Dear Knitters and Crocheters,

While driving out to apple country this brilliant October afternoon, a colorful landscape unfolded before me, reminding me of an exquisite tapestry. The view out an airplane window on an autumnal flight over New England at this peak foliage moment reveals its rivers, fertile farmlands, valleys, roads, trees and mountains in rhythmic waves of color, texture, and shimmer.  I remember the moment when the marvelous chiaroscuro of nature's tapestry inspired me as I rushed home to create the Pastiche Throw. This landscape inspiration was mother nature's blanket that keeps the earth warm from the chill winds of winter.

One of our favorite knitters was inspired by Pastiche to experiment with other Berroco yarns.  Hers is an ode to her favorite shades of green and it is so beautiful. I was thrilled to have inspired this great work.  Donna has allowed us to post a pattern for her exquisite interpretation of Pastiche.  We call it Homage Throw.  Donna chose green shades of Chinchilla Bulky, Monet, Softwist, Suede, Mosaic FX, Zen Colors, Chinchilla, Medley, Mohair Classic Heather, and Quest. Today we are posting the Free Web Exclusive pattern for Homage Throw.

Well, times have certainly changed since the early to mid twentieth century, when all we had for yarns was classic knitting worsted wool or acrylic. Color and stitch pattern were the only palette with which to create knitted or crocheted fabrics.  Today, yarns are available that resemble the textures of foliage, the shimmer of mountain streams, the nap of grassy fields.  The infinite richness of multi-colored and multi-textural yarns allows us to craft a far more painterly pattern of wave stitch stripes.  As I have witnessed the sister crafts of knitting and crocheting evolve in this new century, the possibilities are endless.  Truly, we are only confined by the limits of the yarn spinners' imagination.  I am confident that we are in store for many years of exciting new yarns. Because technology and creativity converge in the mills in Italy, each season Berroco can present exciting new yarn developments and inspire you to create new and unique fabrics for garments, home décor and accessories.

I hope that Homage Throw has inspired you to make your own painterly interpretation. Go into your local yarn shop and put together a personalized assortment of Berroco Yarns and colors to suit your unique interior décor.  It may be helpful to bring along some fabric and paint swatches if your color memory isn't the greatest.
 
For those of you without the budget or time for an entire throw, we have a scarf pattern, Pastiche 2 Scarf, that was also inspired by Pastiche. We're featuring 9 color combinations that could even inspire new colorways for Homage Throw.


This week we are featuring a new free poncho fever pattern called Donatella Poncho.  It's knit in Suede in our new hot pink we call Belle Starr.  It is an easy to knit rib stitch rectangle that has a single shoulder seam and fringe on 3 sides.




Felice from Westboro, MA wrote:
"I love the Pastiche Throw, but I don't know how to knit.  Is there a crochet stitch that I can substitute for the knit stitch pattern in that throw?"

Yes, Felice, the "Feather and Fan Stitch" has long been a favorite stitch pattern for afghan knitters.  The crocheter's counterpart is called the "Wave Stitch".

These two stitch patterns date back to when there was nothing but classic knitting worsted weight yarns available. In those days, colors and stitch patterns were the only means of creating patterning.  Thus the evolution of a wavy striped stitch, which was used to create the popular afghans of the early and mid twentieth century.

For my readers who prefer to crochet, here is a pattern stitch that looks like the knitted feather and fan stitch we used for Pastiche.  You can work 6 to 8 rows in each stripe. You will want to experiment with hook sizes to determine which size hook suits the yarns you have chosen. Here are instructions for crocheting the Wave Stitch. You will need to chain a multiple of 13 stitches.

All the best,


Margery Winter
Creative Director

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