Spring

Spring is about all things becoming new again. In the spirit of spring, last night I found this.

It's a metal box I got one Christmas that I found was generally perfect for tatting projects - long enough for crochet hook and deep enough to hold most balls of cotton and sturdy enough to protect the shuttle. 

Inside I found a tatted doily project is forgotten about. 

That's the pattern and this is how far is gotten.

Fourth round. The second round was the hardest and I don't have far to go so now it's a new project that's on my list for this weekend. Now that I've got the split rings thing down, it will go soooo much faster.

That gives me simply 3 projects for the weekend. 

1.  Tatted doily 

2.  Bobbin lace miniature flower for necklace

(Magnified view - I'm now in the second half of the 3rd flower). Working with yellow Gutermann's silk thread. So yummy, I can't even tell you.

3.  First installment of Rohn Strong's mystery knitalong shawl where I'll have to make my mind up between a 2-ply merino/angora handspun in white (I have 300+ yds but will need to spin more) or a single-ply Blue Faced Leicestet spun from a gorgeous Frabjous Fibers roving in reds/oranges

Hard choice to make. I may just have to do 2 of them!

What I did on vacation

Life has been so busy this spring that I've hardly knit a stitch but I got some vintage magazines given to me the other day and came across a knitted doily that I just couldn't pass up.  I started this on Saturday:

It's been a lot of fun and I love the fact that there's some variety in the textures in each of the petals.  It's worked in size 30 thread on US size 0 needles.  I'm debating about doing the ruffle.  It's pretty in the picture but in what universe am I really going to be able to get it to ruffle right?  We'll see.

The other main thing I've been working on is a great big ole square of garter stitch.  Okay, it's not a square yet but it's going to be a square.  Normally I hate knitting garter stitch but in this hand spun yarn with the movement of colors, it works, I think.  The problem is that I've run out of yarn (twice).

Actually, I knew that would happen but, whereas I'd kept up with the spinning and knitting, I have now run out completely.

I don't want to go too far with the spinning, though, because I think I'm going to do something a little different with the border and the edging.  I'm almost ready to start plying for my third round of knitting but I think I need to add a little more of the brown back into the second bobbin of singles.  I have to say, though, that I'm really loving the whole process of spinning and knitting this shawl.

I did find some turquoise merino roving at the KY Sheep and Fiber Festival that I've started spinning.  I'm wondering about using that for the border and then spinning the browns that I've taken out of the second bobbin of the singles for the original yarn for the edging.  I think I'll have to have a think about that.  I'm just thinking the solid turquoise would show up the lace knitting so much better and then the brown will ground it all in the edging.  We'll have to see.

Knit Your Own

I've been spinning away and I've got a plan just as soon as I get the fiber I ordered from Pacific Wool and Fiber but it's a secret for now. 

I got on a start new projects jag yesterday and started 2 new projects with my handspun.  One is a scarf made from the mohair/merino handspun I spun from fiber I got at Bishop Hill last year.  The mohair top was dyed in a mediteranean sea sort of colorway.  I plied it with a solid color merino and I love the effect it has on this scarf being knit with an "ocean wave" pattern.  Can't wait to get it finished and blocked out.

The second project is very close to my heart because I fell in love with the roving (Frabjous Fiber blue faced leicester), then I went batty over the finished yarn and now I'm head over heels with the way it looks with this Wisteria Shawl pattern from the Homespun Handknit book.  It's a wonderful easy pattern and is moving right alongI'll bet I have a goodly bit of it finished by the end of the weekend.

Happy Pi Day

Pi Day (3/14 – and 1:59 if you’re really into it) would be a day celebrated only by mathematicians the world over if it hadn’t been for the wonderful creativity of the inimitable Elizabeth Zimmerman.

Never one to ignore a good idea, no matter where she found it, it only took Elizabeth grasping the basics of the Pi theory to work out that it would be a fantastic basis for making a round shawl. From the time she made that discovery all those many years ago to now, countless knitters have used the Pi Shawl as a first lace pattern or as a basis for wild and wonderful creativity. The beauty is in its simplicity and its simplicity lies in the fact that increases are made on a single row at set distances, leaving room to throw whatever lace pattern takes your fancy in between those increase rows.

I’ve made 2 pi shawls and am getting ready (if I ever get this Skrå-trøyer sweater finished – body done and one sleeve almost finished – yea!) to start a Pi Afghan – working the whole Pi Shawl thing but using a worsted weight yarn. Not my idea – cadged from some ideas shared on the internet.

My first Pi Shawl was made strictly according to EZ’s pattern with the knitted off edging and all (the edging took longer than the shawl). The second one was made with lace weight alpaca in different colors for each section with an added section on the outside. I ended up with something like 1400 stitches – way too many for the knitted of edging. I crocheted off the edging which was quick, easy and, if I do say so myself, very attractive!

So, cheers to all things round and all things Pi (or pie should you so choose!).

Happy New Year

Holidays have come and gone. Hope you had a wonderful time, not too rushed.

Much knitting happened during my break but nothing that I felt I could get a handle on. No work at all on the Danish sweater. For some reason I’m caught with that one and am finding it hard to get working on it. I’ve gotten past the armholes and much of the back section but will need to wait for new inspiration to get it finished.

I got most of a new Miser’s Purse done but went and run out thread. I thought 2 balls would be more than enough but since the flat side was done in single crochet, it took a lot more than I thought it would. But I love the way the pattern came out. I have a book with Celtic cross stitch patterns and found this one which was just the right size to repeat for each side of the bag. It actually ended up being a really easy pattern to work this way, it just takes lots of thread! The only challenge with it is that when you crochet with beads, the beads are on the side that sits away from you so you can’t see the pattern developing. I had to stop quite often to make sure I was counting the pattern correctly. Although I did have to rip out a little, I did alright with it and was more than pleased with the way it came out. Moving into the middle of bag, I tried to do a graduated increase into the double trebles and then a graduated decrease into the round side of the bag in order to have a nice flow from one side of the bag to the other. The last one I did was a bit more choppy so I wanted to smooth that out and make that middle part long enough to balance both ends. I decided to just do a spiral sort of pattern for the round section as it seemed to balance the geometric design of the other end without having too much trouble decreasing down for the end. I tried to use the silver rings I have for the closures but somehow the silver just didn’t look right. Of course, that meant a trip to the bead store to see what I could find! And I did find these lovely doughnuts made out of a seed (sorry, can’t remember what the seeds are called) and which were died almost exactly the same purply blue of the seed beads. How often does that happen for it to match like that?!

Another project I’m on the final lap with is the Scottish-inspired Shetland-style shawl. I’ve done a bit of corner cutting on this version because I decided to use this one as a jumping off place for the final pattern. I wasn’t too happy with the stockinette corners and I want to make sure the thistle leaf pattern I used for the border works like I wanted it to. I was also not totally happy with the way the Saltire middle came out so I’ve decided not to invest the time of knitting off the stitches with a knitted edging until I get the other elements worked out. So I’m going to crochet off the edge and do a little improvised edging like that. I’ll be more than happy to use it that way and then I can use what I’ve learned with this one on getting the final pattern worked out and done. The middle and the edging went really pretty quickly so I’m excited to get everything worked out and make the real version.

Anyway, once I get the edging finished, I’ll block it and get a picture posted so you can get an idea of what it will look like. I’ll also do a little bit to explain what I did so you can see how really uncomplicated this is – it’s certainly one of those minimum effort, maximum impact patterns. It’s not really hard at all but it looks very intricate and impressive.

I'm back

Time’s gotten away from me a bit. Not sure why – some say it’s having fun that does it. Hummmm….

I have been busy with multiple projects. I went into my local Hancock fabrics shop the other day, as you do, to buy some needles for a bead embroidery project I want to try. I got my needles and asked the clerk a question. Now, to get to the clerk, I had to pass by a sample dress. I’m a sucker for a sample. The pattern looked lovely (although the sample was made with the ugliest material on the planet) so I buckled. I found a beautiful chocolate brown material and a brown and blue edging that looks great with it. I was able to get the bodice part done the other day and now just need to get the skirt part done, attached to the bodice and bung in the zipper. I’m a little bit apprehensive about the zipper because it’s not my strongest point but I think, if I just take plenty of time, I’ll be alright.

Skrå-trøyer progress: I don’t have a photo because it’s really just more of the same but I’ve started on the top back and am getting on fairly quickly, even though it’s a bit more awkward working it back and forth. I’m working it knitting across and then knitting backwards so I can easily keep the strands running along the back of the work and I’m having to be careful to not let the gauge get too different from the round knitting section. I think it’s okay right now but it’s kind of hard to tell before it’s all done.

Speaking of hard to tell, when I got to the point of being ready to split the back and front, I realized that, math idiot that I am, I had got it wrong…AGAIN! It felt huge. I’ve actually now cut it down yet again by one whole motif on the front and one on the back. Now I think it’s finally at a reasonable size. It’s just so hard to tell while it’s on the circular needles if it needs adjusting. If I ever make this pattern again (of course now I have some concept of how it goes) – and I’m not promising that I ever shall – I will run it onto several circs from time to time just to check it out. So at the end of the day, I’m going to have a bit of steeking to do. But to be honest, I don’t really care because I’m as in love with it now as I was before I started. I love it, love it, love it. I’m hoping to have the back finished this weekend and then get the front done next week and the sleeves the following week (since I’m off that week of Christmas).


Tambour work: I was really happy that this photo picked up the pattern drawn on the fabric as well as the stitching because the pattern is drawn very lightly and is being actually a little difficult to work from. I’ve discovered that if you turn it a certain way in the light, the pattern shows up better on this fabric. I haven’t gotten so far yet but I’ve done a little and you can see in the upper corner that I’ve just started doing the little swags around the outside. It takes a little to get used to stitching on this material but I think I’m getting the hang of it now. In case you missed the previous post, this is a type of crochet that done on fabric and was popular in the 1700-1800's.

Lace Shawl: I lived for quite a few years in the UK but I’ve now been away for a whopping 10 years. It feels like forever. Most of my time was spent in Scotland and I loved living there and had some wonderful friends. I’ve finally made the decision
to take a trip back so in February I’ll be heading off. Not the most auspicious time, I know, with regards to weather, but it is before all the prices go up. As I was thinking about the trip, I got an idea to do a Saltire & Thistle Shawl. That’s what this little blob is. I’m doing it in the style of the Shetland shawl where you have the center panel, surrounded by a wide border and an edging around. Usually you would work the border 1 side at a time but I’ve decided to experiment with that part. I cast on 1 stitch, increased to about 120 and then decreased back down to 1 for the middle section which is worked in the style of the Saltire (also known as St. Andrew’s Cross) – the Scottish flag. I’ve just picked up stitches all the way around and will be starting on a Thistle pattern out of one of Barbara Walker’s wonderful books and then I’ll have to decide on an edging. I’m going to let that be a surprise, like writing a book and having to finish it so you know what happens. That’s the sort of thing. For those interested in such things, I'm using Skacel Merino Lace Yarn in a sort of pinkish tan color - the only color the yarn shop had 2 skeins of. I love knitting with this yarn. In fact, if you don't have a lot of experience with lace knitting, this is a great yarn to start with - soft handle, doesn't split easily.

I’m not too stressed about getting it all done because I’m thinking it might be cool to take it as a travel project. With it on the circs now, it’ll be easy to carry. Don’t know if I can wait that long – I’ll just see how it goes.

Baby Sailor Suit – This was a pattern that I originally wrote when a colleague was having a baby. I wasn’t happy with the original version sleeves and I can’t say I’m too much happier with these sleeves. At least with this one I have it in front of me to look at and figure out what I want to do differently. The other, alas, did go to the baby and I no longer have access. I love
the little pattern. I don’t know if you can see but it’s a onesy type construction and will have snaps at the legs and cute white anchor buttons along each shoulder so that it opens wide for the giant baby head! I have the pattern finished except for whatever I decide to do with the sleeves and to get the finishing touches on the various sizes. This is another project I’m hoping to get finished this year. If you would be interested in knitting it as a tester for me, I would be willing to provide the pattern for free to you. That would just basically mean make it up and let me know if I’ve made any errors in the pattern. If you would be interested, just let me know either in the comments or by email at dks@wandagraysondesigns.com.

Like I said, it’s been a little busy.