anne wrote this in the wee hours:

wow, i can’t believe it’s already time to release the next selection from the bare naked knitspot 2012 club. this time it’s a crescent shawl, knit from a fine unmercerized cotton lace yarn that knits up as soft as cashmere (really.).

wait a sec! i hear you saying—is that color i see?? isn’t BNK supposed to be an UNdyed yarn club??
what—did you all cave at the prospect of yet another neutral yarn pick??

believe me, i’m sure a few of our members thought the same when they opened their club packages last may—that somehow i’d lost my train of thought or something, haha.

but no—the cotton fiber that makes up this yarn grows in colors—all the ones you see on this page and more!

(this is one of my all-time favorite photos of my dear kim3; it captures her so well)

just look at the drape this yarn offers—SOooo soft and snuggly. easy to knit with too—this is not your dime store crochet cotton, no way.

this was one of my favorite chapters of last year’s BNK eBook to write—so full of interesting historical research, contemporary environmental information, and plant science; it was fantastic fun and brought me in contact with new friends, stephanie and steve at ecobutterfly organics.

stephanie has been incredibly helpful in educating me about the production of color grown organic cotton, but also about the global fiber industry and environmental responsibility. she is a constant source of encouragement to do a little more each day in making personal choices that are healthy for the earth.

it is one of several chapters in that book which i go back to read over again now and then. i find the story of this cotton so inspiring—the people involved have that pioneer spirit that on tough days, reminds me that my work has a purpose beyond myself, beyond making a living. it’s very comforting.

haha, it was worth the work of writing that whole book just for this result!

anyway . . . shown above, tall size crescent shawl in ecobutterfly qoperfina lace, a color grown organic cotton yarn which contains 3 percent fine copper fiber (a healing agent), here in precious deep green, one of the most rare colors (this was the color we shipped to the club last may) and deep golden brown

shown below, petite size crescent shawls in ecobutterfly organic cotton lace (no copper content) in colors sage (i see it only in qoperfina at the moment) and vicuna. i couldn’t stop knitting these soft little crescent scarves; they go into my suitcase on nearly every trip.

to purchase pattern or view complete pattern information, please click here to visit the knitspot pattern shop. or purchase the pattern in our ravelry pattern shop.

as mentioned earlier,  wandering thyme is also included in the BNK 2012 eBook, collection—12 terrific accessory patterns, each one multi-sized and suitable for gifting or keeping; many will have universal appeal for women, men, and children alike. purchase the eBook collection from the knitspot club website or in our ravelry pattern shop (it takes a few seconds to view).

another fun thing to do—click here to view the wandering thyme project pages to see more examples of these shawls knit by club members and photographed on a variety of people and in alternate yarns.

 

anne wrote this at around evening time:

i’m sure glad we waited a few days for the oatmeal cowl to arrive, so we could add it to the photo shoot—isn’t it adorable on zach? sarah and i had a lot of fun getting him loosened up for the camera.

(i know—that doesn’t sound right, but trust me, it was all suitable for public consumption)

now that we’ve turned him into a model though, no one can get him to do his regular job any more, haha. just kidding—zach is a great co-worker.

but i do think the modeling bug has bitten him . . . just a little.

sculling is a new cowl design in three sizes, two of which can be knit with 400 yards or less of fingering weight yarn.

the fabric is light and lofty with both openwork and deep texture to make it a standout accessory with function and versatility.

it can be warm when you want it to be and more a decorative accessory when the weather is fine.

shown here in bare naked wools breakfast blend fingering yarn, a luscious merino/alpaca/nylon blend, color oatmeal (above) and burnt toast (below)

using a softer spun yarn such as the breakfast blend will result in a cowl with nice drape.

to purchase the knitspot version of the pattern or view complete pattern information, please click here to visit the knitspot pattern shop.

i can’t thank our friend candy enough for knitting up this beautiful oatmeal cowl, which looks so awesome on zach. sarah and zach are great sports to do some modeling in the middle of a work day—and so is mister knitspot for giving them some time off from club duties.

it really does take a village and we are so grateful for the one that surrounds us!

anne wrote this just before lunchtime:

i’ve had this secret under wraps (no pun intended) far too long—i was all set to bust out with a hint in last saturday’s post when i’d finally blocked my scarf version but managed to contain my excitement like a big girl after all.

many of you may have even seen the wheaten wrap or throw by now, as it was included in the most recent wool people collection from brooklyn tweed—where it is, of course, shown in shelter and loft yarns.

naturally, i was anxious to knit it up in bare naked wools yarn too, and our stone soup blend was the perfect option, in fingering for the wrap and DK for the throw. light and airy, they both show off the textures beautifully in a blend of natural fiber tones while offering the character and hand which is very similar to the original yarns.

this project originated with an invitation last fall to submit design ideas for wool people 5. i’d had a great experience working with the BT team on the first wool people collection, but had to back out in 2012, after my accident in august put me behind. so i jumped at the chance to participate again this year. BT sent along a skein of loft and a skein of shelter to play with and i went shopping in my stitch dictionaries for inspiration.

i submitted a couple of ideas and jared chose my blanket/wrap/scarf design from among them. i was so glad he picked that one; i felt this stitch pattern was the perfect vehicle for his airy yarns

illuminating them with light and at the same time, showing off their cushy hand.

jared decided he wanted the large throw (in shelter) to use for photography, along with a wrap (in loft). normally not a problem because we have the most awesome test and sample knitters, but this was five weeks before the deadline—which was christmas. oy!

was there really anyone who would take on this task? as i said, we know some awesome, generous knitters, so i put out some tentative feelers and phoebe and vanessa stepped up enthusiastically to take a break from christmas knitting and make these samples happen.

how lucky am i to know such incredible knitters?? phoebe took the wrap in hand, knit in BT loft; jared chose the blanket fort colorway for this one, a pretty grey lavender.

i set about on a far more manageable project in BT loft—the scarf version in color foothills. with christmas travel on the horizon, this would be a great take along project.

and i did take it everywhere for the next couple of months actually (my sample wasn’t needed for photography), finishing it up only recently. the pattern is easily memorized and lends itself to being picked up and put down without a lot of reacquainting.

it hung around while i traveled and got caught up on other work until finally last weekend, it had its date with a bath and blocking wires—the transformation was remarkable; it grew to a wonderful size and openness.

vanessa, bless her heart, knit the big throw in BT shelter, color storm cloud—and yes, it was a LOT of knitting in a very short time, even for her. as not-so-good luck would have it (and we don’t ever wish for situations like this), poor vanessa had severely twisted her knee in a tangle with the dog and had to be laid up in bed for several weeks nursing it. the blanket project was her convalescent knitting, growing over her lap and down her legs as the weather grew colder.

she was finished by the second week of december—vanessa is SO my hero—and bundled the blanket off to me for blocking, which i was of course, thrilled to do (i know—geeky, right?). i received the blanket in the afternoon mail and put it right on to soak that evening after class. due to its bulk, i used the washing machine for soaking and spinning, placing the blanket in a large mesh bag.

david helped me get it spread out on the floor to dry; getting all those columns of pattern to lay straight was a real feat, even with two of us working at it (have i mentioned lately that mister knitspot is a sweetheart??). we intended to use blocking wires, but found it was easier to work the fabric by hand, allowing its weight to “pin” it down.

i just love the way it turned out; i was now anxious for our own yarns to start arriving on site so we could knit a sample in one of them. when the stone soup blend came in, i knew that was the one—it’s tweedy texture and complex of natural fibers would be stunning as wheaten, albeit different than the BT yarns.

shown above, the stole in size medium in bare naked wools stone soup fingering, color pumice.

the large throw is shown in BT shelter, color storm cloud; will also work beautifully in bare naked wools stone soup DK, or our romney/merino DK coming due out soon.

the scarf is shown in BT loft, color foothills; a great spring green.

our version of the pattern has all these options PLUS a bonus—when i was getting it ready for publication on our end, i added a baby blanket version, knowing how popular they are with our knitters. who couldn’t use another baby gift option?

to purchase the knitspot version of the pattern or view complete pattern information, please click here to visit the knitspot pattern shop.

tremendous thanks and applause to phoebe and vanessa—they are the only reason i have something to show you today, trust me! they really came through in a pinch and i am incredibly grateful to them both.

by the way, vanessa, after doing all that knitting on the blanket, cheerfully agreed to knit the stone soup stole version as well . . . i know—crazy generous, right?

phoebe too, has completed many knitspot test knits and samples; i have a gorgeous rendition of gnarled oakwoods which she recently completed in our new romney wool yarn, which i’m planning to reveal very soon.

and of course, many, many thanks to jared flood and the brooklyn tweed team for inviting me to participate in the wool people design series and provide generous yarn support for developing these patterns.