Giveaway! Knitter’s Pride Bamboo DPN Needle Set

Please watch the entire video for instructions on how to enter the giveaway. This contest is open to US and international viewers (customs charges may apply outside the US). The contest is open until 12:01 am (US Central Time), December 18th, 2013; and the winner will be announced in video on December 19th, 2013. The winning comment will be chosen by random number generator.

You are welcome to comment here on this blog post, but to enter the contest, your comment needs to be on the YouTube watch page HERE.

This needle set can be purchased on Amazon.

In the US and Canada, you can find a Knitter’s Pride retailer here.
Outside the US and Canada, you can find a Knitter’s Pride (Knit Pro) retailer here.

The sweater on the mannequin is my Easy Knit Sweater Jacket, pattern + tutorial.

The shawl I’m wearing is the Clapotis, knit in Noro Silk Garden.

Lifelines in Ribbing

Let’s say you’ve knitting ribbing, you’ve made a mistake, and you need to rip back. Here is a way of stringing a lifeline through rib stitch, so that you don’t have to worry about retrieving dropped stitches!

Information on things you’ll see in this video:

The sweater on the mannequin is my Three Rectangles, Two Triangles pattern + video tutorial.

The shawl I’m wearing in the video is the Clapotis, knit in Noro Silk Garden.

The purple yarn I used for demonstration is Malabrigo Chunky. The bamboo needles I used are made by Clover.

Extra Stitches! Knitting with California Strength

Sure, they can lift 300 lbs over their heads, but how to they measure up as knitters?

Many thanks to Scott, Shaheen, and Rob from California Strength for being such good sports. You can see their weightlifting videos on the California Strength YouTube channel.

The red sweater I’m wearing is my Three Rectangles, Two Triangles pattern + video tutorial.

The multi-colored shawl I’m wearing (in the shot with the guys) is the Clapotis, mine is knit in Noro Silk Garden.

Knit Snowman Scarf and Bookmark

To see the card-making part of this collaboration, visit Kristina Werner’s video.

New to knitting? You can see my knitting basics video playlist here.

Or, here is a good first project for new knitters, which also teaches you to knit.

Instructions for working this scarf bookmark are as follows:
Using leftover sock yarn and size 3mm needles, cast on 5 stitches.
Work every row in knit stitches until the piece measures 10 inches.
Bind-off, and add 4 double strands of fringe to each end (as demonstrated in the video).

The shawl I’m wearing in the video is the Clapotis, knit in Noro Silk Garden.

The red yarn I used in my snowman scarf is Jawool sock yarn.

The light blue yarn I used for demonstration is Malabrigo Chunky.

Three Rectangles, Two Triangles

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How about a knitting project you can really sink your teeth into and knit thorough the holidays? I’ve named this sweater “Three Rectangles, Two Triangles” for a reason – those are the simple shapes required. This is a drop-shoulder sweater jacket knit in bulky yarn and a dense mock rib stitch. This project is most appropriate for knitters with at least “advanced beginner” skills – comfortable with casting-on, knitting, and purling. Everything else is covered in the four-part video tutorial.

Bulky yarn and size 9/5.5mm needles means that you’ll have this sweater finished in no time.

I kid you not when I say this – I finished this sweater about the same time that the weather turned drastically cold here in Texas. I’ve worn this sweater EVERY DAY. It’s already a favorite this winter.

Sizes: XS, S, M, L, XL, 2XL, 3XL [to fit actual bust measurements of 28 (32, 36, 40, 44, 48, 52) inches]
Needles: Size US 9, 5.5mm (or size needed to get the correct gauge), circular needles or straights
Yarn: Knit Picks Wool of the Andes Bulky in Wine, 137 yards, 100% Peruvian Highland Wool
XS – 7 hanks
S – 8 hanks
M – 9 hanks
L – 10 hanks
XL – 11 hanks
2X – 12 hanks
3X – 13 hanks
Additional Materials: tapestry needle for seaming and weaving in ends
Gauge: 4 stitches to the inch in mock rib pattern, 5 rows to the inch

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This pattern is available in four different formats, each includes links to 4-part video tutorial:

1. PDF Pattern, traditional and printable. $8.00 US via PayPal
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2. Amazon Kindle digital download (suitable for Kindle devices and devices that use the Kindle app). $7 US.
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3. eReader (For non-Kindle eReaders, any device using the Google Play Books app) $7.20 US

The Anglo Saxon Pennanular Brooch is made by Ally Shaw. Her etsy store is called Feral Strumpet.

You can also visit her website.
And the brooch is here.

The shawl I’m wearing in the video is the Clapotis, knit in Noro Silk Garden.

The bulky yarn I used for demonstration and the bulky sample is Lion Brand Hometown USA. I demonstrated using size 13 US (9mm) needles.

Winner Announced! Knitter’s Pride Karbonz Interchangeable Midi Set

If you didn’t win but would like to purchase this needle set, it can be found here.

In the US and Canada, you can find a Knitter’s Pride retailer here.
Outside the US and Canada, you can find a Knitter’s Pride (Knit Pro) retailer here.

The random number generator I used to pick the winner can be found here.

Be sure to subscribe to my YouTube channel – new knitting video every week, and more giveaways coming soon!

Setting in Sleeves

Setting or “easing” sleeves is probably the most challenging part of finishing a pieced sweater. Here are some tips to make that easier.

Info to things you’ll see in this video:
The finished sweater I’m seaming is my (yet undyed) Ombre Dyed Sweater, pattern + video tutorials.

The clippie markers I use can be found here.

The poncho on the mannequin is the Easy Folded Poncho, knit in Knit Picks City Tweed DK.

My “Embrace the Swatch” water bottle can be found here.

Giveaway! Knitter’s Pride Karbonz Interchangeable Midi Set

Please watch the entire video for instructions on how to enter the giveaway. This contest is open to US and international viewers (customs charges may apply outside the US). The contest is open until 12:01 am (US Central Time), November 20th, 2013; and the winner will be announced in video on November 21st, 2013. The winning comment will be chosen by random number generator.

Please note – you are welcome to leave a comment or question here on my website, but to enter the contest you must comment on the video on YouTube.

This needle set can be purchased on Amazon.

In the US and Canada, you can find a Knitter’s Pride retailer here.
Outside the US and Canada, you can find a Knitter’s Pride (Knit Pro) retailer here.

The poncho on the mannequin is the Easy Folded Poncho pattern by Churchmouse Yarns. You can see the details of my project on my Ravelry project page, where you can also click through to the pattern.

Extra Stitches! Mini Knitting Lesson with Reb from Pancake Manor

Meet Reb Stevenson, half of the team that creates YouTube videos for kids on the channel Pancake Manor – as their tagline says, “Videos for kids and awesome parents”. At the beginning of the lesson I learned that Reb already knew how to knit, so I threw a different challenge at her! And she handled it like a pro.

Visit the Pancake Manor YouTube channel.

Are you looking to learn to knit? You can check out my playlist of knitting basics.

Never fear! Every Wednesday, I release a new knitting instruction video. On other days, I’m going to be releasing these “Extra Stitches” videos with fun, knitting-related content.

Fancy Stitch Combos – Sand/Rice Stitch

Instructions for working this stitch:
Cast-on an even number of stitches.
Row 1 (RS): K all stitches
Row 2: *K1, P1*, repeat between *s to end of row
Row 3: K all stitches
Row 4: *P1, K1*, repeat between *s to end of row
Work to desired length, bind-off normally on a right-side row.

Instructions for working this stitch in-the-round:
Cast-on an even number of stitches.
Round 1: K all stitches
Round 2: *K1, P1*, repeat between *s to end of round
Round 3: K all stitches
Round 4: *P1, K1″, repeat between *s to end of round
Work to desired length, BO normally on odd-numbered round.

The two stitches used in this pattern are the knit stitch (link to slow demonstration video).
And the purl stitch (link to slow demonstration video).

Information on things you’ll see in this video:
The poncho on the mannequin is the Easy Folded Poncho, knit in Knit Picks City Tweed DK.

My “Embrace the Swatch” water bottle can be found here.

The bulky yarn I used for demonstration and the bulky sample is Lion Brand Hometown USA. I demonstrated using size 13 US (9mm) needles.

The yarn I used in the pink sample is Be Sweet Bambino Taffy in Licorice, using US size 4 (3.5mm) needles.