27 August 2018

Stripes for Summer and Winter

Derwent Cove Cushions by Moira Ravenscroft, Wyndlestraw Designs
Today is Autumn Bank Holiday in the UK, usually seen as the grand finale of the Summer Season. Up and down the country, families will be returning from their holidays and getting ready for the start of the new school term.

It can feel a little sad to see a season end, especially when it has been as exceptional as this one! However, I have to admit to liking these transition times. True, the summer is wonderful with its clear, bright skies, the feeling of the sea breezes in your hair and hours spent walking aimlessly on sandy shores. But one day a slightly cooler breeze comes along and you feel that wonderful thrill of anticipation imaging knitting warm scarves and blankets ready for the winter ahead.

So here in the last of my “Summer and Winter blogpost series, I am thinking of stripes: stripes to capture those beautiful summer colours in a set of cushions, and stripes on a warm rug to step onto when you emerge from the shower.
Derwent Cove Cushions by Moira Ravenscroft, Wyndlestraw Designs
It is one of the delights of knitting that you can be sitting one moment by a limpid pool with a set of colouring pencils in your hand, sketching the rocks or perhaps just letting the sound of the gulls wash over you. Then a short while later, you find yourself in a yarn store and the self‐same colours are in your hands.

These cushions arose from just such an occurrence. There was a brief 15-minute interlude between a walk by the harbour in Venice, Florida and finding these yarns in a small yarn boutique close by. I wrote about this in a previous blogpost, but it still amazes me how well matched the colours were. The very same blues and turquoises I had just seen down by the harbour, and now they are a set of cushions. A memory of summer.

These are the Derwent Cove Cushions and have been worked in a crisp, cool cotton yarn. They are easy to make and can look completely different depending on which colour you start the pattern with. It’s the same stripe pattern and the same yarns used for each one, but this simple switch of lead colour gives a co-ordinated set of cushions.
Loopy Rug by Anna Ravenscroft, Anna Alway Designs
Now of course,  you don't need to go very far back to remember the summer‐time at the moment. But now delve further back in your mind to last winter... Can you recall that cold feeling when you stepped onto the icy bathroom floor first thing in the morning? The heating hadn't fully kicked in yet and the tiles seemed to be draining away every last ounce of warmth from your morning shower... Remember that feeling? … Argh!

​Well, here's something to help. A cozy bathroom rug with colours to chase away the chills! This is Anna’s Loopy Rug pattern and is worked in a soft chunky wool‐mix yarn so it knits up quickly. You'll be able to start this now as the leaves change colour around you, then when winter sets in you'll be able to face your shower without the shock of the cold floor to follow.
Loopy Rug by Anna Ravenscroft, Anna Alway Designs
For more information about the Derwent Cove Cushions please click here, and to read more about the Loopy Rug, please click here.  Both patterns are available for instant download from the pattern sites, and both are also graded as "Easy" – perfect for getting back into knitting after the long lazy summer.

I hope you have enjoyed this exploration of knitting patterns for Summer and Winter. If you would like to read the whole series, please click here to read the first blogpost and then follow the links at the bottom of each page to get back to this point.

We’re heading off on our travels again next week, so I’ll be back next time with a “Postcard from England".

Until then – Happy Knitting!

Moira
Keywords: Patterns/Cushions,
cushion, pillow, rug, summer, winter, easy pattern, blue, turquoise, white, orange, yellow, black, Garter Stitch, Loopy Rug Stitch,

17 August 2018

Summer at the Beach, Winter by the Fire

Siesta Key Beach, photo by Tim Ravenscroft, Wyndlestraw Designs
There's nothing quite like being by the beach, whether it's Bondi beach in Sydney or Brighton beach in Sussex. We are drawn to the gentle sounds of the lapping waves in the summer and the ferocious storms and crisp electrically‐charged air in the winter. Both are exhilarating, recharging, refreshing.

Certainly there's nothing quite so invigorating as trying to walk on the shingle shore of Brighton against a gale force wind and then retreating laughing and salt‐encrusted to a local cafĂ© for a most necessary cup of tea with some scones and jam.
Siesta Key Beach Blanket by Anna Ravenscroft, Anna Alway Designs
But when you live by the sea you learn that there’s a cost for having those lovely on-shore breezes, and that’s the cold clammy feel of dampness that settles on you as the sun goes down. Even in the height of summer, you find yourself reaching for a warm throw to place over your knees or to spread over the bed as an extra layer.

I am continuing my blogpost series on the idea of “Summer and Winter” – thinking about pairs of knitting patterns, one for the summer and one for the winter. In the first blogpost I looked at two lengthwise knit scarves, one with a pretty lengthwise openwork patterning running along the length of the scarf, and the second a warm, chunky men’s scarf with a contrast-coloured edge.

Today, I’m going to look at a pair of blankets, one which would be perfect for a cool evening at the beach hut, and another for when you are sitting in front of a roaring fire in your winter log cabin.
Siesta Key Beach Blanket by Anna Ravenscroft, Anna Alway Designs
The first blanket is Anna's brand‐new pattern, the Siesta Beach Blanket, named for the world‐famous beach, Siesta Key, that we are lucky enough to call our "local" beach in Florida. And yes, that's Siesta Key in the top photo!

The blanket is worked in a soft wool mix yarn and features a riot of colours, with rich blues, oranges and naturals echoing the colours of the sun shades dotting the gulf shore‐line.

The blanket uses a reversible stitch, Banded Bamboo, from our book Reversible Knitting StitchesThis is a lovely stitch pattern and resembles the growing pattern on tall stalks of bamboo. The knitted fabric is flexible and warm – just perfect for a summer evening throw.
Laurie Blanket by Anna Ravenscroft, Anna Alway Designs
The second blanket is, in contrast, worked in a single off‐white colour. Anna originally designed this for the father of one of her school friends. He was in hospital bravely fighting cancer and said that he found his hospital room rather chilly.

Anna took up her needles, selected some soft, chunky yarn and produced a blanket that kept him warm during the remainder of his stay. The blanket is called the Laurie Blanket in his memory.
Laurie Blanket by Anna Ravenscroft, Anna Alway Designs
This is worked in another stitch from our Reversible Knitting Stitches book. This is Wide Chevron and the super‐chunky cotton/wool mix yarn really brings out the graphical nature of this stitch pattern.

Both blankets are reversible and are a good size for a handy throw to keep you toasty warm. For information about the Siesta Beach Blanket please click here, and for the Laurie Blanket, then please click here. Both patterns are available for instant download from Anna’s Ravelry store so you can started with your knitting today!

Until next time – Happy Knitting!

Moira
Reversible Knitting Stitches by Moira Ravenscroft & Anna Ravenscroft, Wyndlestraw Designs
Last blogpost: A new scarf for men – the Cambourne Scarf
Next Up: Stripes for Summer and Winter

​​Our book: Reversible Knitting Stitches
My Website: www.wyndlestrawdesigns.com

Many thanks to my husband Tim for his photo of the walkway to Siesta Key Beach. To see more of his wonderful photos, please see his Flickr site.
Keywords: Patterns/Blankets,
blanket, blankets, lap rug, afghan, throw, bedspread, reversible blanket, reversible stitch, reversible knitting stitches, knitting stitch,

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