Newsletter August 2010: Armwarmers AdelineNews:I’m very happy to present Lune Rouge, the fabulous new shawl design by EclatDuSoleil!
In this semicircular shawl, a simple filet center sets off a beautiful vintage-inspired border. All is thoroughly explained with step-by-step photos. The shawl in the picture is in a lovely cotton, but I can easily imagine Lune Rouge in wool, silk, bamboo… Pattern in my shop!On the magazine front, the first part of a mystery shawl I designed was published in the September issue of the British magazine Inside Crochet. A mystery it shall remain, so I show you only a small part…
The preview of the Fall issue of Interweave Crochet is up on the publisher’s website (the magazine will be on the newsstands August 31st). This issue contains a special section with patterns that combine knitting and crocheting, and I have two designs there. The Oak Leaf Vest is made from simple knitted garter stitch panels, alternating with crocheted leaves.
I’m pretty happy with this construction. The garment is worked vertically, and the only seams are at the sides and the shoulders – the crochet and the knitting flow seamlessly into one another. The vest is supposed to be worn with negative ease, since the elasticity of the knitted panels is what gives the garment its shape.The Lacy Cables Scarf is composed by a reversible knitted cable at the center, with a simple offset filet border in crochet.
I tried to « invert » the skill set on this one – the crochet is very easy, and the knitting slightly more involved.And I have a 100% crochet design in the issue as well: my square for the collective Chain Reaction Afghan project.
Armwarmers Adeline:Even if it’s still very summery in France when I write this newsletter, fall is coming fast. I have bought a couple of 3/4-sleeve jackets in the past months. I realized that they both would be very suitable for fall, provided that I could find a way to cover my forearms.Hence the armwarmers Adeline!
Yarn: Approx. 170 m [185 yds] of fingering weight merino wool I used 1 ball of Fonty’s BB Mérinos
Hook: 3.5 mm [US E-4]
Sizes: S (M – L)To fit a hand circumference (thumb not included) of 18 (19 – 20) cm [7″ (7 ½ » – 7 ¾ »)]Size shown: L
Specific materials: stitch markers to mark your decreases (safety pins work fine)
Notes:
The warmers are worked with negative ease, to fit well around the arm and hand. I made them to fit quite closely. It is easy to try on the armwarmers while crocheting and adapt them to your own preferences. The increases and decreases worked as described in the pattern add or subtract 2 sts per increase or decrease.
The entire project is worked « in the round but back and forth ». For details on this technique, see the October 2009 newsletter.
On the row after a decrease row, any sc2tog in the previous row is considered to be 1 sc.
Try to avoid stacking decreases and increases on top of each other; space them out in different places to keep the shaping smooth.
Base row: Work 44 (46 – 50) fsc. (For details on the fsc, see the March 2010 newsletter).
Join to a round with a slip st in 1st fsc. Be careful not to twist the base row. Turn.
Round 1 (WS): Ch 1, 1 sc in 1st st (take care not to work into the sl st). *Ch 1, skip 1 st, 1 sc in next st.* Repeat from * to * until 1 st remains at end of row. Ch 1, sl st in 1st st of round. Turn.
Round 2 (RS): Ch 4 (counts as 1 dc + 1 ch), 1 dc in next sc. *Ch 1, 1 dc in next sc.* Repeat from * to * to end of row. Ch 1, sl st in 3rd ch at beg of round. Turn.
Round 3 (WS): Ch 1, 1 sc in same st as sl st. *Ch 1, skip 1 ch, 1 sc in next dc.* Repeat from * to * until 1 sc has been worked in last dc at end of row. Ch 1, sl st in 1st st of round. Turn.
Repeat rounds 2 and 3 for stitch pattern. Turn after each round.
Work 2 (4 – 6) more rounds. There are 4 (6 – 8) rounds after the base row. On next WS round (= a round 3), start decreasing for the wrist:
Decrease round: place a marker in 3 evenly spaced dc’s in the previous round. At each marker, work 2sctog, putting your hook through marked dc and next dc. = 6 sts decreased.
There are 38 (40 – 44) sts in the round.
On next WS round, place a marker in 2 evenly spaced dc’s in the previous round. Decrease at the markers as previously. = 4 sts decreased. There are 34 (36 – 40) sts in the round.
Work even until armwarmer measures a total of 11 (12.5 – 13.5) cm [4 ¼ » (5″ –5 ¼ »)].
On next WS round, increase for arm: place a marker in 3 evenly spaced dc’s in the previous round. At each marker, work (1 sc, 1 ch, 1 sc) in the dc. = 6 sts increased. There are 40 (42 – 46) sts in the round.
Work even until work measures 16 (18.5 – 19.5) cm [6 ¼ » (7 ¼ » – 7 ¾ »)]. On next WS round, increase for arm as previously. = 6 sts increased. There are 46 (48 – 52) sts in the round.
Work even until work measures 21.5 (24.5 – 25.5) cm [8 ½ » (9 ¾ » – 10″)], ending with a WS row. Turn.
Finishing row (RS): Ch 1, 1 sc in same st as sl st . *Ch 1, skip 1 ch, 1 sc in next sc.* Repeat from * to * until 1 sc has been worked in last sc at end of row. Ch 1, sl st in 1st st of round. Fasten off.
Fasten all ends.
And make a second one if you want!
Your computer wallpaper for September is available here. See you soon!
