ConnieLene – KnitDesigner

Some Hats, Hoods, and Berets Pictures from a gallery on my Facebook Business page. Just in case you want to have a look before my latest pattern is published.

I have made the decision to never again state (until we are back in New Zealand anyway) that I will deliver to the websites a pattern as other events can disrupt the planning. Events like responding positively to an invite to go to another city like Maastricht for a few days and so on.

That can only work when there are no significant others in your life, and if Europe is not foreign to you as it is to us still, even though I was born in Denmark, I have lived most of my life in New Zealand.

If we were at home in New Zealand where the thought of spending a day or two in say Hamilton or Rotorua or whereever is not quite as exciting as a day or two in Maastricht, a city I have only been visiting in the last 19 months. The New Zealand cities and towns I have been visiting for ever and will go back to. That is not saying those cities are uninteresting because that is not true. It is just that if you cannot make it at the time it is offered, due to other committments like delivering a pattern, you do know that you can visit another time and very soon should you wish.

Here in the Netherlands I have only another maybe 16 months or so to be fill my soul with as many European experiences as possible.

The pattern for my 8ply (worsted, double knitting) berets will be there very soon. I am sorry for not meeting the target I had set for myself.

Berets not including the felted one – because I have not felted it as yet.

Also Berets not including my funky fuzzy, multicoloured one – I haven’t knitted it as yet. Sorry Jeanette – at least it is still summer time where you are in Australia. And this morning we got up to another surprisingly white day – a reasonable sprinkling of snow. It is disappearing fast as the day warms up.

Cool Berets, Gorgeous Colours

There will be a pattern for these Berets using Vero, or another 12ply yarn.

And for you knitters out there – the front beret has been blocked, the back two had not been blocked when the photograph was taken. They are drying now.

I am now on beret six – there is some minor madness when one keeps on playing with a piece. These have all been created using Vero yarn but in the different colours that I have here in the Netherlands.

I do miss my yarns that are still in New Zealand.

How can I miss yarn? I cannot even remember what was in my stash there – just that there were lots of yarns, in lots and lots of colours, from many different places in the world. But I do miss the variety in colour, yarn type, do not have sufficient variety here to create pieces as I was doing in New Zealand. I have purchased a lot of different yarns here in the Netherlands and some in Switzerland and in Denmark – I just do not have the quantity, colour range and yarn types here as I did have at home. It takes time to build up a new stash, doesn’t it?

What to do?

I don’t know.

So right now I am knitting berets.

Originally this was in response to a commission from a friend in Australia. But now I need to consider – do I continue with these? Do I complete the commission? Well yes that I must do, which means that beret 7 must be a funky, fuzzy, multicoloured piece. Then I must write up the pattern and then get back to that carbon footprint bag. Maybe I just put the two graphs out, one for the intarsia footprints and the other for carbon footprint using shadow knitting and leave you to decide – should it be on a bag, blanket, pram cover, cushion or on a sweater – should you happen to want a sweater with a foot print or two on it.

I guess that is what should be done.

The beret pattern – will include one in stocking stitch, and one felted from a stocking stitch knit. I won’t try to define the multicolour, multi fibre, intarsia one – that will be free form with little guidance.

I am reorganising the galleries and I hope that if you like free form intarsia, and some more formal intarsia that you will enjoy viewing this gallery.

Options : With many yarns and colours of course

One beret created with faux fur fibres in gorgeous shades (to be decided on), with a plain wool knitted band. “A Crazy Soft Character top – and simple band”

The other should be a felted one in the wonderful turquoise, deep blue, purple delicious colour range with fancy bits included to make a dramatic statement. I don’t have a pattern for either – but will work from the two I have already created.

Remember many yarns and many colours

My brain (or is it my eyes), is seeing balls everywhere – so I have to concentrate on something sensible like my carbon footprint bag pattern and your two berets and I am glad that you like them both – and that you will go for colour explosions in both with the felted one in a variety of yarns in those rich purples, turquoises and blues.