Thursday, July 19, 2007

we've moved!

Our blog has moved to a new home - www.LoopKnits.com!

Please update your links and join us over there!

Monday, July 16, 2007

charity knitting club meeting

The Loop Charity Knitting Club held its first meeting yesterday. Twenty-one knitters joined the effort to knit squares for a blanket for Project Linus. Here's a few of us who were at the table -

Loop Charity Knitting Club at Work

See how hard we're working? (that's because everyone looked down when Laura said she was taking the picture!)

Alina finished her square - well done! - while the rest of us got off to good starts. Our goal is to complete our squares by the end of August, so we can assemble and then donate our blanket(s) right after Labor Day.

We can still use more volunteers. Stop by anytime and pick up a ball of yarn and a pattern sheet if you'd like to get involved.

Thanks to everyone who came yesterday and helped get this project going!

Sunday, July 15, 2007

wrap yourself in silk

Silken Straw Wrap

Silken Straw is a versatile yarn. Knit or crochet it tightly with small needles or hook and it makes a sturdy bag. Change to large needles and it flows beautifully.

The Silken Straw Wrap is the perfect way to take advantage of that beautiful drape. Here's the pattern.

Materials - 2 hanks of Silken Straw yarn, 24" size US13

Cast on 3 stitches.
K1, kfb, knit to the end.
Repeat this row to the end of the first hank of yarn.

Join second hank.
K1, k2tog, knit to the end.
Repeat this row until 3 stitches remain.
Bind off. Weave in ends.

The wrap is a square made from point to point. In the photo above, it's folded in half into a rectangle and draped around the shoulders. Perfect for covering up from the sun or late night walks on the water's edge!

Friday, July 13, 2007

kite kerchief

If you're wondering what to knit with the beautiful Bamboo yarn that arrived recently, we've got a great suggestion - the Kite Kerchief.

Kite Kerchief knit in Alchemy Bamboo yarn

The Kite Kerchief has a scalloped edge and a pretty lace pattern. It's knit with 2 hanks of Bamboo Elements (solids) or Bamboo Colorways. Ours is knit in the color Tea Leaf, which is one of the Elements.

The Bamboo yarn is wonderful to knit and the Kite Kerchief will be a stylish addition to your wardrobe!

Monday, July 09, 2007

charity knitting club

Through my participation in Stitch N' Pitch, I met the Janet Geissler, the President of The Project Linus Philadelphia Chapter. Project Linus is a national non-profit organization dedicated to providing "love, a sense of security, warmth and comfort to children who are seriously ill, traumatized, or otherwise in need through the gifts of new, handmade blankets and afghans, lovingly created by volunteer "blanketeers." As of March 31, 2007, Project Linus has donated over 2 million blankets made by volunteers in 406 chapters! The more we learned about Project Linus, the more we wanted to get involved.

Janet told us that what she needs the most are blankets for teenage boys, so that's where we'll start. We've come up with a blanket made of large squares knit in various stitch patterns. Loop will donate the yarn and if you can knit one square, we should have several blankets in no time!

The Charity Knitting Club will meet on Sundays from 1 to 3 pm. The first meeting is this Sunday, July 15. Please call ahead and let us know if you plan to come, so we know how many people to expect.

If the meeting time is inconvenient, you can still help. Just stop in any time after July 15 to pick up yarn and a pattern sheet.

We're very excited about this new project and hope you'll be able to join us!

Saturday, July 07, 2007

lucky 7

There's a lot of excitement about today, the 7th day of the 7th month of the 7th year of the century. With 7 being such a lucky number, lots of folks scheduled their wedding for today while others are heading to their favorite casino.

We, of course, think you should celebrate by casting on for Lucky 7, published in the recently-released Just Socks and written by our very own friend and Loop regular Martha Onusconich.

Lucky 7 Sock
Lucky 7 - named after Martha's cat - is a challenging sock knit in 7 pieces, which enables them to be fully refootable! For someone like me, who is second sock challenged, I'm fascinated by the idea of removing and re-knitting the foot of your sock.

So channel the luck of the day into a challenging knitting project like Lucky 7 and, who knows, you could find it's a snap!

Friday, July 06, 2007

introducing suri merino

The first fall arrival is a beautiful new yarn from Blue Sky Alpaca - Suri Merino. It's a luxurious combination of baby suri (a breed of alpaca prized for its longer and silkier fibers) and merino presented in 14 shades.

Suri Merino yarn
Suri Merino yarn
Suri Merino yarn
Suri Merino yarn is a single ply that knits at a recommended gauge of 5 to 6 stitches per inch on a US 5-7. I knit a swatch using a variety of needle sizes and liked how it felt at 4.5 stitches per inch on an 8. It's a pleasure to knit, so experiment a little and see what you like best.