Cascade Yarns Blog

There is something about knitting with wool. It plays well on the needles and has this squish factor. Boliviana is a merino wool from Bolivia. Each 100 g skein contains 191 yards and works up at a worsted gauge. There are 31 colors to choose from for your next project and the options are almost limitless.  I went with Fair Isle. It is a heavy enough gauge the project goes quickly.  There is enough yardage to do 2 cowls if you reverse the colors. Cowls are a great way to try Fair Isle since it is in the round and there is no shaping. Materials - 1 skein each in 2 colors of Boliviana (100% Merino Wool - 191 yds/100 g) - shown in MC [15 (Mallard Blue)] & CC [29 (Olive Oil)] - US 9 Circular needle (16-20") - Stitch marker - Yarn needle Measurments: Approx 21" circumference and 9" long Gauge: 4.5 sts = 1"  Abbreviations: K - Knit P - Purl Cast on 96 sts Join in round, careful not to twist Place stitch marker to mark beginning of...

  Longwood is one of those yarns I could not wait to play with.  191 yards of Extra-Fine Merino Superwash per 100 gram ball in a complex twist that is meant to show off stitch definition.  There are 28 rich colors to choose from in this scrumptious worsted weight yarn. The challenge was to find a stitch pattern that would work for 1 skein, look interesting, and do the yarn justice.  I tripped over a stitch pattern that reminded me of dragon scales and scaled the size back to work a bit better for a small project on a medium weight yarn. Materials: Longwood (100% Superwash Extra-Fine Merino Wool - 191 yds/100 g) - 1 ball - shown in #18 - Green Spruce US 9 16" Circular Needles Stitch Marker Yarn Needle Abbreviations K - Knit P - Purl K TBL - Knit Through Back Loop YO - Yarn Over K2tog TBL - Knit 2 Together Through Back Loop Cast on 96 stitches Join in the round, careful not to twist. Place marker. K2, P2 for 1" Switch to pattern ...

  Souk is a fun new yarn with a tweedy texture and 8 luscious colors per colorway.  A Silk/Wool blend with a generous 220 yards/100 gram skein that works up beautifully.  I prefer simple stitch patterns since the yarn does most of the work.  There are 14 different colorways to choose from.  I couldn't resist the Rainbow colorway - it probably has something to do with grey Seattle winters and springs.  This cowl works up very quickly in a simple stitch pattern.   Materials 1 skein Souk - 55% Silk/45% Wool - 220 yds/100 g US 10 circular needles Yarn Needle Stitch Marker Abbreviations K - Knit sl2 wyif - Slip 2 stitches with yarn in front   Cast on 160 sts Join in the round, careful not to twist.  Place marker at beginning. 1 - K1, *[sl2 wyif, K2] - repeat from * to last 3 stitches - end sl2 wyif, K1 2 - K Continued until reach desired width.  Bind off loosely.  W...

What's not to love about Baby Alpaca and Merino Wool?  It is soft, squishy, warm and feels so lovely when you work with it.  Adding Merino Wool to Baby Alpaca gives it memory and stability.  So, another new yarn - Highland Duo - 70% Baby Alpaca/30% Merino Wool - 197 yards of squishy softness per skein.  This combination is perfect for a cowl, but I wanted something a little open that offered breathability and insulation. Part way through this cowl (after discovering a glaring error), I had to rip out at least 6 rows.  Fortunately, the yarn, the cowl, and I survived the frogging and I was able to finish the cowl.  One skein makes a cowl approximately  9.5" long by 15.5" wide (about 31" circumference). So here is the pattern: 1 skein Highland Duo - shown in 2305 US 9 - 16-24" circular needles Abbreviations K - Knit YO - Yarn Over Sl1 - Slip 1 K2Tog - Knit 2 together PSSO - pass slipped stitch over Cast on 101 stitches. ...

I love new yarns.  They are so much fun to play with and explore.  Casablanca is a new yarn that we are adding that is a new direction for us.  There are 8 colors in each colorway and they repeat about 2 times in the 220 yards in each 100 g skein.  I'm also extremely proud of this yarn as it is the first time I have put together this many colors per colorway. So I have a new simple small project offering - the Barred Scallop Cowl - a one skein cowl knit out of our beautiful new wool/silk/mohair blend.  Casablanca will be start to available in stores sometime in June. Materials -         1 skein Casablanca(Wool/Silk/Mohair – 220 yds/100 g) – shown in 07 -         Size US 9 – 16” circular needle Gauge & Finished Measurements -         22” circumference and 17” long -         Approx 4 ½ sts = 1...

Ribbed Cowl - Designed by Shannon Dunbabin So, I found myself in a situation where I had to sit for an entire day and needed something to keep my hands busy, but I had to be involved in conversation the entire day.  Around this same point in time, I realized that we didn't have any cowls knit in Pure Alpaca which is perfect for a cowl and I had great intentions to do a few rows of ribbing with a simple lace pattern.  Well, I suddenly realized that I had several inches of ribbing and it was squishy, soft, and warm.  So, I made the best of it and just continued in 2 x 2 rib.  I picked 2 denimy heathers, but it would look great in a variety of other color combinations. The pattern is quite simple - cast on 88 stitches using size 9 needles.  Join in the round.  Do K2, P2 until reach desired length.  Bind off.  Weave in ends.  Enjoy.