New Knitscene

I admit it - I'm kind of a girly-girl. Pink is my favorite color, I love skirts/dresses and I can’t help but oohh and ahhh over anything with a ruffle on it.

So when the new issue of knitscene arrived on my desk, I just about passed out. Right there on the cover was a super cute tank top with ruffles! The best part? The ruffles are on the back of the racer-back tank, so you don’t feel like an overgrown doll.

The Mackinac Tank by Danille Chalson is knit with Firefly, a linen and rayon blend, perfect for summer layering pieces. The ruffles are knit as part of the back and are made with simple decreases and a clever use of joining-as-you-go to reduce finishing.  

I also really love the Lindell Tee by Cassie Castillo.

Knit in Classic Silk, it's a short sleeved tee with a deep scoop neck and a slightly flared peplum, highlighted by a garter band at the waist. The body of the tee is knit in the round, so it's sure to be a fast and flattering knit. With its classic style and simple construction, this tee will take you from early spring to late fall.

At some point I'm going to have to learn to knit in my sleep, so I can make all the great designs that keep being published!

Photos courtesy of Interweave Knits. Photographer Nathan Rega of Harper Point Photography.

Knit along with us!

We are so excited to announce that we are going to be doing a knit-along from the Shawls, Wraps & Scarves book.

Rules for the Shawls,Wraps & Scarves Knit-A-Long

1. Item must be made from CEY yarn and from the Shawls, Wraps & Scarves book.
2. Open to US and Canadian residents only.
3. Cast on date for knit-a-long is April 15, bind off date is June 15. You may do a gauge swatch and any other prep work (i.e. winding your yarn, getting copies of your charts, etc.) prior to the cast on date.
4. To be considered for the knit-a-long, your project must be listed on Ravelry with the tag SWSKAL. You may enter your project on Ravelry prior to April 15, but please no casting on until then (I know it will be difficult).
5. You must upload at least one in-progress photos and a FO photo to be eligible for the prize.
6. By entering the knit-a-long, you give permission to Classic Elite Yarns to use your photos, first name and Ravelry project links on their social media sites (Ravelry, Facebook, Twitter and Pinterest).
7. There will be 2 categories to enter – Shawl/Wrap (over 600 yards) and Scarf/Cowl (0-600 yards).
8. Prizes will be enough yarn (current CEY) to make another project of your choosing from the Shawls, Wraps & Scarves book in the same category you entered.
9. Winner will be drawn at random.
10. Void where prohibited by law.

There are so many great pieces from Shawls, Wraps &Scarves, the hardest part of this knit-a-long might just be choosing your project. It was a difficult decision for me, but I have settled on making the Cream & Sugar Lace Wrap (of course, I am not eligible to win, but I thought it would be fun to knit-a-long with you guys).  I decided to use Vail in Parchment.  I am sure this will become an instant classic and something that I reach for time and time again.

What are you going to make?

And the winner is...

I am overwhelmed by the response we got to the giveaway for Kristin Nicholas’ book and yarn. We got almost 400 entries. All I can say is “wow!”

Everyone’s name and email address was printed out and put into a ‘hat’ (I didn't have a structured hat nearby that would have worked …so I used a knitting basket instead.)

We had Betsy draw a name from the basket (with a little help from Heather) -

And the winner is...drumroll…

Anita from WY! Congratulations! Your book and yarn will arrive shortly. We would love to see your finished sunflowers - send some pictures!

One Sweater...Three Ways!

Convertible garments have always intrigued me. I love seeing those hang tags that have illustrations on how to wear a garment more than one way. But more often than not I can never get them to look the way they should (or at least the way they look in the illustration).

The Star Lily top from the Canyon booklet has three ways to wear it (that we know of). We put together a little video on the different ways to style the garment.

What could be better than knitting one garment, and getting three?

   

Have you knit the Star Lily and found another way of styling it? We would love to see photos! Send them to blog@classiceliteyarns.com.  

New Liberty Wool Colors for January 2013

Every month from January to June we introduce two new colors of Liberty Wool. They are always gorgeous colorways, and this month’s colors are no exception.

Faded Brocade consists of reds, oranges, pinks, greys and greens. This colorway is a great way to brighten up your winter blahs.

They only thing better to chase away winter blahs is Caribbean Tidepool, which coincidentally is the name of our second January colorway. The greens and blues of this yarn will transport you to an island getaway.

Of course you will need some new patterns to go with the new colors of Liberty Wool. Right?

Liberty Wool is a great yarn for children’s sweaters (two words – washable wool); keeping that in mind, designer Tonia Barry created this adorable baby sweater. The mock cable pattern on the trim and hood is appropriate for either a boy or a girl.  

And there is still time to make a scarf for this winter. Why not try either the Diagonal Striped Scarf or our Two Direction Scarf. Both designed by Susan Mills, the patterns use the long color repeats of Liberty Wool to get the maximum effect.

  

Yarn Stores who subscribe to our Liberty Wool program currently have the three new patterns shown above. But what happens if you LOVE one of these patterns and your yarn store isn’t part of our program? Fear not, you will be able to download the patterns from Ravelry starting February 1 (or you can urge your LYS to take part in the subscription fun now - it's not too late for them to sign up!).

Merry Christmas

Quick Last Minute Gift

I have a tendency to overdo it with presents. I get it from my mom, “Just one more little thing to open, you know…just cause.” Which means even though I think I am done with my Christmas presents, I’m really not. But who wants to go out into the madness of the shopping malls and centers at this time of year? Not me! You know what that means. Yep, I am casting on something.

I found this pattern for mini socks in a past webletter. They are small, quick and simple. Perfect!

Each “sock” only takes about 20 yards, so you can get lots of socks from a single skein of Alpaca Sox (available in Solids, Kettle Dyes or Hand Dyes)  or Liberty Wool Light.

I hoped over to Ravelry to see what some of you have done with this pattern in the past and there are lots of great ideas. I saw it used as a gift tag with the person’s initial on it, as an ornament on trees, as an advent calendar on a garland and even as doll socks.

Although there are only 3 knitting days left to Christmas, you still have time to make a few of these.

Lowell Cowl

It happens every year. There is someone who you don't normally exchange gifts with, but they pull the ultimate surprise on you while having lunch or at a holiday get together. I like to have a backup plan in place at all times and keep something already wrapped in my desk or in the car for such occasions. Our Lowell Cowl is the perfect solution.

The recipient will be so impressed that you knit them something. They don't need to know that the cowl is made of a simple 'mistake' rib and garter stitch in the round on larger needles. 

The Lowell Cowl is made with two different colors of Silky Alpaca Lace held together. It is sophisticated and practical at the same time. The silk in the yarn gives it a beautiful sheen, while the alpaca will give it a nice halo and lots of warmth. It will be an accessory the recipient (or yourself) can wear year round. 

The cowl can be worn several ways - a single loop, a double loop, as a shrug or even as a short scarf. With lots of solids and multi-colors available, the possibilities really are endless.

  

Click here to download the free pattern.

Shadow Toque

The days are getting shorter and with a chill in the air, it can mean one thing only...the holidays are closing in on us and our knitting time is running out.

So what is a knitter to do? It has to be fast and yet dramatic. The answer is simple. Hats, and in a chunky yarn.

The Shadow Toque from the Fall 2011 Interweave Knits is the perfect solution. Knit in Tobbogan at 3 stitches per inch on US 10 ½ needles it works up quickly.  The cable detail makes it special without making it too difficult.

Tobbogan is a wool and alpaca blend, so you know it will be very soft to work with and keep the recipient’s head warm during the winter months to come.

Taking only 1 skein and available in 21 colors, you can knit one for everyone on your list, whether they were naughty or nice this year. A second skein will enable you to make a big fluffy pom pom for the top, the design detail of the season.

Purchase your copy of the pattern on Interweave’s website here.

Photos courtesy of Interweave Press, Carmel Zucker, photographer.

You Can STILL Knit This Stocking!

We have a winner!!

We've moved!

Many of you already know, but Classic Elite Yarns is now in North Billerica! After decades in Lowell, we picked up and went south.

There was a certain mystique to our former spot, in an old mill building on the banks of a canal, hearing the drone of freight trains navigating their way north (though we might not miss the exhaust from said freight trains)...

And having our workspace in an artists' building was pretty cool, and gave us lots of backdrops for good photography.

A shot from the aptly named Artwork booklet, shot at the Western Ave. Studios.

From the booklet Panache, a trio of scarves in front of an old mill door.

But moving gave us an opportunity to regroup, to sift through decades of old stuff, and to evaluate what to keep and what we could let go of. And boy, was it a mess.

All our office stuff had to go in these giant boxes on wheels.

However, life must go on, in spite of ever-increasing disorganization.

That's A LOT of yarn to move

Still more yarn to move...

Oh wait, that was just what doesn't fit on the shelves.

Where all our pattern books once lived.

Heather cleared out this entire thing, and many others just like it.

They always look so big when they're empty.

Goodbye Lowell warehouse!

And now we're finally settled in to a completely new office and warehouse space with shiny new floors, super-organized (for now) shelves packed with yarn and books, and, this is the best part, a FORKLIFT. More pictures of our new space to come!

The Old Norwegian Cast On

This week's Web Letter comes from Rachel Henry, arguably one of our most popular Web Letter designers of the last year. She contributed the Katydid Drop Everything Scarf AND the Ravelry hit, the Cotton Bam Boo Kudzu Shawlette, which made it to #16 of the Ravelry "New and Popular" Top 20 list at its peak and currently has 2750 faves and 179 projects!

Our latest Web Letter, the Bifurcate Cowl, is also destined for greatness. Any inquisitive knitter will be intrigued by the prospect of knitting cables flat in the round. Say what? And Kumara is so luscious, it begs to be worn next to the skin...

There is one teeny detail in the pattern that caught my attention, as I'd never heard of the "Old Norwegian Cast-On" before. Rachel posted a video on her blog explaining what it is and why it's awesome. Watch out for a cool trick to avoid tying a slip-knot in your knitting when beginning your CO. The Old Norwegian cast-on begins at around 2:10.

 

Another technique that would make the Bifurcate Cowl a little easier is cabling without a cable needle. This is my preferred method of working cables, and I learned from the fabulous and ever-wise Grumperina on her blog. Her tutorial does not include a video, but there are lots of clear pictures to guide you along your way.

Can't wait to see all your Bifurcate Cowls!

Elizabeth Revisited

Vote for the Elizabeth Cardigan in 
Patternfish's 10,000^th design competition!

I know we've been over this, but remember the Elizabeth cardigan? We dubbed it the "Magic Sweater" because it looked good on so many people. By the way, this sample size is small, and is the same sweater featured on the model above.

This is one of my favorite sweaters in my collection of handknits. The deep 1x1 ribbed collar folds over just so, and the machine-washable Liberty Wool is soft, squishy and springy. The slipped rib waistband hugs my waist and keeps the silhouette feminine and tailored, while still cozy. Mine is knit in a solid, #7850 Gold.

Though, to truly let this garment live up to its potential, one should take advantage of the color shifts in the wildly popular Liberty Wool Print, available in 15 distinct colorways.

If this post inspired you, you can buy the pattern on Patternfish as part of their 10,000^th Design Competition. While you're there, will you vote for us?