I admit I’ve been taking my time to delve into the always-beautiful Brooklyn Tweed pattern collections as they come out. I’m feeling satisfied with this delay. A few recent developments have let me take in this collection in a more thorough manner. It’s no secret that I love Brooklyn Tweed patterns. They are incredibly detailed and thoughtfully written. They are filled with tutorials to help you learn new techniques, while any knitter can choose to skip these techniques for something more simple and familiar (something they endorse in their own Foundations series on their website).
It’s been about 18 months since we introduced the Brooklyn Tweed yarns at Wool & Grace, and of all of our yarn companies, I love these the most. The yarns have so much character. As I’ve had the chance to wear my own pieces over long periods of time, I get to experience how much they soften with wear and improve with age.
I also just recently finished Orime, a prim little pullover designed by Veronik Avery for Brooklyn Tweed’s Early Fall 2018 collection. I made this piece as a sample for Wool & Grace, and it’s my first foray into Peerie, their newest yarn. Peerie is a fingering-weight, worsted spun yarn. It has marvelous stitch definition and a lot of elasticity, making it a delight to have on the needles. Yes, fingering weight yarns are skinny and require you to use relatively small needles, but I’m loving the light weight of the fabrics knit up by the likes of these yarns (others include Loft, Cozette, TML and La Jolla).
I also had the opportunity to see the entire Deep Fall 2018 in my travels, and it’s nice to see these pieces in person before truly weighing in on them.
One of the best things to see in person was Berenice, a Julie Hoover pattern that was recently re-interpreted for adults in Loft and Peerie. I was able to see this piece worked up in both yarns: the Peerie version is crisp and clean looking, while the Loft version has a woolly halo. Both were beautifully soft. I love this feminine pullover, with a cabled and lace pattern worked down the front and back of the sweater. The neckline is round but slightly wide, which is nicely feminine. I like that the piece is worked flat and in pieces, so that knitters can focus on the cable/lace chart and focus on construction at a later step.
Svenson was the real show-stopper of the collection. This heavily cabled pattern is a new interpretation of the men’s version of this sweater. Knit up in Arbor, it has a dense cabled fabric. Knit up in Arbor, it is cozy without being heavy. I love the modern and feminine proportions of this classic cabled sweater.
Solenn is a boxy, funnel neck pullover worked in Loft. I am all over this look this fall, having knit up a Carbeth (I’m obsessed), an Ives (I’m obsessed again) and a Turtle Dove (yes, I’m still obsessed) for this cold-cold-weather season. I particularly like the raglan construction and the fact that its knit up in Loft (which is quickly becoming a favorite yarn of mine, as it gets softer and better with every single wear).
There are some great projects for men in this collection, including Aldous. This crewneck pullover combines different types of brioche stitches to offer light, warm texture to the glorious fabric created by Shelter.
The High Pines Hat takes a popular cable motif from Arbor’s High Pines Cowl and works it into what promises to be a popular hat. Plus, you know this appeals to me in that you can combine the pieces into a lovely little gift set, knitting up the hat and cowl! Arbor is a favorite of mine, and I love the idea of a brief interlude of knitting with this hat. The High Pines hat will easily become a gift for anyone – men and women!
One more great piece is Leander, a meandering brioche-stitch scarf that is classic without being too basic. Brioche can be tricky, but working with a sticky yarn like Shelter makes it less anxiety-inducing for brioche newbies. I love the modern look of this piece.
Brooklyn Tweed pattern collections have become smaller and more frequent – which I love. There are a few more lovely pieces to see in this collection – so be sure to check them out for yourself! Given that there’s a good deal of cables in this collection, I wholeheartedly recommend you take a look at the most recent addition to their Outpost series, with straightforward tutorials on cable knitting.
woolandgraceblog.com 