Yarn

Motivation for Round Two

stargrace October 12, 2015 No Comments

I took a bit of a break after completing my first sock just to switch things up. I finished off a few books, played some video games, and made plans for future projects. I know that when it comes to other hobbies I can get burnt out, and I didn’t want that to happen with knitting, especially since the colder weather is slowly creeping up on us. This week I decided it was time to get started on the second sock to my pair, and things started moving along much quicker than the first. I’m about half way done now, finishing off the heel flap so that I can begin the short row heel and then bring everything back into the round and then I’ll start the instep. I’m still not happy with grafting, and I’ve been looking at alternative methods of doing toes so that I don’t have to graft. I understand the logic behind it, linking your stitches and all the rest, but when I do it I end up missing stitches and then before I know it half of the sock has come undone. Not good.

I know it takes practice, and so that’s what I’ll have to do. I think part of my issue was it was my first sock and I was using a very fine yarn, makes it hard to see the stitches in order to graft them. Still, the rest of the sock was really easy and if grafting the toe is the only difficulty that I have, I can’t really complain about that.

I ordered some new needles last week to go along with my interchangeable set as well. I needed a size 17 for an upcoming project, and decided I may as well. Since I expect my interchangeable set will last me for some time I don’t mind adding to the collection. I also picked up an extension to the set so that I can make the cord longer for larger projects. I wish the default set had come with it, but for the price I got them at I’m not really too upset. I was just looking at knitting supplies in Michaels the other day and noticed that their bamboo interchangeable set was $230 (Canadian) where as the nickel plated set that I bought were only $45 (USD).

Of course since I was in Michaels I had to pick up a few more skeins of yarn. I ended up buying one more skein of a blanket type yarn for a blanket I’ve been working on (slowly), and I bought two skeins of sock yarn (really lovely colours, purples and reds) and a third skein that’s worsted weight but could be used for a number of projects. It’s very soft, so I may turn that into a pair of socks too. That skein looks like fire, strips of bright red and yellow that blend together. Absolutely beautiful. When my needles finally get here I’ll be starting a prayer shawl for a friend in-need. I’ve got a few skeins of a bulky royal purple colour that I think would be perfect and she has been going through a rough time so I want to make her something. I’m not sure what else I want to knit. I want to keep learning, of course, but making a decision on what to do next is difficult for me. I do have a few Craftsy classes for knitting mitts and gloves, I wouldn’t mind making a pair or two of that. Of course the other issue is that I don’t tend to keep very much yarn on me, I have many smaller skeins but not a lot of the same colours for larger projects. I also keep seeing people crocheting these awesome granny square blankets for their children and friends and I keep thinking that I should give that a try. Granny squares and me don’t really get along though. I’ve tried to make them a number of times and they always end up so weird. I’m not sure why. I’ve made stuffed animals out of crochet before and other items without issue (a hat, a scarf) but for some reason granny squares are the one thing I get stuck on.

Anyway, that’s what I’m up to these days. I hope to finish the second sock this week so the pair will be completed, begin another pair of socks for a friend, and begin the prayer shawl. What I’ll work on after that is anyone’s guess.

One Sock Down, Lets Make it a Pair

stargrace October 4, 2015 No Comments

After one week of knitting and pattern reading, I have finished my very first sock. Honestly, there are so many emotions I’m feeling it’s a bit odd. Of course now I need to begin the second sock but I’m hoping that I find it even easier than the first one. Maybe I won’t need to reference the video so many times and I’ll be able to just use my pattern.

It’s incredibly comfortable. So comfortable in fact that I slept with it on last night. That’s right, I slept with a single sock clinging to my foot.

I used size US 3 DPN to knit this sock, along with 50g of Patons Kroy Socks FX yarn, in Cadet colours (I believe). The yarn is a mixture of wool and nylon with just the right amount of stretch.

I thought the hardest part of the sock would be the heel, but that was actually one of the easier parts. There were only two ‘hard’ parts. One was picking up the instep stitches to bring the work back into the round. The second and most difficult part was the toe. I absolutely hated doing the toe. In fact I messed it up big time. That being said, I honestly don’t care, the rest of the foot is lovely. The toe method that was in my pattern was a grafted one, and I ended up dropping a lot of stitches and having to figure out which ones I had dropped so that the whole sock didn’t unravel. I’m thinking of just adjusting the pattern to my own liking when I reach the end of the toe in the future, maybe just plain stitching it up or something. I haven’t decided. One thing I’ve learned and I really enjoy about knitting (and enjoyed it a lot during my sock progress) is that knitting is flexible. For example, have too many stitches or do a left slanting decrease when you meant to do a right? That’s absolutely fine, in the grand scheme of things (like my sock) you won’t even notice these things. I’m sure there are other pieces of knitting where a mistake like that is unforgivable, but in my sock the only person who knows there’s an issue will be me. Especially because no one is going to be looking so closely at these.

Did I mention I’m proud? I know, it’s a bit silly, but I really am. My experience with knitting has been so different over the past few months than it had been years previously. I’m honestly not sure why I find that I am able to pick things up now compared to my previous attempts, but I AM glad that I’ve managed to get somewhere this time. I’ve owned my Craftsy courses on how to knit socks for years now, and as I read the patterns my eyes would glaze over and I’d lose track of what it all meant.

Coming up next on my needles will be the second sock to this pair (of course). I’ve got a few other projects in mind while I’m working on that. I’d like to do a prayer shawl for a friend (these don’t have to be religious, they’re basically shawls knit with good intentions and thoughts along with prayers, and given to a person who is going through a rough time in life) as well as some mittens or gloves. There’s also the second baby blanket I want to do for my other cousin (remember two of them are pregnant) and we’ll see what else. I’m hoping to continue learning new techniques and to improve the more I knit. It has been an amazing journey so far (and incredibly relaxing).

It’s a Sockdate

stargrace October 2, 2015 No Comments

This week I started my very first sock. Socks have been an ‘end game’ goal for me for years now, they were the reason I wanted to learn how to knit at all. I don’t know what I found so appealing about them, something about actually wearing an item you’ve created that doesn’t take a lot of yarn and you could work on it almost anywhere. To the left is my progress so far. First I started with a k2p2 ribbed cuff, then I worked plain for the leg of the sock, then the heel flap was done in a reinforced stitch, I decreased the instep, and now I’m working towards the toes. I’ll stop around the beginning of my baby toe, and then start decreasing again to shape the toes. Then I’ll be using a chimney graph to close the toe up. The heel flap was done using short rows, and it was my most stressful thought before I started doing it, but was actually the least stressful step out of all of them. The most difficult part so far has been when I attempted to bring the heel flap and the rest of the foot back into the round. Making sure I had the proper amount of stitches and then making sure I was decreasing at the appropriate places was a bit of a pain.

Over all, the sock progress has been going very well and I’m really pleased with how I’ve taken to it. It fits well, it’s comfortable, and I am excited to start the second one so I can have a pair. Once I’ve done both socks I have some gloves and mittens I might knit up, or I might try that shawl I’ve been meaning to do, or I might take a break and try some crochet and work on a blanket. Or maybe I’ll take a break from the fiber arts for a bit and do some reading. The wonderful thing is that it’s October now, and fall has landed in full swing already. It’s cold outside, the leaves are falling, and I am in my element. I feel incredibly blessed.

Though harder to see, my heart still has sadness in it. I keep thinking about Nette and how much life she brought to everyone, and it hurts. It hurts that I was supposed to send her some of my knit items and that I never got a chance. That she commented on all of my pieces and was just so very enthusiastic. I know time is supposed to ease the pain but it’s still a very surreal situation. I think part of my motivation to do a good job and learn knitting so quickly has been because of her. I miss her so much.

It’s time to Knit Socks!

stargrace September 26, 2015 No Comments

This weekend I decided to take the plunge, and start learning how to knit in the round on my way to learning how to knit socks. I’ve said this a few times (and I’m sure I’ll say it a few times more) that socks are my ‘end game’ and have been for years now. I’ve always wanted to learn how to knit them, but I’ve never been brave enough and I didn’t have the right know-how.

I know there are quite a few methods to learning socks, involving dpn (double pointed needles), and circular needles. I decided I would go with the traditional method and learn on dpn, not only because my instructions are for dpn, but because I’d rather work with this method for now. I purchased some wooden dpn from KnitPicks a few weeks back and so far they’re perfect. The yarn doesn’t slide off my needles, which I think helps most of my frustration.

Until now I’ve mostly done crochet. Crocheting in the round is COMPLETELY different from knitting so learning how to do this has been quite the learning experience for me. Working with dpn is a bit awkward, but not nearly as awkward as I thought it was going to be. I’m working on 4 needles and using a 5th to knit onto, rotating my stitches. I’ve got 68 stitches on size 2 needles in sock weight yarn, and I’ve split the stitches between the needles. I’m working the ribbing in a k1 p2 k1, k1, p2, k1 pattern as you can tell by the image, and it’s nice and stretchy. I tried the sock progress so far on my foot to see how it fit, and I think for my next pair I may go down a size in needles, I’m knitting a bit looser than I had done on my gauge swatch. For my first pair I think things are moving along at a comfortable pace. So far I’ve only worked the cuff, next will be the leg, and then the heel flap. Then I’ll have to turn the heel. That’s when things start to get tricky. I’ve been following along with a class on Craftsy, and that has helped a lot. I’m really excited about potentially finishing my first sock. It will take some time and I’m trying not to be impatient about it while I go through each step. Of course this is also only one sock, and I’ll need to knit the second. I know some people like to knit both pairs at once because they don’t want the tension to change between the socks, but I think for my first sock it’s probably best if I just knit them one at a time.

I’ve also been looking at some lacework shawls as perhaps a side project. I don’t own a shawl but I do work beneath the AC and it can get sort of chilly. I usually end up wrapping a blanket around my shoulders, but a shawl would be much better. I haven’t settled on a pattern yet, but one ‘easy’ one I was looking at is this one from Ravelry. It’s a pretty easy pattern to follow, and still looks pretty and delicate. I haven’t decided yet, but I imagine I’ll pick one pattern sooner or later and then do the project in the royal purple yarn I purchased a bit ago.

In the mean time, wish me luck with my socks!

Stranded Colourwork

stargrace September 25, 2015 No Comments

I have a lot of 4 ply yarn. This is also known as fingering weight. When I say I have a lot of it, I mean I have giant spools of it from Greece and other European countries, donated to me. They used to be used for a knitting machine (from what I was told) but it’s no longer in use, so all of this fantastic yarn came my way. I have a feeling I’ll be in yarn for a very long time to come. The trouble of course comes from deciding what I should do with such an enormous amount of yarn. Fingering weight yarn is perfect for things like baby items and socks. It’s great for Fair Isle patterns, and shawls with some weight. Ravelry lets me sort patterns by yarn weight, so I’ve got a few ideas in mind already. I would really like to knit a shawl but of course I don’t know the faintest thing about that (yet).

In the meantime I wanted to play around with this yarn. It’s beautiful, and I settled on making the hat over on the left hand side. I used some self striping yarn that gave this beautiful effect, and I made my very first stranded colour piece. Stranded colour is pretty simple, the strands just get carried along the inside of the piece. It actually served to bulk up the hat nicely, tonight I went for a walk wearing it and my ears were toasty warm. The hat itself is very light, but since winter is quite mild I think I’ll still have lots of opportunities to wear this. I may even knit up a matching scarf. Actually the more I think about this the more in love with the idea I become. A nice long scarf that I can wrap around a few times. You don’t always need to have really heavy yarn in order to keep warm. While I continue to decide what I want to do with this new found collection of yarn, I’ve been working away on the cable scarf. It’s a pretty easy pattern and I don’t really have to pay any attention while I work on it.

I also tried my hand at double knitting. This is where you knit with two strands at the same time, and not only that, you knit and purl at the exact same time. In essence you create a double sided piece. I learned I am absolutely no good at this, at least not when there’s a pattern involved. I tried a really simple heart pattern, and used two colours. How the pattern was supposed to work was on one side it would be colour A as a background with colour B as a heart, and then the other side should have been colour B as the background with colour A as the heart. Nope. Somehow I constantly messed up. I’m not sure if my mind is just unable to grasp the concept of the pattern or what it was, but it just would not click. I tried a number of times before growing frustrated and moving back to the scarf. At least that I’ve got down pat.

What do you make with your fingering weight yarn? Have any simple patterns that you think I should try out?

I really enjoyed doing the stranded colour work. I’ve heard a lot of people complain that it caused their piece to become too tight, you really have to watch your tension so that you don’t shape the piece as you work along. I didn’t have that issue at all, and in fact I’m quite proud of the tension that I’ve had throughout my knitting so far. I don’t know if I just pick it up by instinct, but it’s something that hasn’t been an issue (yet). Of course now that I’ve said that I’m sure I’ve jinxed myself.

I do want to find another project or two to work on along side the scarf. I just don’t think that’s going to hold my attention well enough. Shawl? Another pair of socks? Scarf with colour work? We’ll just have to see!