23 June 2016

Mendip Placemats

Mendip Placemats by Moira Ravenscroft, Wyndlestraw Designs
Mid‐summer has arrived, and with it balmy evenings and sunny days. It is just beautiful here in New England right now, with gentle breezes rustling the oak leaves and the scents of roses and lilies filling the air.

In other words, it's a perfect time for meals out of doors. A lazy Sunday breakfast or a light lunch under the sun umbrella – what could be better....
Mendip Placemats by Moira Ravenscroft, Wyndlestraw Designs
So here is a new knitting pattern for some placemats to help set the scene, the Mendip Placemats. These are worked in one of my favourite yarns, Rowan Yarns Original Denim. This is a 100% cotton yarn with a wonderfully crisp texture.

They are also in this season's key colour of dusky blue. I love it when the coming trend is also a favourite classic shade. Indigo, denim, blue... the colour of ages‐old tradition, our youth and next season all wrapped up into one. Perfect.
Mendip Placemats by Moira Ravenscroft, Wyndlestraw Designs
The set includes two different sizes of rectangular placemats and a central oval tablemat, which features a strong purl‐banded design to provide some protection for your tabletop.

The stitch pattern has been taken from our Reversible Knitting Stitches book and has two very different looks to the front and back. One side has a lovely, neat ridged appearance while the other has a more fluid, casual feel, so you have a choice of two looks for the set.
Mendip Placemats by Moira Ravenscroft, Wyndlestraw Designs
The pattern includes full line‐by‐line instructions, diagrams and stitch charts. Make just a couple of placemats as a gift for someone special or a whole dining set for your next family gathering.

For more information about the Mendip Placemats pattern, please click here. I hope you have some wonderful summer events under the trees!

Happy Knitting!

Moira
Keywords: Patterns/Placemats & Table Settings,
placemats, knitted placemats, reversible placemats, reversible stitch, reversible knitting, knitting stitch, #summerknitting,

04 June 2016

Tranquility, Strength and Optimism

Moira Ravenscroft, Wyndlestraw Designs – 100711 Knitting on the Blue Ridge Parkway, North Carolina
Blue is everywhere. It's the colour of the sky, the sea, lakes and oceans. We see it at the edge of a glacial ice flow or the vibrant shade of a robin's egg.

Our woodlands spring into early summer with carpets of bluebells, and we name some of our most treasured places with names such as the Blue Mountains of Australia, or the Blue Ridge Parkway of North Carolina – one of my favourite places to sit and knit.

It is no coincidence that the Japanese word for indigo blue, Ai, is also the word for love.
Autumn Winter 2014 Pantone forecast, photo for blogpost by Moira Ravenscroft, Wyndlestraw Designs
And it would be hard to imagine a Pantone colour forecast without some kind of blue in it. Who can forget the vibrant royal blue sweaters and dresses from the 1980's? They were everywhere. The same colour came back in a couple of years ago and had a brief flurry of interest, with cobalt skirts and jackets in the shops once again.
Fall Pantone colours 2016, photo for blogpost by Moira Ravenscroft, Wyndlestraw Designs
However, since then colours have toned down quite considerably. Here is the colour forecast for Fall/Winter 2015/2016 with the "Stormy Weather" colour I featured before. In this forecast collection the blue is now dark, reflective, almost retiring and sombre.
Autumn-Winter 2016-2017 - Pantone Riverside Blue, photo for blogpost by Moira Ravenscroft, Wyndlestraw Designs
However, for Summer 2016, blue has become lighter again and is not just one of the colours in the palette – it is taking centre‐stage. Pantone speaks of "the desire for tranquility, strength and optimism" inspiring a colour palette led by blues.

They speak of a "cool and calming colour which maintains a sense of constancy”. And that seems to be the main theme for the coming season – cool, calm constant…

In my next blogpost I will be featuring some knitted placemats in just this shade. Cool enough for a summer lunch under the sun umbrella. Constant enough for autumn meals safely back indoors again.

Until then ‐ Happy Knitting!

Moira
Keywords: Colour Notes,
colour forecasting, color, Pantone, blue, placemats, knitted placemats,

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