theraineysisters knitting and so much more

Re: Sally’s Icarus Shawl.  We heard from Wendy that she opted for the Kidsilk Haze in green for a gorgeous shawl she made.  The green is indeed fabulous, but the knitters at Friday’s knitting group liked the grey (it is actually more of a smoky, taupy, lavenderish color) because of the sheen.  It looked pearlescent.  ALL the colors are absolutely stunning, any of them would be fabulous, Sally’s stash yielded several options without even a drive to the store — so therein was her dilemma.  She’ll post a picture soon, so hopefully the full beauty of the color can be seen.

I was talking to some knitting friends and one mentioned that the Aubrey Cap (Simply Shetland 2) is still her favorite hat and that she made several for gifts this Christmas.   I, too, love the hat (if I do say so myself) and have made at least a dozen for different stores in the Twin Cities and even a couple for myself.  When Gregory at Simply Shetland asked me to design a hat (in addition to the Rosemary Pullover), I of course said yes.  I had never knitted a hat in my life!  It is true.  Even though I have been knitting for decades, there are certain things I have never made.  Up until very recently, I had never made socks and I have only knitted giant felted mittens (not real ones for wearing). 

So, the first thing I needed to find was a generic “how to make a hat” pattern!  I used Nancy Lindberg’s pattern to get the architecture of the hat.  Gregory had a very specific style in mind — a cabled watchman’s cap.  I made the hat he requested and then designed the Aubrey Cap in addition.  They preferred the Aubrey Cap and the rest is history. 

This cap is knitted up in Cascade 220, Color #I-have-no-idea.  The shetland yarn used in the book is a bit scratchy.  I’ve knitted this up in various yarns successfully.  My knitting group teases me about changing every pattern I ever use, including my own.  I did indeed make some improvements to this pattern that are on the Knitting Tips page.

Please also note that the Beaded Mini-Purse pattern has been added under a new category: Free Patterns.  The formatting is a bit odd, but hey — it’s free!