Summer Knitting Ideas
In the knitting industry it is not unusual to see less knitters in your local yarn store during the summer. As an avid knitter I always found that strange. Even when it is 95 degrees outside I will find me working on something.
My knitting choices do change in the summer.
I tend to work with plant fibers instead of animal. I will concede that working with wool in said 95 degrees, unless you are in a/c is very unappealing. The one exception is sock yarn. It doesn't feel sticky and hot to me like other wool yarns do.
I do tend to crochet. Working with plant fibers can be harder on your hands as there is no stretch to the fiber. The addition of acrylic needles to the market have made a big difference as then bend some. This makes knitting cotton much easier on your hands.
I work on smaller projects so I don't have something laying in my lap, no blankets!
Here are some of my favorite Summer knitting projects:
Socks. Always Socks. They are just so portable and again the wool doesn't seem to bother me. There is some wonderful cottons/acrylic yarns that have some stretch nylon added that work really well for socks too.
These Watermelon socks are the cutest ever. I will have to make these just because.
Watermelon Slice Socks by Wendy Gaal
There are a lot of short socks. These are perfect for the tennis shoe.
These Socks, Summer Slice by Cassandra Dominick also remind me of Watermelons or maybe strawberries?
Some good non-wool yarn choices for socks are:
Hikoo CoBaSi I used this to knit my mom a sweater. I love this yarn. It has just a bit of stretch in it so it knits and looks like wool when knit up. It would be great for socks!
Cascade Fixation is also a great choice for non-wool with a bit of stretch
Dishcloths and Towels are another great project for summer. There are lots and lots of free crochet and knitting patterns for these. The yarn is very inexpensive and best of all it is instant gratification. Isn't that what summer is about?
Dishcloths are: Vintage Hanky Washcloth by Julie Tarsha, the Hot Mit is: Toto the Extremely Useful Potholder by Kay Gardener and the Hand towel was from World Market
I really like making sets and giving them for gifts. Just think you could knit on these over the summer and be done with a lot of your Christmas List!
Yarns good for dishcloths:
Peaches and Cream, Sugar and Cream, Lion Brand kitchen cotton are a few of the brands that are carried at the big stores like Joann's, Michael's and Hobby Lobby. They go on sale all the time so if you watch for the sales these are about $1-$1.50 for a skein which gets you a couple of wash cloths. That will keep you in your gift budget.
Knit Picks also has a very nice kitchen cotton yarn, Dishie. It is lighter weight then the ones above and has a shine to it. I have not used this myself in the kitchen so I don't know how it holds up. I have used it for other types of projects and I really like it.
You can use any plant based yarns for these projects. Linen makes wonderful dish towels. Cotton/linen blends, cotton bamboo blends etc.
The other great summer projects are knitted tops using Linen/cotton/viscous blends. There are so many of these great yarns on the market now. If you have not tried them you really should. Viscous and acrylic are not what they used to be.
I love the easy flow of these tops. With these light weight yarns they will have a great drape to them.
L'été c'est moi by Mona C. NicLeòid
There are so many yarn choices for these. Here are a few of my faves.
And here are a few crochet options.
Of course little toys and such, like Fatty Lumpkin by Heidi Bears pictured at the top, are other type of projects to think about. Again, great christmas presents.
I will be busy this summer. I am still working on the Mermaid Me Blanket. I want that done by the end of the month if possible. So for now I will dream about my next summer project. Dreaming and matching yarn with pattern is just as fun as knitting. Don't you think?
What are your favorite projects to knit during the summer months?
