So Long to Summer

Hi, Knitters,

I hope you are doing well. I just returned from a fantastic trip to the San Diego area for my nephew's wedding. We made a vacation out of it and stayed for a week. It was so fun and the area is just beautiful. We rented a house in La Jolla and that was interesting. The neighborhood was filled with gorgeous homes and extensive landscaping. The neighborhood roads were winding and very hilly and narrow. The wedding was top-notch actually taking place in a park in Del Mar. I'll share some photos when I get them transferred to my computer.

For now, I just wanted to pop in and say hello and to let you know that I have a 50% off pattern sale going on for the Barrett Wool Co. patterns. These can be purchased on Ravelry or on the Barrett Wool Co. website.

To get 50% off any of the Barrett Wool Co. patterns enter the code at checkout. The sale is going now and will end on tomorrow, Monday, Aug. 28th, 2017.

The code is:  SOLONG

Click here to see all of the patterns on Barrett Wool Co.!

Click here to see all of the patterns on Ravelry!

There are patterns for shawls, hats, mittens, toys, a cowl, etc. The hat above is the Erland Hat and we have some kits available right here! This hat was designed by Tanis Gray.

The Baker's Hat uses one skein of Home Fingering Weight. Both of my sons love their Baker's Hats so much. It fits both men and women. 

The Owen Hat is a fun colorwork hat that uses our Wisconsin Woolen Spun Fingering Weight and Home Fingering Weight. 

The Sonora Shawl is a design by Kirsten Kapur and it is a stunning and fun shawl to knit. There is not one purl stitch in the entire shawl and the mosaic section only uses one color at a time. It looks deceptively more complicated than it is which is the best!

The shawl uses 3 skeins of Home Fingering Weight, two in a main color, and one in a contrast color.

Baa is a sweet sheep pattern and it is one of the first projects a designed in Barrett Wool Co.

Baa uses Home Fingering Weight. 

The Wrap Me Up Toys pattern has been really popular. It uses our Home Worsted Weight. The toys are all worked completely seamlessly. 

Anway, those are just a few.  Thanks for stopping by and have a beautiful Sunday, Knitters.

I'll be back soon with more.

xo ~ susan

The Fruits of Summer

Hi, Knitters,

The summer is going a little too quickly around here. But one thing I really look forward to is the ripening of our backyard garden. We have a good-sized garden in a sunny spot that is fenced in to keep out the rabbits. We have two raised beds and I think this year we finally have it down. The plants are spread out and supported nicely and this is paying off. Our trouble has always been overplanting. 

This year we have a couple of kinds of peppers, cucumbers, eggplant, a big variety of tomatoes from cherry to Roma to heirloom, and tons of basil. My favorites are the tomatoes. I love tomatoes and once this season hits I can eat a tomato sliced up with salt and pepper for breakfast, lunch, snacks, and dinner. It is a highlight of summer. 

The shining stars this summer are the heirloom tomatoes. These are the best we've grown. I love the taste, the look, and the color of these heirlooms. I love the folds and gathers at the top, kind of looks like a knit hat. 

Anyway, I hope you are having success if you garden or maybe if you get to hit a farmers' market or two this summer.

One other fun thing about August is hiking in our neighborhood conservancy. The paths become enveloped in tall grasses, way above my head, and the masses of flowers are beyond belief. No photo can capture what it's really like. The colors and sounds are so beautiful. Hiking in August is something I look forward to every year and with the rainfall this summer, everything is in its prime.

I started a couple of fun projects this past week. One project I am especially excited about is a pattern that's not released yet but it is coming soon. I cast on and started a red cardigan with pockets and a fun textured stitch pattern. I will keep you posted. I think wearing a red cardigan this fall and winter is going to make me really happy. 

Yarn: Home Worsted Weight in the Red Flannel colorway

The other project I started and finished is this gorgeous Erland hat. Tanis Gray is the designer and she wrote the pattern for Barrett Wool Co. I love this kind of hat that is simply casting on and following a chart for the entire hat. Erland is one of my favorite knits ever.

In the photo above, that's Tanis' sample hat and on the right is my version of Erland.

I finished it up in one day and here it is blocking. I modified the original Erland pattern a little bit but not much. I knit the hat on a US size 7 needle at 5 stitches per inch. I added some corrugated ribbing for extra length to cover my ears. And because I was knitting at a bigger gauge I took out one of the repeats, so instead of four repeats I only did three repeats. 

I misjudged the length a tiny bit. After Erland dried I realized that I should have only done one-inch of corrugated ribbing instead of two-inches. So I tucked the cast on edge under and whipstitched it to the inside of the Latvian braid so the brim is doubled, which I love. 

Now the hat is perfect and the fit is fantastic. When you only do three repeats instead of four repeats of the chart the top of the hat becomes slightly pointed. I blocked out the point as much as possible and when the hat is worn there is no visible point. 

Anyway, I love this hat. I feel like it is a tiny piece of art. Thank you to Tanis for such a rewarding design. I haven't had this much fun knitting a hat in awhile. 

Click here for the Erland pattern on Ravelry!

Click here for the Erland Kit on Barrett Wool Co.!

Click here for Home Worsted Weight in the Snowy Pine and Marmalade colors!

I finished writing up all sorts of good tutorials and updates on the Gigi Cardigan. It has been really fun to walk through a typical modification series for a simple top-down cardigan.

Click here if you are interested in seeing tutorials and notes on a Knotted Steek, button placement, sleeve fitting, short rows on necklines and hemlines, adding pockets and more. 

There is a lot of good information for sweater knitters here!

Okay, friends, thank you for the Smooth Operator Socks pattern love. The discount has been extended through the weekend. No code is necessary for the discount on the pattern. 

Click here for the discounted Smooth Operator Socks pattern!

Love to you and yours.

xo ~ susan

Smooth Operator Socks Anniversary Celebration!

Hi, Knitters,

I'm checking in on this lovely Sunday. I hope you are well. We are having a little cooler weather for August which is really pleasant. Today is supposed to be in the mid-70s for a high. I like it. I have been knitting up a storm and I have some fun things coming out this fall so I am looking forward to that. I'll keep you posted if you are interested.

Today, I am celebrating the one year anniversary of my Smooth Operator Socks pattern which was published last summer. This sock pattern/tutorial has become my most popular pattern of all time. In order to make the first anniversary a little special I made some additions to the pattern and I discounted the price.

The Smooth Operator Socks pattern is on sale for $3.50 from Aug. 5-12, 2017! No code is necessary. The pattern will return to the regular price of $5.00 on Aug.13, 2017.

Click here to find out more or to purchase the Smooth Operator Socks pattern!

So I've added a couple of new things. 

The first is a new additional tutorial has been added to the Variation Notes at the end of the Smooth Operator Socks pattern. The new tutorial is called No Waste Yarn Afterthought Heel and it takes you step-by-step through how to cut directly into the sock to make the opening for the afterthought heel. It's an even simpler way of adding in an afterthought heel with less fuss.

The second thing I've added is a recipe for adding the beautiful heart motif to your Smooth Operator Socks over on the Barrett Wool Co. Journal. There is a chart and there are general instructions to help you do this. I love the look of these heart-filled socks. The heart instructions do not include the full sock pattern. 

Click here for the Smooth Operator Heart Socks!

The yarn in the photos is Barrett Wool Co. Home Fingering Weight in the Red Flannel colorway. One skein is plenty for an adult-size pair of socks. 

Click here for Home Fingering Weight!

The Heart motif will work on any type of yarn, solid, striped, tonal or gradient. 

Have fun if you partake in the Smooth Operator Socks pattern discount or if you add hearts to your next pair of SOSocks. Keep me posted.

We have re-stocked handmade faux-fur pom-poms in the Mercantile and we got some new colors! If you order a skein of Home Worsted Weight or Wisconsin Woolen Spun Worsted Weight we will kit-it-up for you to make an Entwined Hat kit. Let us know on your order if this is something you would like us to do.

Click here for the BWC Mercantile! 

Okay, Friends, have a super Sunday. I will be back soon with more. I hope you are having a fantastic day.

xo ~ susan