Rock it Tee Part Two

This is Lynn’s Rock It Tee. She used 3 balls of Juniper Moon Pollock (colour 112 Lavender Mist) on 3.75mm needles. Lynn would walk around the store and pick up Pollock occasionally saying that she needed to knit with it. When Tanis’ pattern came out she knew that she had found her next project.

I don’t want to make any promises but we should have 3 new colours tomorrow.

The dappled colors of this beautiful yarn are an homage to the painter for which it was named. "Pollock" yarn is a luxurious blend of crisp linen and smooth silk. This DK weight yarn comes in 100g/349 yard balls. It is a great choice for your warm weather knitting and crocheting projects. The lightweight fabric will get softer with each washing.

We are looking forward to the release of 52 Weeks of Shawls. The book will be available on April 30. I will put it on the website for preorders next week.

52 Weeks of Shawls is a unique look into contemporary shawl knitting. The designers behind the 52 patterns come from all around the world. This collection showcases an exceptionally wide range of yarns, techniques and levels of difficulty and also includes two crochet designs. It is a true encyclopedia of shawls, a future classic for decades to come.

There is a bit of construction happening at my house. We have a great deck but in the summer it is way too hot to sit out there. The deck gets hot and we have to wet it down so the dogs don’t burn their paws. The structure will have lights, a ceiling fan and heaters so it will be for all seasons. We are also building in a barbecue. Why a permanent structure? The winds howl through the fields behind the house. An umbrella only works on really nice days. We could have gone pergola but it had to be really solid. This made the most sense.

I’m working away on Pressed Flowers. I don’t want to complain but the rows are getting really long. The kettle is boiling and it’s time to knit.

Rock It Tee

I was supposed to be working at home today but I ended up in the store. Something got me thinking about Tanis’ Rock It Tee. Maybe it was the fact that mine is almost finished and I should pull it out. Maybe it was looking at pretty yarn from Hedgehog Fibres while I was packing boxes.

Photos © Tanis Lavallee

I used to think that summer knits weren’t for me, boy was I wrong! There is nothing more comfortable than an easy breezy knit top. Over the past few years I’ve been working steadily towards building up my summer knits wardrobe. I’ve got a few summer knits in my closet now but what I realize was missing is a staple, go-to, v-neck tee. I’ve chosen to create tone on tone stripes by alternating between fingering and mohair yarn in my favourite shade of blue, but this basic shape lends itself to infinite possibilities when it comes to stripes and colour blocking.

Knit top down, flat until the neck shaping is complete and in the round after that.

You can purchase the pattern on Tanis’ website. 

I put together some summery combinations. Hedgehog Skinny Singles and Kidsilk Lace. Singles and mohair from Old Soul Fiber Co and then tosh merino light and Shibui Silk Cloud. 

See all our fingering weight yarns.

Here is the link to our mohair.

Hygge

Lavender Fields

When I was talking pictures today I forgot about Uschitita. 

Eyes Wide Shut.

Here is Bon bon.

This is Sarah’s Rock It Tee. 

LOVE how this turned out! Light weight and luxurious! So happy with the colour combo. Sometimes simple is best. I did the 4th size and added long sleeves. I picked up the sleeves as directed then knit 2 stripes (16 rows) before decreasing 2 stitches every 8 rows until desired sleeve length. 

I’m into the border on Pressed Flowers. The rows are really long right now so they aren’t quick. Hopefully I will be finished next week. 

Mustard

Lynn and I were in the store early today to meet the Big Brown Truck. Ms. UPS brought our Saddle Bags. They are gorgeous!!! All bags made it in the mail this morning. If you have a bag for pick up please take a look at your inbox. You should have received an email about picking the bag up.

This is the mustard bag - what a great colour. You can definitely match this bag with whatever colour you are wearing.

I’m very pleased with the adjustable strap. I need my strap longer than Lynn does and the strap on the Saddle Bag will go really long. I have looked at bags in the past (at the mall or One of a Kind) and the straps are too short for my liking.

Mr. Canada Post dropped off a box from Turtlepurl. The new colours are fantastic. Here are a few.

Turtlepurl’s “Striped Turtle Toes” hand-dyed, self-striping sock yarn is a beautiful 4 ply, 75% superwash merino, 25% nylon sock yarn. It is truly a joy to knit with and is soft, strong and durable. 

We are "dyeing for you to match"! We've made it easy! Turtlepurl's yarn has been dyed to be self-striping. Both strands were dyed together. This will create matching socks that can be easily knit 2 at a time. For matching socks, ensure you start from the same end of each ball. Then watch the magic happen!

There is plenty of yarn for a large pair of socks, or a small scarf.

You won’t lose these socks in your sock drawer.

It was a great day to be outside taking pictures. 

A day of knitting

Pressed Flowers is growing. I have a few more rows and then I’m onto the border pattern. You can accomplish a lot if you sit and knit all day 😘

I am obsessed with the pattern and knitting with Dream State makes it even more addictive. You want to see how the next colour is going to look. 

From Spincycle

Because we dye the fiber before it's spun, colors meet and part ways in stunning, unique combinations. 

Beth’s scarf is growing. She is in love with Dyed in the Wool. She asked me to write a letter to Spincycle asking when the brand new colours will be available. Hopefully soon because her scarf will be done and she will want to start another.

Joji’s summer translated into a shawl

Joji has a new pattern - meet her Linen Summer Shawl. 

Photos © Joji Locatelli

OK, we all know a shawl doesn’t need to be knit for a specific season… Nor do we need to use exclusively one type of yarn to make it, but bear with me: this shawl meant SUMMER, with capital letters, sunshine and a heartwarming temperature when I knitted it, and I really couldn’t think of any better name for it! 

This is MY SUMMER translated into a shawl. 

It is constructed from tip top tip. It starts really easy, like a smooth warm-up into the knitting that will come later: some ribbing bands to break up the main color sections and the piece the resistance: some ribbed lace at the end. This detail contributes to the beautiful reversibility of our Linen Summer Shawl. I hope you love the challenge. Trust me: you are up to it, and it is not any more difficult than any other lace pattern.

You can purchase the pattern on Joji’s website. 

Joji took a lot of pictures - they are all so beautiful so I am sharing.

I put together colour combinations before leaving the store this afternoon. Joji used a wool/linen blend but I am using 100% wool fingering weight singles for my colours. 

I used tosh merino light for a lot of my combinations. Sugar Coat is in all my pictures but you can use Sugar Coat (right) or Paper (left). They are very close and it is a personal preference. 

Harvest and Undergrowth

Coquette Deux and Rose

Heart Hands and Translation

Cousteau and Winter Wheat

Winter Wheat and Oak

Eleven Dark and Elizabeth Taylor

Life in the Long Grass Singles - Gorse, Wolf and Sphaira

Hedgehog Skinny Singles - Kelp, Crystal and Wish

Skinny Singles - Purple Reign, Crystal and Sorry Not Sorry

You can mix any of the Skinny Single colours to make a beautiful shawl.

Here is a link to all our fingering weight yarns.

I’m sitting at the dining room table writing and watching the Masters. Dinner is almost ready so it’s time to sign off.