A love story

Many, many moons ago, I saw some Shetland top and fell in love. I wanted to spin that top so badly, I decided to learn how to spin. I bought a wheel (Little Gem) and didn't love it. I sold it and bought a lovely Tina II. I loved the wheel but didn't love the spinning. It was too much like work, and not enough like fun. But that top - sitting in my guest bedroom - was still calling to me. So I persevered, and struggled, and finally tried a Hansen mSpinner, and it was so easy. I played. I spun up all the miscellaneous fiber I could find as practice. I filled a bobbin. It was easy.

Then I went back to the Tina. Remember, I loved her. I wanted to have the same fun with her. It was a bit of a struggle. She was petulant, sulky, and moody because I had neglected her for the Hansen. She didn't want to spin, she squeaked, she dithered. But I lavished attention on her. I oiled her, I adjusted her bands, I fussed and fawned over her.

Remember this photo from the beginning of the Tour de Fleece last year?
It is OK, not the greatest yarn. Looks more like a mess, but it is yarn.
Here is the result of yesterday's spinning. The braid is done and the singles are resting , waiting be plied with the miscellaneous singles spun on the Hansen. I don't have high hopes for this yarn. It is my experiment and I'll be happy if it is usable. If not, it was good practice.
This is a dyed BFL I bought at Rhinebeck two years ago. It has a lovely sheen which you can see in the photo with the flash.

So Tina and I are a couple again and I will start spinning the Shetland top on her today. Again, it may not be the best yarn, but it will be fine, and I'll have something to show for it. There is always more of that Shetland when I want more.

In the mean time, here is the RLC. I have made good progress on the body. Of course, it seems endless. But I love knitting it because the yarn is so luscious. Also, it is pretty mindless so I can pick it up and put it down any time. 5 mins here and 30 mins there add up.
Signed,
Hopelessly in love

Tutorial: Mug cardi/coaster combo

My knitting is progressing, but not very interesting to show again as I am working through the endless stockinette that is the body of the Rose Lace Collar.

Instead, we are going to take a detour and explore yet another use for socks with holes in them. We will be making a mug cardi, coaster combination. I call this a cardi rather than a cozy because it has button bands and buttons, just like a cardigan. It is a great way to explore steeking and get over one's nervousness at cutting one's knits. Also, it is a lovely use for those leftover, pretty buttons that aren't useful for anything else. You might have cut them off a favorite sweater or coat that has seen its last days, or maybe you found them in your grandmother's button box, or maybe you bought them on a whim because you liked them. Whatever, it is a great way to use them.
I started with these socks that had started to wear on the heels. The rest of the sock was in great shape.
I measured the bottom of a mug and cut a round from interfacing allowing a little extra all around. It is pretty stiff stuff. I then used this interfacing as a pattern to cut two circles from the foot of one sock, adding in a seam allowance. It so happened that I was able to squeeze both circles from one foot by leaving one side joined (therefore not requiring a seam allowance on that side). I also stretched the sock a bit. I don't recommend this because it did give the coaster a tendency to curl up. This doesn't affect its utility as the mug will hold it down, but it does affect its aesthetics.

If you can't fit this into one part of the sock, you will have to cut part of the sock up one side and make a flat piece. Do the same with the other sock and use one flat piece for the bottom of the coaster and the other for the top. The foot is a good part to use for the coaster.
I sewed the two circles together around the interfacing with a sewing thread and backstitch. Then I used some coordinating leftover yarn (mine was actually a worsted weight yarn so it is a bit heavier of an edge than if I had used sock weight yarn) to make an attached icord edge around the circle, enclosing the seam.

Since I was using a much heavier yarn, I had to adjust the row count to fit it flat around the coaster. If you are using a yarn that matches your sock yarn, you can work to the same gauge as the original sock (i.e. I used a lot fewer rows to go around the circle than I would have if I had used a sock weight yarn but I also have a much more prominent edge)
Voila! a coaster.

Next, I cut one of the sock cuffs to the height of the mug (from the top of the sock down) and worked a backstitched steek (exactly like a machine-stitched steek, but I used a backstitch instead of a machine-stitch) down the length of the cut piece and cut it.

I decided to put the sock ribbing on the bottom of the mug, so I worked the same attached icord edge around the top of the cardigan. The reason I did this was because the icord was so thick (remember I used a heavier yarn) that putting two icords together (from the coaster and the mug cardigan) would have made it rather bulky. Also, I thought the icord edge was rather pretty and wanted it on top. You can decide to do whatever strikes your fancy. But if you are going to put the icord on the bottom of the mug, you may have to plan and make your coaster a bit larger all around to accommodate the width of the icord in addition to the mug.
Lastly, I picked up sts from the steeked edge and made tabbed, seed-stitch button and button hole bands to close the cardigan around the handle. In this case, I had to make one of the bands quite wide as the sock was a good bit narrower than the mug. This is how you adjust the circumference of the cardigan to fit your mug. The bands have a section that is narrow and then a tab in the middle that extends out to go under the handle. I found two matching buttons and sewed them on. One larger button would also be sufficient. Plan your button band and buttonhole(s) to match the button(s) you have selected.
And there you have it! A cozy cardigan for your mug, a matching coaster to protect your surface, a chance to practice some new techniques, and a good use for a holey sock.

Been busy knitting

I didn't post last week because I was busy knitting and I didn't have much progress to show for it. When you go round-and-round below the yoke, it looks much the same regardless of how much knitting you have done. But I was able to divide for the sleeves and body during the week so now you can see how much I have done.

The stripe down the center is my steek. That will be cut up the front to make the opening for the cardigan. This is the boring part of the knitting. I get to go around and around on lots of stitches with no shaping or anything to break up the boredom. The sleeves are more fun because there is at least some shaping to do. But I am putting on podcasts or TV and knitting away.

I hope to show you a few more inches of body next week. I had set myself a goal of finishing this by the end of March. I won't make that but I really want to get this done and move on to other knitting that I want to get done.

I think I'm getting this drafting thing

I have spun up all my miscellaneous fiber, i.e. fiber that has an uncertain provenance in my memory. I have one last braid of some dark brown to spin up. Can you believe that I went from an empty bobbin to a half full one in a little over a week? I was struggling to spin on the Tina when I was not completely fresh in mind and body. It felt discombobulating if I was the least bit tired. This, on the other hand, is something I am able to do for a few minutes a day and work on improving my drafting. I have been watching Rita Buchanan and Patzy Z draft and experimenting with my hands.

I also have been working on the RLC. The short rows are done and I am now committed to knitting in the round for a long time. I love, love, love the Bohus yarn in my fingers. It is so wonderful and the fabric it creates is immensely satisfying.

Madrona 2011

I didn't post last week because I was at the Madrona Fiber Arts Retreat in Tacoma, Washington. I love going there, not only because it is more specialized than some of the other fiber retreats, but also because many of my friends gather there. We all stay in the same hotel so it is easy to interact and hang out. The classes are also different from the ones offered at the NY Sheep and Wool Festival in Rhinebeck , New York.

I made excellent progress on my Rose Lace Collar. The yoke is done and I am now on the plain stockinette part.

I love the colors in this yoke. So muted, and yet so interesting.

My first class was from Janine Bajus on designing fair-isle yoke sweaters. I love Janine's approach to color in fair-isle. She is a wonderful teacher. I made a little American Girl doll sweater. I am not happy with the colors. I will post a picture one of these days. I have put away most of the stuff that came back from Madrona so it isn't readily available to photograph.

I also took Susanna Hanson's Bohus class. Yes, I know I have made a lot of Bohus sweaters, but the class covers the history of Bohus Stickning, and Susanna brings the vintage sweaters that she collected. She is also a great teacher. Very organized and methodical. I have updated the blog page so my photos of the vintage sweaters are a slideshow. There are too many photos to post on the page directly. If you want to see the whole album, it is here.

Lastly, I took a knitted and beaded beads class from Betsy Hershberg. Here are the beads we made in class.

The left two are knitted coverings on wooden beads. The right hand one is a soft bead made entirely of yarn and beads. We have instructions for a few more that we didn't get to in class. I plan to make these on my own. This class has given me lots of ideas that I want to play with. I wish I had more time in the day!

I bought this Betsy Hershberg kit before I took the class. It makes this lariat necklace from Knitters magazine. I bought it because it was the last kit with the gray yarn I wanted. The others were much brighter and I felt the colors would limit the opportunities to wear it. I think this could be a weekend project one of these days.

I bought a few more odds and ends but my biggest purchase was this lovely Hansen mini-spinner in purpleheart and maple. I have been spinning a little every day on it. I love it because I can really focus on my drafting skills without worrying about treadling and speed.

I also love the orifice threader I got with it. It is made of mono-filament and it much easier to use than a hook. I am busy spinning up odds and ends of roving that I've collected for practice.

This little ear-light is something that I'm looking forward to using when I'm in the car or in the plane, and the light isn't great. There is also a useful folding Ott light on my shopping list.

That is all for now... Back to spinning and knitting

Delicioso!

Progress is slow but sure on the Rose Lace Collar. I thought I'd have more done but I had a few busy weekday evenings and didn't get to knit. I hope to do a few more rounds today. I had to undo a 312 st round because I mixed up the colors as I was knitting. I somehow misinterpreted the chart and used the wrong colors so I had to undo and redo it. Oh well. Twice as much fun!

I wore the silk featherweight cardi to the yarn store yesterday and had a few pictures taken. This is the nicely blocked version. It really does look nice and it is a lot warmer than I anticipated.

The front.

The back

And the front again, with the front panels laying nicely. I was styled for this photo!

What is the common element among these two projects? The lovely yarn!

Progress!

Last week was an excellent knitting week. I was able to knit a lot and I was motivated to knit a lot!

First of all, the Swedish Heartwarmer Shawl: I was able to finish a lot of the plain stockinette. I have about 25% left to do. It is difficult to photograph because it is scrunched up on a relatively small needle and it curls up. The fabric is very dense and I like it. It will make a nice warm shawl. I wonder how the colorwork will look in such a fabric. The blue is a little deeper than the photo indicates and I love the very subtle shading of the different colors.

Next up is the Rose Lace Collar Bohus: I am about on round 10. There are 63 rounds but the st count also goes up as you work through the chart. So there is quite a bit left to do. But it goes fast once I sit down and start to work on it. There is a nice rhythm to each round. The problem I have is that once I start, I don't like to put it down and pick it up. I like to sit down and work on it for an hour or more and that sort of time is not as easy to come by. But it is so much fun!

Here's a close-up of what I've done so far. I started with a provisional CO as I prefer to work the neck later. I've done it both ways and I like this way better. I haven't decided yet on how I want to finish the neck.

This is what the knitting looks like. The markers are for the steek. I am going to make a jacket, I think. But all that is for later. Right now I am just happily knitting away.

I decided that my attraction (or lack thereof) to what I'm knitting is very dependent on the yarn and the fabric. Both of these yarns/fabrics make me happy. I love the feel of the yarn in my hands and I love the fabric I'm getting.

Next week I hope to show you the completed yoke. But maybe not! Wish me luck!