We’ve recently gotten requests from our readers to include more men’s patterns in our Valley Yarns line. It reminded me of all the unisex designs we’ve done in the past, but only shown on a female model. Time to fix that! Luckily, we have a number of awesome male coworkers who aren’t too camera shy and who fit into the model garments. We hope they’ll give you some great ideas for using Valley Yarns for guys.

Ken is shown here in the B-1 Basic Pullover (left) knit in navy Valley Yarns Amherst in size 40” and in the 386 Mystic Pullover (right) knit in Valley Yarns Cold Spring color 07 Fireflies in size 36”. The shawl collar on the Mystic Pullover looks great on guys and the ribbing at the sides of the body help the garment stretch at the chest and taper down at the waist. The Basic Pullover is worn here with a few inches of ease, making a comfy, roomy sweater with the fit of a favorite sweatshirt.

Jamie (left) is wearing the 421 Pearl Street Cabled Pullover knit in natural Valley Yarns Amherst in size 36”. The ribbed structure of these cables make this sweater comfortable even when worn with zero or negative ease for a slim fit. The unusual, wide saddle shoulders look neat and squared off. For a more traditional aran sweater fit, try making a size that’ll give 2-4” of ease.

Theo (right) is rocking out in the B-2 Basic Cardigan knit in Valley Yarns Berkshire Bulky color 31 Dark Teal in size 40”. It actually looks like a lot of sweaters he already wears. When we remarked that the button band is on the right side, making it a women’s sweater, he said “that’s okay – I ride a women’s bike, I can wear a women’s sweater. Times are changing.” We couldn’t agree more. But if you prefer, you can easily put the button band on the other side.

Kirsten

Today we’re looking at 473 Shadow Bolero. It is knit in Valley Yarns Greenwich. In the Valley Yarns Shadow Bolero, it just takes two small seams to turn a rectangle into a curvy, mysterious shape that fits and flatters all sizes and keeps your shoulders warm. The loose gauge plays off the unstructured cable stitch pattern to create spots of opacity on a semi-sheer background.

This project has one size.

A couple of us had trouble with the fit of this bolero and found that we couldn’t keep it on our shoulders. Others thought it fit well, and some suggested adding a clasp to help keep it on. We all agreed that the Greenwich was a super cozy, comfortable yarn!

You can check out the pattern here.

We’re showing off the latest addition to our Stitch Red collection with 462 Hearts of Oak Cardigan. This set-in sleeve cardigan has a wide shawl collar that can be overlapped and pinned closed, or folded over to show off the lovely wrong side of the Hearts of Oak pattern stitch.

We tried on the 36″ size.

We really liked this comfortable cardigan. The collar was a big hit, though a couple of us would shorten the sleeves. This sweater looks great open, or closed with a shawl pin. We also love that a percentage of the profits from this pattern, Valley Yarns Northampton in red, and 452 Hearts of Oak Hat are donated to Stitch Red.

You can check out the pattern here.

One of the patterns from our Valley Yarns catalog, 460 Hyannis Cardigan is knit with three colors of Valley Yarns Huntington held together.

Kirsten put together some swatches with different color combinations. We love the greens together, but the other versions give you even more options to choose from. You could also work this cardigan all in one color for a slightly different look.

Which option is your favorite?

This week, we’re showing off 458 Stella Pullover. This pullover is knit in Valley Yarns 2/14 Alpaca Silk and it creates a super light, super drapey, airy garment. This top-down, seamless raglan sweater is adorned with simple lace eyelets. The loose gauge makes this a light and sheer layering favorite.

We tried on the 36″ size.

Nearly all of us would knit the sleeves a bit shorter on this pullover, but since it’s top-down that is an easy adjustment. This top was really quite comfortable and warm, but super light. It’s a great layering piece that isn’t too warm, and it’s quite versatile. There are also great color options in the 2/14 Alpaca Silk.

You can check out 458 Stella Pullover here.

For this week’s Valley Yarns Show and Tell, we’re trying on 477 Lake Hitchcock Tee. Lake Hitchcock once filled the Pioneer Valley of Western Massachusetts, and echoes of that ancient lake can still be found in the depths of the Connecticut River. This simple Valley Yarns Lake Hitchcock Tee, in the rich blue of deep water, is accented by swirls of color at shoulders and hem.

This tee is crocheted with Valley Yarns Charlemont Kettle Dyed with an accent of Valley Yarns Charlemont Hand Dyed.

We tried on the 36″ size.

Many of us really liked this garment, in fact, Emma is making it for herself. A lot of us were also surprised by how lightweight the garment was. Crocheting the tee a bit longer came up a few times.

You can find 477 Lake Hitchcock Tee here.

Valley Yarns Huntington is Steve’s Deal of the Day until Sunday (7/29) at midnight for $3.29/50g hank, normally $4.79. Use promo code FBHUNTING2 in your shopping cart to get the deal price.

Since Valley Yarns Huntington is on sale this weekend as Steve’s Deal of the Day, I’d like to highlight a few projects posted on Ravelry which use this yarn. Four years ago we wanted to add a solid color sock yarn to our collection of Valley Yarns. But as you can see below, Huntington is not just for socks. It’s also perfect for fine-gauge sweaters, colorwork, and gorgeous lacy shawls.

Check out the great projects WEBS customers have been knitting (and designing) lately.

Henry Street Shawl by Nina Machlin Dayton knit by ninaknits
Available for purchase on Ravelry.

Dot’s Lace Shawlette knit by happykat
Available as a free Ravelry download.

Shetland Shorty by Gudrun Johnston knit by craftygeek
Available for free from knitty.com.

Fields of Flowers by Sarah Bordelon knit by Laceknitting
Available for purchase on Ravelry.

Dance of Robots by Soile Pyhänniska knit by yarnbee
Available for free on Ravelry.

Baby Merry-Jane – Booties by Bekah Knits knit by aaronruby
Available for purchase on Ravelry.

Waterville Hat by Marcy Vandale
Available for purchase from yarn.com.

This week in our Valley Yarns Show and Tell, we’re taking a look at 466 Hyacinth Cardigan. The Valley Yarns Hyacinth Cardigan is a reinvention of our ever-popular Oriel Lace Cardigan. This time it is knit in Stockbridge and has sleeves! This sweet cardigan is perfect for transitional seasons and overly air-conditioned spaces.

We tried on the 36″ size.

We all loved the stitch pattern, but some of us thought this would be better if it were a little longer. Katie suggested it would be adorable with a dress because of the length. Since this is a top-down project, you can adjust the length of the body and sleeves, and the placement of the lace. Some of us found the alpaca in the Stockbridge to be a little scratchy.

You can find the pattern here.

We continue our look at the latest Valley Yarns patterns with this crochet project. 480 Proclus Vest combines two skewed polygons as fronts to create a stunning asymmetrical modern shape.

It is crocheted in Valley Yarns Goshen, which is a wonderful blend of cotton, modal, and silk.

We tried on the 36″ size.

The design of this vest had many of us calling it quirky. It’s nice that there are different ways to wear it, but the sample was a little tight on many of us. We all agreed that it looked fantastic on Katie. In fact, she Buzzed about the project recently her on the blog.

Next week, we’ll check out another project from the Valley Yarns catalog. You can check out the pattern here.

Summer is the perfect time for knitting and crocheting smaller projects such as baby and kids garments and accessories. Nobody wants a big afghan or sweater sitting on their lap when it’s hot and sticky outside.

Valley Yarns Valley Superwash DK is a great yarn for baby and kids projects since it’s soft, machine washable, and comes in 22 fun colors. And at $5.49/50g ball, it’s a great price for a 100% extrafine merino superwash yarn.

In this issue of Valley Yarns on Ravelry, I’m sharing some cute projects knit and crocheted in Valley Superwash DK – hats, sweaters, an elephant and even a stylin’ chevron stripe dress.

Zippy by Valerie Morris knit by ilovemath
Available for purchase on Ravelry.

Puerperium Cardigan by Kelly Brooker knit by eversosmall
Available as a free Ravelry download.

Easy Baby Cardigan by Diane Soucy knit by chipmunk-knits
Available for free from Knitting Pure & Simple.

Elephant by Kristen rask crocheted by chipmunk-knits
Available in the book Creature Crochet.

December Stripes Hat by Elinor Brown knit by knittywood
Available as a free Ravelry download.

Sweet Little Hat crocheted and designed by April Garwood
Available for purchase on Ravelry.

What cute baby and kid projects have you made with Valley Superwash DK?