Friendship of the Traveling Sweater

If you follow us on Instagram or Facebook, you know that we had a team photo shoot a couple weeks ago. We had received an amazing sweater in the mail a few days before.

A little backstory: At the TNNA Summer Show in June we gave one of our favorite sample knitters a few skeins of Dottie in Cardamom. We had some ideas, but weren’t certain what we wanted her to knit just yet. Then a few weeks ago, we came across Glacier Tunic by Joji Locatelli. Of course, Elke knit it beautifully. Let’s just admire the evenness of her stitches for just a moment…

It seems like such a simple pattern, but there are details in the shaping and textures, that together, make it so much more. As soon as I opened the package, I had to try it on!

I loved it! It was so comfortable, and even though I hadn’t seen myself in a mirror yet, everyone else told me how cute it was, so I felt cute, because I believe my friends. (For some of us, it takes a lot of practice to believe your friends when they tell you you’re cute. I had a moment within a moment realizing how far my self-esteem has grown).

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Charlie wearing Glacier Tunic

And then I said, “you’re next!” to Becca, and she tried it on. It looked so good on her, different because she has a different shape than me, and so cute!

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Becca wearing Glacier Tunic

And then Gabby, who is my favorite model. She’s so fun to take pictures with.

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Gabby wearing Glacier Tunic

Up next, Carmel, our lead dyer! She wears a smaller size than the rest of us, so we styled her with a belt and leggings. It’s remarkable how accessories change a garment!

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Carmel wearing Glacier Tunic

And last, but not least, Kalliope. She’d been on the road, so we made her try it on as soon as she got back Just look at that joy!

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Kalliope wearing Glacier Tunic.

See? It’s a magical sweater folks.

If you’re dyeing to cast on… you can find the pattern on Ravelry here. We knit our sweater in size XXL using Anzula Dottie in Cardamom.

See all our photos below!

And if you’re looking for Dottie, you can find it in these shops:

California

Babetta’s
Twisted Skein
Yarning For You

Colorado

Colorful Yarns

Illinois

Knit One Purl Two

Indiana

Knitting Off Broadway
Sheep Skeins
Village Yarn Co

Michigan

Knotted Needle

Missouri

Village Yarnery

New York

Knitting Store

Nevada

Sin City Knit Shop

Ohio

Around the Table Yarns
Yarn Shop

Oregon

Candy Skein

Virginia

Baa Baa Sheep
Dances With Wool

Washington

Blizzard Yarn and Fiber
Fiber Gallery
Serial Knitters

West Virginia

Blue Field Yarn Co.

Wyoming

Ewe Count

Pattern Spotlight: Rincon Cowl

Katara, a blend of 50% brown yak fiber and 50% superwash merino, is one of those yarns you'll fall in love with as soon as you get to work with it. It's soft, but sturdy; the yak lets you spit-join new balls, despite the superwash merino content.

I love the heathery look of the colors, dyed over the natural brown of the yak.

I first used natural brown Katara in a revisit of my Javelina Hat. I'd originally used yarn from Bijou Basin Ranch, which has since closed, for this textured, unisex beanie. I was thrilled when Anzula introduced Katara. I knew it'd be a great fit for the hat, and it was.

I've wanted to play with a bandana-cowl shape for awhile, finding it a nice compromise between a regular cowl and a shawl or shawlette. I asked if Anzula could provide yarn support, and mentioned that I'd love to do it in Katara--and they said yes!

Loving how well Katara shows texture stitches, I decided to do a mix of knit and purl Gansey patterns. There's enough going on to keep your attention, with distinct sections of stitch patterns, but at the same time, it's pretty straightforward. No fancy cabling, just plump knit and purl stitches. Voila! The Rincon Cowl was born!

The cowl makes a luxurious, gender neutral gift, if you're starting your holiday gift knitting!

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Find Stephannie on Ravelry as StephCat, sign up for her newsletter here or on her website, and check out her Ravelry group, Sunset Cat Designs.

You can find Katara in stock in these shops:

Amazing Threads, MN
Around the Table Yarns, OH
Crafts & Quilting, Etc., TX
Knit New Haven, CT
Knitting Room, NY
Knotty Lady Yarns, OR
Ross Farm Mercantile, PA
Starlight Knitting Society, OR
ThreadBear, NM
Wasatch & Wool, UT
Yarn & Beads, CA

Pattern Spotlight: Juniper Spur by Taiga Hilliard

Every now and then, a designer creates something totally and completely perfect. That’s how I feel about Juniper Spur by Taiga Hilliard. A couple of months ago she asked if she could design something with our Squishy Skeinettes and asked for a couple of different sets. I was a little confused about the packs she chose. I couldn’t see how they were going to work together.

She used all the right colors, and left out all the ones she didn’t need. A couple of weeks ago she send us this shawl and we were all instantly in love. Sooo, Becca and I realized we needed to make a new pack of Skeinettes especially for this shawl.

Squishy Skeinettes Chain in Rainbow

And because Becca is obsessed with blue, she put together these gorgeous Ocean Blues…

Squishy Skeinettes Chain in Ocean Blues

You can find the pattern for Juniper Spur on Ravelry here. Make sure to check out how amazing that fringe really is.

I love Taiga’s original combo, but I know I have some dark side friends, so I paired them up with Charcoal as well. Which one is your favorite? Tell me which one and why in the comments!

If you’re ready to cast on you can find Squishy Skeinette Chains at these LYS:

Four Purls in Winter Haven, FL

Yarn Refuge in Reno, NV

The Knitting Store in Oceanside, NY

Knitting Off Broadway in Fort Wayne, IN

DMarie Knit & Fiber in Prairie Du Sac, WI

Yarning for You in San Marcos, CA

If you don’t see a shop near you give one of these shops a call. I’m certain any of these shops would be more than happy to mail yarn to you!