Yarns to Love
Two Shakerag Tops
Dear knitterfolk,
Tonight, we conclude our MDK Gems lovefest/promotion for Amy Christoffers’s Shakerag Top.
Many of you have clambered onto this bandwagon, lured by the siren call of our special deal/free gift with purchase. The deal? Order any quantity of Rowan Summerlite 4ply OR the superlush Jade Sapphire Sylph (52% cashmere/48% linen), and we’ll include a free download of the complete ebook edition of Field Guide No. 6: Transparency with Amy’s pattern.
Options, You Have Options
In the interest of stirring interest among those of you still on the fence and not yet on the bandwagon, we write today with a rare HYBRID KAY AND ANN post in which we share our tales of the Shakerag Tops we made using Rowan Summerlite 4ply.
Kay: One color of Rowan Summerlite 4 ply. Navy.
This is unsurprising. Kay has navy trees in her yard. Kay’s coffee runs navy. Kay’s dog is navy. Here is Kay’s chronicle, “The Triumphant FO.”
Ann: Two colors of Rowan Summerlite 4ply. Coral Blush and Langoustino.
Orange and orangepink. This is so shocking a combination for Ann that she still can’t quite believe she did this. Read about this wild adventure in “Cotton Dreams.”
Moral of the story here: there are many roads to glory, and the fun thing about the Shakerag Top is that it allows you to go subtle or bonkers exactly as you wish.
We’ve frankly sold through a fair amount of our Summerlite 4ply, so you’ll want to scamper over to the Shop now if you’d like to take advantage of our MDK Gems special offer.
What Is That Offer Again?
Order any quantity of Rowan Summerlite 4ply OR the superlush Jade Sapphire Sylph (52% cashmere/48%linen), and we’ll include a free download of the complete ebook edition of Field Guide No. 6: Transparency. This is a $9.95 value, and it includes three more excellent Amy Christoffers designs.
Needless to say, we are scheming up our next Shakerag Tops.
Love,
Ann and Kay
Will colors of the Rowan cotton be restocked?
Hi, Suzanne! Yes, Summerlite will be restocked; it’s basically *always* on some sort of order, but it’s hard to predict when each color shows up. Just keep checking in!
Love, love, love the eye-opening surprise of Ann’s 2 colours together. Game changer! Thanks.
My Summerlite in Blossom is on the way. I seriously considered The same combo Ann did, but decided this first one needed to be more neutral. Notice I say “first” one…
Olive is NOT navy. Olive is upset and will chew on anyone who says she is navy. (Olive, you owe me 2 mouses for this.)
I have asked this question and am still waiting for a reply. If it takes 7 skeins of the Summerlite 4 ply for the sweater, how much of each color would you need if knitting it in two colors. I love this sweater and also the idea of using two colors.
Hi, Marta. Ann covers that in this post. Just scroll down a bit to get to the breakdown.
I wonder how this would work in wool fingering? I have the perfect gradient blue set from Koigu for this, but I’m not sure about drape or summer wearability.
I’m looking forward to knitting this in Ann’s (former?) favorite color, green(s), that I’ve had for a bit for this purpose. Green Bay and Mint, here we goooo!
I made my first one several years ago and want to try again, I’ve learned a trick or too since then and also figured the “next size up” will have a good drape. Pardon me while I peruse Summerlite colors, although the always safe navy sounds good……
I wish I could buy individual patterns instead of only field guides. Do you have any plans for adding that option to your website?
Hi, Hilary. Field Guides are really the bedrock of MDK and how we package most patterns – though there are some patterns that predate the Field Guides that we do offer separately (the Belinda Wrap we’ve been talking about for a bit is one of those). Once you download a Field Guide, you can always just print the pages of the PDF that relate to the pattern you’re working on. And at under $16 (under $10 if you buy just the digital version) for three to five patterns per Field Guide, they’re quite the bargain!
would this be a good travel project? asking for a friend.
When using the Summerlite is Kay using one row single strand and then 2 strands?
Advice please. I made my first Shakerag about a year ago out of Jade Sylph, purchased from MDK. Now I want to make another, this time with Moon Drake Merino Linen and Fuwa Fuwa (both are fingering). I see that Rowan Summerlite is a popular option in two different colors for this pattern too. When you do that, are you holding either double (as with the Sylph) or just alternating the colors?