Using up the stash projects

Oh my have I had a busy last couple of weeks. I missed doing a couple of blogs but I did get some knitting done between running family here and there. Knitting is still more portable than my laptop.
One of my more recent projects includes a baby sweater for a family's first little baby. I wanted a quick and basic pattern that could work for a boy or girl so I chose one from Last Minute Knitted Gifts (p.72) by Joelle Hoverson.

The pattern called for a merino wool crepe but I used a neutral fisherman's wool. The lanolin content should keep the yarn soft enough for the baby's skin. The colorful beads used in the book were traded for plain metal buttons.

Since part of my goal is to use up my stash, this is where I got the fisherman's wool. I also had a bright blue merino sitting in there. Sadly, it never had a purpose. I bought 4 balls of it because they were the last in a dye

lot and marked way down. A camisole pattern, also in Last Minute Knitted Gifts (p.96), seemed a good way to use this yarn but it was too low cut for me to actually get any use out of it so I decided to alter it. The lace pattern at the bottom stayed because it is one of my favorite but it got a new top half. The neck was brought all the way up with a little cable twist added for interest. The armholes were made smaller to fit my petite frame and I crocheted the picot edge rather than knitting it. Since I knew that my yarn would not have the same drape as the silk yarn used in the book I knit it to a looser gauge. It is very, very blue and that is taking some getting use to but overall I am very pleased. The yarn is incredibly soft and the whole thing is light as a feather. And, there's almost a whole ball of yarn left!

What to work on now? Well my daughter is next in line for a sweater and she picked out a pattern from Garnstudio (see pic to left). Since I couldn't talk her into a very interesting patchwork sweater of my own design there was no way I could knit her something from my stash so I had to purchase yarn for it. I ended up with linen- colored CotLin from Knitpicks. Of course I will need to alter it a little -the gauge is a bit loose for me. Should be fun. I'll let you know how it goes!

Get outside and have a great Memorial Day!

Finished Projects!

It's so great to finish a project. Part of why it's so nice is because then a new one can begin. Even before I'm half-way through my knitting I'm already thinking of what to do next and sometimes just can't wait to start another piece.

Recently I finished my husband's sweater (hence the black photo to the left) and though it is his new favorite I've been planning the next one for sometime. Maybe a vest for the warmer months. Knitting for him would be a little more exciting if he wanted something other than black. Actually, I'm exaggerating just a bit. He has picked up a couple of light colored linen guayabera shirts recently to wear in the summer months.

Sorry the pics aren't so great. I dropped my good camera (sorry Mom) so am having to use my daughter's. Looks like I'll be shopping for a new camera in the near future.


A couple of other small projects include another pillow with gorgeous wooden buttons and a belated gift hat.

I've been trying to work out some details in the pillow patterns so that there are no flipping or rolling edges and no pillow inserts peeking out of the opening.

To the left is a picture of the pillow before the buttons were sewn on.


The hat was a request from a family member. I had made one hat and when a second was requested I decided to play around with a more feminine design. The hat was knit from the bottom up and begun by knitting the lace within reverse stockinette so that when it was flipped up you would be looking at the right side. This also meant that I didn't have to pick-up stitches to create the band (which I avoid whenever possible). I was very pleased with the end result.

It'd be cute without the ear flaps. Maybe this fall. Spring is here however and I can't think of winter hats now.
And...my daughter finished her dad's socks! They look and fit wonderfully. She did a great job (even though the yarn was very rough). Sweet girl, she is now knitting a pair of anklets for me in an 80%cotton/20%wool yarn. Much softer than the last. The heels and gussets are finished and she is knitting away on the feet. The weather has just turned and I should have a new pair of summer socks! What a very good daughter. She continues to amaze me with her array of talents and I'd like to take a few lines here to dote on her if I may. Besides making beautiful handcrafts she also is a gifted musician. Though we recognized this gift early, she only began piano lessons a couple of years ago. She has progressed rather quickly and loves to pick up other instruments. This past Thursday she started fiddle lessons. The group meets at a local Irish pub and after lessons everyone stays to listen to a real session and students can take part as soon as they like. If you've never been to one, find a local pub and go. They're a lot of fun even if you don't play anything!

Comhaltas (promoting Irish music and culture) has a great YouTube page. Here's a video.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f3R3z1gJQkQ

No, I'm not Irish.

Spinning and Plying

It has been a couple of years since I tried to spin. I did pretty well on the spinning wheel at the park district but did not have one at home and found the drop spindle too slow. The drop spindle is not really that slow -it was me being not only slow, but impatient and I happily distracted myself with other fiber adventures.

Above is a pic of my first ball of yarn from a spinning wheel. (Pay no attention to the drop spindle.)

For whatever reason I got the spinning bug again. In looking around for a wheel to possibly rent, I ran across the Windy City Spinning Guild. Probably most people would go about this the other way around (i.e., contact spinners, get info, get a wheel, learn to spin). Not me. Thankfully this is what ended up happening anyway, in spite of me.

While searching for a wheel-for-rent I found myself at the guild's website. I sent them an email and was told that they would be meeting that Tuesday. Great!

I drove the 5 miles or so to the public library location which is the designated meeting place and upon going in asked the young lady at the desk "Could you tell me where the spinning guild meets?".

The reply was, "What is that?" with a look of kind confusion and then, "They're probably upstairs. You can take the elevator." (pointing to it).

"May I take the stairs?"

"Yes."

Up I went. I was actually a little worried about showing up with nothing but my current knitting project. But there was no need to be concerned. Before long I was handed a homemade dropspindle accompanied by a short demonstration and told that when I finished spinning this that she would show me how to ply it. Wow! I get to learn to ply already?

I did finish and was shown how to make a two-ply from my single strand of yarn by using an Andean plying method. There is a very good article on this in the Summer 2007 issue of Spinoff magazine if you're interested in learning. I have to tell you that I am terribly excited about having learned this and hope to accomplish it next time without cutting off circulation to my middle finger.

Here's a nice little illustration of Andean plying:

http://www.mielkesfarm.com/andean.htm

Bumbling Bees has a pretty funny blog entry about Andean plying. Take a look.

http://bumblingbees.blogspot.com/search/label/Spinning

Above and below is my tiny hank of 2-ply yarn from the guild meeting.

I had a great time and all the ladies were very nice and helpful. They even sent me home with more fiber and a dropspindle! Can't wait to go next month! I plan to take them some of our English Angora's fiber to see what they can do with it.

Knitted Pillows and Spring Markets

I've been knitting more pillows and thought I would share some pictures.

The basic design is very plain, which I like. One of them does have a single cable going up one side to add a bit more interest. Cotton taping was used to make tie closures for a couple of them and buttons on one. The ties look very casual and the buttons a bit cleaner.

They are all filled with feather and down inserts and are some of the most comfortable pillows I've ever had. I want them to be imminently usable which is why they all close on the end so there is no front or back. Un-dyed eco-wool was used to knit these up. It has a very soft hand after blocking.

I'm still hoping to find some unique handspun yarn to make a couple from but haven't had to much time to pursue that option. Maybe soon! It's almost time for local festivals and farmer's markets and I may be able to find something there. Though I'm not sure about this option since the Midwest seems to be a little slower to catch on to this idea, but they are becoming more common and lively. Wouldn't it be great to have a year round market like some of the ones in Europe?

I'll be making a trip to DC this summer. Know of any good markets for handmade goods or antiques?

I found this website that lists a number of markets but is otherwise uninformative.

http://washingtondcfarmersmarkets.nova-antiques.com/

This one gave a bit more info on one market.

http://www.pps.org/great_public_spaces/one?public_place_id=224

I'll have to check this one out...

http://www.ballstonvasquare.org/artmarket.html

where these sellers will be.

http://www.etsy.com/shop.php?user_id=5066487

http://www.bettesbags.com/

http://www.etsy.com/shop.php?user_id=5453066

This one looks like fun.

http://www.easternmarket.net/

I'd love to know if are any interesting places to go during the week too. We're going to DC for a wedding so the weekend of our trip is already full and any side trips will have to be squeezed in.

I love spring.

Bath Mitt Pattern & Pillow

Here are a couple of quick projects that I have been working on over the last couple of weeks.

The first is a pillow knit from humble fisherman's wool. Very simple but, I think, very classic. The idea came from a picture I saw in an European interior design book. Those pillows were of sewn fabric. My version is knit in the round and closes with a simple cotton tie at one end. Because of this, there's no front or back. I plan on making more in different sizes for our sofa, chairs and bedrooms, and I am presently on the lookout for some unique, natural fiber yarn in neutral colors. Preferably worsted or heavy worsted with a decently tight spin. I'm open to suggestions.

The second project is a very useful bath mitt made of hemp. One of my favorite books is Essential Home by Judith Wilson. In the bath section she shows beautiful pictures of bathrooms with clean white towels, linen hand towels and natural body scrubbers. I found and purchased a version of the body brush and nail brush from an online retailer, the All Natural Products Store. The website is not very inviting and is difficult to navigate but the prices are right. Here's the link: http://www.pacwestserv.com/bathessent01.htm .

(FYI -they also have Lewis Labs' brewer's yeast for a great price in case you were looking for some.)

I decided to make my own bath mitt and picked up a ball of 20 lb Beadsmith Hemp Cord for about $4.50 at the local hobby shop in the bead section. It is stiff to knit with, but there's something about the rough texture that is attractive. I was envisioning an invigorating scrub in the shower as I knitted. That probably helped.

I made a gauge swatch and wrote a simple pattern which you'll find below. If you decide to make one, let me know how it goes or if you find any problems (which there may be some, as this entry was written very late at night).

Hemp Bath Mitt
S/M (M/L)

This takes 4hrs or less to make.

Supplies:

-1 ball 20lb. Hemp Cord
-Size 9 Needles, straight or circular
-Size 9 Needles, double pointed

Body:

CO 32 (36).
K 14 (16) rows in garter stitch.
Place marker 15 (17) sts from each end (on either side of 2 middle sts).
K to marker, K1, M1 twice, K to end. 34 (38) sts
K across row.
K to marker, K1, M1 4 times, K to end. 38 (42) sts
Knit across row.
K to marker, K2, M1 8 times. 42 (46)sts
K across row.
K to marker, hold 8sts (remove markers), K to end. 32 (36) sts.
K 29 (31) rows in garter stitch.
K2, K2tog across row. 24 (27) sts.
K across row.
K across row.
K2tog across row. 8 (9) sts.
Cut yarn leaving enough length to sew up the side of the mitt (about 2.5 times the length of the mitt).
Draw through remaining stitches, pull tight and secure.
Turn mitt inside out and sew side of mitt closed.

Thumb:
Place 12 held thumb stitches on 3 size 9 double pointed needles.
Knit 14 (16) rows garter stitch in the round beginning with a purl row.
K2tog 1 round.
Cut yarn and draw through remaining stitches and secure.

Crochet or braid a small loop at one side of bottom edge to hang your mitt by. If the ends are long enough, use them to make a loop. Secure well.

Weave in all ends.

The mitt will need to be rinsed well in hot water a few times before use. There's something (I don't know what) in the yarn that needs to come out or your mitt will not look very clean after you use it. It also shrinks so if you're unsure about your size, make the larger one.

This pattern fits well but I'm not sure I like how the thumb looks. So you should see an alternative pattern soon with a different thumb.

Thanks for stopping by! Oh yeah, Happy St. Patrick's Day too. (I'll be helping my friend out at her Irish shop this weekend so I thought that was appropriate and I mean it sincerely.)

Start Them Early

I usually have small stack of fresh books around for pleasure and inspiration. Recently I checked out Morehouse Farm Merino Knits from our local library's commendable collection of fiber arts books. The author, Margrit Lohre, talks about growing "up in Switzerland where knitting was part of the school curriculum". In our world of mass production we have lost many valuable skills. We can no longer pass them down because we never learned them. Parent's have lost something that greatly affects how they and their children spend time together. This seems a tragedy and I believe that it has had undesirable effects on society. I can't change the world but I can change my world.

Our 14 year old daughter and I have spent the last decade learning some of these 'lost' skills together. She has learned knitting, crocheting (better than me), spinning, weaving, sewing, quilting and many other skills along with me. Actually, she has been knitting longer than I. She can knit a pair of socks and darn them too! I thought I would share her current project with you. She is learning to knit two socks at once on one circular needle using 2-at-a-time socks by Melissa Morgan-Oakes.

I am working very hard at finishing my husband's sweater, but alas, he also is in desperate need of a new pair of socks. And of course since receiving his first pair of hand knit socks he is loathe to wear a store bought pair. So our industrious daughter graciously offered to knit a pair of socks for her dad as she was anxious to learn this new technique.

Though I prefer to work exclusively with natural fibers, my husband needs a more durable blend so that we're not darning his socks within a month of coming off the needles. I ordered Yarn for Sox from WEBS. Our daughter patiently followed the author's suggestion to knit a mismatched pair of toddler socks while we waited for our sock yarn to arrive. She will need to knit another pair of mismatched socks so that we will have two matching pair.

Our yarn arrived quickly and she started knitting her Dad's socks. Having a preference for finer wools this blend felt rough to her. Hopefully the socks will last a lot longer and be worth the sore fingers in the end.

We have enjoyed the time spent learning these skills and using them together. I know I can trust her with projects that I don't have enough time for or to come up with a quick handmade gift in a pinch. She is learning skills that she will hopefully use for the rest of her life and pass on. Though she is very capable, she shows her excitement and respect for my skills by trying to lay claim to just about everything I make! Knitting has been an invaluable part of our relationship and I hope that it will continue to be.

Teach a young person to knit. A lot more than a pair of socks may come of it!

Knitting as Cognative Excercise

Just ran across an interesting article on how knitting and other activities may delay memory loss. I'm sure that this is common sense for most of us. Exercise your body and it will probably last longer. Exercise your mind and it will probably work better for longer too. Nevertheless I suppose it is good for a doctor to do a study so that those who have not considered this will.

Here's the link:

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/health/7896441.stm

Interestingly the study suggested to me that if you knit and watch TV at the same time or maybe in somewhat equal amounts, that these activities (one active, one passive) cancel each other out. Maybe.

What could one take away from this? Consider tossing the tube. Our family did this years ago and it has not been missed. I spent more time reading, painting, drawing and eventually took up knitting and hand felting.

I know that most people would probably consider this extreme but consider this. While they are sitting around later in life trying to remember what they're supposed to be doing, I'll be teaching my grandchildren how to knit.

Small Felted Box with Lid

I'm into containers lately. Places to store things. Baskets and boxes made from natural materials are the preferred choice (no plastic please). It is best if the container has a lid so you don't have to see what's in there all the time.

I was looking for a quick project and thought to knit and felt a small container for myself. (I needed a break from my husband's black sweater.)

A quick look at some of my favorite knitting sites did not yield any patterns for a lidded container so I decided to write one. Here it is for you to try. Let me know what you think.

Small Felted Box with Lid

Note about yarn: I used Lamb's Pride because I had some in my stash but a less hairy yarn would be preferable for this project.

Materials:
Bulky wool yarn (about 40yds)
Small amount of heavy worsted or bulky wool yarn in contrasting or toning color for trim
Three buttons about 5/8” in diameter and thread to match main color

Sewing needle

Needles:
Size 11 or 13 double pointed needles
Size M or N crochet hook
(Note: Gauge is not especially important since the piece will be felted in the washer.)

Finished measurements after felting:
Approximately 5”long x 5”wide x 2”deep

Box:
Using double pointed needles CO 14.
Knit 18 rows in Stst.
Leaving stitches on the needle pick up 14 from other three sides.
Knit 10 rounds.
BO all stitches. Weave in ends.

Lid:
Using double pointed needles CO 15.
Knit 19 rows.
BO all stitches. Weave in ends.

Trim:

Using crochet hook and contrasting/toning yarn single crochet around the top edge of box and edge of the lid (about 3 chain stitches for every 4 knitted stitches). Next crochet a loop of 10 chain stitches in the center front of the lid and two loops of the same size on the back of the lid about 3sts from each corner. (You could also crochet loops at the same time as the trim. Just be sure the loop begins and ends in the same stitch.) Weave in ends.

Felting (or fulling):

Put the box and lid in the washer (preferably front-loading) and run for the full wash cycle. Check the size and pull into shape. You may need to run it through another cycle or part of a cycle checking the size periodically. When the box reaches the desired size, put it back in the washer for one rinse and then spin.

Pull the box and lid into shape and lay flat to dry.

Sew on the buttons and your box is finished.

Men's Cambridge Jacket

This is currently the biggest project I have going. I have been working on it for months now (mostly because I have not really been working on it). However, my husband is a good husband and deserves a hand knit sweater so I am working on it in earnest now.

This project began because my husband needed a replacement for a favorite sweater. He wore this sweater to rags, really. It was a fine knit boiled wool jacket with a front zipper that was purchased as a Christmas present at a name brand discount store. He wore it every single day. We could not find another at any store or online. So began the search for a knitting pattern.

I looked at my favorite websites, all my knitting books, every book at the library that seemed promising. Two or three weeks later I finally found the Cambridge Jacket by Ann Budd in the 2006 Summer issue of Interweave Knits.

After receiving my husband's approval of the pattern, I began to look for yarn. The winner was Eco-wool+ by Cascade. It comes in huge skeins of 478yds for about $15 and comes in dyed or natural colors. I probably would've chosen the darkest natural color which is a really dark brown but my husband really wanted black so we went with the dyed black. I usually do not like the smell of black dye and was happy to find that this yarn did not have that (toxic) odor.

I have finished the back, front left and am presently working on the front right. It knits up quickly at less than 5sts per inch on size 9 needles.

In the end I will have spent about 3-4 weeks on this long awaited gift for a deserving and patient recipient.

Studio-in-a-Closet

This is just a little something I wanted to share for inspiration. We live in an apartment in an urban area so storage space is limited. My husband came up with the idea to convert our foyer closet into stash storage. (I had already taken the dining room as my studio and it was overflowing.)

I really wish I had taken before pictures. Imagine if you will a dark hole (really) with a couple of press board shelves instead of the bright welcoming closet you now see.

We stripped everything out of the space, added shelving, pegs, a cedar ceiling, a light and even a secret compartment in the floor for storing larger items. I hung an over the door shoe bag to provide extra yarn storage. Because we included the pegs the closet can still be used as a coat closet when we have guests!

This was a fun project for my husband and I to tackle together. I guess I should finish that sweater for him now.

Happy New Year!

Happy new year and happy new blog! It's a new year and I decided it is time to start this blog I've been contemplating for some time. I'll share current knitting or other fiber art projects that I am working on and occasionally free patterns.

Most recently I have been knitting piles of hats for Christmas presents. The always useful (but

quick to knit) hat! There has been a particular need for hats with ear flaps to keep out the cold Midwest winds and I have just finished a kid's version with a pocket on the back holding a tiny coordinating doll. The picture to the left is of the back of the hats. My daughter and I each knit one so they're a bit different. Mine has a rounded striped pocket while hers has a more pointy embroidered pocket.

Presently I am working on very cute children's mittens . The mittens began as a request from a local Irish kintwear shop for a customer but they are such a fun little project that I could knit baskets of them. Knitting time is under three hours a pair. And they have an optional crocheted "coat cord" to run through the sleeves of the youngster's coat.

Another project is to use up as much yarn from my stash as possible (so's I can buy more). There are lots of interesting yarns in my "studio-in-a-closet" as I call it, but some of them are becoming, well, stale. They're good yarns -they just need a new purpose in life. Sadly, I have forgotten what the original purpose was for some of them. I have more experience to go on now so I'm sure I will come up with a better purpose for them than the original.

Well back to knitting mittens and stash re-evaluating! Happy new year.