A wonderful good morning to the Saturday coffee with a little this and that from the knitting world and a few news around Maschenfein.
On the picture you can see my Curry Cardigan from my basics book, knitted from Piura and Cusi. I wear it almost every day at the moment, it is just perfect for the fall, it may even be a little cooler, so cozy warm he keeps. With this tutorial you will learn several different techniques, which are of course all explained in the book: the provisional gauge, picking up stitches, short rows, Italian cast off and quite "incidentally" a pretty garment is created. Many birds with one stone, practical, isn't it?
I have put in the last few days a lot in the store, it's worth it to go rummage again. Where I know that I still urgently need to work on my filter functions, but that also comes in the next few months step by step. For example, in addition to the two Chiaogoo sets made of bamboo and stainless steel, you can now also find all needles, ropes and accessories for the system individually in the store. So if you either want to test the needles first, or want to complement the systems right away, you can find all Chiaogoo products at a glance here.
Do you already know Laine Magazine? A Nordic knitting and lifestyle magazine, which impresses with wonderful photos, beautiful knitting pattern and long articles? These days the 3rd issue (autumn/winter 2017) is published and since the magazine is beautiful and fits very nicely into the Maschenfein:: store, I have ordered some copies. You can pre-order them now here with me, photos and more information can be found on the product page.
In the magazine you will also find pretty accessories, including a knotted cap. The cap weather is imminent and I link you to browse again my cap weather pinboard for inspiration. In this now so large collection is certainly something for everyone. Also here in the store you can find all the hat knitting kits at a glance.
This weekend the Berlin Knits Festival is on the agenda here in Berlin. I'm looking forward to my three booked workshops, to many inspirations, new perspectives, approaches and to many nice encounters!
Then next weekend, also here in Berlin at the square in front of the New Gate in Mitte, my book launch will take place in the ITO Showroom! Saturday, October 7 from 12 to 16 pm. Come by, browse through my books, look at all the designs knitted with ITO yarns and browse through the incredible variety of colors of the beautiful yarns. I look forward to seeing you! You are welcome to bring the books you already have for signing.
I'm needling my shawl for the Maschenfein Knit Along this weekend. In the coming week I'll show you some insights into the Knit Along from the Maschenfein community and of course what and in which colors I knit. You can already find first glimpses of the Knit Along on Instagram.
Have a great weekend!
Oh, how excited I am. Today we start our big KNIT ALONG, which many of you are eagerly awaiting. The Knit Along to the new book. We start today with the question: which shawl do you want to knit? If you are less on Facebook and Instagram or have not yet heard about the new Maschenfein Knit Along, you can find out here and now everything about the selection of shawls that we knit and how you can easily participate.
About the book "Knit even more shawls
The new shawl book contains 25 new designs in all imaginable variations and even new techniques have been added. Mosaic patterns and intarsia are back, as are simple shawls in right and purl stitches, but the book also includes even more sophisticated techniques such as doubleface in two different construction types. And so the new book has become a real supplement to the first shawl book, so that it is definitely worth having both books and knitting through them. That was actually pretty much the most important thing to me when the publisher asked me at the end of last year to write a sequel to the successful first book. I really wanted to do something new and even different so that everyone who enjoyed the first book so much would have at least as much fun with the second shawl book - if not more! And I think I've actually succeeded with this book.
What is knitted in the TÜCHER KNIT ALONG?
So now the time has come and in the Maschenfein community the new shawls from the new book are knitted up and down. In new color combinations that will make the finished pieces look so different. That's the appeal of a Knit Along: seeing all the designs emerge in different colors and inspiring each other. For me, it's always been a joy to see the different projects of the test knitters. The Knit Along will be a shawl festival!
It doesn't matter which of the 25 scarves you choose. And whether you use the original yarn or combine yarns from the stash is also up to you. But I'll give you a few tips about the difficulty and speed of the projects and all those who would like to order the yarns used in the book, can find the knitting kits conveniently here in desired colors in the store.
The Lera, Alima and Charis shawls are pretty much the easiest shawls in the book. Lera is knit from one lace to the other short side. Two-thread and in stripes. Be sure to bring the yarn up as you change colors. Charis and Alima are knit from the center of the long side, and while Alima is conceivably simple really just a single bobble, Charis is made by combining two Ito yarns.
Also nice and simple are the shawls Jara, Eden and Caya. They are all knitted from the long center. Their patterns are created by combining right and purl stitches differently.
Malva, Ainoa and Cloe scarves have only one thing in common - their semicircular shape. Otherwise, they are conceivably different in material and pattern. While Malva was knitted from the rather heavy, flowing soft Norma yarn, Ainoa shows the exciting combination of different mohair variations with steel. Cloe was actually one of my favorites for the Knit Along, especially this variant in blue did it to me quite.
Of course, lifting stitches were not to be missed, as in the case of the shawls Inex, Fenna and Djuna. This technique creates great color patterns without knitting in two strands. While Fenna and Djuna are worked with two colors and the working thread is always guided behind the work when the stitches are picked up, the pattern in Inex is created with the help of three colors and the alternating guidance of the working thread on the front and back.
You will also find exciting color games in the shawls Talula, Elyon and Zena. Once lifting stitches (Talula), once Intarsia (Elyon) and of course may not be missing short rows (Zena).
For those who like a little more texture, however, the Delia, Skadi and Lanah shawls are the perfect choice. While Delia is made with a glowing cable needle, Skadi and Lanah are made with stitches that are crossed until they fall over - without any cable needle at all.
Of course, envelopes are still missing. You'll find them in Aurika 's lace pattern and Elin's texture, as well as in Tara's wonderful two-color brioche pattern, a shawl for advanced knitters, where it's well worth pulling in a "rescue thread" every now and then (and if you've got a big question mark hanging over your head right now, it's certainly worth buying my basics book, where you'll get to know enough techniques and expressions of this kind).
Not necessarily in terms of difficulty, but especially in terms of "endurance", the shawls Nell, Lore and Clivia are probably the most challenging projects from the book. Nell and Lore are knitted in double-face technique and require special patience, since front and back are knitted at the same time and thus virtually two shawls. Clivia requires a great deal of stamina to finish in the herringbone pattern, but this is truly rewarded.
Last but not least, the cover cloth: With this cloth, the two-thread / multicolored knitting - in right as well as in left rows - is practiced really intensively. I decided on this shawl and which colors I ordered today, I'll tell you very soon!
When do we start the Knit Along?
Back to the Knit Along: We start exactly today with the selection of the cloths. Who already has yarn lying around and scratching with the needles, may of course begin and projects in progress are also welcome. I myself am waiting for my colors and so we will probably all in the coming week gradually strike the scarves.
How do I participate?
You can easily participate in the Knit Along by knitting one of the shawls from the new shawl book and letting us know by sharing it either in the Maschenfein :: Knit Along on Facebook, or on Instagram with the tags #maschenfeinKAL #nochmehrtücherstricken. Feel free to link blog posts about the Knit Along in the Facebook group or in the comments to one of the Knit Along posts here on the blog (and of course on Auf den Nadeln).
How long do we knit?
We'll be knitting throughout October and into November, but you can always join us later and share your pictures on the above channels. I have made the experience that some like to simply be inspired for a while and join later. Besides, one or the other knits certainly more than one scarf :).
And now I am curious! Are you with me? And what will you knit? Who joins me and orders first of all quite comfortably the matching yarn? Or who can not wait any longer and already strikes the first stitches, like...
A wonderful good morning to the Saturday coffee with a little this and that from the knitting world and around Maschenfein.
That was an exciting week with a lot of waiting for my new book, because many had already pre-ordered months ago at the big A and this now had big problems to actually deliver the books. In the meantime, however, it goes like clockwork, the book is available everywhere normally and great it already goes into the 2nd edition! I am very happy that the second part of my book series is so well received by you, because I was really very, very excited in advance.
And since the books now so slowly also arrive everywhere, we go now finally also somewhat belatedly in our big cloth Knit Along planning. I've decided that the official start date will be next Monday, when I'll write the first post in which I'll present all the designs once again. Start means at this point to think about which of the 25 shawls from the new book you want to knit at all. If you already have yarn and book, you can of course start already. I'm still undecided myself, whether I'll knit a quick Caya on the side, or dare to needle a Double Face Lore, knowing that I'll have some secret projects to work on in the next few weeks... Maybe I'll decide on something in between: a not-so-fast Nissa in the Lore colors. You can find all designs at a glance on the overview page of the new shawl book.
For one of my current still secret projects I was looking for the perfect yarn combination and have now found it in ITO Rakuda and Sensai (as shown in the picture). Rakuda is already wonderfully soft, Sensai adds a little fluff and that's exactly what I was looking for. Knitted on 3.5mm needles from my new beloved Chiaogoo bamboo set.
Without already knowing the in approximate gauge for this combination, I could also imagine this working very well for the No Frills Cardigan, which does take a little fluff.
By the way, if you are basically looking for the perfect yarn or a nice yarn combination for whatever tutorial, you can always send us an email to support(at)maschenfein(dot)de and we will give it some thought!
If you like to knit oversize cardigans in as many yarns as possible, you've probably come across Tanja aka Lotilda. Now she has officially launched "Carli", a knitting calculator for exactly this kind of cardigans she likes to knit in abundance. She writes in great detail in this post about Carli, what it can already do, and why it exists. Check it out!
On October 14, the 1st Hygge knitting event, organized by Schachenmayr, will take place in Augsburg. I myself will not travel, because I have to fight at the moment just too much with ball-related nausea, but in the Maschenfein knitting round on Facebook have already joined about a dozen Maschenfeiner girls together and will let the needles glow there and finally get to know each other in real life. I think this is actually a really nice event idea, because it's not just about bloggers and PR (which is nice, but meanwhile a bit inflationary), but actually about the thing, namely knitting. Whether you have a blog or not, are on Instagram or not, tickets are available for everyone and what I've already heard sounds really cozy.
Have a great weekend!
A wonderful good morning to the Saturday coffee today with a special edition around the NEW BOOK!
Actually, my weekend would be filled with workshops around my new cloth book, which goes today already over the first counters and slumbers in the first package trolleys. Unfortunately, I had to realize that I just do not manage everything that I would like to create. That health simply comes first and that I can't manage a workshop weekend at the moment, even if I was looking forward to it so much. I imagined a great book launch with great workshops and lots of nice contacts...
... but wait, there is exactly this start! Without me, nagut, but the glass is still half full, because: I have realized that I have the world's best employee who spontaneously tilts the weekend and replaces me! Who can claim to have such a support at the side, which one trusts, which can do all that, then also still makes and carries the maschenfein heart further? So instead of complaining, I'm just happy about it and wish Sandra a terrific weekend in my place with a huge pile of the three Maschenfein books and with fun women at the needles.
And you? You may now finally look, browse, look, because almost all 25 (!) new shawl knitting kits are online and available now! It's really an indescribable feeling to finally have the two new books in stores. Three (!) books are now available from Maschenfein, isn't that incredible? Since I first had to discover the picture of Dagmar on Instagram to really understand this (so you see, at the machinist in Magdeburg you can also find the new cloth book already today)!
By the way, every time I hold my Basics book in my hands, or show it to someone, I can't believe I've done it. The new shawl book puts the icing on the cake, because the designs are really completely different than in the first so successful shawl book and use many, many techniques that I explain in the bas ics book. There is so much heart and soul in it, not only from myself, but from all my model and test knitters, who have already started to share their pictures on Instagram, blog and Facebook, I think you will feel that again and again when browsing and browsing.
For example, the shawl "Fenna" was a difficult birth. That I wanted to have namely first quite necessarily from Alpaca Fino, the new, beautiful Alpaca Fino of Pascuali. I love this yarn. But I had to realize that the pattern just simply didn't fit the yarn. It didn't work, it didn't work, on the contrary, it looked terrible. I was a bit desperate for a short time, because I wanted both the yarn and this kind of pattern in exactly the colors in the book. Without further ado, I changed the yarn. A nice, smooth merino yarn from Lang. Yes, it fits perfectly and brings out the mosaic pattern exactly as I had imagined.
And Alpaca Fino? In the meantime, the new color card had arrived, so I changed the color scheme and came up with a nice simple pattern to match the yarn. That's how Caya came into being, an absolute alpaca fino dream, which by the way (like all shawls, forefinger lift) develops its effect especially after washing and stretching.
The shawl "Charis" was created under time pressure. I wanted to combine the yarns of ITO exactly in this way and had already knitted many small rectangles. So I knew exactly how the threads should run together, only the shape of the shawl didn't work out. I thought too complicated, until I finally realized: The simple things are sometimes simply the best. And so this scarf is conceivably simple in construction, but through the sequence and combination of materials just so very special. Simply beautiful, I think.
"Delia" had to be knitted twice, because the first model was just too small. Due to the many, many plaits, the cloth gains very little in size when stretched. So hang in there and don't cast off too early!
The shawl "Lanah" is a very special one, because Petra, who knitted this shawl, knitted it in a very difficult situation in her life. I always think of that when I see it and I hope she is happy to have the shawl with her again already. It turned out beautifully and I am very happy that the construction worked out just as I had imagined. Normally, shawls knitted from the tip up are very pointed. But the sequence of the pattern did not make it easy to make the increases at the edges arbitrary. Therefore, the special stockinette stitch knitted edge, which becomes wider and wider towards the long side.
When I see "Lore" and "Nell", I always have to smile. These two designs have slowed down the fast knitters Sandra and Kerstin. In fact, they were so challenged by the doubleface technique that these shawls sometimes took longer than one or two weeks and also did not run so quickly simply alongside. But they turned out great and once you have them over your shoulders, you don't want to give them away.
You will find all designs bundled on the collection page for the new shawl book today or tomorrow at the latest, a total of 25 knitting pattern in a wide variety of materials, construction methods and techniques.
And in the coming week there is here and on all channels the info on the BIG MASCHENFEIN :: TÜCHER KNIT ALONG. So browse through the kits and see which designs you like! (First of all: To participate you don't have to knit with the original yarns, of course you can use any yarns from the stash).
Have a great weekend!
A wonderful good morning to the first Saturday coffee after the long summer break with lots of nice ideas and many news around Maschenfein.
I have at the moment the new Alpaca Fino from Pascuali on the needles and I think that will be great! The yarn is new because it now comes in 50g skeins and also now has baby alpaca quality and is accordingly even more cozy soft than the old known Alpaca Fino. I also really, really like the new color palette and I bet the new Alpaca Fino shawl in the new book will be a favorite in the Maschenfein round!
Hach... apropos book! Next weekend it's already that time! If all goes well and I hopefully recover a bit in the coming week, then next weekend I'll be in the middle of numerous workshops around my two new books and will also have the new cloth book hot off the press in my hands. And if things go according to plan, I'll also have the book in stock and we can start our big shawl knit along very soon, where you can knit the favorite shawl of your choice from the new book. Either with yarns from your stash or with the matching yarns here from the store. More about that very soon! I'm really looking forward to it and you can pre-order the book from me now! Maybe you'll wait a few more days, because I'll release all the knitting kits in the coming week and you'll find them on this overview page for the book.
Even if it was quiet here on the blog in the last few weeks, so much has happened in the store. The Sandnes Knit Along met with an incredible response and now all colors are back in stock, so you can still knit along eagerly. All current Sandnes kits (there are already some added, more are in the works) can be found on this page and as soon as I get a chance I'll show you some impressions of the Knit Along.
I am also very happy about the collaboration with ANKESTRiCK and Regina Moessmer and the new wool packages to designs of the two. Also new JANUKKE designs will be added soon and a model from Joji Locatelli is already available. Have a look at the knitting kits for cardigans and sweaters. The pattern can always be found separately at the corresponding designers in the Ravelry store.
Yes, and another shawl... so it's a bit silly to link another shawl here when there will soon be 25 new shawls to see here, but I would like to link Helgoland by Mairlynd to you again, it's just so beautiful! In Road to China Light you could knit that for example.
Have you all actually noticed that my basic book "Knitting - stitch by stitch" is there? In the meantime even already in the 2nd edition printed, a full success! I just didn't really get around to writing about it here - summer vacations really mess up schedules. You'll also find 12 knitting pattern in this book and the matching knitting kits are of course available in my store. I'm sure I'll soon get around to giving you a few more insights into the book, or to make a little video for you.
Yes, I have a lot of plans for when the vacations are over here again!
Have you also seen that Kerstin aka Knit.Ding is now busy writing tutorials? Her second tutorial for a turtleneck sweater has just become free for testing. To knit for example from Merino 70 or ITO Yomo, swarm. Jaja and behind the scenes we are working a little for winter surprises. But I'm not giving anything away yet.
Have a great weekend!
With a flick of the wrist, September is here and now it's officially allowed to get a little colder. We're looking forward to the cool season, aren't we? In which we also really like to knit the cozy yarns again and in which we can carry our projects then also so really nice for a walk. Still without a heavy winter coat over it, of course.
I have just (yet) no presentable project on the needles, because my Sandnes cardigan has already jumped off the needles and the follow-up project is not yet pinned. There are a few #secretsecret projects in the making, but again of the long-term kind. I'm busy knitting swatches, that's what I like to do anyway. Like here in the picture the new Alpaca Fino in baby alpaca quality *schwärm*.
What do you have "on the needles" in September?
"On the needles" is a series from Maschenfein. What are you knitting in September? What has become of your last projects? Will you tell us here? I'm looking forward to it! Just comment here under this post or link up in the link collection. On Instagram I use the hashtag #aufdennadelnseptember (and quite deliberately you'll also find projects from the last years of the same month there). Join in there too!
You can link up for the whole month! Attention: You must put a backlink to this post or blog in your post, otherwise it will not work with the link tool. A backlink is nothing more than a link to this blog :)!
For all of you who are visiting here for the first time: Each month I'll collect your knitting projects by linking your respective blog posts to "On the Needles" here. You can find all past collections to browse in the On the Needles section.
In the mood for spring? Here you can find spring yarns 
Esther Sweater Baby 
We have new Muud products in the store 
You can find all Maschenfein pattern here
