Tuesday, July 30, 2013

Of butterflies and batwings


I found that "something else to crochet" I was looking for. A quick test pattern came up for a crocheted square, designed by Marie over at Underground Crafter. I took the call for testers because I was looking for a small project that wouldn't take much time while I was continuing with my other knitting work.

This square, as yet unnamed, showcases the bullion stitch, which I had never attempted before, as well as crossed double crochets, so it was an opportunity to teach this old dog some new tricks. Using some Cascade 220 remnants from previous projects, it worked up PDQ. I love the dark ombre color creating a frame for the bullions. Very pretty!



So, that was a nice little breather. Then on back to the shawl, which I finished yesterday.

This gorgeous Faroese shawl, titled Thunder and Lightning, is the brainchild of a budding new designer named Tanja Lüscher. I was so impressed with the complexity of stitches Tanja used to create the beautiful and intricate lace design, and I learned a little something here too, about Faroese shawls.

Did you know there were Norwegian islands north of Great Britain called the Faroe Islands? I didn't! But I do now! It seems the traditional shawls created by the artisans on these islands are famous for their clever shaping. Instead of being triangles, they form bat or butterfly wings, designed to allow the ends of the shawl to hang forward securely over the shoulders without the aid of a pin. Brilliant!

With my recycled silk laceweight yarn in the pale icy yellow color, this shawl knitted up fairly quickly. I cast off and blocked it yesterday, and here is the result:


The center panel or gusset is one of the distinguishing features of Faroese shawls. The others are the short lines of yarnovers coming off either side of the gusset towards the top. That shoulder shaping is what makes this puppy different than a triangular shawl, directing the stitches at an almost 90 degree angle from the previous work and causing the ends to fall forward over the shoulders.

Here is a closer look at the lace detail at center back:



I will never cease to be dazzled and amazed by the cleverness of these designers who manage to create feats of engineering while producing such things of beauty. And I'm so privileged to be able to try my hand at their masterpieces.






Tuesday, July 9, 2013

Drastic Measures

Lots of stuff happening, so I haven't had time to update recently.

And in the midst of the craziness, I saw something very clearly one day while talking with Sarah. I saw how my attention to detail was - as it often does - creating stress where none was needed. I hate to use the word "anal." It's so misused and overused and unattractive. Maybe I'll say "hyper-focused" or "exacting" or "ridiculous." Yes, I've been ridiculous.

I've been enjoying this blogging project, but I've been ridiculous. I love knitting and crocheting. I love working with my hands. I love being productive. But I can be really ridiculous sometimes.

I've been hanging onto yarn in my stash that I paid absolutely nothing for (I was so happy about that!) but had absolutely no use for. I had found sweaters that I knew no one could use. They were made of good fibers, so I took them and unraveled them and stored them. But when I began this project, I found myself desperately trying to come up with projects for all those yarns. I hadn't found anything for years, and I still couldn't find anything. Well, I could find things, but nothing that I wanted to make and nothing that I would ever use for anything...ever. So why was I keeping them?

It was adding more stress to my mind, more mess to my closet, and more time to this project. My goal is to clean out my stash without spending any more money, but what was wrong with giving some of it away? If I can't use it, someone else can.

I bagged up 7 or 8 bags of mostly 100% cotton yarns, along with other yarns people had given me which I knew I would never use. Then I put them in the trunk of my car so I would not forget to bring them...somewhere. But I didn't need to. Someone came to me, I mentioned what I had just done, and she said, "I'll take them! I love cotton yarns! I use them all the time!"

God is good.

Relief. And an excitement to keep on moving toward the goal. And now my closet is a little less packed, my stash greatly depleted. Onward toward the goal....

I finished the Ruffled Triangle Shawl and am so pleased with the results! Unfortunately, I was so excited to present it as a gift to a dear friend that I grabbed it off the blocking board that morning and rushed out of the house without taking a picture! :( 

I've asked her to snap a photo and send it to me, and I'll post one when she does.

In the meantime, I took on three other projects. I finished the first one, which I mentioned in the last post: Hermione's Everyday Socks. These were from the knit-along hosted by A Yarn Loving Mama, and I'm so glad I joined. I love these socks! I love the pattern and I love the yarn.


The textured top is so cool and works perfectly with the Summer Sox's cotton/wool blend. Sarah is very happy with them. She likes no-show socks, so I kept them low with only a 4-row 1x1 ribbing before binding off.


She has become my favorite sock model! And there's quite a bit of the yarn left, so I will probably make her some fingerless mitts to match.

I also took on two more pattern-testing projects. Project #15 was a lacy slouchy hat that I cannot disclose yet, as it was for a pattern that will appear next year in a book. But it was a quick project, and I got to use up some of the handspun Alpaca yarn that I have in my stash.

 
I purchased this yarn about10 years ago when we lived in CT. Someone was selling it at a local fair, and I just loved the look and feel of this beautiful stuff. It's a 3-ply yarn that I used to knit a warm scarf for my husband for the icy New England winters. Each of the plies is a different color - cream, tan, and deep espresso brown - which gives it an overall oatmeal color. There was plenty of it left, so I chose it for the slouchy hat, which turned out perfectly. There's still 170 yards left, so I'll have the chance to make up something else this fall/winter.
 
Project #16 is the other test pattern. It's a lovely lace shawl calling for a laceweight or fingering weight yarn. I was so excited, as I have never done a shawl like this! After doing some swatching, I decided to use the 100% silk yarn from one of the two J. Jill sweaters I had unraveled several years back. Remember? It's hard to believe I paid $1.50 for all of this lusciousness.


A couple of months ago, I had measured, washed, and hung both colors of this yarn to straighten it, so it was ready to go. I chose the pale, icy yellow one, and I think it'll make a beautiful shawl. As soon as I have clearance, I will post photos and link to the pattern. I think it will take me a while to finish this, so I'm looking for another project, preferably something to crochet!



Sunday, June 16, 2013

A Quick Father's Day Update

A short post today, I think, just to mark the progress of one project and the beginning of another.

The Ruffled Triangle Scarf is really such a sweet pattern. I am truly enjoying knitting this little shawlette, and the drape created by the boucle yarn and the short-row ruffles is just luscious. I'm about 3/4 of the way done, and I've hardly used any of the yarn in my stash, so I'll be able to do at least a couple more after this.


I noticed that several of the knitters on Ravelry who also made this scarf tried different methods of transitioning the point between the increase and the decrease, so I may experiment a bit when I make this pattern again. For this one, I did a simple row even to create the "center".

However, I've had to put a hold on finishing right away, as I'm in gift mode with a deadline approaching quickly. I finally found what I think is the perfect project for the Classic Elite Summer Sox yarn. Remember Ocala Beach?


I have joined another group on Ravelry after subscribing to a terrific blog called A Yarn Loving Mama. I've enjoyed reading Tanya's posts, and she recently announced a Knit-Along for a pair of socks, so I peeked in. And what do you think I found there but the perfect project. I've never done a knit-along before, but I'm excited to connect with other knitters and share my progress and my questions, while learning from their clever ideas. The pattern is called Hermoine's Everyday Socks, and it's a free offering by Erica Leuder from her Dreams in Fiber blog.

I've decided to make the socks from the toe up, two-at-a-time, using the Magic Loop method. I love making socks this way. I love that the gusset is so easy and there's no picking up stitches. I love that the toe is so smooth and there is no grafting. I love that I can make them identical. I love that when I'm done, I'm done.

And I think they're so cute when the toe starts taking shape!


So, there's Project 14. And this will completely eliminate these two balls of yarn from my stash.

Two balls among what seems like millions of yards of yarn. <sigh> But I will not despise the day of small beginnings. One step at a time, and I'll get there....eventually. :)

Sunday, June 9, 2013

Summer Has Begun

It's hard to believe almost a month has gone by since I last posted. Lots of busyness happening in our lives, though not much of it was fiber-related. However, I did get a chance to fit in a few new projects.

In early May, I discovered a wonderful thing. There are many creative folks out there designing knit and crochet projects that need folks like me who aren't so creative to test their designs and patterns for them. I am all on board with this, since I am an editor by nature and always find those little mistakes that can undo a beautiful project. I have often contacted designers and publishers to notify them of errors in the pattern, so I appreciate when a designer takes the time to have his/her pattern tested by others. I admire creative people, but they aren't often quite so picky about the little details as I am.

Anyway, my discovery and, subsequently, Project 11. On Ravelry, groups have begun popping up calling for pattern testers, and that got my attention. So I waited until I knew I'd have a little time to take on a small project and then found one that I thought I could tackle. The Surfer Boy Wallet by Michelle B. over at MyDailyFiber was a cute billfold-type item made with crochet cotton. I have TONS of this stuff, so I thought it would help with the destashing while giving me an opportunity to work with a designer. I checked out her other patterns and loved what I saw, so I raised my hand...and she picked me! Yay!

I used two different color threads: navy blue and a red/white/blue ombre.




Both of these threads are size 10, and the pattern called for a size 8 steel crochet hook. The project worked up very easily, and the small single crochets quickly created a stiff, dense fabric. I used the blue for the main color and the ombre for the card pocket.

Here's the finished product:


It holds bills and credit cards, but not coins, and can get wet with no issues. It's machine washable, and you just lay it open flat to dry. Thanks, Michelle, for giving me the chance! It was a pleasure to work with you!

After all that small crochet work, I was ready to knit again. I looked in my stash and found a large bag of red boucle called Marks & Kattens Freesia.


I think I found this yarn at Goodwill many moons ago, and just put it with the rest of the stash, waiting for the right project and then forgetting about it. It's a cotton/acrylic blend, and it's a true boucle, something you can't easily find anymore.


So I began my search (thank you, again, Ravelry) and even added the term "boucle" and, lo and behold, I found the perfect project. Janis Abel created a sweet little shawlette using a rayon boucle called the Ruffled Triangle Scarf. Although it was her first attempt a writing a pattern, she did a bang-up job of carefully explaining her short-row technique (which I love, by the way, as it requires no wraps). Because you use the short rows to create the ruffle, it takes longer than your average scarf or shawlette, but I love the results and am enjoying the process.


The combination of the boucle yarn and the short-row ruffles creates a gorgeous drape. I can't wait to finish this! And I believe I have enough yarn to make two!

And since I tend to have more than one project going, and since I found something groovy project that Leisure Arts posted on Facebook, and since my sister has now taken up crocheting and we like to do stuff together (is that enough excuse?), I started another project while the shawlette above is still in progress.

Project 13: Floppy Brimmed Hat. Two of my stash items, given to me several years back by my friend Keo (you've got to check out her amazing blog here), along with two ENORMOUS bags of yarn and crochet thread were two spools of J&P Coats Crochet Nylon. These are worsted-weight nylon cords that are strong and stiff, perfect for outdoor-type items. I had one new spool in beige,


and one in a very pale green that was started, but then rewound. Here's a photo of it after I finished the hat, though the green color is not quite true:


The hat called for 2 spools of cord, so I decided to use both of these and break up the colors. While very stiff, it crocheted with no problems, although weaving in is something of a challenge. Nevertheless, I got it finished just today, and present to you now my Summer Beach Hat, or what I like to call "How to Hide from the Sun and Everything Else"


Yes, I'm in there somewhere and, no, it doesn't matter which direction I'm facing, it would look like this. I take it the designer has a slightly larger head than I. Actually, I may pull out the last three rows on the brim and just leave a single row of the green for piping. Then I may be able to see out of it. :)

Monday, May 13, 2013

Breaking out the knitting machine

A wonderful resource has been lying in a box under my bed for the last three years: my knitting machine. I purchased it a little over three years ago, set it up, starting learning how to operate the thing, made one shawl, and then had to pack it up in preparation for a move that took over a year to occur. And it's been in that box all this time. With a little nudge from my husband (who cleared off his desk for me to set it up - thank you, Bob!), it has emerged from the dust bunnies and has now taken up residence in my bedroom, waiting to zip up some fab creations.

In preparation for it's use, I've gone back to some of my stash items, such as the pale yellow and pale pink 100% silk yarns harvested from two J. Jill sweaters I purchased at a yard sale for 75 cents each. Remember these?


They are ideal for my Studio/Singer/Silver Reed SK-700 standard gauge machine. They're either heavy lace or sock weight, and there's plenty of yardage. Just how much yardage, though, was in question. In addition, they still are very wavy from being unraveled. So, I decided to quit putting off the inevitable and start preparing these beauties for their makeover.

First, I needed to get them straightened out. I dug out my long-forgotten niddy-noddy and got to work. I also got to use my beautiful but neglected yarn bowl!




Starting with the pink yarn, I used the niddy-noddy to transform the little "cakes" of yarn into hanks, measuring them as I went along.


After noting the yardage for each hank,


I gave each a dunking into some cool water and then hung them with some weight to straighten them out.


And now they look like this!


Success!

Step 1 accomplished. Tomorrow I'll wind them back into cakes to prepare them for use on the knitting machine and I'll settle on some patterns to try. It's so exciting!




Thursday, May 9, 2013

Collar done - finally!

At long last, I finished the Irish Lace Collar.





It turned out larger than I thought it would be, but I really love it. This has been a true educational project for me in learning to interpret vaguely-written patterns and trying to understand the intention of the designer. It took me longer than I would have wished, but it was totally worth it.

Here's a closeup of one of the scalloped areas:


I blocked it last night and persuaded all those little triple picots to behave themselves and line up straight.

So, that's Project #3 finally done.

Last week, I also started and finished Project #10, my first chemo cap to donate to Crochet for Cancer. It allowed me to use up some of the ivory colored eyelash yarn, as well as take up some more of the ivory Silk-Bamboo. The original pattern is called Faux Fur by Nancy Brown and I found it in the book 100 Hats to Knit & Crochet. I like to call it my Phyllis Diller Hat:



Now, I'm off to have fun at The Knitting Closet! Be back later for more destashing projects.

Tuesday, May 7, 2013

Getting back to my stash

With all the projects I had going, it's been a while since I've checked into my stash to continue logging. So yesterday I dove in again. I thought I had recorded all my commercial yarns, but I found two more that had slipped by me.

First up is about a half skein of Bernat Alpaca Natural Blends in a color called Tundra.



One-and-a-half skeins of this bulky yarn was used to make a cute slouchy hat for my daughter back in February, and I have this half-skein leftover. Haven't decided yet what I'll do with it.

Next up is a lovely 3-ply 100% alpaca handspun yarn that I purchased when we lived in Connecticut. It was my first purchase of handspun from a local fair, shortly after I began my fiber fanaticism.

 
 
The color is hard to make out in this photo, but is' a soft, heathery oatmeal color, achieved by plying 3 different colored singles: natural (off white), dark brown, and a fawn color. I made a scarf for my husband with the bulk of it, and have about 267 yards of this remaining. Again, no ideas yet, but at least it's measured and logged. :)

Reaching deep into one of my stash bins, I pulled out a couple of bags with yarns from unraveled sweaters. I absolutely love obtaining yarn this way. Both of these sweaters were FREE from the "clothing closet" event a local church puts on about three times a year. I bring them our hand-me-down clothes, and then I "shop" for used garments for our family.

For the past several years, this has been a wonderful way to harvest free yarn, as well. I'd look for sweaters made from fabulous fibers that either had holes or stains in the garment, and then I'd take them to see if the yarn was salvageable. Sometimes, the garments were not fully finished, and once the seams were ripped, I was left with a mess of short pieces of yarn. That was disappointing (though it provided us with free stuffing for my daughter's handmade pillows!)

More often than not, however, when you get a sweater made with great fibers, it's well constructed too and allows for perfect unraveling. Talk about gratification! I would keep the labels and care instructions, and put all the yarn from one sweater into a single ziplock bag. Unfortunately, I never measured it, so I'm having to do that now. And I can't find my niddy noddy. Phooey. Out comes the yardstick.

Over the years, I've used some of my gleanings for market bags, scrubbies, and even a lovely capelet! There are still bags and bags left in my closet, though, so now is the time to get them all in order.

One bag had a bulky, deep wine-colored tape yarn made with 65% ramie and 35% cotton. The sweater was from The Limited and allegedly handmade.



The color is actually deeper than I could capture today. This flat yarn is strong and sturdy and will work well for things like hobo and market bags. It also reminds me of purple linguini (oops, my Italian is showing). It measured 575 yards, and I've decided to offer it to my crochet class students in the fall.

Another tape yarn was from a J. Jill sweater. It's a smaller (narrow) tape than the purple, and it's made from 77% cotton and 23% nylon, which gives it a nice elasticity.



The color is interesting, too. The tape is primarily a soft, powder blue which is "outlined" in a dark blue, giving the finished product a heathery effect.


I haven't figured the weight yet, so I'm swatching with it before I can find a project for it.

More stash organizing to come, along with a newly discovered opportunity to put a good use to all this yarn! Hooray!