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Dear Ann,

I tried not to dither too long on my choice of pattern for my wheel of Rifton in our exclusive Appalachian Trail shade. I was curious as to how it would knit up. In the wheel (or cake), it looks less contrast-y than the Winter shade of Rifton that I used for my Metronome this past summer.

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Metronome. External Link. Opens in new window., with its mesh of intarsia stripes, highlighted the light/dark contrasts in the Winter shade, and the garter stitch further compressed and sharpened those contrasts.

I was searching for a pattern that would emphasize the misty ombre transitions of Appalachian Trail.

At some point, you have to stop looking and cast on. My choice: Hei. External Link. Opens in new window. by Olga Buraya-Kefelian. External Link. Opens in new window..

kaypatternsearchpartyrifton1hei

Here’s Hei in Rifton’s Summer colorway–plum and brown.

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And here’s my start on Hei in Appalachian Trail.

Jill Draper had told me that the transitions were delicate in this colorway. It is a thrill waiting for palest blue to turn to pale caramel, and caramel to turn to green. The faintest of green speckles. It’s like the first moments of dawn; you’re not quite sure. I kept looking at the cake to confirm: yes, green is right there, green is happening.

Hei’s stitch pattern is a bit fussy: knit-3-togethers and slip-slip-slip-knits are involved, every 8 rows. Basically, a lot of buttonholes. So far I think it’s worth the trouble on those rows. I love the shading.

People keep asking for pattern suggestions, so here they are.

kaypatternsearchpartyrifton12magmatic

Magmatic. External Link. Opens in new window. by Laura Nelkin. External Link. Opens in new window..

Magmatic has that Missoni vibe that is always chic, and cool twisted fringe. There is a neat trick: Magmatic is knit in the round, and the fringe is created by steeking. Ooooooh! Spicy! I like a twisted fringe. It seems so much tidier.  Plus, in Rifton, you end up with some barber-pole fringes.  (For the same stitch pattern in a boomerang shaped shawl sans fringe, check out Laura’s Magmatic Boom.. External Link. Opens in new window. Both patterns only take one skein of Rifton. Boom.)

kaypatternsearchpartyrifton13dottedrays

Dotted Rays. External Link. Opens in new window. by Stephen West. External Link. Opens in new window..

Believe it or not, this is one skein of Rifton. How fun to knit those splashy, curvacious stripes without cutting yarn!

Metronome, Magmatic and Dotted Rays are all tried-and-true–we can cast on with an idea of how Rifton will play with the pattern.

Two other patterns are intriguing possibilities that invite experimentation:

kaypatternsearchpartyrifton14lokken

Lokken . External Link. Opens in new window.(pictured above) and Ephemera. External Link. Opens in new window., both by Megi Burcl. External Link. Opens in new window..

I haven’t found a Rifton version of either pattern, but both were designed for long-striping ombre yarns, and the designer has Instagrammed. External Link. Opens in new window. that she is working on a Rifton version of Ephemera.  Can’t wait to see it!

(For those in possession of a skein or two of Rifton Mono and a skein of regular Rifton, I’m going to suggest, strongly: MAKE A HAP. External Link. Opens in new window.. The center in the solid, and the lace border in the ombre Rifton.)

[Friends: please chime in other suggestions for patterns that you think would work with Rifton, and please please please send in pictures of any projects in Appalachian Trail.]

I’m making quick progress on my Hei but am still not through all of the color changes. Patience is a virtue, they say.

Love,

Kay

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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