🧶Scoop: To speckle or not to speckle?

To speckle or not to speckle? That was the question.

When she was working on this *surprise* new colorway just for us, Adella Colvin went back and forth on whether to add speckles. She wrote, “I wanted my new Knit Stars colorway to be light, airy and fun. So I dyed up what I thought was the perfect color. Don’t get me wrong, it was light, airy and very beautiful. It was missing the fun though.”
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“And by fun I mean SPECKLES.”
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“I wound up speckling and I’m so pleased with the results!”

We found two perfect, gift-able patterns for this newest LolaBean colorway, both by designer Fatimah Hinds (@disturbingthefleece on Instagram). 

About her “Spiny Socks” pattern, Fatimah writes: “I really enjoy knitting and wearing heavy weight socks. They go very fast and the result is very plush. These socks feature an offset cable that is mirrored on each foot flanked by plenty of squishy ribbing. The horseshoe cable made me think of a spine. The foot of the sock is knit the purl side out so the inside is smooth for the wearer.”

For Fatimah’s Loops and Rope Hat and Mitts, “reverse stockinette is contrasted with a striking cable pattern that won’t get lost in variegated yarn or make a bold statement in a solid color.”

Shop our LolaBean DK collection (including the new Knit Star colorway) here.
Fatimah’s patterns can be found on Ravelry.

Could you use a little more Star Treatment in 2022? ✨

Today’s the last day for our Annual Knit Stars Club gift offer. Get a whole year’s membership plus 4 quarterly kits designed by Ambah O’Brien, Jennifer Berg, Åsa Söderman and Casapinka, at 15% savings. 

(And a little birdie told us the kit prices might be going up this year, so you could be locking in even more savings with this deal 👀)

Signups close at midnight Pacific tonight / Sunday.

Click here to join (or gift) the Club at special savings.

• Black Purl Magic
• Essence of Autumn
• Kim Dyes Yarn
• Kitty Pride
• Lady Dye
• LolaBean Yarn Co
• Mitchell’s Creations
• Moondrake Co
• Neighborhood Fiber Co.
• And more!

 Need some stocking stuffer ideas for the holidays? 🧦

The Knit Stars Troops have put together a Wishlist of what we’re hoping to get in our own stockings. Pretty little presents like these Birdie Parker stitch marker pouches, all the way up to a $499 box of precious Vicuña yarn!

Browse our Wishlist here - and don’t forget to share the ideas with your favorite Santa!

I love a good lemon bar, but they can feel a little pedestrian. This cranberry-layered version from Genevieve Ko and New York Times Cooking hits the spot! The cranberries are quick-cooked into jam that adds a striking magenta color and complex tartness to these two-toned lemon bars. I made them ahead for Thanksgiving but they didn’t make it that long... 😋 

Ingredients:
For the cranberry layer:

• 1 (12-ounce) bag fresh or frozen cranberries
• ¾ cup granulated sugar
• 2 to 3 large lemons

For the crust:

• Nonstick cooking spray
• 1 ½ cups/190 grams all-purpose flour
• ⅓ cup/65 grams granulated sugar
• 1 teaspoon fine sea salt
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• ¾ cup/170 grams unsalted butter (1 1/2 sticks), melted and cooled

For the lemon layer:

• 1 cup/200 grams granulated sugar
• ¼ cup/30 grams all-purpose flour
• ⅛ teaspoon fine sea salt
• 3 large eggs, at room temperature
• Confectioners’ sugar (optional)

Preparation:

1. Start preparing cranberry layer: Combine cranberries, sugar and 3 T water in a medium saucepan. Zest 2 of the lemons directly into the saucepan; reserve the lemons. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat, stirring occasionally. Continue boiling, stirring occasionally, until berries burst and mixture is jammy, 7-9 minutes. Remove from heat and reserve.
2. Make crust: Heat oven to 350. Line bottom and sides of a 9-by-13-inch baking pan with one large sheet of heavy aluminum foil, then generously coat with cooking spray.
3. Whisk flour, sugar and salt in a medium bowl. Whisk vanilla into butter, then pour over flour mixture. Stir until dough comes together in a mass. Press into an even layer in the prepared pan. Bake until golden brown around the edges and dry and golden on top, 17-20 minutes.
4. While crust bakes, prepare lemon layer: Squeeze juice from 2 reserved zested lemons. You should have 1/2 cup. Squeeze juice from another lemon, if needed.
5. Whisk sugar, flour and salt in medium bowl. Add eggs and whisk gently just until incorporated. Add lemon juice and stir gently with whisk just until smooth.
6. Let crust cool for 5 minutes, then spread cranberry mixture evenly over crust. Carefully and slowly pour lemon mixture on top to create two distinct layers.
7. Return pan to the oven and bake until filling is set, 18-22 minutes. Cool completely in pan on wire rack, then refrigerate until cold and firm, at least 2 hours. Using the foil, slide the bars out of the pan and onto a cutting board. Cut into 24 squares, wiping your knife between cuts for clean slices. If desired, sift confectioners’ sugar over top just before serving 

(Note: watch for small dogs underfoot when working with confectioners’ sugar! 🐶)