Running Brook

There is no need for size 10 (6mm) needles in addition to 10 1/2 (6.5mm). Check your gauge first, and if it works on one of the needle sizes, use those needles for the whole project.
You might want to use 24" long circular needles for the main piece and a set of short straight needles (the same size) for the straps.
Pattern has a typo; it should say "or" instead of "and" under "Materials" for the needle suggestion...

This piece is very flattering for all body types. You can wear it with leggings and as a layering piece over a long or short sleeve tank.

Happy Knitting!

Blue Bolero

I finally completed my new design, Blue Bolero. Now I am thinking to make another one in a different color, longer, and with long sleeves.

I love the effect of this stitch, and I absolutely love this yarn. It's Lana Grossa Bolero (70% cotton, 30% polyamide)

Haiku Knits - Snowflake

Here is a question on yarn quantities for the Snowflake wrap in Haiku Knits:

"...Thanks for setting up the blog for this book! I'm really enjoying the book, but do have a question about one of the patterns. In the "Snowflake" pattern, it says that the pattern comes in only one size, but there are yarn quantities listed as if there were three sizes, e.g.:"5 (5, 6) skeins of Cascade #8505" or "5 (5,6) balls of Graphite #570". I also work in an LYS where I expect there to be heavy interest in the book during one of our classes tomorrow, so I would love to know which is the correct quantity of these yarns to give our students accurate advice!..."

Thank you so much for catching this. It should have been clarified, and changed to: "5 balls of Cascade and 5 balls of Graphite..." with the note that "...if you would like to make the fronts longer, you might need an extra ball of each yarn..."
Here is the explanation:

Since this piece is just a long rectangle with sleeves, you can easily adjust or add to the length of the fronts and/or back, so if someone wants to make an adjustment, they might require an extra ball of each yarn.

Haiku Knits- Seaweed

This was a question regarding the 'upper right front' of the Seaweed top from Haiku Knits.

"Hello Tanya,

I received the book early December and it's one of my favorites as it has many beautiful patterns!

I am knitting Seaweed at the moment and am busy with the 'upper right front' but the shape doesn't seem to match what it should be, please see attached photo. In my opinion I did follow the instructions..."

Here is the answer:
"The shape should look like this at first, and then, you'll be increasing more on the neck side, and then decreasing there for V-neck. My schematic might not be 100% exact at that narrow spot (it's partially under the arm), but not to worry, you are creating a curve there (it should have been more of a curve instead of the straight line..., sorry...the technical editor...made me simplify it), so keep increasing (following the pattern), you'll see, it'll be fine, especially after you sew it in place. See a better schematic attached above"

Clear Water Lacy Scarf from Haiku Knits

Here is the solution to the problem with this pattern.

Somewhere, somehow there were an extra 2 sts in the pattern. We don't know when, why and how, but ...it happened.

The pattern should read:

CO 34 sts. Begin Lace Patt.

Row 1: K2, pm, *yo, sl 1, k1, psso k5, repeat from * to last 4 sts, yo, k2tog, pm, k2

Row 2 (and all even rows): all correct

Row 3, 5, 7, 9, 11: should have "K2,..." instead of K4 in the beginning.

Now, this should works.

Clear Water Lacy Scarf

After two technical editors and several people, including myself, have knitted this simple lacy scarf, we have one typo. Oh well, such as life...

In the very beginning of the project it should say:

"CO 36 sts. Begin lace patt." (instead of 34 sts.) Page 37.

Make sure that you place your markers after 2 sts in the beginning, and before 2 sts at the end. Those sts are your border sts, and they don't count into your lace pattern.

Good luck! It should be O.K. now, and if not...let me know.

Cocoon sweater

Let's talk about a couple of projects from the book.
Cocoon Sweater.
One of the knitters was afraid of cables, but she loved the look of my Cocoon sweater. I assured her that cables are nothing to fear. My Cocoon sweater became her very first cable sweater.


Cables are easy. It's just changing the order you knit your stitches. For example: instead of knitting stitch #1, #2, #3 and #4 in exact order, you place stitches #1 and #2 on the cable needle, and first knit stitches #3 and #4 (while the other two are waiting for their turn in front or back of your work depending on your pattern), and then you knit #1 and #2 from that cable needle. (Note: when working with bulky yarns you can use double pointed needle instead of your cable holder.) Voila!
The Cocoon sweater has the twisted cable, which requires one more step in making the cable, but a very doable step. You are just turning your cable needle (with those stitches that are waiting for their turn) 180 degrees before you knit them.

And that is it!

Haiku Knits book blog

Haiku Knits cover

The Haiku Knits book has been released on October 20, and I've decided to create this blog to help with the projects in the book.
Please join in with your comments, questions and suggestions, and I will try to help and guide you as much as I can...
I will be checking in weekly.

Snowflake

Lantern Floating

Seaweed

Long Night

Flickering Flame

Hazy Moon

Bird of Passage

Half-Moon Rising

Photographs copyright 2009 by Michael Turek