Twist Collective did a fantastic job with their pattern selection in this new issue.  If only I had the time…

I finally found the time to sit down and put together this pattern.  The Atlanta Knitters Guild Secret knit-a-long took place in June, 2009.  Since starting back to school I have not had time to do much designing or editing and so now it is November and the pattern, somehow, is complete and ready for sale.

I have another pattern in the queue and one in the head, so maybe I can stay motivated to get them out for you all soon.  The next Secret of the Stole Knit-A-Long will probably be next year sometime, but I have no idea when.  The two patterns that I have coming up are more narrow in theme and are really not suitable for a “world-wide” knit-a-long.  There will be another one, I just don’t know when.

Here are the links to Galadriel:

Patternfish and    

I hope you enjoy it.  Fair Winds, DK the Nautical Knitter

First up, I learned to do fair isle this week.  I have only tried this on my own once (winging it) and it turned out nice, but this time I am working from someone else’s pattern and am actually going to produce a pair of socks to boot.  The pattern is Elika, by Heatherly Walker.  The yarn I am using is knitpicks essential and kroy socks.  The pattern is bare bones and basically assumes you already know a lot about knitting socks.  It also includes instructions for a short row heel, which I have learned that I DO NOT LIKE!  The fair isle, on the other hand, is great!!  I can see more fair isle in my future!

Next up is a pair of gloves/mittens.  I have never made gloves or mittens before, so I figured I would make both at once and learn both at the same time.  The pattern is easy enough, but contains errors.  Actually, I expected better instructions in a pattern from Knitty.com, but free is free.  The concept of the fingerless glove covered by a mitten cap is great!  If you want to make a pair of these I suggest these notes as they helped me out tremendously!  So, now I give you the left hand of a pair of Broad Street Mittens by Janis Cortese.

Left Hand Glove

Left Hand Mitten

About a week or two ago the secret knit a long that I put together for the Atlanta Knitting Guild ended.  I designed an original lace pattern for them to knit so they could enjoy the experience of a knit a long and have a pattern (free) to call their own.  The KAL was done exactly like the Secret of the Stole KAL’s, but exclusively for the guild members only.  Here is the resulting pattern.  This pattern will be for sale as soon as we get the photos done this weekend.  If you would like to be notified when the pattern is available please join the Nautical Knitter Designs Yahoo Group.

Blocked and ready for the photo shoot this weekend.

As if knitting wasn’t enough, I also did a bit of sewing this past weekend.  This top is from a Butterick pattern (#4684) and apparently I am a smaller size in Butterick than in Simplicity.  Who knew?  So, this top came out a size or two too big for me.  I do like the pattern though and the next one should fit just right.  This one is being gifted, if it fits and she likes it …

The mail held some wonderful goodies this week as well.  I received 3 new books on my newest interest, socks.  Remember the socks that I just finished that were too short?  Well, I traded them for some awesome hand dyed sock yarn which also came.  Unfortunately, the US Postal Service has not delivered the socks to her yet and I fear that all that hard work may be lost.  If so, I will have to do something to compensate for this lovely yarn she dyed for me.  Snail mail stinks!

Can you tell what is on my list?

Well, if you made it this far in the post you deserve a treat, so for those who have been patiently waiting I can officially say that I have begun test knitting the Secret of the Stole IV!  YAY!  It is probably the coolest pattern I have done to date and I can’t wait to share it with you all.  The yahoo group is not open yet, but you can join the Nautical Knitter Designs group to be notified when it is.  Until then, here is a teaser:

Could it be? Why yes, it is, SOTS IV in progress!

There you have it, my last week or so in a blog post.  I hope your week was just as productive.  Until next time, Fair Winds

The pattern for the Hershey Kiss Hat is on the Nautical Knitter patterns page. I don’t have a pattern for the row counter bracelets. I just made them up as I went along.

I will be writing an instruction sheet on how to use the row counter bracelets and will post that when I get it done.

The knitting chart above is drawn without the “no stitch” squares. If you were to knit this sample, (please feel free to do so) this is an accurate depiction of how your finished knitted sample would “look”. However, if you were to try to knit from this chart, when you got to row 7 you would knit 2, knit 2 together, and yarn over exactly in the same place you had been before. These four stitches and the yarn over on your knitted piece do not actually move one stitch toward the center. So why do the rows get smaller and smaller toward the point of the sample?

Beginning with row seven, do you see the decrease symbols toward the center? These decreases do not have increases that go along with them. Therefore, this is actually where your pattern is “coming together” or decreasing toward the center.

Now take a look at the chart below.

This chart is drawn with the decreasing of stitches where they actually occur. In this chart, the beginning four stitches we discussed above all line up, as they should, on every row. They should also “line up” on your knitted piece. The decreases are happening within the knitted piece itself. To accommodate for the reduced number of stitches on each row as you move up the chart the stitches are charted as “no stitches”. Each row as you go up the chart has two less stitches in it, therefore the “no stitch” space gets larger toward the top of the chart.

So the conclusion to all of this is that a “no stitch” on a knitting chart means exactly what it sounds like. Where you see a No Stitch charted, skip over it and move on down the row, knitting only the stitches that are actually there.

Try it on the sample above. Cast on 25 stitches. Knit three rows of garter stitch and then begin the chart. On the even rows knit 5, purl 15, knit 5. Follow the charts and see if you can “read” what is happening in your knitted piece as you progress.

Enjoy.

Fair Winds, DK

My friends call me an enabler and Websters defines the term:

a. To supply with the means, knowledge, or opportunity; make able

I think I have to admit it and confess that I have found my calling. If you haven’t signed up yet, what are you waiting for????

Boy I can’t wait for October 5th!

If you haven’t joined the group yet, we would love to have you.

Since the Mystery Stole #3 is winding down I realized there needed to be a little time for a breather, but this stole would be a great one to be worn on New Year’s Eve. With those things in mind we should be able to begin on time and complete the stole in time for those NYE parties. So, without further ado, I present to you:

Secret of the Stole
First Clue – October 5, 2007

I have created a Yahoo group by the same name if you would like to join. For those of you on Ravelry, I created a group there by the same name as well but will be distributing the clues hints only on the Yahoo group. Button coming soon…

UPDATE: To view more information about the Secret of the Stole I and the new Secret of the Stole II, please go to the new Secret of the Stole site http://www.knitwith.us/kal/secret-of-the-stole and you can now purchase the finished pattern in full from that site at http://www.knitwith.us/patterns/ or you can purchase the pattern directly from here as a digital download in .pdf for $7.00.

We started this new knitting site KnitWith.Us to provide a single location for the most up to date information, enjoy.