The sixth, and final, design from Doris Chan as WEBS Designer in Residence is the Lace Motif Afghan. A lovely square-shaped throw worked in supremely soft Valley Yarns Valley Superwash DK, in three colors. Handily sized for a decorative throw or shawl, this little beauty is constructed with two related lace motifs, a square and an octagon. For a larger afghan, simply add more motifs!

Doris says, “I particularly enjoy crocheting afghans when the weather turns cold. And if they’re lightweight, pretty, and not too large or cumbersome, I enjoy wearing them as well. ”

The Lace Motif Afghan is made of two motifs arranged in alternating placements in rows and columns. Motifs are connected to each other while crocheting, joining as you go. For some measure of portability crochet the centers of all motifs first, weave in those agonizing ends in advance, then do the last rounds with assembly when you can spread out.

A simple, small scallop trim adds balance, stability and a pretty finish to the afghan edges. With over 2 dozen colors available in the Valley Superwash DK you can work up a Lace Motif Afghan to match any decor. Stay with Doris’ suggested 3 colors or go monochromatic! Who will you make this afghan for?

Wow! July already and with all that glorious, hot summer weather, but before you know it a chill will settle into our evenings and the leaves will begin to change color as Autumn approaches. Once it does you’re going to wish you had a fantastic cardigan to ward of that cool weather. Fiona’s newest pattern as our Designer in Residence, Collar Your Dreams, may just be that perfect cardigan!

The Collar Your Dreams cardigan is the experienced, or adventurous, cable knitters dream, intricate and fun with just enough challenge! The cables, that incorporate eyelet holes alongside the crosses, were inspired by iron work and form shapes reminiscent of the Eiffel Tower. This multi-season cardigan sports a shawl collar worked in short rows and elegant, feature waist shaping.

Knit in Valley Yarns Valley Superwash DK, with over 20 colors to choose from this one is sure to become a favorite wardrobe staple! Which color will you choose?

We’ve had so much fun with our Hot Chocolate Run Polar Bear KAL that we thought we’d keep going with the adorable Snow Family and Evergreens that graced the cover of our Holiday 2014 Catalog!

The pattern calls for 4 Valley Yarns: Huntington, Valley Superwash DK, Valley Superwash and Northampton. The great thing about this pattern is that you can make the members of the Snow Family with almost any yarn! Just knit with the recommended needles at the recommended gauge.

This week you’ll want to get the body, or bodies, of your snow people knit. I’m making mine in Huntington and it’s only taking me about 2 hours per snow person, they work up pretty quick! Next week we’ll stuff and shape the snow people and add their adorable faces.

Your response to our first two guest designer patterns has been wonderful. It’s time to highlight the third pattern from our first round of specialty yarns and designers. Amy Herzog designed the Thornes Pullover to be a classic silhouette with special details.

About the design Amy says, “The Thornes Pullover from Valley Yarns is a classic, comfortable turtleneck pullover that adds understated elegance to any outfit. The reverse stockinette stitch fabric lends a soft, approachable look to the sweater and makes the color changes in this slightly variegated colorway more subtle. The ribbed trim and twisted stitch detailing give a bit of flair to an otherwise basic staple. I was thrilled to be given such lovely materials for my design for WEBS’ 40th Anniversary celebration. Thornes is worked in their Valley Yarns Superwash DK, in a special color dyed by Madelinetosh called “Magnolia Leaf”. To me, this is the perfect blend of autumn colors. It’s slightly darker than shown in these pictures, like looking at the pattern of fall foliage across a hillside. Incredible.”

And while the gorgeous Magnolia Leaf colorway of the 40th Anniversary Valley Superwash DK hand-dyed by Madelinetosh has sold out this sweater works up beautifully in the solid colors of our Valley Superwash DK, like the Forest colorway.

We’ve been so thrilled with your response to our first specialty yarn and dedicated patterns. We thought it was time to share another pattern highlight with you. Melissa LaBarre designed the Windchill Cardigan for us and it’s just stunning!

About her relationship with WEBS:

We’re so excited to officially launch our 40^th Anniversary celebrations and to share with you our first round of spectacular specialty products.

WEBS has teamed up with Madelinetosh to bring you our own Valley Yarns Superwash DK dyed in 19 of your favorite Madelinetosh colors and an exclusive Ruby colorway for our 40^th year. This yarn is only available at WEBS and in limited quantities so get it while you can!

We’ve also partnered with 3 amazing designers who have worked their magic with this yarn.

Doris Chan designed the Cousteau Shawl that shows off the drape and movement of the Superwash DK beautifully and just seems to shimmer in the Cousteau colorway.

Melissa LaBarre’s  Windchill Cardigan, designed using the Baroque Violet colorway, is an easy, open front cardigan with great hem and neckline details.

And Amy Herzog worked with the Magnolia Leaf colorway to design a classic wardrobe staple with a few simple, yet  modern twists in the Thornes Pullover.

And this is just the start. We’ll have new and exclusive designs from some of your favorite designers throughout the year in some of our favorite Valley Yarns and each quarter we’ll bring you a new and exclusive hand dyed yarn.

As if all this amazing yarn and patterns weren’t enough, you can tote your new project around in a brand new, exclusive to WEBS, della Q bag! There will be a new bag from della Q each quarter.

We’ll also be unveiling new weaving drafts from long-time friends of WEBS, and some of our favorite weaving instructors throughout the year. Additionally, as part of our year-long celebration, we’re sponsoring a Weaving Contest with 4 different categories and 3 prizes per category! Full details and contest rules are available on our website.

We’ve got so much more for you this year. Join us on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, Google +, Instagram, and on Ravelry for all the latest.

Thank you for 40 years and thank you for making us America’s Yarn Store!

We can’t believe it’s been 5 years since Twist Collective debuted. The Fall 2013 issue is out and we’re thrilled that it features two great patterns using our own Valley Yarns! Valley Yarns have been featured in many issues and we’re always excited to see what other designers are doing with our yarns.

First up is the Doverfell Cardigan, a zippered hoodie pattern available in both adult and child sizes.

We love the simple textured stitches that frame the zipper and continue down onto the inset pockets. The adult version is made in Northfield while the child’s version was knit in Valley Superwash DK.

Second is the Ossel dress knit in Valley Yarns Northampton.

This pattern features some gorgeous cables in combination with moss stitch for a body hugging dress that really shows off your curves, and with the saddle shoulder construction those sleeve cables aren’t interrupted at the shoulder.

What’s your favorite pattern from this collection?

If you haven’t begun following them on Facebook yet you may just want to! Twist Collective is celebrating their 5 year anniversary with all kinds of goodies and give-aways.

I am so excited to debut this new pattern today!  Louise’s Nature Hat is a design of my own (remember those granny squares from a couple of months ago?)

Here’s what they became:

I’ve had this design in my head for awhile but not the right yarn.  With the addition of our Valley Yarn Superwash in a DK weight, I finally had the yarn I needed!  The hat features 7 traditional granny squares joined together to form the base of the hat.  I then added a row of single crochet to even out the grannies and add some stability before picking up the necessary number of stitches and knitting the remainder of the hat!

What tickles are endless possibilities for this particular design.  You can easily select colors that you love and even change up the pattern for the squares to truly make this hat your own.

Click here to download Valley Yarns #297 Louise’s Nature Hat for FREE!

If you make the hat I’d love to see your results!

Kathy