Gnomes

I’m a bit obsessed with Sarah Schira’s gnomes.

These are Snow What Matters (pattern purchased on Ravelry). You need 4 mini skeins to make one. 

A dark and dreary winter without snow? A horrible prospect indeed! A powerful wish for snow turned Mr. Gnightley into a Sgnome-man for a little while. When he turned back, there was still a touch of the snowman about him!

This is Gnumpkin and Gnettle (pattern purchased on Ravelry). This was the October MKAL.

In the lands of Willowdell, where dozens of streams crisscross each other in meandering paths and the gardens burst with good things to eat, the gnomes have a particularly gourd-geous look to them.

We still have kits available. 

This is Someone to Write Gnome About - Mini (pattern purchased on Ravelry).

A fun project for self-striping or variegated yarn.

Mini Gnock is a smaller version of the original, larger pattern. And just like so many younger siblings, Mini Gnock wants to do everything her big sister does. Slouchy hat? All the rage. Stripey socks? All the stripes!

Little Gnock is so much fun to pose and play with - her personality brings joy to every room.

Mr. FedEx dropped off our box of Cardiff Cashmere this morning. Yummy!

I knit a bit more with the Flight needles. The joins are very nice. You don’t know you are on interchangeable needles. The yarn slides and doesn’t catch. I highly recommend the needles if you like sharp points. More sets will be arriving next week.

I’ve been a little slow with my writing this week and even missed a few days. Beth is away enjoying a cruise in the Caribbean so it’s up to me to look after dad and the boys. They aren’t a problem but it’s a bit more work than having Beth at home. Making sure everyone eats so they can have their medications. Keeping the house clean. All the chores and staying up too late at night with dad watching TV. The good thing about this is that Jaunty is almost finished. The bad thing is that I haven’t picked up my Joji MKAL. By the time I sit down I’m tired and don’t want to be paying attention to a pattern. Maybe tonight. Beth will be home on Sunday night and I told her I’m taking the next few days off. 😘

Ooey Gooey Sock Set

Andrea Mowry has a new sock pattern.

Have you ever seen a cuter toe?? Inspired by Ooey Gooey, these socks will be the star of your sock drawer. I think it is safe to say that this is the most fun I have ever had designing socks! So much so that I designed the pattern as a set to include both Toe Up with a Fleegle Heel instructions as well as Cuff Down with a Heel Flap. No matter which construction you prefer, I hope you love them!

You can purchase the pattern for the Ooey Gooey Sock Set on Ravelry.

Photos © Andrea Mowry

The socks are knit in fingering weight yarn. You can choose two solid colours or you can do a solid with a multi. Andrea used Dyed in the Wool for her multi. Crazy Zauberball would be a great yarn for the contrast.

I mentioned new yarns coming. Here is the first. Cardiff Cashmere Classic. The yarn should be arriving next week.

Classic is the pure cashmere hand-knitting yarn for excellence. The 100% Cashmere can be used for a wide selection of projects ranging from simple accessories to more complicated sweaters and cardigans. It works well with all knitting stitches and in particular with well-defined ones.

The balls are 25g and have 110m. This is the yarn that PetiteKnits used for her Sophie Scarf. 

Today was spent doing errands. I’ll be in the store early to pack mail orders. Thank you to everyone who placed orders. I like having a crazy morning packing. Now it’s knitting time!

Linea Sweater

PetiteKnits has another new pattern. You can purchase the pattern for the Linea sweater on Ravelry.

The Linea Sweater is worked from the top down. First the back yoke is worked back and forth with short rows to create the curved shape of the back yoke. A contrast-colored line is worked along the cast on edge of the back yoke to emphasize the shaping of the back. The shoulders and then the front is worked from stitches that are picked up and knitted along this contrast-colored line. The sleeves are worked from stitches that are picked up and knitted along the armhole openings. At the end, stitches are picked up and knitted around the neck opening and the neck edge is worked in rib.

I was in the store shipping orders today. While I was waiting for Mr. UPS I placed some orders for brand new yarns. These will be a surprise until I received the shipping notifications. I think you’ll like the new yarns.

Jaunty is growing. I’m on the last ball and the rows are getting shorter and shorter. It’s almost time for the Showcase Showdown. Have a great evening. I’m off to knit.

Stunning!!

This fabulous cardigan is a new design from Wool & Pine. My head is swimming with colour combinations. The pattern is called the Hearthside Cardigan and you can purchase it on Ravelry.

Hearthside Cardigan is all about plush texture, scrappy color, and the kind of comfort that feels like home. Imagine curling up with your comfort show wrapped in a squishy brioche hug, with enough structure from the thoughtful shoulder and neckline shaping so you can throw it on for coffee runs too.

Worked in basic two color brioche with two strands of fingering weight yarn held together for both Foreground (FG) and Background (BG) colors, the marled effect comes from changing one strand at a time so colors blend and flow softly. Speckles and small leftovers shine here, creating gentle shifts and layered depth.

A deep marled garter hem and cuffs anchor the design, and the oversized garter shawl collar brings just the right amount of structure. We also include a video guide to help you choose and blend colors for smooth transitions and your own custom palette.

This is a cardigan you will want to live in.

Take a look at all the finished projects on Ravelry. Stunning!!! 

I wanted to go downstairs to play with my fingering odd balls but I stopped myself. It might happen after dinner.🥳

Who asked for the snow? Yuck. It was a great day to be in the house. I’m almost ready to join the last ball on Jaunty. Pictures tomorrow. 

Twig Shawl

This is the Twig Shawl from TinCanKnits. You can purchase the pattern on Ravelry.

The pattern calls for DK yarn with a tension of 20 stitches = 4”. In my mind you can use a DK weight yarn or go to a worsted weight yarn on a 4.5mm needle. It might make the shawl slightly larger but that isn’t a bad thing. Here are some yarn choices. Please do a swatch before you start. TinCanKnits used a 3.5mm needle and 3.75mm needle. To get the tension I think you will need at least a 3.75mm and 4mm needle.

DK

• Arranmore Light
• Estelle Superwash Merino DK
• Rowan Felted Tweed (slightly thinner but it would work)
• The new Donegal Twists from Baa Ram Ewe

Worsted Weight

• Rios
• Cascade 220 Superwash Merino

I was tired this afternoon and couldn’t bring myself to stock shelves. Instead I pulled out a ball of Kathmandu Fingering (colour 15) and some Lykke Flight needles. This is Joji’s MKAL. I wanted to see how the shawl would look in a solid colour. I also wanted to try the Flight needles. 

The points of the needles are extremely sharp. For most people that isn’t a bad thing. I know Wannietta would love these needles. It’s not the best for me - I push with my finger and stab myself. I can say that the needles are really nice to knit with. They slide nicely. I don’t have enough knit to go over the join yet. I’ll let you know tomorrow.

The Price is Right is on so I’m moving to my knitting chair.