Cinnabar

Andrea Mowry released a new pattern today - meet Cinnabar. You can purchase the pattern on Ravelry or on Andrea’s website.

All photos © Andrea Mowry.

Garter and brioche will always be my go-to ingredients for creating my favorite shawls to knit and wear! This shawl plays with two-color Garter and Brioche with the increases offset to create an asymmetrical shawl that wants to be wrapped right around you! This shawl turns up the volume on texture by using DK weight yarn in one color and Sport weight yarn in the other color!

Andrea used two yarns from Spincycle - Dyed in the Wool and Versus.

I took a few pictures while I was in the store today.

Above and below are the colours that Andrea used.

This was the start of me playing with colours.

I would have taken more pictures but I had a migraine today. I’ve had migraines since I was 8 so I can still do some work while I have one. There is a trick that I learned in high school. Salt and Vinegar chips. That is right. When I was in high school and university I ate the chips with a can of coke. I no longer drink coke so it is a can of ginger ale. I can’t tell you why this helps me but it always makes me feel better to have them.

Back to the shawl. I think that Rowan Felted Tweed would be a good substitute for Versus for the main colour of the shawl.

Crazy Zauberball can be used instead of the Dyed in the Wool.

Andrea always gives great instructions but Brioche might be a new technique for you. Or it could be a technique that stumps you. If you Google Brioche knitting you will find many videos and written tutorials. I suggest taking out some scrap yarn and trying the technique before starting the shawl.

Here are some tips to Brioche knitting

• You need to work across the row twice to make one row.
• When the pattern says slip, you will always slip like a purl
• Both yarns are together is always a sign that you should work with the dark colour next.
• If there is one yarn at each end of your work then you will be working with the light colour
• When you are knitting or purling the stitch with its yarn over, the stitch and the yarn over will be different colours.
• Brioche knitting uses more yarn than regular stocking stitch. It can be as much as double
• Brioche knits a looser fabric so you might want to go down one or two needle sizes
• When you are using a lifeline to take back a row
• pick stitches back from end opposite of working yarn
• Rip out light colour first, then dark colour

Now it’s time for bed. A good night’s sleep and I will feel much better tomorrow.

Tweedy

We sold out of Hedgehog’s Tweedy really fast. So fast that I didn’t even get any. More will be available in September. Hedgehog is in need of scraps to make more yarn.

Tweed DK yarn and the coloured bits are our own hand-dyed waste - the ties that we take off the hand dyed skeins. We save them very diligently and it's a total labour of love! 

We have been collecting the ties for a while and I finally found a mill that could process these, which means re-carding them, blending and spinning into yarn again. We have a batch of this lovely taupe, grey-ish tweed yarn with colourful speckles. I love how neutral it is with a colourful bit here and there. It comes in one colourway only and I think it's just calling for sweaters and cardigans.

Do you have yarn in your stash that you don't know what to do with, but it seems like a waste to bin? Mail it to us and we will recycle any of your scraps, bits or unwanted balls or skeins into the lovely Tweedy yarn.

We are going to collect bits and send a box to Hedgehog. If you live near us and have leftover yarn or ends that you would like to donate please drop them at the store. Everyone who drops off ends (at least a small Ziploc bag full) will have their name put in a draw and someone will win a skein of Hedgehog Sock, Twist Sock or Skinny Singles - your choice of yarn and colour. We are going to collect until the end of August.

You know when you get a skein of yarn and there are the ties that you cut off before winding? I have a lot of those and will be sending them.

You can send yarn directly to Hedgehog. They are offering a discount. Here is the link to the information - for this option you are responsible for shipping costs.

Beata from Hedgehog Fibres designed an amazing shawl in Tweedy.

I couldn’t wait for the yarn so I’m making it in Hedgehog Merino DK.

It was a bit of an experiment to see how the pattern shows up in a multi-coloured yarn. I like it so far. I did go up in needle size. The pattern is available but it is still the draft copy. You can find it in the Hedgehog Group on Ravelry.

I made up many combinations for Dreaming in a Field of Wildflowers that I showed yesterday.

For some of the combinations I changed out the lightest colour between a cream and two different greys.

I could have made up many more but the battery on my phone was low so I had to stop taking pictures.

I need to get back to my knitting. I’m almost through the chart for the second time. Once you get going it is very intuitive as to what the next row should be.

Wildflowers

I saw this beautiful pattern on Ravelry today. It is called Dreaming in a Field of Wildflowers. I am going to have fun putting together colour combinations tomorrow morning. I already have a few ideas on my mind. There are some gorgeous coral colours from Long Dog.

A fascinating interplay of colour fades, garter stripes and lace creates this large and cosy wrap. 

Worked from the centre out with a fun bias construction this shawl lets the colours of fade sets shine beautifully! 

With the way the construction is worked and the pattern is written, you can easily work with your stash yarn and also use fade sets with more or fewer colours. 

This pattern is a highly addictive knit with an eye-catching result. The finished shawl will add a wonderful cosy item to your favourite wardrobe staple. 

Fully written row-by-row as well as charted instructions are provided so you can choose which you prefer to work from. 

I hope you enjoy the pattern!

New Kidsilk Haze Fade Packs arrived from Rowan. I received an email a few weeks ago that they were available. It was a complete surprise that they were making new kits.

One kit will make a great sized scarf (pattern included) or a shawl.

The kit will also make 2 Ombré Cowl Hoods (pattern free on Ravelry)

I’ve been knitting during the Jays game (what a terrible loss) and now it’s bed time. 

Madelinetosh

Mr. Canada Post delivered new shawl cuffs from Knox Mountain.

There are also many double wraps in blacks and browns. I will try and get these on the website tomorrow.

Ms. UPS brought in two boxes today - one from Madelinetosh and one from Rowan.

There are 3 brand new colours of Tosh Merino Light

Dried But Not Forgotten

Dreamweaver

Mars in Retrograde

There are new colours of Tosh Vintage including Sugar Coat.

I fell into a rabbit hole of updating Tosh colour swatches on the website. There are still some swatches of Vintage to update and then I need to move onto other Tosh yarns.

From Andrea Mowry’s Instagram page.

Sign up on Andrea’s website.

All of a sudden it was 9pm. I’ve had enough looking at the computer for tonight so I’ll talk about the new Rowan tomorrow.

There were 2 blog posts yesterday and I forgot to explain why. There will be post every Monday at noon featuring a yarn that is on sale. This yarn will be offered at a great price for 48 hours. These are beautiful yarns but it’s time for them to move from my house to your’s.