Hello, Makers!
It’s MKAL season!
No matter what season you are in weather-wise, the crafting world has entered its annual mystery knit-along season.
Every September/October, you can find many mystery knit-alongs. They range from shawls, socks, cowls, and sometimes even sweaters. There is definitely something for everyone out there.
In the last few weeks, more and more offerings have been popping up on Ravelry.
We have the annual WestKnits MKAL – the arguably biggest mystery knit-along out there with thousands of participants each year. This year's shawl is called GEOGRADIENT, and all we know so far is that you will need 4 skeins of fingering weight yarn in a gradient. Typically, Stephen West’s mystery shawls turn out to be rather large, so you will have lots of fun knitting time ahead if you participate. If you need to enter a boot camp to get yourself ready, we have put together a workout playlist that we will share at the end of this newsletter. ;-)
The WestKnits shawl isn’t the only shawl/wrap MKAL happening. There is also the “Secret Forest MKAL” by Lisa K. Ross. It started on September 5th and uses 2 skeins of fingering weight yarn for the main color, plus 7 different contrast colors. The pattern page says that you will end up with a large wrap. Sounds like a lot of fun!
As October is also known as Socktober in the knitting world, there are some sock-specific MKALs happening, too. Laura Fahlin is offering the “Time Flies” mystery pattern for a Ravelry group called “Solid Socks.”
Becky Greene’s pattern “Melencolia” is inspired by an engraving from Albrecht Dürer and has been designed for the “Sock Knitter Anonymous” group.
If you are not the biggest fan of mystery knit-alongs, but still want to share the fun of knitting with lots of others, there are also “normal” KALs happening right now. The biggest one is definitely the “Joji Fall KAL,” with thousands of participants. Every year, starting on September 1st, Joji Locatelli is doing her fall knit-along. You can sign up to “officially” participate and even be eligible for prizes, or you can just knit along on your own.
Another KAL that also started on September 1st is the “Chevron Delight” KAL organized by Malabrigo Yarn. You could have signed up through their blog or just joined the fun by knitting along with others. The pattern for this shawl is by Lora Marin and is offered for free.
What you missed on KnitLeaks
We introduced you to two different yarns, a new wool from Rosários 4 called “Romaria” and the beautiful hand-dyed yarn Alltkemi from Sweden. We also reviewed Lucía Ruiz de Aguirre's new shawl book "Knitisimo.”
Have you ever tried knitting while walking? No? You can change that, and our article will help you do it. We also talked about crochet patterns by Pom pom, and some stash-busting ideas.
Next up on KnitLeaks…
We will talk about new yarns on the market, how to care for your knits, sock knitting, knitted handbags, and more!
Our Workout Playlist
Every once in a while, we share specially curated playlists in our newsletter. If you have missed any, you can find them on Spotify by searching for “KnitLeaks” or by reading the newsletters you missed on Substack.
This time around, we share our workout playlist. It’s meant to keep you going while working out, but it would also make for a great “knitting boot camp” soundtrack.
You can access the playlist on Spotify, or if you are not using Spotify, you can find it at the end of this newsletter. We hope you enjoy it!
— The KnitLeaks Team
Workout Playlist by Theresia Lew:
Maneskin – I WANNA BE YOUR SLAVE
BTS, Steve Aoki – MIC Drop
Eminem – Lose Yourself
Fatboy Slim – The Rockafeller Skank
Dorothy – Raise Hell
Rage Against The Machine – Killing In The Name
Liquido – Narcotic
blink-182 – All The Small Things
Guano Apes – Open Your Eyes
H-Blockx – Move
Agust D – Haegum
Run-D.M.C., Jason Nevins – It’s Like That
Muse – Uprising
SNAP! – The Power
Survivor – Eye of the Tiger