KNITmuch | Issue 01

Issue 1 

NEW! 

18 

14 

• 14 knitting tutorials 

• 7 knitting projects perfect for the holidays 

• 4 yarn reviews 

• 4 essential tips when knitting for babies 

• 1 cable pattern you'll ever need to memorize! 

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KNIT 

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K, is to 

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Introducing the NEW Downton Abbey Yarn Collection! 

Knit a vest for Matthew with Downton Abbey Yarn 

KNIT...to knit, is to love 

The Crawley Vest 

Knit a shawl for Lady Mary with Downton Abbey Yarn 

Hooked on Books 

Adding some sparkle to your holiday 

much 

knitting 

The Budding Romance Shawl 

KNIT...to Honeycomb Poncho 

K, is to 

Knitting a Top This! hat 

How to fix a dropped knit stitch 

Knitting with cables – C4L 

Knitting with cables – C4R 

A better one-row buttonhole 

Pom-poms – the cutest knitted accessories, right? 

Stitch holders are safety nets for your knitting 

What you should know about Red Heart Cutie Pie yarn 

4 essential tips when knitting for babies 

Hand knit snuggle sack 

Creative cabled cowl 

The benefits of knitting with Red Heart Sashay Fringe yarn 

contents 


3


Welcome to our premiere issue of KNITmuch! 

editor's letter 

Share the love of knitting. Own the obsession. 

If you're like me you'll understand my obsession with 

knitting, I am most happy to know that I'm not alone. 

Knitting is not only about making striking knitwear in the 

yarn I love, and the colors I adore and look great it. Knitting 

is what makes some scenarios of life, bareable. It's what 

makes long car rides short, it's what helps me exercise my 

skill in patience and grace when waiting for someone, and 

it's what helps me gather my wits at the end of the day, 

with a cup of tea, naturally. 

It's comforting to know there are so many knitters like you 

and I who share a deep love for yarn, and understand it's 

not a twisted concept, and that so many of you have the 

same unquenchable thirst for anything related to knitting. 

It's a great thrill to see friends picking up knitting needles 

for the first time and getting hooked on it, which always 

leads to happy knit-a-longs! Life is so sweet. 

I hope you'll love this first issue and that you'll look forward 

to more. It's meant to be shared with those you know share 

the same passion for knitting, and for those you think 

would love to learn to knit. 

Just when I thought life couldn't get any sweeter... check 

out the NEW Downton Abbey Yarn Collection with yarn 

review and patterns included. We also review Red Heart's 

Cutie Pie, Sashay Fringe and Top This! hat kit - perfect for 

holiday gift making. Get yours today! 

follow me on 

5

KNIT 

...to 

much 

K, is to 

much KNIT...to knit, is to love 

much KNIT...to K, is to 

EDITOR-IN-CHIEF, ART DIRECTOR 

Carla A. Canonico 

carla@KNITmuch.com 

ADVERTISING SALES 

John De Fusco 

john@KNITmuch.com 

PUBLISHER 

A Needle Pulling Thread 

PHOTOGRAPHERS 

John De Fusco, Carla A. Canonico 

BLOGGERS/CONTRIBUTORS 

Glenna Harris 

crazyknittinglady.wordpress.com 

Michelle Nguyen 

www.stitchesbeslippin.com 

GRAPHIC & WEB DESIGN 

Carla A. Canonico 

Carla@KNITmuch.com 

Sondra Armas 

Sondra@KNITmuch.com 

WEBSITE / BLOG : www.KNITmuch.com 

Like us on Facebook : KNITmuch 

Follow us on Twitter : @KNITmuchmag 

WHERE TO GET YOUR COPY 

KNITmuch is a quarterly eMagazine published 

by A Needle Pulling Thread. It is available free for 

personal use online at www.KNITmuch.com. 

A limited number of printed copies of KNITmuch 

are available for purchase at select yarn shops 

and specialty stores. Ask for it at your local shop. 

KNITmuch is not available by subscription. 

YARN SHOPS 

If you are interested in carrying KNITmuch in your 

store, please email john@KNITmuch.com. 

EDITORIAL 

Bloggers, designers and other contributors who 

would like to be considered for future issues 

please email Carla@KNITmuch.com with a brief 

description of your work and your proposed 

project. 

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©2015 A Needle Pulling Thread. All rights reserved. 

Issue #1. 

No part of this publication may be reproduced 

without written permission from the publisher. 

All designs, patterns, and information in this magazine 

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www.TheNeedleworkPages.com 

find a 

local shop! 

9 listings 

9 reviews 

9 events 

9 new products 

9 free patterns 

9 blogs 

& more! 

pages

Sparkly 

& Stylish 

Sparkle in this stylish top 

knit with Red Heart ® 

Boutique Swanky . 

Diamond Girl Top 

LW4397 

This and other free patterns 

available at redheart.com 


7

I 

ntroducing 

Glenna Harris 

the NEW Downton Abbey Yarn Collection! 

In this issue, it is with great 

excitement that we introduce a 

new set of yarns! The Downton 

Abbey Yarns are new for this fall 

and winter season, and feature 

four different yarns, each named 

after a different character on 

the Downton Abbey show. We're 

thrilled to cover two of the new yarns 

in this issue, Matthew and Lady 

Mary yarns, and go over patterns 

and ideas for how to work with them. 

he other two, Branson and Lady Sybil, 

will be covered in our next issue. 

New yarns can lead to great new 

knitting projects! 

If you haven’t had the chance to 

branch out to different kinds of 

fiber combinations in your knitting 

projects so far, the Downton Abbey 

Yarns will give you the chance to try 

out a few interesting blends. If you’re 

(like me) a fan of the show Downton 

Abbey, you might be able to guess 

what kinds of yarn have been made 

for each character! The Matthew 

yarn (pictured above) includes some 

tweedy wool for a very rustic look. 

Can’t you imagine him walking 

around the Crawleys’ estate in a vest 

made from this flecked yarn? 

The Matthew yarn is a worsted weight 

blend of wool/acrylic/viscose and 

would be so versatile for accessories, 

garments, or even blankets and 

pillows. There are a lot of possibilities 

and the color selection is very much 

in line with the outdoors palette, lots 

of naturals and rustic tones. The dark 

purple (far below) is another great 

color in this line, and many would 

be great choices for either men’s or 

women’s projects. 

On the other hand, Lady Mary makes 

us think a bit more about the elegant 

indoor social life side of things! So 

it’s no surprise that the Lady Mary 

yarn line includes a bit of shiny silvery 

thread woven through the yarn. I 

think this would be a perfect yarn for 

holiday accessory projects. Shawls, 

scarves, and fingerless mitts would be 

lovely with that extra touch of shine. 

This is just the first hint of what we’ll 

be showing off this week. We’ll look at 

some of the patterns designed just for 

these yarns – available in this issue! 

There are a lot of knitting and crochet 

projects to choose from out there so 

finding three or four that you like for 

even just one yarn, can seem like a 

very short list some days. But, I think 

that’s half the fun. New yarns can lead 

to great new knitting projects! 

Read on and find two exciting and 

elegant patterns: Crawley Vest and 

The Budding Romance Shawl. 

Knitting in Downton Abbey style 


The new 

Downton Abbey Yarns 

are fun to knit with 

and so versatile. 

The Lady Mary yarn 

line includes sparkly 

threads woven 

through the yarn, for 

extra elegance! 

The Matthew yarn 

line is a tweedy blend 

including 25% wool, for 

a rustic tweedy effect. 


9

Knit 

Glenna Harris 

a vest for Matthew with Downton Abbey Yarn 

The Matthew yarn, which is a worsted 

weight blend including 20% wool, has 

a nice tweedy look. Just right for a 

character like Matthew who spends a lot 

of time outside on the Crawley estate, or 

cycling to his work office. 

The Matthew yarn has several great free 

patterns designed by Premier Yarns to go 

with it, including the Crawley Vest. The vest 

is one of the few garment patterns included 

in the Downton Abbey Yarn Collection, and 

it would be a nice selection if you're new to 

making garments. Making the jump from 

smaller accessories to larger garments can 

often involve a different selection of skills 

and techniques. However, since vests cover 

the body but don’t include sleeves, as 

pullovers and cardigans do, a vest can be a 

good “starter” garment. And, in a worsted 

weight yarn like this one, it will knit up a bit 

faster than a lighter DK or sport weight yarn. 

This is a classic V-neck vest with a simple 

textured stitch pattern. We introduced some 

slipped stitch patterns in our September 

KNITmuch blog posts, so you might enjoy 

looking at those posts if this is new to you! 

When knitting up this vest, these are the 

skills you can expect to use: 

• Casting on and binding off 

• Working knit, purl, and slip stitches 

• Working ribbing (for hem, and armhole 

and neckband edgings) 

• Following a written stitch pattern (the 

pattern does not include charts) 

• Sewing seams 

• Picking up stitches (for armhole and 

neckband edgings) 

This vest is worked in pieces (as opposed 

to “in the round” in one piece) and from the 

“bottom up” starting at the hem (as opposed 

to “top down” starting from the neck). The 

back and the front are worked the same, 

with the exception of the front V-neck 

shaping. So, this means that once you've 

made the back piece you'll have done 

most of the same steps required for the 

front piece. Finally, these two pieces will be 

seamed together at the sides and shoulders, 

before picking up stitches for the ribbed 

neckband and armhole edgings. 

In the photos here, you can see the 

swatches I’ve done up in the slip-stitch 

“furrows” pattern used in the Crawley Vest. 

Sometimes it can make all the difference to 

see different color selections! The sample 

shown in the free pattern uses a dusty green 

color, and here we have two other options. 

The creamy off-white shown in the photo 

on the next page is a very classic look. The 

darker purple is another almost-neutral 

color that’s a little more modern. There are 

eight different colors to choose from in 

the Matthew yarn so just keep in mind the 

kind of colors you like to wear most in your 

wardrobe and let that be your guide when 

selecting yarn colors as well! 

I’m excited to be dreaming 

up fall and winter knitting 

projects with these new 

Downton Abbey Yarns 

arriving fresh on the 

crafting scene! 


Photos by Glenna Harris

KNITmuch 

Standard abbreviations & terms 

The Crawley vest uses this 

simple textured pattern and is a 

versatile and cozy knit. Imagine 

it in this creamy off-white color 

and this lovely autumnal purple. 

alt = alternate 

approx = approximately 

beg = begin(ning) 

BO= bind off 

CC = contrast colour 

ch = chain 

cm = centimetre(s) 

cn = cable needle 

CO = cast on 

cont = continue, continuing 

dc = double crochet 

dec = decrease(s), decreasing 

dpn = double-pointed needle(s) 

foll = following 

g = gram(s) 

inc = increase(s), increasing 

in(s) = inch(es) 

k = knit 

kf&b or kfb = knit into front and back of st (increase) 

k2tog = knit 2 sts tog (right-leaning decrease) 

K3tog = knit 3 sts together (double right-leaning 

decrease) 

M = marker 

m = metre(s) 

M1 = Make 1 stitch: pick up the horizontal strand 

between 2 stitches from front to back and knit 

it tbl (lifted increase) 

MC = main colour 

mm = millimetre(s) 

oz = ounce(s) 

p = purl 

p2tog = purl 2 sts tog (decrease) 

patt = pattern 

pfb = purl into front and back of stitch (increase) 

pm = place marker 

psso = pass slipped stitch over 

RS = right side 

rem = remain(ing) 

rep = repeat 

rev = reverse 

rnd = round 

sc = single crochet 

sl = slip 

skp = slip one st, knit next st, pass slipped st over 

knit st (dec) 

ssk = slip, slip, knit: slip 2 sts knitwise, 1 at a time, 

insert left-hand needle into front of both sts 

and knit them tog (left-leaning decrease) 

Sssk = Slip next three stitches individually, knitwise. 

Insert tip of left needle from front to back 

into the fronts of these three stitches and knit 

them together (double left-leaning decrease) 

st(s) = stitch(es) 

St st = stocking stitch 

tbl = through back loop 

tog = together 

tr = treble crochet 

WS = wrong side 

yo = yarn over 


11

CRAWLEY VEST 

DA00003 

SIZES 

Small (Medium, Large, X-Large, XX-Large) 

Shown in Small Size 

FINISHED MEASUREMENTS 

Chest: 37 (43, 46, 49, 55)” 

MATERIALS 

Downton Abbey Matthew by Premier Yarns (75% 

Acrylic, 21% Wool, 4% Viscose; 100g/230 yds) 

• # DA4001-05 Herb Green – 4 (4, 5, 5, 5) balls 

Needle: US Size 8 (5 mm) and US Size 9 (5.5 mm) straight 

needles or size needed to obtain gauge 

Notions: Tapestry needle, stitch markers, stitch holder 

or locking ring marker 

GAUGE 

16 Left sts Armhole x 30 rows Edging = 4” in Furrows pattern on larger needle 

Save Sew left time, shoulder check your and gauge. Neckband seam. Work as for Right 

Armhole edging. 

Sew side seams. Weave in ends. 

CRAWLEY V 

Photo courtesy of Premier Yarns 

The Crawley Vest knitted up in the 

Matthew yarn of the new Downton Abbey 

Yarn Collection – Herb Green color 

Abbreviations 

beg begin(ning) 

k knit 

k2tog knit 2 sts together (1 st dec’d) 

meas measures 

p purl 

patt pattern 

RS right side 

rep repeat(ing) 

sl slip 

ssk slip slip knit (1 st dec’d) 

st(s) stitch(es) 

s2kp slip two sts knitwise, knit 1, pass the 2 slipped sts over 

(2 sts dec’d) 

WS wrong side 

Downton and Downton Abbey® ©2015 Carnival Film & Television Limited. All Rights Reserved. 


CRAWLEY VEST 

STITCH GUIDE 

Furrows (multiple of 6 sts + 3) 

Row 1 and 3(RS): P3, *k1, sl 1, k1, p3; rep from * to end. 

Row 2: *K3, p3; rep from * to last 3 sts, k3. 

Rows 5 and 7: K4, *sl 1, k5; rep from * to last 5 sts, sl 1, k4. 

Row 6 and 8: Purl. 

Rep Rows 1-8 for patt. 

P2, K1 Ribbing (multiple of 3 sts) 

Row 1 (RS): *P1, *k1, p2; rep from * to last 2 sts, k1, p1. 

Row 2: K1, *p1, k2; rep from * to last 2 sts, p1, k1. 

Rep Rows 1 & 2 for patt. 

VEST 

Back 

With smaller needle, cast on 75 (87, 93, 99, 111) sts. Work in 

P2, K1 Ribbing for 2”, ending with a WS row. Switch to larger 

needles and work in Furrows until piece meas 16 (17 ½, 17 ½, 17 

¾, 17 ¾)”, ending with a WS row. 

Armhole Shaping 

Bind off 4 (4, 6, 6, 6) sts at beg of next 2 rows – 67 (79, 81, 87, 

99) sts. 

Dec Row: K1, ssk, work in patt to last 3 sts, k2tog, k1 – 2 sts 

dec’d. 

Rep Dec Row 1 (5, 4, 6, 11) more times – 63 (67, 71, 73, 75) sts. 

Work even in patt until armhole meas 7 ½ (8, 8 ½, 9 ¼, 9 ¼)”, 

ending with a WS row. 

Next Row: K15 (16, 18, 19, 19), join new yarn and bind off 33 (35, 

35, 35, 37) sts, knit to end. 

Working each side separately, work even in patt until armhole 

meas 8 ½ (9, 9 ½, 10 ¼, 10 ¼)”, ending with a WS row. Bind off. 

Front 

Work as for back until armholes meas 2 (2, 2 ½, 2 ½, 2 ½)”, 

ending with a WS row. Continue armhole shaping as for back, 

AT THE SAME TIME work neck and shoulder shaping as 

follows: 

Left Shoulder 

Knit to center st and place on a st holder or locking ring 

marker, turn and work on these sts only. 

Next Row: Work in patt to end. 

Dec Row: Work in patt to last 3 sts, k2tog, k1. 

Rep last two rows 15 (16, 16, 16, 17) more times. 

Work even in patt on 15 (16, 18, 19, 19) rem sts until armhole 

meas 8 ½ (9, 9 ½, 10 ¼, 10 ¼)”. 

Bind off. 

Right Shoulder 

With RS facing, join yarn at center front and work Dec Row as 

follows: 

Dec Row: K1, ssk, work in patt to end. 

Next Row: Work in patt to end. 

Rep last two rows 15 (16, 16, 16, 17) more times. 

Work even in patt on 15 (16, 18, 19, 19) rem sts until armhole 

meas 8 ½ (9, 9 ½, 10 ¼, 10 ¼)”. 

Bind off. 

FINISHING 

Right Armhole Edging 

Sew right shoulder seam. Using smaller needle, with RS facing, 

pick up and knit evenly across armhole, adjusting st count as 

needed to work a multiple of 3 sts. Work P2, K1 Ribbing for 1”. 

Bind off. 

Neckband 

With RS facing and smaller needle, starting at left shoulder, 

pick up and knit evenly along neck edge to held center st. 

Place stitch on right needle leaving locking ring marker on 

center st. Pick up sts along right neck edge to shoulder seam, 

pick up sts along back neck to left shoulder making sure to 

adjust st count as needed to work a multiple of 3 sts. 

Next Row (WS): Work Row 2 of P2, K1 Ribbing to marked 

center st, p1, work in patt to end. 

Next Row (RS): Work Row 1 of P2, K1 Ribbing to one st before 

marked st, s2kp, work in patt to end. 

Rep last two rows, moving marker up each row until Neckband 

meas 1”. 

Bind off loosely. 

Left Armhole Edging 

Sew left shoulder and Neckband seam. Work as for Right 

Armhole edging. 

CRAWLEY V 

Sew side seams. Weave in ends. 

For more free patterns from the Downton Abbey Yarn Collection, Abbreviations visit www.premieryarns.com/DowntonAbbey 

beg begin(ning) 

k knit 

© 2015 Premier® Yarns All rights reserved. 

This pattern may not be reproduced k2tog for business, knit trade 2 sts or together sale. (1 st dec’d) 

meas measures 

p purl 


patt pattern 

13

Knit 

Glenna Harris 

a shawl for Lady Mary with Downton Abbey Yarn 

Knitters, do you have holiday knitting on 

your mind, yet? I’m not just talking about 

gift knitting, but knitting for yourself! Let's 

take a closer look at the Lady Mary yarn 

from the Downton Abbey Yarn Collection, 

and this is something you might want to 

keep for yourself if you're interested in a 

bit of a sparkly treat just for you. Indulgent 

knitting can lift your spirits! 

The Budding Romance Shawl is a free 

pattern designed with the Lady Mary yarn in 

mind, and is a very pretty rectangular shawl 

that would be just right for the holidays. 

It would make a generous gift or a great 

personal knit for yourself – I can just picture 

wearing this with a little black dress to a party. 

The shawl pattern uses a repeating lace 

pattern which is shown below in a couple of 

swatches in different colors. The Lady Mary 

yarn comes in a number of different colors, 

both brights and neutrals. It's amazing how 

different the pattern can look when we 

change only the color but everything else 

stays the same! 

If you've never tried a lace stitch before, this 

will be a fun challenge for you. The main 

trick with working a lace pattern is that you'll 

be doing a combination of decreases as well 

as yarnovers. To make a “yarnover” means 

to bring your yarn forward to the front of 

the needle, then work the next knitted stitch 

or knitted decrease as indicated. It creates 

the little eyelets that form the lace patterns, 

along with those decreases. You can see 

in the swatches just above and just below, 

the decreases and yarnovers do sit in a 

purposeful order, making a repeating pattern. 

When knitting up this shawl, these are the 

skills you can expect to use: 

• Cast on and bind off 

• Work knit, purl, decreases, and yarnovers 

• Follow a lace stitch pattern (written 

instructions, not a chart) 

• Work flat, back and forth (as opposed to 

'in the round') 

The nice thing about this kind of pattern is 

that, once you have established the stitch 

pattern after the first couple of repeats, 

you get to continue working along in a 

straight rectangular piece. Unlike a garment 

or some other accessories, you can simply 

knit to the indicated length of the pattern 

without having to worry about stopping to 

work decreases or increases for shaping the 

item. This makes it easier to concentrate on 

getting the stitch pattern right, rather than 

the shape of the garment itself. 

Can you see the sparkle coming from these 

little swatches? The Lady Mary yarn has that 

silvery touch from some metallic thread 

that’s woven into the yarn, which is the 

unique feature of this yarn line. As a result I 

think it will be a great selection for holiday 

projects or a number of simple accessories 

that would make it easy to show off the 

sparkle. You probably don’t want to try 

cables or color-work with this kind of 

yarn as the shiny quality would get a 

little lost in the pattern. 

There are so many project 

possibilities, especially for 

beautiful gift projects or gifts 

to yourself! Indulgent knitting 

can lift your spirits! 


The Budding Romance Shawl 

uses this beautiful lace stitch. Try 

your hand at some lace knitting 

with this pattern! How lovely 

would this silvery grey look as a 

festive winter stole? ...so many 

gorgeous colors to choose from. 

Photo courtesy of Premier Yarns 

Budding Romance Shawl 

knit with Lady Mary yarn 

from the Downton Abbey Yarn 

Collection. The Lady Mary line 

has an elegant sparkle. 

Photos by Glenna Harris 


15

hooked on books 

Knit the Sky 

By Lea Redmond 

In Knit the Sky, designer/artist Lea Redmond invites 

knitters of all levels to join her adventurous knitting 

journey with projects that will make you think outside 

the craft box. More than a knitting book, Knit 

the Sky is a unique collection of 30 creativity starters 

that has you knitting using practical things found in 

the weather, your neighbourhood, your travels and 

more! It’s filled with illustrations to fall in love with, 

and you’ll cherish the book from page 1 to 168 as 

you create knitted memories! 

168 pages, Hardcover, ISBN 978-1-61212-333-2 

The Taunton Press 

www.thomasallen.ca 

Knit Christmas Stockings 

Edited by Gwen W. Steege 

Make this holiday one your family will remember forever! 

With these 19 fun, simple patterns, even first-time 

knitters can create beautiful knitted Christmas stockings, 

as well as delightful knit and felt ornaments for the 

Christmas tree. 

136 pages, ISBN 978-1-61212-252-6 

www.storey.com 

One-Skein Wonders for Babies 

101 Knitting Projects for Infants & Toddlers 

by Judith Durant 

This irresistible collection offers 101 original knitting 

projects for babies and toddlers – each using 

just a single skein of yarn! From mittens and hats 

to tees, sweaters, hoodies, pants, dresses, socks, 

and bootees, you’ll find the perfect wearable for 

every child and every occasion. You’ll also discover 

beautiful bibs, blankets, and sleep sacks, plus 

adorable stuffed toys, blanket buddies, and more. 

These beautiful projects were contributed by 

designers and crafters around the world, and each 

comes with complete step-by-step instructions 

and a photograph of the finished piece. 

288 pages, ISBN 978-1-61212-480-3 

Storey Publishing 


Knitting Fabric Rugs 

Karen Tiede 

This is a book with invaluable information on not only 

how to make rugs, but also includes a lesson in color 

combinations, the A to Z on how to recycle materials 

to make the rugs, and the process of making rugs. Add 

color to your floors and living space with these 28 colorful 

designs for crafters of every level. Take your knitting 

to an exciting new adventure and enjoy the softness of 

these rugs underfoot or displayed on the wall for extra 

color boost! 

178 pages, ISBN 978-1-61212-448-3 

www.storey.com 

Beanies & Bobble Hats 

by Fiona Goble 

What more to say about this very hip and cool book 

including 36 colour designs for beanies, berets, bobble 

hats and more for the young and young at heart? This 

is an indispensable collection of knitted accessories if 

you’re contemplating making knitted gifts for Christmas. 

Look around your neighbourhood, many wear beanies 

and hats all year round as a fashion accessory! Hats are 

quick to make even for novice knitters. Cables, special 

stitches, as well as simple and mindless knitting stitches 

are explored in the variety of styles. My favourite…? The 

knitted golden crown! 

130 pages, ISBN 978-78249-196-5 

Cico Books 


Arm and Finger Knitting 

by Laura Strutt 

If you like large-scale knits or you appreciate the 

bigger stitches and open texture you can achieve 

by knitting with your arms or fingers, then you will 

find plenty of inspiration in Arm and Finger Knitting. 

Breaking free from the constraints of normal needle 

sizes, Laura Strutt demonstrates how to do all the 

usual stitches and techniques using just your arms 

and hands, from plain garter stitch to moss stitch, 

increasing and decreasing, and knitting with two 

or more strands of yarn at a time. To make the best 

use of the unique texture and scale of no-needle 

knitting, she has designed 35 stylish projects for you 

to make, for the home and to wear. 

112 pages, ISBN 978-1-78249-208-5 

Cico Books 



If you’re thinking about gift knitting 

already – or perhaps need a little nudge 

towards thinking about gift knitting – we 

have a few things in mind. We’ve already 

shown you a couple of patterns made 

just for the NEW Downton Abbey Yarn 

Collection, here some selections from 

the vast knitting internet to give you 

more ideas! Let’s take a look again at the 

Lady Mary yarn this awesome collection, 

which can be both elegant and fun 

because of that extra bit of metallic 

thread. It’s never too early to start gift 

knitting and adding some sparkle to your 

holiday knitting! 

The Lady Mary yarn is listed as a light 

yarn weight in category 3, in other 

words as a DK weight or “light worsted.” 

This makes it versatile for projects 

needing 5-6 stitches per inch in gauge. 

Knitted more firmly it would make an 

extremely stiff fabric, for knitting threedimensional 

ornaments and baubles, 

and knitted more loosely it would be 

enjoyable for lacy projects, as in the 

Budding Romance shawl pattern. 

One lovely and quick gift idea is this 

Mini Mitten pattern. It uses doublepointed 

needles and can be done easily 

within an evening – make a pair for a 

unique present-topper or ornament! Or 

perhaps a bookmark? Or, how about this 

little stocking pattern, for a similar festive 

ornament project? 

Another great gift idea that I like are 

these knitted coffee cozies. If you know 

people who enjoy their daily dose of 

caffeine, save them the trouble of always 

throwing out those cardboard cup cozies 

they provide at cafes, and give them 

a re-usable one instead! Knitted in a 

sparkly color like this yarn, they will be 

less likely to forget it! 

Or, try a simple hat pattern – hats 

make very quick gift projects. With the 

metallic component we don’t need to 

look at cables or color-work patterns 

since the pattern and sparkle would 

compete too much. 

Adding some 

sparkle 

to your holiday knitting 

Glenna Harris 

The Lady Mary yarn from the new 

Downton Abbey yarns includes 

metallic thread for extra sparkle. 

These are just a few fun ideas – there are 

so many to choose from! When trying a 

new yarn it’s always a good idea to buy 

one or two skeins to play with before committing 

to a big project, if you’re thinking 

about something larger. So, these are all 

one-skein-or-less projects to get you started. 

And remember, it’s never too early to 

think about gift knitting while adding some 

sparkle to your holiday knitting! 


17

BUDDING ROMANCE SHAWL 

FINISHED MEASUREMENTS 

Length: 60” 

Width: 20” 

MATERIALS 

Downton Abbey Lady Mary by Premier Yarns (95% 

Acrylic, 5% Metallic; 85g/290yds) 

• #DA4004-06 Lily Ice – 4 balls 

Needle: US Size 8 (5 mm) straight needles or size 

needed to obtain gauge 

Notions: Tapestry needle 

GAUGE 

20 sts x 19 rows = 4” in Little Buds patt 

Save time, check your gauge. 

DA00001 

Downton and Downton Abbey® ©2015 Carnival Film & Television Limited. All Rights Reserved. 


BUDDING ROMANCE SHAWL 

STITCH GUIDE 

Little Buds (multiple of 8 sts + 3) 

Row 1 (RS): K1, *yo, sl 1, k1, psso, k6; rep from * to last 10 sts, yo, 

sl 1, k1, psso, k8. 

Row 2 and all even-numbered rows: Purl. 

Row 3, 5, and 7: K2, *yo, k2, cdd, k2, yo, k1; rep from * to last 

9 sts, yo, k2, cdd, k2, yo, k2. 

Row 9: K5, yo, sl 1, k1, psso, k6; rep from * last 6 sts, sl 1, k1, 

psso, k4. 

Row 11, 13, and 15: K1, k2tog, *k2, yo, k1, yo, k2, cdd; rep from * 

to last 8 sts, k2, yo, k1, yo, k2, sl 1, k1, psso. 

Row 16: Purl. 


Garter and Eyelet (multiple of 2 sts) 

Row 1 (RS): Knit. 

Row 2: Knit. 

Row 3: Knit. 

Row 4: P1, yo, p2tog; rep from * to last st, p1. 

Row 5: Knit. 

Row 6: Knit. 

Row 7: Knit. 

Row 8: P1, *p2tog, yo; rep from * to last st, p1. 


Abbreviations 

cdd central double decrease - slip 2 sts tog knitwise, knit 

the next st, pass the 2 slipped stitches over knit st just 

worked (2 sts dec’d) 

k knit 

k2tog knit 2 sts together (1 st dec’d) 

meas measures 

p purl 

p2tog purl 2 sts together (1 st dec’d) 

patt pattern 

psso pass slipped stitch over 

rep repeat(ing) 

RS right side 

s2kp 

sl slip 

WS wrong side 

yo yarn over 

GARMENT 

Cast on 102 sts. Work Rows 1-8 of Garter and Eyelet. 

Set-up Row: Work Garter and Eyelet over 8 sts, pm, work 

Little Buds over 83 sts, pm, work Garter and Eyelet to end. 

Work in patt as established, slipping markers as you come to 

them until piece meas 59”, ending with a WS row. 

Work Rows 1-8 of Garter and Eyelet removing markers on 

Row 1. 

Bind off. 

FINISHING 

Weave in ends. Block lightly. 

For more free patterns from the Downton Abbey Yarn Collection, 

visit www.premieryarns.com/DowntonAbbey 

© 2015 Premier® Yarns All rights reserved. 

This pattern may not be reproduced for business, trade or sale. 


19


Cathy Payson 

www.redheart.com

skill level easy 

finished measurements 

Neck: 34" [86cm] 

Hem: 45" [114cm] 

Length: 15" [38cm] 

Poncho fits most women. 

materials 

yarn 

RED HEART® Boutique Twilight: 5 balls 9959 Mercury 

(7 Jumbo) RED HEART® Boutique Twilight Art E829 

available in 3.5oz [100g], 59yd [54m] balls 

needles 

US 15 [10mm] 

yarn needle, stitch marker 

gauge 

8½ sts = 4" [10cm]; 16 rows = 4" [10cm] in Simple Garter 

Lace Pattern. CHECK YOUR GAUGE. Use any size 

needles to obtain the gauge. 

SPECIAL STITCHES 

P2tog = Purl 2 Stitches Together. Purl 2 sts together 

(decrease). 

Yfrn = Yarn Forward Round Needle. Bring yarn forward 

and wrap around needle. It's worked as a yarn over 

when worked between a knit stitch and a purl stitch 

(increase). 

PATTERN STITCH 

Simple Garter Lace Pattern (multiple of 4 sts + 2) 

All Rows: K2, *yfrn, p2tog, k2; repeat from * to end of 

row. Repeat every row. 

Notes: 

Poncho is worked in rows. The 2 pieces (Front and Back) are 

sew together. When casting on, leave a 25" 

(64 cm) tail for seaming. When joining Front and Back pieces 

together, use the “edge st” for seaming. 

Honeycomb 

poncho 

The Honeycomb 

Poncho is one of 

those fairly quick 

projects to make 

for a cherished 

someone on your 

Christmas gift list. 

PONCHO 

Front and Back (make 2 pieces) 

Cast on 48 sts. 

Knit 1 row on Wrong Side. 

Next Row (Right Side): K1 (edge st), work across row in 

Simple Garter Lace Pattern to last st, k1 (edge st). 

Place stitch marker to mark Right Side of work. 

Keeping first and last sts in Stockinette St for edge 

stitches, and center 46 sts in Simple Garter Lace 

Pattern, continue until piece measures 14½" [37cm] 

from cast on edge, ending with a Wrong Side row. 

Next Row (Right Side): Knit across row decreasing 12 sts 

evenly spaced—36 sts. 

Next Row (Wrong Side): Knit all sts. 

Next Row (Right Side): Bind off all sts leaving a 25" [64cm] 

tail to sew side seam. 

finishing 

Join Front and Back pieces together using yarn needle 

and Mattress St. Sew the “edge sts” together creating a 

flat, invisible seam. Weave in ends. 

abbreviations 

yfrn = yarn forward around needle; 

* or ** = repeat whatever follows the * or ** as indicated. 

17" 

[43 cm] 

FRONT 

& 

BACK 

22½" 

[57 cm] 

15" 

[38 cm] 

Photos courtesy of Red Heart 


21

Knitting 

a Top This! hat 

Glenna Harris 

Christmas is almost at our door. Although it's 

a great plan to knit holiday gifts all year long, 

there's always a person that pops on my Christmas 

list at the last minute! I'm actually not 

usually one of those people who plans to knit 

Christmas gifts starting January, but I always try 

to do better each year! Socks and hats come 

to mind for small gifts for loved ones, and the 

Top This! hat is the perfect knitted gift if you 

have children on your holiday list. 

If you're a relatively new knitterm hats are an 

ideal project to help build up some knitting 

skills beyond the basic knit and purl. Knitting 

a hat will help you practice not just casting on 

and knitting, but knitting in the round and knitting 

some basic decreases. These are all great 

building blocks for bigger projects. These kits 

are made with self-striping yarn, which 

changes color as you knit it – so, even 

though there are stripes in these hats, 

you never have to stop and change yarn 

part way through. 

Children’s hats like these are also often smaller 

than adult projects, so you can finish them 

faster and feel satisfied. One of these hats took 

me only 2-3 episodes of Miss Fisher’s Murder 

Mysteries on Netflix – it’s hard to beat that! 

These kits have completely charmed me, I confess, 

and I’m already making a list of the little 

folks in my life who will be receiving them as 

gifts. They come with enough yarn for a hat 

as well as a little topper shaped like a little 

animal or fun toy. 

We’ll walk through the steps to make one, using 

the grey and pink kitty, and the handsome green 

and yellow elephant. 

The first step of embarking on any knitting project 

is to check that you’ve got the right knitting 

needles to work with. If you’re working with a 

brand new yarn, the best thing to do is check the 

label first. All commercially available yarn labels 

(or “ball bands”) will have a wealth of information 

on them, including recommended needle size, 

the fiber content (materials that the yarn is made 

of), and washing instructions. In this case, the 

yarn label also contains the hat pattern, on the 

inside. 

We can see from the fine print here that this 

project requires 5.5mm/US #9 needles. Reading 

ahead in the pattern instructions inside, we can 

find out that these are recommended to be a 

16''/40cm circular needle as well as double-pointed 

needles. Other things we’ll need for this project 

are things you'll often need on hand almost 

all the time as a knitter, are stitch markers, yarn 

needles for sewing in ends when it’s all finished, 

and a row counter is optional if you like some help 

tracking how many rounds or rows you’ve knitted. 


So many animal 

figures to 

choose from the 

Top This! hat kit 

collection! 

Ahhh, the trusted ball 

band. Check it for all 

pertinent information 

for knitting up the 

the zany Top This! hat. 



23

Knitting 

with 

the 

cable 

cast on 

Hats, in particular, are the perfect projects 

for beginner knitters. They encompass so 

many techniques in one little project that 

offers relatively immediate satisfaction to 

boot! They also make great last minute 

knitted gifts. Let's get started on the 

holiday gift list by knitting some children’s 

hats using the sweet Top This! hat kits. 

One of the first cast on techniques many 

of us learn is the knitted cast on, which is 

a great first step because its steps mimic 

the knit stitch itself, so you can make the 

most of all the new skills you're learning 

as a new knitter. If you’re new to knitting, 

learning a variety of cast on and bind off 

techniques is one of the most valuable 

steps you can take to expand your “tool 

box” of skills. Many of us have a favorite 

cast on or bind off that we use frequently, 

so you never know if one of those new 

techniques will become your new favorite! 

The cable cast on makes a neat edge 

that's a good choice for ribbing because 

it looks equally neat and tidy no matter 

if you’re looking at a “purl side” or “knit 

side” of the fabric. It’s also similar to the 

knitted cast on which makes it an easy 

2nd cast on to learn. You don’t need it just 

for cabled knitting, though, so don’t be 

fooled by the name! 

As we can see in the photos, the cable 

cast on is just a little bit different from 

the knitted cast on, with the main 

difference that we start by inserting 

the right needle between the first two 

stitches on the left needle, rather than 

through the actual first stitch. 

These are the steps for the cable cast on: 

1. Start by making a slip knot and placing 

it onto the left needle. Make a 2nd stitch 

knitwise by knitting into the slip knot and 

placing that stitch back onto the left hand 

needle. You now have 2 sts. 

2. Next, insert the needle in between the 

first 2 sts on the left hand needle. 

3. Wrap the working yarn around the right 

hand needle as you normally would when 

making a knit stitch. 

4. Pull the yarn through the two stitches to 

the front of the work. 

5. Place this new stitch back onto the left 

hand needle, inserting the left hand 

needle into the front of the stitch (this 

twists the stitch around slightly). 

6. Repeat steps 2-5 until you have the 

number of stitches you need. 

Above all, try to keep your cast on a little bit 

loose – if the stitches are too tight then you 

may end up with a very tight edge that's 

hard to slip over your head. 

The photos 

demonstrate 

the steps for the 

cable cast on 


Start with a slip knot, then knit a 2nd stitch using the 

knitted cast on. 

The Top This! hat kits recommend starting 

with a 16''/40cm circular needle and then 

switching to double-pointed needles once 

you start decreasing at the top. However, if 

you’re knitting a smaller size, you might find 

it hard to fit the stitches around the circular 

needle, in which case you can start with the 

double-pointed needles (above) by dividing 

the stitches equally around 3 working needles. 

Use a 4th needle for knitting. 

Now we’re ready to knit onwards! 

Insert your needle between the stitches, not into a stitch. 

Larger hat sizes can easily use a 16"/40cm circular needle to 

hold all stitches in the round. 

Wrap the yarn as if to knit a stitch. 

Keep repeating these steps until you have the number of stitches 

you need. 

Pull the loop through as you would for making a stitch. 

Place the stitch onto the left needle, inserting the left needle 

through the ‘front’ of the stitch. This turns the stitch a little. 

For smaller hat sizes you may need to use double-pointed needles. 

Arrange your stitches equally among 3 working needles. 


25

2 

ways to knit a hat in the round, which is better? 

Knitting in the 

round requires 

either circular 

needles or 

double-pointed 

needles. 

Have you ever knitted a project “in the 

round” before? If you haven’t, a whole 

world of new projects and tools await 

you. Many knitters start off working 

“flat” projects because it’s an easy way 

to make a plain scarf or small blanket, 

which make nice first projects. However, 

knitting a hat in the round is also a great 

project for new knitters. They are small 

and quick to finish, and also make easy 

gifts. There are more than 2 ways to knit 

a hat in the round, but here are the two 

more common ones using the sweetest 

Top This! hats (one in pink, and one in 

green) to demonstrate. 

Tips to keep in mind when knitting in 

the round. 

1. When starting your first round, make 

sure your right hand needle is the one 

that has the working yarn hanging 

from it. Then, when you knit the first 

stitch on the left hand needle, you will 

close that gap. This is called “joining 

to work in the round.” 

2. A common reminder is to “join to 

work in the round, being careful not 

to twist“. This means to make sure 

that the cast on row is fully lined up 

below the needle (as shown below), 

rather than twisted around the needle 

(almost like a mobius strip). When 

you're knitting flat, you don’t need to 

worry about this step, but it is very 

important when knitting in the round. 

3. Remember to use a stitch marker to 

mark the beginning of your round. 

Knitting pattern instructions will often 

indicate this directly as “place marker” 

or “pm” as an abbreviation. Keep 

different colors of stitch markers on 

hand for different uses in the pattern. 

4. If you’re knitting with double-pointed 

needles, like I’m using for the green 

hat in the photo, you can’t place a 

marker at the beginning of the round 

since the beginning of the round 

starts in between two of the needles. 

Instead, place it after the first stitch 

in the round, or clip it to the knitted 

fabric itself and adjust its place every 

so often as you knit more of the 

project. 

5. Double-pointed needles can feel 

awkward at the beginning, as though 

you’re holding too many things at 

once! But, remember that you’re only 

ever working with 2 of the needles at 

once, and there will be 2 (or 3) other 

needles at rest that are simply holding 

the rest of the stitches in the round. 

6. Try to keep things steady by resting 

your 2 working needles on top of the 

2 resting needles on either side. After 

a while you’ll find yourself making this 

adjustment automatically whenever 

you move from one needle to the 

next. 

7. Most patterns will tell you to work the 

first few rounds (or rows, if working 

flat) in ribbing or another stitch that 

will let the edge lie evenly (instead 

of curling up on itself, like stockinette 

stitch tends to do), and then change 

to the pattern stitch for the rest of the 

project. In this case our pattern stitch 

is stockinette stitch (knitting every 

round), so we need to count the 

rounds of stockinette stitch to track 

our progress. 


Use a stitch marker to mark the beginning of the round. 

“join to work in the round, being careful not to twist“ 

With double-pointed needles, place the marker after the first stitch on the 

first needle, to mark the beginning of the round. 

Double-pointed needles can take a bit of practice to get used to. 

You can use a row counter gadget to help count 

your rounds (or rows), by turning the dial each time 

you finish a round. If you’ve lost count and need 

to just count them visually, just remember that one 

of those little “V” shapes in the fabric is one stitch. 

By counting how many of those “Vs” are stacked 

on top of each other, you’ll get your count. Just 

remember to always include the round that is on 

your needle also. For example, in the picture below, 

we can count 6 rounds of the pink yarn have been 

knitted, plus the one on the needles so that actually 

means we have knitted 7 rounds of pink. 

Knitting in the round can be great television 

knitting or “transit knitting” while on the go, 

especially if you’re using a circular needle and 

don’t ever have to worry about dropping a 

needle by accident. 

For these hats, we’ll knit several rounds of ribbing 

to start, then continue in stockinette until it’s time to 

work the decreases. 

Counting how many rounds you have knitted is easy to do on stockinette stitch. 


27

Making decreases 

for your knitted hat 

What the top of your hat will look like with all the 

finished decreases. 

Transfer your stitches to double-pointed needles for the 

crown decreases. 

Place stitch markers evenly around the needles as 

indicated by the pattern. 

The k2tog: knitting 2 stitches together. 

Eventually the markers will be separated by only 1 stitch. 

The next step to finishing our Top This! hat is to do the simple 

stitch decreases needed to shape the crown of the hat, or the 

very top of the hat. 

For this kit, the decreases are worked as a simple spiral, where 

the decreases are spaced evenly around each round. You can 

see what this looks like in the first photo when it’s all finished. 

The first thing you’ll need to do is transfer your stitches from 

your circular needle (if you were using one) onto your double-pointed 

needles (DPNs). As you decrease stitches, it will 

be harder to fit them onto the fixed circumference of the circular 

needle, so even if you start a hat with a circular needle 

you’ll also need the DPNs in order to finish it. 

The other step you’ll need to do is place stitch markers 

around the needles, evenly spaced according to the pattern 

instructions. Since we’re using the DPNs at this point, the 

gap between 2 DPNs counts as a “marker”. So, we’ve got the 

same number of stitches on each needle, and the same number 

of stitches in between markers. Now we’re ready to start 

the decreases! 

There are many different ways to work stitch decreases in 

knitting – as with many other techniques! In this case we're 

working the “K2tog” decrease as indicated by the pattern in 

the kit. This is the most simple decrease, which is simply to 

“knit 2 stitches together.” 

Our decrease rounds are simply to work to 2 stitches before 

the marker, then work the k2tog. This involves inserting the 

right hand (RH) needle through the first 2 stitches on the left 

hand (LH) needle (as seen below), and then continue as you 

usually would for a knit stitch by pulling the stitch through 

and onto the RH needle. 

As new knitters, many of us end up working the K2tog by 

accident, not noticing that we are knitting 2 stitches together 

instead of just one. Then we end up wondering why the stitch 

count has changed, and figure out what went wrong. But in 

this case we're doing the decreases on purpose! 

For these hats this continues for every marker on every round, 

until we're left with only 1 stitch between each pair of markers 

(as seen below). At this point, your decreases are finished! 

And probably the DPNs are starting to feel a little awkward 

and wobbly with most of their stitches decreased away. 

All that’s left now are the final finishing steps! These simple 

stitch decreases are easy to work and get you almost to the 

finish line! 


Finishing your knitted hat the right way 

The crown of your hat after all the decreases are finished. 

Use a yarn needle to thread the working yarn through the 

remaining stitches. 

Sewing up the top. 

Don’t forget to attach the fun topper! 

We’re finally ready to finish up our Top This! hats. Finishing 

your knitted hat is the last step, and involves sewing up the 

top of the crown, weaving in any other loose ends of yarn, 

and in this case, attaching the cute little animal topper that 

comes with the kit. 

When you’ve completed all the decreases, remove any stitch 

markers you were using (they’ve finished their job now!) Cut 

your working yarn, but leave a long tail of at least 8" if not 

more. 

Thread the end of the yarn onto a yarn needle, and thread 

the needle through the remaining stitches while they're still 

on the knitting needle as in the photo. Remove the knitting 

needles as the stitches are threaded. When you’ve got all 

remaining stitches threaded onto the yarn, pull it snug and if 

you wish, thread the yarn through the stitches again for extra 

security (next photo below). When you’re satisfied they are 

secure, pull the needle through to the inside of the hat and 

weave the yarn through a few stitches on the wrong side of 

the work. Tie a knot and cut the yarn, leaving a short end. 

Now these little cuties are all finished up and ready to be 

worn or saved as gifts! If you’re like me and want to keep 

up your knitting all year round, but don’t like big projects 

taking up space in your lap during the summer, then knitting 

hats are a nice way to keep some small projects in the mix. If 

you can add to your gift knitting pile then that is almost like 

having money in the bank! Finishing your knitted hat is the 

last step in this quick and satisfying process. 


29

How to fix a dropped knit stitch 

Glenna Harris 

The dropped stitch can happen when you least expect it! But it can be easily fixed. 

Step 1: Secure the live stitch with a stitch marker so it doesn’t drop any further. 

When was the last time you discovered 

a dropped stitch in your 

knitting? If you’re a new knitter 

this might be a very stressful 

situation! But I can tell you that 

as knitter of more than 10 years, 

I still drop stitches from time to 

time. And, as long as you discover 

the dropped stitch within 

a few rows, you should be able 

to fix it pretty easily. 

The first thing to do, once you 

discover the dropped stitch, is 

to make sure it doesn’t drop 

down any farther. Grab a stitch 

marker (or safety pin) and close it 

through the live stitch. 

Next, you’ll need a crochet hook, 

preferably one that's close to the 

size of the needles you used to 

knit your project. I used a 5.5mm 

needle for this Top This! hat, and 

didn’t have that exact crochet 

hook size nearby so the 4.5mm 

hook was the closest size I had 

available. This is fine, since you’re 

not actually going to be using 

it for crochet, just to do a quick 

pick-up. 

To pick up the dropped stitch, 

you’ll need to pick it up several 

times, one on top of each other, 

since there are several loose 

strands there that need to be 

corrected. This is actually fairly 

simple. Follow these steps: 

Step 2: Insert a crochet hook through the front of the stitch. 


After securing the stitch and locating 

your crochet hook, remove the stitch 

marker and then insert the crochet 

hook through the stitch as in the 

photo. 

Next, use the crochet hook to grab 

the first loose strand above the 

live stitch, and then pull that loop 

through the stitch that is still on your 

hook. Leave this newly pulled stitch 

on the crochet hook, and repeat 

those steps over and over again 

until you have caught all of the loose 

strands, one at a time. You’re done! 

The line of stitches you’ve just picked 

up will probably be a little bit looser 

than the original knitted fabric was, 

but once you’ve finished the project 

and given it a wash, you’ll never 

know the difference. 

If you’ve managed to drop two or 

three stitches, all right next to each 

other, then you can still use this same 

process but will need to work one 

stitch at a time. It’ll be a little more 

painstaking, but can be done. 

The alternative, of course, is to simply 

pull out your knitting as far as 

the stitch has dropped, and re-knit 

from that point. The choice is yours 

about which would be more time 

consuming or frustrating! Usually the 

crochet hook solution is the faster 

choice. Next time you find yourself in 

this situation, you’ll know how to fix a 

dropped knit stitch! 

Step 3: Use the crochet hook to grab the loose bar just above the dropped stitch. 

Pull that bar through the dropped stitch. Leave the pulled loop on the crochet 

hook and repeat the process. 


Place the last pulled-up stitch back on the needle, and you’re done! You’ll never 

know the difference 


31

Knitting with cables – C4L 

Glenna Harris 

Cable needles are essential tools for knitting cabled stitches! 

A cable needle 

is a tool that 

every knitter 

should have in 

their tool kit! 

Knitting with 

cables – easier 

than it seems! 

Cable stitches are among the most 

popular kinds of stitch patterns out 

there. You don’t need to look very long 

before coming across patterns that use 

cables – socks, hats, scarves, sweaters 

and mittens are all just as likely to 

show off different kinds of cabled stitch 

patterns. This makes cables an all-yearround 

kind of technique, and one that is 

very versatile to know. 

Cables are made by manipulating the 

stitches on your row of knitting so that 

a few stitches switch places with other 

stitches next to them on the needle. 

Essentially, a cable stitch isn’t a new 

kind of stitch, just a rearrangement 

of other knit or purl stitches. So, the 

cable needle is used to help with this 

'rearrangement'! 

easier than it seems! 

All cables have a “direction.” They 

travel either to the left or to the right, 

depending on which direction the front 

stitches move. In the picture above, 

you can see three sets of 'right leaning' 

cables on the right, and three sets of “left 

leaning” cables on the left. All of these 

stitches are worked as knit stitches, and 

all are worked over 4 stitches in total. 

In a knitting pattern, these would be 

indicated as C4R for the right leaning 

ones (cable four right), and C4L for the 

left leaning ones (cable four left). 

In the photos below we’ll demonstrate 

the steps for working a C4L. 

C4L means we are working over 4 

stitches for the full cable. Typical 

cables split this full number into two 

halves, where one half of the stitches 

travels in the front of the work. So, 

here we’re working with 2 + 2 stitches. 


Photos by Glenna Harris

Cable needles are essential tools for knitting cabled stitches! 

C4L (left cable over 4 sts) Step 1: Slip 2 sts onto cable needle. 

C4L (left cable over 4 sts) Step 2: Knit 2 sts from the left needle 

First, take your cable needle and slip 

the first 2 stitches onto it from the left 

hand needle. This one has a notch in 

the middle of the needle to allow these 

stitches to settle into the middle and sit 

more easily. Right now these stitches 

are just hanging out, waiting to be used 

again when they are next needed! 

The next step is to knit the next 2 

stitches as normal (as shown above). 

This can feel a bit fidgety with the cable 

needle attached to the work, but you’ll 

get the hang of it with practice. 

These two steps above will be described 

in a knitting pattern something along 

the lines of “slip 2 sts to cn and hold 

in front, k2.” Cable needle is typically 

abbreviated as “cn.” 

The next and final step is to slip the 

stitches on the cable needle back 

onto the left hand needle, and then 

knit these 2 stitches as normal. You 

could even try knitting the stitches 

directly from the cable needle, if you’re 

comfortable with it! 

And then, you’re done! On the left of 

the photo above you can see a closeup 

of the C4L cable, and how it leans to 

the left. There are a few steps involved 

in creating a simple cable like this, but 

with practice you will get more quick 

at it. Some knitters develop habits like 

leaving the cable needle tucked behind 

their ear like a pencil, or piercing it 

through their sweater like a pin, to hold 

onto it, ready to grab for the next cable. 

In tomorrow’s post will look at the 

opposite direction, C4R! Give the C4L a 

try if it’s new to you, and see how you 

like it. You may find knitting cables with 

a cable needle is easier than you think! 

C4L (left cable over 4 sts) Step 3: Slip the first 2 stitches back onto the 

left hand needle, from the cable needle, then knit them as normal. 


33

Knitting with cables – C4R 

The C4R is worked very similarly to 

the basic C4L cable – a cable over 

4 stitches that leans to the left. 

Cable needles are easy knitting 

tools to use! 

Cable needles come in different 

varieties, but all are essentially a 

shorter needle that holds a small 

number of stitches for a very short 

time. Cable stitches are worked by 

manipulating traditional knit and 

purl stitches, so they don’t create 

any new stitches, they just rearrange 

them. Below, we’ll demonstrate 

the C4R cable. 

Just like the C4L, because we’re 

working over 4 stitches, the first 

step is to slip 2 stitches onto the 

cable needle. Typical cables work 

with half the stitches at a time (although 

that’s not always the case). 

When slipping your stitches, slip 

them “as if to purl”, in other words, 

slip them so that you don’t twist 

the stitches in the process. 

The next step is to hold the cable 

needle behind the work, as opposed 

to holding it in front of the 

work for the C4L. You can see in 

the two photos above how this 

looks. Again, the first time you do 

this might feel a little awkward, but 

that’ll get easier with practice! 

The next steps proceed just as we 

did with our C4L before – hold the 

stitches on the cable needle, then 

knit the next 2 stitches from the 

left hand needle like normal. The 

stitches on the cable needle are 

waiting patiently, just held in back 

instead of in front. 

Finally, transfer the stitches from 

the cable needle back to the left 

hand needle, and then knit those 

stitches like normal. That’s it! 

You’ve done a C4R. Hold it up and 

admire your handiwork. 

Depending on the pattern you’re 

using, cable stitches might be 

written down as ‘back’ or ‘front’ 

cables instead of ‘right’ or ‘left’. 

This refers to the placement of the 

cable needle rather than the visual 

direction of the cable. 

So, a “C4R” and “C4B” are the 

same thing, just as “C4L” and “C4F” 

are the same. It’s more typical for 

contemporary patterns to use the 

left and right terminology, but 

there are decades of knitting patterns 

out there to knit from, so it’s 

good to know just in case. 

Either way, cable needles are easy 

tools to learn to use and I hope 

you’ll enjoy knitting with cables 

this coming fall and winter! Stay 

tuned tomorrow for knitting fun! 

C4L – C4R combination 


C4R (right cable over 4 sts) Step 1: Slip first 2 stitches onto a cable needle. 

C4R (right cable over 4 sts) Step 3: Knit the next 2 stitches as normal. 

C4R (right cable over 4 sts) Step 2: Hold the cable needle in back of the 

work (behind the needles). 

C4R (left cable over 4 sts) Step 4: Slip the 2 stitches from the cable needle 

back onto the left hand needle, to knit as normal. 

Holding the cable needle behind the work for C4R. 

Beautiful knitwear is 

made of the simple art 

of knitting cables. 


35

A better one-row buttonhole Glenna Harris 

Whenever I go shopping for buttons I always 

end up coming home with several 

different kinds, even if I only need them 

for one project at the time! Building up 

a button collection of your own is a fun 

task, so you’ll eventually be prepared and 

ready for different button situations. 

There are many different ways to knit a 

button-hole. One of the first methods 

many of us encounter is a two-row button-hole 

method (shown second on that 

page), where the knitter first binds off 

stitches for the button-hole on the first 

row, then on the second row coming back, 

casts on new stitches over top of the gap 

created by that first bind-off. This is an 

easy way to get the hang of button-holes 

at first, because all knitters know how to 

do at least one basic bind-off and cast-on. 

If you’re a knitter who has advanced to 

sweaters – whether for adults or children 

– you’ve probably encountered the need 

for button-holes in your knitting! Button-holes 

can be tricky to get the hang 

of, and there are many different ways to 

make them. Trying a new button-hole 

technique could make all the difference 

for your next cardigan project. 

There’s also a huge variety of buttons out 

there to choose from. I love the versatile 

style of these round ones (pictured left), 

each about an inch wide. But these adorable 

owls and lobsters (pictured below) 

would be amazing on a little children’s 

sweater. They are longer than they are 

wide – so choose your button-hole width 

based on the narrower length. 


Photos and video by Glenna Harris

An alternative to this is the one-row horizontal button-hole 

method, where both of these steps are done on 

the same row. The advantage with this technique is that 

it creates less of a gape in the button-hole itself, since 

both the bind-off and cast-on happen on the same row. 

It requires just a little bit more attention, but the skills you 

need are very similar. 

In the video clip below, I’ll show you how to work the 

one-row horizontal buttonhole. It just takes a few minutes 

to learn! 

I hope you enjoyed the little clip, and if you’re new to the 

one-row button-hole technique, be sure to give it a try! 

If it’s still not your favorite technique, be sure and keep 

looking around for other methods and see what you like 

best. Fall is coming soon, and so is sweater weather, so 

we’ll be making a lot of button-holes very soon. Trying a 

new technique could make all the difference! 

How to work the one-row horizontal buttonhole 


37

Pom-poms 

– the cutest knitted accessories, right? 

Glenna Harris 

Pom poms make 

darling decorations 

on their own, and 

the perfect finish 

for winter hats and 

mittens. You just need 

these tools and your 

favorite scrap yarn! 

Pom-poms are one of the final flourishes 

that can take your finished knitting 

to the “next level.” They’re often used as 

an accessory on top of a knitted hat, or 

at the edge of a mitten cuff. You might 

even have seen them attached to the 

corners of baby blankets, or the ends 

of scarves. These little darlings are very 

versatile! 

There are a lot of 'low tech' ways to 

make them, but if you want that almost 

magazine-looking quality, try using 

a pom-pom maker. They'll give your 

pom-poms a symmetrical, polished 

quality that’s hard to beat, and also 

come in different sizes for different 

pom-pom needs. In the photos, I’m 

going to show you how it works! The 

results are hard to beat. 

First, gather your materials. You’ll need 

a bit of scrap yarn (any weight will 

do – I’m using worsted-weight wool to 

demonstrate these), your pom-pom 

maker in the size you prefer, and a 

dull tapestry needle/wool needle for 

the smaller sized pom-poms if that’s 

the size you’re making. The pom-pom 

makers I’m using in this demonstration 

come in 3 sizes that all snap together. 

This means you can use one size at a 

time, or combine 2 or 3 sizes together 

to adjust the size if you wish. 


If you’re using the smaller 

pom-pom makers, it’s easier 

to use a tapestry needle to 

thread the yarn through the 

smaller hole in the center.

All ready? Let’s start our pom-poms! 

1 

Step 1 Begin with the 2 pom-pom rings facing together with 

their ‘flat’ side out. start wrapping your yarn around both of the 

rings together, and keep wrapping all the way around. 

Step 2 Keep wrapping the yarn until it’s as thick as you want it 

to be. The more you wrap, the more solid your pom-pom will 

be. I recommend wrapping it at least twice around all the way, 

but keep wrapping more if you want a really sturdy pom-pom! 

Step 3 Once you’ve wrapped the yarn as much as you want to, 

hold the rings – which now resemble a “yarn doughnut!” – firmly 

in the center, and start cutting all around the outside edge of 

the rings. 

2 

The first time I tried 

this, I worried the 

yarn would simply fall 

out of the center of 

the ring and that it 

wouldn’t work at all. 

I was wrong! As long 

as you’ve created 

enough yarn wraps, 

the yarn will simply 

rest nestled up all the 

strands together in 

3 4 

the center. 

Step 4 Slowly pull the two rings apart, to expose the center of 

the little yarn bundle – but be careful not to completely remove 

them. This will look a bit like two jellyfish stuck together. 

Step 5 With the center of the yarn bundle exposed, tie 1 or 2 

longer strands of yarn around the whole works, and tie a knot 

firmly. Now it’s safe to remove the rings! 

Step 6 Once you’ve removed the rings, all that’s left to do is 

snip away any uneven ends and then give it a “floof” with your 

fingers, and you’re done! It’s a perfect little pom-pom, ready to 

adorn the top of your next winter hat. 

If you keep your pom-pom maker handy in your knitting toolkit, 

you’ll be ready to finish your hat and mittens if they call for 

pom-poms right away. Or, you can make a few at a time when 

you come to the end of a project, as a way to use up small 

amounts of extra yarn. Pom-poms make great little decorations 

on their own, or strung together to make a garland! Pompoms 

are gorgeous final flourishes to take your knitting to the 

next level. 


5 

6 

KNITmuch | issue 1 39

Stitch holders are safety nets for your knitting 

Glenna Harris 

Stitch holders come in many sizes and are 

designed to securely hold your stitches aside. 

We talked about stitch markers earlier, now we’re 

going to take a moment to extol the virtues of 

stitch holders. These little life-savers aren’t hard to 

use, but we tend to use them while making slightly 

more advanced projects, so as you progress in 

your knitting skills you’ll find yourself reaching for 

them more and more. Stitch holders are safety 

nets for your knitting. 

Stitch holders come in different sizes, ranging from 

just a few inches long to nearly a foot. They’re 

a staple of the yarn shop tools display, and so 

helpful to use once you start knitting garments 

like sweaters. They're designed to do exactly what 

you might think – hold stitches aside, securely, for 

a portion of your project. (If you needed to put 

the whole piece aside for a short while, you would 

simply leave it on the needles). 

You’ll commonly see pattern directions telling 

you to use a stitch holder when you’re starting 

the neckline of a sweater while working from the 

bottom up. On the sweater pictured above, (which 

is the Ravine pullover pattern), you can see the 

center of the scoop neckline starts across the 

middle cable panel, and on each side just above 

that are the rows of decreases that shape the rest 

of the scoop. This bottom center of the scoop 

is first established by holding the stitches aside, 

and then working each side of the sweater front 

one side at a time. Once you’ve held the middle 

stitches aside, you’re essentially working two 

pieces, not just one. 

When the sweater is all finished, the collar is 

worked by picking up stitches all along the edge 

of the neck, and transferring those stitches held 

aside back onto your needles so that they can be 

worked into the ribbing as pictures. So, once the 

sweater is done you can’t really tell that anything 

was temporarily held aside! It’s all just one step in 

the process of completing your sweater. 


These two photos show what this 

looks like on a cabled swatch – I’ve 

taken the middle stitches and put 

them aside on the stitch holder. At 

this point, if it were a “real” sweater, 

I would continue working one side 

at a time and do some decreases 

on each side of the held stitches 

to finish shaping the rest of the 

neckline. 

Another popular place to use a 

stitch holder is on the under-arm of 

a sweater knitted in the round, or 

when needing to hold aside thumb 

stitches on a mitten. This is where it 

helps to have a few different stitch 

holder sizes handy, depending on 

how many stitches you’re working 

with at once. 

If you’re absolutely stuck and don’t 

have a stitch holder handy, you can 

accomplish the same task by using 

some “waste yarn” (a bit of extra 

yarn you’re not using) or even dental 

floss to hold onto the stitches. The 

advantage of stitch holders, though, 

is the security of being able to snap 

them closed! At those times when 

you’re working on a large project, it 

definitely feels like stitch holders are 

safety nets for your knitting. 

We’re using this cabled swatch as though it is the front of 

a neckline, to separate out the middle section of stitches. 

Simply slip the stitches from the needle onto the stitch 

holder, and then lock it closed. 



41

What you should know about 


Red Heart 

[ Cutie Pie Yarn 

The very first thing 

that ran through my 

mind when I opened 

Red Heart’s Cutie Pie 

yarn was ‘omg soft.’ 

It wasn’t in a clear 

enunciated way either; 

it was in that muffled 

way that only truly soft 

yarn would be able to 

invoke. 

The texture of this yarn takes a couple minutes 

to adjust to. When you’re feeling it all wound 

up in the ball it's very soft. When you go to 

cast on it’s still soft, but the texture likes to hang 

onto the needles a little bit. The very first time 

I cast on was with bamboo needles, but the 

stitches weren’t sliding particularly well. When 

I switched to wood needles my knitting was 

flowing nicely again. I checked how Cutie Pie 

did with metal needles and it went well. The 

smoother the needle surface, the easier my 

stitching went. 

Red Heart Cutie Pie Yarn is ‘omgosh so soft. 


Snowflake 

color work 

swatch 

Playing with 

cables using 

Cutie Pie 

yarns 

The chenille fuzziness of Cutie Pie yarn also 

means that all your stitches look even. All the 

stitches look smooth together rather than 

individual stitches being accentuated. If you’re 

looking for something to do color work in, 

this yarn would be great. If you’re looking for 

something to clearly define some cable work 

or a textured stitch, I would try something like 

Red Heart’s With Love yarn. 

The swatch above is made with the colors 

Indigo and Cotton. While you can see the 

color work perfectly, it is more difficult to 

make out individual stitches. I think it makes 

any stranded knitting really pop and look 

much more realistic. When you’re knitting an 

intricate design, it sometimes looks pixelated. 

The velvet texture of Cutie Pie yarn makes the 

design slightly softer and adds depth to the 

picture you’re trying to create. 

Cutie Pie is made with 100% polyester and 

washing instructions are machine wash warm, 

gentle cycle; tumble dry low. It’s the perfect 

yarn for baby knits with the ease of washing 

and the extreme softness. I tied a couple 

knots into my knitting to see if I could make it 

uncomfortable but the yarn is just so soft you 

can’t even feel where the knots are. 

Red Heart’s Cutie Pie yarn is a fantastic yarn 

for all things baby, but don’t stop there. 

Any garment that is worn close to the skin 

would lend itself well to this yarn. Soft, 

warm cowls and luxurious slippers would be 

particularly coveted. 

Photos by Michelle Nguyen 


43

4 


essential tips 

when knitting 

for babies 

Knitting for children, especially babies, 

is one of the most addictive kinds of 

knitting you can find. Knitting tiny 

sweaters and blankets have all the fun 

of a regular garment with the added 

benefit of taking less time. Plus, they’re 

just too cute. However, here are 4 tips 

when knitting for babies we knitters 

should keep in mind, especially when 

knitting for someone else’s little ones 

Cutie Pie yarn 

in colors 

Jelly, 

Indigo and 

Cotton 


Red Heart Cutie Pie Yarn is so soft therefore perfect for knitting for babies. 

Cutie Pie yarn in colors Cotton, Koala and Splash 

Have a sense of style 

I know this should go 

without saying, but 

it’s one thing a lot of 

gift givers (or makers) 

forget. Just because 

you like the style of 

something, doesn’t 

mean everyone else 

will. I know we’re 

all thinking that this 

adorable little sweater 

is for a baby and the 

babies don’t have 

a sense of style, but 

mommy and daddy 

do. If the parents have 

a really plain sense of 

style, chances are, they 

aren’t going to dress 

their little girl in tons of 

frills and bows. 


1 2 3 4 

Go functional 

You know what every 

new parent needs? 

Blankets. I was 

recently the hostess 

of a baby shower and 

didn’t realize, until 

that moment, how 

many sheets, blankets, 

cloths, towels, etc. 

are required for one 

small baby. If you’re 

not totally sure if 

the garment you’re 

looking at knitting 

is going to be well 

received, blankets are 

always used! 

Wash-ability would 

also be under the 

functional headline. If 

you’re looking to make 

an heirloom, handwash 

only would be 

acceptable. If you’re 

looking to make 

something a parent 

would actually use, I 

would highly suggest 

a fiber that is machine 

washable. 

Think color palette 

If it isn’t obvious, I’m 

a huge color person. 

I love all shades and 

will admit to reigning 

myself in when it 

comes to matters 

of choosing colors 

for babies. While 

I might think rich 

colors are awesome, 

some mothers might 

object. If there’s a color 

palette for the nursery 

a matching blanket will 

be safe. Odds are the 

parents have picked 

colors they like for their 

child’s room. 

Another good thing 

to think about is 

gender stereotypes. 

It’s more and more 

common for parents 

to break the ‘blue is 

for boys’, ‘pink is for 

girls’ color schemes. I 

know there are strong 

feelings on both sides 

of the color-stereotype 

line; it would be best 

to find out if there are 

any strong feelings 

either way. 

Safety 

This is something 

that can be easily 

overlooked, but of 

paramount importance. 

If knitting a textured 

blanket, have a care, 

the lacework could 

get tangled around 

little fingers and toes. 

Make sure buttons 

are sewn on securely 

and all pom poms 

and bobbles are kept 

within reason to avoid 

choking hazards. 

Taking these 4 

tips when knitting 

for babies into 

consideration will 

ensure your lovely 

knitted gift is received 

and used with joy. 

A few well placed 

questions could save 

you hurt feelings and 

frustration. If you’re 

going to spend hours 

making something 

why not make sure it 

meets the stylistic and 

safety standards of the 

recipient. 


45


Hand Knit Snuggle Sack 

A snuggle sack isn’t your ordinary 

blanket; it’s like swaddling without 

the careful wrapping. These snuggle 

sacks are becoming more and more 

popular over the past couple years 

and are an excellent shower gift. 

It’s like giving a baby blanket with 

significantly less knitting! Here’s how 

to make a hand knit snuggle sack… 

A trendy baby shower gift 


finished measurements 17" x 13" 

materials 

1 ball Cutie Pie in color Destiny (Color A) 

1 ball Cutie Pie in color Splash (Color B) 

1 ball Cutie Pie in color Koala (Color C) 

1 circular needle US 7 [4.5mm] 16'' 

1 set double pointed needles US 7 

[4.5mm]1 tapestry needle 

This pattern is knit in the round with 

the yarn held double. I wound the 

skeins into two separate balls and 

worked from there, but you can also 

work from a strand pulled from the 

inside and a strand pulled from the 

outside. There’s a much greater 

chance of tangles, but it can be done. 

This pattern is for a large snuggle 

sack for 8 to 12 month old, if you’re 

attempting to make a newborn size, 

subtract 20 stitches and 2" in length 

for each color block. In the pattern I’ll 

be writing color A, B and C; if you wish 

to change the colors simply switch 

them out and follow the pattern. 

Red Heart 

[ Cutie Pie Yarn 


Cast on 80 sts in color A, join into 

the round, place marker, and knit 

in stockinette for 4''. Make the 

folded hem. With RS facing, fold 

the cast on edge away from you 

and hold behind the working needle. 

Pick up one stitch from cast 

on edge and knit it together with 

the next stitch on working needle. 

Continue to do this until all the 

cast on stitches have been knit. 

Knit one round plain. The next 

round, add 10 stitches evenly 

through the stitches on the needle. 

If you’re working with 80 

stitches, you’ll knit 7 then knit 

in front and back of loop. After 

increase row is finished, knit in 

stockinette until the snuggle sack 

is 6'' in total. Switch to color B and 

knit in stockinette until this section 

is 6'' as well. Finally switch to color 

C and continue in stockinette until 

this color block is 5''. 

Begin the decreases as follows: 

Row 1: *K8, k2tog* repeat 

Row 2: K all stitches 





Continue in this manner, switching 

into double pointed needles when 

needed, until you reach K1, k2tog. 

After completing K1, k2tog, there’s 

no plain stockinette row, work 

K2tog. 

Cut your working yarn, leaving a 

12'' tail. Thread the tail onto your 

tapestry needle and thread the 

yarn through the live stitches. Pull 

tight and weave in the end. 

Finished folded hem. 

Finish the snuggle sack by threading yarn onto your 

tapestry needle then threading the yarn through 

your live stitches. Pull tight and weave in the end. 

The bottom of the snuggle sack 

complete with decreases. Ends just 

need to be woven in. 

You can’t beat the softness of 

Red Heart Cutie Pie yarn 

to make this snuggle sack. 

This hand knit snuggle sack is 

one of the most appreciated 

baby knits I’ve ever made. 

It keeps baby ensconced in 

soft warmth with no danger 

of little toes peeking out 

and getting cold. There’s no 

tucking corners or fussing 

with multiple blankets, just 

one cozy little cocoon. 



47


Creative Cabled Cowl 

One of the most soughtafter 

Christmas gifts is a 

smashing cabled cowl! A 

cowl is a very versatile 

accessory that adds 

warmth and style to any 

wardrobe, so much so that 

it's often worn in place 

of a necklace. Imagine 

knitting one up in an 

intricate cabled pattern 

using yummy yarn. Here's 

a pattern that looks 

complicated but is really 

very simple. The classic 

18'', three-button cowl 

is the easiest cable cowl 

you'll ever memorize. 

the easiest cabled cowl you’ll ever memorize 


finished measurements 18" x 8" 

materials 

1 ball of Red Heart's With Love in color 

Iris 

1 needle US 9 [5.5mm] 

1 tapestry needle 

The texture of 

Red Heart’s ‘With Love’ yarn 

lends itself perfectly to the 

{Creative Cabled Cowl 


Cast on 36 stitches and work in a k1 p1 

seed stitch for an inch ending on a wrong 

side row. Continue in seed stitch for 4 sts, 

place marker, knit row one of the chart 

below, place marker and finish last four sts 

in seed stitch. 

Continue starting with 4 sts in seed stitch 

then work the next pattern row. 

I would suggest knitting until the cowl is 

18'' in length to give you a nice snug fit 

to keep you warm on a cold winter day. 

If you prefer a looser fitting cowl, do as 

many repeats as you feel comfortable with. 

When you’re ready to do the buttonholes, 

stop the chart after row 8 and re-establish 

your seed stitch. Knit half an inch in 

seed stitch then place your buttonholes 

accordingly. 

Row 1: Knit 4 sts in seed stitch pattern, 

then bind off three stitches, knit 10 more 

sts in seed stitch and bind off three, knit 

9 sts in seed stitch pattern, bind off three 

and finish last four sts in seed stitch. 

Row 2: Continue in seed stitch pattern 

until you reach the bound off areas and 

cast on two sts using the backwards loop 

method. 

Work in seed stitch for another half inch 

and bind off. Make sure you re-establish 

the seed stitch after the buttonholes 

properly or your seed stitch will turn into a 

rib stitch. 

Now all you have left to do is sew on 

your buttons! 

This cowl perfectly covers the space your jacket 

leaves open to the unforgiving winter winds. We 

all have a friend who is always cold, keep them 

warm with this beautiful creative cabled cowl. 



49

The benefits of knitting with 

Red Heart Sashay Fringe yarn 


Red Heart’s Sashay Fringe yarn 

is a very interesting and unique 

product, so I wanted to talk 

about my specific experiences 

making the Positive Pink Ruffles 

scarf pattern. The ruffle yarn, 

without the fur, was very popular 

in the not-too-distant past and 

as a result there are thousands 

of patterns you can make. The 

difference is you get a bit of 

extra flair when knitting them 

with Sashay Fringe. Not only this, 

see the benefits of knitting with 

Sashay Fringe yarn. 

I absolutely love this yarn for 

scarves because it’s so easy, but 

it looks much more difficult than 

it actually is. This is perfect for 

someone who is just starting out 

and looking for a fun project, but 

also for tempting your friends 

into knitting! The yarn counts as 

a bulky, but you’re just knitting in 

the mesh, as seen on the how-to 

video. 

First thing is to cast on; this can 

be really tricky if you’re not sure 

what you’re doing with this yarn. 

The mesh already has holes in it 

so you aren’t doing a long-tail 

cast on or anything. You’re using 

the holes in that mesh webbing 

to cast on. Sashay Fringe doesn’t 

have the little rail road track 

in the top, so I would suggest 

starting at the holes nearer to the 

center. This way you won’t see 

much of the mesh itself as you’re 

knitting and the stitches you have on 

your needle are a little more defined. 

50 

KNITmuch | issue 1

Sashay your way onto the Fringe of Fashion 

There aren’t that many stitches 

either, the pattern from the Red 

Heart website calls for 6 stitches. 

Trust me, this is the most difficult 

part of the whole thing! Once 

your cast on is done, it's time to 

get knitting. 

The scarf knits up really fast, but 

in the first few rows you may find 

yourself thinking it’s incredibly 

ugly. This is normal, it’s like 

knitting lace; it doesn’t look good 

until you are closer to the end. 

With lace that means blocking, 

with Sashay Fringe, it means a bit 

closer to the end. 

One difference between ruffle 

yarns and Sashay Fringe that 

I really enjoyed, is the lack 

of maintenance while you’re 

knitting it. With the regular 

ruffle yarn you have to smooth 

it out as you’re knitting it to get 

a real ‘ruffled’ effect. The fur 

edge is what you’re looking to 

accentuate with this yarn and 

there’s no need to smooth it out. 

The weight of the fur itself makes 

sure the yarn isn’t bunched up 

within the knitted folds of the 

scarf. Closer to the end of the 

ball the mesh is folded into the 

fur, but that is a simple matter 

of unfolding as you go along. 

If you place your thumb in the 

folded groove, as you move 

along the strand it will open up 

automatically. 

The Rows of Ruffles pillow is 

something that I would dearly 

love to try; I relish in the thought 

it will turn out so soft. This 

pattern is linked to a crochet 

pattern and my crochet skills 

leave something to be desired, 

so I would knit the whole thing. 


To convert this pillow pattern to a 

knitting pattern find your knitting 

gauge using Sashay Fringe, lift 

up the ruffles to the stitches 

underneath. My gauge was 4 

stitches in 1", so if my pillow was 

22" around, I would have to cast 

on 88 stitches to cover that pillow. 

This isn’t a proper pattern, just 

some quick and dirty math to get 

the knitted pillow you want. 

You’ll might have to keep an eye 

on a pillow like that to make sure 

it doesn’t migrate to a friend’s 

home. It would be a great idea 

for covering old pillows that are 

faded or stained. Furthermore, 

it works up so quickly, you can 

make several to give to your 

girlfriends for the upcoming 

holiday season. Knit it up in their 

favorite color or in the color to 

match up with their decor. 

Knitting a scarf with Sashay Fringe 

isn’t the only thing. With the many 

patterns out there for ruffle yarn, 

there’s no end to the accessories 

you can make, as there are 

several benefits of knitting with 

Sashay Fringe yarn. All those 

patterns will be brand new again 

when knit with Sashay Fringe. The 

little edge of fur brings a totally 

different look to your favorite 

patterns. 

Give it a whirl! 

Using the holes in the mesh webbing to cast on the 

Sashay Fringe 

Red Heart Sashay Scarf cast on 

Running your thumb along the inside as you knit 

makes it open right up 

The stitches can be seen between my finger and the 

ruler, that is one row of four stitches. 


51

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58 

50 

Beach 

Date-Night 

KNIT sweater

KNITmuch | Issue 01

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