There have been an abundance of great projects designed with our yarn over the past year, and we thought we'd round up some of our favorites (although they're ALL really great), to inspire you as you think about future makes. We've got a full length video on YouTube, and a synopsis below:
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First up is Mesmerized (Ravelry link) which is a crochet shawl by CJ Brady. She uses one skein of Tarte in Blooming Pansies. This project showcases variegated yarns particularly well. Jennifer gives some options like: Spread Your Wings, Let's Do This, or Ziggy Stardust. We like Mesmerized because it's not a complicated pattern, and the smooth texture of Tarte makes it relatively simple to crochet.
Festival of Stitches (Ravelry link) by Lisa Hannes is a rectangular shawl with angled short sides, and knit using any of our trios (3-400 yd fingering weight skeins). Originally, the wrap was done in our old version of Caroline in Dark Pegasus, Oyster and Dark Adobe. We think it will look equally beautiful in our new Caroline. We also made up a sample in Yummy 2-Ply in Oregon Mist, Right as Rain, and Spiny. We've made up Trios in both Yummy 2-ply and Caroline if you need some help selecting colors. We love how Lisa incorporated so many different stitch patterns in one piece (almost like a sampler), and the tassel is a nice finishing touch.
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Autumn Mist (Ravelry link) by Lisa K. Ross alternates a Yummy 2-Ply gradient set with a complementary shade of Moonglow, our silk/mohair blend. It's a large crescent-shape wrap, but very lightweight (because of the silk/mohair) and it has lots of texture from both the stitches and the fiber. The sample is knit in the Autumn Mist gradient set with Mizzle as the Moonglow complement. Other yarn options could be the Surf's Up gradient set with Deer Moss Moonglow. Or you could keep the same gradient (Surf's Up) and switch out the Moonglow for Atik. We've also put together several pairings specifically for the shawl. We love this shawl because it's an easy knit, but has some lovely detail, like the picot edge finish, that just really put this over the top.
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We have two examples of Raspberry Cordial (Ravelry link) shawlette by Casapinka which was part of a mini mystery knit along earlier this spring. Our own Veronica Parsons knit hers using Exuberance as the main color and 2 Ply Toes in Coos Bay and Ghoulish for the contrasts. Ivy likes a slightly bigger shawl, so she upsized the yarn to Yowza in Dusk and two Yowza Minis in Rock Sparrow and In the Meadow with a size 8 needle to create her heftier version. Jennifer also suggests Yowza in Pacifica with River Severn and Giant Sequoia as an alternative, and we have a selection of sets made up in Yummy 2-ply here. We really like how quickly this project comes to fruition; from start to finish you can be done within a week or so!
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Terra Maris (Ravelry link) by Alina Appasova is a rectangular wrap that uses seven colors of Yummy 2-Ply Toes. We absolutely love how the pattern transitions from color to color so smoothly. We do have sets for this project--the original colorway is Terra Maris--and we've put together plenty of special editions in various hues. This is a fun project to knit--Ivy's already made two and is contemplating a third--and the end result is striking.
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Michael Harrigan's Berries, Leaves, and Vines (Ravelry link) is a cute and quick knit cowl worked in three colors of Yummy 2-Ply Toes. Our sample is knit in Box Turtle, Fleur de Sel and Turkey Red.
We like this project because there are so many color options. Jen demonstrates choosing colors like Suspense and Rainforest, that are closely related, and then pulling in a neutral, like Cockles, or going high contrast with bright choices like Sweet Pea, Marine, and Violaceous, staying on the same side of the color wheel with Forever, Suspense, and Hops, or opting for soft colors like Coventry, Fig, and Provence. No matter your color choices, you will really enjoy this stranded colorwork project.
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Jennifer Weissman's Bee Loved (Ravelry Link) wrap has a rectangular shape and a graphic slipped stitch design that creates a honeycomb motif. In addition to the striking design, the i-cord edging keeps the shawl edges from rolling; it's a very beautiful finishing touch.
Bee Loved can be knit in either Yummy 2 Ply (our sample is Franklin and Mantis) or Yummy 3-Ply (we used Imperial and Spotted Flowers). When choosing colors for this project, high contrast shades work best (to highlight the overall design); some suggestions are: Catherine and Foxy, Rosy Finch and Denim, or Hitchhiker's Birthday and Giant Sequoia.
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The Bromelia Stole (Ravelry link) is a snuggly, lovely wrap stole from Irina Anikeeva that uses two skeins of Yowza. The most noticeable feature of this stole are the two ends--large panels with beautiful lacey cables are offset by the garter stitch middle portion. All of this texture makes this such a snuggly accessory to wrap around your shoulders and neck! We are really impressed with the edges of this stole--the tiny cable keeps the edges from rolling; such a thoughtful detail!
When working cables, light and medium colors typically work best (you don't want to hide all that effort). The sample is knit in Softly, and other colorways that would pair nicely with Bromelia include Adobe, Together, and Provence.
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Columbary (Ravelry link) is a stranded colorwork yoke sweater by Stephanie Lotven, knit in Yowza. What's great about the colorwork is that using a variegated colorway makes it look so much more complex than it actually is. While the original colors, Calming Aura and Deer Moss, are in the same color family, we think Columbary would look equally lovely in a more high contrast pairing, like Lurch & DFW 2020.
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Vinicunca is a slipped stitch sweater and hat (both Ravelry links) from Beatriz Rubio. The sweater calls for a full skein of Yowza and a six-skein set of Yowza Minis, while the hat calls for a neutral Yowza mini plus the six skein Yowza Mini set. Beatriz used Oyster and the namesake set (Vinicunca) for her sample. The sweater knits up quickly (thank you slipped stitches), and has a relaxed, boxy fit. We have a variety of Yowza Mini sets of six available, all of which work with many of our Yowza neutrals.
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Laura Aylor's Long Winter’s Night (Ravelry link) is a textural two-skein delight. Laura always incorporates a variety of stitches in her patterns--we like that this particular shawl uses mosaic knitting, lace, twisted stitches, all lending itself to a very textural accessory.
Laura used Killington in her sample, in Fogbound and Catbird. Some other options include: Fogbound and Pewter, Fig and Cascara, or Muslin and Adobe.
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Stark Baking Mad (Ravelry link) by Mary Annarella uses a fingering weight yarn (shown in Yummy 2-Ply). You'll need two of the main color, and one skein each of two additional colors. We also like Rutile Quartz, Cumin and Beryl, or Pegasus, Sugar, and Aubergine, or Frozen, Ergosphere, and Chirp. To see more suggested combinations check out our Stark Baking Mad sets. Tonal or monochromatic yarns seen to work better than variegated. This project knits up beautifully in ANY of our fingering weight yarns. like Putnam or Sonatina, or even add Estrellita for a bit of sparkle.
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There were so many great projects introduced last year--what were your favorites?
