Imagine…

Tags

Joji Locatelli, KAL, Knitalong, lace, Schoppel, shawls, Sydney Harbour Bridge

Late in August I signed up for the Fall Knitalong in Joji Locatelli’s Ravelry group. My plan? To knit two shawls suitable for springtime in the southern hemisphere.

Here’s the first one: my take on Imagine When.

True to form, I’ve made some changes. The pattern is written for fingering/4-ply yarn; I’ve used Schoppel lace weight. I also used thinner needles to suit the thinner yarn (3.5 mm instead of 4 mm). Since I didn’t want to end up with a small neckerchief, I used Bondik’s modifications and knitted more repeats in section two. Because the following sections are all shaped by a series of short rows, having additional stitches at the end of section two meant that all following sections naturally increased, too.

There were, however, a few moments of doubt. I was partway into section six and convinced I had too much yarn left. I shared my uncertainty at knit night and even dared to voice my thoughts of re-doing my shawl. Well-deserved snorts of derision followed. Back home, I laid out the shawl and measured it. I realised that with extreme stretching good blocking, I probably could reach the pattern dimensions. So I finished the section and hoped for the best.

Like always, blocking did its magic and my shawl is exactly the size of the original!

The knitalong runs for two months with plenty of fun and games along the way. The first fun thread was to take your knitting outdoors and post a photo of you and your project. My Wednesday Walking Friend, S, was a great sport and took loads of pictures down at Sydney Harbour and over the bridge to the other side.   

I think she was even more determined than me to find the picture.

This week we explored somewhere new together, so naturally my Imagine When came too!

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Monogamy? Who am I trying to kid?

Tags

KAL, Knitalong, KnitCamp2015, knitting, patterns, shawls, socks

It’s a well-known fact that you need different projects for different situations.

– Something easy and portable for social knitting
– A more challenging project you can get your teeth into
– Perhaps a garment or blanket that’s grown too large to be taken out and about

From time to time, however, having multiple WIPs is a little overwhelming. So in July I determined to finish off a couple of things, and then focus on one project at a time. It worked. Briefly.

– I knitted my Rye cardigan while it was still cool enough to wear it often (it’s been a perfect jacket replacement).
– I finished my lacy shawl, Gliding, that had been neglected for Golden Rye and for the purple panic (Archibald).
– While I was at KnitCamp, I made pieces for my Lizard Ridge blanket or practised my Fair Isle technique.

Now comes the confession: my good intentions fell by the wayside and I now have four projects on the go! I signed up for a Fall KAL (knitalong) and then again for a sock KAL and then… you get the picture.

Designer Joji Locatelli is having another giant fall knit along in her Ravelry group and I have signed up for two shawl projects. I will knit these consecutively so that only counts as one WIP. I’ve started Imagine When which I’ve had my eye on for quite some time. When it’s finished I’ll move on to Ley Lines.

As mentioned in a previous post, I’ve been smitten with the sock pattern Bark. Then I discovered that the Aussie Sock Knitters group, which has bi-monthly knitalongs, was focusing on Australian and New Zealand designers in September and October so instead of just silently lurking, I cast on my Bark and joined in.

Finally, I have another shawl on my needles – my KnitCamp Nurmilintu. This is my knitting-in-the-pub project at the moment (at least the garter sections are).

I’m quietly ignoring the Lizard Ridge blanket at present. The separate pieces make it an ideal travel project and it will also be easy to work on when the temperatures heat up here as we move towards summer.

I reckon I’m just meant to be a multi-project knitter!

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Who doesn’t like a good “before and after” story?

Tags

Before and after, Judy Marples, lace, Madeline Tosh Merino Light, Ravelry, shawls, yarn

One of the most active threads on Ravelry is Blocking – Before and After! The posts I like best are those where hours of patient lace knitting are finally and almost magically transformed from what looks like an egg tray into a beautiful airy shawl.

So here’s my just-off-the-needles blob of  Madeline Tosh Merino Lightand

after waving my magic wand

stretching on blocking wires…

abracadabra

 Gliding

photo links to Ravelry project page

This is Judy Marples’ East Gable Shawl. The feathery, ferny lace pattern was a little less intuitive to knit than some other shawls I’ve made, so I only worked on it when Mr Soknitsome was off learning how to glide!

This could be the start of something big…

Tags

AIWCC, blanket, charity, Knitters Guild, Lizard Ridge, Noro, Ravelry, stripes, yarn

I’ve knitted 23 pairs of socks to date. Most of these pairs have used significantly less than 100g of yarn. I’ve been saving the remains for emergency repairs and darning but I don’t really envisage using them for such (particularly as my own pairs have had the heels reinforced prior to wear). I thought it would be nice to use the leftovers in a blanket. Ravelry has hundreds of projects, ranging from rows of stripes to patchwork squares and even stuff-as-you-go hexagons.

Before browsing too much, I drew up a shortlist of criteria that would hopefully help me decide which kind of scrap blanket would work for me:

• Work in pieces to enable a good arrangement of colours
• Project should be easy to carry around
• Add in a neutral colour to balance some of the highly variegated yarns

Finally, I decided on making a Lizard Ridge blanket (pattern by Laura Aylor), using grey as one of the striping colours and all my leftovers for the contrast. Lizard Ridge is knitted in worsted-weight Noro yarn so each square is larger than one you’d get using 4-ply/fingering wool. I started off by knitting a square that was one-repeat (i.e. about a third) wider. It seemed a bit on the floppy side. I decided to knit as written and just make more squares. I was fortunate enough to sit next to Caitriona at December’s Knitters’ Guild meeting and she commented on her dislike of sewing together her Lizard Ridge blanket. It made me think. Seriously. About all the squares I would need… I recalled the fund-raising charity blanket that the Stitch ‘n’ Bitch group at the AIWCC made (I was one of the ‘lucky’ ones involved in its assembly)…

• Should I start all over again and knit bigger squares?
• Should I just bite the bullet and resign myself to a lot of sewing-up?

The solution is a compromise of sorts – my squares are now rectangles. They are still 43 stitches wide, as in the pattern, but they feature six not four sets of stripes.

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One final marvellous Monday

Tags

AIWCC, Cologne, crafters, Cross-stitch, expatriate, knitting, Monday, Stitch 'n' Bitch, Sydney

Today was the last one of those Mondays that I particularly like: when members of the American International Women’s Club of Cologne get together for Stitch ‘n’ Bitch. I have to admit to having been a bit anxious beforehand, knowing I would be saying goodbye (for now) to many lovely people.

We knitted and cross-stitched and chatted. I only knitted a bit but helped a friend with a nifty trick for making a three-needle bind-off easier and chatted lots. I was very touched that one member came especially to have a coffee with us and say goodbye. I also got to unpack some lovely stripey sock wool and several sock patterns – perfect aeroplane knitting –  from a friend who knows how much I like to knit socks! Another friend flew into Germany from the US this morning, made a short stop at home, and came along to catch the tail-end of Stitch ‘n’ Bitch before we went to lunch.

My co-leader, M, and I had decided to have a bit of fun and so we both turned up in our Ravello jumpers. Mine is a roomy, winter version. M has knitted a fitted, all-season jumper in gorgeous colours of Holst Garn. It was quite amusing to see people’s reactions when they realised that, yes, we were wearing the same jumpers! We have even both done the Odd Sleeve Thing.*

One of our cross-stitchers knew about the perfect place for lunch and after suitable refuelling (crafting is hungry work) and much laughter, I was very touched to be given an extremely generous gift voucher for the wool shop in Sydney, Morris and Sons. I already have a couple of ideas but will wait and see how things really are weather-wise. I’d like to make a garment and think of all my lovely friends in Cologne while I’m knitting it and every time I wear it.

Being part of an expatriate or itinerant community, means you’re saying goodbye to people on a fairly regular basis. It never gets any easier, regardless of whether you’re leaving or watching others go. In my unassuming way, I’m always slightly taken aback that my sorrow at leaving is matched by those I leave behind. Despite some tears, today ended on a bright note: one friend reminded me that exciting opportunities lie ahead and that she and others will still be in Cologne when we return. Watch this space! 🙂

*Ravelry is the perfect resource for ‘variations on a theme’ both for Ravello and other  delectable stripey garments!

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WIP Wednesday – I haven’t knit anything this year

Tags

finish, KnitMeter, knitting, occasion, projects, Ravelry, start, WIP, WIP Wednesday

Well, that’s certainly a load of old cobblers! But… and yes, there is a but, according to that wonderful little tool KnitMeter I haven’t actually knit anything this year!

KnitMeter is a handy-dandy little widget that keeps track of exactly how much you’ve knitted – be it metres, yards or miles (gasp). I like to wait and enter my finished projects. This is very easy to do as Ravelry already converts balls and skeins into metres and yards. My profile shows at a glance how much I have knitted in years gone by (well since I started using KnitMeter and Ravelry).

There’s been a decided lack of Finish-It-Off and a whole lot of Start-Something-New going on but I hope to remedy that very soon. Looking at this lot of WIPs I have a project for every kind of knitting occasion!

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WIP Wednesday – two steps forward and one step back

Tags

aeroplane, attempt, frogging, knitting, learning, patterns, progress, Ravelry, socks, texture, WIP, WIP Wednesday

I was away over the weekend. It was literally a flying visit. Taking the second sock of this pair (which has admittedly grown since the toe appearing here) didn’t seem like a good idea. I might get it finished and run out of knitting! Hardly likely but, of course, that would be when a flight gets delayed! I’d also have to take the first sock so I’d know exactly when to start the ribbing and when to cast off.

Starting a new pair sounded like a much better idea! So I did. I got the toe knitted up before we left and was ready to get cracking with some texture. I chose  Kebnekaise, having had it in mind when I bought the sock wool. Unfortunately, my colour splashes are much shorter and it just didn’t look right. I carried on for a bit, just to be sure, and then a good two inches into the foot, I frogged.

Attempt number two: Estonian Button Stitch Socks – from memory. Well my memory did not serve me well and the sock looked awful. The “buttons” pulled the stitches together and made gaps either side. So the sock was frogged back to the toe. Again.

Attempt number three: Hermione’s Everyday Socks. You can’t go wrong there, I thought. After all there are 5887 pairs of them on Ravelry. So off I went, knitting plain rows in-between the patterned rows until I had about two inches of foot. Again. Was I happy? No. The fabric felt very dense and I tried blaming it on the sock yarn even though it was quite normal otherwise. Something wasn’t right. In desperation I frogged. Again.

Attempt number four? Yes, there was a fourth attempt. I was in an aeroplane after all. I started anew with the same knit 3, purl 1 ribbing I’m doing on the sock I didn’t want to take with me! It works but I’m really not keen to knit the same pattern all over again right now.

So what did I learn? The patterned rows on Hermione are one purl for every three knit stitches and not one purl for every knit stitch. Estonian Button Stitch is quite different to what I was attempting to do and, done properly, I think this would match the yarn quite nicely.

2013 in 2013

Tags

community, KAL, knitting, projects, Ravelers, Ravelry, socks

Pairs of socks to be knitted during the year. That was the goal set by the Sock Knitters group on Ravelry for a yearlong KAL. Collectively, of course. Naturally, sock-knitting Ravelers everywhere rose to the challenge and the goal was reached in late August! The sock knitting continued and the final count was 3045 pairs of socks. The most prolific knitter made 87 pairs! That’s a new pair every 4 days. And there was me feeling quite chuffed with myself for having knitted almost a pair a month!

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And the winner is…

Tags

Blog, cowl, designer, gift, giveaway, love, patterns, Ravelry, winner

me!

How nice is that? Very nice.

Tina at Peacefully Knitting showcased designer Lara Smoot’s Camberwell pattern for a cowl with matching mitts. She held a giveaway and I am the lucky winner! All I had to do was comment on the pattern and leave my Ravelry ID. Easy peasy and definitely another reason for using Ravelry. 🙂  The pattern is now in my library, waiting for me to choose some yarn and pick up my needles! Of course I then went off and looked more closely at Lara’s other designs. I was not disappointed.

Tina also shared her own Camberwell Cowl (she test knit). Isn’t this lovely? Don’t you just want to get knitting? I do. A big thank-you to Tina and Lara!

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Desk Job!

Tags

bargain, cardigan, clothing, FO Friday, knitting, mistake, patterns, projects, Ravelry, shrug, simple, yarn

In the past I have often wrinkled my brow at sleeveless chunky knits. If you need a bulky sweater to keep you warm, why skimp on the sleeves? One of the drawbacks of sitting at a desk for long hours, is the wear and tear on jumper sleeves, particularly if there’s a fair bit of mouse-usage involved. (Light bulb moment) Perhaps some kind of vest or sleeveless pullover is a good idea after all! (Browses patterns on Ravelry) Factor in some ill-considered bargain 4-ply (fingering/sock) yarn and suddenly there’s a meaningful, practical, stash-busting result!

So here’s my Desk Job! It gives me just that extra bit of warmth I need when I’m sitting for longer periods of time. I used two strands of yarn together and by pairing large stripe with small stripe I’ve got rid of the prominent bands of colour that put me off the yarn after I’d bought it. I can wear it casually open or pin the fronts shut for extra warmth. It feels cosier than a traditional waistcoat or vest – is that because of the  sleeve caps?

FO Friday Summary: a simple quick knit that makes satisfying use of less-loved yarn! Pattern modifications ravelled here

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