Bella Lana: Beautiful Yarn

This is a great little pattern. “Garter Stitch Mitts” is from designer Ysolde Teague.  She’s generously made it available free on Ravelry.  One of our customers came in with the mitts knit in Tosh DK and they were so good-looking we had to knit them up right away.  Here we’ve used Filatura di Crosa Zara (in Orange) and Berroco Boboli (in multicolor).

Cornelia’s Reversible Cable Scarf has been so popular that she’s adapted the pattern into a knockout chunky cowl.  It can be worn draped, as shown here, or doubled around the neck for extra warmth.  It’s knit in one of our favorites, Debbie Bliss Paloma, an extra soft Baby Alpaca/Merino blend.

I love this pattern from Shibui.  It’s knit all in one piece in sock yarn.  The top of the sleeve is a three needle bind off, so the only seaming is on the underside of the sleeves.  Totally cute.

I knit this up from Jen Geigley’s wonderful “GAP-tastic Cowl” pattern that she has generously made available on Ravelry.  I used a little heavier yarn (Debbie Bliss Paloma) and a larger needle (size 17).  I cast on 107 stiches.  I love the result.  Paloma is an alpaca blend that is very light, so even though there’s a pile of stuff around your neck it still feels great.  Quick and easy to knit.  What could be better?

This great little wrap was inspired by a well-known designer’s mohair wrap.  It’s knit with two strands of yarn – one mohair and one wool boucle.  This gives it a cozy texture.  It can be worn as shown, as a cowl, under or over a coat.  It’s super-easy to knit in garter stitch on size 15 needles.  We have it kitted-up in a variety of colors at the shop.

I LOVE this rectangular shawl patter from Blue Sky Alpacas.  Here, it’s knit in a neutral beige but I like it so much I want one in a color, dark red maybe.  Its long enough to knot off the shoulder, or you can wrap it around you like a cozy blanket.  And it’s great for travel – on a recent trip I was almost never without it.  You can wear it with jeans or a dress.  I got lots of compliments!  It’s knit in Blue Sky’s Alpaca Silk – good to work with, keeps it’s shape and doesn’t pill (in spite of tossing the shawl around quite a bit).  In short, a great project you’ll actually wear.

Karin

This Bohemian Chic scarf is knit with size 19 needles from a single ball of ALP Oriental by Feza.  Even better, the fringe comes pre-made with the yarn.  If you’re down-to-the-wire you can finish in a day.  I’ve knit two – one in bright red tones and one in white.  I love them both.  It’s a generous scarf – very long.  It’s knit lengthwise, which shows of the yarn changes to best advantage.

For those of you who’d prefer a shawl, there is also a free pattern for a graceful curved shawl that could double as a shorter scarf.

This adorable scarf is knit out of Katia’s “Rizos” self-ruffling yarn.  It’s a tape-like yarn.  One edge is a series of holes that you knit into.  It took me one ball of yarn and two evenings to knit up up this scarf.  Absolutely great tucked in the neck of a coat, don’t you think?

If you love the Madeline Tosh yarns as much as I do you will want to knit this easy cowl.  It takes one ball of Tosh DK, or two balls for a longer, wrapable version.  I’ve knit it in “Tart”, a gorgeous red. It’s on display in the shop.  But I wanted one for myself, so I’m also knitting one in a beautiful blue called “Well Water”.  The pattern, “Honey Cowl” is available on the Madeline Tosh website.  While it calls for Tosh DK it would also work well in Tosh Vintage.

We really love the new patterns from Churchmouse.  They’re straightforward but always have refined touches.  The have patterns for a range of accessory and baby projects – all terrific – but our very favorite is this glove pattern.  It’s written for a DK weight yarn.  Knit it in Blue Sky Alpacas Suri Merino and the result is a warm, elegant mitten.  Knit it in a fingering weight yarn – Tilli Tomas Milan – for a sleeker, more formal look.  We recommend minor adjustments to Churchmouse’s pattern to allow for the lighter yarn weight.