CEY and Signature Needles, Together!

 

This has been a great year for knitting events. One particularly exciting one that's approaching is Interweave's Knitting Lab! As knitting creeps deeper into the public consciousness, knitters are becoming more and more advanced and their hunger for intermediate to experienced-level knowledge grows. Interweave responded with Knitting Lab, an event with shopping, classes, lectures, and special events, all catering to the inquisitive, post-beginner fiber enthusiast...and Classic Elite will be there!

Heather, our sales manager, will be walking the floor and checking out all the CEY knits out there (if you didn't catch the blog post on Friday, we are giving away a $75 gift basket to a lucky knitter wearing CEY). You can probably catch her by the yarn tasting area, where you'll have a chance to knit some luscious fibers with some fabulous needles!

This year, we are thrilled to be bringing along Soft Linen, Avenue and Liberty Print to the show floor.

Soft Linen is a blend of fibers that can only be described as perfect: 35% Linen, 35% Wool, and 30% Baby Alpaca. I love the crispness of bast fibers (linen, hemp, nettles, etc.) but find them to be hard on my hands. Soft Linen combines that crispness with the softness and drape of baby alpaca, and the insulating qualities of wool.

Avenue is a new yarn for Fall 2011, and, as the name suggests, it imparts a city feel. Not particularly "woolly", Avenue is a marled fiber in eight sophisticated colors made up of 42% extrafine merino, 29% silk, and 29% viscose. It is soft and knits up into a unique fabric that is perfect for simple silhouettes that benefit from a fabric with plenty of drape. Try it out, you might like it!

What can we say about Liberty Print besides that it's fabulous! The color shifts, the springy ply, the machine-washability without the weird squeakiness of "superwash"! Contributing to Liberty's buttery feel is a secret process that renders it machine-washable but helps it retain its soft woolliness. It can be difficult to see the spectacular colors without knitting a swatch, so we thought this would be a great yarn to bring along.

At this event, Classic Elite Yarns has a partner! Signature Needle Arts, cult producers of precision-crafted, lightweight aluminum needles, have generously provided us with needles for the tasting area! The opportunities to use these stunning needles are so rare, and their following so devoted that this is a must-visit if in San Mateo area. 

For updates from Knitting Lab, whether you're there or following along from home, follow us on Twitter at @ceyarns. See you there!

Designer Spotlight: Laura Zukaite

Laura Zukaite is an independent knitwear designer with an impossible-to-miss style and yen for luxury fibers and sophisticated looks. Her patterns are often thoughtful and well designed, with feminine details and a touch of the unexpected. Take a look at the Magnolia Swirl Cowl, a free pattern published in our weekly Web Letter. It is a tapered cabled strip that is joined in a coil of sorts, not with regular seams, but with a spiralling silk ribbon, integrating the finishing into the design.

Laura is already familiar with Magnolia, having used it in her Golden Girl Cardigan, another clever, feminine piece from her independently published collection at LauraZukaite.com.

She is the author of two books, Luxe Knits and Luxe Accessories, both featuring sophisticated designs in luxury yarns, and is also a frequent contributor to various online and print magazines, like Knitting, Vogue Knitting, and Knitty. She was kind enough to do an interview with us here at the blog.

How long have you been designing?
I have been knitting since I was five. All of my knits and later sweaters came out of just my imagination. Back then I never thought of what I was doing as "designing". But now when I think about it- I was designing all along.

How did you get started? 
Actually, I do not remember. As far as my memory goes, I have always been knitting. My mother is an excellent knitter, so I assume that she taught me somewhere along the way. But I do not have a recollection of my first project or yarn that I used.

What's the first piece you ever designed (not necessarily for CEY)?
I think that the first piece that I have intentionally designed was when I was about 14 or 15. My mom bought me a cone of a beautiful Gray Heather Alpaca yarn and I knit myself an Aran Turtleneck. I still have it and wear it to this day: it became my favorite skiing sweater.

What pieces did you design in the Fall Collection?
For CEY Fall Collection I have designed two pieces in Kumara: Afternoon Light (off-shoulder top) and Landscape (ribbed hat), a piece in Ariosa: Glacier (ribbed cardigan), and an accessories set in Giselle: Merry and Bright (Hat and Cowl).

What is the timeline for one of your designs, from swatch to pattern to sample?
Depending on a complexity of a design- it could take anywhere from one to three weeks to turn around a sweater piece.

Approximately how many patterns do you publish a year?
20-30.

Do you use test knitters?
No.

What is your "design process"?
I usually start with the yarn and swatch. After I have the fabric created- then I move into sketching. I usually sketch-up a few ideas for one swatch and then pick my favorites. After that, I select colors and start the knitting process. I like to take notes as I knit and write the pattern afterwards.

Where do you do your design work? What does your "creative space" look like?
I usually design at home and execute “on-the-go”. But sometimes I would come up with ideas while just walking around and then only put it on paper when I get back to my studio. I knit pretty much anywhere (subway, train, waiting for doctor’s appointment…etc) but rarely at home.

What is your favorite piece you designed for the Fall Collection? What was your inspiration? My favorite piece is Afternoon Light (off-shoulder top) in Kumara. I remember at that time I was obsessed with subtle little ways of exposing the skin- and the piece just came to life naturally.

Pirouette, New for Fall 2011

Pirouette is one of six new yarns for Fall 2011. Mohair has long been a staple here at Classic Elite, starting with our first yarn made right here in Lowell, La Gran. Last fall, we introduced Giselle, a blend of kid mohair, wool and nylon. This fall, we're debuting something a little different...Pirouette is a surprising blend of kid mohair, bamboo and nylon. Two of the things that attract me to bamboo are its drape and that little hint of shine (see Vail, Wool Bam Boo and Cotton Bam Boo for more bamboo blends from CEY) and this yarn has both.

Cellulose fibers, synthetic or natural, are often used in conjunction with mohair to give it strength, and using bamboo is an inspired choice, making the perfect substitute for mohair-silk blends at a much more attractive price. The resulting yarn is strong, decadently soft, lustrous, and versatile, and the color spectrum ranges from soft neutrals to vibrant jewel tones.

You will find Pirouette in two pattern booklets this season; the first is the dedicated booklet by the same name. These six designs are knit in single, double and triple strands, sometimes combining effects in the same garment. There are two cardigans, a cowl neck pullover, a top that can be worn with the opening in the front or in the back, a striped scarf, and a cowl with a multicolored look achieved by knitting three strands of different colors together. Clockwise from top left, the garments are Arabesque, Glissade, Attitude, Waltz, Plie, and Fondu.

The second booklet featuring Pirouette is Panache, a collection of scarves, shawls and wraps in five yarns. The idea behind Panache is to illustrate how the same design can look completely different when worked at a different gauge or in a different fiber. Pirouette is used in three of the four designs, from left to right, Glamour, Grace, and Flair.

Hopefully one of these projects will inspire you to pick up a ball of Pirouette and cast on!

Technique Post: Finishing Sleeves

I have to admit, finishing is one of my favorite things. There is nothing more pleasing to me than a seam that melts away into the fabric of my knitting, never to be detected by an admirer, or a perfectly set-in sleeve that hugs my shoulder just so. However, not all shoulders are created equal. The method of knitting them and joining them can be quite different.

Raglan Shoulder (Flurry in Fresco): A raglan shoulder is decreased (or increased when worked top-down) at set intervals from the underarm to the neck, resulting in a diagonal line extending from the underarm. The sleeves have corresponding shaping. When knit in the round, the front, back and sleeves are all knit at once on a circular needle, with markers separating all four pieces. Paired decreases (or increases) are worked at the markers.

Set-in Sleeve (Pinnacle in Vista/Crestone): The armholes are shaped in a straight line extending from the underarm to the top of the shoulder, with a small decrease at the underarm to make room for the arm. The sleeve is shaped with a sleeve cap that must be eased into the armhole. This is a universally flattering shoulder shape, and one that is quite common. Setting in the sleeve requires a bit more diligence than a raglan, as a curved edge must be aligned with a straight one.

Drop Shoulder (Icicle in Ariosa): Drop shoulder sweaters are basically comprised of rectangles, one each for the front, back, and two sleeves. This style is often better suited to loose-fitting garments with lots of positive ease. Tight rectangles do not suit many (any?) body types, and there may be some unattractive bunching in the underarm when the wearer's arms are lowered. When worked in a fabric with ample room (like garter stitch) and with adequate positive ease, drop shoulders have a pleasant roomy, casual look.

Which sleeve style do you prefer?