Photoshoot at Villa Malla: Irpa

Posted on July 28, 2018 by Linda Marveng

I knew that model Emma Ross did not need to wear a wool cardigan on top of the Sigyn wool dress at Villa Malla in the sweltering heat at the end of May, but I did want to show how well they work together. Photographer Eivind Røhne knew my plan and captured these brilliant photos after Sissel Fylling had finished perfecting Em’s hair & makeup. The accessories are also of Norwegian design: Jewellery is by Kaja Gjedebo Design and the ankle boots are by Monica Stålvang. Michael was ready to hold the large reflector but did not need to hold it in the end. I was making sure that all sides of Irpa was photographed and also wanted Em to wear a pair of pencil trouser beneath instead of the dress to show off its versatility. The Norwegian pattern and yarn kit will be launched by Hillesvåg Ullvarefabrikk at Oslo Design Fair at the end of August, while the English pattern will be test knitted in my Ravelry group beginning on the 12th of November before it is released.Irpa is Norse for dark brown and suited this long oversized cardigan with a v-neck and a slight shaping for waist. Pine cable cover the center back, while only one pattern repeat adorns the fronts and sleeve. A wide rib makes this casual jacket a perfect extra layer to the Sigyn dress.

Kristin Nygård, aka Quiltefeen on both Ravelry and Instagram knitted the beautiful sample in size Small for me, while I was working on another project you will see later this autumn. Irpa is knitted in the luscious and bounce Tinde – a breed specific Norwegian pelt wool – from Hillesvåg Ullvarefabrikk using a 3.5 mm/US 4 needle with a gauge of 21 stitches and 30 rows in stockinette stitch measuring 10 cm/4″ square. The button band is knitted using a 3 mm/US 2.5 needle. The sample has 11 buttons with a diameter of 20 mm/0.78″.

The cardigan is knitted in pieces and seamed. The second part of the v-neck decreases on the fronts moves to the opposite side of the cable in order for the cable to continue to the shoulder.

I have graded the dress from sizes S to 2XL, with a bust circumference of 110 to 154 cm/43.25 to 60.75″. Next out in this series is the last of the new designs: Lofn.

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Deep South Fibers

Posted on July 25, 2018 by Linda Marveng

I follow the Designers group on Ravelry for submission calls and also for general business advice. A few months back Larissa Brown asked who deals with your print distribution? The answer from several other designers were Deep South Fibers. So I went there, spotted all the famous designers and filled in their Designer Application, after reading that I should… “Allow Deep South Fibers to introduce and promote your work to qualifying retailers internationally so you can focus on what you do best, create! Time is valuable so let us distribute and manage your portfolio exclusively as we use our market presence and base of relationships to get you noticed. In the meantime, you are free to continue to reinvent yourself as you push your craft forward.” By the way, so did Larissa Brown and I am grateful that she asked. The owner Patrick Higgins came back to me after reviewing my line, with all the essential information including their new ‘Download Too‘ program, and wrote that they would love to work with me. I signed the agreement letter and had Michael helping me with the pattern graphics and the technical side of this.Above you see the ad they made to introduce me as a new designer on their webpage, featuring my most popular pattern Oydis Sweater, see top photo. All the photos are taken by Eivind Røhne with model Alexandria Eissinger except for the center photo below which is Emma Ross. Before the TNNA (The National Needle Arts Association) Summer Show (read: The trade show) in Cleveland, Ohio Deep South Fibers made a pdf download with the news and on the cover – above – is my Yellow Gold Pullover.

While I was selecting patterns and Michael remaking them into a concise version more suitable for printing than my digital patterns, several technical questions appeared. Patrick and his team guided us through the process and the second batch of patterns we uploaded have made it to their webpage. I love the ads they made with my photos and look forward to working with Deep South Fibers. Thank you, Patrick! So if you are a yarn store owner or manager and wonder if I sell printed patterns with a download code too, I do – just take a look here and contact Deep South Fibers.

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Photoshoot at Villa Malla: Sigyn

Posted on July 21, 2018 by Linda Marveng

Model Emma Ross’ favourite garment of the ten designs to be photographed at Villa Malla, was the dress, Sigyn made for Hillesvåg Ullvarefabrikk. It was cloudy when Em, Michael and I met up with photographer Eivind Røhne and makeup & hair artist Sissel Fylling in the morning at Filtvet by the Oslo Fjord in late May. I decided to style Sigyn with Evalina boots by Monica Stålvang and borrowed jewellery from Kaja Gjedebo Design. In addition I wanted to show the dress with a belt and also beneath the long jacket Irpa. The Norwegian pattern and kit will be launched at Oslo Design Fair at the end of August, while the English pattern will be test knitted in my Ravelry group beginning on the 10th of September before it is released.

Sigyn is Norse for victorious girl-friend and ideal for this a-line dress with a central swing cable, surrounded by ribbing to make it figure hugging. The cable is divided and moves towards the shoulder to make a v-neck at the front. Decreases are made in the purl sections to emphasize the silhouette of Sigyn. The dress is knitted in the bouncy Sølje from Hillesvåg Ullvarefabrikk.

The dress was perfectly knitted by Grete Jenssen, aka ma9 on Ravelry in the shade Grass Green using a 3 mm/US 2.5. Grete knitted size S with 28 stitches gauge due to the time pressure (instead of 24 stitches) hence the sample measures 88 cm/34.75″ across the bust instead of 94 cm/37″. I have graded the dress in sizes XS to 2XL, with bust circumference of 88 to 130 cm/34.75 to 51.25″.

The dress is worked back and forth in pieces and seamed. The decreasing for a-line is done in the purl sections of the rib. The cables are moved towards the shoulder on the front, beginning 10 cm/4″ before the armhole and ending just before the neck shaping. The swing cable is the same I used on the sweater Vaga and found in Norah Gaughan’s inspiring Knitted Cable Sourcebook.

You can easily adjust the length of the dress if you prefer, for instance by shortening (or lengthening) it with up to 7 cm/2.75″ before the a-line shaping begins. For a tunic, reduce the length with a further 17 cm/6.75″ by working 1 cm/0.5″ less between each of the decreases.

Here is the cool shot of the Irpa jacket worn on top of the Sigyn dress. More photos of the jacket is coming next in this series.

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Kohno Kimono in Sommerstrikk

Posted on July 18, 2018 by Linda Marveng

Sommerstrikk/Summer Knits is a special magazine from Familien that came out last Monday, with 124 pages of knitting patterns. I am delighted to have my Kohno Kimono included in the issue. Kohno Kimono was made for Interweave’s magazine knit.wear Fall/Winter 2016 and first published in English. The text on the first page reads: Inspired by the sculptural aestehtic of architect Hugo Kohno’s work in Tokyo. It continues on the next page with: This oversized long jacket is adorned with a domed check pattern ending in wide moss stitch borders at the front and in the sides. The kimono is knitted in The Fibre Company Acadia – a divine mix of wool, alpaca and silk – using 4 mm/US 6 and comes in sizes XS to 2XL. Gorgeous model Alexandria Eissinger is wearing size M with a 124.5 cm/52″ bust circumference. Her hair and make up is by Jens J. Wiker while her jewellery is by Kaja Gjedebo Design. Brilliant photographer Eivind Røhne captured these moments at Ingierstrand Bad in May 2017.

The kimono is worked back and forth in separate pieces and seamed. The front band is worked at the same time as each front. The sleeves have raglan shaping. When working in Domed Check pattern, if there are not enough stitches at the sides to work a complete cable crossing, work the stitches of the partial cables as they appear. The English pattern is available to download at Ravelry and Loveknitting, while the knit.wear Fall/Winter 2016 is available at Interweave. If you are a retailer, you will find the printed pattern with a download code available wholesale at Deep South Fibers.

The Norwegian magazine Sommerstrikk is available at selected news agents and super markets. If you are in Norway you can also order it by SMS just write “sommerstrikk18” in addition to your name & address to 2205 or buy a digital version for iPad, see www.klikk.no. If you live abroad you can order the Norwegian special magazine by e-mailing kari.bachke@egmont.com and then transfer payment into their bank account.

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Photoshoot at Villa Malla: Var

Posted on July 14, 2018 by Linda Marveng

I have been looking forward to showing you the photos of the Hillesvåg Ullvarefabrikk designs taken at Villa Malla in late May. It look more like the Greek island of Santorini than Filtvet with the Oslo Fjord in the background due to the heat and the white wall that surrounds the upper terrace at the restaurant. I certainly get a holiday feel just being there and would have like to have the opportunity to stay for a few days. My plan for the day was to start photographing the warmest garment; the dress Sigyn, since it was bound to get even hotter during the day. Photographer Eivind Røhne agreed. Var was the next since it had to be photographed together with the Hillesvåg garments. While Sissel Fylling was doing Emma Ross’ hair and makeup, Eivind and I decided to use the upper terrace as background for the second time around, like we did in June 2016. Just as last time, I borrowed jewellery from Kaja Gjedebo Design. The Norwegian pattern and yarn kit will be launched at Oslo Design Fair at the end of August, while the English pattern will be test knitted in my Ravelry group in September before its release.

Pine cables play on the center of this oversized vest, named Var, Norse for beloved. The side panels – giving the vest a dropped shoulder appearance – are knitted sideways in broken rib and is divided from the cable pattern with a tuck as well as a reverse stocking stitch band. Var ends in an I-cord bind off around the shallow neck. The vest is knitted in the luscious pelt wool yarn Tinde from Hillesvåg Ullvarefabrikk. Em is wearing size XS/S, but I have graded it to include M/L and XL/2XL too. The finished bust measurement with the side panels is 156 (172, 188) cm/61.5 (67.75, 74)” and the length is 55 (57, 59) cm/21.75 (22.5, 23.25)”. The vestis knitted in two parts, then the stitches are picked up along the side. Size M/L has a wider side panel but the same center panel as size XS/S. Size XL/2XL has a wider center panel with one extra cable repeat.

The center panels are knitted by English knitter Jean Molloy, who also knitted a garment for my Norwegian knitting book back in 2011, using 3 mm/US 2.5 for the rib (and tuck) and 3.5 mm/US 4 for the cable pattern. The gauge is 21 stitches and 30 rows in stockinette stitch measures 10 cm/4″ square. I knitted the tuck, then the side panels after I had sewn the shoulders together. Var is styled with a black silk shirt and black pencil pants. Next in this series is the dress, Sigyn!

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Barra Pattern Released

Posted on July 11, 2018 by Linda Marveng

The last of the autumn 2017 designs made for Hillesvåg Ullvarefabrikk; Barra, has been test knitted and released. Thank you to my test knitters for correcting and improving the pattern. You can see three of the finished jackets on the pattern page, one has been made into a shorter version and more versions will come. The sample jacket was beautifully worn by Emma Ross, with makeup & hair by Sissel Fylling and jewellery by Kaja Gjedebo Design, and captured by Eivind Røhne at Bøler Church last autumn.

Elaborate spear cables run like a spine on the back of this long jacket before they are moved towards the shoulder at the top. At the front one cable follow the line along the v-neck. The sleeve has a spear cable running around it at the bottom, before the upper part is knitted in the round in stockinette stitch. The a-line cardigan is named Barra – Celtic for spear.

Sizes: XS (S, M, L, XL, 2XL)

Finished Measurements:
Bust: 84 (91, 98, 106, 116, 126) cm/33 (35.75, 38.5, 41.75, 45.75, 49.5)“
Hip: 104 (112, 118, 126, 136, 146) cm/41 (44, 46.5, 49.5, 53.5, 57.5)”
Length: 79.5 cm/31.25”
Sleeve Length: 49 (50, 50, 51, 51, 52) cm/19.25 (19.75, 19.75, 20, 20, 20.5)“

Yarn: Hillesvåg, Hifa Sølje (100% pelt yarn, 350 m/383 yds, 100 g). The sample is knitted in Light Brown 2102:
4 (4.5, 4.5, 5, 5.5, 6) skeins: 1360 (1470, 1555, 1665, 1803, 1941) m/1487 (1607, 1700, 1820, 1971, 2122) yds.
https://www.ull.no/produktkategori/garn/ullgarn/nyhet-sol…

Yarn alternatives: Cascade 220 Sport (100% wool, 50 g, 150 m/164 yds).
http://www.cascadeyarns.com/cascade-Cascade220Sport.htm
Tosh Sock (100% wool, 100 g, 361 m/394 yds).
http://madelinetosh.com/tosh-sock/
Berroco Cosma (60% alpaca, 30% wool, 10% silk, 50 g, 150 m/164 yds).
http://www.berroco.com/yarns/berroco-cosma
Or another Sport/5 ply or Fingering 4/ply yarn.

Needles:
3 mm/US 2.5 circular needle (80 cm/32” and 40 cm/16”).
2.5 mm/US 1.5 circular needle (120 cm/48”) for frontband.
3 mm/US 2.5 DPNs.
Adjust needle size as needed to match gauge.

Notions: 10 buttons (15 mm/0.52”), stitch markers, stitch holders, cable needle and yarn needle.

Gauge: 24 sts and 34 rows/rnds in st st measures 10 cm/4” square.
Barra Cable (12-sts) measures 5.5 cm/2.25” across.
Barra Cable (50-rows) measures 14 cm/5.5” high.

Notes: The body is worked flat in pieces, unlike the long sleeves which are worked in the round after the sideways cable panel cuff to the armhole. Stitches are picked up along right side of the cuff for the top sleeve.

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Photoshoot at Villa Malla: Sirona

Posted on July 7, 2018 by Linda Marveng

Sirona, was another pullover that looked magnificent on Emma Ross at Villa Malla in late May. Photographer Eivind Røhne made sure we did not have any women in bikinis’ in the background and captured all these brilliant shots. Yes, I did struggle to minimise the number of chosen photographs. Sissel Fylling made sure Em’s hair & makeup was up to scratch and suggested a number of poses to Em. The statement jewellery is by Kaja Gjedebo Design and the boots are by Monica Stålvang. Sirona is Celtic for Star Goddess, the name for this fitted pullover with an intricate central cable surrounded with smaller cables and seed stitch. The round neckline needed a crown and was given an I-cord bind off decoration. Sirona is knitted in pieces in the divine The Fibre Co. Cumbria.

I knitted this sample in the St. Bees Beach colourway of The Fibre Co. Cumbria using 3.5 mm/US 4 and 4 mm/US 6 needles with a gauge of 20 stitches and 28 rows in stockinette stitch measures 10 cm/4″ square. The yarn is made of 60% Merino wool, 30% Brown Masham wool, 10% Mohair, with 218 meters/238 yards on each 100 gram skein.

Yes, Cumbria has become one of my staple yarns. This is the third pullover I have designed in this yarn. Vaga was the previous one and the first one was Eira Pullover made for knit.wear Fall/Winter 2017. Eira Pullover has been returned from Interweave to me and will be photographed again in my next photoshoot.

Sirona is worked back and forth in pieces and seamed. The neckband is worked in the round. Stitches are picked up and knitted from the first round of the neckband for the I-cord bind off decoration. Em is wearing size S, but I have graded the pullover from sizes XS to 2XL with a bust & hip circumference of 86 to 126 cm/33.75 to 49.5″. Waist circumference from 76 to 116 cm/30 to 41.75″.

The Norwegian pattern will be published in a special magazine by Familien released in August, while the English pattern will be test knitted in my Ravelry group beginning 6th of August before its release.

I did wonder whether I should use the brown ski pants or the navy blue silk trousers together with Sirona, but opted for the silk trousers in the end since it is a fitted pullover. Next in this series from the photoshoot is the vest Var made for Hillesvåg Ullvarefabrikk.

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Ardra Pattern Released

Posted on July 4, 2018 by Linda Marveng

The test knit of Ardra has been completed and you can see a number of lovely versions on the Ravelry pattern page. Thank you to all my test knitters who corrected and improved the pattern. Ardra was made for Hillesvåg Ullvarefabrikk in the divine Sølje Peltwool. I choose the shade Cognac, since I knew how well it would match gorgeous modell Emma Ross’ hair. Photographer Eivind Røhne captured this shot of Em, with hair & makeup by Sissel Fylling and jewellery by Kaja Gjedebo Design, at Bøler Church, last autumn.

Round knot cables run along the body of this a-line pullover with a slightly longer back. Only one cable adorns each sleeve. The body is worked in the round and ends in a round neck with an I-cord bind-off. A false seam on the sides make the fit better. Ardra is Celtic and means noble.

Sizes: XS (S, M, L, XL, 2XL)

Finished Measurements
Bust: 84 (90, 96, 106, 116, 126) cm/33 (35.5, 37.75, 41.75, 45.75, 49.5)“
Bottom width: 98 (104, 110, 120, 130, 140) cm/38.5 (41, 43.25, 47.25, 51.25, 55)”
Length back: 75.5 cm/29.75”
Length front: 69.5 cm/27.25”
Sleeve length: 49 (50, 50, 50, 51, 51) cm/19.25 (19.75, 19.75, 19.75, 20, 20)“

Yarn: Hillesvåg Ullvarefabrikk, Sølje Pelsull (100% pelt wool, 350 m/383 yds, 100 g). The sample is knitted in Cognac 2103; 3.5 (4, 4, 4.5, 5, 5.5) skeins;
1215 (1295, 1375, 1509, 1643, 1777) m/1328 (1416, 1503, 1650, 1796, 1943) yds.
https://www.ull.no/produktkategori/garn/ullgarn/norsk-pel…

Needles: 3 mm/US 2.5 circular needle (80 cm/32” and 40 cm/16”).
3 mm/US 2.5 DPNs for sleeves.
Adjust needle size as needed to match gauge.

Notions: Stitch markers (removable), cable needle and yarn needle.

Gauge: 24 sts and 32 rows in st st, after blocking measures 10 cm/4” square.
48-sts Ardra Cable Body measures 13 cm/5” across.

Notes: The body is knitted in the round with short rows for a longer curved hem at the back up to the armhole. Then it is worked back and forth in Back and Front. The sleeves are knitted in the round up to the armhole.

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Linda Marveng

Knit wear designer and author

Monthly Archives: July 2018

Photoshoot at Villa Malla: Irpa

Deep South Fibers

Photoshoot at Villa Malla: Sigyn

Kohno Kimono in Sommerstrikk

Photoshoot at Villa Malla: Var

Barra Pattern Released

Photoshoot at Villa Malla: Sirona

Ardra Pattern Released