Another knitalong

Tags

Joji Locatelli, KAL, Knitalong, knitting, lace, shawls, stripes, texture

I have mixed feelings about knitalongs. It is fun to see other people knitting either the same item as yourself or one based on a common theme but it’s easy to get carried away and assume you’ll  finish within the deadlines. (Not that it matters if you don’t, of course, but somehow that feels like failing). Last year I signed up for two shawls as part of Joji Locatelli’s great autumn knitalong, known as the Jojifallkal2015. I completed one-and-a-half. There were so many enthusiastic knitters taking part that the KAL ended up being split up into categories with several threads in the Ravelry group for both ongoing progress and finished objects. It all got a bit overwhelming.

This year things were scaled back a bit on Ravelry. You could cast on, chat or show your finished object. Nice and easy. I was also far more sensible and decided to just knit one item within the ten-week period: a Three Colour Cashmere Shawl. There were quite a few others either knitting this or the cowl from which the pattern originated and it was lovely to see posts filled with yarn selections. I actually knitted all the way down to the third colour because I just wasn’t sure what it should be. Everyone I asked gave me a different answer. Many suggested a bright pink to pick up some of the flecks in the variegated and give the bright contrast stripe the original has. I knew I might not wear it that much if I chose anything too bright so I went for a quieter contrast.

The Three Colour Cashmere Shawl doesn’t use three complete skeins of yarn but I just had to use all the variegated so I made the third and fourth stripes larger and worked the rest as in the pattern. Of course, knitting additional rows on a crescent-shaped shawl (six increases every two rows) expands the shawl immensely width-wise too. So my shawl is well over two-and-a-half metres wide. In fact I had to block it laid out double and then steam press the fold away afterwards.

I’m not sure such a large shawl is always so practical – I can’t just hang it round my neck as it touches the ground. I need to wrap it at least once right around my neck. Wrapped twice and pulled down over my shoulders, it replaces a cardigan. I think it will look lovely over a dark coat in winter, too. (Ravelry project here)

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Some things get better the longer they take

Tags

Joji Locatelli, KAL, Knitalong, Lana Grossa, Ravelry, shawl, travel, yarn

Four months ago, back in the days of spring, I cast on Joji Locatelli’s Ley Lines shawl as part of her Fall Knit Along.

I’ve admitted before I was overly ambitious in aiming to knit two shawls as part of the knit along so won’t dwell on any of that here. Suffice to say, as we draw closer to autumn here, I finally have a springtime-coloured shawl ready!

Ley Lines is a large asymmetrical shawl and the pattern cover shows Joji enveloped by its ribbing loveliness.  I think this is what attracted me to the pattern in the first place. It’s almost like buying into a lifestyle. I also thought it would be the perfect accessory when travelling.

This was a straightforward knit. I did have a little trouble making the cast-on point look good so quickly followed helpful instructions from a fellow Raveler. After that it was plain sailing. Knit two, purl two, knit two, purl two, … (you get the picture) with increases or decreases to change the angle of the ribs in certain sections as well as to increase the size of the shawl. Ribbing is often used for its attribute of drawing knitted fabric in. My shawl grew longer and longer. It was far skinnier than I wanted. I was quite relieved to see that knitting friend S’s Ley Lines wasn’t any different to mine. We agreed we’d have to block them aggressively.

So 845 metres of ribbing later, am I happy?

Yes, extremely.

Blocking Ley Lines has worked the magic I hoped it would. My shawl is now a lovely size for wrapping around me.

It’s light and airy

But you can still see the texture of the ribbing.

 

I used yarn from Lana Grossa: Cool Wool Baby, 100% merino in 4-ply/fingering weight. Other details and links to helpful projects are on my Ravelry project page

New Year’s Resolutions are doomed from the start

Tags

KAL, knit along, projects, shawls, social knitting

There I’ve said it. Admittedly, that’s a bit of a sweeping statement but how many of the resolutions and good intentions that are made at the start of the year still hold true by the end?

Less is more. Or rather, concentrating on fewer projects at one time leads to satisfyingly quicker results and can be more efficient, too. Especially if you have to ‘find’ your way back into a project that’s been lying dormant for a while. With this in mind, here are my plans for thoughts on project management for this year:

I intend limiting myself to:

something straightforward for social knitting,

a larger or more complex project, and

a small travel project.

When I take part in knit alongs they will be to make one of these items and not an excuse to start another project.

So what happens now?

There are still secret projects to be completed. These will have to count collectively as my larger project for just now as they are unsuitable for social knitting.

My small travel project will be a sock for a knit along (more on that soon).

That just leaves the social knitting. Well, funnily enough, whenever I’ve been at a gathering recently that involved knitting I took my  Ley Lines shawl. It really deserves to be finished. I started it in a moment of folly back in the spring when  knitting two shawls as part of a KAL seemed like a very achievable goal. Then I got distracted by more knit alongs and secrets and…

So here it is, growing longer and longer, and I still have a quarter of the yarn to go. I really hope I can block some width into it. It’s a shame that this shawl has been neglected somewhat since whenever I pull it out of the bag, I’m always pleased to hold it in my hands and knit it again. It should be finished soon, too, if I keep to my plans!  

You win some…

Tags

Ann Budd, Joji Locatelli, KAL, Knitalong, knitting, mistake, shawl, socks

You lose some. Or so I thought, when I reflected that I had completed and surpassed the challenges I’d set myself for the sock KAL with the Aussie Sock Knitters group, but failed by half a shawl in Joji Locatelli’s Fall Knit Along.

Sometimes I talk (and write) utter rubbish! In my last post I commented that there was only a fortnight left for each of the knit alongs I was taking part in. Apart from waxing lyrical on the joys of the sock KAL, I was a bit too optimistic about finishing my Ley Lines shawl. To make matters worse, I bluntly stated that

It doesn’t require too much concentration (any mistakes stand out immediately) so it’s excellent social knitting, too.

Here’s where pride comes before a fall.

I had the feeling that there was something a bit off with one of my sections. But however closely I looked (and it obviously wasn’t close enough), I couldn’t figure out where I’d gone wrong, so I knitted on. But gone wrong I had. I had forgotten one increase. While that might not sound like much, it disturbed the aesthetics of those lines. And I knew it would always annoy me.

So I looked even more closely and jabbed in a needle to help me count down each row. Sure enough, I’d forgotten an increase in what felt like seventy million rows below. Despite the neat tricks I learnt from Ann Budd at KnitCamp on fixing errors, I decided to rip back. The mistake was in a section which had increases on one side and decreases on the other and I could see myself ending up with something wrong elsewhere.

Now I’m good to go again. And the best part? The knit along doesn’t finish until the end of November so Ley Lines might even be finished in time!

Still knitting along

Tags

darning, KAL, Knitalong, shawl, socks, Wolle Rödel

So we’re approaching the final fortnight of both the knit alongs I’m taking part in.

Having signed up to knit two shawls as part of Joji Locatelli’s Fall Knit Along, I cast on my second one, Ley Lines, at the beginning of the month. I’ve started the third section and the more I knit, the more I like this. It doesn’t require too much concentration (any mistakes stand out immediately) so it’s excellent social knitting, too.

In a burst of enthusiasm for the The Aussie Sock Knitters group and their current KAL, I decided to knit another pair of socks. The pattern’s by Melissa Deutsch Scott (aka Stranded In Oz) and having seen the lovely pair of Le Maquis that WollombiDreamer made, I knew I wanted to make these too!

Melissa was very generous and gave me the pattern, since I was knitting the socks as part of a knit along. I’m really pleased with how they turned out.

I didn’t use the heel in the pattern, but the one from Cassandra Dominick’s Early Bird Socks which I also used on my Blue Bark socks. I think this will be My Heel from now on. It fits really well and because the knit 1, slip 1 starts under the heel, I’m hopeful they will be durable, too. I’ve just darned the bottom of the heel on my Fraternals socks. It’s not perfectly executed and I probably shouldn’t wear them too often but  I am loath to discard them, as  these were my Very First Socks Ever. 

The colour of these new socks, as well as the lovely lace pattern, makes them very appealing. The yarn is Wolle Rödel’s Sport & Strumpfwolle Classik. A standard 75% wool / 25% nylon 4-ply sock yarn. Wolle Rödel has shops selling yarn, needlework and jewellery-making materials throughout Germany and I bought this when I was teaching an English course in Stuttgart. I had to literally walk past the shop to get to the train!

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!

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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WIP Wednesday – getting back on track

Tags

aeroplane, bus, KAL, Knitalong, knitting, socks, Socks with Sarah, train, WIP, WIP Wednesday

At the beginning of the year I decided to join in with a very relaxed knitalong: KnittingSarah‘s KAL, “Socks with Sarah, a KAL for 2014“. Knit a bit of a sock every day for a year. Sounds easy? Yes. I could work on other projects at the same time so I always had something simple for chatty social knitting as well as a more challenging project on my needles.

Socks make wonderful projects when you’re traveling. Whether you’re crossing oceans by plane, the country by train or just the city by bus, knitting socks works well in a small space.

Because they are such portable projects I keep the sock and the wool in a little pouch ready to pack into other bags for travel. So of course at home this sock is not waving at me, nor jumping around begging to be knitted. It’s sitting there quietly waiting to go on a journey. Out of sight, out of mind? Kind of. We’re halfway through the year already and I’m determined to finish it as I began: knitting a bit of a sock every day.

Hermione upside-down

Tags

FO Friday, KAL, knitting, Ravelry, socks, Socks with Sarah, texture, toe-up

I knit socks toe-up. When I decided to master the art of sock-knitting I was drawn to the idea of being able to try them on as you go. This has turned out to be a good thing. I knit socks on skinny 2mm (US 0) needles and only need 60 stitches to get a snug but not tight sock. Sometimes I have to fiddle with a pattern but most of the time that works out alright. Knitting a pair of Hermione socks upside-down is no big challenge. At first I was going to knit this yarn as plain come-as-they-will stripes but there are plenty of patterned Hermiones on Ravelry. They are textured socks rather than lacy or cable-patterned socks – it’s a kind of expanded moss/seed stitch and I think it works well with these stripes. This time it was particularly serendipitous that I knit my socks starting at the toe. There was a knot in the second ball, so although my stripes began identically, they didn’t finish that way. You can see that my socks are different from the heels up.

Since I’m quite taken with my sock knitting abilities and love nothing more than showing them off wearing them with T-bar/Mary Jane style shoes I still appear to have a pair of identical socks!

These socks are part of the Socks with Sarah KAL

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Will I or won’t I?

Tags

clothing, jumper, KAL, knitting, patterns, pullover, Ravelry, socks, Socks with Sarah, Stitch 'n' Bitch, stripes, Zitron

On Tuesday last week my knitting looked like this:

I cast on this top-down jumper/pullover on Sunday and was raring to go at Stitch ‘n’ Bitch on Monday. But my purl m1 stitches were loose and the increases looked very ugly. So I focussed on being sociable and ripped it all back, knowing I’d get on better at home.

I got to spend the greater part of Saturday afternoon knitting and then on Sunday I briefly  wondered whether, if I knitted really fast, I could wear this in Brussels, mid-March! Now the idea won’t let go of me and I waver between wanting to give it a good go and knowing it won’t happen in a million years… So I’ve been knitting like one possessed.

My KAL socks (Socks with Sarah) have been demoted to the bare minimum: a-round-a-day.  And now there’s just a ‘bit’ of the body still to do before I move onto the sleeves. These will be slower; what with the stripes and shaping. After that I’ll just have to finish off the neck and deal with all the ends. Oh, and block it, of course!

Perhaps I’m in with a chance! What do you think?

 The pattern is Isabelle Kraemer’s ravello and the yarn is Zitron Patina