Moth Heaven

The Knitty Gritty on Mindy

Mindy is the new sweater pattern that I released last week on Ravelry. Photos by Maryse Roudier, smoothing by Stacie Dolin:

It's my favorite sweater yet, just about perfect in my book for a number of reasons. There's the Flying Buttress cable, which is found in the first volume of Barbara Walker, and is not only oh so fun to knit but has such a nice graphic quality to it.

I put a little interest on each sleeve as well, not running the whole length of the sleeve as in the usual way, but just a bit on the bicep on one sleeve

and another little cable blurb on the wrist of the other:

 

I'm a little bit giddy about the collar which can be worn flipped up or folded over.

And the back of course, where all that cable-y goodness runs riot:

 

Sizes available are 35.5 (38.75, 44.5, 47.75, 50.75)[51.75, 54.75, 58, 61]" at the bust. There's a KAL starting on April 19th over in the Ravelry group, which gives you plenty of time to get your hands on your yarn. You'll need 7 (7, 8, 8, 9)[10, 11, 11, 12, 12] skeins of Lorna’s Laces Haymarket. This one was knit in a color called The Skyway.

Jimmy Bean's Wool has Haymarket in stock right now. From what I see in good quantities as of this post, I would recommend Cookie's Deep Dark Secret, Campbell, or Washington for this project, keeping the variegation in the yarn pretty tame so as not to compete with the cables. Lorna's Shepherd Worsted would work well with this pattern too.

So download the pattern, pick your yarn, and warm up those needles for one last wooly sweater before summer has us all gasping again. See you at the KAL!

WIP Snapshot

A sweater for the 11 year old. If you want more of a hint, remember he's the guy who came up with the wolf addition to the sheep hat.

It's not like Fair Isle and it's not like Intarsia, it's kind of a combination of both. . .

Here's a neat little video from Mulberry Clothing Company profiling two of their handknitters from the Eribé Handknitters who made sweaters for Mulberry's fall collection.

 

 

 

 

Meet Mindy

You know there's time for one more sweater before the snow melts.

This is Mindy, a cabled cardigan I knit in Lorna's Laces lucious new yarn Haymarket. The pattern is off to the tech editor waiting for approval. But I couldn't wait to show you one of the beautiful photographs Maryse Roudier took last weekend.

More soon.

My New Ravelry Group

The knitternet has changed since I started this blog nine years ago. It used to be that people who knit things I put out there were here on the blog to begin with. End of story.

Because the knitternet has evolved, and social media has begotten Ravelry (and since I distribute my patterns principally through Ravelry), a lot of folks who make my patterns don't even know I have a blog. But Ravelry also has a solution: micro-communities organized around particular interests, including the work of individual designers.

When I realized there were several KALs going on in various places on Ravelry, and checking on them became a daily thing for me (heavens forbid someone freak out and no one help them), with all that clicking around I decided that maybe it was time to have just one place where I could offer a hand if someone got into a color cunundrum or a cable snarl. Plus, Julie Matthews offered to make it happen (fabulous lady, Miss Julie). It was just the push I needed.Didn't she make a beautiful banner from Caro's photograph? I love it. Nicki is also helping out as a moderator, and is an enthusiastic enabler in her own right.

So stop by, maybe even join. Group members get special notices about new releases, extra hand holding in the pattern support, and cheering from the sidelines. And who knows what else.