Relentless

I love a good winter, but a winter filled with endless snow in a city full of people not accustomed to driving in it? No, thanks. Here it is, April 1 and we got snow 2 days ago! Our backyard is the perfect scene for a mud wrestling competition and all the bulbs and seed packets I bought in anticipation of the elusive season called "spring" look sad and pathetic waiting for their due. When. Will. It. End? Because this winter has been the gift that keeps on giving, I'm offering up a new free hat design, the Miss Rachel hat. I'm wondering if reverse psychology will work with spring, as in, "Here, I knit this hat because I'm LOVING this winter and wish it would never END! I love wearing 54 layers every time I set foot outside!" So then winter would naturally relent and let spring make its way in. Silly? Very much so, but at this point I think we're all grasping at straws.

Cascade recently introduced a new yarn called Elysian with a smooth blend of 60% superwash merino wool and 40% acrylic. Keeping in mind my love of being able to create knits with minimal caring fuss, I can throw this little beauty in the washing machine, then tumble dry. This blend makes for a really springy, nicely plied yarn with the perfect stitch definition for my favorite knitting technique - Fair Isle. I like a crisp stitch when I'm doing stranded color work. The stitches need to be able to hold their own and not look mushy, therefor losing their place in the design. Each stitch plays an important part in Fair Isle knitting and if you use colors that are too similar or mushy yarn, suddenly your great idea will turn into a half knit project thrown into the corner.

With over 30 colors to choose from (thank you, Cascade!) I chose a stormy blue, a hopeful brown that reminds me of digging in the garden, and a crisp winter white. Picking the right shades was tricky, since I had so many I wanted to knit with. I'm a sucker for corrugated ribbing on a hat and having those few rounds of brown going through the middle of the brim keeps things interesting. I designed a Fair Isle pattern that reminded me of plants making their way up from the hard, frozen ground and reaching towards the sky. A subliminal message for spring, telling it to hurry up so I can plant things? Absolutely!

Just shy of 220 yards in each skein means I had a fair amount of yarn leftover and would easily be able to get another hat out of what remained. I topped it off with a happy tri-colored pom pom after doing the crown decreases and voila! My Miss Rachel hat was complete.

If spring happens to come upon us in the next week or so, you can totally thank me for using reverse psychology on winter.

Download the free Miss Rachel hat pattern here.

In Like A Lion, Out Like A Lamb

March is a tricky month, a bit of a wild card. As I type this, I'm dreaming of spring. A have a seed catalogue open on my desk and informed my husband last night that we need to have a serious discussion about the garden and what we're going to plant this year. I daydream about afternoons spent running around the backyard without coats, pounding my way down the running path without a hat, or gloves, or extra layers, of just a morning cup of tea for the sake of a cup of tea, not a half-dozen cups downed just trying to get warm.

Spring is elusive and when it's finally here, fleeting.

I always loved the expression "In like a lion, out like a lamb" used to describe March. Even as I contemplate that, the forecast for northern Virginia is not looking promising, with wild accusations from the weatherman of a foot of snow today. In like a lion, indeed.

Yet even as I warily push my snow boots aside when I come inside, or prop the snow shovel against the back door just in case, not quite ready to banish it to the shed, or hold off a few more days before ordering my seeds, I know spring is coming. My neighbor's crocus have bloomed in a purple slash across their yard, a reminder that the winter I love, yet have grown tired of this year, is coming to a close. There are less and less hats worn by the kids at the playground, and while I ran without gloves last night and regretted it halfway through my 4-mile run, it felt a bit rebellious and springlike.

Who doesn't love a good knitted washcloth? I have a knitting friend who knits washcloths by the dozens. Dropping by to say hello? Take home a washcloth. Do a favor for her? Take 6 and put them in your pocket. She gives them away like it's going out of style. I love the idea of washcloths, yet found 100% cotton to be a bit harsh on my young son's delicate skin. I contemplated a blend and when I came across Cascade's Avalon, knew this was the perfect worsted yarn for a washcloth. A blend of 50% cotton and 50% acrylic, the acrylic makes it softer and pliable. It makes me happy because I can throw it in the washer and the dryer (regular readers know that's a must in our house!) and I know it will get softer with each washing. With 175 yards per hank, I was able to knit 3 out of 1 hank, so I grabbed another in a cheerful yellow and knit another 3. 6 clothes out of 2 hanks? Love it! There are just shy of 30 colors and these are great on-the-go knitting projects knit on US 7s. I can see getting a handful of bright colors (this yarn is incredibly affordable) and knitting cloth after cloth (they have some GREAT purple shades just like the crocus in my neighbor's yard). Can you ever have too many?

The fun thing about this pattern is the designs are completely reversible. If you're familiar with sculpture at all, you're heard the term "relief" used to describe sculpture usually done on a flat surface such as a wall, with 3-dimensional elements. Same with these 3 washcloth designs! I knit up a lion, a lamb and a tulip. Flip them over and what popped out on the front now recedes into the back. Cool!

March may come in like a lion and out like a lamb, but the tulips are coming, the snow shovel will go live in the shed soon and I'll eventually get to put the snow boots away. In the meantime, I'm going back to dreaming about my seed catalogue and the bounty to come.

Free In Like A Lion, Out Like A Lamb pattern available here.

Football Head

I love Charlie Brown.

When I was a kid and my dad and I would be the only ones awake on Sunday morning, he'd go out to the mailbox, get the newspaper, we'd have breakfast together and he'd hand me the comics. I'd flip quickly to Peanuts, read it first, then make my way through the rest of the section.

I think everyone can find a character in Peanuts that they can relate to. The messy kid, the bossy kid, the intellect, the brat, the kid with security issues, the musician… I often felt akin to Charlie Brown himself and learned a lot of life lessons from reading Charles Schultz's cartoons each Sunday morning at the table with my dad.  A few of my favorite quotes:

“Sometimes I lie awake at night, and I ask, 'Where have I gone wrong'. Then a voice says to me, 'This is going to take more than one night.”

“I think I've discovered the secret of life -- you just hang around until you get used to it.”

"Stop worrying about the world ending today. It's already tomorrow in Australia."

"In the Book of Life, the answers aren't in the back."

Pretty deep stuff coming from a comic strip. To this day, I cannot walk by, flip by or see a Peanuts comic without stopping to read it. Charlie Brown feels like an old friend, coming in and out of my life, offering up words of advice that always seem apropos to the situation I find myself in. In honor of Charlie, I've designed a "modern-day" version of his classic zig zag shirt.

Knit in Cascade's 220 Superwash Aran, this is an incredibly soft pullover meant to keep the wearer snug and philosophical. As always, I love to knit in superwash yarn when knitting for a child. After all, Charlie Brown himself stated that, “All you need is love. But a little chocolate now and then doesn't hurt.” A pullover covered in chocolate can be thrown easily into the wash on cool, then put in the dryer for endless wear when knit in this yummy yarn. I like this particular yarn especially because it screams "KNIT CUDDLY GARMENTS WITH ME THAT WILL LAST AND WASH UP WELL!!!" I think I found my new go-to yarn for snuggly knits. I'll admit to being a little jealous that I can't fit into this pullover.

Coming in over 40 shades of plied goodness, 220 Superwash Aran is a hearty 150 yards per hank, economical, washable and one of my favorite things about Cascade's yarns - they offer a color for everyone. The stitch definition for the fair isle pattern is perfect and when my young model friend, Brynna put it on, she squealed in delight at both the squish factor of the yarn and the color combination.

A simple top-down raglan construction knit in the round with a placket opening, garter details and simple Fair Isle patterning on the body and sleeves is a wardrobe staple for any Peanuts fan. You only need 4 hanks of the yarn and with all the colors, have your wearer "help" by choosing colors. I learned how to knit when I was 8, just about the same size as this pullover is designed for (28" chest circumference). Why not get an extra hank and begin teaching the recipient how to knit?

I feel like Charlie Brown himself would have said something like "It's never too early to learn how to knit. Let's grab some needles and some yarn, go find Snoopy and get to work."

Free Charlie Pullover pattern available here.

Road to Sochi

I can't even begin to imagine the years of work, training, failure, accomplishment and sheer athleticism the Olympic athletes endure for a chance to represent America at the Olympic Games. I have always been a huge fan of the Games, both winter and summer. No matter where you stand on politics, religion or any other controversial issue, we all feel a sense of pride when our athletes make the journey and compete under our flag. How can you not feel patriotic and proud? We smile and clap in delight when they win a medal, we cry and yearn for them when they fail. We love the story of the underdog who wins a medal for a tiny country you've never heard of, of people who have been told their entire lives that they'll "never make it" have a medal hung around their necks with tears running down their cheeks as their anthem begins to play, of the sheer will and determination these representatives of the world's elite athletes have.

While most of us will never compete in an Olympic event (or even get to attend the games at all) we have something that hits a little closer to home for us, the knitters in the Winter Knitting Games (formerly known as the "Ravelympics"). Never participated? The premise is simple… Pick a project that you determine to be above your skill level - something challenging that perhaps you've admired and thought "I could never knit that." Gather your yarn, pattern and any other materials you will need and the second the Olympic torch is lit at the end of the Opening Ceremonies, you cast on and begin. The goal is the finish the project by the time the torch is extinguished at the end of the Closing Ceremonies. Make sense? Start on February 7th after the torch is lit, finish by the 23d when the torch goes out.

Now the thing about the Winter Knitting Games, is you can participate on your own, or you can join one of the many groups on Ravelry. Some are themed (knit something Fair Isle, complex lace shawls, Harry Potter-themed, etc) and some are a complete free-for-all where it's you making all the decisions. It's based on the honor system, so no one will be there to disqualify you if you start 5 minutes early. Some knitters track their progress in Ravelry groups, their personal blogs or Facebook pages.

This particular Olympics hits close to home for me. I've been lucky enough to work with Imperial Yarn over the past few years and by now you've probably heard that Ralph Lauren has used their 100% American-made Erin yarn for all of the American athlete's Opening Ceremony uniforms (see above with the moose and watch the incredible journey documented here). If you have my first book, Knit Local, you know how important American-made yarn is to me (Imperial is featured in there), so this is especially sweet on multiple levels. Imperial asked me to design their official hand-knit Olympic sweater for all of the hand knitters out there and I'll be running a KAL (knit-a-long) during the Games with step-by-step photo tutorials, tips and tricks and be there to offer support during the KAL. To join the official KAL group, join our official Imperial Yarn Ravelry Group here.

This pullover is designed to be a challenging knit and is a unisex design, looking great on both men and women. A bottom-up raglan, the v-neck pullover has an intricate cable pattern running up the front panel, mirror-imaged cables running up the sleeves and a stockinette back. The pattern is a free download on Imperial Yarn's website here, so grab 4-7 hanks of Erin yarn (check the sizing to see how many hanks you need) and gather your materials for February 7th!

Go Team Imperial!