Favorite Things: New Lace Knitting by Romi Hill

Posted on 17. January 2016

A little while ago I got the chance to meet up with one of my favorite knitwear designers: Romi Hill, who I’ve been admiring ever since I was a total knitting beginner and didn’t even know which way to hold the needles and yarn.

She’s just published her latest book, New Lace Knitting: Designs for Wide Open Spaces, and I want to take a closer look at this today and share it with you.

Writing a book is always a special thing, isn’t it? There are so many different aspects to it, and it’s easy to mess up with any of these and ruin the reading experience. Not to my surprise, Romi has done wonderfully in every way – I’ve enjoyed her book so much!

First of all – the print has a great quality. The paper has just the right thickness to it, and the pages have a great touch to them. (There are surely many who’d say this is not of importance and it’s much more relevant what’s written in the book than how it’s presented. But knitters are people who like things that feel good, and I’m no different from that. I don’t like cheap paper and washy prints – if I spend money for a book, I want to enjoy it on all levels!)

Next up – the designs. I love their timeless and classy elegance and would love to knit most of them for myself. Here’s my favorite from the book, it’s the Williwaw Cardigan.

I love this combination of a classic lace stitch pattern with a very unusual and modern construction of the piece.

All in all, it’s 19 designs in the book – a balanced mix of garments and accessories with a great attention to the small details. You’ll find sweaters, cardigans, shawls and scarves, a hat and even a skirt!

There’s a lovely and very informative introduction in which Romi tells a bit about herself and how she grew into the knitter she is today. There’s endless hints and tips about lace knitting – priceless for beginners but also for those who are experienced already.

Each pattern is laid out in a clear and easy to understand way. There’s schematics for the full range of sizes and it’s like Romi is taking you by the hand to guide you through the entire process – from cast-on to bind-off. And not only this – she describes the thoughts and inspirations behind her designs in a way that turns this book into a bit of a story. You can cast on right away and begin your first project – or sit down on a rainy afternoon with a cup of tea and just skim through the pages, read a bit here and there and enjoy the beautiful images.

New Lace Knitting is a must have in every lace knitters library. It’s available as a digital book via Interweave and as hardcopy via Interweave and Amazon. The patterns are not available individually, but the whole book is very reasonably priced and you get “a lot of bang for your buck”. If you knit most of the designs, it’s months (if not years) of knitting fun, and definitely worth it.

Happy Knitting! ♥

PS: Oh, here’s what I love most about my own copy – a wonderful reminder of a great day I spent with Romi last fall:

Thank you for that! ♥

Favorite things: Dandelion Yarns

Posted on 11. December 2015

Hey there, it’s been a while since my last post – time always seems to fly by, especially towards the end of the year!

I’ve spent the last weeks knitting like crazy, working on many new and exciting projects, and I’m looking forward to bring these to you within the next weeks and months.

But for today, I have something different for you.

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We all love to try out new yarns from time to time, don’t we? I’d like to show you Dandelion Yarns, a new-to-me dyer I came across, and some of her yarns that found their way into my stash. Anna Strandberg, who runs the dye studio, was so kind to answer a couple of questions to me.

Hi Anna – thanks so much for taking the time to chat with me today! For getting to know you a little better, tell us a bit about yourself! Who are you, and how do you spend your days?My name is Anna, I am a mother of two boys, and I work as an Art Director when I am not dyeing yarns. Haven´t had the guts to take the big plunge yet, mainly because it is inspiring to work as an Art Director too.

You’re living in Stockholm – is there a lot of knitting going on in Sweden? How does the knitting scene look like?
There is a lot of knitting going on here too. Many different directions. Some (like me) knits mostly from Ravelry, from both international designers and domestic. Others are highly inspired by our own old knitting traditions. I did do a bohus sweater in the beginning of the year though, which is a sort of old tradition, started in the 30th.

I think knitting in general has become a bit of a movement, and I love this community around me. It is so great to meet new knitters that I have met over Instagram.

How did you first get into dyeing? What got you started?

A couple of years ago I felt a strong urge to start working with yarns. So I had an idea of starting an organic web shop. Then I noticed how hard it was to find organic hand dyed yarns. But I found the Rosy Green Wool yarn base early on and decided to give it a try dyeing myself. And the snowball quickly went rolling. It was so much easier to sell my own dyed yarns than the other qualities I had bought. So I decided that having a yarnshop wasn’t anything for me. And went over to only dyeing.

I’ve seen your beautifully dyed Rosy Green base – why have you decided to use this yarn? It’s one of my very favorite ones, and offering it with that lovely touch of hand-dyed yarns is great, I think!

At one point I felt that I couldn’t continue buying yarns where I didn’t know if the animals were treated well or not. So I searched the web for that perfect yarn – and found Rosy Green wool. And I love it so much. Both to dye on, and to knit with.

Rosy Green yarns are GOTS certified – how important is this for you?

For me the care of the animals is most important. But it also feels really great that no pollutions are spilled and that those who work with the wool/yarn are treated fair too.

You’re also offering mini-skeins in gradient colorways – can you tell us a little about your process for making these?

I asked the same spinnery that spins Rosy Green wool to spin a fingering yarn, in organic merino/mohair, but in smaller skeins.

This summer I knitted the shawl Aranami, and the idea to make gradient-kits came to me. I start with mixing the color in a glass. Then I have a formula of how many percentage each skein needs, adds the amount of color in the pot, and dye the five separate skeins.

Can you give any advice to someone who has never used hand-dyed yarns before? Is there anything to consider?

Alternating skeins. Not only because of the risk of pooling, but also because it gives a great marled effect.

What is your favorite piece that you’ve made with yarn that you dyed yourself?

On top of my head, I come to think of two things. One is my Vouvray (that I have made two of, and thinking of a third), and the other is my Boxy. I practically live in them, and need to make more of both. The next Vouvray must be in worsted as given in the pattern. Mine is in sport, and perfect too.

You can find Anna on Instagram, Facebook and on her website.

Favorite things: Twig & Horn

Posted on 23. October 2015

If you’re following my blog for a while already, you know that I’m a huge fan of Quince & Co., a yarn company located at the coast of Maine. So quite naturally I was thrilled when I heard that Pam Allen, founder of Quince & Co., has started a new project.

Twig & Horn is a needlearts accessories company with a small but quite excellent line of products that make a knitter’s life easier.

Here’s what they say about themselves: “We are driven by the current American craftsman (and craftswoman!), whether they’re working with 1^st or 21^st century technology to make their goods. And we’re inspired by the enduring natural beauty and materials found here, as well as by the artistry of the cultures that existed here centuries and millennia ago.”

They were so lovely to send me a small assortment of what they offer and asked me to do a review, so let’s take a look!

The package itself that arrived at my place was special for two reasons: It used an eco-friendly material (the same envelopes Quince & Co. yarn comes in), and it was wrapped in a most lovely way. Let’s be honest – knitters are people that love beautyful details, so this alone was great already.

The first thing I unpacked was this gauge ruler, made from Baltic Birch Plywood, a material that’s known for its stability and durability.

It has a great natural feel to it, with a surface that’s plain and even so no fibers will possibly stick to it. Offering a metric as well as an American scale, it’s handy for knitters all over the globe. The 2 inches per 2 inches square makes it easy to handle the ruler: You actually only have to lay it on your knitting and can easily count the stitches – there’s no need to use pins to mark certain spots in the fabric.

There’s also a knitting needle gauge at the lower side of the ruler, going from 10 to 2 mm, or from US size 15 to 0.

I like this tool a lot more than I liked my old gauge ruler – that one was a lot smaller, made from plastic and pretty ugly. This one is not only handy but also has something beautiful to it. It’s well-balanced and well-thought-out.

The second thing I unwrapped was a piece of their Wool Soap Bar. This Soap comes in four different scents: White Grapefruit, Lemongrass, Rose Wood, and Unscented. Mine was in Rose Wood – what a lucky coincidence as I happen to love this scent!

As soon as I opened the paper box, the scent emerged and I wish this blog post could somehow transfer it to your place. It’s hard to describe – it was fresh, clean and reminded me of roses and freshly washed laundry, hanging outside in the sun to dry.

The soap is packed with the highest-grade lanolin available for restoring and optimizing wool garments.

On the back of the box, there’s a detailed description on how to best treat your woolen handknits with the soap.

Of course I wanted to try it out! Luckily, I had just the perfect item at hand: A small lace square I had just bound off the other day. (I’m working on a lace blanket made out of many, many mitered squares.)

All it takes is a small basin filled with lukewarm water. I soaked the square, lathered my hands with the soap and gently squeezed the suds through it.

I left the square in the water for another fifteen minutes, carefully took it out and pressed some of the water out. I didn’t rinse it, instead directly blocked it out to open up the fabric.

The square was beautiful once it had dried. The fabric was soft – it had really blossomed! And it carried this scent of rosewood, which was quite lovely.

So, did I get you interested in Twig & Horn? If so, you can find their website here or follow them on Instagram. They’re working on extending their range of products, so it’s definitely worth it to keep an eye out for what they come up with next.

Woolfolk Fall / Winter 2015

Posted on 6. September 2015

Do you remember the big excitement that hit the knitting world pretty much exactly one year ago, when Woolfolk went live and released Tynd and Får, their two Ultra Merino qualities? Ever since I worked with these two first I was deeply in love, and so I’m really flattered and honored to be part of Woolfolk’s Fall / Winter 2015 collection that was published just a few days ago.

Tryk is my contribution – a modern and highly wearable shawl/scarf, easy to knit and eye-catching in its simplicity.

It uses intarsia to create asymmetrical blocks of color on a biased background.

And hey – we’ll have a KAL for this pattern! Starting some time in the beginning of October, we’ll do a Woolfolk KAL in my group on Ravelry. Tryk, Ropedance, and one more pattern that’s yet to be revealed (hint, hint!) – will I see you there? I’d certainly love to!

But I was not yet done telling you about the Woolfolk collection! Many of my favorite designers have gathered to present Tynd and Får in the most beautiful way – and also Sno, the newly released marled yarn. There’s Olga Buraya-Kefelian, Bristol Ivy, Antonia Shankland, Michelle Wang and Kristin Ford herself – what a nice club!🙂

There are five garments in the collection – each of them a wonderful mixture of classic and modern style, wearable pieces that have just the right twist to set them far apart from the mainstream. See Bristol’s Stråle? What a beauty!

Another one of my favorites is Bo, a dolman shaped pullover that’s enhanced by all over textured ribbing; showing amazing drape with structured lines and decorative decreases. Oh I really love this one – and what a beautiful presentation!

Favorite things – Tin, a new Blacker yarn

Posted on 30. August 2015

A couple of days ago my friends at Blacker Yarns got in touch with me to let me know about something very special: They’re celebrating their 10th anniversary. And what could a Cornish Wool Mill do better than celebrate this with a new yarn?

Here’s what they say about Tin: “This lovely woollen spun yarn is blended from a collection fo ten of the highest quality fibers which we know and love, from suppliers with whom we work regularly.”

They’ve used ten different fibers to blend into this yarn: Alpaca, Mohair, Gotland, Jacob, Shetland, Black Welsh Mountain, Texel, English Merino, Falklands Merino and Gotland/Romney Cross – it’s an impressive medley of the wide variety of British fibers.

Tin is a truly limited edition and will not be reproduced. So quite logically, the palette it comes in is small.

From top to bottom, it’s Levant Grey, Pengenna Green, Botallack Blue, Dolcoath Turquoise and Wheal Rose Red – all of these names refer to Cornwall, the home of Blacker Yarns, and it’s a small, but very fine range of colors – perfect for adult garments, I would say.

As you can see from the color card, there are two weights available – 4-ply and DK.

I’ve swatched the DK – take a look. From top to down it’s garter stitch, stockinette stitch, a slip stitch texture and a twisted 1×1 ribbing.

Oh yes, Tin has its very own character! This is not your fancy super-wash merino – this yarn is rustic and sturdy in the most lovely way.

I would not use it for texture-heavy knits – the Alpaca and Mohair fibers have a slight fuzz and will hide a lot of the texture, as you can see in the swatch, too. But the DK weight is absolutely perfect for cold-weather garments or shawls. When swatching I actually felt ported back through time, to back when I knitted the samples for my “5 Shawls” collection – Tin and Owl feel a bit like sisters. I loved working with a rustic yarn like Owl, and I can totally say the same about Tin.

Fot the 4-ply version, that would be great for all kinds of projects. I can see myself doing a cardigan, a shawl or a small accessory set in this – the latter is especially teasing as Christmas is not far away and it’s getting time for some gift knitting.

Did I get you excited, too?

Cornish Tin will launch on September 18, but the color cards are available now already.

You can find Blacker Yarns on Facebook, on Instagram or join their Ravelry group to show your creations.

Texture is the new black

Posted on 22. August 2015

Hey – it’s been a while since I posted last. That’s because I was really busy, working on something big.🙂

And today I’m super excited to tell you that Texture is the new black, my latest collection, has finally gone live!

This is a collaboration with Malabrigo as one of their freelance pattern projects, and I couldn’t be more happy with the entire project. I enjoyed this from A to Z – from spending the first days thinking about yarn and color choices to receiving the yarn in the mail (THAT was awesome!), to slowly starting to knit through all five projects, writing the patterns, sharing them with my tech editor and my test knitters to finally, finally getting them out in the knitting world!

This has been a long process – when I last checked my emails to find out when Malabrigo and I were in touch because of this for the first time, I gasped in astonishment when I noticed that was more than a year ago! Yes, all things knit meander slowly…

Are you following me on Instagram? I enjoyed giving little sneak peeks from time to time – here’s a round-up:

So – what is this collection actually? It’s all about texture! Five classic knits for every occasion: A pullover, a cardigan, a big shawl and a set of mitts and a hat, all focussing on the beautiful surface of knit fabric and its many variations.

Threshold is a modern drop-shoulder sweater, standing at the doorway between textured and smooth. The front features a subtle criss-cross design, which also graces the cuffs, and the drop-shoulder construction and boxy cut (you’ve just a hint of waist shaping) make for a simple pattern to follow.

Earthy textures combine with glimmering gold highlights in Sunwalker, a subtle asymmetrical shawl. A pebbly seed stitch forms the body, with a swath of lace arching across the lower section of the shawl, and finishing with a clean I-cord edge.

The simply elegant construction of Risen makes this topdown, seamless cardigan a breeze to knit and a classic in the closet. It’s edged with a pebbly textured neckband, which is worked along with the body to eliminate the need to pick up stitches. The three-quarter sleeves and hem are finished with just a kiss of cabling, and there’s a touch of waist shaping for a flattering fit.

Playful stitches twist and twine through Qwist Mitts, a cozy fingerless knit with a mischievous texture. The diagonal weave pattern creates both interest and an extra bit of warmth, while a mock cable runs the length to frame the thumb gusset. Twisted (or, shall we say “qwisted”?) ribbing at the openings keeps them snugly in place. Silky-soft Malabrigo Finito is a treat for chilly hands.

Cozy yet lightweight, the Qwist Hat is knit with a diagonal stitch pattern that creates warmth without bulk – perfect for those bright fall days when evenings come with an edge of chill. “Qwisted” mock cables run up from the hem, while twisted ribbing makes for a stretchy brim with sharp definition.

It’s a wonderful feeling seeing all these five projects finished, and even more: Seeing them all sing the same song! When I first started thinking about this collection, I knew the approximate direction I wanted to go into, but I was far from knowing all the details. Watching this all come together is priceless!

Another thing I truly love about this collection is how it connects me with some of the best friends I’ve made on Ravelry – women from all over the world. I’ve not met most of them in person, but I truly consider them as friends, and as wonderful people. They all walked some part of the way together with me, helping me with their valuable input, with their detailed feedback, with hints and suggestions and with their experience in knitting.

The wonderful Heli has been my tech editor for all five patterns – lending me her brain when my own failed.🙂

My dear friend Cara was ready to test Sunwalker, and to bear my constant swearing about this pattern as I was fighting with the lace section.

Alyssa has been testing both, Threshold and Risen, and she did a most fabulous job on both!

My friend Jill has already tested many of my patterns, and I was super glad to have her on board for Risen. She’s such an experienced knitter and could easily sail through this pattern – even though it was not yet even finished when she began! (Right – we had some time pressure, that’s why Jill started knitting Risen when I was still working on the pattern… boy, this woman is brave!)

And last but not least, my friend Laura used her precious Malabrigo yarn to knit up two beautiful samples of the Qwist Mitts and Hat. And for getting photos of the finished objects, she wrapped herself in a large, woolen shawl and put them both on – at more than 90°F / 32°C! That was heroic!🙂

Thanks so much, dear ladies! ♥

So, what’s left for me to say? Oh yeah – there’s a KAL for all five pieces going on in my Ravelry group right now! Come and join in – I’d love to see your projects come to life!

Any Shawl KAL

Posted on 12. May 2015

Is there a Mairlynd shawl pattern that you’ve been wanting to knit for just the longest time, but haven’t gotten around to it yet? Or maybe you have a Mairlynd shawl on your needles but sitting in a basket, waiting to be finished. Well, this is your chance to make that WIP a FO!

We just started the “Any Shawl KAL” in my group on Ravelry – come and join in with any of my shawl patterns you like, and there’s no obligation to finish by June 12, the deadline of the KAL.

And we have prizes, too! I thought for giving a little of your support and love back to you, it would be great to share some of my favorite yarns with you. All of these have been donated by the dyers or companies I’ve worked together with lately – Julie Asselin, Shalimar Yarns, Sunshine Yarns, Sun Valley Fibers, Wollfaktor and Woolfolk yarn. I hope you’ll enjoy them!

Oh, and there are two surprise shawl patterns coming out within the days in Quince & Co. Owl and Tern – of course these are perfect for the KAL, too. Come and join us – I’d love to see you knit along with us!

Oceanbound

Posted on 1. May 2015

Happy 1st of May, everyone! We just got home from a small fair – cotton candy, merry-go-rounds and music for the kids, gleaming childrens’ eyes for the grown-ups.🙂

And I’m glad to announce that a new design just went live – this time as a collaboration with the lovely folks over at Craftsy.

A soft play of colors and a lacy pattern that arises and falls again like waves in an ocean before they finally reach the shore – Oceanbound is a soft reminder of the sea. It is worked from tip to edge and has a generous size that will hug your shoulders.

Craftsy has put together a beautiful little collection of spring shawls – designs by Andrea Rangel and Romi Hill are also part of it.

And the yarn…! Do I really need to say how much I love Tosh Merino Light?🙂 It’s such a beautiful allround yarn – perfect for exquisite lace shawls, for modern designs, squishy garter stitch or garments of any kind, and the wide range of amazing colors is a playground for every creative soul.

Do you plan to purchase a kit from Craftsy? If you do so, keep in mind that we start the “Any Shawl KAL” soon in my Ravelry group. You can join in with any of my shawl patterns and we’re offering great company on the way as well as some fabulous yarn prizes.

I’d love to see some Oceanbound shawls knit up real soon! ♥

5 Shawls

Posted on 26. April 2015

When do you know you haven’t blogged for too long? When your mother tells you she’s been to your site and the last entry was from January! That really gave me a little push, and I’ll take some time within the next days to tell you what I’ve been up to lately.

The biggest project that kept me busy throughout the last year was the 5 Shawls collection I did together with my friends at Quince & Co.

This has been a collaboration I loved from A to Z and I’m happy and proud that it’s finally live!

5 Shawls is all about a special yarn – Owl. It’s a worsted weight blend of wool and alpaca, a rustic yarn with its very own character. It comes in a large and beautiful color palette and I was instantly drawn to the neutral shades. They were harmonic and offered so many subtle variations – something that I tried to show with the collection.

So, what is it that draws so many of us to knitting shawls?

Is it the way they easily knit up and allow us to quickly see progress? Is it the lesser importance of working at an exact gauge, hence granting a relaxed knitting experience because two or three inches off won’t matter? Or, thinking of the finished piece, the versatility they offer in wearing them?

For me, it’s probably a mix of all these.

I’m both – a process and a progress knitter. I want to enjoy my knitting experience as much as the finished piece, and when designing patterns, I put a strong focus on this, too.

Isn’t it enjoyable keeping your hands busy while working on a project, and at the same time allowing your thoughts to wander, daydream for a while? I feel my energy tanks are refilling when I’m knitting this way, and I wanted to pass this on to you.

The collection includes five shawls – each of them special in its very own way, but at the same time, all five share a common element: The ease of knitting.

I’ve tried to add as much variation as possible, always keeping this element in mind. You’ll find triangular shawls, semi-circular shawls, ones that use eye-catching colorwork and ones that reside more on the subtle side of colorplay. Lovely garter stitch makes up for a relaxed knitting experience, while different approaches to colorwork softly guide you to using new techniques, making them simple to grasp.

Owl offers a beautiful palette, and I really was drawn to the wide variety of neutrals. It’s amazing having a colorful and vibrant accessory, one that makes you stand out and instantly draws everyone’s eyes on you, but for this collection, I wanted to stay on the subtle side. Just as the generous size of each of these five shawls offers a great wearability, their muted colorschemes will make sure they’ll pair well together with most any piece of your wardrobe.

Sit back for a while and picture the clothes you wear most – are these the vibrant ones, wildly patterned, an explosion of style? Or do you rather feel yourself when dressed in understated pieces, suitable for every day? I found that for me, it’s the latter most times, and this is something I wanted to echo in the spirit of this collection.

Well, neutral doesn’t mean boring! After I narrowed down the colors to only a few, ranging from bright beige over different shades of grey to a dark and strong brown, it was exciting to pair them with each other and to see how different they make each other appear like. Playing with these combinations was inspiring and I was pleased seeing each single shawl grow on my needles.

So, where will you go from here? Will you follow me and create soft pieces of beauty that’ll prove loyal companions in everyday life? Or will you take your shawls to the funky side, accenting your appearance with some color? Both is possible, and sometimes the truth lies in the middle. I’ll be excited to see you make these pieces your own!

If you like to, come over to my group on Ravelry and share your ideas, your works in progress or your finished shawls! ♥

Quicksilver

Posted on 5. January 2015

Hey all, a Happy New Year to you!

We’ve spent some wonderful, lazy holidays at home – hosting guests, cooking awesome food, listening to music, playing with the kids and just enjoying each other’s company, and after these past two weeks I really feel my energy tanks refilled. I’m itching to cast on all the things and I’m looking forward to the new year and all it’ll bring us, fiber-wise.

What about you? Are you ready for some selfish knitting, now that all the gift knitting is (hopefully) over?

If so, Quicksilver might just be the right thing for you!

I just released the pattern and it’s available in English and German directly via Ravelry. And we’re doing a knit-along (KAL), too – so if you feel like knitting in company, hop on board on share your progress.

Working on a new design is always an exciting process – and it’s never the same! Some designs come easily, some make you think hard, some have you crunching numbers and others just happen inbetween – just like Quicksilver did. I’ve had five beautiful skeins from Sun Valley Fibers at home, and for a couple of weeks, while I was working on other designs, they were just lying in our living room. I looked at them a lot but never really spent time thinking about, planning the design, and as soon as my other work was done, the magic happened: I chose three colors, wound them into balls and almost instantly started knitting. I so enjoyed this shawl that I spent every free minute on it, so after only a couple of days I was ready to bind off.

It really had something magic about it, the entire process, and so I’m not surprised that Quicksilver soon became one of my favorite shawls. Although the color combination is quite unexceptional, it goes pretty well with most other pieces in my wardrobe, and and silky yarn with all its drape is a pleasure to wear.

There are many Quicksilver projects on Ravelry already, so if you need some color inspiration, take a look there!

Here are some details about the pattern – and if you like to, come join us in the KAL. I’d love to welcome you there!

Yarn

Sun Valley Fibers M/C/S (75% Merino, 15% Cashmere, 10% Silk; 100 g / 400 yds [366 m])

1 skein in color „Stormy“ (color A)

80 g / 320 yds [293 m] used for sample
1 skein in „Waterfalls“ (color B)

82 g / 328 yds [301 m] used for sample
1 skein in „Golden Harvest“ (color C)

74 g / 296 yds [271 m] used for sample

Needles

US 6 [4.00 mm] circular needles (47“ [120 cm]) or size to obtain gauge

Notions

1 removable stitch marker (optional)

Gauge

10 sts x 20 rows = 2“ x 2“ [5 cm x 5 cm] in garter stitch, blocked

Finished measurements

79“ [200 cm] wingspan along top edge and 23.5“ [60 cm] width