Winter is finally upon us and knitters everywhere should be celebrating. This is the season that completely justifies the amount of time we put into our work as we bundle up in mittens, hats and scarves to shovel snow or walk the dog(s), cuddle up in big cozy sweaters and afghans while we warm up with a hot cup of tea and – what else? – more knitting! Everyone we’ve ever knitted for is searching out their socks or slippers or shawls that Mom, Nana, or Aunt Nancy made for them last Christmas and thinking good thoughts as they feel the softness and warmth.
I have a bit more winter-y inspiration for you, in case there is someone who needs a shot of color to perk up their outlook. We just received these neat colors in Gradient, which is a pre-felted wool from the same company that makes Zauberball.
It’s a light worsted weight and one ball makes a cute little cowl like Zuzu’s Petals from Carina Spencer in just a few days. This was interesting to knit because while it looks like a little lace-edged shawl, it’s connected after a while and done in the round. When its finished, there’s no fussing with how to keep it in place:
You could do a really simple cowl as well, such as this one designed by Sally Palin just for this particular yarn and available for free. I like it; it lets the yarn stand on its own:
One more shot of color for your delectation:
POW! These great hand-dyed colors come courtesy of Frabjous Fibers, whose Alice in Wonderland-themed names tickle me. This very, very soft bulky superwash merino is called Tweedle Dee Dum and is perfect for those small quick projects that satisfy us in the middle of something large like a blanket or a sweater. Karen is making a cabled headband in that fluorescent blue-y purple in the upper right. Soft, superwash, bright colors also make it a great yarn for a kid’s hat or quick baby sweater (although maybe a bit price-y for kids.)
We had to delay our beginner class because of the snow Saturday morning, but we held our first knit-along session for Hawser on Sunday afternoon. Everyone is off to a good start and we’ll all start cabling away next week. Purl was quite interested in the goings-on, but was it the knitting or the dog treats that were on the table? There’s just no telling.
I’m having a nice wintry day. I’m roasting a turkey that I didn’t quite get to at Thanksgiving so the house smells wonderful. Jack and Purl are very interested in what might happen to the giblets – I’m keeping them in suspense. Knitting is definitely going to be a large component of my Monday, just as soon as the paperwork is done. Enjoy your snowy day!
