Work in Progress - April 2023

Another monthly update of all the projects cluttering up my coffee table. You can read last month's update here and all the months here.

One project from last month's coffee table is finished, blocked and in the shop.

Using just one ball of Rico Summer Sprinkles and a new free Summer Eyelet Shawl pattern this shawl is a great summer project. It's a lightweight cotton blend so not too hot to work with and then you can wear the cool airy shawl.  

Last month I had grand plans to finish the scarfy wrap in Rico Melange Aran Wonderball.

I did not.😆

I did manage two more pattern repeats though.

I've made no progress on Caine either. It's the slipover top in  Rowan Felted Tweed in shade 216.

Caine by Monie Ebner (available to buy on Ravelry).

It's been sat gathering dust for a while now. I'm onto the round and round of the body so it is easy knitting. But I've been a bit listless. Bored even. And so I cast on 5 new projects.

Yes 5. 

Two of these projects I'm not going to show you yet as they are for future shop yarns. Once the yarns arrive I'll do a big reveal. I'm desperate to show you one of them as it's SO MUCH FUN.

The other three are all shop samples. And I've finished two already. First up the unfinished project and the largest one.

Fern and Feather by Jennifer Steingass, available to buy on Ravelry

Fern & Feather is a top down jumper with a stranded colour work yoke. Designed by Jennifer Steingass, famous for her yoked jumpers, it uses only two colours and has a simple fern design. Perfect for a first colour work jumper. And because it is knitted in an aran weight yarn it is a quick knit too.

This has been a super quick knit. Really enjoyable. A combination of:

• a well written pattern.
• colourwork which makes it easy to see progress and keeps me motivated.
• aran weight yarn for thicker and quicker knitting and
• the yarn is really lovely to use. I'm using King Cole Wool Aran in shades of grey - Steel and Cloud.

The pattern gives gauge 'in the round' so I used my quick 'in the round' swatch technique and found I had to go UP needle sizes. Shocking for me, as a loose knitter I always have to go down a needle size.

The pattern suggests using a 4mm needle to get 18 stitches. I know from experience I would get 18 stitches with an aran weight yarn on a 4.5mm needle but I actually had to use a 5mm needle. I'm not sure if it's the yarn, the metal needles (I'm using Zing interchangeables) or my mood making my knitting tighter. But it is a lesson in checking your tension.

I only achieved the stitch gauge and not the row gauge. But the pattern does give you measurements rather than just relying on pattern repeats so I was ok at the yoke and for the body shaping.

The pattern uses short row shaping to raise the back of the jumper up so it sits on your shoulders better. The pattern doesn't specify which type of short rows to use so I used German Shorts Rows. The one that makes a double stitch. This video is excellent at explaining how to do it.

There was also a new to me type of increase - lifted increases! And they really are invisible within the yoke pattern.

The pattern explains how to do them clearly. Be careful when looking for videos of this technique as people seem to approach it slightly differently. I don't know enough about it to have a different opinion so I would recommend doing it as the pattern says. This video shows how to do a left lifted increase but after a wee bit of searching I couldn't find one that shows the right lifted increase (as written in the pattern).

I'm fast approaching sleeve island with this project. Wish me luck!

Huxter by Gudrun Johnston available to buy on Ravelry

The second new project was a hat I've wanted to knit for a while. Huxter is designed by Gudrun Johnston. It uses Jamieson's of Shetland Spindrift 4ply in 4 colours - Shaela, Flame, Pebble and Burnt Ochre

I love the colours and the stranded colourwork motif. The round shapes are unusual and the crown decreases with just one coloured stitch radiating out from the top are lovely. 

We already have two of Gudren's hat patterns as samples. Huxter makes a great addition... it's not blue.😆

Bousta Beanie by Gudrun Johnston available to buy on Ravelry

Kellister by Gudrun Johnston available to buy on Ravelry

I wrote about Kellister here and said it was a good next steps stranded colourwork project. I think Huxter is too.

• The motif is only a 6 stitch repeat so it's easy to keep track and get into a rhythm.
• It's a large A4 tall colour chart so it's clear to read.
• It's a simple rib at the brim.

However, there's a few things to stretch your skills:

• Gudrun recommends casting on by alternating two methods - one stitch by Long Tail Cast On and another stitch German Twisted Cast On. This gives a stretchy edge whilst mimicking the K1 P1 rib. 
• You are stranding across the crown decreases... but only a little bit.

I love the original hat colours but you could easily make up your own.  We have about 150 shades of Jamieson's Spindrift in stock. You can see them all in the shop and online.

You only need a small amount of the 3 contrast shades (about 30m, so check your Spindrift stash) but you do need nearly a whole ball for the background colour. If you need help picking 4 colours get in touch and we can put some ideas together for you.

In fact some of the colour combo ideas for Kellister would work.

Need some help with techniques?

I used this tutorial for German Twisted cast on (or Old Norwegian) by Andrea Mowry.

For some top tips and tutorials on knitting stranded colourwork, check out these links.

• How to Knit Fair-Isle Patterns by Tin Can Knits
• Knitting Colourwork with Two Hands by Andrea Rangel
• Favourite Fair-Isle Techniques by Very Pink Knits on YouTube
• Stranded Colourwork in Magic Loop by Andrea Mowry on YouTube

I really enjoyed knitting Huxter. I'm tempted to knit its companion hat Melby.😆 Maybe in shades of green or pink to add to our collection,

Jamieson's Spindrift is a lovely woolly yarn that feels satisfying to knit and plumps and blooms beautifully when washed. Obviously best experienced in the shop, if you can visit for a squish.

Sugar Magnolia Pullover by Laura Spargo Anderson available to buy on Ravelry

The second finished impulse cast on (now blocking in the sun) is Sugar Magnolia Pullover by Laura Spargo Anderson.

After finishing the Summer Eyelet Shawl I wanted to show off the Rico Summer Sprinkles yarn as a garment. It's so light and the colours so bright that it would make a great summer T-shirt. Obviously not convinced I'd get another garment finished for this summer I decided to make a kids top. 

Sugar Magnolia is a quick (no sleeves!) and easy knit. Great for a first in-the-round project. 

Knitted from the top down this seamless top has no short row shaping, involves no picking up stitches and no finishing. Once you cast off the hem stitches you're done. Although it will benefit from a wash and block. And by blocking I mean dry flat straightening the edges. Hopefully ours will be dry and in the shop on Wednesday.

The texture at the yoke is created by making yarn overs on one row and then dropping them on the next row.

This is also sized for adults too. The size range is a massive, from 16" to 60". You can use any DK yarn if you're not a fan of the variegated Summer Sprinkles.

Top tip - do a stretchy cast on like German Twisted cast on (or Old Norwegian) mentioned above.

And finally, with all the excitement of new projects my mitred square blanket has been a bit neglected... 

I've added 6 more squares since March. So not too bad.

This was the project I started when I was bored with the long rows of my Stephen West Melting Marl shawl.😆

If you'd like a mitred square blanket pattern there is one at The Purl Soho.

For mine I am holding two strands of 4ply together and using 4.5mm needles with a cast on of 40 stitches. I am using stash yarn that I've acquired over the years and only using single or semi-solid shades. Nothing too variegated or patterned. I'm also only holding similar shades together. I hope to just use superwash merino or merino nylon blend to keep all the fibres the same. 

I think that's it.

Next month I aim to have completed at least two more repeats of the scarfy wrap in Rico Melange Wonderball (enough to warrant a photo on the shop mannequin) and reveal at least one of my new WiPs (it's going to be amazing). But the main goal is to cast on a shop sample for John Arbon Appledore Lace. I've been trying to do this for a while. I just haven't found a project that I love. As seen above, the project needs an x-factor otherwise it will languish on the coffee table indefinitely. 😆