New Shawl Patterns

I have 2 new shawl patterns out. The first which has be a while in the works is Dáiríne Stole

After one lovely sunny week in Trondheim (in March) and I thought spring had sprung. However I was oh so wrong, as we then got several inches of snow! The snow and cold kept coming while I longed for spring, and this shawl is the result of that! DÁIRÍNE is derived from Irish Gaelic dáire meaning “fruitful, fertile”. This stole is knit in three pieces and grafted together using the kitchner stitch. Sides A and B are knit from the bottom up, the center section is then worked in the round.

Note that the gauge listed above is relatively loose with 3mm needles, I suggest that tight knitters go up a needle size.

The shawl can be easily lengthened by increasing the number of vine chart repeats in sides A & B.

The second was a stream-of-consciousness knit that is easily customizable called Radiate

This semi-circular shawl is knitted using a combination of lace and cables. Beginning with a circular CO this shawl is knit top-down. The increases can be placed at any interval making the shawl easily customizable to any length or width.

Both are available on raverly.com for download. :)

New stole in the works

I knit this shawl for my shawl exchange partner. I was inspired by the lovely yarn from Wooly Wonka Fibers. We had just had one lovely sunny week in Trondheim (March) and I thought spring had sprung. However I was oh so wrong, as we then got several inches of snow! The snow and cold kept coming while I longed for spring, and this shawl is the result of that!

I have been asked by serveral knitters when the pattern will be out. You will be happy to know that I believe (fingers crossed) that I have worked out some kinks in the pattern, and plan on writting it up this week. Hopefully testers will receive it on Monday and finish by the end of June!

This stole is so far unnamed. I named my project, Fiorella, which means little flower, but I am not entirely happy with it. I am also toying with DÁIRÍNE derived from Irish Gaelic dáire meaning "fruitful, fertile". Thoughts?

Good Day Sunshine

My latest desgin Good Day Sunshine can now be found on knitty.com :)

Winters can be cold and dark in Norway, so when spring comes I take every chance to be outside in the sunshine. In fact, you are looked upon as kinda crazy if you choose to stay inside when you can soak up the sun. Every year, when it is warm enough to sit outside I catch myself humming Good Day Sunshine by The Beatles:

“I need to laugh, and when the sun is out
I've got something I can laugh about
I feel good, in a special way
I'm in love and it's a sunny day
Good day sunshine ”

This is my humble ode to Sunshine.

Estonian gathered stitches combined with eyelets create the fabric for the center of this sunny shawlette. A mix of lace and cabling is then used to flare out the shawlette into intertwining rays of sunshine, ensuring that the shawlette sits nicely on your shoulders.

New Design - Nimrodel

“Beside the falls of Nimrodel, 

by water clear and cool, 

her voice, like silver falling fell 

into the shining pool”

Nimrodel is a cable and lace triangular shawl worked from the top down. The pattern can be easily customized by changing the number of repeats of Chart A. The pictured shawl uses approximately 700 yards of fingering weight yarn. 400 yards would make a shawlette size.

I knit to audio books a lot and was listening to Lord of the Rings, and trying to come up with something for my shawl exchange partner. She said her favorite colors were water tones, and the beautiful yarn from the yarn yard reminded me of cool water. So I tried to come up with a pattern that reminded me of water flowing over stones and this is what I came up with.

Kjærlighetsvotter

Kjærlighetsvotter is Norwegian for ”Lover’s mittens”. These mittens are patterned after the traditional rose or snowflake pattern seen in Selbuvotter. Selbuvotter are traditional stranded mitten patterns from Selbu, Norway, a small town about an hours drive from Trondheim. Traditionally, mittens were knitted using natural black and white wool, though modern knitters incorporate colors into their mittens. It was tradition to wear these mittens on festive occasions, including weddings.

The pattern set consists of the lover’s mitten, designed to be used by a couple wishing to hold hands inside the mitten, and the corresponding men´s and women’s mitten. It is optional to make a set of 5 mittens, a pair of both men´s and women´s mittens in addition to the lover´s mitten, but please note that the yardage given is for the set of 3. Using traditional Norwegian shaping and construction technique, the mittens’ stranded colorwork is knit at a tight gauge to keep your hands warm and protected from the elements.

I submitted the pattern to the December 2011 Knitty issue, but they were sadly declined recently. Which means I was in the running, but there are a lot of good designs out there ;) You can find them now on ravelry.

Aurum

My latest design Aurum is now available as a kit exclusively with Wooly Wonka Fibers here. This design was inspired by a good friend who is soon to be getting hitched. I wanted to knit her something special and came up with this lace and cable shawlette.Aurum is a crescent shaped shawl that is knitted from the bottom up using short rows. The main motif involves both a simple lace and cable design. The cable design is meant to be done without a cable needle, tutorials on this method can be found at the end of the pattern. It is finished with an I-cord BO. It will be offered on it own starting in Sept 2011 here.

Kobenhavn

My newest shawl pattern Kobenhavn is up! It can be purchased here from Knit Picks.Kobenhavn is a reversible triangular shawlette or shawl. The construction of this shawl is non-traditional. The shawl is CO at one end of the garter stitch triangle, increased to the desired size then decreased forming the triangular basis. Stitches are then picked up along the sides of the triangle, and a feather & fan chart is knitted top down. The shawl finishes with a knitted on edging.

It is shown here in KP Shimmer above, and KP Stroll Tonal below. The pattern is written for 2 sizes, but is easily customizable.

Socks, Shawls, and Smitten

Well I have been knitting up a storm. I finished my Kobenhavn sample, and the pattern is soon to be release on KP.

Socks to be gifted

I also made a pair of Kjærlighetsvotter or Lover's mittens for a wedding present. Aren't they great! So that you and your sweetie can hold hands in the mitten. I think I will write up another version of these that are slightly less traditional.


I tested out this lovely blouse and am starting on another test.

I have also finished testing my 3rd shawl design, but it is being kept secret for the time being. =)

Tempest Cowl

My Tempest Cowl is now up for sale here through KP IDP.

The stitch motif of this cowl swirls around the neck, like the wind and rain of a tempest. This lace cowl is knitted in the round. This cowl can also be worn as a wimple if desired, or shortened for a smaller cowl.

The example above was knit in Knit Picks alpaca cloud, below was knit with Knit Picks shadow.

Carol Stole

I take part in the bi-annual Ravelry Worldwide Shawl Exchange (RWSE). This year my partner inspired me to design a shawl and here it is.
Traditional Estonian lace stitches are used to create this lacey stole. This rectangular stole begins with a provisional CO and is knit in both directions. Side edging is knit as part of the main pattern and completes the ends using the knitted on edging technique. Beads are used in the last stitch motif and NUPPs can be substituted in place of beads.

The pattern is available for sale here, through Knit Picks IDP.

Prinsessteppe

This is Marianne Knorborg’s version of the shawl used by Crown Princess Mary of Denmark recently for bringing both of her newborns home from the hospital. The original is a Shetland lace design.



Personelly I find it easier to work off of charts than written instructions. To that end I have created a chart which anyone is welcome to use. You can find it here.

Ribbed Cable Pullover

I am now part of the Knit Picks Independent Designer Program ;)


You can purchase my Ribbed Cable Pullover design here.

This ribbed sweater carries a simple cable pattern throughout the body and sleeves and is meant to be worn with approximately 1 inch of ease. Great project for beginners as the ribbing allows for some flexibly in blocking and a comfortable fit. The pattern is worked from the bottom up in the round, requiring minimal seaming.

Kupaianaha

I have named my second pair of socks in 2011 Kupaianaha. Huh? You may ask, well the yarn for these socks is Knit Picks Stroll in the Aloha colorway. I thought that it was a fun and exciting colorway so I had to come up with a good name. The are also going to my Aunt Jane who is super fun so they needed something special.


“Kupaianaha” is the Hawaiian word for surprising or wonderful and it may have influenced surfers who had grown up with Howdy Doody. How did I come up with this? Well my first thought was to stick with the Hawaiian theme, and I thought of the surfer phrase cowabunga! Which led me to this. ;)

11 Shawls in 2011

I love knitting shawls. Last year I joined a rav group set on knitting 10 shawls in 2010, which added fuel to the fire, and I ended up knitting 13 shawls! Now it is 2011 and I am off to a good start at meeting my 11 shawls in 2011 goal ;)

First up was a test knit for a wide but shallow shawl which is perfect to wear around the neck!
Next is a beaded stole knit using 855 yards of lace yarn, destined to be raffled off in the fall at the Harvest Bazaar in my home town of Boulder City NV.


And lastly was the first installment of the Shakespeare in Lace Accessories Club run by http://www.woolywonkafiber.com/. This installment was inspired by the Tempest and will be making it's way to one lucky lady soon ;)
So 3 down, 8 to go! I have one KAL shawl in the works, and a lace & cable stole that I am in the process of designing!

12 socks in 2011

Socks are one of the most common knitted accessories, and anyone who has a pair of custom made socks will tell you that they just fit better and hug your feet. To that end I decided to set myself a goal of knitting 12 pairs of socks this year. January's pair of socks goes to my most devoted enabler my mom :)

Knit using 300 yards of Knit Picks Stroll Heather sock yarn. These were a lovely cuff-down pattern to be found here. My only complaint is that when working cuff-down patterns you must always ensure that you have enough yarn to finish and so I never lengthen the cuff as I would if I were knitting toe-up socks. The toe-up design allows you to make the most of your sock yarn in my opinion.

Sand Winds Cowl

My bulky cabled cowl design is now for sale on ravlery! You can access it here, happy knitting!

Sand Winds Cowl is a repeating cabled cowl, knitted using approximately 300 yards of bulky weight yarn. The cowl shown in the pictures below has been knitted using Wool of the Andes Bulky in Masala. The finished cowl measures 10 inches wide and 25 inches around when blocked.

This cabled cowl is knitted by using a provisional cast then working the cowl flat and finished using the three needle bind off to create the cowl shape. Alternatively you can CO and BO using your favorite method and seam the ends together to create the cowl shape. Written pattern only.

2010 Collage

Bjørge Knits Designs

The end of 2010 finds me testing my 3rd pattern! Hopefully I will be a published designer next year ;)

My first offical pattern is Baby Selbuvotter
The second is Sand Winds Cowl. A design that I made to keep my neck warm in the -15C weather we have been experiencing.

And finally after getting requests on ravelry I am wrote up a pattern for Ruben's Christmas Sweater called Ribbed Cable Pullover. (I know not the most ingenious name... let me know if you think of something better)

Sylvi

I have loved this pattern for a long time and have finally finished it!

More socks

If you are unsure if socks will fit you or not it is nice to knit them from the toe up, as you can try them on as you knit them. Like these

which I am knitting at now for Ruben.

Here are the finished Twisted socks that I was knitting on my last post.

which I think have an elven look to them, but I am disappointed with the ribbing on the cuff. The ribbing isn't very stretchy so the cuff does not hug the leg, though it does stay in place.