Hello Blue Sky Friends,

Have you ever had the perfect cardigan? The one that goes with everything and looks appropriate for almost any occasion? The Primavera Cardigan is that cardigan.

The Primavera Cardigan, knit in Blue Sky Alpacas Sport Weight, Citron 536.

Cecily Glowik MacDonald designs everyday sweaters, with a twist. A box pleat, takes this cardigan far from a store bought counterpart. Knit in one piece, in sumptuous 100% baby alpaca it is an attainable sweater for the beginning knitter to the most advanced knitter looking for a straightforward and wearable piece. The Primavera Cardigan, in Blue Sky Alpacas Sport Weight is a decadent everyday sweater.

A detail that makes this cardigan fun and feminine.

Blue Sky Alpacas Sport Weight comes in thirty-four colors, including three new colors released with this collection.

Callalily (546) is a pure, rich white; Hydrangea (547) a regal purple; Aquamarine (548) reminiscent of the March birthstone. Blue Sky Alpacas Melange is the same weight and gauge as our Sport Weight. Melange is a heathered version of Sport Weight with eighteen colors to choose from. That is fifty-two total colors to choose from for this cardigan. Or one color for each week of the year, however you choose to look at it.

Just keep knitting, knitting, knitting…

Katie

We have three Winners! Congratulations to Cassandra, Tammy and Susan! (All the winners have been contacted). You have all won the London Tunic pattern and enough TECHNO to make the vest in your choice of colors! Happy Weekend BSA Friends!

Cassandra’s Winning Comment: “I would knit the tunic with Smoke as the main colour and Atomic Green for the contrast colour then pair it with wide legged jeans and a white half-sleeve tee.”

Tammy’s Winning Comment: “I thought Smoke & Lounge Purple would look great together. Thanks for the chance to win!”

Susan’s Winning Comment: “Lounge Purple and Aquarius would be fab to wear with jeans, skinny top and big boots. How cool would I look?!”

Thank you to all the Blue Sky Friends that participated.

Hello Blue Sky Alpaca Friends,

“Fashions fade, style is eternal.” – Yves Saint Laurent.

This quote, by one of the most influential designers of our time is one to remember. Applicable when shopping for clothes to curtains or picking patterns and colors to knit. The London Tunic by Elinor Brown exudes style. Timeless and modern, this is a classic staple piece that every wardrobe should have. A quick knit in two simple pieces. I love TECHNO!

From the Spring 2012 Collection

Have you noticed neutrals are everywhere? These neutrals are paired with bright, neon punches of color. The TECHNO palette is just the right luxury to complete this style. This vest is perfect for playing with color and enlivening your wardrobe. Wouldn’t pairing Fame (1970) and Aquarius (1977) be perfection? And speaking of classic, Cha-Cha Red (1976) and Club Gray (1975) would be striking. Metro Silver (1971) and Posh Pink (1981) are very suited to one another. It would sure be hard to make a decision…

Blue Sky Alpacas TECHNO, available in six classic neutrals and seven pop brights.

Blue Sky would love to give that decision to three lucky Bluesletter readers. Leave a comment on this post (one per person please) telling Blue Sky which color combo you would pick and how you would wear your new sweater vest. We’ll pick three winners on Friday. You will receive enough yarn to make the London Tunic in your choice of colors as well as the pattern. We cannot wait to hear the palettes you come up with!

Just keep knitting, knitting, knitting…

Katie

I’m sure that I am not alone in saying, I consider myself a fan of Olga Buraya-Kefelian’s amazing design work. Olga’s Jazzy Cardigan has been a fabulous and popular pattern within the Spring 2012 Collection. She has done a number of designs for Blue Sky, many of which I consider personal favorites. I am pleased to share an interview with Olga, I hope you enjoy. I was very excited to get to know her more.

Olga’s most recent Blue Sky Design, the Jazzy Cardigan in Blue Sky Alpacas TECHNO.

Katie: Olga, please tell us a bit about yourself.

Olga: I originally come from an Eastern European county of Belarus. I have been living in the United States for almost a decade and all over the globe since my spouse is in the service. Currently, I reside in Japan – a country I have always admired and was eager to explore. Different mentality and cultural differences are quite a lot to learn, but it certainly helps to learn more about oneself through this cultural interaction and I’ve discovered new potential for my creativity with this new experience. My husband and I are the lucky “staff” to one bossy Russian Blue cat.

Katie: How and when did you learn to knit? When did you know that this was going to be your career?

Olga: I have my first recollection of being around four years old and having my mom teach me to knit some garter stitch in a rust orange wool yarn. I have been dabbling in it, on and off as a child, as a teenager my grandmother introduced me to crochet and I have been doing it for awhile. Growing up in a household of a seamstress I was exposed to learning all kinds of hand crafts – beading, macramé, tapestry weaving, embroidery among many others. I have started knitting on a regular basis in my senior year of high school, winters were brutally cold and wool layers were a necessity. While traveling and living in Italy, I have learnt about various existing yarn brands and companies that had their innumerable range of yarns for sale to the general public; compared to when I was growing up, all we knew were conventional cotton, acrylic and wool – no name, no brand, just whatever kind was available to us. Occasionally, a mill in town would have an odds and ends sale – that was a treat! Where I come from no pattern support was ever available, so whatever we knit we had to make up ourselves. My mother taught me the basics of construction and calculations and we had an ancient book on knitting that contained several stitch patterns that we could utilize in creating our own garments. But only years later I wrote my first pattern in English after teaching myself through book’s various tricks and methods applied in knitting today. 2005 is what I refer to as the starting year in my career as a knitwear designer. And ever since then I have been trying to perfect my style and my writing.

The Pleated Jacket, a personal favorite in Blue Sky Alpacas Suri Merino.

Katie: As someone with designs reminiscent of architecture, flying buttress cables and rose window lace panels, was that your intent? Does architecture inspire you? Were you thinking of building yourself as a niche designer with complex, architecturally themed pieces or did it naturally happen as an extension of your personal style?

Olga: I have been admiring and have always been transfixed by the linear textures of architectural structures, it felt to me that is something I want to translate into my designs and wear personally. I am a follower of fashion styles and trends. They provide great inspiration and clue to details, but the biggest problem is that the fashion theatre does not transition well into street life. I pick things I like and prefer to wear myself. My goal is to make modern, sometimes edgy, knitwear turn conventional. I strive to find that balance in my designs and present it to knitters, so they can feel contemporary, elegant, comfortable, yet unique. Part of the reason I knit is that I can create garments that are customized and one of a kind.

Aprés Vest, a great layering piece in Blue Sky Alpacas TECHNO.

Katie: What do you love to knit, for yourself?

Olga: I am a sweater knitter, full sized garments take longer to construct and knit but they present a full range of challenges that I enjoy taking on and enjoy wearing once finished.

Katie: What’s your knitting space like?

Olga: My living room has been transformed into a mini-office, but it provides necessary light throughout the day that I need for knitting. I also enjoy the light since it provides lovely display for my yarny goodness nested inside my bookshelf. I miss having a friendly yarn store nearby, so I try to showcase the yarn by color families and let it provide me with ideas, what it wants to become. A lounge chair and a couch are both favorite places to knit while working on the projects. Coffee table and a big desk – both never show their surfaces since they are littered with swatches, skeins of yarn, pattern notes. As well as baskets scattered around the floor with projects half-done or with yarn waiting to be knit.

The Fitted Lace Pullover, romantic and feminine in Sport Weight or Melange and Brushed Suri.

Katie: What are your favorite materials, fibers, needles, a specialized gadget or tool you cannot live without?

Olga: When it comes to yarn to work with I do prefer ones that are soft and easy on the hands, I don’t have an absolute favorite fiber any more since there are so many available these days. I love working with most for their hand or simply admire the fabric that they can produce. Being what you call a Combination-style or Eastern European-style knitter I prefer sharp tipped knitting needles, metal or wood circulars and dpns are my go-to tools. A gadget I can’t live without would be my measuring tape.

Olga, our fabulous designer wearing her Foggy Hat in Blue Sky Alpacas Suri Merino.

Katie: What’s your favorite color? What color do you gravitate to knitting with?

Olga: My favorite color is orange, only I don’t necessarily wear it a lot. It’s a strong color, so I try to incorporate it in my accessories – a bag or a bracelet or a hat. I love all shades of grey, it’s probably that it is the best neutral color that looks good against my complexion and it’s easy to layer with other complimenting colors. But I do enjoy brights – shades of yellow, lavender and turquoise are other favorites of mine.

Katie: Do you have an outside influence? As in, some people quilt, crochet, etc. so that when their knitting mojo goes on the fritz you turn to it in order to re-energize your work. Something you admire that you feel energized by/makes you want to translate it into knitting?

Olga: As a daughter of a professional seamstress, I sew. But I am not very fast or very good at it. I like to be very meticulous with my work and in sewing it takes time and practice to acquire good skills. I do end up making some clothing items and accessories and I also make some small jewelry pieces for myself or friends from time to time. Being in Japan has re-kindled my love for making origami and I credit it for a lot of my knitwear inspiration. I have always admired it because I have been making it since I was a child, but nowadays I see more and more potential in it through my eyes of an adult and a knitwear designer.

The Knot Sleeve Blouse, with a stunning, three dimensional, architectural sleeve detail in Blue Sky Alpacas Royal.

Katie: As someone living outside the U.S., what knitting do you bring on the airplane?

Olga: It’s a tricky question, since usually while traveling internationally many air carriers still don’t allow knitting needles on the plane, but if they do I try to bring bigger garments, like sweaters that use circular needles.

The Cabled Cowl, a deliciously cozy accessory in Blue Sky Alpacas Suri Merino.

Katie: Do you have a special tip/trick/finishing technique you’d like to share?

Olga: I don’t think I use any special ones that aren’t used already but my advice would be for any knitter to learn how to graft – it’s a technique that opens lots of boundaries in all senses of knitwear construction as well as comes in handy in finishing.

Katie: Is there something you don’t like about knitting?

Olga: I had to think about this for a long while and the answer is no. I have been knitting in various places and knitting has broken boundaries and created so many friends and made so many sweaters. It’s common knowledge that many knitters might not be keen on finishing/seaming their finished knitted pieces into a garment, but there is a variety of methods that one can turn what used to be a garment knit in pieces into a piece to be made seamlessly. And both of them have their purposes and uses. I personally enjoy finishing and I think it’s exactly through that process that can transform a finished project into a perfect state!

A punchy way to use color from our sister website, Spud & Choë’s the Trifecta Scarf in Spud & Chloë Fine.

Thanks to Olga for sharing answers to all the Blue Sky questions. It was a pleasure getting to know her more. Just wait and see what Olga is working on for our next collection! You’re going to love it!

Hello Blue Sky Friends!

I hope you are doing well. Have you had the opportunity to check out Blue Sky’s Spring 2012 Catalog? The Blue Sky Staff is really excited and proud of this collection.  I brought a copy to holiday events this past month to share with my family and friends. Everyone, even non-knitters were pretty blown away. Something I noticed as other people examined the catalog was that at times, people didn’t realize that new colors were included in the catalog. We have three new colors in Alpaca Silk. Alpaca Silk is a favorite of mine, you may recall from my excitement over the Siivet Pullover.

This yarn drapes like a dream. It also has a sophisticated sheen from the silk content making it extremely versatile. This yarn is for all seasons and for all occasions. The new colors we have in the Alpaca Silk this season include Sand Dune (151), Cypress (152), and Dove (153). For a light, khaki brown, Sand Dune is for you. This is a lovely neutral, like an antique cameo necklace. It will pair wonderfully with almost every other color of Alpaca Silk. One thing I personally love about this brown is that it goes well, even with other neutrals. This brown is light enough to go with black, gray or browns. Next up in the line up is Cypress. Words that come to mind: lush, jungle, vegetation, rich. I have a hard time imagining some one not looking absolutely fabulous in a color with this depth. This canopy of color will look great for all seasons. Dove is the last new color we released this Spring. This is a light platinum gray with a subtle blue quality. An icy gray, reflective of winter. I love the idea of using this color in place of white to add more dimension to a piece. This color collection had added some really lovely qualities to our already vast Alpaca Silk palette.

Now, if you are as in love with these Alpaca Silk colorways as I am, you’ll really be delighted by another Vladimira Cmorej design. (She also designed the Siivet Pullover). The next design in the catalog is Vladimira’s Shell. This sweater is so simple, with the perfect detail. A solitary motif adorning the neckline takes this from “just a pullover I bought at the store” to something with truly hand made appeal. Vladimira is incredibly talented. Her work is meticulous, and I can picture this perfect shell worn just about everywhere. Paired with a dress blazer (perfect motif placement), is one of my favorite ways-to-wear. Perfection…in a sweater. Look for more of Vladimira’s designs in the future, she’s a knitting genius.

Just keep knitting, knitting, knitting…