Category Archives: fall

NEW Fleece Artist Vamps Kits

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Fleece Artist Vamps Kits

A ‘Vamp’ is a Newfoundland term for a pair of hand knit ankle socks used both as house slippers and as boot liners. They are knit holding 2 strands of yarn together (one merino and one super soft kid mohair), these slippers are a warm and fuzzy tribute to this regional hand knit tradition. This pattern is best knit on double pointed needles rather than short circular needles. You can also knit this kit up as a warm and fuzzy pair of Mitts!

Vamps Kits are a double gift – they’re a great gift for knitters, and they also knit up as a wonderful gift.

Kit Includes

  • Pattern & instructions (one size, for other sizes use the pattern Rye below)
  • 125g of Fleece Artist Merino 3/6
  • 50g of Handmaiden Angel Hair

Kit DOES NOT include 4mm double pointed needles

 

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Pattern Notes

After knitting up a sample we found that seasoned sock knitters may not ‘get’ the pattern that is included with the kit. If you want an alternative path try using the free pattern for Rye Socks by TinCan Knits and making the following modifications:

  • Use 4mm/US6 needles
  • In the “Cuff” omit the “Round 1” & “Round 2”: start the heel flap immediately after making the ribbing
  • The third size fits an average women’s foot, the fourth size fits
  • omit garter stitch detail down the front

 

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FREEBIE Willow

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Willow

I love it when things come together fast and easily, and this scarf was one of them. The pattern looks complicated but it was an extremely simple cable stitch. I was playing around with a new yarn, buttery soft Cascade Spuntaneous. I wanted to see how it would knit up in different ways, so I pushed it to it’s limit and used 12mm/US17 needles for the body of the scarf. It looks awesome and blocked larger than it knit up, which was beneficial because it was looking a bit on the short & stout side when it came off the needles.

The Closure

The cool thingy on the scarf in the first picture is the JUL Designs Mod Loop Leather Closure in Truffle. All of the JUL designs products are kind of like ingenious jewellery for your knits. They  screw in, so they are no-sew and you can remove them and use them as often and with as many garments as you like (you can see a video demonstrating how they work HERE). Of course, you do not need to wear this scarf with a closure, I just thought it looked neat and tried it.

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Size

After blocking the scarf measured approximately 11″ wide and 62″ long.

Notes

  • used 12mm/US17 needles for the body of the scarf
  • added 5 rows of K2P2 rib on each end with 10mm/US15 needles
  • wet blocked the scarf by washing it in Soak Wash, removing the excess water by rolling it in a towel, and then laying flat to dry
  • if you want a narrower scarf or want to use less yarn there’s definitely room to omit one pattern repeat (6 stitches)
  • if you want to join the ends and make a cowl you can cast on using a provisional cast on and then either graft the ends together using kitchener stitch or use a 3 needle bind off to join the ends.

Materials

 

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FREEBIE Jumbo Travelling Cables Hat

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JUMBO Travelling Cables Hat

Need a warm hat this winter? I think this hat is an excellent candidate. It’s thick, duper-super soft, and works up FAST. The jumbo cables make it interesting and a bit warmer too. We used one skein of brand new Cascade Spuntaneous, a buttery soft and light as air single ply merino wool. I had a little bit of yarn shortage anxiety, but I was fine and didn’t have to go into a second skein.

Size

One size, and the hat fits a bit small (21″ to 22″ head) but you can make it larger by using larger needles: 10mm/US15 for the ribbing and 12mm/US17 for the rest of the hat.

Our hat was made on 8mm/US11 & 9mm/US13 needles and blocked by washing it in Eucalan and laying flat to dry. We also accidentally knitter an extra row or two in the brim.

Measurements after Blocking (with brim turned up)

  • outside: 9.5″ wide & 10″ long
  • inside: 8.5″ wide & 10″ long
  • brim turned up: 2.75″

Materials

  • FREE Pattern
  • Cascade Spuntaneous: 1 skein
  • 8mm.US11-16″ circular needles (or 10mm/US15 for larger sizes)
  • 9mm/US13-16″ circular needles (or 12mm/US17 for larger sizes)
  • 9mm/US13 double pointed needles (or 12mm/US17 for larger sizes)
  • Jumbo cable needle
  • Jumbo tapestry needle
  • Jumbo stitch marker

 

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FREEBIE Mondo Blanket

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Mondo Throw

This post is kind of a cheater because calling this throw a pattern is like calling a PB&J sandwich a recipe …. but the result is FAST, cozy, and very, very snuggly!

Size

approximately 36” wide x 33” long

Materials

 

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Notes

  • When attaching new yarn wet/spit felt the two ends together and afterwards tack down any stray ends with a felting needle.
  • Always wash your hands before felting light colours.
  • to make the yarn go further/have a loose weave be sure to knit loosely

Directions

Loosely cast 27 stitches

R1: *K1, p1; repeat from * to end of row.

Repeat row 1 until approximately 10 to 11 feet of yarn is left.

Cast off in K1P1 stitch pattern.

Weave in ends and tack down with felting needle.

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RESTOCKED Madelientosh Unicorn Tails

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Madelinetosh Unicorn Tails

Madelinetosh Unicorn Tails area mini version of Tosh Merino Light, a 100% superwash merino wool, single-ply fingering weight yarn. Each incredibly soft hank is hand-dyed in small dye lots. They’re the perfect yarn for granny squares, fair isle, or adding an accent colour to your project. Each hank of Unicorn Tails is unique. There are no dye lots and hanks may vary. The yarn colour you receive may look different than the colour pictured.

  • 100% Superwash Merino Wool
  • 12g/ 47m (52yds)
  • Fingering Weight
  • 2.5mm/US1.5 to 3.5mm/US4 needles
  • 6.5 to 7.5 sts per inch on 2mm to 2.75mm/US 1 to 2
  • Machine wash in cold water, lay flat two dry

 

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Colorblock Handwarmers

FREEBIE Burly Mitts

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Burly Mitts

These mitts are simple but interesting, and knit up fast with bulky yarn and big needles! One skein of deliciously soft and airy Fleece Artist Merino Stream makes a pair – perfect holiday gift?

Materials

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FREEBIE Urchin Cowl

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Urchin Cowl

Our latest pattern, Urchin, is a simple, textured cowl that can be worn around your neck or shoulders. We used soft and cozy Estelle Alpaca 60, but we know how you like to switch things up and use different yarns so we wrote the pattern for three different thicknesses of yarn. Urchin makes a fast, simple project and a great gift!

Size

  • width: 18”/46cm)
  • height: 11”/28cm

Materials: 3.5 sts/inch

Materials: 2.5 sts/inch

  • Estelle Alpaca 60 (100g/60m-65yds): 4 skeins
  • 8mm-32” circular needles
  • 7mm-32” circular needles
  • 1 stitch marker
  • darning needle
  • FREE Pattern

Materials: 1.5 sts/inch

 

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FREEBIE Duotone Cowl

 

 

Duotone Cowl

I’m currently knitting a tubular cowl and I’ve gotta say, it’s pretty breezy knitting (I actually worked on it at the movies last week, and I’ve been teaching myself how to knit continental with it). When you work in stocking stitch in the round (like the Duotone Cowl) you only need to knit, no purling is necessary. Even better, the knitting is almost continuous (except for changing colours), you just go round and round and round. It makes for some very easy, mindless knitting. When making a tubular scarf the fabric will be two ply, so you can knit on a larger needle and at looser than normal tension, otherwise the scarf will be a bit too stiff and thick.

Mineville Merino DK would make a gorgeous Duotone Cowl, I’d use either two different semi-sold colours or a single variegated/multi-colour (get 2 skeins). For a slightly more traditional/conservative look use super soft merino Cascade 220 Sport Superwash in their lovely heathered colours.

Yarn Options

Mineville Merino DK: 2 skeins (1 in each of two colours)

Cascade 220 Sport Superwash: 4 skeins (2 in each of two colours)

Other Materials

  • FREE Pattern
  • 5mm/US8 or 4.5mm/US7 – 16″ circular needles (one or two sizes larger than the yarn calls for)
  • stitch marker
  • tapestry or darning needle
  • scrap yarn
  • spare circular needle

 

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FREEBIE Helmikuu Boot Toppers

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Helmikuu Boot Toppers

Boot toppers are quick, simple, satisfying and make a great little gift, especially for those hard-to-knit-for people. They don’t use up a lot of yarn, less than a skein of Malabrigo Merino Worsted. The pattern calls for double pointed needles but if you find them daunting you can also use 12″ circular needles. The Helmikuu Boot Topper pattern is available in two versions: one with detailed instructions and tutorials for the novice, and a more succinct version for more experienced knitters.

Materials

 

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Finished Project: Calisson Part 2

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Callison Part 2

We made a Calisson headband (we wrote about it last week) and I wanted to show it off! We used one skein of Malabrigo Mecha (actually, just over half a skein) and 6mm needles.

Materials

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