New Design: Var

Posted on May 26, 2018 by Linda Marveng

Hillesvåg Ullvarefabrikk commissioned 4 new designs and this was the first one I completed. I had help from British knitter Jean Molloy, who also knitted a sample for my Norwegian knitting book several years ago, to knit the center parts, while I knitted the side panels. We are having very warm summer weather at the moment, so it was hot and also difficult to avoid the strong sunshine, photographing this vest. Pine cables play on the center of this oversized vest, named Var, Norse for beloved. The side panels – giving the vest a dropped shoulder appearance – are knitted sideways in broken rib and is divided from the cable pattern with a tuck as well as a reverse stocking stitch band. Var ends in an I-cord bind off around the shallow neck. The vest is knitted in the luscious pelt wool yarn Tinde from Hillesvåg Ullvarefabrikk.I am wearing the smallest size: XS/S but I have graded it into 2 more sizes: M/L and XL/2XL, with a bust measurement (including side panels) of 156 to 188 cm/61.5 to 74″. The vest is knitted in size 3 mm/US 2.5 for the rib and the tuck, while the main parts are knitted using 3.5 mm/US 4 and a 21 stitches and 30 rows in stocking stitch to 10 cm/4″ square.

The bottom two photos are taken in the shadow of our front terrace to show off the colour and texture of the melange Tinde pelsull/pelt wool yarn. The vest is knitted in two parts, then you pick up stitches along the side. Size M/L has a wider side panel but the same center panel as size XS/S. Size XL/2XL has a wider center panel with one extra cable repeat. The English pattern will be test knitted in my Ravelry group in September, before its release. Var will be photographed on Tuesday at Villa Malla together with the other new designs, and I am working on finishing off the last two.

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Wilma Lind Jackets Knitted By Kari and Sissel

Posted on May 23, 2018 by Linda Marveng

Kari Kvalberg (left) posted this photo in one of the Norwegian knitting groups on Facebook last week and I was so thrilled to see her and Sissel Hellum, both wearing their Wilma Lind Jackets. They are Norwegian, but this amazing photo is taken at the Caucasus mountain range in Georgia. Kari has posted a series of photos from their recent trip to Georgia and Armenia, which I have been following with interest on both Facebook and Instagram. I was fortunate to met these two lovely women last autumn at Strikkefestivalen/the knitting festival in Fredrikstad where they were attending my Cable Masterclass. They have both used the luscious Sølje Pelsullgarn from Hillesvåg Ullvarefabrikk in size Medium, but choose two different colours. I love how well it suits them both! Thank you so much!

The Norwegian pattern of the Wilma Lind Jacket is available from the author of the crime books about Police Inspector Wilma Lind, Hanne Kristin Rohde, while the English pattern is also available from my Ravelry store and on Loveknitting.

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New Design: Sirona

Posted on May 19, 2018 by Linda Marveng

Sirona is Celtic for Star Goddess, the name for this fitted pullover with an intricate central cable surrounded with smaller cables and seed stitch. The round neckline needed a crown and was given an I-cord bind off decoration. Sirona is knitted in pieces in the divine The Fibre Co. Cumbria Worsted. Yes, this is the third cabled pullover I have designed in this yarn, and I do have even more of this yarn. I believe it is called an addiction. The yarn is made of 60% merino wool, 30% brown masham wool, 10% mohair and has 218 meters/238 yards on each 100 gram skein. It feels luxurious to knit with and to wear. Using a 4 mm/US 6 needle, I found my gauge at 20 stitches and 28 rows in stocking stitch measures 10 cm/4″ square.The central cable is one I found on Pinterest and liked the look of and enjoyed knitting using a 4 mm/US 6 needle. The rib is worked using a 3.5 mm/US 2.5 needle to make it a bit firmer. I decided to place only the smaller cables and the stag horn cable at the center of the sleeve, instead of the wide center cable.

My husband has photographed me at the beach in Ørje, close to where we live on a sunny day at the end of April. I am wearing size S, but have graded the pullover from size XS to 2XL with a bust circumference from 86 to 126 cm/33.75 to 49.5″.

The English pattern will be test knitted in my Ravelry group beginning in August, before its release, while the Norwegian pattern will be printed in the special magazine Familien Strikk in August. I believe this shade will look stunning on model Emma Ross who is flying in the day before the photoshoot on Monday 27. May. Before that I have a lot of knitting to do.

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Wilma Lind Next Chapter

Posted on May 16, 2018 by Linda Marveng

Author, “Åsted Norge/Crime Scene Norway” television presenter and former Police Inspector Hanne Kristin Rohde has just published her new Wilma Lind crime in Norwegian, the fourth in the series. Hanne Kristin has sold more than 250 000 books in Norway but her thrillers have not been translated to English, yet. The title is “Offerdyr” which means “sacrificial animals” in English. How is this related to knitting and me, you ask? Except for the fact that I love reading her books, Hanne Kristin contacted me to design a long jacket for Wilma Lind, her protagonist, a couple of years back. That was the beginning of our collaboration. And yes, she does knit but have not done so for awhile since her writing take up most of her time. A strong red colour was chosen since Wilma is brave and daring. The wonderful Sølje Pelsull/pelt wool yarn from Hillesvåg Ullvarefabrikk was our choice.

The book has been on the best seller list since it was published several weeks back and it was selected to be part of the Bokklubben/Book Club here in Norway, see the top photo.

The Norwegian & English pattern is available to buy from hannekristinrohde.no, while the English pattern is also available at Ravelry and Loveknitting. I am so thrilled that Hanne Kristin is wearing the Wilma Lind jacket and shawl, on the back flap and that my name is on the Author Thanks list at the back of the book. Thank you, Hanne Kristin! Now, I look forward to reading it, and I will be doing so while knitting (read: using clothes peg to hold the book open for me).

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New Design: Vaga

Posted on May 12, 2018 by Linda Marveng

I am delighted to show you another new design. Vaga, named after the Celtic Goddess of the River Wye is this pullover with cables that runs over the body and sleeves. A saddle shoulder allows the swing cable to continue to the neckband with its twisted rib ending. The pullover is slightly shaped for the the waist and knitted in the gorgeous The Fibre Co. Cumbria Worsted. I choose this yarn – which I used for the first time in my Eira Pullover for knit.wear Fall/Winter 2017 – in the colour Yew Tree as part of my payment for the designs I made for The Fibre Company last autumn: Beckside and Dash Falls. Yes, it is an addictive yarn and I have another new design as well in this. So while I was knitting Ogma, sample knitter Kristin Nygård, aka Quiltefeen on Ravelry & Instagram, brilliantly knitted this to my utter satisfaction.

Michael has photographed me at the beach in Ørje on a beautiful but cold spring day, just after the ice had melted from the lake, Rødenessjøen. I am wearing size S, and I have graded the sweater from size XS to 2XL, with a bust & hip measurement of 84 to 126 cm/33 to 49.5″ and a waist measurement of 78 to 120 cm/30.75 to 47.25″. Vaga is knitted using 4 mm/US 6 needle with a gauge of 20 stitches and 28 rows measuring 10 cm/4″ square in pieces and seamed together. The Fibre Co. Cumbria Worsted is made of 60% Merino wool, 30% masham wool and 10% mohair with 218 meters/238 yards per 100 gram skein.The herringbone cable on the center of the body and the swing cables are both found in Norah Gaughan’s inspiring Knitted Cable Sourcebook. The English pattern will be released after test knitting beginning in July in my Ravelry group, while the Norwegian pattern will be printed in the magazine Familien. But before that, the pullover will be photographed worn by model Emma Ross at our photoshoot on Tuesday 29th of May at Villa Malla.

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Iglu Knitted by Beth

Posted on May 9, 2018 by Linda Marveng

Now, look at this fantastic fade project. This is Beth, aka yarnbeth, living in South Carolina in the US and her test knit version of my design Iglu. She made a swatch with her fade options from her stash and selected the darker tones and less variation in colour, all in Madeline Tosh yarns, as Beth wrote on her project page: “Toner Cartridge, Pigeon Wing, and Cove are “in”, and I bought some Pelican in Pashmina”. Beth is an experienced knitter (read: knitted from the age of 12) and the perfect test knitter, with her meticuluous attention to detail. On her project page there is a lot of information including the modifications she made to the one sized poncho: The major ones are that Beth worked 1 pattern repeat less on the body to shorten it, and added rounds of ribbing on the sleeve part to fit her perfectly. Beth also wrote down her fade progression, from top down:
(1) Pelican on Madelinetosh Pashmina
(2) Pigeon Wing on Madelinetosh DK Twist
(3) Cove on Madelinetosh MCN Sport
(4) Toner Cartridge on Madelinetosh Work SockBeth has also styled and photographed the poncho so beautifully. The garden backdrop highlights the colours in her poncho and hair. She also writes the following on her project page: “Love the cable on this design – really pretty”. I am very happy to hear it, and that she is test knitting more of my designs! Thank you so much, Beth!

Iglu is a lightweight poncho to live in, hence the Inuit name Iglu, with a Celtic cable on center front and back. The poncho has sleeve parts in rib and a collar in garter stitch ending in a I-cord. It is beautifully knitted with shaped shoulders in the bouncy and lustrous Sølje Pelsull. The pattern is available in English and in Norwegian at Ravelry and on Loveknitting. A yarn kit is available with a Norwegian pattern from Hillesvåg Ullvarefabrikk.

New Design: Ogma

Posted on May 5, 2018 by Linda Marveng

I have been following the popular Fade movement in knitting and wanted to have a go myself. Now, which yarn should I use I pondered before I had the epiphany to ask Shireen Nadir of The Blue Brick since she had already asked if I wanted to test out her yarn. Shireen and I both designed a piece for the SweetGeorgia Yarns Fall Collection volume 1 and she made my Aine Cowl – Shireen photographed her stunning version in Rome, see my blogpost here. Online, I picked four of her hand painted colours which I hoped would work in a fade sequence: Cobblestone, Bauline, Winter Grass/Muddy Husky and Succulent. I choose the Escarpment DK base made in 100% superwash merino with 267 meters/260 yards per 105 gram skein. The colours were different from what I had in mind, so I decided to use Succulent – a pale green with a grey tinge (read: and not the opposite way around) – on the sleeves.

The sleeves were given a few stitches at the center in garter stitch so that I would not loose interest in my knitting. The cable I wanted to use on the body is from Elsebeth Lavold’s book on Viking Knits. I mirrored it so I had two at the center on a reverse stocking stitch background and with garter stitches in the sides to show off these beautiful colours better! The boots in the top photo are new! And yes, they are Evalina boots by Monica Stålvang discovered at her warehouse sale.

I wanted to make a cowl or two to join the colours at the top, so in the end I made one cabled cowl which I preferred to wear folded and one large garter stitch cowl that can be worn twice around the neck. I used a 4 mm/US 6 needle throughout and a gauge of 20 stitches and 28 rows per 10 cm/4″ square. I am wearing size S but have graded the pattern from size XS to 2XL.

With one small and one large cowl they can be worn one over the other, essential during the spring and fall in Norway. My husband took these photos on Sunday, when the weather was magnificent. First we took photos at the Boat Café and then we walked over toward the beach in Ørje. I had to hurry and finish off the large cowl before we took the photos.

The last photo I will show you is of the large cowl worn twice around my neck. The English pattern will be test knitted before it is released on Ravelry together with the Norwegian version. Do take a look at the stunning yarns from Shireen at The Blue Brick, whether you want a fade, a wild fade or a single colour.

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Donia Pattern Released

Posted on May 2, 2018 by Linda Marveng

Seven test knitters have completed their versions of my favourite poncho, Donia. It has been wonderful to see the garment knitted in different colours, with and without sleeves, with a pocket, with a different colour on the cable parts and in avantgarde stripes. You can see the different versions on the pattern page on Ravelry. The pattern is also available on Loveknitting, in English as well as Norwegian. Donia Yarnkit with the Norwegian pattern is available from Hillesvåg Ullvarefabrikk. I selected the Medium Blue shade of Tinde Pelsull to suit model Emma Ross’ magnificent hair colour, and love how she looks in it. Sissel Fylling did her hair & makeup. Eivind Røhne brilliantly captured the scene at Bøler Kirke/Church in Oslo last October.

Round knot cables adorn the bottom and the top of this poncho. A high collar gives it a noble look, hence the name Donia; Celtic for rules all. The upper part is picked up and knitted from the lower cable panel and worked in stockinette stitch with shaping for the shoulders. The short sleeves in rib hold the poncho together. You can wear it with a belt or a shawl pin to gather it at the front or loose, just as you prefer.

Size: One Size

Finished measurements:
Bust: 194 cm/76.5”
Length: 74.5 cm/29.25”
Sleeve length: 32 cm/12.5”

Yarn: Hillesvåg Ullvarefabrikk, Tinde Pelsull (100% pelt wool, 260 m/284 yds, 100 g). The sample is knitted in Medium Blue 2135; 9.5 skeins;
2392 m/2615 yds.
https://www.ull.no/produktkategori/garn/ullgarn/norsk-pel…

Alternative Yarns: Berroco, Ultra Alpaca Light (50% alpaca, 50% wool, 50 g, 133 m/144 yds). http://www.berroco.com/yarns/berroco-ultra-alpaca-light
Jamieson’s, Double Knitting (100% wool, 25 g, 75 m/82 yds).
http://www.jamiesonsofshetland.co.uk/spindrift-and-double…
Malabrigo, Arroyo, (100% superwash merino, 100 g, 306 m/335 yds).
http://www.malabrigoyarn.com/subyarn.php?id=29
Or another DK/8 ply yarn.

Needles: 3.5 mm/US 4 circular needle (80 cm/32” and 40 cm/16”).
3.5 mm/US 4 DPNs for sleeves.
Adjust needle size as needed to match gauge

Crochet hook: 3.5 mm/US E/4 (for provisional cast-on).

Notions: Stitch markers (removable), cable needle and yarn needle.

Gauge: 21 sts and 30 rows in st st, after blocking measures 10 cm/4” square.
48-sts Donia Cable measures 16.5 cm/6.5” across.

Notes: The body is knitted in four parts with cables on bottom part and stockinette stitch on the upper part. A long circular needle is used to accommodate the large number of stitches. The sleeves are knitted in the round in rib. The collar is knitted separately using a provisional cast-on so that the ends can be grafted together. If you prefer to have the collar loose, pick up and knit stitches around the neck and work an I-cord bind-off.

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Ena Knitted by Siret

Posted on April 28, 2018 by Linda Marveng

Siret took part in the test knit of Ena and chose to make it in another yarn from The Fibre Co. than the one I used in the sample; Cumbria Fingering as opposed to Acadia. She made size Medium and shortened it with 9 cm/3.5″. Here are some of the stunning photos Siret took of her daughter with an iPhone, close to her home in Estonia, on an island called Saaremaa. Siret told me that the beach is in the city of Kuressaare and has been given a funny name among locals “Titerand” which means “the beach for the babies”. Regardless of its name it is such a perfect backdrop for the taupe coloured cardigan. Siret has knitted it in the shade Eden Valley #11.

This is what Siret writes on her ravelry project page: “Ena is wonderful cabled cardigan! I love these little cables. I was afraid of sewing sleeves. But Linda has designed sleeves that fits perfectly and there’s no worries at all. Eden Valley color is green-blue. Hard to catch on photo”. You can read more on her project page, you will find her as kollane on Ravelry and Siretsini on Instagram.

Siret reveals on her profile page on Ravelry that: “My grandmother taught me to knit when I was four. I love to knit mostly cardigans and pullovers, socks and shawls. At summers I love to crochet. I have been in Raverly for a long time but I started posting my works here from June 2017.”

I love how young and cool the cardigan appears, thanks to her daughter! This was the first of my designs that Siret knit and I do hope it will not be her last. Thank you so much, Siret!

The test knit is finished and I have released the Ena pattern in English on Ravelry and Loveknitting. The Norwegian pattern will be printed in the magazine Familien at a later date. Here is my introduction to it: Ena is Celtic for fiery. As you need to be passionate about cables to make this jacket. The woven cables lean towards the left and the right hence the spine has been accentuated with a twisted stitch at the center back and along front opening. Ribbing in the sides make the jacket appear casually fitted. The collar in rib can be worn open or closed and folded over. Ena is knitted in the rustic Acadia with silk noil from The Fibre Company.

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Ena Pattern Released

Posted on April 25, 2018 by Linda Marveng

Orange Storm is the name of this divine shade in Acadia, a luxurious yarn mixture made of merino wool, alpaca and with silk noil from The Fibre Co. I was smitten and had to order it. Ena is the jacket I designed with the yarn, using some beautiful cables from Norah Gaughan’s brilliant Knitted Cable Sourcebook, and with bespoke buttons from Siri Berrefjord. Model Emma Ross with her flaming red hair made it look even more stunning through Eivind Røhne’s camera lens. With a little help from Sissel Fylling, who did her makeup & hair. As well as a gorgeous statement ring by Kaja Gjedebo Design. The pattern has now been test knitted in my Ravelry group, with some wonderful results. The English pattern is available on Ravelry and on Loveknitting, while the Norwegian pattern will be published in the magazine Familien at a later date.

Ena is Celtic for fiery. As you need to be passionate about cables to make this jacket. The woven cables lean towards the left and the right hence the spine has been accentuated with a twisted stitch at the center back and along front opening. Ribbing in the sides make the jacket appear casually fitted. The collar in rib can be worn open or closed and folded over. Ena is knitted in the rustic Acadia with silk noil from The Fibre Company.

Sizes: XS (S, M, L, XL, 2XL)

Finished measurements:
Bust: 84 (92, 100, 108, 116, 124) cm/33 (36.25, 39.25, 42.5, 45.75, 48.75)“
Length: 73 (74, 75, 76, 77, 78) cm/28.75 (29.25, 29.5, 30, 30.25, 30.75)”
Sleeve length: 49 (50, 51, 51, 51, 51) cm/19.25 (19.75, 20, 20, 20, 20)“

Yarn: The Fibre Company, Acadia (60% merino wool, 20% alpaca, 20% silk, 50 g, 133 m/145 yds).
Sample is knitted in Orange Storm:
13 (14, 15, 16, 17, 18) skeins; 1621 (1755, 1889, 2023, 2156, 2289) m/1772 (1919, 2065, 2212, 2357, 2503) yds.
http://www.thefibreco.com/product/acadia/

Needles:
4 mm/US 6 circular needle (80 cm/32”) or straight needles.
3.5 mm/US 4 circular needle (80 cm/32”) for buttonband.
Adjust needle size as needed to match gauge.

Notions: 12 buttons (18 mm/0.7”). Bespoke buttons on sample are made by Siri Berrefjord, siri@fredenshavn.no see http://epla.no/shops/sirisskattkammer/, cable needle, 8 Stitch markers, 4 stitch holders and yarn needle.

Gauge: 21 sts and 30 rows in st st using 4 mm/US 6 measures 10 cm/4” square.
30-sts Left/Right Weave using 4 mm/US 6 measures 8 cm/3.25” across.

Notes: The jacket is made in pieces and seamed. The collar is picked up and knitted before the buttonband. The last buttonhole is on collar before fold over.

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Linda Marveng

Knit wear designer and author

Author Archives: Linda Marveng

New Design: Var

Wilma Lind Jackets Knitted By Kari and Sissel

New Design: Sirona

Wilma Lind Next Chapter

New Design: Vaga

Iglu Knitted by Beth

New Design: Ogma

Donia Pattern Released

Ena Knitted by Siret

Ena Pattern Released