Red Purl KAL 2009: May Block

It's the second Sunday of the month: were you waiting for the Red Purl KAL block? Well, it was rescheduled because apparently you can not get together to knit on Mother's Day. The meeting was last week, but I was not able to go because I was out on a charity walk.

I finally got into Red Purl on Friday to pick up the pattern. Since this timed well with "Fridays at the Purl" I sat around for a while and hung out with the others that had showed up. I actually didn't have the patterns I needed for the knitting I had with me so I looked through pattern books. (I'm getting an itch to do some peasant mittens with some really complicated pattern.)

And I forgot to bring some of my afghan yarn so I could start the block. I got that started on Saturday instead. Or maybe it was Friday night after I got home.

I have to say I wasn't bowled over by the pattern when I saw the sample on the store counter. But as I started to knit it, it really started to grow on me.

It's called "Raised Brick." I think the variegated yarn of the sample just really obscured the pattern. I don't know. In any case, I went with orange because I have no imagination: what else would you do a brick pattern in? (Remembering that there is no red in this afghan.)

I couldn't figure out why it was called Raised Brick, but then I saw how the purl bumps (some are outlined in black above) make a sort of brick pattern with the slipped stitches making the "V"s in between like mortar.

The slip stitches pull the fabric in both vertically and horizontally and the whole pattern makes a nice dense texture and complements the February block. It would make a very nice fill on an Aran style sweater. Very nice, I'd say.

I used up the Glazed Carrot leftover from the January block and got about 8 inches out of it. I finished the block with the second ball I bought, and should have plenty to make a third block sometime later. Just what I wanted.

I got the square done on Saturday and am now just waiting for the second Sunday in June. I think it's time to break out one of my newer colours...