Lion Brand Notebook
News, Ideas and Information for Crafting with Yarn
Lion Brand Notebook
News, Ideas and Information for Crafting with Yarn
Today, we bring you another beautiful crochet scarf! Pattern below.
Over the last two weeks, we’ve shared with you some of the scarves we’ve been making for our Hat & Scarf Charity Drive at the Lion Brand Yarn Studio. Whether you’re making them as gifts or for charity, come back from now until Thanksgiving for inspiration & patterns for easy scarves from the Studio’s staff.
Gina’s Shell Scarf (shown in Vanna’s Choice Charcoal)
Ch 21.
Row 1: 2 dc in the same ch, (sk 2 ch, 1 sc, sk 2 ch, 5 dc in next stitch) twice, sk 2 ch, sc, sk 2 ch, 3 dc in last stitch, ch 1 turn.
Row 2: sk 2 (5 dc in next st, sk 2, sc, sk 2) twice, 5 dc in next st, sk 2, sc, ch3, turn.
Repeat rows 1 & 2 to end.
Bind off and weave in ends.
*As with all of our scarf patterns shown, we only used one ball for our scarves, but you can use two and make them as long or short as you wish. Vanna’s Choice’s recommended hook size is J-10; its recommended needle size is US9.
Only 3 days of scarf ideas left, so keep coming back!
Posted in Community, Crocheting, Lion Brand Yarn Studio, Lion Staff, Tips & How To | 1 Comment »
Add a lot of texture with today’s scarf, courtesy of Claire!
Over the last two weeks, we’ve shared with you some of the scarves we’ve been making for our Hat & Scarf Charity Drive at the Lion Brand Yarn Studio. Today, we continue with our 8 days of scarves. Whether you’re making them as gifts or for charity, come back from now until Thanksgiving for inspiration & patterns for easy scarves from the Studio’s staff.
Claire’s Granite Relief Stitch Scarf (shown in Vanna’s Choice Navy)
CO 24
The first 4 stitches & the last 4 stitches of every row are knit
Keeping your garter stitch edge, the following is the pattern stitch in the middle:
Row 1: Knit.
Row 2: K2tog across row, repeat from * to last 3 stitches
Row 3: Kfb of each stitch.
Row 4: Purl.
Repeat these 4 rows for full length of the scarf.
Bind off and weave in ends.
*As with all of our scarf patterns shown, we only used one ball for our scarves, but you can use two and make them as long or short as you wish. Vanna’s Choice’s recommended hook size is J-10; its recommended needle size is US9.
Posted in Knitting, Lion Brand Yarn Studio, Lion Staff, Tips & How To | 4 Comments »
Live on the edge with today’s scarf! Drop stitches on purpose for a unique look!
Over the last two weeks, we’ve shared with you some of the scarves we’ve been making for our Hat & Scarf Charity Drive at the Lion Brand Yarn Studio. Whether you’re making them as gifts or for charity, come back from now until Thanksgiving for inspiration & patterns for easy scarves from the Studio’s staff.
Andrea’s Drop Stitch Scarf (show in Scarlett)
CO 24.
Row 1 - 7: Knit.
Row 8: *K1, YO* repeat from * to last stitch, end with K1.
Row 9: Purl across row, slipping each YO
Row 10: *K1, drop YOs* repeat from * to last stitch, end with K1.
Repeat rows 1 - 10 for body of scarf.
Knit 7 rows.
Bind off and weave in ends.
*As with all of our scarf patterns shown, we only used one ball for our scarves, but you can use two and make them as long or short as you wish. Vanna’s Choice’s recommended hook size is J-10; its recommended needle size is US9.
Posted in Community, Knitting, Lion Brand Yarn Studio, Lion Staff, Tips & How To | 1 Comment »
On our journey through Scarf Land, we bring you to the classic cabled scarf…get the pattern below. 6 more days of scarf patterns left!
Over the last two weeks, we’ve shared with you some of the scarves we’ve been making for our Hat & Scarf Charity Drive at the Lion Brand Yarn Studio. Whether you’re making them as gifts or for charity, come back from now until Thanksgiving for inspiration & patterns for easy scarves from the Studio’s staff.
Gillian’s Cable Scarf (in Vanna’s Choice Taupe)
Cable stitch definition: CR4: slip two stitches to cable needle and hold in back, K2 , K2 from cable needle
CO 30.
Rows 1 - 8: Knit.
Row 9: K5, P4, K4, P4, K4, P4, K5.
Row 10: K9, P4, K4, P4, K9.
Row 11 & 13: Repeat row 9.
Row 12 & 14: Repeat row 10.
Row 15: K5, P4, CR4, P4, CR4, P4, K5.
Row 16: K9, P4, K4, P4, P9.
Repeat rows 1 - 16.
End with 8 rows of Garter stitch (knit every row).
Bind off and weave in ends.
*As with all of our scarf patterns shown, we only used one ball for our scarves, but you can use two and make them as long or short as you wish. Vanna’s Choice’s recommended hook size is J-10; its recommended needle size is US9.
Posted in Crocheting, Lion Brand Yarn Studio, Lion Staff, Tips & How To | 1 Comment »
While most people are looking forward to the holidays and holiday gift making, I am looking back on last year’s gifts. And I don’t have to look back too far. It’s August and I just finished my last Christmas 2008 gift. Let me explain. Every year my friends and I have a holiday party where we play White Elephant: everyone brings one gift; each person picks a number out of a hat and goes in order picking a gift, but they can pick a wrapped gift or “steal” from someone who has already opened a gift.
My gift was a ball of yarn with a note that the recipient could pick anything (within reason) for me to custom knit for her. After being “stolen” the maximum number of times, my friend who received it looked at patterns with me and decided on the Brooke’s Column of Leaves Scarf on Ravelry.
She picked her yarn (Vanna’s Choice in Mustard) and I told her I could have it within a couple weeks. But as it turns out she was leaving for Europe before I could finish the scarf. So the scarf was hibernating while I worked on other holiday projects, and spring and summer projects, until a couple weeks ago. Finally, the scarf is finished, just in time for her return to New York.
If you’re looking to get ahead on your holiday crafting, check out these recommendations from YarnCraft or click to listen to that YarnCraft episode [MP3].
Posted in Knitting, Lion Staff | 5 Comments »
Cables and lace patterns are two beautiful ways to add texture and interest to your projects. Does a preference for one over the other say something about you?
Which do you prefer: cables or lace?
Related links:
Posted in Community, Quick Poll | 14 Comments »
This is a guest post, from Lindsey, one of our marketing interns:
I’ve known how to knit (and I mean knit, no purling or increasing/decreasing etc) for a couple years, but have spent the last few months working diligently at learning more yarncrafting skills. My most recent accomplishment: learning to crochet!
Less than one week and two projects into crocheting, I decided to find a great project for my new favorite yarn, Homespun! As a fashion-conscious young New Yorker looking for something fun to make, the Crochet Ruffle Scarf seemed logical to me. So, I looked at the pattern, decided it would be easy enough for me to make, grabbed a ball of Homespun in Lagoon (which matches about half of my current wardrobe), and got started.
You’ll notice I never mentioned consciously picking a hook size. I had two hooks in my apartment—N-13 and I-9— and of course I picked the N-13. The pattern calls for a K-10.5, but I tend not to pay attention when working on scarves. It wasn’t until I was on the second row and delighted with how I could see the ruffle taking shape that I noticed this was going to be the longest scarf ever! Well, I finished it anyway. I used more than the one ball it was supposed to require, but I had already prepared myself for that. At first I thought it was too long, but after a little modeling for my roommate and laughing at how ridiculous it was, I realized it was actually kind of cute. In fact, worn just hanging, not wrapped, it makes quite a fashion statement. Or I can wrap it around my neck as many times as my style — or cold weather — deems necessary.
After finishing it, I had just over a ball of Lagoon still in my stash. As it was just a few days before a friend’s birthday, I decided to find the correct hook and make her a scarf too. I made hers a little smaller than my giant scarf; she prefers function over fashion and the ruffle was enough decoration for her. It turned out perfect and she loves it!
What are some new yarncrafting skills that you’ve learned recently or that you want to learn? Tell us about them!
Posted in Crocheting, Lion Staff | 8 Comments »
I always love seeing the creative things that people do with Lion Brand yarns, whether it’s making something based on a pattern or doing something entirely out of the box–pizza box, in this case. Craftzine’s blog recently featured this great crocheted pizza scarf by Starcee. It’s crocheted out of Cotton-Ease and Vanna’s Choice, and it looks good enough to eat!
Want to show us what you’ve been making with our yarns? Add your projects to the Customer Gallery.
Posted in Crocheting, Yarniverse | Leave a comment »
Before working at Lion Brand, I only had limited experiences with handknit items. A friend of mine knit me a beautiful ribbed red scarf when I was in college, (It wasn’t until working at Lion Brand that I realized that the yarn used was Wool-Ease Thick & Quick) and later in college, my girlfriend knit me a scarf with Homespun. I kept thinking about how beautiful and amazing hand-knit pieces were, but could never wrap my head around the idea that two long cylindrical objects (needles) could take a piece of yarn and create something wearable. It was a task that I considered far too difficult for my clumsy, maladroit hands.
Not two weeks into working at Lion Brand, however, I noticed the incredible knitting and crocheting culture here. From Zontee (of the YarnCraft podcast) to Jackie and Karen (of the Design Department), I had a number of people telling me that knitting wasn’t nearly as hard as I thought. So one day after work, I sat down with Zontee and was ready to learn. She taught me how to cast on and how to knit. That night I knit a number of rows, and came back to work ready for something new.
After work that next day, Zontee was ready to teach me how to purl. A few rows later, I was knitting a stockinette stitch, and was excited to start my first real project. Looking for a fairly simple project that could help me hone my newly found knitting and purling abilities, the people in our Design Department found a great, easy 2 and 1/2 Hour Scarf for me to complete. This would be a little bit more complex, and used three strands weaved in as one, but was an exciting first project. The first day I was ready to choose my yarn. With the expertise of our creative director, Karen, I picked out three beautiful colors of Vanna’s Choice, and I was ready to go. Once again, Zontee helped me cast on and watched me knit my first few rows.
For the next few days, I could be found at home, on the train and after work working on this scarf. This was during NFL playoffs as well, so I was knitting while watching the Giants play – something that I would have never anticipated. The first few rows started off a little shaky (as you can see on the left side of the scarf), but after that, it was four and a half feet of pretty smooth sailing. When I got into trouble toward the end, Zontee also helped me to fix a stitch I’d dropped.
Truthfully, it was fun, exciting and really not as hard as I’d originally imagined. Though the “2 and 1/2 hour” label given to me probably did not take into account the fact that I had knitting growing pains, it still was a fairly quick project to do. With a little bit of help from everyone here, I now have a scarf that I’m proud to say I knit! I’ll admit though, it’s easier to knit a beautiful scarf when you’re surrounded by fantastic knitters.
Do you or someone you know want to learn to knit or crochet? Check out our Learn to Knit Guide and our Learn to Crochet Guide.
Posted in Knitting, Lion Staff | 4 Comments »
1,000 Knitters is a photography project developed by Franklin Habit, a Chicago photographer and knitter. He is in the process of creating individual portraits of 1,000 people knitting the same scarf. Some of them are famous knitters and authors, but most of the photographs are of individual knitters who will ultimately become part of a beautiful work of art.
According to the web site “the goal is to celebrate through portraiture a creative community whose members have historically been either overlooked or sentimentalized, and whose work is often undervalued.” Franklin started photographing the series in July 2007. At the end of the project, he hopes to create a book or an exhibit, or both.
Posted in Knitting, Yarniverse | 4 Comments »
