New Pattern: Gentle Blooms

By -

Gentle Blooms is perfect for using up those special skeins of yarn. Gentle Blooms is a bandana-style cowlette, which means you get the beauty and fun of a shawl at a small scale but it’s easy to wear and will stay in position.

woman wearing navy, pink and cream bandana cowl with pink stranded roses

The design came about as I had quite a lot of yarn leftover from my Vertices Unite. The yarn was a gorgeous merino and silk blend, and I didn't want to leave it languishing in my stash.

woman holding a large shawl in garter stitch in grey, navy, pink and cream

Maybe you've got some gorgeous yarns in your stash that aren't enough for shawl. The quantities needed are -

MC: Navy - 225m [247yds]

CC1: Cream - 85m [93yds]

CC2: Pink - 97m [107yds]

As usual, I wanted the knitting to be enjoyable, so the vast majority is knit and purl. There is a handful of stranded knitting rows for the "Gentle Blooms". The positioning gives the biggest impact for quite a small section of stranded knitting. Or as they say "the biggest bang for your buck!".


pink stranded knit flowers at the edge of a navy cowl

Since it's all about the details on a project like this, the neckline edge is a double selvedge stitch (it's just slip stitches and knit).

detail of double slipped stitch edge in pink and cream stripes

The first part of the cowl is worked flat and then you move into the round. It's really easy to block too. Just lay it out in the shape below, the fold lines are at the central stitch, so makes it lovely and crisp.

There's an easy knot stitch halfway through for a little palette cleanser and even though the stitch is easy to work, there is a quick video tutorial included (just in case).

Navy, cream and pink triangular cowl laid out flat on a pale blue table


navy, cream and pink bandana cowl on a mannequin

​Use the introductory discount code YORKSHIREYARNFEST for a 15% discount off this and all my other self-published patterns until midnight BST Monday 26 April 2021. This will work for both Ravelry, Payhip and Etsy.

Newsletter subscribers get an exclusive (higher) discount, so if you're interested in hearing about new releases and getting this discount then please sign up to the newsletter.


Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Substituting Yarn in a Project

By -
Image
So you’ve chosen your pattern, but either you don’t want to use the recommended yarn or you can’t find it to buy. This does not mean you are stuck. Many knitters, especially when they are just learning to knit, get stuck on the idea that you can only use the yarn that the pattern is written with. There are, occasionally, a few projects where it can be quite hard to find an alternative but that is very rare. There are a few factors that you want to think about when changing yarn.  Yarn Thickness The main one is the thickness of the yarn. This is the one factor that you absolutely have to consider. Everything else that I discuss below helps to hone your decision down but yarn thickness is at the core of a project. If you use a thicker yarn, it could make the fabric too dense and often make it impossible to match the gauge of the pattern. If you use a thinner yarn, then it will be more open and airy than intended; there’s more scope with this but some projects such as toys and bl
Read more

Photo Tutorial: How to Back a Knitted Blanket

By -
Image
Recently, I was asked to help out with a project. This wonderful blanket (designed by Debbie Abrahams from her book, Blanket and Throws to Knit ) was knitted by Ann. I was asked to piece it together and back it. The finished blanket is being used to raise money for When you Wish Upon a Star. The yarn was donated by A Good Yarn and the fabric and cotton by L & C Fabrics . I thought I’d show you how I went about backing the blanket, I went about it as I would a quilt. Though, I decided tying would be the best way of layering it together, as traditional quilting would be difficult on a knitted fabric. 1. Block the blanket. I pinned it out and spritzed it. Normally, I would wet block, but I was concerned that the red may bleed and it would take some time to dry too. 2. My blanket was too large for a standard width so I pieced the backing. The backing should be a few inches larger than the knitted blanket. Place it right side down on the floor. I then tape it down o
Read more

Photo & Video Tutorial: Magic Loop Cast-On

By -
Image
There are many different techniques for working in the round. One of my favourite techniques is magic loop. Benefits Less joins than DPNs, so less ladders Ladders are less likely to happen The needles are attached to each other, so you can't lose one down the side of a train seat! You just need to ask my friend, Julie, about that one! If the stitch count changes, then nothing needs to change with the needles. Unlike using small circulars or DPNs As the stitches are split in half, this lends itself particularly well to socks, mitts etc. For example, the heel stays on one half and the instep stitches on the other, none of the stitches need to be put on holders or moved about For the same reason, you don't need to use as many stitch markers as the ends of the needles mark the natural halfway points Just move the knitting onto the cables and there's no chance of losing any stitches when it's in your bag You don't get DPNs stuck up your sleeve! Downsides Can take a bit o
Read more