Tin Can Knits | modern seamless knits for the whole family

Time 2020-12-23 23:05:27

Web Name: Tin Can Knits | modern seamless knits for the whole family

WebSite: http://blog.tincanknits.com

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I knit often for my mum because she is the perfect knitwear recipient. She regularly wears her knits, takes good care of them, and proudly tells people her daughter MADE them. She organizes a lot of outfits around her knit sweaters and accessories. I couldn t ask for more! It is our tradition, when a big project is out the door (have you seen our new website yet?!), to cast on with abandon and knit whatever we feel like. This time around, rather than casting on a sweater, I m thinking smaller like really small. I m casting on wee ornaments for the Christmas tree! Each of these ornaments is a great way to use up the year s leftover scraps while savouring a little instant gratification – a rare thing in knitting! I love the vintage quality of these fancy little wonders. They re the perfect project for trying out a few new techniques (pinhole cast-on anyone?), and they serve as a teeny tiny playground for wee colourwork motifs. The pattern comes with a few, but you can find a whole host of small motifs in our free Anthology pattern as well. The colourwork section of the ornament is 36 stitches, so motifs with a repeat of 2, 3, 4, 6, or 12 will fit. So grab some colourful scraps, a little stuffing, and the free Fancy Balls pattern – and away you go! Next up are the classic Little Sock Ornaments. This is the perfect place to try out sock techniques on a small scale. They have all the techniques of a big sock…but super small. And they re some real potato chip knitting – you can t stop at just one! Pretty soon you ll have a whole garland of wee socks to enjoy.I love the Freeze pattern, and I have knit more than a few of these little wonders over the years. It s so satisfying to see a delicate snowflake emerge from the open lacy pattern. And it s a pretty intuitive process. If I knit a few in a row, I don t have to reference the pattern much after the first one. Last year I made a whole rainbow of Freeze ornaments in speckled scraps and strung them together on a crochet chain for Hunter s bed. Of course I had to add some twinkly lights, and she loved it! We ve used our little baubles to make tree ornaments, garlands, and gift embellishments, and we d love to see the creative things you come up with. Be sure to post with #FancyBallsOrnaments, #LittleSockOrnaments, and #FreezeOrnaments – and make yourself a merry little Christmas!The Embers hat is an ‘I just wanna knit the next stripe’ kind of project. If you’re working with a handspun or self-striping yarn like I did, you ll find yourself desperate to knit the next motif to see what colours will come out! If you’re knitting with odds and ends like Alexa did, you ll want to get started with the next motif to see how the colours will combine with the palette already in play. It’s super fun!This motif, in both the Embers sweater and the Embers hat, leaves a lot of room for variation in the contrasting colour (CC) yarn. To make the colourwork to really POP, Alexa held the CC doubled for the samples she knit using The Farmer s Daughter Soka’pii. The version I made used a CC that was approximately double knit (DK) weight.When I knit my Embers sweater, I held a matching strand of mohair alongside the sock-weight CC yarn, which gave the garment some extra oomph and an exquisite halo. I really recommend this if you have some leftover mohair laying around!Who s ready for some sweater knitting?! Our newest pattern Embers is here! Embers is exactly what I need right now — basic, top–down construction, simple colourwork, and tons of fun palette possibilities. We may have mentioned it before (like here and here), but we really love a hat swatch. It s such a great way to see if your yarn and colour combination is the right one for your sweater. I knit up a few hats to test out my colour combos before embarking on the sweater. Get the Embers hat pattern here. I think the most fun part of this sweater was choosing a palette for the yoke. I had a rainbow of amazing Soka pii from The Farmer s Daughter Fibers and tried a few combinations before I hit upon my favourite. To make the colourwork really POP, I held the contrast colour yarn doubled. Emily chose the colours for the kiddie size from her wild stash of Jamieson Smith after agonizing for days and swatching up a storm! I love that pop of brightest red against the grey! Joyful photos, clear instructions, excellent support and FUN have been the focus of our work since the beginning. Our new website is designed for clarity and simplicity to make it easy for you to browse both our patterns and the hundreds of free resources and tutorials we have developed over the years.Now you can enjoy Tin Can Knits inspiration in your pocket or at your desk! We designed the site to be easy-to-read on your phone, tablet, or computer.While the new website design focuses on simplicity, we ve also made each of our over 160 patterns more deeply connected. Every design now includes a pattern details button. Clicking it will reveal all the nitty-gritty information about size, gauge, needles, construction, relevant technique tutorials, and more!Alexa and I have been developing knitting tutorials for a decade check them out! Browse by topic, or search to see if we have the tutorial you re looking for. For example, there are 28 tutorials on our list of Colourwork Tutorials alone!We ve taken A LOT of fun photos over the years, and our new site lets you enjoy many more of them in all their big, bright, goofy glory! For example, check out the free Flax Sweater pattern to browse some of the dozens of Flax sweaters we ve knit over the years.We ve also added several pages specifically for craft industry folks. We have free teaching materials to help knitting instructors find class materials and inspiration, and wholesale information to make it easy for you to carry our most popular products.Over the past couple of years, Alexa and I have been thinking a lot about our values – who we are and what kind of work we want Tin Can Knits to do going forward. You can read more about the story of our business and the values that shape our work on the About and Story pages.We’d love your feedback if you find aspects of the site that don’t work for you, please let us know at tincanknitswebsite@gmail.com. Alexa and I are a two-person team, and while we ve done user testing, there will be elements that we have missed! We want this website to work for you, so please share your thoughts with us. We look forward to hearing from you, and we hope you enjoy the new website!Yarn For this pattern, you will need 70 (80, 100, 120) yards of bulky weight yarn. You can also use a worsted weight yarn held doubled, but you ll need double the yardage. For more on yarn choices, check out our post here. NeedlesThe suggested needles for this pattern are a US #9 / 5.5mm for the ribbing and a US #10.5 / 6.5mm for the rest of the hat. These sizes are just suggestions, though. You ll want to choose the needles that get you the suggested gauge. Learn more about gauge in knitting here. If you re interested in skipping the double pointed needles for the baby size or the decreases, check out our magic loop tutorial here. NotionsYou ll need a stitch marker, a cable needle, a darning needle for the ends, and a pom pom maker (but only if you intend to put a super cute pom on the top). For more info on pom poms, check out our Pom Pom Basics tutorial and our Pom Pom Advanced Techniques tutorial.This hat is knit in the round from brim to crown. This means you cast on at the ribbing, work your way up, and end with the decreases at the top.If you re uncertain about the conventions used in knitting patterns, our in-depth tutorial How to Read a Knitting Pattern may be helpful. It explains all about abbreviations and brackets!I usually cast on with a smaller needle to keep the ribbing a little tighter than the body of the hat. To join for working in the round, you can start just by knitting the first stitch cast on, but I have a little technique I use to make the join nice and clean. You can check it out here. Ribbing: [k1tbl, p1] aroundWork ribbing round a total of 4 (4, 6, 6) times. Switch to larger needles.To give the ribbing a little extra definition, I worked a twisted rib. That means instead of a regular knit stitch, it has a k1tbl (knit 1 stitch through the back loop). Here s where it gets fun! The best thing about cables is that they look difficult and fancy, but they are oh so simple. Rounds 1, 2, 3, 4: [k6, p4] aroundRound 5: [c6f, p4] aroundRound 6: [k6, p4] aroundWork rounds 1-6 a total of 3 (4, 4, 5) times, and then work rounds 1-5 once more.The cable turn occurs on round five, and the other five rounds in this six-round repeat are simple knits and purls. c6f: cable 6 front. This means you are going to work your cable over six stitches. Three stitches will be placed on the cable needle, and the cable needle is held at the front of the work. The first three stitches are knit from the left hand needle, and then three stitches are knit from the cable needle. Round 1: [k6, p2tog, p2] around [45 (54, 63, 72) sts]Round 2: [k4, k2tog, p3] around [40 (48, 56, 64) sts]Round 3: [k5, p2tog, p1] around [35 (42, 49, 56) sts]Round 4: [k3, k2tog, p2] around [30 (36, 42, 48) sts]Round 5: [c4f, p2tog] around [25 (30, 35, 40) sts]Round 6: [k2, k2tog, p1] around [20 (24, 28, 32) sts]Round 7: [k1, k2tog, p1] around [15 (18, 21, 24) sts]Round 8: [k2tog, p1] around [10 (12, 14, 16) sts]Round 9: [k2tog] around [5 (6, 7, 8) sts]The decreases occur quickly, over nine rounds. When there are too few stitches to work comfortably on your circular needle, you must switch to double pointed needles or a long circular for the magic loop method. Note that there is a cable in round five, but it occurs over four stitches rather than six, because I have decreased within the cable section. c4f: cable 4 front. This means you re going to work your cable over four stitches. Two stitches will be placed on the cable needle, and the cable needle is held at the front of the work. The first two stitches are knit from the left hand needle, and then two stitches are knit from the cable needle.For finishing, break yarn, draw through the remaining live stitches, and pull to close top of hat. Weave in the ends and wet-block your hat. Attach a fabulous pom pom if you like. Put on your beanie, and you are ready for the cold weather!Now that you ve tried cabling, we know you ll want more! Here are some more TCK cables for inspiration – just click a picture to get the pattern!The handspun, two-ply yarn I created to knit this sweater was spun with one ply made from a multi-colour batt, and the other from an interesting multi-colour top. This resulted in a dazzling yarn that produced random stripes of colour, shot through with little tweedy flecks of brighter and darker shades.I love how the stripes look like strata of sedimentary stone, illustrating the passage of time that went into making this sweater. In this fabric, I can see the many hours I enjoyed, slowly drafting out the fibre into short stretches of one colour, then the next and the next.While I often finish my own stockinette sweater bodies on my knitting machine, but I knit by hand for this project. I savoured each round, delighted as new and unexpected colours flowed from these pretty cakes of yarn.My kids are four and six, and during the months of lockdown and summer here in Edinburgh, we ve been cooped up in our apartment most hours of the day. My husband John and I did our best to split childcare duties whilst continuing to work our full-time jobs from home, but juggling it all was a challenge. Yet it was in this context, with an additional 30+ hours of family labour to share, that I decided it was time to add spinning yarn into the mix. This seemed impractical, to say the very least. But after a long day of trying to get emails and design work done – and be there for the kids as they played, fought, and made mountains of precious junk out of cardboard boxes and tape – spinning became a delicious kind of escape. Evening after evening, I was continually drawn to focus my hands and my mind on the whirring, pulling, transformative magic of my little electric spinning wheel.To make the yarn for my new Flax sweater, I began with 200 g of green, turquoise, brown, and sparkly mixed batts from Spin City, which I spun into a skinny single ply.After spinning the mixed batts, I had to select a fibre for the other strand of the two-ply yarn I had planned. I ordered two different rovings from John Arbon Textiles – one was a dark green and teal blend, and another contained brighter teals, greens, and shots of pink. I plied a small amount of each with the green to create two distinct sample yarns.Next, I knit a swatch with the sample yarns to see which colourway I should commit to. As you can see, I was more excited by the teal and pink colourway, with those pops of hot pink! Designing a yarn like this, from scratch, was very exciting!Plying is the process of taking two (or more) single strands, and twisting them together to make a finished yarn. Watching the way this self-striping green ply twisted together with the tweedy teal and pink was both soothing and joyful.Before I knew it, my yarn was ready! The next step was to decide which sweater from our extensive range of designs I would knit. I didn t have very much yardage, so I spun a coordinating yarn that I could use to stripe or colour-block the finished knit.In the end, the free Flax sweater was an easy choice. With a yarn this intensely colourful and stripy, I find it s best to stick with a simple design, and Flax is definitely simple. I chose the M/L size, but I knit at a slightly tighter gauge for a body measuring 37” around. (This means I m wearing it with 2” of negative ease on my 39” bust.) I also cropped the body to 12 long, a length I ve been liking lately. I also followed our new short-row shaping instructions to raise the back neck of this Flax sweater, which made for an even better fit!That’s the big question, isn’t it? Having ticked my ‘spin and knit a sweater’ goal off the list, what new handspun project will I attempt now? Well, I m currently working a rainbow blanket, knit all in handspun And another sweater perhaps? Yes, I do, in fact, have a new design project on the go, which I’m knitting in handspun!And because these two extra projects aren t quite enough, I m also working on enough Shetland handspun for a sweater, and it feels like spinning a fluffy, bouncy cloud.This year s theme for Alexa and I is Next Stitches; we re encouraging each other to just keep stitching, and to learn that next skill. Flax and its sock-weight sister, Flax Light, are great patterns if you re ready to knit your very first sweater – or your second. Our in-depth tutorial will guide you through each technique, from start to finish. As an added bonus, this design is really easy to customize you can shorten the sleeves or add lace, cables, or stripes. For even more inspiration, check out some other lovely knitters versions by surfing the #FlaxSweater hashtag on Instagram. And be sure to include the hashtag when posting yours, so we can share in the joy! Knitting is a simple, satisfying, stitch-by-stitch pursuit. However, to follow a knitting pattern, a beginner must first learn a number of knitting-pattern conventions. These include abbreviations, charts, multi-size text instructions, sizing, and schematic diagrams. We hope this tutorial series helps to clarify your uncertainties!Understanding the Sizing and Materials Section of a Knitting PatternWhat supplies do I need? How much yarn and what sort? What needle sizes, lengths, and types? And what additional notions and tools do I need to complete the project?What size will I make? How do I interpret sizes, suggested fit, and schematic diagrams?Understanding Knitting-Pattern Abbreviations and ChartsWhat do these abbreviated terms mean?What are knitting charts for?Reading Multi-Size Knitting-Pattern InstructionsWhat do all these brackets mean? Which instructions do I follow for my chosen size?Making Sense of Knitting-Pattern Finishing InstructionsWhat is blocking, and how do I weave in ends?Note: While each designer or publisher writes knitting patterns slightly differently, we tend to share common conventions. We describe our own Tin Can Knits pattern-writing conventions in these tutorials, but once you understand these conventions, the variations that other designers use will be easier to learn and understand.Put your new learning to the test and get started with one of our free knitting patterns from The Simple Collection, a learn-to-knit series designed to help knitters make the next stitch and learn the next skill. And be sure to share this post with newer knitters you know who are still a little bit unclear about knitting-pattern conventions.Are there any elements of pattern reading that you still find unclear? Comment on this post or contact us directly, so we can improve this teaching tool.This post is part of our How to Read a Knitting Pattern tutorial. Follow the links below to read the other topics.The sizing and materials section of a knitting pattern contains a lot of information presented in a compact format. In most patterns, this section contains several key parts, which we ll look at in detail below.The sizing section uses either text or a table of values to provide the finished measurements of the item or the body measurement the item is designed to fit. In either case, it s critical that you knit the project to the design gauge; this will ensure accurate dimensions and a good fit. The specifics of how these dimensions are measured may be noted on an accompanying schematic diagram or sketch.The yarn section lists how much yarn you ll need and approximately what weight of yarn you ll need. (For more information on yarn, check out our tutorial here.) Our patterns also list the specific yarn we used for our sample, along with a link to more information about it.The gauge section tells you the tension you must achieve for your knit to come out the right size. Tension or gauge is listed as the number of stitches and rows to achieve over four inches in a given stitch pattern, and it will vary from person to person. We hold our needles and yarn slightly differently; we are more tense or relaxed as we work. When it comes to tension, every knitter is unique! For a more detailed explanation, read our tutorial on the importance of gauge in knitting.This section lists the the needle sizes (i.e., the diameters), types, and lengths that are suggested to complete the project in your chosen size. However, the needle sizes are only suggestions. To achieve the finished dimensions for the size you want to make, you must knit with whatever needle size YOU require to achieve the design gauge. Read more about knitting needles here.Some projects require a few extra materials or tools, for example the buttons needed for a cardigan, the cable needle required for a cabled hat, stitch markers, or darning needles. Notions are all the extra tools and materials you may need to complete your project.This may be all you need to read in order to understand the sizing and materials section of a pattern, but we have included two detailed examples below, if needed.The free Barley hat pattern has a sizing and materials section and a construction diagram that acts a bit like a schematic.Sizing: Baby (Toddler, Child, Adult S, M, L)Fits head 16 (17.5, 19, 20.5, 22, 23)” aroundThe Barley hat includes six sizes; they are listed in order from smallest to largest. Throughout the pattern, the sizes will be listed in this order consistently with round brackets, commas, and bolded adult sizes. For more about these conventions, check out Reading Multi-Size Knitting-Pattern Instructions.The Barley hat pattern lists to-fit dimensions for each of the hat sizes underneath the size names. For example, the baby size is designed to fit a head 16 in circumference. The adult M fits a 22 head. It s important to note that the pattern will fit these sizes only if you achieve the pattern gauge – more details on that in a minute.Next up, the materials section contains four parts: yarn, gauge, suggested needles, and notions. Let s look at how to interpret each section in detail.Yarn: 70 (80, 90, 110, 150, 170) yards worsted / aran weight yarn (samples shown in Madelinetosh Tosh Vintage in ‘badlands,’ ‘thoreau,’ ‘twig,’ and ‘winter wheat’)The yarn section indicates the amount and approximate weight of yarn needed. It also provides the specific yarn brand, type, and colourway used to make the design samples. Six amounts are given: 70 (80, 90, 110, 150, 170) yards. These amounts correspond to the six pattern sizes: Baby (Toddler, Child, Adult S, M, L). This means that for an Adult S size, you will need 110 yards of worsted or aran weight yarn.Worsted weight and aran weight yarn are two weights of yarn, each of which will work in this project. (Learn the basics of knitting yarn here.) In this pattern example, Madelinetosh is a yarn brand; Tosh Vintage is a yarn type produced by that brand; and badlands,, thoreau, twig, and winter wheat are the names of the specific colourways used to knit the design samples. To convert yards to metres, multiply yards by 0.914, e.g., 110 yds is approximately 100m (110 x 0.914 = 100.54).Gauge: 18 sts 22 rounds / 4” in stockinette14 sts 28 rounds / 4” in garter stitch(both gauges given on larger needles)The gauge section indicates the design gauge you ll need to achieve for your finished knit to come out in the size expected (i.e., to the finished dimensions listed in the size section).This gauge means that you ll need to select a needle size that will result in a finished knit gauge of 18 stitches and 22 rounds in a 4 square of stockinette stitch, and 14 stitches and 28 rounds in a 4 square of garter stitch. In Tin Can Knits patterns, the gauge listed first is generally the more important one to achieve, if you cannot achieve both numbers using the same needle size.Gauge is an important topic, so we have created a separate in-depth tutorial to explain just what it is, how to swatch for it, and how to measure it. Other posts on gauge include the following:Suggested Needles: US #6 / 4mm 16” circular needle,US #8 / 5mm 16” circular needle and DPNs*(or as required to meet gauge)*Alternatively, you can use the magic loop technique to knit in the round using a single long circular needle.Knitting needles, which come in many types and sizes for different uses, are a fairly complex topic, and we have an Introduction to Knitting Needles post here. The needles suggested for the Barley hat are:US #6 / 4mm 16 long circular needleUS #8 / 5mm diameter 16 long circular needleUS #8 / 5mm diameter double pointed needles (DPNs) or a long circular needle to use with the magic loop techniqueWhat this means, in practice, is that you ll need a smaller diameter needle for the brim ribbing and a larger diameter needle for the body. You ll also need a set of DPNs, or a long circular in the larger diameter, in order to decrease at the crown.You may start with a US #8 / 5mm needle to make your gauge swatch; however, if you cannot achieve the tension stated in the gauge section, you ll need to try again with a smaller or larger needle size, until you determine the needle diameter that allows you to achieve the design gauge.For example, I might use a US #7 / 4.5mm needle to achieve the gauge of 18 sts / 4 in stockinette. In this case, I would likely select a US #5 / 3.75mm needle as my smaller needle with which to work the brim ribbing.The notions section is a simple list of extra tools or materials you ll need to complete the project. In this case, only stitch markers and a needle are required for the Barley hat.The free Flax sweater pattern, with seven child sizes and 12 adult sizes, uses a table, along with a schematic diagram to communicate the sizing information.The sizing table lists finished garment measurements. This means that the dimensions listed for each size are the dimensions that the sweater will measure, assuming you follow that size s instructions and knit to the design gauge. They are the dimensions of the garment itself. The pattern says to: This means that, when knitting this sweater for yourself, you should consider your own body measurements and how much ease you prefer your sweaters to have – and then choose a size that will allow that much ease from your body. Learn about choosing your sweater size here.The schematic works with the sizing table to visually indicate where the various dimension are measured. You can see that d is the key for the upper sleeve circumference, and then make sure that size XXL, which has a finished upper sleeve measurement of 17 , will work for you.Next up, the materials section in the Flax pattern contains four parts: yarn, gauge, suggested needles, and notions – same as for the Barley hat pattern. Here we ll briefly touch on the ways that this sweater pattern is different from the hat pattern.Yarn: Worsted / aran weight yarn – see table for yardage(samples shown in SweetGeorgia Superwash Worsted ‘deep olive,’ ‘hush,’ and ‘tumbled stone’)The yarn section refers you to the sizing table, which has a column that lists yardage for each size alongside that size s finished dimensions.Because a sweater will take between 12 and 60 hours to knit, it s incredibly important to ensure that you re achieving the correct gauge. Not sure why? Check out our post, Gauge in Knitting, to be convinced!Suggested Needles: US #6 / 4mm US #8 / 5mm (or as required to meet gauge)0-6 mo 4 yrs: 16” circulars and DPNs in each size*4 yrs XS: 16” circulars, 24” circulars, and DPNs in each size*S XXL: 16” circulars, 32” circulars, and DPNs in each size*3XL 6XL: 16” circulars, 48” circulars, and DPNs in each size**Alternatively, you can use the magic loop technique to knit in the round using a single long circular needle.Because there s such a wide size range in the Flax sweater pattern, you need to look at the needle lengths and types suggested for your size. If you re knitting an XXL for example, you ll need a 16 circular needle, a 32 circular needle, and a set of DPNs (or a long circular) in each of the two needle sizes, larger and smaller.The sizing and materials section of a pattern contains loads of information, and now that you ve learned how to interpret it, you can take the next step and learn about abbreviations and charts. Then you ll be ready to cast on!Set-up round 1: [kfb, knit to 2 sts before raglan marker, kfb, k1, SM] 4 times [8 sts inc 2 per section]This single instruction, for example, includes five abbreviations: kfb, sts, k1, SM, and inc.Patterns have been written this way for years to pack maximum information into minimum space on the page. While it may seem inconvenient, when it comes down to it, there are relatively few terms to learn with each new pattern – and for most knitters, interpreting abbreviations becomes natural with practice.This post is part of our How to Read a Knitting Pattern tutorial. Follow the links below to read the other topics.Using smaller needles, cast on 66 (72, 78, 84, 90, 96) sts, PM and join for working in the round, being careful not to twist the cast-on.To follow this instruction, you need to know that sts means stitches, and PM means place a marker. To decipher the shorthand used in a knitting pattern, review the abbreviations section below.If there s a term you re unfamiliar with, but it s not included in the abbreviations section of the pattern, check our comprehensive abbreviations list. A quick google search should also give you the answer you re looking for. Note: Tin Can Knits PDF patterns include highlighted links and question bubbles; clicking these will take you right to our helpful resources.Another shorthand used in knitting patterns are charts. Charts illustrate stitch patterns in a compact and concise way, and they also give visual clues about how the knit fabric will look when it s completed. With practice, most knitters find charts easier to follow than lengthy text instructions, so we describe stitch patterns in chart format where practical. For more help, check out our in-depth tutorial, How to Read a Knitting Chart.When a pattern includes a chart, the pattern abbreviations are often found alongside the chart in a key that explains the meaning of the symbols. For example, the free Antler hat pattern includes the chart and key shown below. This pattern includes both a chart and text instructions, to aid learners and those who cannot use charts.Now that we have covered abbreviations and charts, the next step in this pattern-reading tutorial is Reading Multi-Size Knitting-Pattern Instructions, which will cover what all the odd brackets ( ) [ ] mean!The Simple Collection is a free, learn-to-knit series that covers all the basics of knit and purl through to turning a heel and knitting your first sweater. Check out all the free patterns and cast on now!

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