Guest Post: Knit 1-2-3 Magazine

I invited my sister to do a guest post about a new knitting magazine that she spotted, as I have not seen it yet. There is also a crochet one. Since my sister both knits and crochets, she bought and wrote about both the magazines.
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I don’t normally look at the yarn when I am in Wal Mart because, quite frankly, 99% of what they sell is not to my liking and usually what few yarns they have that I might like well enough to use there’s always something that will prevent me from buying it. (Tangled up skeins, or FILTHY ones that look like they’ve been run over by a car a few times, things like that.) So I tend to just not even look. But today I decided to stroll down that aisle just for the heck of it.

Once I got to the end of the aisle, I happened to spot a couple new magazines – one for knitting and one for crochet. I simply assumed new issues of magazines I’m familiar with. But nope. These are actually BRAND new magazines, the first issues!

So, I had to get them. Don’t give me that look.

Both magazines have the same format. There’s a review section that gives short reviews of new knit/crochet books, yarns, notions etc., there are a couple articles and of course, patterns. I love that the ads are minimal in these. There are 23 patterns and 3 articles in Knitting 1-2-3, and Crochet 1-2-3 contains 24 patterns and 3 articles. Knitting 1-2-3 contains an article on adding color to your knitting in three different ways: stripes, 2-color slip stitch and fair isle. There is a series of articles called Gram & Me, and it’s about the author’s time with a granddaughter teaching her to knit. In Crochet 1-2-3, there is an article on crocheting in the round and then the same author of Gram & Me has a series with her granddaughter and crocheting titled Gram’s Hands. The third article in both magazines is an article about knitting (or crocheting) for charity, specifically for an organization called Warm Up America.

The web sites for the magazines are knit-1-2-3.com and crochet1-2-3.com (appropriately enough eh?) although the sites are small as can be expected from a brand new publication, they will grow quickly I am sure. The knitting one is not totally live just yet actually, but I would imagine it should be fully functional within the next few days. The release date on both magazines September 18th, though as is evidenced by my purchase, you might be able to find them now. I was the first one to buy these from my Wal Mart. I know because I had to open up the plastic wrapper on both stacks of magazines to get to them!

As you can see in the pictures, they are $4 each. If you subscribe, a one year subscription costs $13. This will be for six issues, as new issues of these magazines will be released every other month. I’m giving serious thought to subscribing to both!

Both of these magazines are available exclusively at Wal Mart. Or you can visit their web sites to subscribe. Again, Knit1-2-3.com is not currently fully functional but Crochet1-2-3.com is. I have no idea why one’s up and running and the other is just a ‘preview’ type page. But I am sure that within a couple days both sites will be fully functional and you’ll be able to subscribe to either magazine through their respective web sites.

Oh. And if you’re wondering… yes. Yes I do want to make several of the patterns from each of these magazines now.

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Knit a Triangle Shawl (Bottom Up)

One of my first knitting projects was a triangle shawl.  I've always loved shawls, and couldn't believe how easy it was to knit one.

There are many ways to knit a triangle shawl.  This time, we are going to cover going from the bottom up using yarn overs to make the increases.  I also show doing a KFB (knit front and back) increase if you want a less obvious increase.

This is just the bare bones of triangle shawls.  I am sure you have seen many beautiful shawls that are lacy, some that are cabled, and many others.

The shawls pictured here were knit years ago.  I am not certain what yarn was used.  I think the one on the right is Caron Simply Soft, but it could very well be something else.

Below are a few examples of how to do a simple triangle shawl.  Nothing fancy here.  A shawl is a great beginner project if you want something larger than a scarf, but still want to keep it simple.  You don't have to worry about gauge either.

These shawls are also a great project for seasoned knitters, because you can sit and watch TV and just mindlessly knit.

You can use any yarn and needles you like - the needles should be circulars though, to accomodate all of the stitches as the shawl grows.  I'd say you want a 32 inch minimum.  Of course if you are using a thin, lace weight yarn you could probably get away with a 24 inch circular; if you are using a thicker, bulkier yarn you may need to use a longer needle.  

A good place to start is go to the craft store or your LYS, find a yarn you like, and just swatch using the needle size recommended on the ball band.  If you find that you want a looser fabric, try a larger needle; if you want a denser fabric, go down a needle size.  There is no wrong way to do this, so don't be worried that you may be using the wrong needle for your yarn.  If you are pleased with your swatch, then you are using the right yarn and needles.

My shawls pictured above are just garter stitch, as are the samples in the video.  You can do garter stitch if you like, or stockinette - maybe even alternate a few rows of garter with a few rows of stockinette.

Below are only a few ways you can do a bottom up triangle shawl.  If you don't like any of these looks, play around and see what you can come up with.  I used a US size 10.5 Knitter's Pride Cubics needle in my samples, and the first three were done in Mulberry Merino yarn, and the last in Paton's Classic Wool.

The first sample is a mini shawl from cast on to bind off.  Yours of course will be much bigger.
Cast on 3 stitches
Knit across, turn
K1, YO, knit to end

Repeat the K1, YO, knit to end until the shawl is as big as you want it to be.  Bind off, weave in loose ends and block if you like.

The second sample is done by making the yarn over at the beginning of each row.  This makes a very decorative edge along your shawl.
Cast on 3
Knit across, turn
YO, knit to end
Repeat from YO, knit to end until shawl is desired size

Our third sample also uses a yarn over increase, and will create a wider border than either of the two above.  This also gives a less pointy tip to the shawl.
Cast on 5
Knit across, turn
Knit 3, YO, knit to end
Repeat from Knit 3, YO, knit to end until shawl is desired size

Maybe you don't like the look of yarn overs.  You can do any increase you like and are comfortable with.  In my sample below, I used the KFB increase - knit front and back of the stitch.

Cast on 3
Knit across, turn
K1, KFB, knit to end
Repeat from K1, KFB, knit to end until shawl is desired size

Here is a video showing how I did all of the samples.  I hope this helps those of you thinking about making a triangle shawl, but aren't quite sure where to start.