Category: Knitting projects

Knitting projects I have completed or have in progress. My thoughts and review of the pattern, yarn, and outcome. Also knitting project ideas to consider or find for free.

My Finished Shawl, TTL Mystery Shawl 18 Knit Along

July 27th was the day our last clue arrived for the mystery shawl knit along, provided by designer Kirsten Kapur / Through the Loops.  We knitters had until August 27th to enter our finished shawl photos to the Finished Shawls, TTL Mystery Shawl 18 thread at Ravelry for a chance to win prizes.    That means all done knitting, washed, blocked and photos taken.

On August 3rd I added my finished shawl photo to the thread. Finally the colors looked right as I took the shawl outdoors to get some photos.  Taking selfies of this long shawl on my own body was not easy, but finally I got it right!

MKAL finished shawl
Vine Pops shawl

Never before have I worn or knit a shawl like this one. It took nearly 2 skeins of yarn. As you can see, the lace pattern ended up gorgeous. I am very happy with the end result, and truthfully quite amazed that I could knit this!

Clue #1 was given out June 22nd, so in little over a month I had knit myself this beautiful accessory. Too bad I live in Florida where I will seldom get a chance to wear it. I will take it with me on every trip back to New Hampshire.

This shawl was named VINE POPS and the pattern can be purchased here on Ravelry.

The MKAL Story in a Nutshell, or Longer

yellow and blue balls of yarn
Balls of yarn (Miss Babs “Cumin” and “Coventry”) are ready for knitting

As I finish up with this fun event, looking back I first thought that I may have chosen my yarn differently. I love the Woodbury from Miss Babs, which is soft and wonderful, but I wasn’t too sure about the yellow “cumin” color.  The light blue “Coventry” is so pretty, I would probably use it again in another project.

Some knitters began running out of Color A yarn (my color A is yellow “cumin”) during Clue 3. The designer, Kirsten Kapur, suggested that I might want to use a third, contrast color, at this point. My yarn stash is pretty small, so all I could come up with was anther Miss Babs yarn called “Canyon Wren”.  This became my Color C, which was added in Clues 3, 4 and 6.

(This shawl pattern is available for anyone to purchase although the MKAL is just about over.)

Now that the project is finished, I do like my color choices.  I think adding the color C (rust red) was a good choice as well.  Not many knitters did that, so mine is a unique in that way.

knitting a shawl
Color C added in Clue #3 because I ran out of yarn

My stitch markers were a life saver, but during Clue 5 the markers moved! This really threw me off. When I counted my stitches they didn’t stay the same between the markers and I didn’t know if it was my mistake or the pattern. Someone in the forum said to look at the chart pattern, which would show this happening.  That did help me even though I can’t read a chart well.  (Something else to learn.)

I ended up okay, but made a bunch of mistakes during this clue. I did a lot of counting too, and the fact that Kirsten gave us counts for all the rows in her pattern was super helpful.  Somehow the lace ended up looking fine – that was pure luck!  It is so pretty.

finished knitting the shawl
Shawl is done!

I was very worried about the bind off, which was like picot flowers. It looked very involved, and I could easily see myself messing it up. Since it is an edging, it would stand out, and I didn’t want that mistake to be obvious.  Clue 6 was one of the easiest to knit, except for the bind-off.  Kirsten kindly created a video to show the bind off, but I still didn’t feel confident about it.

Mystery shawl knit-along in lace

When I visited the “Clue 6” forum at Ravelry, I saw that some other knitters had also decided not to do the fancy bind-off. Their shawls looked great. I did a regular bind-off and it looks fine.

Lots of Firsts For Me

I’ve never knit lace.
I’ve never followed such an intricate pattern.
I’ve never knit an asymmetrical shawl.
I’ve never before done a knit along, mystery or otherwise.
I had never done a cdd or sk2p stitch.
This was the first knitting pattern I have ever purchased online.

Because I have conquered all these firsts, and ended up with a decent, wearable shawl, I have the confidence to continue trying difficult, more advanced patterns. Kirsten has so many beautiful items, with patterns for sale. Since I live in a hot climate, most of what I knit is for my daughter who lives up north, or for me to take when I travel.

finished shawl mystery knit along
Nature and knitting – the finished Vine Pops shaw.

I love to knit, and to learn new things.  The only way to expand our knowledge is to step out of our comfort zone and dive into something new.

I’m wondering what will be next.  A summer shawl knit along is now offered, so maybe that……….

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The Night and Day Cowl is Wearable Texture

After seeing the Night and Day Cowl in person at Harrisville Designs in Harrisville, New Hampshire, my daughter requested that I knit it for her. The designer (Andrea Mowry) is not one of my personal favorite designers, but I looked at the cowl and thought it definitely looked easy enough to knit. The Night and…

by Pam

Cowl Knitting Project Discovered at Harrisville Designs

During my trip to New Hampshire I of course wanted to visit Harrisville Designs. It is where my daughter chose this cowl knitting project for me to make for her! My daughter took me to the shop, and even though she does not knit, she always enjoys the ambiance of the old mill store. She…

by Pam

Late Fall Season Travel to New Hampshire

After taking a very quick, and busy, trip to New Hampshire the end of summer for a wedding, I got a chance to return for a more relaxing visit. It was late Fall and foliage season was winding down, but still pretty. The oaks were very orange, with some lingering reds and yellows. My daughter…

by Pam

Finishing Up The Spindrift Shawl

The Spindrift shawl was a free pattern download offered by designer Helen Stewart. I appreciate having something like this crescent shawl pattern to practice on.  The pattern is fairly simple, but I did learn how to do a picot edge bind-off.  You can read more about how I came to be knitting this shawl on my first post here.

The fingering yarn I chose to use was from Miss Babs, in one of the Wild Iris, Yummy-2ply colors named “Sorcerer”.  It closely matches the colors in the designers image of the finished shawl, and I thought hers was lovely.

To go with Sorcerer, I chose a lavender color yarn from Mrs. Crosby called “Monkey Orchid”.  I will use that color to finish the edge.

Shawl yarn
Shawl yarn from Miss Babs in fingering weight, and lavender DK by Mrs. Crosby

Notes on the Finished Shawl

I had to reference a video about making the picot edging. (Find it on my Day 2 blog post.)

I knew I would probably not have enough yarn because my skein was shorter than the recommended length. The lavender color was attached for the picot edging and once I got the hang of that bind-off, it went quickly.

Still left, the weaving in of ends, washing and blocking. I have never blocked anything, but I have the boards to do it with. My time is taken up with the MKAL I am working on (and am behind!). So this shawl will have to wait.

spindrift shawl
The Spindrift Shawl is finished
Screen Shot 2018-07-05 at 4.07.51 PM
The lavender picot edging



Finally I found the photos of this finished shawl. This was a very good beginner pattern with practice for yarn-overs and doing a picot edge. It’s a small shawl so it knits up fast. Download the Spindrift pattern when you sign up for the Curious Handmade workshop. See details here.

Spindrift shawl
My first shawl knitting project

Knitting Cowls or Infinity Scarves

knitting the Honey Cowl

When I began knitting, cowls were of great interest to me. They are often called “infinity scarves” as they are usually knit on a circular needle, in the round, like a hat, but on longer needles. They can be small to fit over the head, with a single wrap, or long to wrap twice.

Long scarves were my preferred item when I was beginning to knit because they gave me lots of practice using the same stitches over and over. But scarves use up lots of yarn. A single wrap cowl does not.

The difference is that the cowl is knit using circular needles.  It creates a long, wide loop and some people pull them up to cover their heads.

Some cowls are knit back and forth, like a regular scarf, then connected at the ends. This happens when the desired pattern, such as a cable, can’t be achieved by working in the round.

Free Cowl Patterns

At Purl Soho find a number of free cowl patterns (and some beautiful and unique yarn).  Some are super easy like the Slip Stitch Summer Cowl, and Floats Cowl.  Others require the use of cable needles and other more difficult stitches that require brainpower to complete (for me).

The Syncopated Cowl is lovely and is pretty in a chunky type of yarn.  Purl Soho also has beautiful linen yarn, which is perfect for those of us living in warm climates.

Ravelry also has many free cowl patterns.
See links to Ravelry designer patterns below.

Single Wrap Cowl

Malabrigo Neck Thingie is a single wrap cowl.
Darn Knit Stripe It! cowl uses self-striping yarn.
Fishermans Rib Cowl – This free pattern page gives the gauge and needle size needed for 4 different yarn weights!  Pretty cool.

Keramos (pictured below) is a double layer cowl knit in stranded colorwork and then enhanced with embroidery (if you want). This would not be a cowl for a beginner as you should be familiar with knitting colorwork, or Fair Isle. I do love that a softer yarn can be added inside as wool can sometimes feel scratchy.

lined wool cowl Keramos knitting

Double Wrap Cowl

Honey Cowl (below) – I have made this one in autumn colors. It was easy, and came out thick and plush.
Pelham Bay Cowl is very basic, doing stockinette stitch throughout. Or add some texture yourself once you get started! (You must register to download)

Double wrap honey cowl pattern
Wraps twice around the neck

These are harder to find for free, but there are a lot of pretty patterns to pay for.Search Pinterest, or other online places to find more free patterns (or purchase one).

Read Anatomy of a Cowl at the Knitter’s Review site for lots of cowl info.

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Knit a Simple Hat and Scarf in Bulky Malabrigo Rasta Yarn

Pictures of my hat and scarf made using Malabrigo yarn in Rasta bulky “arco iris” color way.

I had been wanting to knit something using a bulky yarn. I came across the “Rasta” yarn somewhere and decided to jump in and buy it. What I would decide to make came later.
Although I wasn’t too sure about the colors, I certainly love the feel of the Rasta bulky yarn by Malabrigo. I decided to knit a simple hat and scarf.

Bulky Rasta yarn hat and scarf
Bulky hat and scarf
Screen Shot 2018-05-06 at 11.30.22 AM
Two balls of “Arco Iris” Malabrigo yarn, bulky

The hat and scarf in my photo was knit using only 2 skeins, but for a longer scarf, I suggest one more.
The only issue I had with this yarn is the color. I received 2 skeins of the same color name, “Arco Iris”, and as you can see in my photo, the colors are quite different.  One skein I liked, and the other was darker. I know this can happen with hand-dyed yarn. I used the “pretty skein” for the hat, and the darker one for the scarf, along with the hat yarn leftovers.
Have faith, this color yarn looks better once it’s turned into an item and the soft, plush feel is a joy to work with. If you can shop locally and see the yarn, I suggest doing that. I have to order online.

knitting divider

How to Knit This Simple Hat

Yarn used: For the hat, I used less than one skein of Malabrigo’s Rasta yarn in “Arco Iris”.

For this hat I used size 13 – 16 inch circular needles and size 13 DPN’s.
Cast on 48 + 1 , then slip the last stitch to the left needle and knit the first 2 stitches together to join in the round – make sure there is no twisting of stitches. This gives you a total of 48 on the needles. Or simply cast on 48 and go from there.

The pattern is simply knit one, purl one around to desired height, then do decreases at the top.

How to Decrease at Top of Hat

Knit around until hat measures about 7 inches – more or less for size needed.

Decrease rows:
1. *k1, p1 (twice), k2tog*, do that 8 times.
2. Knit around
3. *k3, k2tog* around
4. Knit around
5. *k2, k2tog* around
6. k2tog around
Cut yarn long enough and pull through remaining loops and weave in to finish off.

Finished circumference approx. 19 inches, height is 9.5 inches.

It could have a pompom on top if you like that look.

chunky knit hat in rasta
Hat completed, with yarn left over. Use less than one full skein.

How to Make the Scarf

I used US size 9 straight needles. End measurements, 7 inches wide by 40 inches long – used all remaining yarn.  I used one full skein, and the leftover ball from the hat.  (See photo above.)  This is a short scarf, so I suggest using 2 full skeins, or more, if you make it wider and want something longer.

Cast on using the Cable Cast on, which is like a basic cast on, but put the needle under both both strands of yarn. I have a page with videos of various cast-on methods, if you need help.
Cast on 14, or any even number.

Repeats are between the *stars*.

K2, *p1, k1* to last 2 stitches, p2
Next row and all rows: With yarn in back, slip 1 purl wise to begin the row. Each row ends with a purl and begins with a slip purl wise . Doing this makes a neater edge.
*K1b (knit one below), p1*, to the last stitch, p1.

Continue until the yarn runs out and bind off (before you run out, obviously!).

Be sure to hand wash any items made with this yarn.

Screen Shot 2018-05-16 at 2.28.45 PM
Rasta yarn knits up into plush wearables.

I am now working on a similar (but longer) scarf in white Rasta yarn.

Scarf and hat in bulky yarn

Washable Bulky Yarn

When I began knitting with the Rasta yarn I fell in love with the squishy feel and the color changes. Unfortunately this yarn must be hand-washed which can be tricky when the item is large – like a long scarf. The tough part is letting it dry. It must be laid out somewhere for a couple of days because of the bulkiness.

Bulky Rasta scarf white
Knitting a white Rasta scarf

I finished the white scarf shown above (same pattern as the other scarf on this page) and gave it to my son’s girlfriend for Christmas, but I included a note that she had to hand-wash. I felt guilty about giving her something that would be a bit challenging to care for.

Between now and then I have found yarn that is similar to the Rasta but can be machine washed.

  • “Franca” by Manos del Uruguay is 100% superwash merino wool. I have a skein which I have not used yet, but I love Manos yarn. It is similar in look and feel of the Rasta by Malibrigo. You can find Franca yarn at Purl Soho in pretty colors, or search for a sale. I bought mine cheaper at Etsy but there were only 3 color choices.
  • “Fire” by Wool Addicts is a yarn that is new to me, but is now on the top of my list of favorite bulky yarns. I’m using it in dark gray to make the Winter Morning ear-warmer. It is a Superwash yarn made in Italy and it is so soft and lovely.

Once I use the yarns listed here and wash them, I will post an update.

Basics For Machine-Washing Hand-Knit Items

By machine-washed, I mean put into a zippered laundry bag made of mesh and tossed into the washing machine. Tossing an item in with the regular load of laundry could stretch it out. I suppose socks and hats might do okay, but personally I would always use a mesh bag. And most knits must still be dried flat. I’ve seen very few nice yarns that can safely go into the dryer.

Yarn is usually pretty dirty, and sometimes the color will bleed quite a lot in a first wash. This happened to me while washing the Fine Sand sweater. Usually Miss Bab’s yarn does not bleed color, but the “Tarte” I used certainly did. I was glad I hand-washed it the first time. So, I suggest either hand-washing the item the first time, or wash it separately in the machine, with wool-wash. Most people who know a lot about yarn suggest using a cleaner made especially for washing wool. I’m going to look into the best ways to wash hand-knits and write about it one day…!

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