Knit Equals Joy Designs

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The 2022 Pumpkin and the Fifth Annual Pumpkin Along (PAL)

Posted on September 4, 2022September 4, 2022 by Carol

Hi everyone, it’s been a very long time since I’ve written a blogpost. Much behind-the-scenes design work has been going on, including 2022’s pumpkin design, the Jack-Be-Little. More about the other designs a little later.

Jack-Be-Little is a variety of tiny pumpkin readily available each Fall. This Jack-Be-Little knits up quickly and is made with slipped stitches. It’s a small pumpkin, 5 inches in diameter and about 2.5 inches tall without the stem. The pattern also includes Jill-Be-Little (another variety) and Ghost-Be-Little (slight poetic license taken here). The options vary only in the height of the central slipped stitch section of the pumpkins.

Create your own pumpkin patch by mixing and matching the various Be-Littles, changing up your main colors and contrasting colors, and using either a premade or knitted-on stem.

Hand and glove with the 2022 pumpkin design is the Fifth Annual Pumpkin Along. Edited to add: Starting NOW!!

The premise of the PAL is very easy: knit one of the Knit Equals Joy pumpkins (there are now 10!), post progress pictures of your pumpkin on Instagram with the tags #pumpkinalong2022, #knitequalsjoy, and @knitequalsjoy. I will be giving away Knit Equals Joy patterns (digital) periodically during the PAL chosen randomly from amongst progress pictures posted and tagged on Instagram. If you’d like to use the above photo on Instagram (or Facebook), it will count as a progress picture. Follow those tags to see everyone else’s pumpkin progress and anything related to Fall that we post (because we love Fall!!!).

When you finish a pumpkin, also use the tag #pumpkinalong2022FO (for finished object).

At the conclusion of the PAL (Halloween, although I reserve the right to extend it if the mood strikes), I’ll randomly choose from the finished pumpkins and will award prizes. We currently have an adorable pumpkin teapot stitch marker donated by Carla and a skein of Blu Fiber Company DK yarn in the colorway Wild Holly (I used it for a couple of my Jack-Be-Littles, and it is a GREAT colorway and a fabulous yarn to work with) donated by Wild Knits Yarn Shop. Thank you so very much, Carla and Wild Knits! I will also donate a $30 gift certificate for Amanda Hope Yarn. I used Amanda Hope Yarn Extra Fine Merino and Superkid Mohair/Silk in the Jack-Be-Little pattern, and it is divine!

If you’re not on Instagram, email your pumpkins to me at knitequalsjoy@gmail.com.

Come join us and get in on some Autumn-knitting joy!!!

Pumpkin-A-Long Patterns – hover over photo for pattern name, click to read about the pattern or to purchase.

Large Colorwork Pumpkin

Mini Colorwork Pumpkin

Pumpkin Pie Garland

Now, for the other designing going on behind the scenes:

I’m excited to be releasing this pattern within the next week or so for more fall fun:

It’s a quick and easy knit, and you can make the garland as long as you like. The pattern describes the easiest way to connect the pie pieces, but they can also be connected with twine or baker’s twine, using sewn-on or glued-on buttons, or by using i-cord.

On October 15th, we will be having a relaxed Pumpkin Pie Garland KAL/party/class at Wild Knits. I’ll be demonstrating some of those construction techniques and we’ll have pompom makers in various sizes. Lots of crafting fun! Grandma’s and Mom’s button tins will be there, too.

Also behind the scenes, I’m working with a group of designers on a pattern collection built around three stitches and a theme. Currently the plan is for two releases, one with smaller accessories and the other with larger items. I can’t tell you too much about the collection except that my designs are a shawl and a shawlette. They both feature the same stitch as the centerpiece of the design, but they differ in both complexity and size. I will be using yarn from LL Yarn Co. for both – the shawlette in their Worsted and the shawl in their MSC DK. I can’t wait to share the designs with you! Pictured is a swatch of the stitch I’m using.

Once these designs are written and tested (the shawlette has already been tech edited and tested), I hope to get back to the Warp Nine Sweater. I got pretty far on it, then changed my mind on how I wanted to treat the bodice and the sleeves. I absolutely love the yarn by Blu Fiber Company (a local company, BTW), the colors, and the colorwork design, so I look forward to getting back to it.

Come check out the Pumpkin Palooza at Wild Knits on September 17th. My pumpkins will be hanging out there and I’ll be there for at least part of the day.

Thanks for spending some time here checking out the blog. I appreciate your support for my design work. Check out the website and the links in the sidebar to find out the rest of what’s happening with Knit Equals Joy.

xoxo

Carol

Knit Equals Joy Designs, knitters, knitting, knitting pattern, pattern, sweater knitting, sweater pattern

Ethereal Sweater Pattern is Here!

Posted on March 28, 2020July 15, 2020 by Carol

Hi everyone!

The Ethereal Sweater pattern is live!

Ethereal Sweater is light as air, soft as breath, and a joy to knit and wear. The design features a rolled neckline, stranded stripes and a slipped stitch pattern in the two-color yoke, a split hem, and textured two-color cuffs. It is knit top-down and seamless in fingering weight yarn, and can be tried on as you go along.

The pattern is written for 9 sizes ranging from 28-62 inches (71-157 cm), with several inches of positive ease added so that the finished sweater measures 31.5-68.5 inches (80-174 cm).

Skills Needed: Working with two colors, stretchy/flexible cast on, backward loop cast on, working in the round, slipping stitches, m1 and kfb increases, ssk and k2tog decreases, knitting through the back loop.

Get the pattern here:

Ethereal Sweater PDF Pattern on Etsy

Ethereal Sweater PDF Pattern on Payhip

Yardage requirements, from the pattern:
Main Color (MC): 3 (3, 4, 4, 5, 6, 6, 6, 7) skeins Yama Fibre Arts Merino Linen Singles (Fingering; 90% South African Merino, 10% Linen, Superwash; 394 yds/100 g) in Gray Sage. If substituting yarn, 920 (1105, 1300, 1500, 1705, 1995, 2205, 2360, 2595) yds [840 (1010, 1190, 1370, 1560, 1825, 2015, 2160, 2375) m] fingering weight yarn.

Contrasting Color (CC): 1 (1, 1, 1, 2, 2, 2, 2, 2) skeins Yama Fibre Arts Merino Linen Singles (Fingering; 90% South African Merino, 10% Linen, Superwash; 394 yds/100 g) in Nomad. If substituting yarn, 245 (280, 350, 390, 420, 495, 560, 595, 610) yds [225 (260, 320, 360, 385, 450, 515, 545, 560) m] fingering weight yarn.

Like all of my patterns, Ethereal has been test knit and tech edited.

My second Ethereal in progress, knit in Dragonfly Fibers Pixie in Captain Nemo and Van Gogh’s Sunflowers

I love that this sweater lends itself to each knitter’s own creativity with yarn and color! Some knitters have used stash yarn in more than one color for the contrasting color. Some have modified the pattern by making short sleeves. Each time I see a new Ethereal, I think: “This is my favorite!” (shh…just don’t tell the others.)

Here are some lovely sweaters by some lovely knitters. At the bottom of the page are some swatches I’ve made of the pattern stitch so that you can see how it looks in different yarns.

by Dee, photo by Lindsay Newton Photography

We are having a knit-a-long, but this post is getting pretty wordy, so more about that in a future post. However, if you want to find out about it sooner, search for and follow #etherealkal on Instagram. Pictures of the beautiful yarny prizes to come, as well.

Thank you…stay safe and well.

xoxo

Car

cable knitting, colorwork knitting, KAL, knit equals joy, Knit Equals Joy Designs, Knit-a-Long, knitters, knitting patterns, Pumpkin-a-Long

The Second Annual Pumpkin-A-Long (PAL)

Posted on September 12, 2019November 1, 2020 by Carol

As you know, we love Fall around here, and we love pumpkins!! And to celebrate, we are having the Second Annual Pumpkin-A-Long.

There are two ways to participate: on Instagram and/or on Facebook.

On Instagram, hashtags make our job easier. You can tag your photos with our specific hashtags, and you can also follow our hashtags, so that you will see any posts that anyone makes with those specific tags. The tags we will be using are #knitequalsjoy2019PAL and #knitequalsjoy for any photos posted relating to the PAL. If you follow those tags, you will see any announcement-type posts I make about the PAL on Instagram, too. The tag for finished pumpkins is #knitequalsjoy2019PALFO (the FO is for finished object). That tag will be important, because those finished object posts are the ones that are eligible for the random prize drawings. I have some great prizes on deck and will be sharing about those in later posts. Please also tag me @knitequalsjoy so that I will see your post – just in case the hashtags don’t work correctly.

Of course, some folks may not use Instagram, so we also will be posting photos in the Knit Equals Joy Facebook group. You can find the group here: Knit Equals Joy Facebook Group. I have set up an album there for progress photos and one for finished objects.

If this works well, my hope is that we can use the same format for upcoming KALs and for knitting along with next year’s Olympics.

How to Pumpkin-A-Long

To play along, knit any Knit Equals Joy pumpkin pattern (see below).
To be eligible for prizes, complete 1 or more Knit Equals Joy pumpkin by October 31, 2019. Each completed and properly posted finished pumpkin counts as an entry for prizes. You may enter as many times as you like. No more than one prize per person.
Have fun! Share your beautiful pumpkin pictures on Instagram or in the Facebook group (see above)! We want to see what you are making and cheer you on. If you have any questions, ask in the PAL. We can share and learn new things from each other.

I think that’s it! See the eligible patterns below…

Plaid Pumpkin, with a plaid colorwork design, a great basketweave design, and a fun graphic design a bit reminiscent of a spider web. Also includes instructions for non-stranded stripes or plain knitting. Just published.

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Plaid Pumpkin PDF Pattern at LoveCrafts.

Autumn Spice Pumpkin is knit in super-bulky and is nearly 40″ in circumference! The jumbo cables are a joy to knit. This is a statement piece knit in the recommended yarn, but it looks great in any weight yarn. Published 2018.

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Autumn Spice Pumpkin PDF Pattern at LoveCrafts

Wee Pumpkin is knit flat, and it is reaaalllly tiny, about an inch tall and an inch-and-a-half in diameter. It would be fun to make a wee pumpkin garland! Published 2018.

Wee Pumpkin PDF at LoveCrafts.

Large Colorwork Pumpkin has four fun colorwork designs. Knit in worsted weight yarn and pretty much life-sized: about 12 inches in diameter and 12 inches tall. Published in 2017.

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Large Colorwork Pumpkins PDF Pattern at LoveCrafts.

Colorwork Pumpkin, with charts for Art Nouveau lilies and 2 versions of spiders. Published 2016.

Colorwork Pumpkin PDF Pattern at LoveCrafts.

Mini Colorwork Pumpkin, a tiny pumpkin pattern with 6 different colorwork charts. Published 2015.

Mini Colorwork Pumpkin PDF Pattern at LoveCrafts.

Prizes

The four wonderful items in the corner frames of the photo below are PAL prizes.

Clockwise, starting from top left, the prizes are
1. Amanda Hope Yarn Yankee Doodle Sock (Fingering Weight; 80% Merino Wool, 20% Nylon; 410 yards/100g) in Burnt Orange.
2. Amanda Hope Yarn Aussie Extra Fine Single (Fingering Weight; 100% 19.5 Micron Extra Fine Merino Wool; 437 yards/100g) in Nocturne II.
3. Awesome Pumpkin Scissors donated by Carla (thank you Carla!).
4. Fabulous Cookie Stamps featuring a sheep design and two knit stitch designs. Set shown is mine; winner’s set is sealed.

Winners will be chosen randomly from all completed and properly posted finished projects. We reserve the right to replace these prizes with items of equal or greater value.

I hope you will join us for our joyful Pumpkin-A-Long! Questions? Send me a message or ask on IG or Facebook.

xoxo

Carol

cable knitting, Knit Equals Joy Designs, knitting, knitting pattern, sweater knitting, sweater pattern

Bold Sweater Now Available

Posted on July 22, 2019 by Carol

Good Monday evening to you all! I am so thrilled to let you know that the Bold Sweater is now available.

Bold is a comfy cropped sweater with fun texture detail on the extra-long cuffs, knit top-down with the stockinette side out. The jumbo cables are reversible, which means that if you weave the ends in carefully, you will have a completely reversible garment. It knits up quickly on large needles in Aran weight yarn, making this sweater a joy to make and to wear.

The sweater is written with a couple of inches of positive ease. Actual measurements are 34.25, 38.25, 42.25, 48.25, and 52.25 inches (87, 97, 107, 123, and 133 cm) at bust.

The cable is a 24 round repeat and the sweater ends with a round 24 of the cable, so plan on extra yarn if you want to make a longer sweater.

This pattern is currently free – through the end of July 2019.

You can find Bold here: Bold Sweater at LoveCrafts.

The original name of this pattern was Bold…with undertones of chocolate…because that’s how I like my coffee (and the cables remind me of the swirls in my coffee). But it works for beer, too. Coffee or beer…you decide.

Thank you for your support and I wish you a most excellent week!

xoxo

Carol

cable knitting, Knit Equals Joy Designs, knitters, knitting, lovecrafts

Summer Musings

Posted on July 2, 2019July 1, 2019 by Carol

Hello dear friends,

Can you believe it is July already? I guess we never cease to be amazed at how quickly time seems to pass. I’m listening to a great novel on Audible, A Town Like Alice, by Nevil Shute. My hubby and I first saw it many years ago on PBS. The show was terrific; the book is even better. What an amazing story!

If you have seen my Instagram feed, you’ll know that I battled migraines in June. I’m hopeful that they’ve run their course for the time being and that it will be some time before they come back.

About a month and a half ago, I thought that it would be a good idea for me to extend the outlets at which my patterns may be purchased. As a first step, I added my patterns to the existing two or three I had available on the Lovecrafts site. This is a different market for me, and folks who shop there don’t really know me yet. The more favorites that my patterns receive, the more likely they will come to the attention of knitters who visit Lovecrafts. If any of you feel so inclined to “follow” me there and/or to like any of my patterns, I would be ever so grateful. Projects can also be linked to the patterns. My Lovecrafts designer link is here: Knit Equals Joy on Lovecrafts. Thank you, if this is something you’d like to do.

We are wrapping up the test knit of Bold. It will be released by mid-August – possibly sooner!

I’m working on some more goodies for you! Be on the lookout for a Bold KAL and the Second Annual Pumpkin-A-Long within the next few months. I hope you all have a fabulous July and I can’t wait until I can share some of these fun things with you!

xoxo

Carol

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Cabled Poncho Pattern Now Available

Posted on March 18, 2019September 13, 2020 by Carol

Hello dear knitters,

I am so pleased to introduce my newest design, Willow. I designed this poncho as a sort of “shoulder hug” to keep my shoulders and upper arms warm but leave my hands and arms free. I also wanted dramatic cables and a pretty edging.

I used baa ram ewe Dovestone Natural Chunky, a light and lofty single ply yarn, which showed the cables amazingly. The cables truly popped using the Dovestone.

This poncho is pretty easy to knit if you have done cabling before. If you haven’t done cables, this is a good one to learn them on.

Probably the most daunting part is constructing the poncho, but I made a little conceptual model that you can actually cut out and tape together to see where to make the two short seams. It’s sort of like paper dolls! I don’t know whether anyone will want to use the model, but I found myself referring to it when seaming my own poncho.

Sometimes seams can be scary, so I put together a tutorial (some written instructions and a 3-minute video just with music, no speaking) here: Cabled Poncho Seam. There’s also a link to the tutorial in the pattern.

Finally, the pattern is 20% off through this Friday, March 22, 11:59 pm (PST), no coupon code needed.

I hope you will check out this pattern!

xoxo

Carol

Photos by Lindsay Newton Photography.

cable knitting, Knit Equals Joy Designs, knitters, knitting, knitting pattern, knitting patterns

Passport Mitts

Posted on February 1, 2019February 1, 2019 by Carol

The Passport Mitts are a fun, quick knit, perfect for your February knitting!

Find the pattern here: Passport Mitts

Happy knitting!

xoxo
Carol

photo by
Element5 Digital

Light pink mitts and photo by Ravelry user cascott. White mitts and photo by Ravelry user maashrink. Used by permission.

giftalong2018, Knit Equals Joy Designs, knitting pattern, Ravelry

Whimsy Tree with Buttons from Mom’s and Grandma’s Button Tins

Posted on December 23, 2018December 23, 2018 by Carol

I know that some of you share with me an affection for the button tins that our mothers or grandmothers created over time, clipping serviceable buttons from garments that had reached the end of their usable life and saving those buttons for future use. Some of you may have been fortunate, as was I, to inherit these tins. I have memories of sorting through Mom’s button tins, and Grandma’s before her, as a child. These days, I use the buttons to decorate some of my hand-knits.

After releasing the Whimsy Tree pattern, I had the idea of making a second tree using natural, undyed yarn, and decorating it with white, silver, and gold buttons from Mom’s and Grandma’s button tins. I am so happy with the result.

I’m going to offer the 25% off introductory discount through the end of 2018, no coupon code necessary. You can find the pattern here: Whimsy Tree.

The Indie Design Gift-a-Long on Ravelry is nearing the last week of this year’s GAL. I was fortunate to have been interviewed by Stana D. Sortor (Fifinka on Ravelry). Her website is Stana’s Critters, Etc. Here’s one of her adorable designs, Chameleon Leon:

Chameleon Leon, design and photo by Stana D. Sortor

If you’d like to read the interview, here it is: Interview with Designer Knit Equals Joy.

Wishing you all a joyous Christmas and a very Happy New Year.

xoxo

Carol

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The Fable of the Whimsy Tree, a New Pattern & Discount, and a Gaggle of Crochet Patterns

Posted on December 14, 2018November 6, 2020 by Carol

Hello, dear knitters! I hope that you are having a lovely holiday season. Christmas will be here before we know it, and I wish you a Christmas Day filled with love, warmth, joy…and maybe even a little knitting time.

I’m so thrilled to announce the publication of the latest Knit Equals Joy pattern, Whimsy Tree. All the details are further down the page.

But first, my friend Jen has created an adorable Far Northern Woods, populated by elves, snowmen, and a variety of knit trees. Here’s what happened when a new species of tree was discovered in the Northern Woods:

The Fable of the Whimsy Tree

Tooty elf (the one in yellow behind Joyful elf), fancies himself a dendrologist (when he is not making toys) and was therefore thrilled to discover a new tree species in the far Northern woods 😍. Being the first to see it, he named it after himself…Pinus tooty tooty😁. The other elves who are not serious biologists, found the name quite whimsical 🤣😂 and just refer to it as the Whimsy tree. (copyright Jennifer Wiatrowski)

Pattern Details:

Use self-striping or speckled yarn, or go with a single color and decorate with buttons, baubles, mini-ornaments and lights. This tree is posable so that you can express your whimsical style.

Diameter: 2.25 in. 5.7 cm at base.
Height: 11 in. 27.9 cm before bending or curling.

Yarn: About 100 yds sock yarn.

Other Materials: 1 stitch marker for beginning of round, tapestry needle, ruler, 12-inch pipe cleaner in coordinating color, small amount of polyester fiberfill. Optional: wooden base, buttons, ornaments, battery-operated lights, and other decorations for your tree; as needed: glue gun or sewing needle and embroidery floss/scrap yarn to attach decorations to your tree.

About the Indie Design GAL

I’m still participating in the Indie Design GAL #giftalong2018. The pattern I’m working on is the Adult Modular Cardigan by Loraine Birchall (Woolly Madly Deeply Designs). I’m using my all-time favorite colorway EVER, Malabrigo’s Frank Ochre. It’s a fun knit and it’s working up into a beautifully squishy fabric.

Gaggle of Crochet Patterns:

One of the fun things we as designers got to do was to look through all of the patterns by the other craft. In my case, the other craft is crochet. I browsed through many crochet patterns by Participating Designers, and created a group of my favorites. If you crochet, here are some patterns you might enjoy: Carol’s Fave #giftalong2018 Crochet Patterns.

A huge thank you to Jen for allowing me to share her whimsical story here. It’s so perfect for her Northern Woods that she’s created, and perfect for the Whimsy Tree. I love it.

Here are a few more Whimsy Trees for you to enjoy. Thanks for spending a few minutes of your day here with me.

Indie Design Gift-a-Long, KAL, Knit Equals Joy Designs, Knit-a-Long, knitting patterns

GAL – More Sale Faves

Posted on November 28, 2018May 8, 2020 by Carol

Hi again, dear knitters. The sale portion of the Indie Design GAL on Ravelry ends Thursday night, November 29th, at 11:59 pm EST. I wanted to share one more set of patterns that I love, designed by other designers. These designs appeal to me because of their use of texture, color, and pattern, because of the techniques used, or because of an elegance of style. Remember to use the coupon code giftalong2018 to save 25% on these patterns. My sale patterns are also on sale with the giftalong2018 coupon code through Thursday night (11/29/18).

Enjoy these wonderful designs!

Shoreline Beanie by Ranee Mueller (Arabian Knits Designs):