I’m so happy to share this knitting post featuring a beautiful sweater that I loved making and can’t wait to wear this fall! The pattern is by the talented Isabell Kraemer. Have you ever tried one of her designs?

It might be no surprise to learn that one of the things I love most about knitting is the community it creates. The internet has brought us all together, and I especially enjoy when pattern designers and yarn makers actively engage with home hand-knitters.

For this project, the yarn came from the wonderfully engaging team at Les Garçons in Montreal. They design hand knitting patterns, run a brick-and-mortar shop, and even manufacture their own yarn. The yarn I used for this sweater is a fingering-weight 50/50 blend of Falkland Merino and Bluefaced Leicester. The yarn was a test spin to see if they might add it to their regular range, and I sincerely hope they do—it’s an absolute joy to knit and so soft I could even wear it to bed! For this project, I used the colors Betty (white) and Vincent (brown). Now for the links:

My Ravelry project page

Night Groove by Isabell Kraemer

Les Garcons

Here’s my method:

1. Fill the sink with lukewarm water.

2. Add about ½-1 teaspoon of Dawn liquid detergent and swirl to mix. A little goes a long way and just a tiny amount of Dawn helps to release the dust.

3. Dip each stem in the water, one at a time, gently swirling for several seconds.

4. Take them outside, give each one a little shake or two, and let them dry in the shade.

If your faux stems can’t handle water, I’ve learned it’s best to simply replace them with ones that can. (For me, the only failures were flocked pieces—once they were dirty, there was no saving them.) While the stems are drying, it’s also the perfect time to wash your containers.

Most of my faux stems came from Target years ago, but I’ve recently added a few new favorites from Amazon: magnolia stems in various sizes and some airy ficus stems—both of which look beautiful year-round. When the holidays roll around, I like to layer in just a touch of seasonal color, such as orange pomegranate stems in the fall, red pom stems for Christmas and throughout winter and also bright red berries for Christmas. A little goes a long way, and those small accents make the arrangements feel fresh and festive for each season without needing a complete redo.

I’ll be decorating for fall in a week or two, and I’ll be sure to share pictures once everything is in place. I think I have enough fall decor but if I find I need to zhuzh it up a bit I was looking at these and these.

Until then, maybe you could try making your own could do list this week. You might be surprised how much lighter it feels.