The Patchwork Frog Knitting Blog

FEBRUARY DISCOUNTS

2012-01-29T13:05:00.000-08:00

Valentines Day is just around the corner and as our gift to you we will have started something new. We will be featuring items that will be offered at a 10% discount. A notice will go out announcing the featured discount and it will be available for a short time only. The discounts will keep changing so get yours while they are active. This month we will be picking items that are red or pink. Some of these items will be new arrivals including yarn so check back often to get your discount before it is gone.
Please check the What’s new Page to see which item is featured if you missed our announcement on Facebook or our Yahoo group page.
The first item offered at a discount is Fix A Stitch. A wonderful tool to have in your knitting bag.
http://patchworkfrog.com/notions.html and remember orders of $65 and over qualify for free shipping.

The Patchwork Frog Knitting Blog: Preview "FEBRUARY DISCOUNTS"

2012-01-29T13:04:00.000-08:00

The Patchwork Frog Knitting Blog: Preview "FEBRUARY DISCOUNTS"

Dreamz Interchangeable Knitting Needles - my evaluation

2011-12-30T15:29:00.000-08:00

Dreamz Interchangeable Knitting Needles

Do you Dreamz in color? I finally had the time to try the new Dreamz wooden interchangeable needles and I found that I like them very much.

A bit of background first. The first interchangeable needles that I can remember were offered by Boye. The needles were steel, each size being a different color. The man designed the needles for his wife, he then designed a hard resin set where the needles snapped into the cords and he named this set after his wife, Denise. The Denise company was sold a while back to a family who has taken this set and made many changes. The Denise set has been one of my personal favorites, and the standard by which I measure other needles because I find them comfortable to use. The one complaint that I have is it is sometimes hard to read the needle size especially on the older sets and i have to admit that since I owned several (4 ) from before I started my business I often am working with the older sets although I did buy myself one of the Pink sets that supports breast cancer and the markings on the newer needle are much easier to read .

The Dreamz design is similar the Boye set and the same as the Knit Picks set but at a better price. The needles are colored wood with each size a different color. This means you can easily match up the pairs. Unlike the Boye set the cable is soft and flexible and the join to the needle is amazingly smooth. The needle tips are just pointed enough to make them easy to work with but not so pointed that they will split the yarn. Each cord comes with a small tool that can be inserted into a small hole to help you tighten the connection.

The set comes in a zippered plastic pouch with sleeves to hold the needle points and a removable pouch to hold the cables. End buttons and tightening tools are in small zip lock bags.

The basic set offers needle sizes 4 though 11. Also included are needle markers so if you transfer your work to a holder you just slip on a marker to let you know what size needle you were using.

All of this is priced at $82.00 http://patchworkfrog.com/dreamz.html. You can add to the basic set the chunky set which has needles US 13, 15, and 17 tips plus two cords, 24" and 32 " four end caps, two keys, and a flat envelope style carrying case that you can put into the larger case that holds the delux set.

New From The Patchwork Frog

2011-11-13T17:44:00.000-08:00

What is new at The Patchwork Frog

The Knitter’s Blocks from Coco Knits are back in stock We were only able to get the small set with 9 blocks right now as the company is having problems getting the larger set of 12 manufactured.

We also have our sweater weight blocking wires from Fiber Dreams back in stock. Another manufacturing problem caused these to be unavailable for a few months but we are happy that we now have them again. These wires are made by hand and packaged in long tubes. They can’t be shipped with many of our other products since they ship in a mailing tube so if you order several items the wires will ship separately.

We are now carrying a new line of yarn hand dyed in Canada by Tradewind Knits. We have Cat’s Pajamas and Celestial Merino. Both fingering weight. The yarns are so soft that you will looked forward to knitting just to hold the yarn. Check out the Sea lettuce Scarf pattern for either of these yarns. This is a pattern suitable for even the advanced beginner and it is a wonderful project to take along when you are traveling.

We have added lots of new patterns to our pattern page.

Cottage Creations Patterns

2011-10-04T11:34:00.000-07:00

I was sad to learn that Carol Anderson of Cottage creations is going to phase out some of her Creative Cottage patterns. Many of you may not know her name but have knit at one time or another “The Wonderful Wallaby” or one of her afghan patterns. Carol has decided that she would like to get to more of her own knitting as well as find time for some of her other interests.

The Creative Cottage patterns come in a small booklet format with a story line that reads through the various parts as you knit. They are not only easy to read and simple patterns but are fun to read as well.

One of the patterns that will not be re-printed once her supply is gone is the Log Cabin Afghan, which is one of my favorites. This is a great pattern for using up your stash and also a wonderful pattern to carry along since the motifs are knit one square at a time and then later knit together with a three needle bind off.

She is offering one new pattern called Celia’s Blankie that is a cousin to the Rambling Rows Afghan. This is another seamless pattern that can be knit with almost any weight yarn and can be made in a child sized version and also a dolly sized. This pattern will be in stock in about a week.

Priced at just $6.50 each, get your copy of your favorite patterns before the supply is gone.
http://patchworkfrog.com/cottage-creation-patterns-s.html

What’s New at The Patchwork Frog

2011-09-14T15:28:00.001-07:00

If you are looking for a quick fun project consider the kntted necklace and bracelet kit from Swallow Hill. There are enough beads to complete one project , but enough rayon to make several. Addtional bead soup may be purchased. I am certain that you will want to make more than one, I know I will.

Even though I do have some lovely jewelry there are times when I want something with sparkel but not so serious and more fun. I chose the crystal bead kit because Caribbean trip next month and I decided this would be the most neutral since I do not know what I am going to pack.

The beads come loose so the first thing to do is to string them on the rayon. If you use a bead mat and a dental floss threader the stringing goes quickly and is quite easy. The mat keeps the beads from rolling around and they are easily picked up on the threader that you can buy in any drug store. The kit comes with a big eye needle that also can be used.

Since I wasn’t sure how to figure out the amount of beads I would need I decided to string them all. The problems with doing this is that you have to stop and slide the beads down on the rayon as you work to give yourself thread to work with. I decided that I preferred this to making joins in the work. You can use the Russian join for a strong, seamless join if you want to string only part of the beads. If you do this you will have to cut the rayon, string more beads and then make a join in the rayon to attach the two parts.

http://patchworkfrog.com/SwallowHill.html

The pattern calls for casting on 90 stitches and tells you that you will end up with a necklace of approximately 15 inches that will stretch a bit longer from the weight when you wear it.. I knew that I wanted something longer so I cast on 110 stitches. My finished piece measures about 21 inches ( see the picture). When I cast off all the stitches according to the pattern instruction I made a tiny knot at the end of my work and I left a long tail of rayon, twice the length of my finished piece that I am going to use to whip stitch the two long ends together to form a rope. I will then twist the rope to coil it so that the rows swirl.

Review of Knit Swirl by Sandra McIver

2011-07-17T09:31:00.000-07:00

I drove for an hour to a yarn shop that was hosting Sandra McIver author of Knit Swirl. She had most of the coats and jackets from the book available to try on. It was fascinating and wonderful to be able to see how each one fit and figure out which one was your own personal choice as a “first knit” since I can see that after knitting one you will want to knit more. I had a hard time choosing but I finally picked two and maybe three that I plan to make. Five years of work went into the development of creating the concept of the rounded jacket structured as Sandra McIver pictured it in her mind. Knit from the outside in and creating the shaping by decreases.

My dilemma is that I have two baby blankets, two shawls a coat and a Kimono and an almost finsih jacket on my needles right now and I really need to finish all of them before starting anything else. I wish I could knit faster and nothing else to do all day. So many projects and so little time, Sadly I won’t be starting my swirl just yet although I have picked out my yarn.

If you have been following my blog I made a similar type jacket a few years ago. That one was knit in two pieces, a circle and rectangle and then put together. This also had very little seaming but I have to admit that after trying on the Knit Swirl I think the fit and shaping is nicer. My original pattern came from a Korean company Zaol that is now out of business and the pattern was offered for free on the internet but is no longer available. The circle was knit using short rows which I find fun and easy but it took a while to knit the whole circle and the rectangle was simple and straight but a bit boring. I wasn’t entirely happy with the sleeves as the cuffs were a bit wide but after looking at the Swirls I have an idea of what to do to fix the problem.

The Swirl is knit all in one piece and has one seam to sew when you are finished. You cast on an enormous amount of stitches and work from the outside in. The beginning of the swirl is slow knitting because of all the stitches but as you decrease it goes faster and faster and then you get to the center where you bind off part of the circle leaving a center section knit the back and sleeves flat. The book diagrams and explains everything so that even a beginning knitter can handle this if they are okay with working so many stitches. The patterns are knit in a series of welts that you keep track of by just counting. You mark the beginning and end of the circle with a colored marker.

There are two basic shapes, a circle and an oval which are either centered or off center centered which means the opening is in the center which creates a larger collar and or off center (more near the top) which makes the collar and lapels more narrow. The off center oval makes a longer back and there is even a very short bolero style perfect for a summer jacket. The patterns are offered in 3 sizes, small medium and large. According to my measurements I would be a small but as I tried on the samples I quickly decided that I liked the slightly larger jackets with more overlap room so I will be knitting a size two. With each pattern she tells you what yarns were used for the samples and how much yardage. All are knit in worsted weight yarn on #8 needles but you will need a cord length of at least 40 inches to start in order to accommodate all the cast on stitches, over 600. She explains how to use two balls of yarn for your cast on. There were lots of women in the store all trying on the jackets and it was interesting to see that they looked good on everyone, short, tall, thin, heavy with large bust or small.

After trying them all I decided that I would either knit a longer coat called Silken Dreams, knit in Tilli Tomas yarn with beads that is a bit more dressy since the alternating welts are knit with a beaded yarn. or Copper Collage. I have some red merino/silk in my stash if I decide to make this one. The third one that I thought I might like called Silhouette In the Sun. I will be anxious to learn which ones you like the best.

I hope some of you get the book and knit a Swirl for yourself . http://patchworkfrog.com/books.html
Thea

Finding the best Basic Yarn

2011-07-11T17:03:00.000-07:00

In Search of the Perfect Basic Yarn

We all love the speicaly yarns that our eye is drawn to when we are looking at yarn but often they sit in your stash because after purchasing them you aen’t sure what to make using them. It seems that mot of the time I find a pattern with some interest and what I need is basic yarn in solid colors. Every company seems to have them but many are expensive, put up in small balls and require lots of balls which equals lots of money.

I have been searching for the perfect all around yarn. The go to yarn when you want something basic. I looked for something that would have a good feel, nice memory and easy care. My final vote is Ella Rae Classic and Ella Rae Amity.

Classic is a wonderful basic wool yarn that will meet your every need. Both knit at about the same gauge.

Amity has a touch of wool , 25% but is mostly acrylic, 75%. Has great yardage at 200 yards per skein and knits up on a # 8 or #9 US needle. It is great for sweaters for the whole family babies included, scarves, afghans and blankets, hats , gloves and just about anything you can think of.
It knits up with a really good look and feel and doesn’t pill.

The yarn comes in both sold and heathers and at $5.00 a skein is a real bargain. A baby blanket will take about 3 or 4 if you are making it bigger and adult sized afghan will take 8-10 depending on the finished In my opinion this yarn is wonderful for all your basic sweaters especially if you want to show off our stitch pattern and for everyone in your family.

http://patchworkfrog.com/ellarea.html

AMITY

Fiber: 75% Acrylic, 25% Wool
Yardage: 200
5 Stitches = 1 inch Needle size: 8 US
$5.00

Summer Shawls

2011-07-01T12:23:00.000-07:00

I had shoulder surgery to repair a torn rotator cuff injury that I suffered with for about a year after stupidly tripping in my kitchen. While I have been able to knit getting dressed is entirely another story.
It is difficult to get most things on and not much that goes over my head. My left arm is in a sling and since I am only able to use one arm getting a sweater on or off becomes a real workout. I quickly realized that a light weight shawl was the most practical piece of clothing in my closet but I wanted to have many different ones that would co-ordinate with my clothes and cover up my sling. After making several like the first one on this blog I was ready to design my own. Each one that I made was really nice but I wanted a top down with more or a natural drape over the shoulders and one that stay there becuse again it putting it on is still a bit of a challenge. I set to work designing exactly what I wanted and the result is the June Clouds Shawl which I have uploaded to Ravelry. It knits up with about 450 yards of light weight fingering or sock yarn and the interesting ribbed ruffle finishes the edge nicely. I have been experimenting with a variety of yarns and I am about to mke one using Tillie Tomas Sock yarn. Many of the sock yarns come in multicors and while that makes up in a very interesting pattern I also found that I needed solids. I will be casting a new one during the holiday weekend with the Tillie Tomas yarn and will post pictures as soon as i have enogh on my needles to show off my work.
http://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/june-clouds-shawl

Blocking the Final Step to Finishing your Project

2011-06-03T10:16:00.000-07:00

Blocking your knit or crochet project is the final step in finishing your garment and should not be over looked. First-time blockers are always amazed by the difference blocking makes to the final
appearance of their knitting. After blocking, sweater parts lay flat, stitches even out, and projects have a more professional look.

I used to block my projects either on a spare bed or on the floor. In order to block, your knitting has to be wet or steamed (I use a Jiffy Steamer) and pinned to the correct shape and measurements so there is drying time involved. For the most part this was very inconvenient and if I used the carpet I had to close the door to the room so the dogs didn’t walk on, or worse lay down, on my wet knitting.

I looked for a long time to find a blocking board that would work for me. Most boards that I found folded but were large, expensive, and storage was awkward. A blocking board needs to be large enough to block a long shawl, an afghan or a large sweater so getting something too small made no sense..

Last January at TNNA I finally found what I was looking for. The Knitters Block by Coco Knit is (9) 12 inch blocks that look like large puzzle pieces and they fit together in any configuration that you need for the particular project you are going to block. Unfortunately the production was slow so it took a while before I got my first order and like everything that I sell I wanted to test it out for myself to be certain that I really liked it before adding it to the website. I have now used it on several different types of knitted articles and I have been more than pleased with how nice it is to work on. It is almost half the price of other boards that I found, it stores in its own reusable tote bag and it is very light weight. I particularly like that I am able to make it long enough to block my shawls, and, because this is completely water proof i am able to set this up right on my dining room table and not worry that the table will be ruined

My Finished Shawl

2011-05-28T15:34:00.001-07:00

I finished my shawl and blocked it in time to wear it this Memorial Day weekend.
As I look at the color changes for some reason with the color yarn I picked I
see Watermelon. Maybe it is because the red coloring at the very top changing
into the yellow and green reminds me of the fruit and the rind. Or possibly it
is because it is the end of May and we are still not having really warm weather
here in southern California and I just want to imagine warm days and out door
barbeques. http://www.patchworkfrog.com/images/rainbowshawllg.jpg

My summer Shawl

2011-05-13T17:41:00.001-07:00

I guess both the advantage and disadvantage of having a knitting business when you are as addicted to yarn and knitting supplies as I am is to try to learn to control your addiction and not see everything that arrives (for sale) as something I should pull and knit myself.

Having said that when my order of Poems Yarn arrived I just sat looking at the yarn. The colors were just calling to me to make something. I couldn’t decide which yarn to pick, should I choose the Poem silk or the Poem sock? A real dilemma. My next question is what do I want to make.

With the odd weather we have ben having here in California I started thinking that what I would love to have are some shawlettes. Not big warm things that are heavy but some really nice lacy and light shawls that will just cover my shoulders. So off I want to look at my vast collection of patterns. Since I sell patterns, and really have some awesome patterns for sale, I guess I should have picked one of those, but I finally decided on one that I had found free on Ravelry called Citron (http://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/citron) that looked simple to knit and would show off the color changes in this beautiful yarn. I finally decided on Poem sock yarn in color 958 a mixture of deep rose, greens and bkue with just a touch of yellow orange that I decided would compliment several of my outfits. The shawl is a simple knit started at the top and adding increases and rouching so the shawl becomes curved and is a nicer fit than making a straight piece. The pattern is basically a 20 row repeat but only on the two rows that have the increases is there anything to think about. This pattern would work for even an advanced beginner and it only takes one skein of the sock yarn, knit not on the size #3 needle that is called for on the yarn band, but on a# 6 circular needle so the knitting goes quickly and produces a light and airy fabric

Debbie Bliss Pure Cotton Yarn Sale

2011-01-23T11:00:00.000-08:00

Just in time for your Spring and Summer knit and crochet projects we are closing out our inventory of Debbie Bliss Pure Cotton. We need to made room for know yarns that are arriving so we have decided to offer this wonderful yarn to you at a fantastic price of $4.00. It was $6.50 per ball and this is the best price for this yarn any place on the internet. I checked. 100% cotton, machine washable, worsted weight, 96 yards per ball, 4.5 stitches on US# 8 needle. Purchase quickly to get your choice of colors while we have availablility. we only have a few colors left. the yarn is wonderful to work with and you can see it knit up in my circular knitting prject. It knits up light which is nice because many of the cotton yarns fell heavy when you knit with them and the yarn is very, very soft. http://patchworkfrog.com/debbieblissvarn.html#DBPureCotton

Kits Kits and More Kits

2011-01-20T10:11:00.000-08:00

How often have you been ready for that next knit or crochet project but just couldn’t figure out exactly what you wanted to make.
Please check out our new and updated “kits” section. We discovered many exciting designers at TNNA this year and we have put together a wonderful collection of kits for you. Some of them are one skein, quick projects easy to carry along and some are a bit more time consuming but all are simple enough even for the advanced beginner with easy to read and follow instructions. We only picked companies offering what in our opinion are the nicest yarns with the best drape so that your garment will be truly special. http://patchworkfrog.com/knitandcrochet%20kits.html

I really cant wait to get started. At TNNA I visited the maggi Knits booth where they had lots of Maggi's shawls and wraps knit up and available to try on. Once you have put one oof these on you won't want to take it off. I picked out one called the London scarf which is one of her new designs to be my own project and will be posting pictures as soon as I get the yarn on my needles. Unfortunately i am forcing myself to finish up a gift first. I am knitting the Prima Ballerina sweater, a Sassy Skein Pattern, http://patchworkfrog.com/sassyskein.html,this time in just one color with no stripes. I will post a picture when I finish the sweater. I am using a bright pink dk weight yarn, Sirdar Snuggly. This will be a gift for a one year old. Hopefuly the knitting will go quickly so that I can move to something just for me.

My Progress

2010-06-28T17:03:00.000-07:00

As I continue to enjoy this knitting project I keep putting the work down to watch as the circle grows. I am almost finished with this part, only a few more inches. I am still trying to figure out how much yarn I will actually use, I am working in Debbie Bliss Pure Cotton and I have just started my 6th ball and that should complete this part of the sweater and I might have some left over. I am making the small size but I like to start each new ball on an outside edge so I have some long pieces of yarn left over as I end a ball and I am saving them to use for sewing the parts together. The balls of yarn have 96 yards each so that means I will use about 576 yards for this part. The rectangle uses less stitches but may use about the same amount of yarn because it doesn't have the short rows. I am thinking that the yardage required will be about 1200 for the size small. I am keeping good notes because I think i might knit this again in another yarn after I finish this one.

Classic Rounded Jacket my summer project

2010-06-22T18:30:00.000-07:00

I was searching though my patterns trying to find an interesting knitting project to start when a friend showed me a sweater that she had just started. The pattern is free from Zaol.
http://www.zaol.co.kr/default/02/01.php Click on Classic Rounded and then to print the pattern click on the icon on the lower right. It took me a while to figure that out since the comapy is Korean.
Knit in just two pieces, what caught my attention was that one of the pieces was a circle, the other being a rectangle and the joining of these two shapes forms a circular jacket.
When I looked at the diagram and then read the instructions I really could not visualize how this was going to work. I thought that maybe I would be knitting a tube but in fact the knitting does forma a circle as you can see in the picture of my knitting.

The pattern tells you to start with the rectangle but I was just too curious about the circle so i started with that piece and have attached a picture. I am working with Debbie Bliss Pure Cotton. I love the softness of this yarn and it gave me the stitch gauge that I needed. The pattern was written for using a thin wool held double so the yardage shown is more than you need if you work in a single yarn that gives you the correct gauge. The circle is formed by knitting short rows and repeats the pattern every 12 rows.

The cast on method suggested, because of the design of the sweater, is the chain cast on, done with both a knitting needle and a crochet hook. I had never used this cast on but the result is that the edge is the same as a bind off. I had to search the net to see exactly how it is done but here is a link that will help. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XhKncnlsVyk

I made several attempts at starting this project and finally decided that I would use Cat Bordhi’s method of short row knitting http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kFrVqx-iN7k but that I only liked the way it looked if I did the wrap in the second Knit stitch of the k2,p2 rib and then turned. Because of this I made an adjustment in the stitch I do the wraps. I am doing them on 17, 33 and 51 instead of what the pattern suggests. I also quickly figured out that marking the stitches for the wraps by placing a stitch marker and using a pin marker on the first row after the wraps are picked up means I can easily keep track of what I am doing.

This is turning out to be and easy and fun project and simple to carry along on your summer excursions.

Happy knitting
Thea

Tunisian Crochet

2010-05-23T17:54:00.000-07:00

If you haven’t yet tried Tunisian Crochet which used to be called Afghan stitch you are missing out on a fun experience. Completely different from either knit or crochet you form the fabric by picking up and then working off all the stitches and the fabric formed has a very interesting pattern and thickness. When I first learned this stitch many years ago I made a wonderful afghan but the only needles available looked like traditional straight knitting needles with a crochet hook end. You only work with one needle. I am one of the people who find working with a long straight needle very tiring for my hand and also a bit difficult if I am sitting next to someone when I travel or (don’t tell!) knit in the movies or a show. The art of Tunisian crochet technique seemed to be lost for many years and now it is having resurgence. Check out the "Sunset Ruana" project on the cover of Interweave Crochet, Winter 2009 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NrjMv9rmpQM&feature=channel
The Denise needle company had designed a set of Tunisian needles that attach to their flexible cords and are as comfortable as their needles to work with. I love that they snap together and if you have problems with your hand a simple paper clip slipped into a hole on the needle helps you to snap them together. Once joined they do not become undone. You can also use the needles to pick up your stitches around a neckline or border band or collar of a sweater more easily and then twist off the crochet end and change to a knitting end if your plan is to knit you border.
The other exciting news is that the Denise company has produced a number of u-tube videos, 12 that I see so far including how to do Tunisian crochet, the simple stitch, the twisted simple stitch and the honeycomb stitch as well as condo knitting and several other examples of why using Denise needles makes for a wonderful knit or crochet experience dues to the flexibility and easy of changing needle sizes. Jut to whet your appetite they are offering a free simple pattern to make a free pattern http://www.knitdenise.com/pages/fibercrafting-resources#cat1b for a little bag worked in Tunisian crochet that might tempt you to give the technique a try. It takes just one skein of chunky yarn, 99-120 yards in 100 grams, plus a Denise hook in Size L/11 or 8 mm

Thea's Rambling Rows Afghan

2009-07-31T18:03:00.000-07:00

The summer has been great. I have been reading and knitting and really enjoying some down time.
The last time I posted I put up a picture of a sweater and cap that I knit and I was all ready to send it off and the cap disappeared. It is one of those annoying things that seem to happen to me every once in a while. So I sent off the sweater without the cap and I still can't find the cap. I have looked every place that I could think of and finally decided to give up in the hope that when I am not looking for it I will find it. I am so bummed.
I seem to need a bunch of baby gifts all of a sudden and I get so tired of making the same thing all the time so I decided to dig into my stash of odds and ends and on the suggestion of a friend I am working on the Rambling Rows Afghan from Cottage Creations http://www.patchworkfrog.com/cottagecreations.html. Most people think of the Wonderful Wallaby sweater by Carol Anderson, owner and designer of the Cottage Creations patterns but if you haven't looked at some of her other patterns you are in for a treat. the patterns are well written and easy knitting and easy to follow. This particular pattern is offered in three sizes and is knit in a series of 3 different sized blocks , each created by picking up stitches from its neighboring block so there is now seaming at the end. By stopping every few blocks and weaving in the ends when you compete the knitting you are DONE! I decided to dig into my stash of baby yarns and I picked out 5 colors of Sirdar Snuggly when I only had one or two balls left and I am working on a #6 needle although the pattern calls for worsted weight and an #8 or 9. I think that my blanket will be about 30 inches wide before I add a border which I think is a nice size for a baby blanket. Since I don’t know the sex of the baby I am working in shades of yellow (one having some flecks of orange and greeen color, a cream and an aqua. As soon as I am a bit farther along I will post a picture. I like this because I have a sense of accomplishment as I complete a square. I also love that there will be nothing left to "finish" as long as I am good about weaving in the ends every few blocks.

A Gift For You

2009-04-08T10:22:00.000-07:00

I have finished the baby sweater and Beanie...Yeah!. I am in time for the baby shower.

I have decided to offer my pattern to everyone with the purchase of the yarn to knit both pieces. The patern calls for 2 calls of each color or 4 balls total.

Go to http://www.patchworkfrog.com/debbieblissvarn.html#DBpurecotton

Purchase 4 or more balls of Debbie Bliss Pure Cotton then click on the link to the Free pattern and add that to your shopping cart

Happy Knitting

Thea

In Search of the Perfect summer Cardigan

2009-03-30T12:06:00.000-07:00

Some how I never have the perfect crdigan to throw over my sholders no matter how many I have made in the past. I am also a sucker for all the new patterns that I find.

I love Spring and Fall but it is also the time of the year when you just need something over your shoulders and I am always searching for the "perfect" cardigan. One year styes are long and others short so every year I find myself frantically knitting new things.

This year I picked out Interlude by Chris Blysma as one to knit
http://www.patchworkfrog.com/chrisbylsmapatterns.html and will also be making either 1524 Au Naturel Cardie by knit One Crochet Too in Babyboo yarn. http://www.patchworkfrog.com/knitonecrochettoopatterns.html
or 1514 Slant On Nature by Knit One Crochet Too which could be knit with longer sleeves and is a fun sweater to knit and the Ty Dye yarn is yummy.

Then there is the lace edge cardi from the Just Soya Book by Sirdar
http://www.patchworkfrog.com/justsoyabook.html

So many patterns....so little time.

These are all great summer patterns and will be perfect for layering in the fall. My problem with bought sweaters is that most of the time the sleeves are too long for me. I Never thought that I had short arms but either the problem is my body or the companies are making everything long. I am just not into that look of my cuffs hanging over my hands. I find it annoying so the solution is making my own.
Orders over $50 ship free

Knit ON!

Bumble Bee Baby Sweater

2009-03-24T18:09:00.000-07:00

It seems as though I am always knitting baby sweaters so I went through all the cute sweaters that I have in my current books for sale and everything I loved was for a girl. Everyone who I seem to be making a baby sweater for is having a boy. So I had a real dilemma. I started going trough old pictures and magazines and came across a picture of a cute bumble bee sweater but I seem to have saved the picture but no instructions.

I figured that this would be an easy sweater to knit up without any instructions so I went to work. I choose some of the wonderful Debbie Bliss Pure Cotton . I am in love with this yarn. I am working on a #7 needle and although bees should be black and yellow I choose navy for my knitting thinking that the new mom might not like black on the baby, you never know. Here is a picture of the sweater in progress.Since I hate the finishing I did what i always do and cast on enough stitches for both fronts and the back and went to work, knitting up to the armholes and then dividing and working the back and each armhole up. I put all the stitches on holders then put them back on needles and then did a 3 needle bind off to seam the shoulders, but did it a bit differently.

Placing the Right sides of the shoulders together I used a crochet hook to go into the first stitch on each needle and pulled a loop through and slipped the stitches off the needles keeping the loop on the crochet hook I repeated this with the next tow stitches and pulled this loop through both stitches and then through the loop on my hook. I repeated this until I bound off the stitches on one shoulder and then did the same thing on the other shoulder. It made a very nice almost invisible seam. It looks like I will need 3 balls of each color to complete both the sweater and the hat. If anyone wants to make this sweater I will send you my written instructions free with the purchase of the yarn. Just contact me at thea@patchworkfrog.com.

Thea

Welcome Spring!

2009-03-21T16:10:00.000-07:00

Well spring may be here but although it was quite warm during the week the week end arrived and it is cold and rain is predicted. In spite of that I am working on my spring projects since this has to pass...right?

I am still working on my Noro Taiyo 3/4 coat. I did what i always do and frogged parts of it as I experimented with my ideas for knitting. The coat, a pattern from Knit One Crochet Too was knit in a similar type yarn with colors that change but it was a wool yarn. For one thing I find wool much too warm most of the time and for another often too scratchy for me as I usually have bare arms under a sweater so I opted for Noro Taiyo which is a combination of cotton and silk. As I knit along I realized that for a good fit for me I needed to make the coat a bit more narrow and I also decided to insert solid black yarn for the short rows and picked the black Maldive yarn from The Queensland collection which has tiny flecks of color and there fore blended in nicely. I finally finished the back after all the ripping and re-knitting and started on the front. I think I am quite pleased with it now.

Needing a smaller project to carry with me (I never leave home without knitting) I started the cutest baby sweater. It is my own version of a pattern from a very old knitter's magazine. I found the picture in a pile of things that i saved, but can't find the instructions so I am writing my own as I go along. I am knitting this in Debbie Bliss Pure cotton. I am in love. The yarn is the softest that I have ever worked with. I just love holding in in my hands. I will be taking some pictures and posting them soon. Once I get the pattern written I will be offering it free along with the purchase of yarn for the project.

Happy Knitting,
Thea

Getting Ready For Spring Knitting

2009-03-14T15:46:00.000-07:00

Although for many of us the weather isn’t quite warm yet, even here in sunny California Spring is almost here.
The time is now to knit up your wonderful spring and summer cotton and bamboo cardi’s and shells so that they will be finished and ready to wear in a few weeks when you want them.
We have a wonderful selection of great yarns for your Spring- Summer projects and some great patterns as well.
We were able to pick up some Debbie Bliss Pure Cotton at an amazing price. It unusually sells for $6.50 per ball. We are passing our savings on to you and selling it for $4.50 per ball. We have 4 colors in stock, Navy, Black, Off white and Yellow. There are 96 yards per ball and it knits up on a # 7 needle. Check it out by clicking here http://www.patchworkfrog.com/debbieblissvarn.html
We have wonderful yarn from Knit One Crochet Too. You will see their patterns in Knit ‘N Style. The cover sweater of the latest (April) issue is their pattern and knit in Ty- Dy. At 196 yards per ball . 5 stitches per inch on #7 needle, you won’t need much to knit up a sweater.
http://www.patchworkfrog.com/knitonecrochettoo.html You will love this self striping yarn. The colors are so wonderful. We also have patterns to go along with the yarn. While you are on that page also check out the Babyboo yarn.
Another new fun yarn is Fil Katia Samba. http://www.patchworkfrog.com/katiaryarn.html
Again self striping, very poplular right now. We have a children’s book and and a baby book using this yarn but any pattern calling for 5.5 stitches to the inch will work with this yarn.
the Queensland Collection, Maldive yarn is another great yarn. I have been using it to knit up baby sweaters. At $3.50 per ball the price is right. Each ball has 99 yards and knits up on a #7-8 needle at 4.5 stitches to the inch http://www.patchworkfrog.com/sirdaryarn.html
We have many other wonderful yarns to choose from so go to the the yarn page http://www.patchworkfrog.com/yarns.html
And look around. We have them grouped by company as well as yarn type.
As our gift to you there is a free pattern on our website ready to download and use.
Happy Knitting!
Thea

Lots of color

2009-02-07T22:30:00.000-08:00

I can't decide if what I like most about yarn is the colors or the feel or maybe it is really both. I admit to being a yarn-aholic. It is truly an addiction and one I am not willing to give up.
This is the year of rainbow dyed yarns and just looking at them excites me and I want to start to knit. I have just added a new company to the Patchwork Frog Family, Knit One Crochet Too. You can see them featured in Knit 'N Style Magazine and of course their patterns and some of their yummy yarns at the The Patchwork Frog. The yarns is wonderful to work with and their patterns are different and fun.I am on a mission. I just will have to knit several of them. Stay tuned to see which one is next but right now follow my progress with the one I picked for my first project.
I couldn't resist the "Go Fly A Kite" coat. I can't decide which is more fun, the knitting or watching as the colors change in in the ball of yarn as I knit. It's a tough decision but the knitting defiantly is fun. You start by creating triangles and you add on to them building the center panels. Then you pick up for the side panels, add in a bit of short row knitting to create the gussets that give the flare to the bottom then do a three needle bind off to join the seams (no sewing. You just can't get bored making this coat. The changing color yarn makes this look complicated but the knitting is actually easy for anyone but a beginner. I have the center finished as well as the left side panel and I am now working on the right side panel. You can see when you look closely at the picture my white needles peeking out on the right side. My Denise Needle set came in handy when I attached the connector, slid the knitting on to a small cable and used the button caps to create a stitch holder. When I am ready to join the sides I will just take off one of the buttons,attach a needle on the end and will be ready to knit without transferring the stitches from a traditional stitch holder back to a needle. This is one of the things I especially like about the Denise Set.Visit the Patchwork Frog! for yarn and patterns needles and more.

The TNNA Convention

2009-01-19T16:35:00.000-08:00

Each year I look forward to attending the TNNA convention to see what is new in the knitting world and find new yarn, patterns and products for the website. The convention this year was in San Diego and was fun although not as well attended in my opinion as in past years. Maybe it was my imagination and maybe the economy.

I will write later on in the week about the actual convention and post pictures with some of my favorite vendors but first I thought I would share my funny experience with you all.

Traveling with my friend Harriett is always interesting. A few years ago my husband and I went to Cancun with Harriet and her husband and she decided to take along some meat that she was going to cook. She packed the meat frozen in her suitcase and when we arrived in Mexico and went through customs they ask if you are bringing in meat or vegetables. At this point since they weren't opening the suitcase I would have said no but not Harriett. So she fessed up and we all watched as they took away the meat and threw it into the trash. I tell you this just to give you some background. So the two of us went to San Diego for two days. We left early in the morning on Saturday and after a very long day at the convention center running literally from one end to the other every hour (I will explain more about that later) we checked into our hotel exhausted. We got to our room and the first thing we hear is a train. A very loud train. It was like the train was going through our room. It turned out that our room was on the corner right above the train tracks and the trains were coming though about every 20 minutes with loud whistles. We panicked figuring we were not going to get any sleep. We were tired and hungry. We wanted to change rooms but the hotel was completely sold out so we were going to have to deal with the noise. We rested breifly and decided it was time for dinner. We thought we would go to the Gas Light district but found out that the hotel shuttle wasn't running. The desk clerk recommended a restaurant in Little Italy that was only about a two block walk from the hotel that he said was his favorite restaurant so off we went. When we got close a nice man started to talk to us so we told him we were looking for Filippi's that we heard it was the best place to eat and did he know where it was. He told us that he did and that in fact he owned the restaurant. We figured he was joking but he told us to follow him pointing to the signs and the awning. It might have been more weird if the streets were not all crowded with people. We arrived at the restaurant door where a long line of people were waiting to get in and a woman was taking names. The man said "they are with me" and he marched us in and sat us at a table. It turned out he really is the owner and it is a family owned business. It could be one of the best meals I have eaten in a long time.

We started to order and our waitress told us that we probably wanted to share the dinner salad and share the meal. Harriet said she was really hungry and she was concerned that there wouldn't be enough food but I told her we could always order something else if it turned out not to be enough. It was a good thing we listened. The salad came and it was really large. More than enough to share and so was our dinner. We orderedShrimp Filippi. I would highly reccomend it. Tony and the waitress suggested either that or the lasagna. I am still thinking about how good it was. It was loaded with bay shrimp over linguine tossed with Olive oil garlic and chopped mushrooms and tomatoes. We ate about 2/3 of the meal. We had a half bottle of Chianti and order of garlic bread and the salad and diner and our bill was $28. We had so much left over that I told the waitress to pack it up and give it to a homeless person and she told us they do that all the time. For desert we went to a Gelato store two doors down and had wonderful lemon ices. Things like this only happen when I am with Harriett. It turned out to be a night I will remember for a long time and I am looking forward to returning to the restaurant. That is Harriett, me (in the middle) and Tony the owner.

Happy New Year

2008-12-27T11:43:00.001-08:00

The sweater is finished and delivered. It was a big hit as you can see. Now I have pulled out the "almost " completed sweater for my husband and I am diligently working to finish it. I took the pattern and combined the fronts and back on the needles and knit them together up to the arm holes and then divided and worked with three balls of yarn to complete the body. I am now up to the raglan shaping of the sleeves. After that the button bands and I am done.

The pattern is from a Sirdar leaflet http://www.patchworkfrog.com/sirdarpatterns.html #8829

and the yarn my husband selected is a mixture of tan and grey. The yarn is Sirdar Click Chunky

http://www.patchworkfrog.com/sirdaryarn.html knit on #10.5 needles so it really goes kind of quickly. I took a look at the directions for the button band and it calls for knitting it in two parts from the center back. I don't think I like that idea so I am going to use my 40" Denise cord and make the whole band at the same time. I love working with my Denise Interchangeable Needles and having the extra long cords makes it so simple. http://www.patchworkfrog.com/sirdaryarn.html

We are off for a much needed week of rest and I will be knitting as we drive. I packed more yarn to start my next project(s) . I found a great lace shawl pattern that was free on line so I packed some hand painted yarn for that and also found the cutest bumblebee sweater and matching hat to make for the daughter of a close friend who is expecting her first child. I am going to knit that in Sirdar Snuggly DK but will probably double the yarn since that pattern calls for something a bit thicker than this yarn. I find that Sunggly is a great yarn for babies since it washes so well.

How I spent my Day ..or what to do when you are on hold

2008-12-22T23:05:00.000-08:00

It was another perfectly dreary rainy day and boy was I excited. I have been trying to clean up my workroom and desk but life keeps getting in the way. When I woke up and it was pouring I figured it was going to be the day when I would get lots done.

Before I could get started I had a few quick things to take care of. I had some orders to pack and ship and a couple of phone calls that wouldn't take long.

First I tried to order a prescription on line. After pushing all the numbers, you know , 1- if you want English, 2 -if you don't want to be routed through India, 3- if you don't have about 3 hours to wait on hold, you know the drill , I actually got right though to a real live person and guess what. The computers were down. That was probably why I was able to get through. I was told to wait an hour and call back. I never did get back to them

My next phone call was to Apple to try to get information regarding the trouble I was having with my iPhone. That call actually did take me almost 3 hours. I got transferred from one person to another until finally, after I got to complain to about 5 people I think they were tired of me and decided that they really needed to figure out a way to get me off the phone. I was put though to customer service where they offered to replace my phone. All I had to do was go to the iPhone store where, I didn't have an appointment with one of their geniuses (that is really what they call the tech support in the store) and I would be helped. They promised me that when I got there they would have my name (at this point I am on a first name basis with many people at Apple) and I would be taken care of without waiting too long. However this meant I needed to get in the car and to go to the store. By this time my husband had arrived home from work and I convinced him (well I didn't really convince him it was more like I forced him) to come with me. I did offer to give him dinner first. I figured that was the least I could do after he had worked a full day. But hey, wasn't this the day I was staying here to clean and organize? So, with nothing that I had planned for my day accomplished, off we went.

I did get my phone replaced. But it doesn't end there because now I have to get the new phone up and running. I have to restore the phone to be recognized on my computer, update software and sync to my data. I also lost some data that will have to be re-entered manually - a job for tomorrow I guess. Naturally all this took much longer than I thought it would.

So, that was pretty my day. I did do some laundry while I was on hold but I never did get around to cleaning up the clutter.

As Scarlett said in Gone With the Wind "tomorrow is another day"

Making Copies

2008-12-21T02:28:00.000-08:00

I learned the hard way never to carry my original pattern around with me. Forget that it gets messy, the real problem is that since I carry my knitting everywhere I have on occasion lost my book. Don't you just hate when that happens. Very often the pattern that I am knitting is older and no longer available.I collect knitting patterns. It may be at the compulsive level. I collect patterns for everything and anything that I think I might ever one day knit, should I all of a sudden find that I have lots of free time, ha! ha! The advantage of my habit of collecting and saving is that I often "discover" just the perfect project when I browse through my pattern collection. Some of the vintage books that belonged to my mother have the best pattens. I keep all my knitting magazines too. I actually thought about that this winter when there were fires in California and on the news the people were loading their cars in case they had to evacuate. I know that if I was in that situation I would have to pack some of my knitting books and yarn into my getaway car.Anyway my solution is making a photocopy (or several) of the pattern I am working on and never carry the original. When I travel I pack a spare copy in my suitcase. Once I left my pattern on a plane and recently a friend left her pattern at the hospital whenshe went in for surgery and took her knitting with her. When she returned home with her unfinished project and the pattern gone, I hated to say I told you so but I did. I am a real preacher on this subject. For me loosing my knitting pattern if I don't have a spare with me equates to me being really unhappy. I can't be without knitting. So back to the copies. I buy those plastic sleeves in a stationery supply store and then make the copies and tuck each one into it's own sleeve. I then can write on my copied pattern and will always have the original nice and neat. I circle the numbers for the size I am knitting and make notes in the margins for increases in length and write down what yarn and needles size I am knitting and my gauge. I find this helpful because I often knit the same sweater, especially for my grandchildren. When I am finished I put the copy with my notes together with the original pattern as a reference incase I do knit the same pattern again. The next thing that I do I really find helpful is that when I put my knitting down for the day (which often turns into months) I make a note where I stopped, like 4th increase in the pattern. I write this in the margin and if I am really good I put down the date. This is fun to see especially when days turn into months (or longer!).

Blocking

2008-12-18T21:41:00.000-08:00

Well it finally stopped raining but it is still cold. After going to school to see the first grade Christmas program I got back to my project. I sewed the buttons on the sweater and then got out the pad that I thought I would use for blocking but it turned out to be too small. Instead I opened up my big ironing board and pinned the sweater all the way around making sure all the button band and bottoms and everything matched up.

All the little dots that you see are the pins. I carefully shaped the collar as well. Then I got out my big steamer. You can see my work room. Bins of yarn and everything we sell on the website fills the room.

The ironing board is at the end of the work table where we pack orders. I can't show you the rest of the table because if I let you in on our secrets........well you know the drill. Anyway. I steamed the sweater and left it to dry. I then went out with friends for a holiday dinner and glass of wine.

I am going to leave it over night and tomorrow I will show you the final picture of the blocked sweater. Nice to have one gift finished. I am not about to admit to how many UFO's (unfinished objects) I still have. Do you think my husband will notice that his sweater has no sleeves?

One Sweater Down .......Many more to go!

2008-12-18T00:03:00.000-08:00

It has been raining hard all day and man is it cold outside. I think it was about 45 degrees mid day and it actually snowed in Malibu today. That is just too weird. I guess the cold helps to make California get into the holiday spirit but I kind of like having a nice sunny warm day for Christmas since I grew up on the east coast. To me sun and warm in December still seems wonderful to me.

With all the rain and cold I had more knitting time and I finally finished the sweater I have been working on. This is the second time I knit this sweater.The first time I made the version with a plan V neck. This time I added the collar which is knit using the short row method and turned out really nice. I knit very loose so i made this in Sirdar Snugly DK but I went down a needle size to knit the sweater tighter. I also knit the size 1-2 and then made it much longer because the little boy who I made this for is tall but thin.
Although I have been knitting for a long time I have never been a blocker. However, recently I have been reading about how much more professional knitted garments look after they are blocked so I am going to block this one and really get it into shape. I have a blocking square. It is really a cushioned pad that I bought for quilting and just found in the closet not opened and still in it's plastic wrap. It will work just fine. After doing some research on ways to block I have decided to use the steam method. I have one of those big professional steamers. I decided to go with that rather than wetting the sweater and waiting for it to dry. This will be quicker and I heard Lilly Chen talk on a TV show that i watch and this is her preferred method so who am I to argue.
I found some great buttons, perfect for the sweater that just came in with an order today. They are hand made and washable. Just perfect for a sweater for a 4 year old boy. This is a new company for us and I was excited to see how nice they are. Check out the buttons http://www.patchworkfrog.com/buttonsandclosures.html.

Time to go wrap a few presents. For me that is the worst part of the holiday.