12.20.2010

thank you for your love

I really, really love fair isle knitting. Like, really. It's addicting, once you get going; the colors make fascinating patterns and it feels like the rows just fly by. Plus you don't get stuck picking just one color...although you use two colors per row, you change the combinations so often that you can use up to ten colors for one of the stockings below. It's fabulous!

These stockings were actually started last spring/summer as gifts for two couples I knew who were getting married...I just had to wait until well after the gift-giving for an appropriate occasion to feature them. (Yay Christmas!)

The pattern is a free download (towards the end of the page) from Cascade Yarns, designed to use their worsted weight wool, Cascade 220. I was nervous about using wool...there's always the danger of moths finding something that's stored in a basement or attic or box for the majority of the year. And even though you don't wash stockings very often, if at all, I wanted to make sure these were super easy to take care of. I substituted Berroco's Comfort worsted in place of Cascade 220, and I think it was a great choice. The color range was more satisfying than other acrylic options (like Plymouth Encore), and I think it's slightly thicker too...so the stockings are more durable and the stuffers won't escape when it gets put to use.

I didn't quite know what to do to hang them...on the first set I did a braided cord, but it was kind of bulky. The second set I used a matching ribbon, which was much easier and still pretty. These were really fun to knit, and a great introduction to fair isle for those of you looking to venture into new techniques.

Merry Christmas, Kniterary Club!!

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