Many thanks to everyone who participated in the #kdknitphotohop over the past week. It was lots of fun! I got to meet new-to-me Instagrammers and give away some patterns. Here's where we started:
A photo posted by Kathleen Dames (@kathleendames) on
Thanks, again, to everyone who played along! It was so fun that I'm thinking of doing a weekly prompt (seven days in. a. row. was kind of a lot for me, though that could be because it was also the first week of school, the week leading up to my and my husband's birthdays, as well as preparing for Penelope's belated birthday party - summer birthdays can be tough on a kid).
Tomorrow I will announce the yarn giveaway winner for enough Miss Babs Yowza in Oyster to knit the Caught in the Rigging cowl.
A cozy scarf is a must for walking the deck of your ship, and what better way to dress it up than with a little of Frank Austen’s fringe? He worked the very same fringe (on some curtains) while on shore leave with his sister Jane. Luscious, bulky Malabrigo Twist makes for a quick knit, and the reversible Seaweed stitch pattern will keep your interest until it’s time to tie that fringe and board your ship.
This pattern is designed so that you can use every yard/meter of two lovely skeins of Malabrigo Twist or 300 yds/274 m of your favorite Aran weight yarn. The Seaweed stitch pattern is lovely to work in knits and purls, plus it is easy to remember after one time through the pattern. And like all the best scarf patterns, it's reversible! Seaweed looks different but equally attractive on the reverse side.
And then there's the fringe! While, in general, I'm not fringe-y, I love working this fringe and can see how Frank Austen could work up fringe for the drawing room quite happily (even if he had a bad cough). You could leave off the fringe (I worked up a plain version of the scarf for my fringe-averse husband), but I think it really adds a special touch to this scarf
What you'll love about knittingCaptain Austen's Scarf:
Seaweed stitch is a straightforward knit-purl pattern - easy to work, provided in both written and charted versions
Designed to use up just about all of two skeins of Twist - no awkward amounts of leftovers
Fringe edging is fun to create - you'll start looking at everything around you to see what else might need fringe
What you'll love about wearingCaptain Austen's Scarf:
There is no wrong side to this scarf - sometimes you fall for a scarf that has to be worn "just so" to be seen to advantage; this scarf looks great front- and reverse-facing
Worked in a lusciously soft yarn like Malabrigo Twist, you will love having this around your neck all winter long
You will entertain yourself with that fringe
Makes an excellent gift for any man or woman - just choose a favorite color and knit away!
Size/Finished Measurements
70" long x 6" wide, including fringe
Materials
Malabrigo Twist [100% merino wool; 150 yards/137 meters per 100g skein]; color: Ravelry Red; 2 skeins
US8/5.0mm needle(s)
US H-8/5.0mm crochet hook (optional)
Tapestry needle Gauge
20 sts x 22 rows = 4" square in Seaweed stitch pattern
Skills Needed
casting on
binding off
knitting
purling
following written or charted instructions for Seaweed stitch pattern (both included)
After posting a picture on Instagram/Facebook of a tray of granola ready to go into the oven last week, I received a lot of notes asking about my recipe.
My overall principle after lots of tweaking and eating is one Tablespoon each oil and sweetener for every cup of stuff, then baking for about six minutes for each cup of said stuff. So, feel free to go nuts (or seeds or whatever makes you want to get up in the morning and have a delicious breakfast)!
I've substituted maple syrup for the honey and might substitute coconut oil for canola just to see. If I run out of one kind of nut, I've doubled the other, but I do prefer the combination. And I like to think that the flax seeds give my coat a glossy sheen, but that could just be me being silly. Don't skip the salt! In all my time in the kitchen (cooking was my hobby before I became a knitter), the most important lesson I've learned is that salt brings out sweetness in baked goods.
This is IMO delicious atop your favorite yogurt with some fruit mixed in (you can skip the cranberries in that case), but I love to eat it as cold cereal with dried cranberries and soy milk (more calcium for my bones). When I run out of granola and have to eat something else for breakfast, I am not a happy camper, so this stuff gets made often.
Caveat: I am not a nutritionist. Nor am I a professional chef. This is how I like it. YMMV.
Kathleen's Granola
approx. 1 quart
4 cups old fashioned oats
1/2 cup walnut pieces
1/2 cup slivered almonds
1 cup sweetened coconut, loosely packed
1/4 cup flax seeds, ground
1.5 teaspoons kosher salt
6 Tablespoons canola oil
6 Tablespoons honey
1 cup dried cranberries (optional)
Preheat oven to 325 F. Line large baking sheet with parchment. Mix dry ingredients in a large bowl. Add oil and honey to bowl, then mix thoroughly to coat dry ingredients. Pour onto lined baking sheet and spread evenly. Bake for approx. 35 minutes until fragrant and toasted brown. Cool thoroughly on rack. Store in covered container. Add cranberries before serving.
Notes
I use a rimmed half sheet pan, sometimes known as a jelly roll pan. It is approx. 18x13".
To cut down on the number of utensils I dirty, I fill my Tablespoon half-way with salt. Then I use the Tablespoon for the oil and honey as follows: Fill with oil, pour in bowl; fill with honey, pour in bowl; repeat six times. The oil prevents the honey from sticking to the spoon.
I used to add the cranberries before storing the granola but have discovered that, thanks to osmosis, the moisture in the berries tends to leave said berries and permeate the granola. Not enough to make the granola soggy or anything, just enough to make the cranberries hard. Me no likey.
This recipe has been doubled and halved using 9x13" and two half sheet pans, respectively. Bake for 20-25 minutes and 45-55 minutes.
Kids start back to school tomorrow-ish (classroom visits). Once they're back in their school-year routine, I'll get back into mine. In the meantime I'm enjoying the last of summer as best I can (it's HOT out - ugh). Hope you're having a good time, too.
As I mentioned Wednesday (and made official in yesterday's newsletter - subscribe already! - and on Instagram), I've decided to try a photo hop on Instagram. I have friends who did the #sewphotohop, and it looked like lots of fun, but I don't sew. Maybe I haven't been looking in the right places, but I haven't found any knitting-focused hops, pads, or pods other than my Geeky Girls Knit #ggkcraftypad, and I'm not quite ready for a whole month yet. A week seems doable right now (the kids start back to school next Wednesday). Could you handle a week? It seems like a fun way to get to know other Instagrammers and make the run up to my birthday super fun.
Care to join me? I plan to give away a pattern a day of your choice, plus one of you lucky Instagrammers will win enough MissBabs Yowza to knit your own Caught in the Rigging cowl.
OK, we have almost two weeks to go until the big day (I'll be 44 on 13 September - yay/sob), but I've decided to start giving presents to you dear ones early:
Caught in the Rigging is now available for free on Knitty - perfect for that special pile of wool you've been hoarding or adding to your Fall Fiber Festival shopping list. I'm going to Rhinebeck - will I see you there?
Birthday sale on Ravelry: Buy two patterns, get one free - no coupon necessary. Place any three of my patterns in your cart, and you will only be charged for two. If you want, buy two, and let me know to whom you would like me to gift the third one. Share the love!
So, I'm kind of intrigued by these Photo-a-day things on Instagram, but I haven't found a knit-ish one that I want to join yet. Have you done one? Would you like to try doing one with me? I'm thinking one week long to get our feet wet (if it's awesome, we can do more), leading up to my birthday, maybe some prizes at the end (patterns, enough yarn to knit a Caught in the Rigging cowl, I'm open to suggestions). Let me know in the comments or via email (kathleen at kathleendames dot com) what you think.
That's it for presents and excitement today. Who knows what tomorrow will bring :)
I love cables and sweaters - the more the better! But sometimes I want something a little different: a focus on a single, intriguing cable (Tangled Ropes) and a shape that isn’t complex but is more than just a tube. Caught in the Rigging cape + cowl are the perfect combination of pattern and shape. The cowl, while keeping your neck warm, also serves as your swatch. The cape sits nicely on your shoulders thanks to its raglan shaping. Separated increases and decreases in the body portion cause the fabric flanking the cables to bias, adding textural interest. Worked from the top, down, you are free to make this cape as long as you like. Just don’t get caught in the rigging!
Caught in the Rigging (photo: Nicholas Dames)
What you'll love about knittingCaught in the Rigging:
working the cowl first will give you a chance to get to know your yarn/needle combination, as well as the cable pattern
top-down in-the-round means you can make it as long as you wish
carefully-placed increases and decreases keep your interest along with that fabulous cable
What you'll love about wearingCaught in the Rigging:
cape and cowl are separate pieces - two knits for the "price" of one
raglan shaping in the shoulders make for a great fit up top where it matters most
increases and decreases add a bias effect for additional textural interest
Caught in the Rigging (photo: Nicholas Dames)
Size
Cowl: One size
Cape: Women’s XS [S, M, L, 1X, 2X, 3X] (shown in size L)
CAPE
Chest: 28 [32, 36, 40, 44, 48, 52] inches {eds., the garment circumference after increases is 36.5 [41.5, 48.5, 52, 57.25, 62.5, 67.5] inches, sized to fit the aforementioned chest sizes - not sure how you would like to handle.}
Length: 19 [19.5, 20, 20.5, 21, 21.5, 22] inches
This garment is sleeveless. To determine fit, measure around the fullest part of your bust and your upper arms (you’ll need a friend to help). This is likely about 1/3 bigger than your bust circumference. Choose a size with 2-3 inches of positive ease compared to that full circumference measurement.
A photo posted by Kathleen Dames (@kathleendames) on
How lucky was I for my photo shoot day? June 1st was a chilly, misty day, so no heat stroke for me wrapped in quite a bit of cozy wool. Plus, shooting at the Little Red Lighthouse is something I've always wanted to do (how many times have I read The Little Red Lighthouse and the Great Grey Bridge to my kids?!). Combining the lighthouse and my Hunters gave the perfect pops of color to my beautiful grey cape (which otherwise might have been a little, well, grey).
Could it be? Yes, it could. Something's coming, something good, If I can wait! Something's coming, I don't know what it is, But it is Gonna be great!
I do love a good West Side Story lyric.
And something good is coming: a new issue of Knitty hits the interwebs tomorrow! They say the server has been beefed up to handle first-day traffic, but let's see what we can do about that :)
You will find something of mine in it. Something with a cable. Something with an interesting structure. Something that you'll need to get yarn for at your favorite fiber festival (or maybe you already have but haven't been sure to do with that lovely pile of wool).
I think I owe you a proper #weddingsweater wrap-up post, but apparently jetlag got the best of me last week, and I haven't been able to dig up any new photos of the sweater. I do know that my sister has worn it since the big day, so that's good. Since that sweater lives in Germany, I may need to knit one up for myself. For modeling purposes, you know.
There are a few patterns in need of photographs, and the list of samples I want/need to knit keeps growing (see above), but I'm back to work, my dears, and plan to have more lovely things for you soon. Or as soon as the weather turns more hospitable (ugh, NYC heat wave right now).
Tomorrow I will tell you all about the Knitty thing and about my birthday month. Until then...
Thanks for stopping by, and happy knitting!
xoxo,
Kathleen
