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Time to spill the beans!
It has been terribly difficult over the past week not saying anything about my two new designs featured in the June 2017 KnitCrate CrochetCrate. I am thrilled that I can now share more details with all of you!!
As I said in this post last week, I had the pleasure of working with KnitCrate on this month's CrochetCrate, which always includes one beginner pattern and one intermediate/advanced level pattern. For this box, they included two skeins of luscious Red Head Fibers Fingering in Peaches. It's a lovely, tonal, 100% superwash merino yarn that is crazy soft.
And the color! How can you not smile when you're crocheting with peach?! This is the color that stopped people in their tracks every time they passed by me while I worked on the samples.
And remember what I said about yardage? Each skein is a hearty 490 yards giving subscribers 980 yards to work with.
980 YARDS!!!!!!!!
Oh the possibilities...
I settled on creating two shawl patterns because all I wanted to do was wrap this lovely yarn around my shoulders.
For the beginner pattern, I designed this Favorite Things shawl.
When I began crocheting, I gravitated to rectangular and square shaped designs. But I was always intrigued by the triangular shaped shawls with their lacy sections and delicate look. It took a while for me to give this shape a try, and, once I did, my confidence soared. I was much more willing to take the plunge and try other designs no matter what their shape.
My goal was to design a basic, triangular shawl that everyone could feel confident crocheting.
This triangular shawl uses two of my favorite beginning stitches: the half double crochet and the V stitch (dc, ch 1, dc). It's also easy to adjust in size to make bigger or smaller. Create it for yourself or as a comfort shawl for another.
I, personally, found the Red Head Fibers Fingering to be more on the light fingering side, very delicate with lovely drape. While you could make this pattern with any weight of yarn, it's particularly special in this KnitCrate CrochetCrate feature and colorway.
For my intermediate/advanced design, I was inspired by both the yarn's colorway and its slight variations from skein to skein. I could see shades of a sunset and the brilliant edges of feathers when swatching. With that, I give you Phoenix Rising.
This is, what I call, a semi-circular+ shawl (+ because it wings out a bit past the 180 degree mark), and incorporates a few advanced techniques including post stitches, picots, and a special cluster stitch I call the feather stitch.
This design, like Favorite Things, begins top down and grows as you go. Unlike Favorite Things that could work with any weight yarn, though, I highly recommend a light fingering or fingering weight yarn as it's definitely one you will want to keep light and block well to let those stitches open up.
As I mentioned earlier, the Red Head Fibers Fingering skeins I received in Peaches have some shade variations where one was a touch darker than the other. The yarn is truly hand dyed fiber beauty, and I used those variations to my advantage with the design. Alternating the skeins every two rows (lighter with the lacier rows, darker with the more solid rows) gives the piece an added dimension, and drives home the imagery of soaring phoenix feathers.
For Phoenix Rising, you want to make sure that you use a yarn that holds onto its blocking well. With the Red Head Fibers Fingering being 100% superwash merino, it soaked well and has perfectly held its shape. Within the pattern, I give crocheters blocking advice since a semi-circle isn't as straight forward to block as a triangular shawl or rectangular wrap.
Want to get in on the June 2017 CrochetCrate? I hear that limited quantities are still available, so if you want to get in on this month's box, you may want to do it sooner than later. Order KnitCrate's CrochetCrate today and don't forget to use the coupon code YARNGERIE20 at checkout to receive 20% off your first box. The CrochetCrate is priced at $44.95 and includes free worldwide shipping, so with the coupon, your total for this first box purchase should come to around $36.00. Such a deal!!
There are many other knitting-focused KnitCrate subscriptions available, so if the CrochetCrate isn't so much your thing, check out their other subs to find one that's just right for you.
Thank you again to the fabulous KnitCrate team for giving me this wonderful opportunity of creating designs for their many subscribers. It's not every day that you find a yarn subscription that has a curated box especially for crochet, and it's an honor to help bring such joy to crocheters everywhere.
Check in with KnitCrate on Ravelry! I'm stopping by from time to time in case there's a pattern question (at least, until I go into labor), and, as always, if there is ever a question or if you need pattern help with my designs, I'm reachable at aheemai on Ravelry.