Tag Archives: A Yarn Story

A Walk in the Park

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I finished my version of the A Walk in the Park shawl:

The shawl is part of The Signature Collection designed by Erika Knight in collaboration with A Yarn Story, the Bath yarn store run by Carmen Schmidt. I knit it as part of the KAL with A Yarn Story. The design is actually for a triangular shaped shawl, as below:

I have never been a huge fan of triangular shaped shawls, and no matter what I do, I can’t seem to style them properly. However, I really liked the contrasts in this shawl between the deep brown and white graphic stitchwork and the bright pops of colour. I decided to knit the shawl as a rectangle instead. It was a bit of a gamble, but I think it paid off.

I bought the kit in the original colours of Walcot yarns Origin, a lovely, bouncy worsted weight wool. Emma and I had a chance to see the shawl in person at the Unravel Festival and decided to substitute the soft purple-y pink yarn for a brighter pink (which I blogged about here).

I then had to decide whether to knit it back and forth width-wise or lengthwise. In the former case, I could fit in all of the different pieces of the original pattern (and then some) but the stripes of colours and textures would run across the shawl from side to side; in the latter case, the stripes of colour and texture would be very long, running from end to end, but I would have to select which bits of the pattern repeats to include and which not to include (because the width of my rectangle would be less than the long edge of the triangle shape). I chose the lengthwise option, in part because I like knitting shawls that way, and in part because it gave me the look I was after. You can see below how nicely those long stripes of pattern look.

I did some calculations and decided to cast on 360 stitches, using a US8/5mm needle. I then basically knitted the beginning sections of the pattern, but without any shapings (no decreases), and with some variations in how many repeats of each pattern to knit, so that the combinations of stripes of various widths and textures and colours would look pleasing to me. I started and ended it with 1×1 ribbing in the bright pink.

One of the difficulties I found while knitting it is that the gauges for the different textured patterns was not the same. For me, the unblocked gauge of the slipped stitch stripes was 26st/10cm, while the gauge of the slipped stich squares was 24st/10cm, and the gauge of the moss stitch was 22st/10cm. I became convinced that this would end up in a disaster as the fabric was incredibly wonky given the wildly different gauges of the varying stripes. I was also worried about the ribbing, especially on the cast-off edge, which tended to roll backwards. You can see both of these problems in the below photo of the edge of the unblocked shawl:

I kept knitting, however, even in the growing evidence of disaster because (1) I couldn’t bring myself to stop, and (2) I have tremendous faith in the power of blocking. And, if I do say so myself, it turned out pretty good.

Today is the final day of a long holiday weekend. Life has been pretty crazy lately, so I hope that you have been able to find some peaceful moments to enjoy the start of spring; perhaps with a walk in the park?

New stuff and some cool projects

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A few weeks ago, I wrote about a cooperative effort between seven small independent yarn shops – iKnit7.  I made purchases at three of the shops during their week-long extravaganza and now have some new stuff to show you.  Here it is:

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I decided to try two new-to-me yarns.  The yellow yarn is John Arbon Knit by numbers, a DK wool, in the shade KBN53.  There are 5 of these skeins, the rest are wrapped up in the polka-dot wrapping.  I plan to use this to knit a cute little cardi to wear with summer dresses.  The pattern, Vodka Lemonade, is designed by Thea Colman:

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© 2012 Caro Sheridan

The yarn is totally lovely – very soft and plump and cushy with great definition.  Here is my swatch:

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I bought the John Arbon yarn and three sets of KnitPro Zing DPNs from A Yarn Story in Bath.  They also sent me a cute project bag.

The green yarn is Kalinka 21, a blend of 55% linen, 45% wool, produced in Sweden, and purchased from Ginger Twist Studio, a small yarn shop in Edinburgh.  I was intrigued by the idea of a wool-linen blend, and loved this spring-y green.  I plan to use it to knit Tulpe, a pullover designed by Lisa Hannes:

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by maliha

I was also sent some lovely gifts by Ginger Twist – a project bag, two balls of yarn (the brown and beige), and some cool ceramic buttons.

From the third shop, Knit with Attitude, a bought three sets of Knit Pro Zing circulars, and a fantastic project bag from Kelly Connor designs.  The bag is big; large enough to accomodate a big project.  Here it is with the whole kit and kaboodle from the first photo stashed inside, and room to boot:

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I’m really happy with my new stuff, and particularly pleased to support small shops during this difficult time.  It is also fun to have new yarns to work with and a few new projects on my needles.

A cooperative yarn venture

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The yarn community is full of many small vendors who are particularly vulnerable to the current situation.  You might think that this would lead to a cut-throat approach to marketing; they are, after all, in competition for spending dollars in a time of great economic uncertainty.   What I have seen is very different, with a number of incredibly supportive and cooperative ventures that have sprung up among small vendors and producers, whose goal is not just to survive in this chaos, but to help the entire community weather the storm.  By helping the community, they help each other.

You may be aware of any number of examples of this community spirit, but I am going to point out one that has captured my attention.  iknit7 is a cooperative venture among seven small independent yarn shops in the UK and Ireland – A Yarn Story, Emily Foulds, Ginger Twist Studio, Knit with Attitude, This is Knit, Tribe Yarns, and Wild and Woolly.  They say: “We know that the best way to survive and thrive in the face of crazy unprecedented odds is to work together. When all of the madness kicked off and we were confronting circumstances beyond our wildest worst-case scenarios we banded together for support, ideas and way forward.”  They have organised an event – Virtual Yarn Extravaganza – from the 25th -30th of May, with discounts, prizes, gifts, and a chance to virtually experience these small shops, meet their owners, and discover what makes them unique.

It is this last point which really struck me – each of these shops has a personality and the collaboration so far seems to be a celebration of the unique character of each shop, presented with such good cheer and honest enthusiasm, its left me very impressed.  I especially loved their video – iknit7 Who We Are – Pass the Mic, in which they each told why they loved another’s shop.

I already know four of these shops, although only one in person.  Anna, of Wild and Wooly in Hackney, London, fielded multiple phone calls and emails and was a fantastic sounding board when she helped me to pick out the yarns for Leah’s Snow Flower.  I bought the yarn for this sweater from Knit with Attititude, who were especially helpful when I had to totally re-envision the project and introduce a second colour of yarn.  I heard Carmen, from A Yarn Story, speak at a yarn festival, and then admired her beautiful stand and bought a range of haberdashery from her.  (I am also signed up to attend a knitting retreat with her in October!)  Doug and I have visited Tribe Yarns in Richmond, London, both in their old digs and their brand new digs.  The owner, Milli, convinced me to buy the gorgeous yarn I used in my Cool Boots shawl (the neutral version).  She also gave us great advice on where to eat and shop and wander locally.  The other three shops look very cool.  I will seek them out when travelling is allowed again, and until then, I plan to enjoy this event.  (And likely buy some yarn.)

When the world gets crazy, its nice to see the yarn community getting together, supporting each other, and being creative.  I know there is a lot of virtual knitting goodness going on world-wide; I hope that you have had a chance to participate in some.  Keep knitting and stay safe.