There are so many large scale knits out there that it is nice to break it up with a hat. What is a large scale knit you might wonder? A sweater or blanket, anything that takes many many meters of yarn. For me, these kinds of projects are often broken up by smaller projects like hats or mittens, knit at the same time as the sweater. This might be why I finish fewer large scale knits than others….

Around the knitting circle on Fridays there have been a number of hats lately. The one that I think almost everyone has knit is the Starcrossed Beret. Kim knit one up in the super soft Pear Tree yarn this week and I’m completely in love! I’ve knit this one myself, but mine really lacked the slouch I was looking for. This might be because my needles were a size too small (I know, I work in a yarn shop and I still thought it would be just fine to use needles a size too small, I’m not sure what I thought would happen) and I really felt it could use an extra pattern repeat. Then it would be perfect. Unfortunately it needs a full rip out so I haven’t gotten up the courage to do that yet.

Kynna has been a knitting machine these days and she finished two super cute hats. I also think she has fabulous taste because I’ve knit both of these hats myself. The first is Ripley, a really cute pattern from Ysolda Teague. I love the way Ripley looks with the pleats in the back to make it a slouchy and kind of a hipstery hat. There is both a plainer version and a lace edged version of this hat. I knit the lace one in white while Kynna went with a nice charcoal grey. The yarn is one of my faves (have I mentioned it a million times yet?) Blue Sky Alpacas Worsted Hand Dyes, both Kynna and I got our hats out of one skein. What a treat.

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The second hat is Porom by Jared Flood. It’s another slouchy beret (as they are all the rage) with a simple lace stitch. Kynna and I both knit our hats from Shibui Alpaca and they are soft as clouds. My pink hat looks pretty darn good on my head (I have a lot of curly hair) but it looks a little hilarious on the mannequin, a little more rasta than slouchy! Kynna knit hers a little shorter and it looks quite regular both on her head and on the mannequin head. Great taste as usual Kynna!

Some designers get a lot of talk around the couch on knit night. For a somewhat random group of gals there seem to be a few that we all agree on, or at least appreciate. Two that definitely come to mind are Jared Flood (who wouldn’t love Jared’s designs with his stunning photography? He’s downright irresistible) and Ysolda Teague. Kynna is absolutely enamoured of Ysolda and has knit more than a few of her designs. When an unsuspecting knitter dared to ask ‘who is Ysolda Teague?’ the other night I thought Kynna might fall off the couch, the look on her face would make anyone laugh.

One of Kynna’s more recent Ysolda accomplishments is her Veyla mittens. These are a lovely pair of fingerless gloves with lacy details and precious buttons. Just lovely. Not only is the pattern beautiful but Kynna has picked an awesome colour combination and some classy little black buttons from Button Button. The yarn is a soft sock yarn from Shibui called Staccato. As soon as we got Staccato in it was a hit. Amanda is knitting up some leg warmers and Kynna snapped up a skein for her Veyla’s.

These would be a lovely quick knit for yourself to keep the chill off your hands this fall, or for a loved one this holiday season! The pattern for Veyla can be found in Whimsicle Little Knits 2. We’ve got both of Ysolda’s books (WLK 1 and 2) and they are definitely worth a look so come on in and check them out!

Today I had my first Egg Nog Chai Latte. I think the reaction to that statement will either be disgust or delight, depending on your view of the whole holiday season thing. I feel that as a crafter and avid Christmas baker I have an excuse to start the season early: if I don’t, everything simply won’t get done. Over the last couple of years I’ve slightly improved my ability to pace my Christmas crafting and last year I didn’t even have anything to work on come Christmas eve. I gave myself a pat on the back and my hubby heaved a sigh of relief.

So now it’s that time again: time to choose my yarn and projects and the recipients of knitted items this Christmas. Since I’ve been baby knitting, the list of knitted gifts is actually a little smaller this year. I’ve made the list though, and I’m seriously sticking to it. Some key points of the list are that no one on it has said a bad word about my knitting and actually all of them have been pleased with a knitted gift in the past. Here’s the list: 3 pairs of socks, 2 shawls (1 is done), 1 sweater, 2 hats, 1 cowl. Not too bad. It might be a bit of a reach but the sweater is half finished and so are 2 out of 6 socks.

Here are some questions you might want to ask yourself while creating your list:

1. Is there realistically enough time to finish this item (including blocking time) before the day?

2. Will this individual really appreciate a knitted item.

3. Have I ever heard this gift recipient utter the phrase ‘you can just buy that’?

4. Is this project a challenge or are you an old hat at knitting it? (the answer to this question may not determine whether or not you knit something, it just might have an effect on question 1)

5. Who are the most important people to knit for?

6. Who will most appreciate and love a hand-crafted item?

Also, before you create a list of your own I highly recommend you read this hilarious post from the yarnharlot, it’s not only the funniest knitting related thing I’ve ever read, it’s just good sense!

I find that lately I am more and more inclined to go local. This has been true about food for a while now, but lately I’ve been thinking more and more about supporting local people in other areas as well. It’s not that I don’t love a lot of our out of country brands like Blue Sky and Rowan, but it’s nice to support the small local guy as well. One of the local artists we like here at Urban Yarns is Dale Ramsey.

Dale creates beautiful wood shawl pins and closures by hand. His closures are really works of art. They are sculpted to the body and are made of instrument wood. The finish on them, aside from being stunning in colour, is the same finish they use on cars, so the colours won’t run in our rainy Vancouver weather. There are all kinds of beautiful shapes and colours to choose from, so there is undoubtedly one that goes with the shawl or sweater you may have just finished.

The latest addition we have acquired are Dale’s shawl pins. They are simple and elegant but they too have a bit of a story behind them. They are made from exotic woods from around the world in all different colours. These, however, are not coloured after they are created, the colour exists in the wood itself. Some of these exotic items include Birdseye Maple from Easter North America, Purple Heart from Costa Rica (my personal fave), Ebony from Africa, Yellow Heart from Guyana, and Coco Bolo from Central America. These pins are a great treat for yourself but they also make a really great gift for the knitter who has everything (you know who I’m talking about here). It’s something unique, special, and local.

Amanda is at it again. It’s like everything that girl touches turns to cute and this hat is no exception. I love the fuzzy Peter Rabbit (have I mentioned that about 100 times already?) and the contrast with the more rugged British Sheep Breeds is fabulous. The hat is knit top down too, which is nice for obtaining that perfect fit.

I’ve been all about the rugged knits lately. What is a rugged knit you might ask? It’s a knit that looks like it would belong in the woods, or perhaps in a mountain cabin. Something you might throw on to go chop down some fire wood or for a sleigh ride. A knit that would look right at home in a snowstorm. Living in Vancouver I realize this is a bit of a fantastical image but I like it none the less. This hat would look right at home on a plaid clad dude or perhaps a trendy city bound lady sporting some rainboots.

Of course the icing on the cake is the pair of cute pompoms on i-cord strings attached to the ear flaps. I love earflaps (rugged) and the pompoms, while a little less rugged, are just great in the Peter Rabbit. Like little bunny tails. Fabulous!

Well I am back on my design work and I would like to introduce the Woodsman Cap. This little cabled delight is a perfect hat for yourself, little ones, or perhaps one for the whole family! I was really in the mood for some cables this fall and it’s just getting to be cool enough for hats. The flip brim makes the hat extra warm where it counts. Of course I had to knit a wee one and I liked it so much I made a charming green one just for me!

Not only did I feel the need for cables but I’m smitten with pompoms too. While I realize you can use cardboard to create a pompom I find it much MUCH easier with a pompom maker. The key to a good full and fluffy pompom is the number of times you wrap the yarn, this is true no matter what method you use. While I realize pompoms tend to be yarn eaters, it’s really worth it. Who wants a limp pompom?

The yarn I used was SweetGeorgia superwash worsted and I really love this yarn. The stitch definition is fantastic for cabling and it’s kind of a stiffer yarn so the hat stands up really well.

To make a Woodsman Cap of your own you will need:

1 skein SweetGeorgia Superwash worsted (for the smallest size you will need one of the smaller 50g hanks, for the rest you will need 2 of the smaller size or 1 of the larger sized 115g hanks)

4.5mm needles (16″ circular and double points except for the smallest size, it’s all on double points)

1 pompom maker

The pattern should be in shop later today!

Thanksgiving weekend seems like the perfect time to explore the idea of domesticity. I am lucky enough to have many different women in my life and all of them seem to have different takes on the purpose and worth of domesticity. Some would rather go out to dinner than make something at home, some prefer a home cooked meal to almost any other kind. Some get a certain sense of satisfaction out of a clean house, others would rather have someone else do the tough scrubbing, and still others would rather just not look above that shelf. This got me thinking about the domesticity of knitting and what that really means.

While I don’t think knitting and domesticity ALWAYS go together, it is definitely often the case in my experience. The ladies at Urban Yarns definitely fit this bill. Knitting certainly isn’t the only craftacular and somewhat domestic endeavor that we undertake on a weekly basis. There are quilters, bakers, cooks, weavers, cross stitchers, needlepointers…..the list is endless and most certainly overlapping. Knitting is only one of the many domestic activities which we undertake.We are multi-faceted women with lots of hobbies and undertakings, many of which fall under the category of domesticity.

Now, that being said, is knitting always a domestic activity? I would say almost certainly not. Knitting is not only about creating clothing or accessories for ourselves and our loved ones, it’s about much more than that! Knitting can take many forms, including art, protest, fashion, and the somewhat domestic practicality. This idea got me thinking about what really makes something domestic. Is it just something that takes place in the home or regarding family? And what exactly is the line between domesticity and art? Can things be both? Is domesticity itself an art? Holidays always make me feel a little more domestic and I think I like it, no matter what that says about me.

So, get a little domestic and enjoy this delicious chocolate cookie recipe from Jan!

Nutty Double-Chocolate Cookies

2 cups flour
½ cup unsweetened cocoa powder
½ tsp baking powder & salt
1 cup butter at room temperature
½ cup icing sugar
1 egg
1 tsp vanilla
1 ¼ cups chocolate chips
½ cup coarsely chopped almonds or pecans
1 cup icing sugar for dusting

Preheat oven to 325 degrees.
Lightly spray 2 baking sheets

In a small bowl mix together flour, cocoa, baking powder & salt.
In a large bowl beat butter with ½ cup icing sugar until creamy.
Beat in egg and vanilla. Gradually beat in flour mixture until
evenly mixed. Stir in chocolate chips and nuts.

Pinch off about 1 tbsp dough and roll into a ball. Place on cookie
sheets about 2 in. apart. Flatten balls slightly. Bake approximately
14 minutes, switching position of baking sheets half way through
baking.

Cool and just before serving roll in icing sugar to evenly coat.