Tin Can Knits – Yards of Happiness

Remember that test knit I finished way back in May but couldn’t post about? Well, the pattern has been released and I can finally share the Boardwalk sweater with you.
Boardwalk test knit
I know at first you’re thinking, okay it’s a nice sweater but what’s special about it? Well…I’ve been wanting to knit a sweater with buttons down the back and this pattern is for a cardigan you can choose to knit to wear the buttons in the front or in the back. They just alter the shaping a bit depending on how you wan to wear it. And honestly, you could wear it both ways in my opinion regardless of how you knit it.
Boardwalk test knit
I knit this entirely with Miss Babs Yowza (it really is a favorite yarn of mine for it’s durability, softness, the colors AND it has 560 yards per skein). The body is knit with the colorway Spread Your Wings that I bought at the 2017 Maryland Sheep and Wool Festival and had been holding on to for something special and the ribbing was all done in the colorway Rainforest. It’s really pretty teal blue that I originally used in my Technicolor Dream Coat. I love when I can finally use a yarn I’ve been holding on to and the color and the pattern turn out beautifully.
Boardwalk test knit
I was sad that I was knitting this sweater and wouldn’t be able to wear it until the fall because I love the fit and style. It has a split hem, it has a bit of ease built into it and I just love the buttons down the back. I decided to pick up the flecks of purple in the Spread Your Wings colorway and do varying shades of purple going from light to dark down the back.
Boardwalk test knit
I enjoying doing a few test knits a year. It’s fun to see the process for designers and I always enjoy helping making a pattern clearer. Plus I get a sneak peek at what’s coming down the pipeline! I’m actually working on another test knit right now for a different designer that will be released in August so you’ll see more secret projects soon! Does anyone else enjoy test knitting?

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July 9, 2018July 9, 2018 by IamDWJ Categories: blue, Color, FO: Finished Object, green, Knitting, Miss Babs, multi, Sweaters, YarnTags: #yardsofhappiness, backwards sweater, knit cardigan, knitting, test knit, Tin Can Knits, Yarn 10 Comments

The request was simple: an orange pair of socks to keep my godson’s feet warm. I’m not a big sock knitter but I knew I could do it for him and his birthday was coming. Besides the kid is just the cutest (evidence of his cuteness seen here) and I can’t deny him a request. So I started by knitting a test pair of socks just to make sure I got sock construction down. And then I moved on to a real pair.

I knit AJ a pair of the Tin Can Knits Rye socks. A free pattern and knit up in a dk weight yarn. Way less intimidating than getting sock yarn and using tiny needles. I’m getting less and less intimidated by tiny needles – I just keep reminding myself that I will not be intimidated by things I don’t know in knitting. I just have to learn!
Rye socks
The only issue I had was that at the age of 15, my adorable godson is 6 feet tall and with size 12 shoes…and counting. He doesn’t seem to want to stop growing! So I knit the large and they were big socks but I figured even if they were a little big, he’d grow into them. Besides, he just wants them for when he’s in the house playing video games so if they end up fitting a bit big he doesn’t care – he just wants to be warm! And since he’s a teenager I knit them up in Neighborhood Fiber Co’s studio worsted (it’s more like a dk/light worsted) in the super bright orange Otterbein colorway so that he could throw them in the washing machine but only had to air dry them. To ask a teenager to handwash a sock is kind of laughable to me.
Rye socks
I also get why people are sock knitters, it’s such an easy and portable project to always work on! Sometimes carrying a top down sweater around can be just a little too cumbersome, so I think I’ll be working on a few socks here and there for my cousin in Chicago to keep her feet warm for winter. And if you’re looking to dip your toe into sock knitting, Knit Picks released the individual patterns for their Toasty Toes collection for free on their website! I downloaded a couple to try out. A coworker gave up trying to knit and gave me a few bundles of sock yarn so I’ve got something to look forward to knitting next! What’s your favorite sock pattern to knit? Share!