How we spent our summer vacation

A lot has been happening at the Patons Design Studio this Spring and Summer! We’re excited to share our favorite updates that you may have missed.

This Spring saw the release of fun new yarns!

Patons Wild Child is a funky yarn that’s perfect for accessories or kid’s projects.

Soft, luxurious, and fabulous, Patons Moxie allows you to create fur-inspired accessories.

With the same softness and halo of Patons Lace, Patons Lace Sequin adds a bit of glitz and comes in gorgeous jewel tones.

We spent the summer busy planning the next batch of new yarns, patterns, and books. We have some exciting things coming, and will keep you posted when they are here.

Here are just a couple of free patterns we’ve released recently:

Patons Classic Wool Roving - Twisted Cowl

Patons Moxie - Tube Snood

We’ll continue to update you with new patterns and check back in with our bloggers and see what they’ve been up to!

rhododendron red

Project – Rib Stitch Vest
Patons Pattern Book #500880 Anti Freeze
Yarn – Classic Wool Roving in 77709 Cherry
Blogger – terriknitspatons

Hi all!  I am a new member of the Patons’ blogging team.  I am a long time knitter whose favorites are socks and lace.  With the help of Patons , I plan to branch out in to many more areas and may even try my hand at learning crochet. (!)

My first project is something entirely different from anything else I have ever knit.  It starts out like this.

Nothing like a big pile of red yarn to get a girl excited.  This is a new yarn from Patons that is actually roving.  If you have ever seen pencil roving meant for spinning, this is similar.  It has a bit of twist to keep it from falling apart.  Even a nice strong tug to tighten up a stitch will not break the yarn.

My project is the Rib Stitch Vest from the Anti Freeze booklet.  First things first.  The swatch.

I almost got gauge with the swatch.  I could loosen up my knitting a bit and be just fine, but history has taught me that I knit a swatch looser than I knit the actual garment.  I went up a needle size and am now spot on.

Oldest Daughter has renamed the color Rhododendron Red.  I think she is on to something.

The vest begins at the bottom band and is not your basic k1,p1 rib.  The detail is great.

So soft and plump.

My goal is to knit two balls a week and be able to wear this vest on July 4^th.  Yes, I live in a place where the wearing of wool is a year round thing.  The first two balls became a good portion of the front.

I will join ball #3 in the morning.

-terriknitsPatons

Knitting Loudly

I suppose my new moniker says it all. YoElizBo. I am here and I am ready to knit. And I will do so loudly with anyone who shares my love of sticks and yarn. You’ll have to excuse my brash enthusiasm, but I live in a house full of boys–the DH included–so when I have a chance to get down and talk knitting, I bubble over.

I wasn’t always surrounded by men, because I grew up in a family of crafty women. I learned to knit at my great-grandmother’s knee. She lived with my grandparents, and when we went up to Camano Island where they lived, it was a toss up whether to spend time running wild on the beach, or sitting beside Num, as we all called her, and let her teach me the intricacies of knitting and crocheting. I still have a pair of slippers that she knit for me when I was young. I was probably about seven years old when I learned to knit, and have knit on and off all my life. There isn’t a time when I don’t cast on that I don’t think of Num’s beautiful, care-worn hands as she guided mine through my first uneven stitches.

My grandmothers both knit, and continued my lessons. My maternal grandmother was an expert knitter–and in the 60s, she knit her own dresses and suits to wear to her job as a court clerk. Yes, suits. I have examples of both and used to wear them to work myself when I worked at a law firm. I also still wear the wonderful sweater she made for me in the later part of her life. A well-worn and beloved treasure, indeed! And tumbling down the family tree, my mom and my aunts are all talented needlewomen, quilting and hooking rugs, sewing and crafting all sorts of things.

I remain the dedicated knitter of the bunch, having ditched all my other crafting inclinations to make space for my yarn and books.

If I was to describe myself, what sort of knitter I am, I would say I like to be challenged some days, others I simply adore the comfort of a simple project. I am also entirely curious, and love to try new techniques. I am a writer in my professional life, so I believe wholeheartedly that any craft, be it writing or knitting, is just that, a life-long experience that takes patience, practice, and a never ending desire to improve one’s skills. I know this first hand, because even after forty some years of knitting, I am still just practicing.

As for my first project here at Patons….I think my choice is rather revealing.  I picked the pink and blue pair of Funky Monkeys, from Monkey Business. I chose these cuties for several reasons:

1) I’ve never knit a toy before. Lessons to be learned for certain.

2) Those monkeys are too darn adorable. When you live with boys, you have to take hold of some whimsical cuteness where you can get it.

3) They’ll make perfect Easter presents. Forget bunnies!  Monkeys are way more fun.

4) I grinned when I saw them. The best reason of all.

So I would ask you, how you do you go about choosing what you are going to knit? Happenstance? Practical reasons? Love at first sight?

-YoElizBo

Hi, I’m the new girl…

I wanted to introduce myself before I start my first blog project.

I’m K1Paula2, but you can call me Paula for short. My aunt taught me the garter stitch when I was little (but forgot to show me how to cast off, which explains a couple of really long scarves). Then in high school I learned how to purl, cast-off, and even crochet. That opened up a new world of possibilities, but most of my projects were small. Scarves, dish cloths, and a pair or two of not-so-great mittens. Then three years ago, my sister asked me to make her a felted bag. I said I’d try. She bought the supplies – including circular needles and DPNs – and I was hooked.  Since then I’ve tried to learn a new stitch or new technique with each pattern I make. I also inspired my sister-in-law to take up knitting, and she’s already mastered a few stitches I’ve yet to try!

Sometimes I might worry I’m in over my head, then I remind myself of two things:

1) Trust the pattern

2) You can always rip it out and start over

I hope I won’t have to follow mantra #2 with my first big project!

-K1Paula2

Send us your Tam (photo)!

The Patons bloggers are showing off their lovely Fair-Isle Tams, and now we want to see yours!

Send your finished or in-progress tam photos to knitalong@patonsyarns.com! Keep in mind that only images without faces can be posted due to legal issues. We’d also love to see images of your inspirations!

Can’t wait to see what you’ve done!

-PatonsAdmin

Note: there were some issues with the knitalong email address. Try again and it should be working now.

Hello, My Name Is…

Brenna.

I live in Austin, TX with my husband and 3 year old son. It’s hot here, like really hot and yet I still love wool. I haven’t always lived in Texas and I haven’t always been obsessed with knitting. We moved to Austin about 3 summers ago from Jackson Hole, WY. While living in Jackson, I taught myself how to knit during the dead of winter. It was freezing cold, I was hugely pregnant and skiing was not an option.

Funny thing is that I only taught myself the knit stitch and for about a year, I only made scarves and roll brim hats. Even though I knew how to read patterns, purling was out of the question. It wasn’t until I had my sights set on a dress for my soon to be born niece that I forced myself to learn how to purl. I remember thinking “This is it?! Why on earth was I afraid to purl!?” From then on, knitting possibilities were endless. With each project, I learn something new. I fear no pattern, no stitch and I still crack up about not knowing how to purl!

Currently my yarn stash is taking over my guest bedroom. I love all yarn, but my favorite is wool. At all times I have a minimum of 3+ projects on the needles. This is to avoid unfinished projects and to fulfill my need to switch it up constantly. Sometimes (OK, all the time) I make a “to knit” schedule for the evening. Recently I mastered reading and knitting at the same time. My husband thinks this is just nuts.

So that is me, Brenna. I will be going by BrennaLePurl here. Looking forward to upcoming projects and being a part of the Patons Blog.

-BrennaLePurl

Why Hello There

Hello everyone, my name is Andrea and I’m excited to be joining the Patons blog team! I’m a mostly self-taught knitter and have been stitching away for seven years now. I embarrass friends and relations by knitting at movie theaters, and plan to knit all my Christmas gifts this year. In short, I love knitting. It has a calming and cathartic effect on me (though sometimes the effect is the exact opposite – these are times when I have to “go to the table”, meaning leave my comfy chair and spread my project flat on the kitchen table in order to assess damage and repair mistakes).

My first project for this blog will be the Feather and Fan Socks from Socks in the City. For yarn I’m using Patons Kroy Socks in Rich Plum Stripes. I’ve never made actual socks before, so it should be an adventure. If you’re wondering what sock-like thing is not considered to be an actual sock, that would be a Christmas stocking. I’m anticipating a case of second sock syndrome (the second stocking I made basically has a club foot because I got tired of it). I would like to learn how to do socks on two circulars, but I’ll probably save that for another project, once the first pair of actual socks are under my belt. Or on my feet.

I look forward to sharing my projects with you in the coming months!

-Andreak2tog

It’s time for Monkey Business!

This new and adorable Patons pattern book is now available in stores. Pattern Book 500875 Monkey Business has a load of great patterns for knit and crocheted sock monkeys (and some friends from the animal kingdom) using Patons Classic Wool.

Check out all of the great patterns in th ebook at patonsyarns.com or buy it online today.

-patonsadmin

It Begins!

Hi! So glad you could join me in my little corner of the Patons universe. I’m jencraft (not to be confused with knittinjen, one of my co-bloggers-in-crime).

Though knitting is my true passion, I also crochet, spin, weave and dabble in the non-fiber crafts on occasion. I love a challenge and try everything I can get my hands on. Unfortunately I’m easily distracted.

I’m a rare bird in that I’m not so interested in the endings of things – such as books or movies – as soon as I’m done, I’ll likely forget the ending. It just isn’t as important as the process: the buildup, the twists, the anticipation. Likewise, finishing a craft project isn’t always my priority – I love planning, browsing, imagining, and most of all starting. Casting on is a glorious moment filled with possibility.

However, despite my history, I’ve decided that if I’m going to blog for Patons, I’m doing it right. Not only do I start projects, but I finish them. That’s the Jen Guarantee™.

So stick around and see how many finished objects I can come up with. I need all the encouragement I can get.

..Don’t worry, I’m starting small. Very small. Stay tuned.

-jencraft

It’s me…KnittinJen

My name is Jenifer (KnittinJen). I am married with three boys: twin seven-year-olds and a newborn. A native of Michigan, I work full-time wishing that I could knit instead. My mom taught me to knit when I was about 11-years-old. Using her stash I made a bunch of small garter stitch squares with big plans for an afghan. (I knit more off than on and as a result, those squares are stored in our basement and are still nothing but a box of squares.)

I took up knitting again about 12 years ago when I happened upon a knitting magazine in a store and was fascinated by patterns I didn’t know even existed: Beautiful sweaters, lovely and warm scarves, cute kid things and great hats and mittens. I had no idea that knitting could be so cool, colorful and intriguing. I kept thinking…here’s something I kind of already know how to do! But, I also told myself that, “I can’t knit that.” I eventually picked a project and had mom remind me how to get going and off I went. She had to remind me how to purl and eventually, how to bind off (incidentally, she had to do that several times before it really stuck).

When I had a question about a technique in a pattern, my mom suggested I contact a mutual friend. Turns out my timing was perfect, our friend was starting a knitting circle and invited me. Our weekly knit nights not only served as a learning opportunity, but were my outlet from being a busy working mommy. I no longer let the patterns intimidate me. Don’t get me wrong, I still don’t knit lace, intarsia and am not wild about knitting heavily patterned socks but it isn’t because I can’t, it’s because I choose not to. I just don’t enjoy doing those things. I would rather knit a zillion earflap hats and matching mittens.

I am not monogamous to knitting. Other hobbies I enjoy are family fun time, reading, writing, swimming, camping, and walking. My knitting travels with me most of the time. It’s not uncommon to see me working on a dishcloth, a sock or a baby hat while riding in the family mini van, at my in-law’s house, sitting around the campfire or even at my office. Hobbies like swimming just don’t travel as well.

But, that’s enough about me (I’m going to be boring you with more blog entries). What about you? Who taught you to knit? Do you feel funny KIP (knitting in public)? What things (or people) inspire you to knit?

-KnittinJen