity.

2. Wash

Wash the load in cool water on the delicate cycle. Depending on what you’re washing, you may want to skip the rinse cycle (Soak is a no-rinse formulation, after all) and save water.

3. Dry

Lay knits and lingerie flat to dry. Line-dry other items to save energy, or use the dryer when needed. Delicate items that can go in the dryer can stay in the Eco Wash Bag for extra protection.

Pro tips

→Soak works in both regular and high-efficiency (HE) machines, and is great in top-loaders and front-loaders. Use it the same way you would a liquid laundry detergent, and run the machine on the delicate cycle. You can use the rinse cycle or skip it – depends on what you’re washing.

→ Soak is great for machine-washable delicates: it combines the efficiency of machine-washing with the gentle formulation of Soak. For extra protection, wash items inside your Eco Wash Bag.

→ Use Soak for bulky items like washable winter coats, duvets and quilts – anything that isn’t practical to hand wash but could benefit from the gentle formulation.

→ We love washing sheets, blankets and pillows with Soak. The light fragrance that lingers after laundry day makes it a pleasure to make the bed – and drift off into deliciously-scented dreams. 

I packed boxes this morning, stopped by the UPS store and then came home to do some paperwork. We’ve finished dinner and I’m off to knit. Tomorrow I’m working from home and will Soak my sweater.

Ready to cast off

This is Stephen West’s Welted Incline Shawl.

Gather three contrasting colors of fingering weight yarn to knit this beautiful textured shawl. The architectural shape begins with garter stitch short rows and color pop welts. Then, stitches are picked up to form additional short row wedges that expand the wingspan length of the shawl. Tiny bobbles decorate the angular lines with playful texture. A final slip stitch border is added at the end of the project, framed with crisp I-cord edges. Enjoy all the textured accents of this three-color shawl as you learn fun new techniques

This pattern was originally published as part of the Westknits Yarn A Long 2024.

You can purchase the pattern on Ravelry.

Photos © Stephen West

I’m caught up on my Temperature Blanket. I think I’m going to be stuck in the blue/green for another few weeks when I look at the long range forecast. 

We’re watching football and golf (with a hockey game starting soon) and I have been knitting. When I’m finished my post I will be casting off the first sleeve of Framed.

Shifting Sands

This is another Norah Gaughan design called the Shifting Sands Pullover. You can purchase the pattern on Ravelry.

Norah designs amazing cabled sweaters and Shifting Sands doesn’t disappoint. The cables are awesome.

Arranmore Light would be a great choice for this sweater.

Alex came in this afternoon and brought my Traveler Cowl. This is Spincycle Dyed in the Wool in the new colour Rabbit Hole. I love the colours!! Project one finished for 2025.

I just got home from dinner out with my best friend from university. I am finishing a tea and might get a few rows knit before bed. I won’t be up late - I’m hoping it’s going to be a crazy busy day in the store tomorrow.

Lamina

This is Lamina - the newest design from Norah Gaughan. You can purchase the pattern on Ravelry.

Seamless color work pullover, knit from the middle up and then down. In either 3 colors or 6 colors. Optional short rows at neck. Choice of Turtleneck or folded crew.

Start in the middle, circular construction. Provisionally cast on at the bottom of yoke and knit up. Picked up from the provisional cast on and worked down. Optional short rows at the neck. Multicolor sample does not have short rows. Grey sample does. 

Norah has been designing for quite some time. Over the years she has designed for Vogue Knitting, Reynolds, Berroco, Modern Daily Knitting and many other companies. I love Norah’s patterns and will highlight more of them in future blog posts.

Lamina is designed in a worsted weight yarn. I would suggest Malabrigo Rios or Cascade 220 heathers.  

We received an update from Malabrigo today - our box is lost. They are going to replace the yarns and ship them out next week.

I’m going to try and get back to the sleeve for Framed tonight. I haven’t knit much the last few evenings. 

Malabrigo

These are the Antler Mitts from Tin Can Knits. You can purchase the pattern on Ravelry.

Malabrigo Chunky and Malabrigo Mecha are a great choice for the pattern. We have a few colours of each in stock. Unfortunately UPS ‘misplaced’ one of our boxes from Malabrigo. If it isn’t found then Malabrigo will resend the yarn next week. I placed an order today with more colours.

Metropolis by Tanis Lavallee (pattern free on Ravelry) is a great choice for the new Malabrigo yarns.

Knitting my temperature blanket in the store was a good idea at the time but I forgot that I’m not in the store every day. I’m almost caught up.

On February 2nd I’m flying to Orlando. Then on February 3rd I’m getting on a cruise to the Bahamas. I’ll be using the temperature for Orlando and Nassau in my blanket. A customer told me that she used the temperature from her travels and I thought it was a great idea. 

This is my current set up. I’m finishing my year end. Two iPads for accounting and one to watch TV on. One eye is on the large TV as well. Right now the TV is on CNN and we are watching the wildfires in California. It is so scary. Thoughts to anyone living there and those who have family members there.