When Meridith Shepherd was working at her LYS, The Studio Knitting & Needlepoint, it seemed like every customer that came in had the same request: knitted baby blankets. She had no problem directing them to yarn. “I was recommending Berroco Weekend because of the ease of care and because the knitter was working towards spring and summer baby arrivals.” But Meridith couldn’t find the right pattern. So she designed her own!
The “Playful Stripes Blanket” is what Meridith came up with. She decided on a large mitered square knit in stockinette, with garter stitch stripes for added texture. An interior designer friend helped her pick out four shades of Berroco Weekend for the colorwork. Meridith was thrilled with the result – a non-traditional baby blanket that’s fun and easy to knit.
Who did you knit this for?
The grey and blues version was knit as a shop sample only, though it may make it to a special little person in the future.
The yellow, blue, orange and white version was made for my son, who took it to preschool as his nap blanket. He never slept at naptime, though. So I picture him trying to make a tent with it or making a ball and trying to throw it in the air, but never asleep cuddled in the blanket that his mommy made!
Any knitting disasters?
I taught myself to knit using YouTube videos and somehow I was twisting each and every stitch I knit. I was very proud to start my first pair of socks, graduating to double pointed needles and knitting in the round. Keep in mind that no experienced knitter had yet seen my work, so I was still twisting my knit stitches! I made an entire pair of socks, in a striped Fair Isle patterning yarn, with every single stitch twisted. Not only did they have no stretch whatsoever, but also they became the most itchy piece of clothing I’ve ever owned.
What’s your favorite thing about knitting?
I really enjoy that knitting bridges gender, age, socio-economic barriers, etc. allowing me to make friendships and have conversations with people I wouldn’t have met otherwise. It has been the start of some of the best friendships I have and conversations around a knitting table have caused me to think and learn about things I may have never even been exposed to otherwise.
Do you have a cool design you want to share? Or did you recently finish a project with Berroco yarn? You can email Ashley: apalumbo@berroco.com or post it to the Berroco Lovers forum in Ravelry.
ブルガリ