Hello Old Friend - Terracotta Pullover

Pattern: Terracotta Pullover - originally published in January of 2012. 

Yarn: TFA DK Weight Yarn in Brick.

Ravelry pattern page here and original blog post here.

These days I tend to mainly work in multicoloured motifs but revisiting this sweater has me re-thinking that position. I LOVE this sweater. I wear it all the time in the winter and it is beautiful and knitterly but still understated and cool. It falls mid-hip on me and it’s a length that I find really easy to wear. But really, the star of this design is the cable cast off around the oversized turtleneck. It’s neat and crisp and and is a tiny detail that packs a big punch. I remember shortly after I released this pattern I regretted that I hadn’t thought to carry the cables from the raglans down the sides of the sweater but I’m glad that I didn’t. Though that would have been a perfectly reasonable decision, it would really change the overall look of the garment, making it more graphic and linear. Would be a simple mod if that’s the look you’re after though! The more relaxed fit and longer length means that this was one of the only pullovers in my collection that fit me throughout most of my pregnancies which makes it extra special for me. It’s the type of sweater I would definitely knit again, maybe next time in white?

Five Things

Now that we have a kid in school this was our first year having a March break and we tried to make the most of it without doing anything crazy. A play date, a sleepover at the grandparents house, lots of time playing outside, a visit to the Botanical Gardens (lovely!) and the insectarium (not so lovely…) and we’ll be finishing off the week with a trip to my Ottawa to spend time with my brother and his family. Wasn’t the most productive work week but it more than made up for it in family time - a fair trade off once in a while!

We went to the Botanical Gardens this week and enjoyed the Butterflies Go Free exhibit.

Winter fun.

Two dudes hanging out at the Botanical Gardens. The banana tree and anything remotely resembling a waterfall was a big hit.

2 weeks later and the carnations from a grocery store bouquet are still going strong.

PureWash Chunky in Smoke, Tidal, Atlantic, Lotus, Spearmint, Buttercup.

A Geranium Top For Willow

Last week I realized that Willow was rapidly outgrowing all of her clothes and I needed to get a few new tops and pants for her. I made a quick trip to the mall and picked up a few essentials but nothing I saw got me very excited. I decided to make her something fun. This little top is adorable! I used less than 1 fat quarter of the floral print for the yoke (from Garden Party Tango by Iza Pearl Design which I’ve had since 2015!) and the seabreeze gingham is a remnant my mom had leftover from a dress that she made for my sister when she was 10 years old. So, a solid 20 year old remnant. Way to be a hoarder mom!

I am obsessed with Made By Rae’s Geranium dress/top pattern. I made a smaller version for Willow last summer, look how tiny she was! I pretty much think that it’s one of the only dress patterns I’ll ever need for Willow because it is so versatile. It has many customizable options in terms of length and sleeve design and embellishments - the #geraniumdress hashtag is full of inspiration. The pattern comes with an expansion pack for all sorts of other details to make each version unique and I’ll definitely be getting it soon because I want many more Geranium dresses and tops. This version has me weak in the knees!

I’m really happy with how this top came together but was worried that I’d ruin it with sloppy buttonholes so I got myself a snapper? A snap installer? A snap gun? A thing that looks like pliers that allows you to put snaps on fabric and it’s the best thing ever! Willow is at risk of never learning how to manage buttons because I am going to be putting multicoloured snaps on everything from now on. I’m also pretty pleased with my hand sewing. I stitched the top lining down by hand and it looks neat as a pin. The inside is almost as nice as the outside and if I knew how to make the skirt hem and side seams invisible I bet this top could be reversible. Will have to look into that.

Even though this top is definitely more spring/summer appropriate I am too excited about it to wait for the thaw to have her wear it so for now we’re layering with sweaters. The lovely cardigan she wore yesterday was a gift knit in our Orchid colourway, the pattern is Mavis baby set by Oomieknits and it’s perfect. Even though I am a huge fan of super colourful knits I’ve found it extremely useful to have a few solid coloured pieces as well to layer over her more patterned clothing.

Lastly, I never knew that I would be a baby headband person but guess what… I am! Willow is pretty tolerant of them too. Micah calls them bow-danas, like bandana but with a bow. Get it? I thought that was pretty clever.

Hello Old Friend - Business Casual Socks

Pattern: Business Casual Socks - originally published in December of 2011. And it’s FREE!

Yarn: TFA Blue Label Fingering Weight.

Ravelry pattern page here and original blog post here.

I love this design with all of my heart! This free sock pattern is definitely my most popular and I have no problem with that. I love the crisp lines and the simple diamond motif. It’s easy to knit but packs a big punch. These were designed for my dad, lover of hand knit socks (a trait he passed on to my older brother!) and I love that I have a little corner of my knitting world dedicated to him.

Five Things

Pastel Mini Sock Yarn Skein Sets added to the shop!

These two!!!

Doing an afterthought heel without waste yarn. Snip snip!

I think Willow liked her birthday cake…

“When I grow up I want to be a yarn dyer like my dad” Rowan had career day this week. He dressed up as Chris. It was awesome!

Magnolia Chunky

Pattern: Magnolia Chunky by Camilla Vad. Hat pictured is Alpine Trail by Jill Zielinski.

Yarn: TFA PureWash Chunky in Trinity.

Ravelry Project page here.

Say hello to my new favourite sweater! I had no idea how badly I needed this sweater in my life until I finished it, blocked it and put it on my body. Now I never want to take it off! One glance at my Ravelry project page will tell you that I don’t typically knit chunky sweaters, or dropped yokes (Is that a thing? the yoke is much longer than my actual measurements from neck to armpit) or sweaters with puffed sleeves, or bobbles. Heck! I don’t even knit much lace these days! But the second I laid eyes on this pattern I knew that I wanted to give it a try and boy am I glad that I did!

Part of the reason why it was so easy to convince myself to give this pattern a shot, even though it happens to be such a departure for me, is the fact that at this chunky gauge it required very little time commitment from me as far as sweaters go. I knit the whole thing in under a week. Even if I ended up hating it on me I figured it was worth a week’s worth of knitting to find out. And the good news is I love it! This winter has been so cold. Maybe it’s just my old, frail bones, or my drafty house, but for whatever reason I have found myself chillier than usual and in need of a chunky merino/alpaca sweater. It’s perfectly warm and cozy yet somehow still light and wearable.

Look how pretty those staggered yoke increases are! I love that this design has so many feminine details, even right down to the colour I chose to knit it in, but at this gauge still looks modern and cool instead of just sweet and pretty. This pattern is the chunky version of a design that was originally published for fingering weight, and though both feature the same lovely details I just can’t get enough of this chunky version. It feels more fashion forward, dare I say even editorial at this gauge. I’m into it.

I love the silhouette with the front tucked in (I am never not tucking in my sweaters) but love it less so hanging loose. Untucked it’s just a bit less flattering on me, which is why I don’t have a photo of it untucked. It hits a bit low on my hips making my torso look long and shapeless. But with a front tuck? Perfect.

I’m very pleased that I decided to knit it in Trinity. Other colours I was considering were Mint, Cloak or Gold which I’m convinced would have all worked. Trinity is such a lovely shade of very wearable pale pink. The last pink sweater I knit turned out to be not quite right for me, but this one gets 2 thumbs way up!

PureWash Chunky is an organic merino/alpaca blend and that 20% alpaca content lends this yarn the loveliest drape and the littlest bit of halo which is so coveted these days. It manages to do all that while still providing beautiful crisp stitch definition and is quite possibly the perfect yarn for this style of sweater. I highly recommend this yarn/pattern combo.

So here’s to taking calculated risks with your knitting. To stepping out of your comfort zone and hopefully surprising yourself by finding a new favourite colour, or a new favourite silhouette or maybe just a new favourite way to work yoke increases!

And here’s a tip from me to you: slap on a statement sweater and a bright lip and you will be shocked at how pulled together you look! The lipstick I’m wearing is Laura Mercier Velour Extreme Matte Lipstick in Fire and it is amazing.

Hello Old Friend - Windward Hat

Pattern: Windward Hat - originally published in December of 2011. 

Yarn: TFA DK Weight.

Ravelry pattern page here and original blog post here.

I designed this hat right around the same time as my Cabled Canuck pattern and though I love them both equally the cabled pattern is far and away the more popular of the two. It’s funny how that happens. I think the pattern photos for Windward could be better, and maybe people just like worsted weight cables more than DK weight lace for a hat? Regardless, I still love this hat for early and late winter. Maybe not deep winter when the lighter weight and slight openness of the fabric isn’t enough, but for those transitional seasons it’s just right. The double brim goes a long way towards making this hat warmer than it appears. If my ears are warm, everything is alright.

This hat pattern works equally well as a beanie or a slouch (instructions are included for both) but the beanie version above is the one I get the most use out of. I like how the tighter fit really highlights the motif. And the OOAK colourway I knit it in still makes my heart go pitter patter.

Happy Monday!

Five Things

Out of 639 comments the random number generator chose #38… Making the winner of this week’s giveaway: Christine H! Christine wrote,

I'm so looking forward to the redesign! Keep up the great work!

Send me an email Christine to hello@tanisfiberarts.com and I’ll pop your skeins in the mail!

Thanks so much to everyone who entered and left such thoughtful comments on Wednesday’s post. I read each and every one of them. You guys really are the best!

Core Collection Colourways in PureWash DK all freshly photographed!

Me in my I Heart Cardigans and Willow in a Gramps cardigan I knit for Rowan. My kids need more Gramps cardigans. They are the cutest!

Rainbow cups drying beside the sink caught my eye.

He is so into reading on his own these days! He even “reads” a notebook with no writing in it. Hilarious.

There’s a new Mini Sock Yarn Skein Set in the shop! A new Palette too!

Have a great weekend everyone! We’ll be celebrating Willow’s first birthday by having family over tomorrow. I’m not talking about it too much because I can’t believe it! She turned one earlier this week… I can’t believe it!

A Giveaway + Some Thoughts

This giveaway is now closed. Thanks to all who entered!

Scroll to the bottom to enter the giveaway! If you’re in a blog reading kind of mood, I’d love it if you’d read through today’s post too. ;)

TFA Orange Label in Mint and Delightful

I’ve been brainstorming ways to try and make TFA more inclusive. There are so many different aspects of inclusion but the thing I’m going to talk about today is accessibility and availability. You know the big website redesign I keep mentioning? The main reason I want to do that is because over the years TFA has gone in several different directions and we’ve somehow ended up in a place where it’s not always easy to figure out how to get your hands on a special skein of our yarn. There are so many practical reasons why hand dyers depend on updates and I pass absolutely no judgement on dyers who work that way. But if you’ve missed an update because of work, life, you forgot to set an alarm or you just didn’t know it was happening, then you’re outta luck. It can start to feel like in order to get a skein of yarn you’ve got to be part of an exclusive club, which can be very alienating.

I have always tried to keep my system as simple as possible but all sorts of little changes landed TFA in a place where if you’re looking for a skein of Purple Label yarn, you’ll likely leave the site lost and confused, you’ll send me an email with a simple question “How do I buy a skein of Purple Label in Grape to knit a Sunnyside Baby sweater?” and I will send you a 3 paragraph reply that leaves you even more confused then when you started. Not cool.

Etsy Updates, Dyed-To-Order Updates, Limited Edition items, these things are all super fun and creatively rewarding for us and I don’t want to get rid of them completely, but I also don’t want them to be the only things we do. I am very excited about the new direction I’m taking our shop in. I really think it’s going to work well for everyone!

I just wanted to share a bit about why I care so much about re-organizing the shop. I want this space to be welcoming to old customers and new customers alike. Thanks for reading!

Now for the giveaway! I’ve got two beautiful skeins of TFA Orange Label yarn to give to one lucky reader! Simply leave me a comment below to enter. Easy as pie. :) A winner will be chosen at random on Friday. Good luck!

If you’re looking for pattern ideas for a single skein of luxurious yarn, here are a few suggestions:

Ah Caramel Fingerless Mitts, Grammy’s Hat (free!) Bract Hat, Framed Slouch, Afterglow Hat, Ah Caramel Hat, Cabled Canuck.

Kit Restock!

I’ve restocked a whole bunch of KITS! I’m still very much in the weeds in terms of re-photographing all of our yarns and colourways and working on a website overhaul. It’s coming along but it’s not quite there yet. What is ready right now is a whole lot of kits! I’ve got a variety of Mitten Kits, White Light Skein Sets in Fingering and Worsted Weight, Mini Sock Yarn Skein Sets AND a few new Fingering Weight Fade Sets as well.

Pictured above are the 7 lining colourways from the current selection of Mitten Kits. I love it. :)

Five Things

Kind of a Valentine’s Day theme this week. I couldn’t give a hoot about Valentine’s Day but have to admit that even the silly holidays are fun with kids. They make everything an exciting excuse to celebrate! Also, Rowan made us the sweetest Valentine at school, so now I’m a fan. Have a great weekend!

Any excuse to bake and decorate sugar cookies. Micah couldn’t be more pleased about the sprinkle lava overflowing from his cookie.

Micah dumped out the box of crayons and Rowan put them back in. In rainbow formation!!! YES!

Rowan and I made these Valentine’s for his classmates, but we wrote: “You’re my purrrfect friend” and they turned out so cute!

Last week we brought the boys tubing and it was amazing! There was a chairlift and everything. Big time fun for small kids and full grown adults as well.

These two cuties!

Scrappy Rainbow Socks For My Brother

Pattern: Toe-Up socks with an afterthought heel.

Yarn: So many TFA scraps I don’t even know where to start!

Ravelry Project page here.

About once a year I try to knit a pair of socks for my older brother Luke. I don’t knit socks for everyone in my family every year, but Luke is a special case because the socks I knit for him literally save lives!!! Sort of… Luke is a doctor, more specifically he’s a Urologic Oncologist and he does this specialized surgery that, from what I understand (which is clearly not much) involves robots that he controls with joysticks. Ha! He’s going to kill me when he reads this because I’m certain I’ve got it all wrong! So, the first time he did this surgery he was wearing hand knit socks (he’s not standing over the patient, he’s sitting at a desk operating the “robots”) and the surgery went really well and since surgeons are notoriously superstitious he will now only wear hand knit socks while doing this type of operation. So I knit him socks to save lives. Luke and I are both basically heroes.

This most recent pair is one of my finest achievements! Using only the tiniest yarn scraps from my fingering weight scraps bin I faded this moody rainbow - moody might be a stretch, but there are lots of darker shades thrown in - and I’m so pleased with the results. To get the faded transitions I simply worked lots of stripes in varying widths whenever I was switching colours. I didn’t have a set number of stripes in mind because my goal was mainly to use up every last bit of my yarn, so there was a lot of eyeballing involved. Sometimes I ran out of yarn earlier than expected, sometimes my stripes ended up taking longer than I thought. With this sort of project you have to be able to embrace a certain amount of randomness. A cavalier attitude goes a long way. At the end of the day rainbow socks are awesome no matter what. :)