Hunter Hammersen | Elka Knits

Hunter Hammersen has been on my radar for a while. I first noticed her due to her then free sock patterns Slant and Popped. Note they are no longer free but Hunter has gone from a one size pattern to multi-sizing and gauging which understandably requires more work. Then, my green love, had me drooling over Propitiate and if you peek into the comments section I was begging for the pattern to be written up. It was and has since been taken offline. Back then I used to download all the patterns onto my computer and print them out, remove the download so as to not clog up my computer, and begone. Or even not do anything at all since the pattern was free and I figured I could just open it up whenever. Since then I have learned to save everything into my Ravelry library. I never did buy her Silk Road Socks book, being unemployed at the time with 3 children, but I have purchased her self published Knitters Curiosity Cabinet Vol 3. I think it was just about this time of year and I discovered the joy of having an electronic version of a pattern to work on while on the road. I signed up for her newsletter, I believe, after purchasing her book. I really tend not to subscribe to feeds or newsletters or anything else because I am bad about reading my emails and great about shopping 🙂 I mention this because Hunter frequently offers a discount code for patterns through her newsletter and this week she is offering a free pattern to subscribers!

Welter Pattern is a cowl worked in worsted weight yarn and looks like it would be good for gift giving. I think this is a nice way for those who are not familiar with Hunter’s work to get a feel for her patterns. So consider this my PSA of the week 🙂 Her blog/website is Violently Domestic which is easy enough to remember. If you are a sock knitter I think her work is worth looking into although she has branched out and offers smaller shawls and fingerless mitt type of things… basically nothing too yarn or time consuming that would be perfect for wrapping up and giving to others….last year I gifted a secret pal some fingerless mitts and they were very fun to knit.

yarny days and knitterly evenings.

Elka

Winter Hats & swap

I couldn’t help noticing that my gift for my Love Bites Swap partner would perfectly compliment my tam collection. I have them set out in a pile waiting a wash and block before winter sets in and would put my knitting down on them before turning down the lights at night. Okay the Neep Heid is still awaiting ends weaving but it is in the winter hat pile nonetheless. Thinking about all those ends has me wondering if I cut my yarn at end of every change when knitting the Midnight Sun Tam designed by Sandy Blue. Midnight Sun Tam remains one of my favorite finished objects ever. Ahem. I digress.

So Hunter Hammersen blogs over at Violently Domestic and I first noticed her work when she was offering free sock patterns on Ravelry. Slant I believe was the first that I noticed. One of her recent projects consists of 3 books inspired by Curiosity Cabinets and the drawings of various plants and animals one would find in illustrated books of such things. I was drawn to the pattern for fingerless mitts called Serpula Contortuplicata. Wow does auto correct throw a fit over that one! It is very organic with the cables going first this way then that. I also liked the open spaces created by the cable crosses–I find it rather gothic somehow.

Things I learned knitting this:

I like having pdfs of my knitting patterns! I believe this is the first time I ever knit something without having a hard copy of the pattern {unless I was designing myself of course}

Knitting laceweight mohair with stainless steel double points is a recipe for stitches slithering off the ends.

I should trust my judgement.

Assuming somebody might read this and be unawares I spent a good part of 10 yrs as a sample garment knitter for yarn companies. It kept me occupied and gave me some extra spending money when the kids were babies. Part of sample garment knitting is, in my opinion, proofing the instructions.

Hunter’s chart for the hand portion begins with a slipped stitch and I decided to follow it despite my feelings that she intended us to slip the first stitch of each row instead of each repeat. I contacted Hunter after I finished my project and mentioned the chart vs row question and she is updating the pattern. BTW I don’t know if it is just because knitters are such a great group but Hunter is another person I have corresponded with a few times in the past and she is always a delight.

Two posts about two different indie knit folks who are very nice to deal with ^5 to knitters.

But Look:

Serpula Contortuplicata

Look Again:

Organic

So seriously pretty. Luckily I have a second hank of the yarn and will reknit this for me. It definitely belongs in my wardrobe since it goes so well with all my hats. I look forward to making myself a pair.

Belongs in my closet

And of course I hope my swap partner loves them. How could she not? Soft, silky, organic with spooky holes for Halloween fun.

yarny days and knitterly evenings