Category Archives: Finds

Elsewhere

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Elsewhere: Yarny links for your clicking pleasure

Happy Friday, friends and knitters. This week, Kay beat me to a Garments of the Logalong roundup (thanks, Kay!), although I believe there have been a few more shared in the meantime, including this ooh la lovely. That’s among all the other innovation and splendor you’ll find on the #fringeandfriendslogalong feed.

And beyond that, Elsewhere:

– Jaw-dropping sweater-photography series (thx, Kathleen)

– I could listen to Dianna talking about Norwegian wool all day long

– Small-batch Donegal tweeds, Irish linens and Scottish cashmeres making me drool

– I’m loving the slow-fashion series on the State blog: part 1, part 2

– And this beautiful sentence: “Having dressed in a way that gives fast fashion the cold shoulder, feelings of resilience, creativity, and kindness are amplified.”

– This vending machine stocks embroidery and felting kits. (Still wondering why there aren’t more yarn stores in airports …)

– Beautiful Pygora goats (photo above, by Kathy Cadigan)

– Everything about this photo

– DG’s latest blanket has me wanting to do Purl Soho’s Color Study Blanket log cabin style

– Just ordered a copy of Loved Clothes Last (thx, Katrina)

and …

– Do YOU prewash your skeins?

IN SHOP NEWS: We’ve been gradually restocking from the holidays and have gotten in too many assorted things this week for me to detail! If you’ve been looking for something in particular, take another peek. (How’s that for least helpful shopkeeper ever? But if you have a question about something specific, please ask!)

Happy weekending, everyone—

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PREVIOUSLY: Elsewhere

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New Favorites: Geometric yokes

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New Favorites: Geometric yokes

There was definitely an “it” sweater at Rhinebeck in October — dozens of beautiful versions of Caitlin Hunter’s Birkin pattern from Laine Magazine. There was one in particular — hay colored with bright bits of colorwork — that was utterly stunning and made me want one just like it. However, the standout sweater of the whole weekend for me — the one I haven’t stopped thinking about — was pre-release at the time. It was the sample of Beatrice Perron-Dahlen’s Tensho Pullover (top), which was being worn by Alexis Winslow, who had just finished modeling for the photos. Bea kindly sent me the pattern afterwards. Amber has just finished knitting a black version that is so good it hurts. (If I didn’t have this.) And there’s also now a Tensho hat. But in the meantime, it’s one of three starkly geometric yoke patterns to make it on my Favorites list:

TOP: Tensho Pullover by Beatrice Perron-Dahlen

MIDDLE: Winter Woven Sweater by Tomo Sugiyama is a Japanese pattern (i.e., just a one-size annotated chart) and I’m not sure if it’s available individually, but oh how I want one

BOTTOM: Kirigami by Gudrun Johnston is rendered in high-relief texture rather than colorwork

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TOTALLY UNRELATED: To those asking to test knit my log cabin mitts, I am furiously finalizing and assembling the pattern, in the hopes of publishing it next week. If there’s anyone hot enough for it that you’re ready to cast on immediately and can imagine having feedback to me by Sunday, I’ll be happy to send the raw text to a few of you for that purpose. Otherwise, everyone can expect to see it very very soon!

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PREVIOUSLY in New Favorites: Two-way hats

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Instant sweater No.1

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Instant sweater No.1: Big Rubble

Last week, my friend Meg and I were at a dinner party at a semi-fancy restaurant. We were seated at opposite ends of a long table and I heard almost nothing of what was said down there all night … except at some point I became suddenly very tuned into Meg saying something about how she never wears the Big Rubble sweater she knitted several years ago (and later modified to a crewneck). You probably don’t remember me going on about this one back then, or more specifically, about how I wanted to be the kid in the kids’ version. Anyway, it was like one of those scenes in a movie where the protagonist is in the middle of some crowded, noisy scene and the camera zeroes in on their ear, which is isolating a single voice from among the din. Or maybe I have some kind of knitter’s sonar. Whatever, I heard her say it. Naturally what happened next is I politely shouted to the other end of the table “CAN I HAVE IT?” Being the best friend a girl could ask for — and a knitter who doesn’t like to see her efforts go to waste — she shouted back “YEAH.” After which I asked for another sweater from her collection, which she also said yes to and I’ll tell you about later.

There had been some drinking, and we’re both pretty silly, so I wasn’t sure whether these sweaters were really going to come into my possession. But when I walked into Fringe HQ a couple of snow days later, there they were on my table. That was Thursday. I got home Thursday afternoon and tried it on. Left it on with my pj pants for the evening. Wore it to work Friday, around the house all weekend, and to work again yesterday. Love. It.

The funny thing is, this is not the sort of garment I would ever have counseled myself to wear, or would ever have actually knitted — the wide elbow sleeves are the sort of thing I might think looks funky and cute on someone else but would expect to drive me bonkers. And this shape on my frame? No. But it’s just so pleasant to have on! Despite not having exactly gotten dressed or made up yesterday, I took a quick selfie (above) and Instagram polled it, and 90% of people chose “wear it everywhere” over “only with pj’s,” so I guess the moral of the story is we don’t always know what’s right for us.

No matter, I’m happy to have this light and cozy thing in my life. I like it even better tossed over my shoulders or wrapped around my neck, which makes it perfect for travel. The shape of it means it can be thrown on over just about anything — including my shapeless black silk Elizabeth Suzann Artist Smock (no longer available?!) — but won’t go under anything other than my ES cocoon coat, which has basically the exact same sleeves. (Maybe an inch longer.) So it’ll be most useful during the thaw, on the sort of days where it’s barely too warm for a coat but you still never know whether you’ll be wearing your sweater, pulling it off and throwing it around your neck, or vacillating between the two. In other words, expect to see me in it at Squam next June, and pretty much everywhere in between.

Instant sweater No.1

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PREVIOUSLY in Wardrobe Planning: Deep Winter outfits

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New Favorites: Two-way hats

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New Favorites: Two-way hats

I remember as a kid in the midwest, heading out into the snow to play, wearing a beanie that was lined — i.e., a double layer — so you could wear it either side out and fold up the brim so the inside was showing. I hated that hat. It was itchy and shifty, due to the layers, but warm, due to the layers. I hadn’t thought about that hat until seeing the hat pattern above, which I fell instantly in love with, and shortly thereafter came the one below. And now I’m obsessed with them both.

ABOVE: Reversible Rib Hat by Natsumi Kuge is contrasting colors that meet in the middle for a two-tone, ribbed, fold-up band that’s the same either direction

BELOW: Femte by Sari Nordlund is contrasting textures! I couldn’t love it more than I do. Absolutely stunning.

New Favorites: Two-way hats

PREVIOUSLY in New Favorites: Under wraps

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Elsewhere

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Elsewhere: Yarny links for your clicking pleasure

I’m not pulling specific examples from the #fringeandfriendslogalong this week but I am saying you need to go check out the feed. There’s so much creativity and ingenuity happening, I don’t know how I’ll ever be able to narrow down highlights! (Much less prizes.) However, I do want to point you to two blog posts by Rachel Beckman (her photos above) about how log cabin is changing her perception of what knitting is, here and here. And from the panelists, don’t miss Kay’s fantastic blog post on how she’s constructing her sweater and Ann’s jaw-dropping discovery. (Unrelated, Kay is also making me LOL with this whole ouija board/swatch metaphor.) I’m making progress on my log cabin mitts idea and hope to have the pattern written up fairly soon! And on Monday we’ll talk about how to weave in ends — or rather, how to avoid having (many of) them in the first place!

Meanwhile, Elsewhere:

– “Making litters our lives with intention and agency. It reminds us through its process that we can alter our environment to suit ourselves. That we have choice and agency in our lives.”

– Martha’s making me sorry I skipped this exhibit (I could have run into her there!); and have you seen there’s knitting in the new issue of MS Living?

– Amen to this

– I’m feeling all the love for this stranded Garter/Banff hat mashup and Amber’s Constellations kimono and Heather’s Snoqualmie Cardigan

– Winter style muse

– This blanket

– Amazing story but let’s talk about that sweater (?) she’s holding with the giant ball-fringed (?) monogram!!

– And if you’ve been waiting for that natural-indigo woven-in-CA denim, its time has come

It’s a snow-and-ice kind of day here in Nashville and I’m hunkered down and log cabin-ing for the next few days. I hope you have a relaxing weekend!

EDITED TO ADD: I just heard registration is officially open for Squam in June and there are just a few spots left in my classes. If you’ve never been to Squam (and been wanting to learn how to knit cables), I highly recommend this retreat!

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PREVIOUSLY: Merry Elsewhere

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New Favorites: Under wraps

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New Favorites: Under wraps

I really wish I had the attention span to knit an enormous rectangle — it’s one of the most appealing objects I can think of, and there have been some truly beautiful patterns released lately:

TOP: Duoro* by Norah Gaughan is a dramatic splendor of shifting brioche (wrap me up like this, please)

LOWER LEFT: Wallace* by Julie Hoover is a striking composition of knits and purls

LOWER RIGHT: Carrick by Emily Dormier is pure cable mesmerization

BELOW: Niende by Emily Greene is simple brioche perfection

New Favorites: Under wraps

*These patterns have been sent to me by the publisher

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PREVIOUSLY in New Favorites: Turtleneck season

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New Favorites: Turtleneck season

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New Favorites: Turtleneck season

It’s funny how a few days (and a lengthy forecast) of sub-freezing temps and sub-zero windchills can make one’s too-warm-for-the-South sweater collection suddenly seem, hm, almost inadequate. Which is to say, my turtleneck longing has kicked into high gear. I’m still in love with Michele’s Charles and Kate’s Carrowkeel and that bronze-y sketch/swatch of mine, and looking again at Norah’s Riptide, but then there are also these two recent gems:

ABOVE: High Neck Pullover by Tomoko Noguchi is just so cool. I love the mix of the textures and the overall look of it is so much I don’t even mind the drop-shoulder action.

BELOW: Bernadette by my pal Kate Gagnon Osborn (from the launch of Andorra, on my Yarns in Waiting list!) is one of those light-as-air yet oh-so-cozy garments. She was working on it while we were at Rhinebeck and I’ve been dreaming of slipping it on ever since.

New Favorites: Turtleneck season

PREVIOUSLY in New Favorites: Favorite New Favorites of 2017

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