Laura (lauralkeet)'s 2023 fun with fiber

My favorite projects from 2022: Christopher Bunny, and Newhaven Gansey Sweater

Last year started off with a hat-knitting binge, using up yarn in my stash. Most of those hats were donated through a collection drive organized by the Fiber Guild. The Gansey Sweater then became my focus for the next several months.

I can see now that I initially gravitated towards smaller, easier projects as a break from the rigor of the Master Hand Knitting program. My knitting mojo returned with the sweater, and I'm looking forward to taking on other challenging projects in 2023.

This cardigan is my current project. The pattern is called Avix, and it's a lace design in worsted weight yarn. This is a pattern photo, but my yarn is a similar light blue color. I started it in late November and it's coming together fairly quickly. I finished the body the other day, and after a short break for the holidays I'll work the sleeves.

I'm also working on a hat made from various bits of scrap yarn, 4 strands held together. These are the colors:

Well, You're the first to post for next year. I have one thing I might try to finish before I start next year's thread. Hope you have a good knitting year. I always like to see your projects.

>2 lauralkeet: Love the colours for your scrappy hat, Laura!

Lovely recap of your 2022 work, Laura. I love that cardigan. Looking forward to seeing what you do in 2023.

>4 MickyFine: Thanks Micky. The pattern specifies 110g of fingering weight (sock) yarn for an adult hat. I have a bunch of sock yarn scraps and enjoyed sorting them into groups of complementary colors. But it was surprisingly difficult to amass 110g! I might make a second hat with more adventurous color combinations.

>5 avaland: Thank you Lois!

>6 lauralkeet: - Would buying like 1 skein of a complementary color give you enough?

>7 dudes22: Yes it would. I've been looking at this as a fun challenge both to use up these tiny balls of yarn while playing with color.

But also? *smacks forehead* I have partial skeins of sock yarn in another bin! These are not enough for a pair of socks or other complete project, but they're not exactly remnants either. Probably 25-50g of each. More color play ahead!

Clearly I was dealing with a caffeine deficiency when I posted >6 lauralkeet:.

>8 lauralkeet: - Been there!

The scrappy hat turned out to be an easy, quick knit. I finished it yesterday so it "counts" for 2022 (not that I'm counting ...).

Using 4 strands of sock yarn held together, you knit about 1" of ribbing followed by several inches of stockinette, and then decrease rows at the crown. The hat is then turned inside out. The fabric is fairly dense. Reverse stockinette on the public side creates a nice effect with the multiple yarns used.

The finished hat looks nicer with a pom pom than without. The pattern specifies 110g of yarn (about the same amount as for 2 socks). This was plenty for hat and pom pom.

That's a great hat, Laura! Love the combination of colours - that burgundy-esque colour is really nice.

Beautiful, Laura!

Cute! That does create an interesting pattern when turned inside out.

When I was growing up, my family (mom, dad, brother, me) all had matching Christmas stockings made by my paternal grandmother, around 1973. Grandma made a stocking for Chris when we got married (1983), and for Kate when she was born (Jan 1993). When Julia was born (Dec 1995), Grandma could no longer manage knitting so my mom made Julia's stocking the following Christmas.

For a while now the idea of making stockings for the next generation has been percolating. My mom sent me the pattern about 10 years ago and I filed it away for just this moment. I didn't really understand it, and I'll never know whether that was because it was old-fashioned or because I was new to knitting, because now I can't find it anywhere.



These two photos show the "construction". Unlike most vintage knit stockings, in these only the front is knitted. The front appears to be knit flat with decorative duplicate stitch for the motifs & names, then lined with red felt. The back and loop are also red felt. The whole thing is seamed together (second photo is the stocking inside-out).

In 2023 I'm going to try to "reverse engineer" the stockings and write a new pattern to keep the tradition going. With any luck I'll also make stockings for Kate and Julia's partners.

That sounds like a fun challenge, Laura!

Looks like you finished the year with a bang!

I'm going to make another hat using the same pattern as the one pictured in >10 lauralkeet:. The greens & blues were in my remnants bin, and the yellow in a different bin of partial skeins with more yardage. I think it will add a nice "pop".

>10 lauralkeet: Really like that toque and the way it uses up yarns. So many possibilities!

>14 lauralkeet: That's a good idea with the felt backing - it not only keeps the knitting from stretching as much, it saves on yarn.

>17 lauralkeet: - I like those colors.

>18 SassyLassy:, >19 dudes22: The hat is a great way to use up leftover yarn. This and the previous hat used 4 different yarns, but you could also use 4 strands of, say, 2 colors for a different marled effect. I have some off-white yarn that would work well with a dark blue or mauve, if I have enough of each.

>18 SassyLassy: I agree with you about the felt. I'm kind of surprised it's held up so well over the years. For some reason on one stocking my grandmother didn't line the front piece, which was probably just an oversight. But it's been quite helpful because I can examine the knitting on the wrong side and get clues on how it was made. For example, I thought the motifs were done in duplicate stitch after knitting the stocking, but it appears they are actually done in intarsia.

A post over on Paws' thread reminded me that I intended to post a couple of Christmas gifts from my husband.



The Nordic Primer and Knitted Socks from Finland

Chris knows I love traditional knitting and colorwork, but still I was impressed that he chose these all by himself, without any prompts from a wish list. It looks like the Finnish socks book was only recently translated into English.

>21 lauralkeet: Oooh, so much pretty!

>21 lauralkeet: Ooh both of those covers are gorgeous! *heads off to see if I've ordered these for work*

Excellent choices!

I love the Finnish socks!

I enjoy just paging through these books and admiring the photography, but also look forward to actually making something. Much like cookbooks, really.

A huge WOW for your Christmas books. Love the socks and the blue & white sweater. Your Christopher rabbit is quite dear.

>21 lauralkeet: Oh! He's a keeper! heh

>10 lauralkeet: That hat is REALLY cute.

>14 lauralkeet: I love the idea of continuing the stocking tradition!

>28 lesmel: Yes, the hubs has his moments!
I'm glad you like the hat. My second one is shaping up nicely too (it's in blues/greens/yellows shown in >17 lauralkeet:).
As for the stocking, I'm bringing it to my knitting group this morning to get some input on how the foot/heel/toe is done. I'm using to doing this with a full sock knit in the round; in this case I'd be knitting just half of a sock, flat.

If I didn't say it before...you have been busy. Those Christmas stockings reminded me of the ones my mother did for my kids and I made for others' kids. I think Larissa has made some from her two kiddos (it's nice that they stretch, LOL)

I'm still plugging away at my Avix cardigan (see pattern photo in >2 lauralkeet:). I'm on the last step now: a band of ribbing that runs from the bottom right front up to the neck and all the way around to the bottom left front. To create this you start with a very long circular needle and pick up 265 stitches along the selvedge edge. It's not difficult, just a lot of counting. I've placed markers evenly along the edge and will pick up about 30 stitches between each marker. This will help me keep track of where I am and not lose count.

My second scrappy hat is about 2/3 complete and I should be able to finish that up after the cardigan is done. The colors are shown in >17 lauralkeet:; the yellow is bringing just the "pop" I was hoping for.

This week I've been doing some swatching to work out the construction of my family Christmas stocking (again, photos: >14 lauralkeet:). Because only the front is knitted, it's not made like a normal sock and I need to figure out the techniques for working the heel and toe. Yesterday I tried a short-row method that worked well for the heel, so yay. Swatching this in worsted weight yarn also confirmed that the stockings actually require bulky weight yarn. Small steps in the right direction!

With the end in sight on the Avix cardigan, of course my thoughts began turning to what's next. PurlSoho was having a 20% off sale on their yarns, and I felt duty bound to support them (ha).



I'm going to make this cardigan, "Forest Finds." It includes a zipper but there are also instructions for a button band, which I might use instead. And I'll make it in this sort of teal blue color:

Good to hear the projects are going well - I look forward to seeing the finished Avix cardigan.
And the cardigan in >32 lauralkeet: looks great. The teal colour is wonderful.

>32 lauralkeet: That's a lovely shade of yarn!

Sounds like you're moving right along with your projects. I like the color yarn you've picked for your next sweater.

Congrats on nearing the end of your cardigan project. I love the colour of yarn you've chosen for your next one.

Thanks! The yarn has shipped and arrives tomorrow, which I'm excited about even though I won't be ready to use it yet.

Love that teal yarn! I have a couple of sweaters with zippers and, frankly, I don't like them. The zippers make the fronts of the sweaters undulate, so you get drumlins and eskers all up your front. Besides, there are some really beautiful buttons out there.

That's good to know, Tui. I mostly just dislike sewing in zippers and it's been ages since I've done it so it's entirely possible I'd ruin the sweater right at the end. But the undulation thing would bug the heck out of me.

And drumlins and eskers too -- oh my!! 😆

>32 lauralkeet: The color you picked and the project are really neat!

>38 tiffin: I had to look up drumlins and eskers and now I'm giggling like a loon imagining Earth as a huge knitting project.

Oooh, I love that yarn! I can't wait to see the finished product.

>41 scaifea: If you're very nice to me I might even share photos of the cardigan-in-progress 😜

In other news, I finished the Avix cardigan last night. I need to finish weaving in ends and block it, and then I'll take photos and share.

Ugh, ends. We hates them!

Looking forward to the final photo though!

The Avix cardigan is blocking. I'm doing it in phases -- first the back and then the right & left front -- pinning it out to the appropriate dimensions, dampening it with a spray bottle, and letting it dry. In the process I found more ends to weave in that I missed earlier. Bleah!

While I don't have pics of the cardigan yet, I did finish my second Snap hat made with sock yarn remnants (pictured in >17 lauralkeet:). Here it is. I really like little "pop" of yellow!


Tonight I'm going to knit a gauge swatch for the Forest Finds cardigan mentioned in >32 lauralkeet:. The pattern says it's important for both row and stitch gauge to be on target so the pieces will all be the same length. Fingers crossed.

As always, the hat looks great!!

>44 lauralkeet: I love the pompom on top! Andy you're right - that combo of blue and yellow is perfect.

Love the hat!. Looking forward to seeing the sweater.

Thanks everyone. The hat was a fun way to use up several small balls of yarn that were never going to become anything else. And I had fun using my pompom maker. I'm getting better at keeping a tight grip on it until it's finished. I haven't had a failure yet but I'm always nervous about it.

Does anyone else have one of these gadgets? I have this set but have only used the smaller one which makes a nice hat-sized pompom.

>48 lauralkeet: Sort of? I have a janky cardboard one that I made myself...

>48 lauralkeet: I don't have one. When I've made pompoms (which I rarely do) I've made cardboard frames. I've seen plastic version before (though different from the model here) but not been interested enough in pompom making to buy one.

>45 lesmel: Love the hat.

>49 scaifea:, >50 PawsforThought: I tried one I made from cardboard and struggled with it. I bought the gadget before realizing I could DIY it so I probably didn't give it a fair chance.

>51 MickyFine: Thanks Micky!

Cute hat! No fancy pants pom pom maker here. I'm with the cardboard folks.

>48 lauralkeet: I have failed miserably at making respectable pompoms, so that device looks wonderful to me. Why ruin a great hat with something that looks as if the dog brought it in?!

>48 lauralkeet: The only way to make pom poms; I speak from experience.

Your sweaters are beautiful and I love the hat.

Thank you!

>48 lauralkeet: If I'm remembering correctly, my mom used to have some sort of gadget she used for pom pom making. I'm sure it was probably another brand, but I'm thinking back to the 1970s for the most part when I'm recalling the gadget.

>57 thornton37814: You piqued my curiosity, Lori, so off to Google I went.
Could it have been this one from Susan Bates?

>58 lauralkeet: Perhaps it was. It's been a long time ago, but it was probably that one.

>52 lauralkeet: Oh, I struggle with my janky cardboard pom maker, too. I need to get one like yours!

I made hats last year for Christmas and my daughter ordered pom poms for hats from Amazon. They were white and snapped in place. She said they have a vairiety of colors. She could not find her pom pom maker after moving.

>58 lauralkeet:
I have/had one of these but I lost half the pieces. I bought it as a teen so I could make pom-pom critters, IIRC.

>61 mnleona: When I made these two hats I wasn't 100% sure I'd have enough yarn for a pompom. I've seen hats that use other materials for the pompom and figured I could buy one somewhere, but I didn't need to pursue that. Good to know!

>62 LShelby: pom-pom critters would be cute!

Finally, some photos of my lace cardigan! My daughter Kate is visiting this weekend, and she's a better/more patient photographer than my other half so I enlisted her help.

Here are two photos to show pattern detail:



And one happy knitter!

Very Nice! Another I'll be showing to my friend Lori. I love those little cables at the shoulder.

That's soooooo pretty!!

>65 dudes22:, >66 lesmel: thank you so much! I really enjoyed making it.

>64 lauralkeet: Very pretty.

>68 mnleona: Thank you!

I like that sweater. Nice pattern and color choice.

Thank you!

I love that! When you tire of it, you know where to mail it.

Ha! Very funny, Tui.

Oh gosh, that looks so great! You're amazing!

>74 scaifea: Oh pshaw, you're making me blush. Thanks Amber!

>64 lauralkeet: That's gorgeous, Laura!

>76 avaland: Thanks Lois!

I've been plugging away at the Forest Finds cardigan (pattern photo in >32 lauralkeet:), and have a few other things on the go:

* Family Christmas Stocking: I bought Bulky weight yarn and the colors are a pretty close match, so I started knitting a stocking front. I've done the easy part (the leg) and am ready to try the heel, foot, and toe. I'm going to run a lifeline through my stitches first so I can easily rip back to the start of this section if it doesn't look right.

* The Fiber Guild is making small pincushions to contribute to goodie bags for a fiber conference. You can do any design you want, in any craft. One of the knitters found this free pattern which has three different designs, so I'm knitting up a few of those. Mine are in blue and white, because that's what I had on hand.


* I'm thinking about items I can make to sell at two fall fairs where the Guild has a booth. I'm thinking about holiday ornaments but haven't started anything yet.

* AND THEN ... last night I received an email for a kit I could not resist. "Swaddle Pals" is from Barrett Yarn, the same designer/yarn company where I found the bunny I made last year.


The bunny was a gift to our neighbor's daughter on her first birthday. The family is expecting their second daughter in June. The Swaddle Pals are 5-6" animal rattles wrapped in wee blankets. I'm thinking I'll make a bunny as a "baby sister" to the original, and maybe also the lion (other options are a bear and a kitten).

Those projects are all cute.

Those wee stuffies are adorable, Laura.

Sounds like you have plenty of options keeping your needles busy!

The bunnies are really cute!

those are great!

I was going through one of my quilting magazines today and came across an article (and pattern) for making a coat from a quilt similar to the one Kate made. I might start looking for a quilt to do this. The ones I saw on Pinterest have you making the quilt in sections for the coat. Staring with a premade quilt would be much easier.

>84 dudes22: Oh fun! You'll have fun looking for a premade quilt. Also, here's a link to the pattern Kate used, in case it's useful:
https://allwellworkshop.com/cardigan-coat

You can glean quite a lot of information just from the webpage. There are several photos of coats in different styles & fabrics, a drawing that shows the many ways you can customize it, and charts for sizing and fabric requirements. The pattern is a PDF file where you print the pages you need, and cut out the pieces like we did in the old days with tissue-paper patterns.

>85 lauralkeet: - Thanks for that link. I found it on Pinterest and added it to my jacket board there so I'll have it when I need it.

>85 lauralkeet: What a great design.

>84 dudes22: Quite a while ago several friends and I made quilted coats in a stained glass configuration. One of the best things about it was seeing how each of us came up with a completely different colourway for the same design. I just found the pattern pieces in a clean up this weekend.

I do remember that the instructor wanted us all to use black for the "leading" and was very upset with me because I wanted another dark colour, not as hard as black. My thought was that leading in stained glass doesn't translate as black, so why be constrained by that.

>86 dudes22: A jacket board sounds intriguing.

I thought I'd post an update on my current projects.



I made three pincushions for the fiber conference goodie bags. Two photos so you can see both sides. I'm probably done unless there's an urgent call for more pincushions at a later date.

No photos to share, but I've also made progress with the Family Christmas stocking. I made a prototype and had to try a few different techniques to get the heel and foot just right, but now I've got it. Next I experimented with ways to make the tree and snow (or cloud?) motifs on the leg--decorative duplicate stitch vs. intarsia--and was hoping duplicate stitch would work because it's easier. However, it didn't look very nice and I can also tell the original used more of a stranded colorwork/intarsia approach. Sigh. I know how to do this, it's just more fiddly in terms of managing the yarn as you knit. But before I go any further, I'm considering trying another yarn. I don't dislike what I'm currently using, but the stocking is softer and more "floppy" than the original. Even though it will be sewn to a felt backing, I'm a little worried about the knitting holding its shape. I found a suitable alternative but one of the colors is out of stock. I'll keep a lookout and hopefully be able to try it soon.


My Forest Finds cardigan is coming along. The front panels are done. The construction is unusual: each side is made of two pieces, seamed together with a three-needle bind-off. I just started working the back last night.

Finally, I started the Swaddle Pals baby gift, working on it in short stints because each rattle is pretty small and requires focus. It looks like it will be a reasonably quick knit. No photos yet, other than the pattern photos in >79 lauralkeet:.

I love the pattern and colour of your pincushion, Laura.

How does one juggle three needles? (She asked with limited understanding of what a bind off is).

>89 MickyFine: Thanks Micky!

A "bind off" is done at the end of a piece of knitting, to finish off the live stitches so they don't unravel on you.

A three-needle bind off is a special technique that combines binding off and seaming into one process. For example, let's say you've knit the front and back of a sweater, and each piece is still on a needle. The three-needle bind-off will bind off those stitches while simultaneously joining them together at the shoulder.

Here's what it looks like:


You hold the two knitted pieces in your left hand and a third needle in your right. The third needle is used to join one stitch from each needle together, achieving both the bind off and a seam. Normally you'd use the same color thread as your garment, in the photo the red is just for illustration.

Hope this answers your question!

Those are very lovely pincushions, Laura. Sorry to hear you're still having problems with the Christmas stocking. I went back up and looked at them again. You'll figure it out. (And then find the pattern when you're done ;) ) Interesting about the bind-off too.

>91 dudes22: Thanks Betty. I wouldn't say I'm having problems with the stocking. This project is more like solving a puzzle, with various parts that need to be figured out. It's fun when that's what I'm in the mood for, which was the case this weekend. I made some headway and that was satisfying.

I love the swaddle rattles. The pincushions are lovely. Interesting sweater pattern--great colour too. I've ground to a halt here. Happy vernal equinox!

>90 lauralkeet: Fascinating. Thanks for the explanation, Laura.

Makes me grateful that to finish a crochet project I just have to tie one knot. :P

>93 tiffin: Thank you Tui!

>94 MickyFine: I know right? I dabbled in a bit of crochet last year and remember asking, "how do I finish this?" expecting to learn some new steps but the answer was so simple!

>88 lauralkeet: Love the pincushions.

That's an interesting construction for the cardigan. I was just looking at one in Pompom magazine with the same idea, but each quarter of the cardigan body had a different knitted design. I think I might try it for a fun summer cardigan.

I first encountered three needle bind off when I figured it out for myself, having never heard of it or seen it, merely as a way to get out of seaming shoulder seams. I thought it was brilliant, not knowing it was a 'thing'.

I love the pincushions, Laura! And your cardigan is really coming along nicely!

>96 SassyLassy: You're a legend in your own mind! 😂 All kidding aside, it's a pretty good way to seam a shoulder!

>97 scaifea: Thanks Amber. The pincushions were a fun bit of colorwork and best of all, I already had the yarn in my stash.

Pin cushions are really nice and love the colors.

Thank you!

Ordering craft books for work this afternoon and ran across Nina's Favorite Mittens and Socks from Around Norway and it reminded me of some of your Christmas gift books. Thought it might be one you'd want on your wishlist (and other knitters around here might fancy too). :)

Ooh that looks like a nice book Micky. Thank you!

I just finished the Swaddle Pals rattle toys. I'm quite pleased with them if I do say so myself.

They're so adorable!

Those are so cute, Laura!

Thanks Betty & Micky. They were fun to knit, too.

>103 lauralkeet: Soooo adorable!

Thanks Lois!

Laura, you keep doing such lovely stuff. Adorable toys, super cute pincushions and the cardigan looks great.

Thank you so much Paws!

I love that bear SO much. As always, full of admiration for the skill and care you bring to the things you make.

>111 tiffin: The bear is a lion, actually -- see the mane around its head? But all the same, thank you so much for your kind words.

Ohhh, I hadn't noticed the mane! It's still the sweetest. It could be a bear if you left the mane off....

>113 tiffin: You are absolutely right, Tui. In fact, the pattern includes instructions for four different animals: kitten, bear, lion, and bunny. The bodies are all made in the same way (but in different colors), with variations in tail, ears, and face. I didn't read the instructions for the bear, but here's a pattern photo:



They do look like twins, except for the bear being brown with no mane. Its ears may be more rounded than the lion's which are a bit triangular. And you can't see this in the photo but the lion has a long tail where the bear's tail is more of a little bump.

Oh the bear is lovely too. I can see the lion's mane better in that shot.

Here's the latest look at my Forest Finds Cardigan.



Front and back, obviously, all assembled and seamed together. So far so good! The sleeves are next, and then the collar and button band.

Looking great, Laura!

Thank you!

I know the colors here don't run true, but that's very pretty and an interesting pattern.

Gorgeous work, Laura!

Thanks Betty & Micky! The color in the photo is fairly close to reality, for once. It all depends on the lighting, it seems, so my photo quality often comes down to how sunny or cloudy a day it is, and can I find a spot in the house that takes advantage of that light. The yarn co's photo (>32 lauralkeet:) is the most accurate, but then I suppose those photos are taken with more professional equipment.

That will be a great cardi, Laura. Were the slanted pockets hard to do?

Tui, I was unsure at first but the pattern is really well written. I decided to just trust the process and follow the instructions step by step.

>116 lauralkeet: That will be lovely when finished!

>116 lauralkeet: As a fan of monochromatic texture, I'm impressed by the detail. Also the rattles are adorable.

>124 avaland: Thank you Lois!

>125 qebo: "monochromatic texture" -- I like that, Katherine. I'm drawn to textured stitch patterns too. This cardigan is full of them!

It looks like you are behind almost as much as I was. I was behind about 3 months on making rounds on threads. I'm just saying hi as I'm passing through. Hope you are okay.

Hi Lori, I guess I've been ignoring my own thread. And I've been busy in the garden, so I only have one project I'm actively working on and more limited time to spend on it.

I'm still working on the Forest Finds cardigan, and just last night I finished the second sleeve. Next I need to seam the sleeves, attach them to the body, and work the placket/button band. It feels like I'm nearly finished but I suspect these steps will take a little longer than I think.

I haven't chosen buttons for the cardigan yet either, but I want to wait until it's finished before doing so.

At long last, the cardigan is finished! I started it back in February but set it aside for about a month in August.



Here's a closer look at the front and back:

Here's what's on the needles right now.

I brought the Christmas stocking project out of hibernation and am making good progress. The knitted front is done and I've cut out the felt pieces. I became reacquainted with my sewing machine and am pleased that it seems to be in good working order. Before I can sew it all together, I need to embroider the recipient's name across the top. I have no prior experience with lettering so I'm experimenting before doing anything on the stocking.

I gave into the temptation of Shetland Wool Week, an annual celebration of Shetland's sheep and textile industry. The organizers release a Fair Isle hat pattern using Shetland yarns. This is the 2023 pattern:



The yarns are not all readily available in the US, but I found a few yarn shops that carry Jamieson & Smith, the leading Fair Isle yarn brand. The shop I ordered from did all the hard work of coming up with color combinations that work for this hat pattern. I chose one called Wildflower Bouquet and am currently working a gauge swatch.

That cardigan is gorgeous! Nice work.

Superb work on your cardigan, Laura! I do love a sweater with pockets for kleenexes. That will do yeoman service when the cold winds blow.

>129 lauralkeet: Wow!

>130 lauralkeet: Love the colors in the hats.

>129 lauralkeet: Nice!

I love the sweater and those hat patterns are nice too! I like the length. I'm guessing that you've made enough sweaters for yourself to know what works best for you. I notice that the sleeves are exactly right. My mother used to knit a lot and made some really nice sweaters for me except, I think because I'm short, she always made the sleeves a little too short.

>130 lauralkeet: This year's pattern has an almost Baltic look to it - interesting. It must be tricky coming up with different looks for it every year.

Jamieson and Smith is lovely yarn - enjoy yours.

Great sweater pattern and it fits you well. I think the button band was the right choice instead of the zipper. Is "Forest Finds" the colour, or the yarn? It's really nice.

Thanks everyone! The sweater was fun to knit, because there were some challenges I hadn't tackled before, like pockets. I'd never made a garment with pockets before and while had to do a pocket for the Master Hand Knitting program, this pattern used a different style of pocket. Also, the button bands. The pattern provided instructions for working a button band as an alternative to a zipper, but it didn't include instructions for working buttonholes and attaching the buttons. Again, I've done this before but I was rusty.

>136 SassyLassy: "Forest Finds" is the name of the pattern. And thanks for confirming my choice of button band vs. zipper. I'm just not a fan of zippers, and had no interest in learning how to add a zipper to a knitted garment.

Last night I finished knitting a swatch for the hat. I'll post a photo after blocking it.

Your sweater looks amazing, Laura! Beautiful work.

And I love the colours for your toque.

Thank you Micky!

Beautiful and perfect, as usual!

Aw shucks, thanks Lois.

Wow, just wow. You’ve done such great work on that cardigan, Laura!

And the hat patterns are so lovely!

The colour combinations look good - I really admire people who can just pick out a group of colours and they look good together. I find that really hard to do, and usually err on the side of same-same.

Thanks you Paws!
I admire those color-savvy people too. I am not one of them. I can deal with two colors, but even then I tend to make obvious choices like a color with a neutral. Anything more than 3 colors makes my head explode. I'd like to develop those skills though.

>143 lauralkeet: Yeah, same for me. And I have strong prejudices against certain colours so tend not to even consider ones close to them as possibilities.

I've learned a lot about colour working with Kaffe Fassett's quilt designs and fabrics, as well as Philip Jacob's. I've always liked colour but wasn't necessarily very brave about it. After seeing some of the quilts and clothing made by the folks in the KFCollective on FaceBook, I've learned that as in nature, you can put pretty much any colours together with great results. I'm not a fan of mustard yellow, for example, but throw it together with some teal, purple, and a bit of green, and your little socks can get blown off!

This is a swatch for my fair isle hat. I worked this to compare my gauge to the pattern, and am glad I did. My gauge is much looser, which would have resulted in too-large hat. Changing the needle size had very little effect. The only way forward is to modify the pattern. I need to cast on fewer stitches overall, but of course the fair isle design still needs to fit. Eventually I worked it out and am ready to start, but also a little nervous. Stay tuned.

Well - it's still very pretty. What will you do with this swatch?

>146 lauralkeet: That’s so pretty! Good to hear you managed to work out what to do with the gauge and the pattern adjustment. Strange that even tithe smaller needles wasn’t enough - the original pattern must be knitted so tightly! I’ve had the opposite problem with my pillow case and can’t figure out how it’s supposed to be the size the pattern claims it is.
I so admire you for making proper swatches. I’m too flighty and easily-bored to ever do them. I just start on the project and measure my gauge on the project.

>147 dudes22: What will you do with this swatch?

I looked at it and thought bookmark, then I thought carpet for a doll's house or blanket for a doll or stuffed animal. The bookmark idea sounded too mundane.

Some people who work in roughly the same weight of yarn from project to project, sew them together into afghans.

Interested to see laurel's ideas.

I admit I have no plan for the swatch. I made it primarily for the very mundane purpose of measuring gauge with the recommended needle size, and the tutorial video showed fair isle swatches all neatly trimmed like this one, which I thought was a nice touch for such a utilitarian piece of work. I like the idea of saving it, perhaps to join up with other fair isle swatches over time.

>146 lauralkeet: That swatch is gorgeous. Glad you've figured out all the math for getting gauge. I look forward to seeing your end result.

>150 lauralkeet: Mug rug!!

This is the brim of the hat and the first color pattern which is just 4 rows of the brown and coral/pink. I haven't measured it but the size seems to be in the ballpark. I just started working the pattern shown in the swatch, which is 25 rows and repeats 4 times around the hat.

Waaaay back at the beginning of the year, I shared these family Christmas stockings. Over the years I managed to lose the pattern but wanted to be able to make more for significant others and future generations.



Presenting my first completed new stocking. It's a bit larger than the original, but I guess it will just hold more treats.



This project presented some fun (to me anyway) challenges:
* Finding a yarn of the right weight and texture. The originals were made with acrylic yarn so even though I'm not a fan of acrylic, I decided to go that route. The first yarn I tried was an acrylic blend and too slippery. I found another, 100% acrylic. I was surprised how few acrylic yarns exist in Bulky weight and are available in Christmassy colors. The one I used came from the UK. I wonder if I should have used wool ...

* Creating a chart to follow when knitting the "snow and trees" intarsia pattern. Before that, I had to convince myself that intarsia is the best method because I really don't enjoy doing it.

* Working out how the heel and toe should be made.

* Using a sewing machine after many years of it sitting idle in a closet. The knitted piece is lined with felt, and then sewn to a felt back to make the stocking. This wasn't as difficult as I feared, although I'll do a few things differently on the next go-round.

This stocking is for Julia's partner, who will be spending his third Christmas with us this year. I'll make one for Kate's partner as well, although he still spends Christmas with his family. Maybe this will entice him ha ha.

>153 lauralkeet: Glad to hear the sizing is working out so far.

>154 lauralkeet: Amazing work. I'm so impressed by all your pattern reconstruction.

I finished the Fair Isle hat!



I had to modify the pattern because of gauge issues (mentioned in >146 lauralkeet:). I didn't make any modifications for length, because the only way to do that would have been to omit one of the pattern bands. So the hat is a little bit longer than it should be, which makes it a bit "roomy" at the top. But the modifications for the circumference all worked out and the hat fits pretty well.

>156 lauralkeet: What a pretty pattern and color combination! I hear those slouchy-type hats are all the rage these days, so you are just following fashion, Laura. :-)

That came out really good! Love the colors.

>157 rosalita:, >158 dudes22: Thank you Julia and Betty! I'm pleased with the colors too, and very glad they came as a bundle curated for this specific pattern. I would have struggled to choose 6 colors that play well together.

Oh, that’s very pretty, Laura. Well done you. The combination of the colours and the patterns remind me of wild pansies (viola tricolor), which is our “regional flower” and a favourite of mine.

>156 lauralkeet: Pretty, and such detail!

>160 PawsforThought:, >161 qebo: Thanks Paws and Katherine. I haven't done any Fair Isle in a while, so it was a nice change of pace. The color bundle was called "Wildflower Bouquet" and I love knowing it reminds you of a flower in Sweden.

Beautiful work, Laura! That is one gorgeous toque.

>163 MickyFine: Thanks Micky!

nice hat!

Thank you!

>153 lauralkeet:, >156 lauralkeet: I love that!

Thank you so much, Lois.

Last Christmas, my husband gave me a book on Nordic Knitting. This sweater, the Maja Pullover, is one of the patterns in the book. I just started it this week.

I'm using a very different color combination than the pattern:

Most of the sweater will be knit in the color on the right. The yellow/gold color will be used for the colorwork. While the colors used in the pattern photo are probably more traditionally accurate, they just didn't do much for me and I also wanted to go a bit outside my comfort zone.

Gorgeous pattern. I'm looking forward to see how it looks worked up in your chosen colours.

That's a really pretty pattern, Laura. I'm looking forward to seeing what your colors will look like.

Ooh, lovely pattern. And I'd argue that even if those colours aren't common with that particular type of pattern, they are definitely common in other Nordic knitted items.

Thanks Micky, Betty & Paws. The sweater is knit from the bottom up so I have to knit about 14" in that main color before I get to do something interesting. Oh well, mindless knitting is not a bad thing.

Paws, I appreciate you weighing in on the color choices as well. My natural tendency would have been to choose a blue or red main color with a neutral for the color work, but I'm trying to get a bit more adventurous. I actually met up with a Guild member who's very good with color, for a bit of "color mentoring".

>173 lauralkeet: I save the “mindless knitting” for my commute. I’m either listening to a podcast and need to pay attention to what they’re saying, or I’m half asleep and the very plain knits (one colour, all knits or very repetitive simple texture patterns) are perfect for that.

I’m also very careful about colours and always err on the side of traditional/boring. Partly because I want to be able to match with clothes I already have. But I also have a hard time bringing more colours into colour work like your sweater or any yoke pattern.

>169 lauralkeet: The image isn't coming out on my screen (question mark in a box), but I definitely like your choice of colours. Looking at patterns for Nordic and Icelandic knitting, they show up frequently. I love colours in the brown and gold ranges, and somehow these kind of patterns seem made to show them off to best effect.

>174 PawsforThought: I just realized I never responded to you, Paws. I can't even think about choosing colors for a project that requires more than two. Or maybe three. Like the hat I knit recently. It makes my head explode. I'm happy to leave those color selections to others.

>175 SassyLassy: Sorry the image isn't visible, Sassy. If you're on Ravelry you can see the pattern here: https://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/maja-pullover

I appreciate your support for my color choices! I'm plugging away at the sweater body, I've done about 8" in the main color so far.