Knitcircus

Knit in the New Year

What a year! Knitcircus published over 100 new patterns, five magazines, all bigger than they've ever been, launched our Podcast and You Tube channels.

Knitters had more yarns and books to choose from than ever, and made so many projects to inspire, warm and cheer.

Next year will bring big changes to Knitcircus, and I hope will bring new opportunities to all of you. Stay tuned for more!

Gifts Issue Last Hurrah

The Gifts 2011 issue will only stay one day of the new year!

 

It's your last chance to purchase Linda Browning's Poinsettia Doily

Susan B. Anderson's adorable Milk Cow

and Jane Prater's Shapely Shawl, as well as 10 more patterns in the Gift Collection for one affordable price.

 Happy 2012!

Jaala

 

 

Knitcircus Podcast #6

Another podcast so soon! Thanks so much to Webmistress Cindy for wrangling the audio and uploads for the podcast.

In this episode: Amy and I discuss all kinds of family holiday traditions, knitting, food and otherwise, and talk about which yarns we'd take to a desert island (especially if that island was, you know, in kind of a cold tropical area requiring knitwear).

Listen to Episode #6 on Libsyn or Itunes.

Mentioned this episode:

• Teeny-Tiny Mochimochi 
• Adorn collection, by Laura Nelkin of  Nelkin Designs 
• Wintertide cowl 
• Geodesic Cardigan by Connie Chang Chinchio 
• Textured Stitches by Connie Chang Chinchio 
• Knitted Dinosaurs by Tina Barrett 
• Mandie Harrington's Speshul Snowflake Yarn Club
• Interweave Knitting Lab
• Knitting with Two Colors by Meg Swansen and Amy Detjen 
• 200 Fair Isle Motifs by Mary Jane Mucklestone 
• Fair Isle Basics and Beyond by House of White Birches
• Feral Knitter 
• Cascade 220 
• Ella Rae Classic Wool 
• Jamison & Smith Shetland Jumper Weight
• Berroco Vintage 
• Berroco Ultra Alpaca 
• Brown Sheep Lamb's Pride 

 

Dark Chocolate Peppermint Bark (recipe on podcast)

Box of 40 mini candy canes

2 12-oz bags of dark chocolate chips (we use Ghirardelli)

1/2 t peppermint extract

Cover two cookie sheets (preferebly with side walls) with parchment paper or waxed paper.

Crushing the candy canes: kids are great for this!

• unwrap candy canes and place in double-bagged zip-top plastic bag.
• using a hammer, on a hard surface (I recommend the garage or basement floor) hit repeatedly until there is a mixture of powder and small chunks in the bag

Melt the chocolate:

• in medium or large thick-bottomed saucepan, on low heat, melt the chocolate chips, stirring constantly. When mostly melted, add the peppermint extract.
• holding a strainer over the pan, pour about 2/3 of the crushed candy canes out of the bag, allowing the poweder to fall into the pan. Stir well.
• when all of the chips have dissolved, remove from heat immediately.

Pour chocolate mixture into the two pans.
Sprinkle remaining candy powder and chunks over the top. and chill for about 20 minutes until hard.

Break by lifting the wholde thing above the pan and throwing it back down with some force. Use clean hands to break the big pieces into one-or-two-bite pieces.

Keep refrigerated; will last up to a week in a covered container.

Happy Holidays!

It's So Fluffy! Free Scarf Pattern

My mom has an eye for style, and this year, she requested a chunky scarf. Well, she exclaimed over things we saw in magazines that were knit with bulky yarn, which in my mind means asking for a handknit scarf. :)

This pattern is one of the easiest you'll ever find! Worked on US Size 13 needles, you can start this project the afternoon before the holiday, and still have it wrapped and ready the next morning without breaking a sweat. 

It's So Fluffy!

by Jaala Spiro

Yarn: Blue Sky Alpacas Bulky,50% Alpaca/50% Wool, 100g/45 yds, 3 skeins

Needles: Us 13/9mm, 24" or longer circular needle

Gauge: approximately 2.25 st/inch

Note: I knit loosely, so if you work tight, use a Size 15/10mm Needle.

Finished measurements: 53"x5"

Instructions:

CO 120 sts.

Do NOT join for working in the round.

Next 19 rows: knit all stitches.

Row 20: Bind off all stitches loosely.

Finishing:

Weave in all ends. Lightly steam block if desired.

Please note: for a little while, this post contained the directions to CO 150. The CO number has been corrected to 120.

 

 

Molasses Crinkles Recipe

Our family falls into spicy-cookie and vanilla-cookie teams, and this is the Spicy team's all time favorite. We make them all year round, but especially love dressing them up for the holidays. For readers who've been with us from the beginning, you may recognize them from Knitcircus #4.

Molasses Crinkles

Makes approximately 30 cookies

20 min to prep and roll, 12-14 min to bake

Ingredients:

1/2 cup (one stick) butter, melted

1/4 blackstrap molasses

1 C sugar

1 egg

1/4 t salt

2t baking soda

1 t cinnamon

1 t allspice

1 t powdered ginger

2 C flour (for holidays, we use unbleached all-purpose, for the rest of the year, half white and half whole wheat pastry flour)

 2-3 T additional sugar, for rolling; or use 1 T sugar and 2 t sanding sugar for each color desired

To make:

 Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Lightly grease cookie sheets or use parchment paper.

Melt butter and put in medium mixing bowl. Beat in molasses and sugar. Beat in egg.

Add dry ingredients to mixture and stir well.

Roll cookies into 1.5" balls. Put sugar in  small bowl (or two if using two colors sanding sugar) Roll each ball in extra sugar and place on cookie sheet.

Bake for approximately 11-12 minutes for chewy-in-the-middle cookies, or 14 min for crunchy cookies.

 

 

Knitcircus Podcast #5

Delayed a bit by technical difficulties, but finally triumphant. Amy's adventures at Rhinebeck, her new book (above), and local knitters just can't stop making 55 Christmas balls!

Listen to Episode #5 on Libsyn or itunes.

Mentioned this podcast:

New York Sheep and Wool Festival (Rhinebeck)  

Stitches East 

Interweave Knitting Lab (San Mateo) 

Alice Starmore 

Cat Bordhi 

Susan B. Anderson 

200 Fair Isle Motifs, by Mary Jane Mucklestone

Knitting with Two Colors, by Meg Swansen and Amy Detjen

Knits to Give: 30 Knitted Gifts Made with Love, by Debbie Bliss

Best of Knitscene Magazine, by Interweave Press

55 Christmas Balls to Knit, by Arne and Carlos 

Handwerks 100% cashmere sock (whoops, sorry, that limited-edition is all gone). But check out the lovely colorways on the MCN sock here.

Sun Valley Fiber Farm single-ply 

 Have a lovely weekend, everyone!

 

Coastal Knits Blog Tour & Sweet 16 Winners!

Knitcircus is happy to be part of the Coastal Knits Blog Tour , with a review of Alana and Hannah's new book!

We here at Knitcircus have long been fans of Alana Dakos's Never Not Knitting Podcast, and featured an interview with her in Knitcircus #13 . She was gracious enough to share a design with us, too, the Roses Are Red Headband. Anyone familiar with Alana's work will recognize the appealing design and her photography style there. :)

While I had heard the fun name "Knitbot" around the blogosphere, Hannah's work was new to me when I received a copy of the book. Her modern take on sweaters complements Alana's style nicely, so this parternship project includes a very knittable collection of designs!

At first, I thought that the idea that two kntters are in different places (in this case, California, Alana, and Maine, Hannah) sounded like a thin reed for a book theme, but they really did it up right, not only naming designs after places they love, but taking see-able inspiration from the places, and writing mini-essays on the locations with photos that make you want to visit. This Wisconsin girl may have felt a tiny twinge of envy for these designers who both live near the ocean! 

The self-published, large-format volume contains five sweater patterns, five accessory patterns and lots of pretty graphics and photos. My faves were right in line with the thousands of people on Ravelry who want to knit Hannah's Rocky Coast Cardigan and Alana's Falling Leaves Beret. All in all, a pretty coffee-table book with appealing seaside looks to help while away the snowy months.

And I suppose you're wondering who wins all of those Sweet 16 prizes?! Well, have we got a crop of winners for you today!

Sweet 16 Winners

Malabrigo Worsted in Carnation: PeppermintMochaMama

Malabrigo Worsted in Glazed Carrot:@fancifulcraftin on Twitter

Malabrigo Worsted in Moss:@yarnsalad on Twitter

 Madelinetosh DK in Curiosity: goodstuff on Ravelry

Stitch London book and Velvet Hippo Stitch Markers: kittenwithawhiplash

Pollika Knitglobal Precious Sock yarn in Candies and Cranberries: mhchong on Ravelry

Pollika Knitglobal Precious Sock yarn in Dale and Carnival: Teabird on Ravelry

Light Brown Hare yarn and Blackwater Abbey Yarn Lover's Lotion:yarnbasket on Ravelry

Dream in Color Classy: momyerom on Ravelry

What Would Madame DeFarge Knit book and Comfy Stitch Markers: ikkinlala

Thanks so much to everyone who entered for your wonderful comments, and again to all of the companies who donated the mouthwatering prizes!

 

 

 

 

 

Winter Issue Sweet 16 Giveaway #6:Finale

Winner #1 will take home a skein of Madelinetosh Tosh DK in the colorway "Curiosity"; every winner will receive a Spud and Chloe giftie bag with two On the Run patterns and a tape measure.

The second winner lands a Stitch London book (with Pigeon knitting kit); every winner will receive a Rocky Mountain Dyeworks sample bag with mini-skein and spinning/felting fiber.

This winner also gets a set of Velvet Hippo Stitch Markers!

Two more winners will receive two skeins each of Pollika's new Knitglobal sock yarn:

Shown here: colors Candies and Cranberries

  

 ...And Dale and Carnival.

Thanks so much to all of the wonderful businesses and advertisers who provided prizes, and to all of our readers! The 16th issue feels sweet, indeed.

To enter, please leave a comment about any one of these prizes and/or the Winter or Gifts issues, or your favorite Knitcircus pattern of all time.

 

Sweet 16 Giveaway #5: Malabrigo Yarn

An exciting #5 (almost as good as five gooolden rings?!): thanks so much to Malabrigo for providing the yarns for this giveaway!

Prize #1: A skein of Malabrigo Worsted in the colorway Glazed Carrot; all winners will receive a Rocky Mountain Dyeworks favor bag.

Winner #2 will enjoy a skein of Malabrigo Worsted in the color Moss

And Winner #3 gets to cast on with Cactus Flower worsted, and of course, all winners get a needle inventory card courtesy of Green Mountain Spinnery.

To enter, please leave a comment telling us your favorite Malabrigo yarn and top three colors. Please make sure to let us know your Ravelry/Twitter and/or email so we can let you know if you win! Winners will be chosen and posted Wednesday, December 7th.

Amy Detjen's Double-Knitting Tips

Double Knitting; so enticing!

We featured a couple of patterns using this reversible colorwork technique in the Winter Knitcircus:

Talitha' Kuomi's Duplicity Neckwarmer can have a gray background and buttons, above;

...Or like this, with yellow! It's the wonder of Double Knitting, and Amy Detjen, Knitcircus tech editor, Verona Cardi designer, podcast co-host and knitting teacher, has some tips to de-mystify Double Knitting for you.

Getting Started Double Knitting

When working double knitting, you are creating a double fabric where the Stockinette stitch side faces out on both layers. The purl side (Reverse Stockinette stitch) is locked between the two layers. You work the two layers simultaneously.

When reading a double knitting chart, each square represents 2 stitches.

If the Main Color (MC) is shown on the chart, first put both yarns behind the needles (byb) to knit one st in MC and then pull both yarns in front of the needles (byf) to purl the next stitch in the Contrasting Color (CC). You have just worked one square on the chart.

Likewise, if CC is shown on the chart, first put both yarns behind the needles (byb) to knit one stitch in CC and then pull both yarns in front of the needles (byf) to purl the next stitch in MC. This also counts as working one square on the chart.

The Double Knitting mantra is: Byb, k1 with color shown on chart, byf, purl one with opposite color.

Ready to try it? The Duplicity pattern makes a very achievable first double-knit project!

Then you can move on to the fully-reversible and wildly fun Wild Cherry Cardi:

 

 

 Want to comment for a chance to win the Sweet 16 Giveaway Part 4? You can right here. Watch for part 5 very soon. Hint, it starts with "M" and ends with "abrigo..."