IossifBalotis

Boulevardier is all about the drama of this texture, worked in different "stripes" across the sweater.  It's simple and completely addictive as each motif in the pattern is completed and the overall design grows.  When worked in Julie Asselin's Melange N.1 , a soft and satisflying yarn with just a touch of drape, the oversized fit and lines of pattern lie beautifully for a casual but polished look.  Knit in pieces and seamed for stability, Boulevardier is worked from the bottom up. Once the body is seamed together, the collar is knit in the round and sleeves are attached last. I also included a bit of armhole shaping in the dropped shoulder construction for a better fit in this slouchy sweater.  Julie's new Melange N.1 is dyed in vibrant shades with just a touch of subtle shading, which creates a stunning fabric for the Boulevardier. More information is on Ravelry, and the pattern is also available from WEBS and LoveKnitting.  **Yardage by Size** **Sizes** 41(...

The Prickly Pear Hats!   Click on the link above for all the info, but these two hats are the palate cleanser I needed between sweaters. No cables, easy knitting, and gorgeous yarn.  Knit in Pishkun DK from the Farmer's Daughter Fibers in gorgeous deep green (Evergreen) and bright, saturated turquoise (Mountain Man), the contrast here just made me happy.  Bold chevrons and diamonds paired with delicate dots highlight the contrast between the colors and make for easy, geometric knitting. The first hat features a main diamond motif set against the background, with little highlight dots scattered throughout the design. The second one features the same dots, but paired with bold chevrons in a pattern that allows the background color to gradually become the accent shade and vice versa. I had a little fun at the crown on this one, creating a second colorwork motif at top. These flew off the needles, and I easily knit both out of the yardage in my ...

Western Rose is my first real foray into the world of mosaic knitting and I am hooked!  A deep panel of flowers in beautiful shifting color really stands out against the sophisticated navy blue heather of the  stockinette body on this one. Some ridge detail at hem and cuffs adds a tiny bit of texture - and a raglan yoke, paired with a shallow folded collar gives it an updated and easy-to- wear shape.   A stockinette body means I have included lots of options for modifying the sweater to fit your body and your wardrobe, so the pattern has instructions for alternate necklines (see the test knits!), as well as how to alter width or length as needed.  And I cannot WAIT to see your color combos! Western Rose is knit from the bottom up. Sleeves are joined at yoke and then both raglan shaping and short rows are added before working the final collar.  The deep, dark sophistication of Harrisville nightshades was the perfect backdrop to the fun colors of Spincycle...

The Bee's Knees Cardigan and the Blue Wave Mitts . Both feature cables and texture and are knit in Neighborhood Fiber Company's Studio Worsted  yarn. Since some of us have extra time on our hands these days and others have less knitting moments than ever before, you can play with this gorgeous yarn in either an entire sweater or treat yourself to a quick pair of mitts out of a single skein.   If you've been following me for a while, you already know that I choose a few patterns a year and use my needles to help with and draw attention to causes I feel strongly about.  These two patterns are the latest ones I'm using towards that effort.  Right now, my biggest concerns are racial justice and voting rights, especially as we head towards November here in the US. So, instead of giving you the usual introductory discount on these, I'm going to direct those dollars out into the world. I've done this before, and it's amazing how ...

Grey Ghost is a sweatshirt-of-a-sweater kind of pullover. Knit up in a sweater quantity of   ElsaWool's incredible Cormo yarn that I had been saving in stash forever, it's a bottom up raglan - with a twist! I played with this until the shaping fell somewhere between Elizabeth Zimmerman's Classic Raglan and her Hurry Up Last Minute Sweater (which many of you will think of as a Carbeth). I went this way as I always loved the more pronounced shaping of the Last Minute Sweater, but I never felt that the bringing the sweater to a full point at center bust was flattering on me.    Instead, the sweater is graded so the shaping leaves a bit of the front intact, and it's amazing how those few inches make all the difference.  I also had a little fun and designed each size so the seams hit the pattern columns and line up perfectly under the collar at both front and back. Grey Ghost   (rav link)  features a ...

I don't know about you guys, but mid-Summer knitting for me always involves a hat or two. it gives me a jump on my holiday gifts, gets a few skeins out of stash, and makes for a small lap project I can bring wherever I go. (Which, these days, is admittedly not that far, but I still prefer portability!) Anyways, if you have been here for a bit, you already know how much I love my  Magpie Fibers Nest , and I had these two gorgeous blue skeins sitting on the shelf just waiting for me.  I had also been wanting to play with some of the beautiful cables in Norah Gaughan's Knitted Cable Sourcebook  , so I picked up the yarn and opened the book and after a few days of drawings and swatches, I made these two Night Caps ! Both hats feature modified versions of the same slanted cable - and each one has details that lend themselves a little differently to the idea. I played with placement of the cables, customized the crown shaping for each repeat, ...