pattern • The Knitting Vortex • Page 9

Tarry

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Aug 082014

Stop and smell the roses; linger with the sunset, and tarry awhile. This relaxed tee is meant for lazy mornings, long lunches, and walks in the gentle moonlight. Worked seamlessly from the top down in a cotton and linen blend, it features lacy saddle shoulders for a touch of pretty whimsy, and a smooth stockinette body with matching lace panels at each side, all knit seamlessly to the rounded hems. Wear it on gentle, warm days wherever you wander. Construction: Tarry is a feminine tee, designed to be easy and casual with a semi-fitted boxy silhouette. The lace shoulder saddles are worked first, then stitches are picked up for the front and and back, which are shaped with a few short rows and worked back and forth to the bottom of the armholes. The body is then joined to work in the round, including the lace insets at each sideseam, with gentle shaping through the waist and hip. The curved shirttail hem is worked back and forth using short rows, and finished all in one piece . . .

Shadow Dial

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Jul 232014

Light as a whisper and soft as a shadow, this simple tank top is knit in stockinette stitch with flutter cap sleeves. Laceweight yarn on larger needles creates a fabric with beautiful drape, while gentle waist shaping and simple details keep the look uncomplicated. The body is worked seamlessly from the bottom up with a scooped neckline and narrow purl edgings; stitches are picked up around the armholes then rapidly increased and worked in short rows to create the focal feature flutter sleeves. Shadow Dial is pretty and light, and just right for summer. Shadow Dial is a new version of the Sundial Tee, which was published in Knitscene Summer 2013. It has more drape and an improved fit at a slightly more relaxed gauge of 24 st and 34 rows/4”, with an expanded range of ten sizes, which all include added length and a reshaped upper body with better strap coverage and a more deeply scooped front neckline. Additional detailed instructions for the upper body and flutter sleeve shaping have also been included, with . . .

Sundial Tee

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Jul 232014

Originally published in Knitscene Summer 2013, my Sundial Tee pattern is also available as an individual download from The Knitting Vortex. I’ve added just a bit of length, but other than that the pattern remains a close-fitting tank as it first appeared in the magazine. I’ve also included expanded shaping instructions for the neckline and the short row flutter sleeves, as well as linked my short row tutorial. Sundial is a very fitted tank; for a slightly more relaxed, modern fit knit at a larger gauge, I’ve also reworked the design and expanded the size range to ten sizes as Shadow Dial, available on Ravelry and Payhip. Whichever you choose, the soft and luscious laceweight yarn makes a pretty, romantic tee for the summer. A splash of color flutters in the breeze, drawing the eye . . . like a poppy in the field. This simple tank top is knit in stockinette stitch with short row flutter sleeves. Laceweight yarn worked at a small gauge creates a wearable and figure-conscious fabric, which hugs the body . . .

Layercake

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Jul 162014

A delicious cropped cardigan worked seamlessly from the top down, Layercake features raglan construction and narrow stripes. Long ribbed cuffs end three-quarter length sleeves and match the wide hem which defines the waist. The ribbed buttonband is picked up and worked along the deep V-neck. In confectionary hues or your favorite color combination, this sweet cardi is a light layer over any outfit. Construction: Layercake is cast on at the neckline, and worked with raglan construction and front neckline increases to create the deep V-neck, with 2-row stripes throughout. Sleeves are divided and put on hold, while the body is worked straight to the deep ribbed hem. Bracelet length sleeves are then worked with shaping to similar deep cuffs. Finally, stitches are picked up all along the front edge and neck, and a 1″ ribbed buttonband is worked with yarnover buttonholes. Techniques & Skills Used: raglan construction, knit/purl, increasing/decreasing, cable CO, backwards loop CO. Size: 30 (32, 34, 36, 38, 40, 42, 44, 48, 52)” bust; sample shown in fourth size worn with 1” of positive ease . . .

Katie Scarlett

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Jun 022014

I unveiled Miss Scarlett in March; originally a Wooly Wonka Fibers 2014 Heroines Shawl Club exclusive, Katie Scarlett is now available as a pdf download. The belle of the ball will always be Katie Scarlett O’Hara, the indomitable heroine of Gone With The Wind. Even dressed in a green velvet curtain, she is unapologetically flirtatious, enticing and captivating. This semi-circular shawl is worked from the top down in the shape of a hoopskirt like those worn by Miss Scarlett, using a beautiful wool and silk blend laceweight yarn. Four different lace patterns represent our heroine’s journey. Like her gentle upbringing, simple increases grow into a regular, small scale eyelet mesh, which becomes a swirling diagonal reflecting the tumultuous Civil War years, and finally straightens into strong vertical lines of hard edged diamonds just like her headstrong and determined character. The knit-on ruffled edging is worked sideways in small short row sections and attached to the live stitches of the shawl, avoiding long rows and proving that perseverance will pay off. After all, tomorrow is another . . .

Lorem Ipsum

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May 292014

A feminine cropped cardigan with geometric eyelets, Lorem Ipsum is knit seamlessly from the top down, incorporating simple lace with the techniques of raglan sweater knitting. In graphic design, Lorem Ipsum dolor sit amet begins the scrambled Latin text often used as a placeholder, focusing attention on the style elements of a document. Likewise, this easily-memorized, small scale pattern highlights the raglan sleeves and deeply scooped neckline, without competing. The lace is designed to flow without interruption around the cardi, transitioning to a flattering single rib hem, cuffs and neckline. With a simultaneously worked garter button band and minimal finishing, the focus is all on style in this flattering little sweater. Construction: Lorem Ipsum is cast on at the neckline and worked in an allover lace pattern, with raglan construction and a deep front scoopneck. Sleeves are divided and put on hold, while the body is worked straight to the hem. Slim bracelet length sleeves are then worked with shaping to the cuffs. Finally, stitches are picked up all along the front edge and neck, and . . .

Crossfire

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May 012014

Diagonal lines fire across this elongated, asymmetric shawl, creating striking contrasts in angles and colors. Textural stripes are worked using simple knit and purl stitches, while the intersecting columns are created by slipping stitches at regular intervals; only one color is ever worked at a time. The sample pairs a neutral main color with a long, self-striping yarn as the contrast color, but using a variegated yarn or leftovers to create your own custom stripe colors as the contrast would be equally lovely. The long, bias shape shows off the dramatic pattern while being easy to wear, and the simple construction adapts to varying amounts of yardage. Techniques & Skills Used: knit/purl, increasing/decreasing, slipped stitches; this pattern is both written and charted. Size: 92” length and 18” depth. Yarn: Madelinetosh Tosh Merino Light (100% merino wool; 420 yards/ 384m/100g); 1 skein MC; Crystal Palace Yarns Mini Mochi (80% merino wool, 20% nylon; 195 yards/178m/50g); 2 skeins CC. Shown in Natural (MC) and 120 Fireworks (CC), and using about 420 and 350 yards respectively. This pattern . . .

Slip Sliding Away

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Mar 242014

This graphic, topdown shawl begins with a garter tab, then is worked in narrow, two-color stripes with slipped stitches in reversed colors on each side of the central spine. The lower edging is a complementary slipped stitch rib which curves around the point and extends to each tip, emphasizing the strong linear elements of the shawl. Visually complicated but easy to work, only one color is used at a time, and the slipped stitches result in the pattern looking different on each half of the shawl. Increases on every row create a long v-shaped wingspan which accentuates the strong lines and showcases the changing optical interplay of colors. Techniques & Skills Used: garter tab CO, knit/purl, slipped stitch colorwork; this pattern is both written and charted. Size: 64” wingspan and 27” depth, after blocking. Yarn: Madelinetosh Tosh Sock (100% superwash merino wool; 395 yards/361m/100g), 1 skein each, MC and CC. Sample shown in MC Wood Violet and CC Victorian Gothic. This pattern may be adapted to any amount of yarn in two colors; see Designer’s . . .

Clubbing with Katie

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Mar 022014

Probably my all-time favorite movie is Gone With The Wind; I love everything about it – the period costumes, the sweeping narrative, the human frailties. And of course the heroine, Katie Scarlett O’Hara. As flawed a human being as she is, with her childish, manipulative, selfish temperament, she is also unflinchingly strong and unfailingly loyal to the people and places she considers her own. Certainly she qualifies as a heroine in my view. Last year, Anne from Wooly Wonka Fibers invited me to design two shawls for her 2014 Heroines Shawl Club, and asked me to pair my choice of heroines with her lovely hand-dyed yarns. And so I designed two shawls, using Artio Lace and Aerten Sock to depict two admirable heroines. The first of these is the design in the March 2014 club kit, Katie Scarlett. It’s a semi-circular laceweight shawl, knit from a garter tab cast on, with four tiers of lace patterns that represent Miss Scarlett’s trajectory through life. The beautiful, jewel-green color is the exclusive Twelve Oaks colorway, meant to . . .

The Fisher Queen

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Feb 242014

A modern take on the fisherman sweater, The Fisher Queen blends classic cable and rib elements with a non-traditional shape and construction. Heavily textured Mistake Rib, along with Honeycomb and Snake cables cover the front and back, while the fitted sleeves are worked in Rib. The slim modified dolman sleeves, scooped neck and curved hem bring updated details to the silhouette, mixing traditional and modern in a contemporary classic. Construction: The Fisher Queen is worked seamlessly from the top down; the shoulder saddles are knit first, with stitches picked up for front and back and worked flat to below the armhole, then joined to work in the round. Long, skinny sleeves are picked up and worked in rib, then finished with twisted rib cuffs, matching the hem and neckband. Techniques & Skills Used: backwards loop CO, knit/purl, cables, decreasing, short rows, picking up stitches, grafting. Body stitch patterns are both written and charted. Size: 31 (35, 39, 43, 47, 51, 55)” bust; shown in third size worn with 4” of positive ease. For a similar . . .

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