Postcard from Florida

January 2, 2018 by Karen Templer

So you know I had this idea that I was going to somehow finish all the finishing on my Cline sweater either before or en route to Florida last week, then maybe knit half of a whole ‘nother sweater while I was away — while also somehow wrapping up my log cabin swatch and plan? That didn’t happen. Once I got the first sleeve seamed on, it was clear I still needed to knit another 6 inches or so per sleeve (more on that later), in addition to the doubled neckband, the tubular bind-offs on the cuffs, and all that seaming. But more than anything, I didn’t want to feel pressured — to hear my omnipresent internal nag asking me what I had to show for myself at the end of each day. Of my vacation. I played a lot of Onitama with my sister and husband; cooked, made cheese and swam with my niece; walked the dog; filmed dolphins mating by the sea wall; watched the sun rise and set. I did finish the log cabin swatch. And the neckband and first sleeve. And the last bit of the second sleeve on the drive home. So my New Year’s Eve Day — a “feels like -5°” stay-inside kind of day — was spent largely sitting in silence, enjoying the rhythm of my tapestry needle gliding in and out of this exceptional wool.

• Cline pattern by Julie Hoover in Junegrass Batch One from Fancy Tiger Crafts (no longer available, see Batch Two) | all Cline posts
• Porter Bin from Fringe Supply Co.

PREVIOUSLY in Cline sweater: Queue Check December 2017

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Log Cabin Make-along: Meet the Panel!

January 1, 2018 by Karen Templer

Log Cabin Make-along: Meet the Panel!

Happy new year! And happy Log Cabin Make-along kickoff/cast-on day! I’m so thrilled to finally introduce the rest of the panel and get this party started. You already know log cabin eminences grises Ann and Kay from Mason-Dixon Knitting (authors of the portable and adorable Log Cabin Field Guide) are in the mix. Rounding out the panel are two more of my favorite characters from yarnlandia, Veronika Jobe of YOTH Yarns and — a crocheter! for the first time ever! — none other than Cal Patch. You can see exactly what we all have planned below, and I am already crazy about how different they all are.

Even though I announced this one way further in advance than in the past, I still don’t quite have all the ducks in a row — the outstanding matter being prizes. I’m leaving it a cliffhanger for the moment but will fill you in on the plan (and timing) for that at the end of the week. However, I will be featuring standout plans and WIPs here on the blog in some fashion, as always, so make sure you share yours on Instagram by using the hashtag #fringeandfriendslogalong in your caption when you post. (If you have a private IG account, you might want to make a separate public one for this, if you want everyone to be able to see your posts!) And note that you can also now literally follow hashtags on IG, so (if that works as advertised) you’ll never miss a single contribution.

If you’re still looking for ideas, see Ideas and Considerations and Imagine if this were Log Cabin-ized, including all of the suggestions in the comments on those posts. And you can find all of the blog posts related to the Make-along right here, any time you need it, also linked in the right rail of the blog over there. 👉🏼

Also, knitter/programmer Kelsey Leftwich has created a Log Cabin Generator, which is fun to play with — let her know what you think. And at the end of today’s post on MDK is a whole big roundup of all of their past log cabin-related posts — a total trove.

Ready? Here we go! —

. . . . .

KAREN TEMPLER of this here blog (Instagram: @karentempler)

Master plan: My actual master plan is a grandiose and colorful idea about using the ninepatch method (detailed in the Field Guide) to create a nested-crosses motif (inspired by my favorite pillow) splayed out on a big cocoon cardigan or something like that, but I’m not ready to commit! Ever since I tossed off that little quip about how you could knit two washcloths and seam them into fingerless mitts, I’ve been consumed with ideas about how to refine that idea. So that’s what I’m doing, with the intention that I’ll publish the pattern in the near term (for those of you sitting on the fence or looking for something small but thrilling to do), after which I may decide to dive into the bigger idea.

Yarn: What’s pictured here is random bits of stash yarns (undyed Snoqualmie, heathery grey Hole & Sons and tweedy black Shelter) but I don’t know for sure! I’m torn between really really wanting to do this from stash and really really wanting to pull off a very specific look, which is …

Palette: … inspired by this Ace&Jig textile I’m obsessed with called Mural, pictured above, which got me thinking about how to distribute the color changes a bit differently than what you usually see in Log Cabin. Mural is ivory, soft grey and black, with ivory running throughout so the whole thing is hazy and muted and absolutely gorgeous. I really want to figure out how to emulate that here, and not have it quite so stark as my swatch. Which brings me back to the dilemma between what’s in my stash and what might better achieve this little goal. We’ll see what I wind up doing.

Concerns/trepidations: Well, I’ve never knitted any log cabin before, which is why I’m telling myself to take a bite before shoving a whole pie in my mouth. But halfway into my swatch, I was already entirely addicted. So I guess my concern is how I’m going to get myself to do anything but this in the coming weeks!

. . .

Log Cabin Make-along: Meet the Panel!

VERONIKA JOBE of YOTH Yarns (Instagram: @yarnonthehouse)

Master plan: I would share a drawing, but I am eternally bad at pen and paper. You might think how is this lady a creative! Thank goodness I’m making a rectangle. A good ol’ fashioned scarf and wrap. Simple, classic shape … can’t go wrong and easy to explain.

Yarn: I am using a limited run small-batch yarn created for YOTH by Abundant Earth Fiber. The yarn was dyed in the wool by us and then spun into the most luscious heathered and marled goodness along with squishy and beautiful natural cream. It’s not available yet, but my hope by participating in this log-along is that I will have a lovely pattern and yarn to release when I’m done. Perfect timing.

Palette: Mine is definitely predetermined by the yarn we collaborated on with Abundant Earth Fiber: monotone moody blues and cream for the scarf size, and earthy golden mustards and cream for the wrap size. My inspiration behind this project is my love of buffalo plaid, a board checkered plaid pattern, and I wanted to recreate the look of this woven pattern using a gradient of marls and solids.

Concerns/trepidations: I’m pushing the boundaries a bit with calling this project a Log Cabin, but I hope that this helps folks see the different styles and endless options when a couple traditional styles are tweaked and morphed together. I guess you could say my log cabin project is about as simple as you can get — a bunch of squares connected to make a rectangle. I’ve read a bit on Log Cabin history, studied up on the wonderful Mason Dixon’s Log Cabin Field Guide, and I’m finding that the true essence of Log Cabin is the building of repeated blocks that come together as a whole and create a dynamic bigger picture when looked at from afar. Fingers crossed my scarf and wrap can live up to that.

. . .

CAL PATCH of Cal Patch (Instagram: @hodgepodgefarm)

Master plan: I’m making a … hmmm I’m not sure what to call it exactly! A cowl/neckpiece/mini poncho/bandana cowl. In my head I’m calling it the “log cabindana” but I haven’t said that out loud yet. It’s a neck scarf that dips down front AND back, because I’m always chilly in the chest/neck area.

Yarn: I’m using scraps, in the spirit of real log cabin quilting. Plus I’m a scrappy girl.

Palette: I’ve pulled together a pile of scraps with a palette of muted colors and neutrals, reminiscent of a woolen quilt.

Concerns/trepidations: Um, no. But now I’m concerned that I should have concerns …

. . .

Log Cabin Make-along: Meet the Panel!

ANN SHAYNE of Mason-Dixon Knitting (Instagram: @annshayne)

Master plan: A blanket. I haven’t made a blanket in a while, and log cabin blankets are the most sublime kind of blankets to make. It will be one of a kind, drawing from ideas featured in not one, not two, but three of our MDK Field Guides.

Idea 1. The basic design will riff on one of my favorite blanket patterns ever, Kay’s Ninepatch Blanket from Field Guide No. 4: Log Cabin. I’ve loved this idea—a blanket with a wonky color rhythm, with squares of varied sizes—ever since Kay showed me the quilt that inspired it.

Idea 2. I’m obsessed with the knit-purl textures that are central to Field Guide No. 5: Sequences. Cecelia Campochiaro figured how how to make complex fabrics that can be created easily, once you get the hang of her clever techniques. I want to make the squares using sequences that I pull out of my head.

Idea 3. And then! I want to make this blanket without using mitered squares—not because I don’t adore this technique, but because sequence knitting in miters would be a tricky thing to pull off.

Eliminating miters opens up the construction possibilities. The blanket no longer needs to be made in squares with nine patches. It can be made in long strips of squares. Long strips are a sequence knitter’s best friend. If I work the blanket in long strips, the blanket starts to become easier to assemble. A long strip of squares knitted in a variety of sequences, with a variety of colors? That is my idea of fun. And yes, Karen points out that long strips are a feature of the Station Wagon Blanket in Field Guide No. 1: Stripes.

Can these three ideas meet in one blanket? Can log cabin and sequence knitting and long strips exist in the same project? I won’t rest until the answer is known.

Log Cabin Make-along: Meet the Panel! Yarn: Tweed. A rustic, worsted-weight, flecky, nuppy tweed. Tahki Donegal Tweed. This worsted-weight yarn was launched in 1968. It’s one of the great, classic tweeds, made right there in County Donegal, Ireland. By presumably Irish people who have tweed running in their tweedy veins. I have made blankets, sweaters, random squares, all sorts of projects involving tweed yarns. Tahki’s tweed is great for a blanket, because it’s sturdy stuff. None of this floofy fakey tweed business. It is made from 100% new wool, period. It’s not merino and it doesn’t want to be, goddang it. I want a blanket that will hold up like a Yeats poem.

We’ve just added Tahki Donegal Tweed to the MDK Shop — one of the happiest days yet in my new life as a yarnmonger. I’ve been carrying around the dozen shades we’re stocking like they’re guinea pigs of woolly hope.

Palette: I’m starting with a universe of neutrals plus greens. The improvisational nature of log cabin makes me think I may go off the specific grid of colors laid out in the Ninepatch Blanket schematic. I reserve the right to crack open my Deep Stash Tweed for supplemental colors if necessary. Overall, I find that when I start a log cabin blanket with a pile of yarn that looks great together, it’s hard to go wrong.

Concerns/trepidations: A blanket is a lot of knitting. But I have done this at least five times before, so I know I’m strong for it. A lot of people don’t understand how addicting log cabin knitting is. And sequence knitting has a just-one-more-row fascination to it. I want to cross the finish line on this knitalong with two yards of Donegal Tweed left, a worn-out size 8 needle, and me gasping from the fragrant, 100% new wool.

I have a lot of questions to answer. Will the various sequences hold up visually and read as squares? Will the colors fall in an amiable way? Will I ever fix dinner again, or will I vanish in the delicious Bermuda Triangle of log cabin sequence knitting? Stay tuned.

. . .

Log Cabin Make-along: Meet the Panel!

KAY GARDINER of Mason-Dixon Knitting (Instagram: @kaygardiner)

Master plan: I’ve made a ton of log cabin blankets, so I’m tempted to go in that (always happy) direction, but the idea of a garment that uses log cabin structure has been in my mind for a long time. Debbie New’s book Unexpected Knitting has a log cabin pullover, and at least one runway collection in the past 10 years has included a sweater featuring a log cabin block front and center. (I know this because people email me all log cabin imagery.) I was intrigued by the idea, but not attracted to these sweaters. I want something a bit more subtle, where the log cabin graphic doesn’t shout. The drawing in your sketchbook of a simple, sleeveless top that essentially is two squares sewn together, with arm and neck openings, inspired me. I decided to start with an existing pattern, Dianna Walla’s Vasa, which I’ve knitted before. Instead of knitting the two rectangles straight up from the bottom, I’m constructing them using log cabin, starting with a center strip and building the fabric around that strip. I’m going to just keep knitting, adding strips until I get to the dimensions of a boxy pullover that fits me well.

Yarn: I’m using Jade Sapphire’s Sylph, a lightweight blend of linen and cashmere, mainly because I’ve wanted to knit everything in this yarn since discovering it a year ago, but also because I think the shimmy and drape of Sylph will counteract the blockiness of log cabin.

Palette: I’m going with a single color, Eddy, which is a kind of greenish-greyish-beigeish. (I’m already second-guessing this decision. Will I miss the color play of log cabin? Wouldn’t it be more fun to use two tonal shades, or a gradient?)

Concerns/trepidations: My main concern is: Can this be done successfully? I don’t want this sweater to be gimmicky or contrived. I want the log cabin construction to function as surface design, and for the sweater to otherwise be a flattering, wearable top. I’m using the “courthouse steps” arrangement of the log cabin strips to make a less blocky block, and even as a small swatch, the fabric has a nice loose swing to it, so I’m hopeful!

. . . . .

Ok, everybody — see you over at #fringeandfriendslogalong! And of course we’ll have more to share both here and there in the coming weeks, including prize news/details back here on Friday—

PREVIOUSLY in Log Cabin Make-along: Imagine if this were Log Cabinized

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Merry Elsewhere

December 25, 2017 by Karen Templer

Happy holidays and Elsewhere

Merry Christmas if you’re celebrating today, and happy peaceful Monday if you’re not! I’m giving myself a very-much-needed week off, knitting and cooking and hanging out with loved ones. And I’m leaving you with a light and heartwarming Elsewhere list for this holiday week. If you need more to read and haven’t already seen them, take a look at the Top Posts and highlights of the year, my knitting year in review and sewing year in review and my Favorite New Favorites for 2017. Not to mention the entire Elsewhere scrollback.

So many links for your perusal!

– First of all, this.

– Log cabin inspiration. More log cabin inspiration. It’s everywhere, I tell you!

– I love everything about this tale of London Kaye’s Cuba yarnbombing

– And this one about the subway, the knitter and the Broadway actress (my favorite part being how he learned to knit in the first place!) (thx, Barb)

– Teeny tiny history of the turtleneck

– I would like a Karen Barbé Christmas stocking (photo above right)

– and I’m gonna need Olga’s rolling pin (details here) (photo above left)

– Hanne Gaby Odiele (on the left) modeling a Twinkle knit before she became the hottest model in the business

– These long-cherished sweaters

– Cutest Christmas Outfit award goes to …

– And even snowwomen deserve handknits

I can never say enough how grateful I am for your company and encouragement here, your support of Fringe Supply Co, and the many ways in which you inspire me to be a better, braver garmentsmith. Thank you so much for reading these past twelve months (and beyond), and I’ll see you right back here next year.

DON’T FORGET the Log Cabin Make-along kicks off on New Year’s Day when I’ll unveil the full panel and their respective plans. For now, I can just tell you: It’s gonna be a fun one! Happy swatching, eating and ringing in the new year in the meantime!

PREVIOUSLY: Elsewhere

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Queue Check — December 2017

December 22, 2017 by Karen Templer

Queue Check — December 2017

I had this notion that I was going to do a big forward-looking queue planning sort of post for today, but after so many hectic weeks I find I only want to think about what’s right in front of me at the moment.

– I mentioned the other day that I expect to be wearing my grey Cline sweater by New Year’s, and I’m still on track for that, now most of the way through the second sleeve. (This photo is from Sunday.) What’s left is to seam it all together — a considerable amount of seaming in this case — pick up and knit the neckband, then finish the cuffs downwards, once I can see how it fits. I have a road trip coming up which should afford me the time to do all of that, except I’m still somehow hoping to have most of it done before I go.

– Once that’s done, I’m moving forward with the idea of replacing my Bellows (which I gave to my mom) with a new blue one, using my Harrisville Rhinebeck yarn. I took a sitting away from the grey the other night to knit this sleeve swatch and it’s interesting how differently the color reads from how it looked in the skein — not better or worse, but more of the purple tone comes through. I feel like it might be worn at home every night with my pajamas more than out and about, but either way I know this will be a fast, warm and well-worn sweater, and I hope to get it fairly well on its way during my trip.

– And then there’s the little matter of my Log Cabin Make-along project which I’ll be revealing and starting in earnest on Jan 1!

Both of those projects — textured/cabled cardigan and log cabin knitting — are so appealing right now, on the heels of the grey stockinette, and more than enough to satisfy my fingers for the time being. But out of curiosity, I took a look back at last year’s year-end Queue Check to see what I had said about what I wanted to make this year. Of the knits, two were since completed (striped raglan and camel Channel), one is on the needles (grey Junegrass pullover, above) and the other two are still next on the list in some form: big cozy shawl-collar (above) and big cozy turtleneck (i.e., my Charles fixation). From the sewing list, three of the four were completed (blue shirt, striped sleeveless tee, white linen shell) and the remainder is already/still at the top of my sewing list for January: a simple sweatshirt or two. Ok, technically I did make myself a sort-of sweatshirt, so I guess I completed that list, but I still want a good long-sleeved fleece and/or melton one.

So I guess I know what to do!

Have a magical weekend, everyone —

• Cline pattern by Julie Hoover in Junegrass Batch One from Fancy Tiger Crafts (no longer available, see Batch Two) | all Cline posts
• Bellows pattern by Michele Wang in limited-edition yarn from Harrisville Designs | all Bellows posts

PREVIOUSLY in Queue Check: November 2017

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Favorite New Favorites of 2017

December 20, 2017 by Karen Templer

Favorite knitting patterns of 2017

Every December, I go back through the year’s New Favorites posts to see what patterns I had highlighted along the way and which of them I don’t want to lose track of as we head into another year of endless knitting temptations. The best of the best are always the ones I didn’t need reminded of because they’ve never stopped tapping a finger on my brain — I’ve gone back to them repeatedly, thought about yarns and colors and usefulness. This narrowed-down list leaves out so many beautiful and worthwhile patterns (scroll through the whole series to see) but these are ones I can most imagine having on my needles at some point. And by the way, I still want to make every single thing in last year’s list.

TEMPTATION OF THE YEAR
I’m reluctant to call Michele Wang’s simple-but-perfect Charles Pullover (above) the “Best” pattern of the year necessarily, but it’s the one I absolutely cannot get out of my brain, and definitely my very Favorite New Favorite. We’re into the time of year where I want to have on a big cozy turtleneck every single day, and my only one is 15 years old and looking it. So there’s an excellent chance this one will go from Fave to Made. (As seen in Mildly mannish cables)

Favorite knitting patterns of 2017

SWEATERS
top: Massaman by Elizabeth Smith (as seen in Massaman set)
middle left: Galloway* by Jared Flood (as seen in From BT fall/holiday)
middle right: Anker’s Sweater by PetiteKnit (as seen in Banded ribs)
bottom left: Vodka on the Rocks by Thea Colman (as seen in Vodka on the Rocks)
bottom right: Whelk by Martin Storey (as seen in Whelk)

Favorite knitting patterns of 2017

WEARABLE BLANKET
Veronika* by Shannon Cook (as seen in Veronika)

Favorite knitting patterns of 2017

SCARVES
top: Binary by Michele Wang (as seen in Texture by the yard)
bottom left: Facade by Shellie Anderson (as seen in Texture by the yard)
bottom right: Baedecker by Marina Skua (as seen in Baedecker)

Best knitting patterns of 2017

HATS
top left: Bulletproof Aran Hat by Chuck Wright (as seen in Aran-style hats)
top right: Voe Hat by Gudrun Johnston (as seen in From BT fall/holiday)
middle left: Huck* by Norah Gaughan (as seen in Huck)
middle right: Miguel Hat by Rosa Pomar (as seen in Holiday hat mania)
bottom left: The Adrian by Armenuhi Khachatryan (as seen in Adrian)
bottom right: Tincture by Andrea Mowry (as seen in Someday vs Right Away: Mosaic knitting)

Best knitting patterns of 2017

SOCKS AND SLIPPERS
Flaps by Cindy Pilon (as seen in Quickies! aka last-minute gifts)
Hansdatter Slippers* by Kristin Drysdale (as seen in Colorwork slippers)
Hot Chocolate Socks by Irina Dmitrieva (as seen in House socks)
Seamed Socks by Purl Soho (free pattern; as seen in House socks)

I feel like 2018 could be the year I finally knit my first scarf! How about you — what were your favorite patterns of the year?

*Asterisked patterns have been sent to me by the designer or publisher in the interim. I do not request that from anyone, but do feel compelled to note it.

PREVIOUSLY in New Favorites: Quickies! (aka last-minute gifts)

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2017: My sewing year in review

December 19, 2017 by Karen Templer

2017: My sewing year in review

It was late May — mid-year already — when I sewed my first garment of the year, and it had been 10 months at that point since I’d sewn anything. The latter half of the year is the exact opposite story. Whereas this year’s knitting was about settling into a groove I’d been building toward for six years, my sewing practice has been about taking leaps and bounds forward. Up until that white linen shell that got me restarted, my sewn garments these past few years have been almost entirely of the “a front, a back and some binding” variety, but I vowed that this would be the year I’d test out of the lifelong beginner class, commit to sewing some things that couldn’t be done in a single sitting, and change my view of which parts of my wardrobe I’m capable of making myself. I feel like I owe it all the Summer of Basics challenge and the jeans-making workshop that followed. And my serger. Now that was a good decision.

There were definitely still simple little tops: the white linen shell, the grey wool sweatshirt-y thing, and my favorite sleeveless tee in striped hemp and grey wool knit. The jaw-dropping garment of the year was my first pair of jeans. The garments that really changed my closet and my outlook are the four pairs of “toddler pants”: olive (ruined in the wash but still in service on manual-labor days), denim, camo and natural wool. And the most involved thing I sewed this year (or possibly ever) was not the jeans but my Archer button-up. I’ll never forget pulling out the jeans pattern, seeing that it was fewer pieces and steps than the Archer I had recently completed, and thinking “I got this!” Not that Archer is hard, per se — it isn’t — but there is more to it.

And that’s not all I sewed. There were the baby harem pants for Allison plus two refashions: the slipdress and the army shirtjacket. Remaking the latter was one of the funnest days of my year — I had a blast in my sewing room that day, and am thrilled to now have that little jacket in my closet.

2017: My sewing year in review

Altogether, what these clothes mean is I no longer think of myself as capable of sewing simple tops and dresses while still dependent on ready-to-wear for shirts, pants and jeans (the bulk of my wardrobe, in other words). In fact, I no longer feel dependent for anything! But the other half of the giant impact of all of this is that I’ve learned to actually love sewing, rather than tolerate it. It turns out sewing more satisfying garments makes it that much more satisfying. Lesson learned!

Who knows what I might get up to in 2018.

PREVIOUSLY: 2017 Knitting year in review

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KT's Slow Closet

Knitting ideas, inspiration and free patterns, plus crochet, weaving, and more

Author Archives: Karen Templer

Postcard from Florida

Log Cabin Make-along: Meet the Panel!

Merry Elsewhere

Queue Check — December 2017

Top posts and highlights of 2017

Favorite New Favorites of 2017

2017: My sewing year in review

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