Yarn Tasting: UnSpun Sock Yarn

Posted on May 11, 2022 by Jen

I’ve been making and knitting with my newest yarn experiments, my own UnSpun Peruvian superwash sock yarn, both the fingering and dk weights, and knit with my new Double Cappuccino Socks pattern as well.

**Double Cappuccino Socks**, project details on Ravelry **HERE.**

As I have been doing all along, dividing the plies then replying with a tighter final twist, finally scour washing to set the twist and felt up any possible slack.

A sample of the same grey yarn over-dyed with some yellow onion skins I had saved up, and pressure cooked half hour in my mini instant pot. Then I strained out the skins, wet the skein and along with a glug of white vinegar I simmered for about half an hour in the onion skin “broth” on low pressure. It was very thirsty for dye, and the onion skin dye was pretty dark. Next time I won’t pressure cook the actual dying, but simmer and careful few stirs to even out the dying as well as giving the yarn a further scour to set the new twist. However, I actually am quite pleased with the slightly blotchy onion gold over the cool grey, for in my opinion the duo of grey and deep golden brown pair excellently together.

The yarn is beautifully rustic, has a little spring, but not as much elasticity, which was my expectation from a coarser longer wool fiber to achieve the rustic appeal. However, slightly problematic for these reasons; the yarn seems slick and strong, might do better to be knit with smaller needles “than usual”, to tighten up the fabric, it seems, and the dk may be too thick to wear comfortably for walking. I know for certain these will be an improvement on socks for walking, with very dense tightly knit fabric to take a lot of punishment. I guess I wanted to try to find some kind of a niche with my UnSpun Sock yarn, and I think I almost have, just for myself though, as I am not able to spin fine sock yarns to save my life, and always having a sock on the needles just hits the spot and keeps me on the level.

Yarn Tasting: Simply Wool

Posted on September 2, 2020 by Jen

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Finally knitting my nieces Autumn sweaters, and so relieved too, as I deliberated endlessly over which yarn, and going in circles I finally decided to try “Simply Wool” ; 100% Eco Wool, by Knit Picks. This yarn is grown and milled in Peru, eight shades of undyed natural fleece colors, and so utterly basic, the yarn is aptly named. The colors are warm and visually appealing, no bleaches or chemicals of any kind, just the quiet sheepy tones, and is very soothing to knit, as if to right all the wrongs in the world.

For a few years now I’ve been wanting to make a departure from superwash wool for my nieces’ sweaters, hoping eventually to win them over to the loft and resilience of natural wool, but I have been too worried anything other than the softest pure Merino will not be soft enough for them, but I cast on in good faith. After knitting through part of the colorwork yoke I could feel the downy halo of the fibers bloom, unexpectedly, so it was a green light for me, and full steam ahead. Intrigued by the complexity of the tweedy heathers blended together to achieve the distinct shades of greys, browns, and natural whites, and being a fan of undyed fleece colors, I am sure it will be one of my most used yarns in the future. Besides, I am always keeping my eye out for a good base yarn to over-dye, um, I wonder, maybe this could be it?

jenjoycedesign© Sol Inca in Simply Wool

The pattern I am knitting, Sol Inca, is designed in such a way that the increases happen gradually down the yoke, so I can begin knitting, unsure of what size I ultimately will make, being that once I get past the chart I will have enough knitted I can get an accurate gauge from it. If I need to stop increases, finish the yoke, and continue down the body portion, or if I need to, I can continue the increases and make the yoke the next size bigger (I talk a little bit about it in this post). I love this, a real hidden perk if I ever found one by accident in this pattern. I am really relaxing now, giving myself more than enough time for a middle to late November photo shoot. My nieces are keen on continuing our tradition, and so I am better than fine!

Yarn Tasting: Berroco Ultra Wool Fine

Posted on April 5, 2019 by Jen

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In these glorious down-pouring rainy days of April I am knitting socks and trying out a new yarn that I’m really excited about, Berroco Ultra Wool Fine. 100% Superwash (Peruvian) wool, three somewhat lofty plies, with 400g – 366m per 100g ball, and made in Peru. I’ve wound two colors into half-balls and got started . . .
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I love this yarn so much that I bought several balls of it, and planning on over-dying some of it too, and I have ambitions for a “rustic country cabled sock”. I am not exactly sure what breed Peruvian wool is, but on one website I read that it is a cross between Merino & Corriedale sheep (can anybody out there add to this , or correct me?) , and seems to me to have a nice long staple length when I try to pull a ply apart it is very difficult, a long haired wool quality which I love. Out of the socks I knit this last year my favorite yarns are the 100% Blue-Faced Leicester wool, or BFL, which by the way, presently is an extremely popular knitting wool, and um… good ol’ modest Kroy sock yarn. Neither are Merino.

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Berroco Ultra Wool Fine is 400 yards per 100 grams and is ever-so-slightly thicker, or has more loft, than the finer fingering sock yarns I’m use to, such as Malabrigo Sock, Knit Picks Stroll, or Cascade Heritage, all which are around 440 yards or more per 100g. These two starts of socks I am knitting with Ultra Wool Fine are giving me impressions of the lovely rustic kind of wool almost a homespun feel, that I have in mind, and which my often booted feet are hungry for.
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Also having a bit of a needle tasting too! I am trying a set of dpns in a size smaller than I usually use for socks, a set of US 1 – 2.50 mm wooden dpns, given to me from knitters’ donations after the wildfire, which I am now ever so thankful for. I went to the dpns because I didn’t have that size in the nickel plated circular needles I have been so use to using for sock knitting, and I must say knitting with wood traditional dpns is the most aesthetic of experiences, even if not the fastest (due to my clumsiness). These are Knit Picks Sunstruck, and the color and feel is warm, light, and masterful feeling.

With these needles and this yarn I will knit some wonderful socks that will be a pleasure, and there is a very likely possibility that I will switch over, and a couple of pairs of socks will tell. A couple of posts ago I talked about my new Sox Box I picked up at a thrift shop, and my ambition is to fill all fifteen compartments of this box with knitted socks, and oh what gleeful anticipation of sock knitting is ahead! My Sox Box is filled with good intentions for now, at the very least, but I am bracing myself for a colossal head-start on next winter’s gifts, perhaps out of it even a bit of a pattern to develop ( hint) but for now, I’m keeping you all in suspense.
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Yarn Tasting: Simply Wool

Posted on January 21, 2019 by Jen

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Simply Wool by Knit Picks

Another great addition to Knit Pick’s colossal array of yarns, Simply Wool is spun from wool grown in a century-old sustainable way in the Highlands of Peru, it comes in six shades undyed natural fleece colors blends, in both worsted and bulky weights. Having worked with Wool Of The Andes, a Peruvian Highland wool from corriedale-merino cross breed of sheep, Simply Wool is noted on the website as ‘eco wool’ but that is not describing how or to what extent the wool itself is different from Wool Of The Andes. I’d say much softer than Wool Of The Andes, what I’d expect from an un-dyed and minimally processed wool, and it comes in 100g skeins.

I am creating a fine lace-weight in this supreme all-natural yarn, which started from a ball of worsted weight in light grey . jenjoycedesign© Simply Wool skein.JPG

With drop spindle I deconstructed the soft wool exactly as in this tutorial post , and after a couple of days unplying here and there, finally this morning I spliced all the single plies end-to-end on the swift and felt it to be a major accomplishment that I am very pleased with!

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I am not over-dying this big skein in a simmer dye bath, as I want it to be au natural, the whole point of buying Simply Wool, aside from the ecological consideration, so I just gave the skein of energized single ply off of the swift a warm bath and a hot rinse to carefully but slightly felt the yarn to set the twist as it will remain for the rest of its days a single ply, in a stole of a particular design in mind. So I’ll see how this yarn knits up in a day or so!

Right now I’ve got it speed drying on a baseboard heater, hoping to have it re-skeined by the end of the day so I can cast on for more insane lace knitting!

Yarn Tasting: Lindy Chain

Posted on June 2, 2018 by Jen

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I’m finally up to rattling off a couple of knitted somethings for my nieces this summer. Wanting to use linen for these, I thought I would try with some linen blend yarn I’ve had my eye on for a while ~~ Knit Picks Lindy Chain .

This yarn is a chain of a super fine single, rather than plied, 70% linen/30% pima cotton, fingering weight, and 180 yards to 50g ball. Crisp, attentive, not rascally, but soft, and I feel like the pima cotton element is making it easier on my fingers too. I’ve done acres of knitting the hem with 2.75mm needles, and graduated to 3.25mm for the stockinette. I got three balls in each color for two sleeveless items, but let me tell you, as this yarn is not wool, I have no bearing as to how yardage and weight work together for a garment, this is me navigating the sea of unknown.

Hey, did you know that Miss Eighteen is leaving for college this summer? This won’t be the last of the darling duo, not by a long shot, but I did want to send Miss Eighteen off with a recent sweater success fresh in her thoughts, as we did miss the Vernal Equinox Spring Tee due to my incessant moving about. So I’m giving myself until mid July to finish two linen summery things. Counting down. Stay tuned.

Yarn Tasting: Kroy

Posted on April 13, 2018 by Jen

jenjoycedesign© Kroy St Andrews Socks 5

I have knit up a pair of St Andrews Harbour socks

in a new yarn I’ve never tried,

and I’m smitten!

jenjoycedesign© Kroy St Andrews Socks 1

This yarn was found quite unexpectedly in a maze of aisles , with shelves of acrylic yarns reaching nearly to the ceiling,

and I was so surprised to have to tame my yarn snobbery, for this yarn was found at our local Michael’s Craft Store!

Modest little balls of Kroy …
jenjoycedesign© Kroy Sock yarn

Yes folks, the secret is out, the yarn is Patons Kroy Sock; a washable wool & nylon 4ply sock yarn, and a surprisingly rustic feeling yarn, in a surprisingly rustic solid shade of “flax” … (see my post A Rustic Yarn to get the meaning ). The confusing thing is that on the label it says “super fine fingering” , don’t let that fool you, fine fingering weight is not at all what it is, this yarn is 166 yards per 50 gram ball, which equals 332 yards per 100g, definitely in the category of sport-weight. Other yarns with this same yardage are super popular Malabrigo “Arroyo” — which I believe would make the perfect soft sock for this design, and Cascade 220 sport (not the superwash one) which was the yarn I knit the cover prototype of the pattern, and one of my all-time favorite yarns. Kroy is sport-weight yarn, ignore the label.

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This pair of fishermens socks were knit with option to switch to stockinette after gusset decreases are finished, which makes a little less bulky in the shoe ( see Ravelry project details here) Anyway, I think I have found a really affordable “vintage” feeling yarn for these fishermen socks; the yarn is a bit rough at first, but as I knit it it feels better and more compliant, and I just know its going to soften a lot in the wash. Crazy, as I’m such a connoisseur of yarn, but it behaves very well, knits up very stretchy & brings out wool’s best elastic properties, and with great stitch definition.

Oh and the color ” Flax ” is ideal for a rustic old-fashioned look, and I bet the Fishermen of olden days would have loved a pair of socks made from this yarn. Will try the “Gentry Grey” soon, thinking these two colors are the only heathered solids in this yarn. Afterthought: Um… well, folks, I figure now that I can over-dye the Flax color, and have just bought 4 more balls and ideas rushing to the fore!

Yarn Tasting: An Irish Tweed

Posted on January 25, 2018 by Jen

jenjoycedesign© Irish Tweed 2

My new wool love is Isager Tweed, made in Ireland and the most gorgeous commercial tweed yarn I’ve seen in my local yarn shop to date. Ever since Rowan discontinued their Fine Tweed yarn, I was not sure how to improvise a substitution for a rustic multi-color tweed single ply.

What is it about tweed that is just so utterly sensual, timeless, and tasteful?

Isager Tweed in Navy and Winter Grey

It must be color variegation which happens only when yarn is spun from pre-dyed fibers, blended together so that those little explosions of random ~~ sometimes quirky, sometimes quiet ~~ contrasting color flecks just pop out, and make the visual as well as tactile texture very distinctive.

jenjoycedesign© Isager Irish Tweed

Ireland and the British Isles have been for centuries steeped in the wool mill industry, its countryside once peppered with countless woollen mills during the Industrial Age, but in modern times there are only a handful of the old mills still producing, for major yarn companies (like Isager) as well as a growing number of indie knitwear designers who wish to have their own mill spun label.

jenjoycedesign© Irish Tweed

The yarn is fingering to fine-fingering weight, a blend of wool and mohair , in a beautifully rustic single ply. It has a very subtle coarseness , I am guessing from the goat hair, which gives it an old world feel and ever so like handspun with slight thick and thin variation in the yarn, but at the same time it is soft to the touch from being mostly a downy breed of wool to balance out and gives it a very versatile feel. Even though I am deeply involved in the spinning of my own tweed, and I actually aspire to produce a single ply tweed much like this yarn, but if hand-spun isn’t handy, I can’t go wrong with the real Irish spun. I must say how lovely it is that my local yarn shop has this great yarn, and in the best colors too.

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Oh! I found yet another wool film in the “Hands” series about how to make a Donegal spinning wheel! I hope you enjoy it as much as I have …

Yarn Tasting: Miss Babs Northumbria

Posted on December 4, 2017 by Jen

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Northumbria Fingering, 100% Bluefaced Leicester wool, in the color ” Beachglass “.

How can one stray toward unhappiness with a beautiful hand-dyed wool on the needles like this? Just my thoughts exactly. I will be on the straight-and-narrow toward a hopeful horizon because I have this woolly lot given to me by a lovely little tadpole. Something to cuddle and keep my hands busy & warm.

Soon I will cast on for an Fishwives Lace Shoal being that an engaging lace is just the tonic needed, because I haven’t knit a stitch for two months, and I do believe knit-walking in particular has supernatural ability to fend off all that is unpleasant. Just me and 100 grams /437 yards, and a good & kindly level path to meander on, while contemplating the Territory Ahead. Thank you tadpole!

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Its been a very difficult time for me in recent last month (already nearly two since the wildfire) as I grow out of shock, and face grief in its many facades. There simply aren’t many things I can expect from myself for a while, but to survive this period of hard knocks, dealing with the insurance company and inevitable constrained possibilities of future rebuild … I am to say the least, just staying afloat with sails down, in a sea of uncertainty. Spinning some, soon to be knitting again.

Footsteps 4

Posted on April 17, 2017 by Jen

jenjoycedesign© cafe sock-knitting

I have been enjoying the cafe culture lately, here with my favorite afternoon treat outside on the patio, a cafe latte & and knitting upvalley, stopping off at St Helena Coffee Roastery on my way home from Calistoga last Friday, after photographing my nieces in their Spring Tees 2017

The days are blissful here on the mountain, with brief spells of sun transitioning back to grey & wintery. Rain, fog and lingering cool air, as if the season doesn’t really want quite yet to get balmy yet (which I’m fine with), and I am rising above all that oppresses me!

jenjoycedesign© Wild Wool with Ripples Crafts

jenjoycedesign© Wild Wool Country Socks with Ripples Sock Yarn

Still, there are explosions of wildflowers beginning to bloom~~ lupine, clover, paintbrush, poppies, brodea, iris ~~ all heralding the Spring season, regardless of the reluctant temperatures. I have wrapped up a lot of epic knitting projects in recent weeks, while kicking off new big BIG design conceptions, and yet more socks keep coming off the needles. These were such a pleasure, knit with such color that I couldn’t be the least bit gloomy when knitting them!

Pattern: Wild Wool Trail Socks in the ‘Country Sock’ variation.

Yarn: Ripples Crafts Hand-dyed Yarns, in Reliable Sock, in “Assynt Storms” colorway. Note: I highly recommend this sock yarn, for it is really beautiful yarn to knit with, and dying is exceptional with no muddy spots, all pure blends of colors, sparkling, and with quick color transition.

Details on Ravelry HERE.

The Road To China

Posted on March 22, 2017 by Jen

A year and a half ago I wrote a rather traditional feather & fan lace motif into a simple cowl pattern to be available either by itself or in an e-book collection of three cowls, and for this lace prototype I used yarn “Road To China Light”. It was not meant to be by itself anything amazing or noteworthy, but it appears to have meandered its modest way into the Indie Designer Patterns on the Fibre Co. website. I am quite pleasantly surprised, and have excitedly come to spread the news first to Yarnings readers!

click image to go to this Fibre Co. page

I must confess, this is a first for me, and it has brightened everything on this drizzling cold mountain today. So, I have decided to make myself another celebratory lace cowl with some more Fibre Co. Road to China Light yarn, and I have been absolutely craving one in greyish teal or plum…

Yarn weight: Sport Skein weight: 50 g
Fibre: 65% baby alpaca, 15% silk, 10% camel, 10% cashmere

Also, I am gifting this pattern (for a very limited time) to anybody who would like to knit one along with me, in whatever yarn you desire…

Edit In : Pattern give-away is closed. Thanks to those who joined in!

I will be posting my lace cowl in whatever yummy color of Fibre Co. yarn I end up choosing and show progress reports on it in forthcoming posts , and I do honestly hope to see you & your project pop up over on Ravelry!

Foot Steps

Posted on March 3, 2017 by Jen

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Mid day sun streams through the canopy, and I am feeling the presence of vernal influences…

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The blissful places I have been missing for a while beckon to me…

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All winter we have had pelting rain storms one after another, and Northern California is officially declared over the drought while reservoir spillways gush furiously!

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Something about the approach of the equinox softens nature to a sweetness indescribable…

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So I will leave off and show you the latest I’ve made,

a pair of trail socks!

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…with my recent discovery of the snugger heel stitch foot, these socks are now ready for adventure!

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Yarn: Knit Picks Stroll sock yarn, in Merlot Heather and Navy

Pattern: Wild Wool Trail Socks , with recent update option of colossally snug heel stitch foot section, my pattern is now completely ‘dialed in’.

Project Details: on Ravelry HERE.

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Yarn Tasting: Alafosslopi

Posted on November 13, 2016 by Jen

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Istex Alafosslopi, an Icelandic bulky-weight yarn, and it also comes in worsted-weight called ‘Lopi Lite, or Lett Lopi’. It is single ply, very rustic, and in a palette of beautiful colors , tweeds, as well as many natural fleece shades too. I must say, it is not spendy in the least…which I like. I like a lot. Like so many super rustic yarns like this, one wonders how it could ever feel good and natural against one’s own skin, then one becomes surprised after the blocking is done and all those woolly hairs just loosen into a beautiful halo, find their place in the fabric, become relaxed and compliant, ultimately giving a light & springy feel with lovely drape. I wouldn’t call this yarn “soft” by any stretch of the imagination, nay, it is full-on wool, pure, and even old-world feeling, yet I am thinking it to be the perfect yarn to prototype my next design with.

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The next design in fact, which I think will be my magnum opus of basic knitted wardrobe items… my favorite of favorites… a cardigan vest! This pattern will have some really good options (which I will save for its debut) , and will be perfectly suitable for men, women, & children alike. The third in my Calidez designs, it will be compatible for sport-thru-bulky weight yarns and any kind of fiber. I can’t wait to be finished with these and show you!

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As you can see in the photo there has been some ripping out going on, that is because after I finished and blocked the vest, it was not right… it was nice, it was classic, but I felt it necessary to re-proportion the shaping in the armhole and neck opening, to make it perfect according to my own idea of a perfect vest shape. So here I am, in the middle of the whole thing, knitting up two samples at once, knitting…. ripping out…knitting again: repeat.

I might add that I have come down with a nasty cold (I hardly ever get sick) from the stress of election and a general frenzy of Things Going On, but regardless, I am as happy as can be because my Knitting Track is proving to be a heavenly thing, and I am obsessed with it! The leveled sections are a work in progress, but it is all a wonderful path As It Is, and I see a hazy vision of something keenly interesting in its future. Late yesterday I walked the wooded track while knitting the dark grey bit of the vest above for one and a half miles… it was an enchanting knit-walk five times around the wild shaped figure-eight in and about the tall trees at dusk. I felt like a knitting pixi.

In spite of my cold, I was out there this morning in the supremely gorgeous weather, digging, scraping, leveling & tamping a section of the trail in and around some massive Douglas Firs, while also moving quite a bit of stone from the earth. While digging around I found an old Olypia beer can, with a pull tab which (after some research ) I discovered dates to early 70’s, which I imagine was discarded from a hunter, so I placed it on a rock near where I found it, along the trail. The first archaeological find while creating the knitting track, a crumpled up vintage aluminum beer can…lol!

Lots to do and life is good.

Sweater Descent #2

Posted on November 10, 2016 by Jen

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I have gotten another package from Kilcar in Ireland, a lovely bunch of Studio Donegal yarn ! Worsted-weight, one-hundred percent merino wool, and aptly named …

“Soft Donegal”

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In Sweater Descent #1 I wrote a sort of introduction for what is now my series Sweater Descent Project…

Descent is a word which takes many directions in meaning, most typically it means to ‘move down’ or ‘lower’ as in a physical place of going, as ‘down from a high place’ as from the peak of a mountain. It has metaphorical meaning to me as well, which I absolutely groove on, like ‘making easier’ and ‘moving into a secure low-ground of the known’. Of course there is the meaning of ‘lineage’ or ‘clan’, and far-off distant cultures or bloodlines one may have come from. But for me, primarily the relationship of the word refers to mountains, and walking, and in my case knitting while walking about the mountain on which I live.

And now for Sweater Descent #2

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This post also being a yarn-tasting theme , I would like to show you my yarn acquisition, and I am watering at the mouth truly, envisioning this in my second very own Calidez Cardigan ! A rich depth of color, explosion of tweedy flecks, I am totally smitten with the color range of Studio Donegal “Soft Donegal” and see great potential for using this yarn in future designs. But for now all there is left to do, is cast on!

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ps. I thought I would mention too, that Emma is one-hundred percent better, and managing the stairs all by herself with new addition of rugs! And thats us… off to the Knitting Track!

Calidez Cardigan & Donegal Aran Tweed

Posted on October 28, 2016 by Jen

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At last, my very own cardigan, and it is so special because it is from a wool I’ve wanted to knit forever, and in a pattern which I designed to be my favorite sweater recipe. . .

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Calidez Cardigan knit up in Donegal Aran Tweed!

I made it with Autumn neckline. The pattern has four seasons of necklines in case you weren’t aware: winter=full yoke depth, autumn=3/4, spring=1/2, summer=very low. . .

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I had so many choices to color match buttons because of all the flecks of tweed in the yarn, but in the end, I only had more shell buttons, but I will find some more, in russet and change them out later.

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When it came down to it, I am purely smitten. Donegal Aran Tweed knits up beautifully and has a real ‘slinky’ feel to it when knit up at 3.25 sts to the inch, although I was so tempted to try a smaller needle size, I chose the larger, appealing to a drapier cardigan, however, because of the fact, it is very stretchy and a wee bit baggy, but like in a good way. Next I will try a slightly firmer cardigan fabric, as well as make a size smaller. I still can’t decide what color to go with for my next, and I do think it will have to be a Soft Donegal, and I am thinking to go wild, and get this color.

Well folks, that’s it for today, posting from very rainy Mt Veeder! I couldn’t be happier than with a just-finished cardigan to wear, and you can see details of this project on Ravelry here.

Everything in it’s place, and life is good. Oh, and I’ve been enjoying listening to some beautiful Irish pipes while knitting Irish Wool . . .

Yarn Tasting: Donegal Aran Tweed

Posted on October 25, 2016 by Jen

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What have we here? A cardigan (for moi) which I will be finishing in the next couple of days! Some time ago, back in this post , I talked about knitting a cardigan from Studio Donegal Aran Tweed. I actually cast on and knit most of the body of a steeked body cardigan before dropping it and coming to the conclusion that, although I have written a brief steeking option on the Calidez Pullover, which this was to sample, I really wanted to design my first flat-knit seamless cardigan pattern. So after struggling with that inevitability , eventually I ripped it all out and wound it back into a big ball. Well, as you all know that recently I have finally designed that cardigan, I can’t escape the desire to make one after another, in all the Studio Donegal yarns, and already I’m looking at the color shade cards I have to see what color I might try next. The shade on this piece of knitting is # 4742.

Really folks, Aran Tweed has a spirit about it which speaks to me like no other that I’ve felt. It is really a very classic wool, and does have a bit of ‘wooly scratch’ factor, and I don’t recommend it to knitters who are ambivalent about 100-percent wool, but it is ever so light, fluffy, and possesses a great homespun feel. Most of all, it is indeed very tweedy & colorful, and just extremely beautiful.

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I am considering trying for my next yarn tasting, Soft Donegal which is 100% Merino wool, and although a lot softer , it doesn’t have the crispness I love so much in the Aran Tweed, nor quite the selection. If you could put your hand into the photos of the two shade cards, you’d agree, Soft Donegal is very very soft, and a little finer weight too. Just a smidge. Aran Tweed is heaviest weight of all the Donegal yarns, I’m getting 3.5 stitch per inch, whereas the Soft Donegal will probably be more like 4.5. Regardless, I think I’ll explore both with my new Calidez Cardigan pattern, there is no closing the gate to my sudden rush to make every hand-knit cardigan I’ve craved to have & wear for the last ten years. I am eyeing so many of them, I just can’t decide!

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You can see Studio Donegal’s website to see details about Aran Tweed, Soft Donegal , and Knitting Wool.

By the way, which are your favorite colors?

Fair Isle Success!

Posted on August 4, 2016 by Jen

jenjoycedesign© Wee Hearts in Virtual Yarns Hebridean 2ply

Wee Hearts in nine different Fair Isle Hebridean 2ply colors! Actually this hat is a study on one of Alice*Starmore’s colorways , a colorway from her design “Mary Tudor” from her 2013 second edition of Tudor Roses , using her own yarn, as sequenced in the chart. You could say this hat was a colorway test for Mary Tudor Cardigan, although I did change some colors around from the chart, because of a mistake I made. I really came out of the study with a better understanding of how the blending of foreground color changes against background color changes can be in modern Fair Isle.

Now I am wondering, do I have time for one more? Not really, I must be on to Autumnal Sweaters!

Summer Stripes (2)

Posted on July 5, 2016 by Jen

jenjoycedesign© Altitude Lace with Rowan Revive 2

In a post in June, I shared my new yarn to taste, Rowan “Revive”, a DK weight yarn made from recycled clothing that is made from silk, cotton, and viscose.

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Here it is now knit up into an Altitude Lace Cowl and it looks quite lovely.

jenjoycedesign© Altitude Lace with Rowan Revive

Stripes in sand & peach tones, barely contrasting, for a perfect neck wrap to wear with natural linen clothing, I am going to keep this one for myself.

jenjoycedesign© Rowan Revive-3

But can I be honest? I feel this yarn is a bit heavy, what I would expect from a cotton based yarn, but there’s a slight toughness to the feel, maybe also having 3 plies, each with 3 finer plies. Actually, this yarn may just be a great candidate for a sweater, or to unspin, for the single plies of this yarn are all unique and truly lovely and tweeded with bits of recycled fibers. I really do like the yarn a lot.

So this closes my jaunt of Summer knitting ~~ it is difficult to believe we’re already well into July! Although the hottest months are still to come, its time I begin to direct my thinking ahead to Autumnal ideas, and back to my un-spinning experiments which I abruptly paused, and of course, some non-knitting events going on too (mostly home improvement sorts of labor, which is not near as fun as knitting, admittedly).

Summer Stripes was certainly enjoyable taste of new summery yarns, and I must say I have made a couple new favorites!

Details for this project are on Ravelry HERE

summer knitting

Posted on June 22, 2016 by Jen

jenjoycedesign© two-cowls.JPG

I’m going a bit crazy with linen blend yarns this spring & summer. I decided to knit up TWO striped summery cowls for my Canadian Nieces Molly & Maya. The yarn I’m ‘tasting’ is “Firefly” by Classic Elite Yarns; a sport-weight %75 viscose & 25% linen ( but I tell you, it feels like mostly linen.) Time is of the essence so I’m making no pretenses, I’ve just cast on, and I’ll see you on the flip-side.

Firefly-labels

June and yarn tasting…

Posted on June 17, 2016 by Jen

jenjoycedesign© yarn tasting

I went into town this morning, and stopped into the local yarn shop, and there was a new batch of yarn in, which I just couldn’t resist. Rowan Purelife “Revive” : 36% recycled silk, 36% recycled cotton, and 28% recycled viscose. Beautiful apricot pink and clay tweeds, which will suit my coloring well, as I plan on making it into a ‘striped’ Altitude Lace Cowl, and for moi ! (Ahem… once bought and brought home, I can never resist a good ol’ yarn photo-shoot, as yarn makes such nice portraits.)

As of a few days ago we’ve had the presence of some interesting clouds hovering! Today I swear, it rained a few drops, a few gorgeous wet drops, and threatens to rain some more…

jenjoycedesign© clouds (2)

June is a lovely month. Transitional, mostly unpredictable, mild, beautiful, and cheerful. I even love the word, so cute, and yet rather ancient sounding… “joon”.

I have decided to not write a pattern for the halter tops I mentioned in last post. Just too much uncharted territory to deal with, as I have so much to get busy with in the knitting, and my non-knitting life too. So the cotton tops will be a pure & simple yarn tasting and summer treat for my nieces ~~ with no agenda. ( Wow, ‘no agenda’ sounds like I was let out on summer vacation! )

That is it for this post, more a clearing of slate and in a lovely mood as June unwinds into summertime, so soon to be here.

The Last Of Spring

Posted on June 8, 2016 by Jen

jenjoycedesign© cotton-yarn 2.JPG

It is already the last stretch of Spring, and forthcoming is a little duo for summer! One in dark teal, and one in light teal, in Cascade Ultra Pima cotton yarn,to test my latest design, a summer top idea that I’ve been working on.

jenjoycedesign© cotton-yarn

Other things going on, I will splash on to this post, as I am worried I don’t share enough non-knitting things here in general. So, here, a mountain woodland garden…

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Where in I try to grow things which are sometimes a challenge, but this season, doing well enough.

jenjoycedesign© mountain garden

Blossoming leeks,

jenjoycedesign© leeks

my greens bed protected from the harsh sun beneath their sun-bonnet, grapes exploding into clusters fattening, beans beginning to climb, nearly 4′ high tomato plants, apples beginning to blush and swell, and very shy slow-growing zucchini…

Um….jeans ripening in the sun?

jenjoycedesign©laundry

Well, not really, just foolin’ around! Thats about it for this post, and I surely hope to have made the two halter tops by the next post, sometime around the solstice, which will be June 20!

How are your last weeks of spring coming along?

Yarn Tasting: five shades of natural

Posted on March 11, 2016 by Jen

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Blackberry Ridge Woolen Mill is a family-owned spinnery located in the hills of Vermont Township in south central Wisconsin, and one hundred percent American. I like that! The yarn? Beautiful! I just received by post, five natural shades for a ‘yarn tasting’, and I find this yarn so interesting because the greys are mixed by percentage (below right to left; cream, 10% grey, 20% grey, 40% grey, and 60% grey.) Rather simple, just natural fleece, and American grown & spun.

The fiber is puffy & soft and woolen spun, and the naturals are heathered in a seriously beautiful way, much like my favorite yarns for colorwork, from Scottish Isles. In fact, I have been nearly exclusive with Scottish Isles yarns lately for colorwork, my favorite being Virtual Yarns Hebridean 2ply, as the complex heathered mixes of colors are so rich and beautiful enough to make me weak in the knees, but very unfortunately for me there are no natural undyed shades in the Hebridean 2ply line, and undyed heathery shades I happen to be very fond of. So, I believe this yarn being so nearly exact in feel, type of spin, and weight, I think I have found my heathery greys to match with heathery colors of Hebridean 2ply, and I am really looking forward to knitting with it!

Sweater Descent

Posted on January 26, 2016 by Jen

Descent is a word which takes many directions in meaning, most typically it means to ‘move down’ or ‘lower’ as in a physical place of going, as ‘down from a high place’ as from the peak of a mountain. It has metaphorical meaning to me as well, which I absolutely groove on, like ‘making easier’ and ‘moving into a secure low-ground of the known’. Of course there is the meaning of ‘lineage’ or ‘clan’, and far-off distant cultures or bloodlines one may have come from. But for me, primarily the relationship of the word refers to mountains, and walking, and in my case knitting while walking about the mountain on which I live.

Put it all together and I have myself a fun and meaningful project on hand to ~ finally ~ learn the knack of cardigan making, with focus on unique approaches and short-cuts, and designed for ease which one can actually knit-while-walking. My descent from a shaky high ground through the ‘scree field of mistakes’ into the known of a secure expanse of solid-ground of skill and know-how, to find place where the cardigan can be my ‘go to’ pattern when I want to throw something together and try a new kind of yarn. (hint, hint… I’ve been wanting to try Studio Donegal yarns from Donegal, Ireland… forever and a day, but more about that yarn and that place is another subject for another post). My favorite kind of clothing is a cardigan, so I am wondering why then is my wardrobe so cardigan-anorexic at this time in my life?

So as a picture tells a thousand words, I leave you fully introduced into my meaning & intent of Sweater Descent, and as there is now the first, that implies intention of a series.

Here forth the mystery will appear from the mist…

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Yarn Tasting: Shibui Twig

Posted on May 19, 2015 by Jen

If ‘rascally’ could be a word to describe yarn, I would say linen yarn is very much so. Crisp, unyielding, stubborn, and relentlessly tough stuff, linen has a great appeal to me… oh such like rusty found things, or uncushioned old benches, or crackled old earthenware. I love this stuff, and wear it constantly, year round.

Even winding it off the swift, into a ball , it has a mind of it’s own…rather messy in appearance, not laying in unison with other strands, wrestling it into a ball, as it tried to be a cube, was a task in and of it’s own!

I will tame it. It may take ten cycles in the washer & dryer along with a load of white towels, but it will soften and be every bit as wonderful as my favorite linen shirts.

This yarn however, is only 46% linen. I bought it to dip my toes into the feel of linen, for I do have 3 skeins of navy colored 100% wet spun linen waiting to be knit up. It is also 42% recycled silk, and 12% wool. It is Shibui “Twig” , and there is 190 yards of it. I am going to be sampling this lovely summery linen blend with my Una Cosettina pattern , as I have gone quite on a tangent today.

I am putting down Snowmelt gaiters for a short while, let them sit on a table for a few days. What is the rush anyway? I am my own competition , I feel suddenly today like having a little play time, so here I am yarn tasting again, going to pour myself a tall one of what I consider the perfect Northern California yarn!

A New Love

Posted on March 2, 2015 by Jen

Rowan Fine Tweed that is. This yarn is so fine, and so delicious to the fingers as can be imagined, and with lots of colorful tweedy bits spun into it . Talk about gorgeous! Especially the color palette, and the heathered tones spun together, it ranks with my favorites for color selection. But, RFT is a single ply yarn, and a little bit sassy (energized) from being so, and slightly heavier too than my fingering-weight favorites ~ Jamiesons Of Shetland Spindrift, and Virtual Yarns Hebridean 2-ply , and the other Shetland 2plies. Plied makes the yarn a bit more tempered and softer visual appeal in the knitted fabric, I think of single ply yarn as more independent in it’s feel, being that there’s no ‘unwinding’ against another ply, it is perky and assertive in the knitted look, especially if spun with decent twist. Maybe in the blocking process, from the warm soak & dry step, the stitches will melt together a little more.

Sometime at the start of the new year I decided to go in-depth yarn-tasting popular yarns of the like which are found in my local yarn shop. First on my list is Rowan. I’ve knit over half my life now not ever having knit with anything Rowan, some things just have to evolve, and that is one. I have knit and gotten quite lovely results thus far from my first projects in Rowan Felted Tweed DK, the yarn which I would like to make signature for Tartan & Tweed Mitts, and now that I’m designing a tam to go in this series, I would like a fingering weight option in addition to DK weight. Fantastic, and lucky, there is Fine Tweed by Rowan, and of it I have myself a fresh catch!

As this is a week of maximum preoccupation, I need to hold off on the pattern writing for another week or so. Just like sands in an hourglass, are my stitches on the needles, that is, when I finish this one, this Tartan & Tweed Tam in Rowan Fine Tweed, I will get back to the business of pattern writing.

All that aside, I am so excited to cast on … yes… one more tam.

A Vancouver Yarn Shop Experience

Posted on May 26, 2014 by Jen

I dropped in on Urban Yarns in Vancouver BC this last weekend, being that we were visiting Jeff’s sister who lives very near. I have not visited all that many yarn shops in my few travels, but those who know me, knew this visit was completely and totally necessary, so I was escorted to Urban Yarns, and found myself wandering about in a lovely yarn shop, just a couple of blocks away from the home of my sister-in-law.

There I took in the atmosphere of a true Vancouver Yarn Experience. I got to see & touch yarns I’ve long been curious about as well, such as New Hampshire-made Harrisville Designs “Watershed” , “Highland” and “Shetland” yarns and of those there was a lot! The Harrisville Design yarns recently was on my hunting list, but when there at Urban Yarns my mind went totally blank and I had Yarn Shop Freeze ! After wading through some other mainstream yarn shop brands, the lasting thought to ponder before I left was . . . ‘which yarn is the single-most Vancouver Experience’ ?

I was led to rather large display brands of Vancouver hand-dyed yarns, many which I could have chosen, but the most of the most that I would take home with me (even though it is to be found in my own LYS) was a very Vancouver yarn ~~~ Sweet Georgia Merino Silk Lace. Not a thrifty purchase, not by a mile, but it was ‘hand-dyed’ only down the street, and sold right there at Urban Yarns, right there on Highland Boulevard.

I must regret one thing if not spending more money on more truly Vancouver yarns, and that is I did not have time or fore-thought to visit the place ‘just down the street’ where the Sweet Georgia Yarn people are busy hand-dying & skeining up their yarn. However, Jeff did buy me a very luxurious gift of rabbity-soft 100g skein of Merino Silk Lace (omg, Jeff bought me yarn!) Here it is, untwisted and sprawled across a late afternoon sun-beam . . .

With all of this ultra fine smokey grey silky yarn, I am now on a mission of discovery of who and what a knitter becomes when introduced to such delicate stuff, 765 lavish yards of slate grey merino/silk lace yarn ~~ which by the way, I will be winding off into a ball soon, by hand, with only the help of the backs of two chairs. On to new lace horizons!!!

Yarn Tasting : Four Sock Yarns

Posted on May 17, 2014 by Jen

I have sock yarn ‘on my brain’ and in recent many weeks have been trying different brands in a sort of comparison & contrast project ~~ in a Sock Yarn Tasting ! I even accidentally (well, almost) designed a new thing in the process of fiddling around with sock yarn (more on that later). Although my Sock Yarn Tasting has been a great source of entertainment for myself, and I actually do feel a sense of earnestness to convey my thoughts on the matter . At the very least, in the process of comparing I’ve settled on my favorites, and better yet, answered my curiosity as to why.

I have knit On The Trail , a whole lot (it’s what I do) , also while waiting for pots to simmer & the kettle to boil, while watching tv, while talking on the phone, while reading, and even sometimes in between sets at gigs, so my knitting is always hanging on the chair back. So, while my hands have gotten a bit sore from all of this knitting, I am pleased with the small woolly mountain of knitteds which I am producing. Soon I’ll be off to Vancouver for Jeff’s family reunion of sorts and you can be certain I’ll be packing up my menagerie of socks-in-progress to take along, and excuse myself for being entrapped by the knitting while in others’ company, returning hopefully with a pair or two to add to the growing stack of socks I am squirrelling away for the gift-giving holidays.

I am just am so filled with a sense of giddy & calm pride, as I have found knitting socks to be my meditation. Ahem, okay, so here’s my observations so far of the superstars of sock yarn market which I am sampling : Madelinetosh “Tosh Sock” , Malabrigo “Sock”, Shibui “Sock” , and Sweet Georgia “Tough Love Sock”~~~ all knit up with my Penny Candy Socks pattern with size 2.75mm – US 2 circular needles (two of them).

As Shibui Sock & Madelinetosh Tosh Sock seem to me about the same thickness, I knit them together in stripes because they feel nearly identical in thickness, though the Tosh Sock is a tiny bit more ‘firm’ , they are thicker, and even a bit fluffier.

Ginger Lime Chews Penny Candy Socks, details on Ravelry HERE

I observe that the fabric of Tosh Sock & Shibui Sock produced is more substantial, and would be great for a slightly thicker pair of socks but as this is so, I might only wear these socks with the roomiest of my shoes. Great for hiking boots, great for Dansko Clogs which tend to fit a little roomy anyway. (Note to self: get another pair of Dansko Clogs !) but not so great for my dressier shoes. Soft, plush, firm.

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Next in the line-up, Sweet Georgia “Tough Love Sock”. This yarn is indeed a tough yarn. So much in fact, that I suspect the slight lack of elastic properties of the yarn effected the gauge, as the same number of stitches on same needles as I knit the others, the Sweet Georgia socks turned out really very large by comparison ! I stopped at one sock, not sure how to proceed, for these would indeed be tough socks and big enough for a man, I just couldn’t think of any men I’d like to give orangey red lace-bordered socks to. No offense to you men who would love them, I just wasn’t in the mood to make the second sock, so I will post the photo of the one.

I think I might have to compensate with this yarn’s properties, to knit the next size smaller with them and see how that works. ((also notice that the two colors were so alike, melting into each other a little too much , that seeing the stripes was insanely difficult)).

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Finally, for the kind of socks that one would easily slip into one’s favorite shoes , that is, shoes worn regularly with store-bought socks, the finer fabric of Malabrigo’s fine fingering-weight “Sock” wins out. Mostly for it’s soft resilient and lovely elastic feel, but equally for the rich colors in each hand-dyed skein. I have to say also that I have a real penchant for “oh so fine” knitting these days, and it’s fine-fingering weight that I seriously am in love with.

My Penny Candy Socks and Pretty Little Things Gloves are designed with Malabrigo, and I’m more than happy with the slightly delicate character of the fine fingering yarn with its superwash easy-care and softness of touch. In fact, I feel like hoarding every ‘solid’ color of Peruvian-made Malabrigo yarn, and happily knitting Penny Candy Socks for everyone I know.

Blueberry Gumballs Penny Candy Socks, details on Ravelry HERE

It is a goal of mine to knit for next holiday season, as there’ll be no hitting the shops in a bug-eyed panic to find something meaningful. Because basically, it can’t get much more meaningful than hand-knit socks knit fresh only months previously.

I’ll end this yarn tasting with more Malabrigo yarn on the needles, in murky green and clear blue. This photo was taken early this morning, as the stripes began to colorplay . . .

Socks in progress, details on Ravelry HERE

A Humble Yarn

Posted on April 18, 2014 by Jen

This week, while at my LYS I fell in love with a new yarn. As I held it I instantly knew it’s potential. It comes in lovely 50g skeins, so I could really squish and caress, and yes, this stuff is amazing. Why didn’t I see it before? Because I was like a schoolgirl, with a schoolgirl crush on elite British wools, I guess that I had my eyes closed.

Colors left to right : Natural, Doeskin, Charcoal, and Jet.

I bought four skeins for barely more than $20, and brought them home in their cheery little orange paper bag. It felt wonderful. I showed it to Jeff , who is my scratchiness barometer (that is, he is an extreme case of FOSW ~~ fear of scratchy wool) and he was impressed with it ! So in recent days I have been thinking about my new find. I have decided that as a developing designer, it is important that I am ‘yarn conscienscious’, yet not yarn elitist. Well, in most cases. That is, in most cases I will design something entirely for itself, using a yarn that I feel compliments the design, and also that I feel is easily accessible, and easily affordable. ((Though , still, there are those special design occasions to showcase beautiful specialty & heritage yarns, for which I am very happy to be elitist . . . lol )).

Color : Natural

A challenge indeed. One of the reasons I have liked Jamiesons Of Shetland Spindrift, a 2ply fingering yarn, is because it is not expensive, but very affordable, considering it’s imported from the actual Shetland Isles. However, I have learned by observation, that not everyone has easy access to this British wool , even though it is growing in popularity as the boundless community of the internet brings us knitters together globally.

Color : Doeskin Heather

I am talking about a very popular yarn which I never noticed because I was maybe being a bit of a yarn snob. Yet at the same time, I developed this closet tendency to buy inexpensive yarn on-line. Strange indeed. Though I adore the ease of my on-line purchases , I do happen to live up in the backwoods, and it’s not always cost-effective to drive to the next county to purchase exactly what I want. I have had a yarn epiphany regarding this LYS exclusive . . .

Color : Charcoal

I’m talking about Cascade 220 yarn folks, in fingering weight. 100% Peruvian Highland Wool. 50g skeins = 273 yards / 250 meters. 2 ply. About $5 per skein. What I have here is four neutral undyed colors in Jet, Charcoal, Doeskin, and Natural.

Cascade 220 fingering : Jet

Striking resemblance to the yarns with which I created my Vineyard Rows Highland Bonnet .

My Vineyard Rows bonnet (tam) however, will remain a Jamiesons Spindrift novelty , as it is inspired so much by Scottish Highlands that I believe the Scottish wool is completely perfect, but I will list the Cascade 220 fingering as an alternate yarn on it’s pattern pages.

You can guess that the next up & coming thing I am working on , will be a Vineyard Rows design, and in the yarn which is beautiful yet humble and very likely at your own LYS. I still have a crush on Virtual Yarns Hebridean and Jamiesons Of Shetland, but perhaps I’ll broaden my more local horizons , this side of The Pond. I tell you, Peru really has it going on these days when it comes to yarn !

Yarn Tasting

Posted on March 29, 2014 by Jen

I’ve been pattern-writing furiously, and it’s been raining furiously, everything around here has been a bit excessive, and so, just before noon I needed a break. I got in my car and drove down the mountain into town, to the , um…Local Yarn Shop. I brought home two new sock yarn brands to add to my existing sock yarn stash, so that now I have a bit of a selection for some serious sock yarn tasting !

Lets start with perhaps the top names in sock yarn, Madelinetosh’s ‘Tosh Sock’.
Label says: 100% superwash merino wool fingering weight -395 yards, color Ginger. Hand-dyed in USA , from South Africa.

Next, Shibui Sock.
Label says: 100% superwash merino 191 yards, color Wasabi. Made in Peru.

Next, Sweet Georgia ‘Tough Love Sock’.
Label says: 80% superwash merino / 20% nylon, 425 yards, color Cayenne. Hand-dyed in Canada, doesn’t say if it comes from elsewhere originally.

Last in this line-up, is perhaps my favorite, Malabrigo Sock. Label says: 100% superwash merino, 440 yards, color Impressionist Sky. Made in Peru.

I am very attracted to Malabrigo for some reason, the skein is stout and heavy and has so much yarn, and it is also the finest/thinnest of all I’ve seen yet, which to me is a real lovely thing… cuz I am smitten with ultra-fine knitting. I designed my Pretty Little Things gloves with it and I’m sure I’ll not stop there.

I am loving the feel and visual texture of all four of these leading brands (well, from the LYS at least) and though there are more brands, I figured, I’d start with these. I will let the knitting and the knitted fabric & feel of the finished sock be the judge, as I am challenging myself to a bit of a sock-fest, reasoning thus far undisclosed, but expect some posts about it coming up in the next few weeks.

Have you tried any of these brands ? What do you think?

Linen

Posted on January 20, 2014 by Jen

Recently I stopped in on my Local Yarn Shop and bought these scrumptious sapphire gems of Louet Euroflax Wet-Spun Linen yarn. There were three x 270 yard skeins of fine sport weight yarn that screamed ‘take me home with you!’ all in unison, and so I did. Actually, had I not had a colossal store credit from a very generous gift, I would never have splurged on these, it was just one of those rare situations.

The honest truth is, I’ve been hankering to try the Euroflax yarn forever, and to try a simple lace stole too, so why not make this my starting point? Knowing full well that I am soon to be knitting up something for Spring Sweaters for my nieces, it will have to be something I can put down for a good long rest and just pick up whenever . . . a ‘take along in my knit-walking bag’ sort of thing, for the months ahead in spring and summer. In fact, I can’t imagine anything nicer to knit in hot weather than deep blue cool tones of linen, in the color of cold mountain lakes, or new jeans.

That’s right, I don’t expect to finish anytime soon, but I can hardly wait to begin those yarn-overs, just wading through row after row of crisp linen. Just something about linen which tickles a spot for me, and I feel though it was a bit of a stash-quest, it will be ready when I decide to cast on.