That Knitting Blog: Knitting and More

Kid mohair and linen tape

2012-01-21T08:52:00.001-08:00

If you're in the Woodstock area, visit my work in person on President's Day Weekend at the Byrdcliffe by Design show and sale: http://www.woodstockguild.org/the-byrdcliffe-shop/byrdcliffe-by-design

Shawl, mohair, silk, viscose and linen, rib stitch, size 11 cable needle, 24"

Using the fine mohair yarn with the rather heavy tape produces this wonderfully lacy fabric.

Greens

2012-01-19T08:26:00.001-08:00

Capelet; mohair, linen, silk, wool, sequins; stockinette stitch, size 5 cable needle, 24 in. and 16 in.

Another in a very long series of capelets. This one is the result of stringing together random lengths of yarns as I created a large ball. I like the stripes. The fine guage suits several of the more fine yarns and this will be a lovely light spring wrap.

Time out for more collage

2012-01-17T12:27:00.000-08:00

Over the weeknd I had a lot of fun making collage cards.

Alpaca and silk

2012-01-12T15:47:00.001-08:00

Time out for collage

2012-01-10T11:38:00.000-08:00

A resting of hands is necessary, and so this past weekend I decided to spend some time with paper, paints, glue and scissors.

Alpaca and silk

2012-01-09T09:25:00.001-08:00

Capelet, alpaca/silk blend; seed stitch, size 7 cable needle, 24 in.

I'm enjoying the richness of this red along with the smooth softness of the alpaca and silk blend of fibers in the yarn. I'm sorry that no one is making it anymore, but I'm glad I have enough to finish at least one more piece! This capelet will be about 14 in. long, with a bottom circumference of about 50 inches and circumference at the neckline of about 22 in. At this point I don't know if I'll have enough yarn to do much embellishment, but when I'm finished with the body of the piece I'll see if there is enough to make a trim of any kind.

In the studio - mohair and railroad

2012-01-07T06:05:00.001-08:00

Collage work January 2012

2012-01-06T08:37:00.000-08:00

Tan

5 x 7 in.

Paper, watercolor

Tut

8 x 10 in

Paper, watercolor, pastel

Black and White

8 x 8 in

Paper

Blues

6 x 8 in

Paper

Finished - mohar, silk, linen

2012-01-03T07:50:00.000-08:00

Shawl, mohair, silk, linen; stockinette stitch, size 7 aluminum cable needle, 29 in.

I began this back in the fall, just before I switched to all cold-weather fibers and weights. Now that it's January I'm switching back to warm weather fibers and weights, and I'm scrounging through the in-progress bin to see what still looks fun. I LOVE the way this has turned out. The weight is whisper-light and the drape is lovely. It's a shallow triangle shawl, about 15 in high at the point and about 65 in long along the top edge. I used a single strand of thread-like silk "yarn" and a yarn that has one strand of extra fine mohair and one strand of linen, and then just fine kid mohair. At first the linen strands were sort of ornery and made the stitches distorted. Since blocking they have behaved themselves and after a washing or two I think they will be as soft as the silk. I want to work more with similar types of yarn. I think I'll keep the yellow and yellow-green and add in some different colors for the next one.

Finished - mohair capelet

2012-01-02T04:58:00.001-08:00

Capelet, mohair, kid mohair, silk, lurex, stockinette stitch, size 8 cable needle, 24 in.

This capelet is very soft and fuzzy, with a sparkly filament going through the fabric about every fourth row to give it a little bit of shine. I used three types of mohair: kid mohair with silk core, fine mohair boucle and mohair with a filament of lurex. They were each a slightly different tint, and I changed yarns every row to keep a regularity about the color throughout the fabric.

I knitted it in stockinette stitch from the bottom to the top and then cast off while crocheting a row. I added two more rows of single crochet around the neckline with the sparkly mohair and made a little picot at the very top edge. So it evokes the idea of a necklace. At the bottom I added a gentle ruffle of double crochet using the darkest gray yarn, which was a very fine boucle. To make the ruffle curl just a bit more I added a row of single crochet with a pattern of more frequent increase. The capelet bottom edge falls just at the elbow.

The piece measures about 50 inches around at the bottom, about 20 inches around at the top and is about 15 inches long.

This is an original design.

Cotton stash

2011-12-31T12:31:00.001-08:00

I had to try this Arucania hand painted cotton. I'm dreaming of mixing it with black for a yummy cotton afghan.

Chocolate brown capelet

2011-12-30T11:03:00.001-08:00

Capelet, wool and alpaca blend, basketweave stitch, size 9 cable needle, 24 in.

This is working up quickly and is beautifully soft. It's a thick-and-thin yarn, so the basketweave stitch brings out the nubbiness of it and makes a somewhat chunky texture. I think it will be very warm.

I will charge $130.00 for this original design.

In the studio - black merino and cashmere

2011-12-29T09:33:00.001-08:00

Capelet; merino wool and cashmere blend; stockinette stitch, size 6 cable needle, 24 in.;

original design

This yarn feels creamy and I enjoy the feel of it going through my fingers, although it does feel a little like knitting with rubber bands. The size 6 needles make for a somewhat tight fabric, and I think due to the cashmere it will be a very warm capelet. I have plenty of yarn, so I think I am going to keep going once I reach the final decrease for the neck and make a turtleneck.

I also know at this point that I want to make a fan crochet border at the bottom. Maybe I'll ad a picot crochet border at the neck as well.

In the studio - woven stitch shawl

2011-12-28T08:49:00.000-08:00

Shawl, mixed fibers - wool, mohair, nylon, silk; woven stitch, size 4 wood cable needle, 24 inches.

Previous entries:

March 2009

http://thatknittingblog.blogspot.com/2009/03/in-studio-lightweight-linen-stitch.html

September 2008

http://thatknittingblog.blogspot.com/2008/09/in-studio-woven.html

Little did I think in 2008 when I started this shawl that I would be still working on it in 2011, but I am. One of the most difficult things has been to keep from pilfering the yarns that "belong" to the project because they are so gorgeous. But it will not remain a consisten fabric throughout if I don't keep the original yarns. So I have pilfered some, and have had to go digging through the stash to gather them back to this project a few times.

The gauge makes it a long piece, and it is about 30 inches wide. Each row is its own journey, sort of like an afghan that is knitted all the way across in rows. I have a dream of finishing it within the next couple months, so I am trying to work it into a daily knitting habit, somewhat like the whites afghan below.

In the studio: black and white shawl

2011-12-27T06:58:00.000-08:00

Shawl, wool wrapped in nylon; seed stitch, size 8 aluminum needles, 14"; original design

I started this about a year ago, thinking I would use up this old yarn, I think I'm ready to get it done now, so I'm working on it while I ride the bus. It's beginning to get heavy, so it's a bit difficult to hold and turn, although it is visually very interesting and keeps my fingers warm - a nice feature now that the weather has become cold again.

This will have a button and loop along the top long edge so that it can be wrapped around the shoulders and buttoned in the front or on the shoulder if desired. The planned dimensions are 20" x 50" in.

Gray capelet

2011-12-26T10:08:00.001-08:00

Capelet; mixed fibers: cashmere, merino wool, cotton, silk; seed stitch, size 9 cable needle, 24"

The whites afghan is still growing

2011-12-26T07:44:00.001-08:00

Afghan, linen stitch or woven stitch, mixed fibers: cotton, linen, mohair, silk, wool, lurex, alpaca, acrylic, polyamide; size 9 cable needle, 60 in.

I'm back to working on this lovely afghan again. I have some days at home, and am getting back into the rhythm of how the yarns are distributed across the fabric. I was able to do about two inches yesterday, so I'll take that as a benchmark of the rate of progress. It wasn't the only thing I worked on yesterday, but it was about the length of my patience with working on such a large piece of fabric. I don't really enjoy holding all the weight and taking such a long time to do a single row for hours on end.

More details in this earlier entry:

http://www.thatknittingblog.blogspot.com/2010/08/in-studio-white-afghan.html

Stole

2011-12-25T12:09:00.001-08:00

Stole, mixed fibers: wool, cotton, angora, silk, linen, rayon, nylon, mohair; woven stitch (linen stitch); size 7 cable needle, 24 in.

I couldn't stand "shawlette" so I switched to "stole" in describing what this is.

Previous entry: at the beginning stages of the work: http://thatknittingblog.blogspot.com/2011/12/soft-and-fuzzy.html

Purples cowl finished!

2011-12-24T10:16:00.001-08:00

Previous entries: http://www.thatknittingblog.blogspot.com/2011/12/purples-cowl.html

Soft and fuzzy

2011-12-24T06:17:00.001-08:00

Shawlette, mixed fibers: wool, cotton, angora, silk, linen, rayon, nylon, mohair; woven stitch (linen stitch); size 7 cable needle, 24 in.

I like "capelet" better than shawlette, but I thought I'd try out the new word. I cast on 200 stitches and have made the lovely mild teal angora/cotton blend by Elsbeth Lavold the main yarn, with about 7 other yarns in lengths around 4 to 8 feet. I like the linen stitch effect because it blends the colors in a nice way.

Purples cowl

2011-12-23T12:25:00.001-08:00

Cowl, 22 x 9 in.; mixed fibers, rib stitch, size 9 plastic needles.

I cast on the long way for this one and used a lovely light fuzzy purple between each other color, about 8 different yarns.

Here's the earliest entry: http://www.thatknittingblog.blogspot.com/2011/12/starting-new-rib-stitch-cowl.html

Cashmere blend capelet

2011-12-22T06:47:00.001-08:00

Capelet, cashmere, silk, merino wool; rib stitch; size 3 cable needle, 24 in.

The size 3 needle makes this capelet work up very slowly, but the fine gauge gives it some weight, since it's almost light as a feather. Even with a size three needle it's still almost lacey. I began this back in October and pick it up every now and then, hoping that what I do eventually becomes apparent. As I'm knitting I can barely perceive any progress. But now looking at in the the photo, it's going to amount to something in the near future!!!

Green alpaca

2011-12-20T09:21:00.001-08:00

Cowl, stockinette/reverse stockinette stitches with garter stitch edge, alpaca yarn, size 5 straight 14" needles.

I cast on 99 stitches, then knit 5 rows of garter stitch. I started a stockinette stitch row and for the 50th stitch I reversed to a purl stitch. I am increasing the reverse stitches by two each row, which will create a diamond shape in reverse stockinette in a field of stockinette. I think that will be a good front panel for the cowl.

Alpaca cowl

2011-12-20T09:20:00.001-08:00

Cowl, wide rib stitch, k2, p2; alpaca and cashmere blend yarn, size 8 straight 11" needles.

I cast on about 81 stitches for this cowl, which will be knit from bottom to top, then I'll seam it together at about 10" height.

Starting a new rib stitch cowl

2011-12-17T12:05:00.001-08:00

Cowl, mohair, wool, nylon, acrylic fibers; size 9 plastic straight needles, 11".

I'm using about 10 yarns for this cowl, which I am knitting from bottom to top on straight needles. I'll make it about 10 inches tall. I'm using a purple as the "base" color, switching randomly and using the base color every three yarns:

I have 10 yarns that are analogous colors on the color wheel with one yarn that has a color from the other side of the color wheel:

A,B,C,D,E,F,G,H,I,J

each yarn strand is about 4 feet long and I'm using them in this order:

A, B, C, A, D, E, A, F, G, A, H, I, A, J, B, A, C, D, A

I'll do that about 2 times then randomize the non - A yarn colors so that there is not a repeating stripe pattern, but a more varied color mix.

Black alpaca cowl

2011-12-17T12:02:00.003-08:00

Cowl, basket weave stitch, alpaca yarn, size 7 straight needles.

Green merino wool and silk

2011-12-17T12:02:00.001-08:00

Short cowl

2011-12-17T12:00:00.002-08:00

Long cowl

2011-12-12T04:53:00.001-08:00

Cowl in gray alpaca silk

2011-12-12T04:32:00.001-08:00

Cowl, rib stitch, with crochet edge and crochet applique flower; alpaca and silk blend yarn, size 7 cable needle

Bulky merino and sparkly sheer nylon

2011-12-10T10:13:00.001-08:00

Brown alpaca capelet

2011-12-08T05:50:00.000-08:00

Mohair and railroad shawl - finished!

2011-12-06T09:03:00.001-08:00

Wide rib capelet - finished!

2011-12-06T08:57:00.001-08:00

Bulky wools scarf with big fringe - finished!

2011-12-06T08:56:00.001-08:00

Mohair and railroad yarns shawl - finished!

2011-12-06T08:54:00.001-08:00

Finished sea blues and greens shawl

2011-12-06T08:53:00.000-08:00

Black alpaca cowl cast on Dec. 5

2011-12-06T08:52:00.001-08:00

Mohair & railroad

2011-12-06T08:51:00.001-08:00

My favorite things!

Navy wool: Growing

2011-12-06T08:50:00.001-08:00

Wide rib capelet progress

2011-12-06T08:47:00.001-08:00

Wool stockinette and reverse stockinette stripes in navy

2011-12-06T08:46:00.001-08:00

Another mohair bouclé

2011-12-06T08:45:00.001-08:00

Alpaca blend capelet in basket weave stitch

2011-12-06T08:42:00.001-08:00

Mohair and beads

2011-12-06T08:38:00.001-08:00

Sea greens and blues

2011-12-06T07:48:00.003-08:00

Wide rib capelet

2011-12-06T07:48:00.001-08:00

Hand wrapped hangers for knits

2011-08-02T15:04:00.001-07:00

Linen washcloths

2011-08-02T15:03:00.001-07:00

Neutrals capelet

2011-06-30T04:25:00.001-07:00

Indigo cotton capelet

2011-06-28T06:01:00.001-07:00

Olive greens capelet

2011-06-27T06:54:00.001-07:00

Reds

2011-06-16T05:23:00.001-07:00

Finished cotton shawl

2011-06-16T05:05:00.001-07:00

Shawl in cotton and silk

2011-06-10T08:02:00.001-07:00

Yellow ochre and putty cotton

2011-06-08T06:49:00.004-07:00

Diaphanous and fuzzy

2011-06-08T06:49:00.003-07:00

Blue organic cotton

2011-06-08T06:49:00.001-07:00

Silk and mohair shawl

2011-03-28T10:42:00.000-07:00

-- Sent from my Palm Pre

In the studio - organic cotton

2011-03-17T03:41:00.000-07:00

-- Sent from my Palm Pre

Finished scarf

2011-03-15T08:37:00.000-07:00

-- Sent from my Palm Pre

In the studio - frothy pink

2011-03-08T04:39:00.000-08:00

-- Sent from my Palm Pre

Finished slouchy hat

2011-03-07T11:59:00.000-08:00

-- Sent from my Palm Pre

Today's new start

2011-03-05T13:45:00.000-08:00

-- Sent from my Palm Pre

In the studio - greens and blues

2011-03-03T07:56:00.000-08:00

-- Sent from my Palm Pre

In the studio - teensy

2011-02-28T09:05:00.000-08:00

-- Sent from my Palm Pre

In the studio - organic cottons

2011-02-26T15:29:00.001-08:00

-- Sent from my Palm Pre

In the studio - "red" afghan

2011-02-26T07:14:00.000-08:00

I've taken a lot of time for this because trying to select colors that will play well with the red and others is challenging.

In the studio - the afghan grows

2011-02-25T10:58:00.000-08:00

-- Sent from my Palm Pre

In the studio - spring colors

2011-02-25T05:19:00.000-08:00

-- Sent from my Palm Pre

In the studio - natural fibers afghan

2011-02-24T10:07:00.001-08:00

-- Sent from my Palm Pre

In the studio - huge crochet

2011-02-23T08:42:00.001-08:00

Afghan, mixed fibers - no synthetics; single crochet, size 5mm aluminum hook, estimated finished size: 6 ft x 8 ft

This is an attempt to get at that lolapalooza effect of the huge folk art afghan. I have a monster size cone of red hemp and wool, so that ia every other row. All other rows will be any color I intuitively want at the moment. I have two large bags of possible ones.

It strongly reminds me of rag rugs.

-- Sent from my Palm Pre

Back side

2011-02-22T09:19:00.000-08:00

This is the back
Woven stitch, size 11 cable needle, 39 in.
Wool, cotton, linen, mohair, hemp, silk, rayon, nylon, lurex, acrylic

-- Sent from my Palm Pre

In the studio - pink and green cotton

2011-02-22T09:15:00.000-08:00

The border is almost finished

-- Sent from my Palm Pre

In the studio - the yellow afghan continued

2011-02-21T14:04:00.000-08:00

It's been awhile since I worked on it, but this piece is still a pleasure.

-- Sent from my Palm Pre

In the studio - finishing the cotton seed stitch

2011-02-20T08:52:00.000-08:00

-- Sent from my Palm Pre

In the studio - mohair and silk

2011-02-20T05:58:00.001-08:00

-- Sent from my Palm Pre

New stash

2011-02-19T16:36:00.001-08:00

Cottons from Rowan, cotton from Great Adirondak, silk and cotton blends from both Rowan and Noro and a pure chunky linen from Louet Sales.

-- Sent from my Palm Pre

New stash

2011-02-19T16:33:00.001-08:00

Silk by Filatura de Crosa and bamboo from Alchemy Yarns

-- Sent from my Palm Pre

In the studio - scarf

2011-02-17T06:31:00.000-08:00

Linen and silk rib stitch. The ligter green will be a bit of fluffy edge.

-- Sent from my Palm Pre

In the studio - the pink ruffle grows

2011-02-12T04:36:00.000-08:00

-- Sent from my Palm Pre

In the studio - a shawl in contrasting whites

2011-02-12T04:30:00.001-08:00

-- Sent from my Palm Pre

Spring scarf in progress

2011-02-10T08:00:00.000-08:00

-- Sent from my Palm Pre

Spring scarf

2011-02-06T04:46:00.000-08:00

-- Sent from my Palm Pre

Finished Shawl

2011-01-25T14:00:00.000-08:00

Shawl for a child, garter stitch, mixed fibers, size 10, 6 mm bamboo cable needle

-- Sent from my Palm Pre

Cards

2011-01-24T05:43:00.000-08:00

The latest batch

Crochet bag - ready for embellishment

2011-01-23T13:30:00.000-08:00

The straps will go into the slots. I'm thinking about lots of tassles.

Crochet bag

2011-01-22T07:40:00.000-08:00

Handbag, cotton and microfiber with metallic flecks, about 5 inches in diameter, single crochet, size F aluminum hook.

It's been awhile since I've made handbags, and I feel a bout coming on. I want to make them for spring and summer.

-- Sent from my Palm Pre

Green spring scarf

2011-01-22T05:21:00.000-08:00

Scarf, cotton and linen blend, rib stitch, size 7 wood needles, 7 in.

This will have wide elaborate borders, most likely in a contrasting color.

-- Sent from my Palm Pre

Summer black boa

2011-01-17T16:31:00.000-08:00

Boa, linen stitch, mixed fibers: wool.viscose,cotton.polyester,lurex; size 11 - 8mm wood needles, 11 inches

Making the fringe involves huges numbers of knots, but I love boas because they always add drama to an outfit.

-- Sent from my Palm Pre

All yarns from San Diego

2011-01-15T06:59:00.000-08:00

-- Sent from my Palm Pre

Finished big scarf

2010-09-18T04:30:00.000-07:00

Scarf, seed stitch, mixed fibers: wool, silk, cotton, nylon, acrylic, rayon, bamboo; size 11 wood needles, 10in.

I was intrigued by a radical mix of yarns. I made balls by mixing about 30 different yarns. I cut lengths between about 18 in and 36 in, so the texture is all over the place. It's a substantive scarf and I think it will add that brazen touch to any outfit 8^)

In the studio - reds shawl

2010-09-14T04:33:00.000-07:00

Shawl, wool, mohair, nylon and rayon, rib stitch, size 11 cable needle, 24 in.

These three yarns, although three different brands, all have the same colorway. It appears slighly differently in each yarn because the fibers take the dye differently.

I am enjoying the texture of each yarn. They are wildly different weights. I am striping by doing one of the three for each row and keeping the order the same through the three yarns. The fabric is lacy, fuzzy and I think it will be warm. It's knitting up very quickly because of the somewhat large needle size.

The rib stitch provides a vertical line which counter balances the strong horizontal stripes created by the differences in yarns. It will be quite stretchy and comfy.

In the studio - black filet crochet

2010-09-11T05:05:00.000-07:00

Scarf, filet crochet with added tufts, mixed fibers and aluminum, size H crochet hook.

This scarf is going very quickly and will be light for early fall. I'm tying the tufts in randomly and they have shiny spots that will provide coppery flecks of brightness. It will go in the washer and dryer to be fulled, which I think will bring out a wonderful fuzziness and sort of obscure the individul stitch shapes and make the tufts more fluffy.

In the studio - tans

2010-09-08T22:29:00.000-07:00

Stash and my new knitting bag with a hole in the top from Common Thread in Saratoga Springs, New York. They don't seem to have a web site yet.

Shawl, woven stitch, mixed fibers size 10 wood cable needle, 24 in.

I was drawn to these colors because I think they're unusual, especially for me. This shawl is a bit heavy because of the guage and the tape gives the fabric a very solid and heavy feeling. I think it will be nice for fall.

In the studio - silk fluff

2010-09-06T19:42:00.000-07:00

Triangle shawl, stockinette stitch, mixed fibers, size 10 cable needle, 24 "

I've added some other novelty yarns to this silk fluff and it's a wonderful shaggy thing. It'll be very very warm because the silk is so thick. It will be completely reversible so that one can choose to have the shaggy side in or out.

This is an original textile design.

In the studio - blue and green

2010-09-03T18:32:00.000-07:00

Scarf, woven stitch, mixed fibers, size 10 wood needles, 14 in.

I knitted this all last weekend, visiting spots all over western Massachusetts. It has some of my new "Be Sweet" mohair, which I find fascinating and soft, in spite of the boucle texture. I usually do not like it.

In the studio - green and pink

2010-09-01T03:38:00.000-07:00

Stole, woven stitch, mixed fibers: wool, cotton, acrylic, silk, linen; size 10 wood needles, 14 in.

I'm knitting two rows with each yarn to produce a fringe along the bottom edge of the stole and this broken strip effect produced by the woven stitch. I like the pink and green together.

In the studio - pink!!!

2010-08-22T20:58:00.000-07:00

Scarf, rib stitch, mixed fibers: wool, bamboo, silk, polyester, lurex, cotton, rayon, mohair; size 9 wood needles, 10 in.

I'm not quite sure I can handle all the pink, so I'm letting this rest in the bag for awhile. I'm thinking it over.

Original design.

In the studio - white afghan

2010-08-21T07:12:00.000-07:00

Afghan, linen stitch or woven stitch, mixed fibers: cotton, linen, mohair, silk, wool, lurex, alpaca, acrylic, polyamide; size 9 cable needle, 60 in.

I started another afghan because I have all these whites - fat ones, skinny ones, fluffy ones, shiny ones... and so now I have this quite lovely binkie in progress. About every third row I am using an alpaca boucle, and the texture is all brought together by its softness and drape.

I haven't measured it yet with the tape measure but it's about 65 inches wide. It has both gold and silver metallic highlights among the yarns, so it has a very elegant look rather than the more bohemian effect that mixing a couple dozen yarns has. I'm working with a bin of the yarns at the ready. I seem to able to keep at it for about a week at a time and then I have to put it aside and do something else.

I haven't bothered really to talk about this in the past, however there are very few things I produce by following someone else's pattern. I don't think about it much. I design textiles, so the shape happens as a secondary consideration and I'm not interested in complex garment construction. I'm not going to go back and edit all the entries for which this applies. So from now on I have decided to indicate that each piece is of my design with the term:

Original design