Letters
There’s No Place Like House
Dear Ann,
The sun may have set on the official knitalong for Kaffe Fassett’s intarsia designs in Field Guide No. 16: Painterly, but I’m still at play in the fields of Felted Tweed. I certainly have plenty of it! I’ve reeled in my Kites Throw, which is now a Kites Cushion in progress. I’ll be knitting meditatively away on those sublime chalky triangles, for the foreseeable future.
But even after making more than a dozen small houses from the chart for the Village Scarf, I’ve still got houses on the brain.
I recently learned that a group of friends is using the Village chart as a jumping-off point for a group blanket for someone they admire. They are making lots of Kaffe’s houses, but because the only requirement is to knit a 12-inch (30.5 cm) square in Felted Tweed, the knitters are mixing up the house blocks with stripes and other inspired pattern play.
A houses-themed blanket? I wanted IN.
Knitting a square for this group blanket was a fantastic pretext to cook up a knitted interpretation of a quilt block I adore. You can see the inspiration on quilter Kim Smith Soper’s Instagram, where a new version of this strikingly clean-cut yet homey block is appearing every day for 100 days.
When I’m wild about a quilt, the first thing I usually want to do is knit it. So out came the Felted Tweed bits and bobs.
I’m only on my second house, but my mind is spinning with possibilities.
This little house is about as low an intarsia entry bar as you can find. And I’m loving working intarsia in garter stitch, with its more pronounced lines at the color changes.
The Recipe
I’m putting this here in case anyone would like to join me. It’s not a pattern so much as a template. Once you get the structure and proportions in your head (I’m still tinkering with both of those things), there can be one house or two houses, tall narrow houses, a little row of beach huts, or a hip-roofed shed. The background can be solid or striped, realistic or fantastical in colors. I feel like these blocks, like the houses in Kaffe’s Village Scarf, are a keepsake of these many months spending as much time as we can inside our own houses.
In the MDK Shop
Materials: Yarn of the same weight in several colors, needles that will get you the fabric that you would like for your quilt house block. For my 12-inch square block, I used Rowan Felted Tweed and size US 4 (3.5 mm) needles, for a blocked gauge of 5 stitches to the inch (2.5 cm).
Using Color A, cast on 61 stitches.
Yard
Knit 24 garter ridges (48 rows) in A. Cut A.
House Body
Ridge 25 (RS): Change to B. Knit 25 stitches in B, 11 stitches in C, 25 stitches in B.
Continue as set until the house body has 11 ridges on the RS. Cut B and C.
Roof
Ridge 36 (RS): Change to D. Knit 25 stitches in D, 11 stitches in E, 25 stitches in D. Repeat this row on the WS.
Ridge 37 (RS): Knit 26 stitches in D, 9 stitches in E, 26 stitches in D. Repeat this row on the WS.
Continue as set, reducing the number of stitches worked in the roof color by one stitch at each edge of the roof, until the roof has just 1 stitch remaining in color E. Repeat this row on the WS. Cut E.
Sky
Continue working garter stitch in color D until the block has a total of 61 ridges. Bind off, weave in ends, and block.
From House-bound to House Proud
Once you get this simple structure down, the variations are endless. One member of the group is already doing a version in which the house shape is outlined instead of color-blocked.
Will anything come of this besides the pleasure of doing it? I don’t know.
Does anything need to come of this besides the pleasure of doing it? You know my answer to that one.
Happy house-hunting.
Love,
Kay
This is sort of cosmic. I have been thinking of an intarsia patch scrappy squares blanket to use up all my multi colored sock yarn. I just have to figure how much cream yarn I am going to need for “scrappy squares” borders.
I love your idea. I have lots of multi-colored sock yarn and don’t know what to do with it. My yarn is all fingering weight. Is that good for a blanket? I use Size 0 needles for socks. What size do you suggest for a blanket?
I love this so much, Kay! Thanks for the endless inspiration. Truly.
I love this, gorgeous colours, I actually prefer yours to the original quilt square
I’ve been wanting to start something with the original “little houses” and I love quilts/ afghans but have never tried intarsia. So it was a bit intimidating – now this is perfect! I love the flexibility to change up the design. Here I go!
Aha! so this is what all those Felted Tweed leftovers are for! I’m afraid I might never do the seaming, but coasters, maybe?
Thank you for opening this door! I raced from “houses I’ve lived in” to “architectural styles in places I’ve lived.” It will be a sort of travelogue and memory quilt.
I love this idea! And if I don’t have the stamina for a whole blanket, this would make a lovely scarf commemorating a lifetime of homes.
Stamina is definitely a thing! I’m looking at it as a series of 12″ squares, each (in my mind) its own project. I’m “scaffolding” the project.
Agree!
Fabulous!
Oh, Kay. You know I love this so much. Thank you all for the continual inspiration!
Wonderfully Scandinavian minimalist. Love it.
I blatantly stole your idea. Mine is two slightly different houses on a one color background. I could definitely see doing this randomly over time for myself too. Thanks, as always, for the inspiration.
This is WONDERFUL!!!! THANK YOU!!!!
I love this house blanket idea and your template jump off as inspiration.
I was thinking of trying this in my second shawl from Kaffe shawl in guide 13. It’s a definite now. Love!!! Thanks for sharing.
Wonderfully simple yet inspiring design. Could definitely imagine a whole blanket or throw, or a series of pillows. What a great addition to the project!
Is my math wrong? If I cast on 61 stitches, when I change to house color, 20+11+20 only equals 51. What am I missing? “Ridge 25 (RS): Change to B. Knit 20 stitches in B, 11 stitches in C, 20 stitches in B.”
She must have meant 25 stitches in B, 11 in C, and 25 in B.
Yes, you’re right! This is why I am not allowed out of the house without a tech editor! I will make that edit above now, to avoid further consternation. Thank you!
Kay, I expect you know the work of Jennifer Bartlett? Her recurring theme of houses presents images so much like what you’re playing with here. The art museum here in Grand Rapids has one of her large paintings, and I’ve always loved its stripped-down genius. I just looked at “Jennifer Bartlett images” and saw at least one with repeating house motifs—like a quilt.
I do not know her work but I’m off for a google that I’m sure I’ll enjoy!
“as low an intarsia entry bar as you can find“ is music to my ears. These are cute! And a great blanket idea. Thanks.
Mary Lou: there is no tangle with this one! Not enough going on to get a tangle going.
I adore the house/home idea.Many items in my queue may have to be passed over to start a house project. Scared, though, of even trying to step over a minimal intarsia bar! Thanks so much ❤️ for this post.
Ever since Jan. 6th (O frabjous day!) I have been contemplating a house block with the Capital, unsullied, of course!
Glorious!
Your houses and colors used are my style. More Albers and less Camp Fire Girls. I can get behind this look. I see houses in my future.
Not that there’s anything wrong with Camp Fire Girls [wink emoji]
Signed, Camp Fire Girl Emeritus
I’m a card carrying member.
Yes, and Campfire Girls sold candy! Where I was, it was chocolate covered mints. Kay, I think yours was Russell Stover. Yum!
From house-bound to house-proud – love it! Also, I particularly love the block on the right, which says “beach house” to me.
Oh, Kay! PLEASE keep this going! This idea has struck me deeply in the home-sweet-home kind of way. I do so love houses. I am thinking of doing this to represent different places I’ve lived and will embroider the house number on each one. What a wonderful little gift to someone just moving into a new house. THIS is sooo lovely and I love it. Wish everyone would post what they do on instagram. It would be winner! Thanks for starting what may be a “thing”!
I love this. If my home were on fire, one of the things I’d grab is a tiny picture of a red house by Swedish painter Jeanne Hedstrom (from the late and very lamented Penine Hart shop on Kenmare St—any NYers remember it? sob sob) that has the same feel. Another excellent feature, for a blanket, won’t the garter stitch make a more reversible wrong side?
Patricia Cantos has a nice video on how to do the color changes in garter intarsia:
http://patriciacantosdesign.com/video/intarsia-knitting-garter-stitch-video-tutorial/
Thank you
I read this post at o’dark30 & have dipped in & out of creative ideas all day! I love this site so much & your wonderful projects! I have not had a chance to read all the comment but please say you will create a ‘house’ lounge spot ❤️
I. Love. This. ❤
LOVE this!
these houses remind me of the beach houses in some of Kaffe’s books. Cool interpretation.
I took some time off from knitting (okay, a few years). Came back to MDK, saw a bunch of changes, but appreciate that the same warmth and friendliness is still here.
I also appreciate the thinking and intent behind the name change. Times change and we grow.
Love this!
I’m on love!
In love. For heavens sake!
Heaven’s. I give up.
I love this! Perfect for a wedding present for a couple I know! I had chosen a different pattern but this is so beautiful and matches their aesthetic!
I love the idea of a blanket made up of houses. Any thoughts on designing a blanket pattern?