Toe Up Feather & Fan Socks in Handpainted Sock Blank

Cast On:
November 27 2008

Completed:
December 7 2008

Pattern:
Toe Up Feather and Fan Socks by Wendy Johnson
http://wendyknits.net/finished-work-free-patterns-tips/sub-page
http://media.wendyknits.net/knit/featherandfansock.pdf

Made for:
Me in Size 9

Needles:
US 1 1/2 / 2.5 mm Knitpicks Options & Harmony - 2 socks on 2 circs.

Yarn:
Whimzy Pinzy Creations Feet Sheets by Whimzy Pinzy
Bamboo/Cotton/Elastic Panda Yarn
1 sock blank approximately 400 yards
Colorway - Burgundy, Black, etc. - Dyed by Me
Purchased at Whimzy Pinzy Etsy Shop
http://www.etsy.com/shop.php?user_id=5097833


The 64 sts for the foot wasn’t large enough for my size 9 tootsies. I increased to 72 sts for the foot. Also, I worked the feather & fan pattern on the foot. I like having the pattern on my foot as well as the leg.

I wanted something to knit on Thanksgiving that wasn’t an Xmas present. And I have been missing having socks on my needles!

I love working with the sock blank. It is very easy and there is a lot less tangling.

I confess I am surprised by the way the yarn took the dye. It seems I didn’t get the dye into all of the loops that were knit. So there is a lot of heather effect to the yarn. It turned out as a happy accident. I like the way it looks.

I choose the feather & fan to highlight the striping in the yarn. I think it works pretty well. I am happy with the pairing of the yarn & pattern.

The Feet Sheet I have was dyed by me. Also, it is the bamboo/cotton/elastic one, not the superwash wool/nylon one. I have to say the yarn is pretty splitty. But I still enjoy the feel when it is knit. So I would probably buy it again. It was a bit shorter than I like though.

I liked that the repeat was super simple. I definitely like the way it came out.

Only wish they were a little longer. They came out kinda short for my tastes. But I ran out of yarn.

Productive Weekend

First I have to say thanks to Nils at Babe Fiber Garden. The replacement bracket & bolt for my Babe Production Double Treadle wheel arrived Friday. My darling husband Paul replaced it for me on Saturday. And it is working like a dream again. So I am back to spinning which is happy! *wiggles happily*

I spent a good portion of the weekend knitting Xmas stuff. I am pretty happy with the results so far.

I found a scrubbie pattern that works pretty well.

http://tankhouse.knitability.com/freepatterns/DishClothDuo.pdf

After looking at the Ravelry images of the scrubbie, I decided follow someone's suggestions for a larger size one.

Blue Xmas Scrubbie

Cast On & Completed:

November 7 2008

Pattern:

Circular Scrubby by Gwen Bortner

http://tankhouse.knitability.com/freepatterns/DishClothDuo.pdf

Made for:

Sister-in-law Jennifer

Needles:

US 9 / 5.5 mm Knitpick Options

Yarn:

Lily Elite Cotton

Dyed by me

0.08 skeins = 14.7 yards (13.5m)

Purchased at Smiley's Yarns Sale in NJ

Super quick and easy.

Cast on 25 stitches and did 22 rows. It is still kinda small. Good thing SIL has small hands.

Yarn dyed blue by me especially for SIL (to match her kitchen colors).

Ostrich Plume Dish Towel Xmas Present

Cast On:

November 4 2008

Completed:

November 7 2008

Pattern:

Ostrich Plume Dishcloth by Edith Taylor

http://www.groupepp.com/dishbout/kpatterns/ostplume.html

Made for:

Sister-in-law Jennifer

Needles:

US 7 / 4.5 mm Knitpicks Options

Yarn:

Lily Elite Cotton

Dyed by me

0.92 skeins = 169.3 yards (154.8m)

Purchased at Smiley's Yarns Sale in NJ

Yarn dyed blue by me especially for SIL (to match her kitchen colors).

I made a dish towel rather than a dishcloth. I had enough yarn for that & a scrubbie.

Size: 8" x 20"

Grey Xmas Scrubbie

Cast On & Completed:

November 8 2008

Pattern:

Circular Scrubby by Gwen Bortner

http://tankhouse.knitability.com/freepatterns/DishClothDuo.pdf

Made for:

Sister-in-law Bren & Husband Martin

Needles:

US 10 / 6.0 mm Knitpick Options

Yarn:

Lily Elite Cotton

Dyed by me

0.08 skeins = 14.7 yards (13.5m)

Purchased at Smiley's Yarns Sale in NJ

Cast on 30 stitches & did 24 repeats to get a decent size. Original pattern makes one that is very small.

It puffs up a bit, but I think that is because I didn't sew the edges together exactly right.

Yarn dyed by me to accent SIL's kitchen.

Basket Rib Dish Towel

Cast On:

November 8 2008

Completed:

November 9 2008

Pattern:

Basket Rib Hand Towel by Traci Heiner

http://traciknits.blogspot.com/2008/05/basket-rib-hand-towel-free-pattern.html

Made for:

Sister-in-law Bren & husband Martin

Needles:

US 7 / 4.5 mm Knitpicks Options

Yarn:

Lily Elite Cotton

Dyed by me

0.08 skeins = 14.7 yards (13.5m)

Purchased at Smiley's Yarns Sale in NJ

Size: 10" x 18"

Fast & easy. Kinda glad I decided on dishtowels. They are going pretty quickly.

Yarn dyed by me. Done in colors to reflect SIL's countertop. Honest, I don’t think it does.

It was supposed to be darker. Still, I think the colors look good & the recipients will like it. *crossed fingers* (Okay, let's be honest, my BIL could care less. *smirk*)

Brown Xmas Scrubbie

(Pic shows the three I have done together. Shows the differences in size.)

Cast On & Completed:

November 8 2008

Pattern:

Circular Scrubby by Gwen Bortner

http://tankhouse.knitability.com/freepatterns/DishClothDuo.pdf

Made for:

Sister-in-law Andrea

Needles:

US 10 / 6.0 mm Knitpick Options

Yarn:

Lily Elite Cotton

Dyed by me

0.08 skeins = 14.7 yards (13.5m)

Purchased at Smiley's Yarns Sale in NJ

Cast on 30 stitches & did 22 repeats to get a decent size. Original pattern makes one that is very small.

It puffs up a bit, but I think that is because I didn't sew the edges together exactly right.

Yarn dyed by me to accent SIL's kitchen.

Trellis Sweater

Cast On:

October 4, 2008

Nearly Completed:

October 13, 2008 (all but the buttons and overdyeing)

Completed (finished overdye & buttons):

November 7, 2008

Pattern:

Trellis by Britta Stolfus Rueschhoff

http://www.knitty.com/ISSUEspring05/PATTtrellis.html

Made for:

Michael & Jen's Newest Leah

Size:

Smallest

Needles:

US 7 / 4.5 mm Knitpicks Options

Yarn:

TLC Cotton Plus Solid in 3810 light blue

~1 skeins = 178.0 yards

Purchased at Smiley's Yarns Sale in NJ

Friday, I stopped by the Point while out during my lunch hour. I found the buttons on this sweater. They are too busy for the sweater. But I know the mom loves busy stuff, so she will like it I think. They also are similar to the buttons on the sweater I knit for her sister for Xmas. http://knittnkitten.blogspot.com/2008/06/trinitys-tomten-done.html

I had finished all but the dying and buttons by October 13. It was a pretty quick project.

I wanted to start on some more Xmas knitting. I have completed the sweater for Trinity, Michael & Jen’s daughter who is about to turn 1. I wanted to do something for their boy who was due in this fall.

I was told when I was visiting my family in Easter that it was a boy. No one told me otherwise. So I made a blue sweater. Then I got the call. It is a girl. Ummm…excuse me?! blink

I dyed the sweater to purple. It looks good. The nylon didn’t take the dye so there is an interesting heather affect to the yarn.

I am glad it looks okay because there was no way I was redoing it at this point. I have enough other Xmas knitting to do.

I did a search on baby projects in the TLC Cotton Plus and found the Trellis sweater. It looked really attractive so I decided to try it.

I sorta wish I had done a bigger size. Knowing Michael & Jen’s daughter Trinity is large, I should have anticipated a big baby. Plus it could have been worn later. But ah well. Honestly, I don’t know if they even liked the sweater I knit for Trinity last Xmas. So I don’t want to spend tons of time on it if it will never get worn.

I confess I am not thrilled with the way the pattern is written. I finally sat down and marked up the pattern with the row #s. I am not sure why the writer wrote it without the row #s. Other than that though, the pattern is great. And I love the way it turned out.

(Though heaven knows if I had known it was a girl I would have done something lacier. Ah well. *shakes head*)

So all in all, it was a super productive weekend. I am happy that I got so much done & am back to spinning again. Hooray!

Dyed Yarn & Xmas Knitting

Here are some pics of the Lily Elite Cotton yarn I dyed over the weekend.

Generated by Flickr Album Maker

Some are much lighter after they dried than I anticipated. But I am pretty happy overall with the colors. Other than the red. It is a bit too light for my tastes. Problem was I ran low on the Fire Red dye that I was using. I added some fuscia red dye to it. But it still seems to pale. But it is bright enough that I think it will be good as a Christmas red. *crosses fingers*

I dyed it with the intention of creating dish cloths/towels for some people as Xmas presents. I hope that will be enough. I confess I am feeling tapped out money wise. So that may be all some people get. Though I am betting other people are in a similar situation this year. So I am not going to stress it.

(I can post this on here because non-knitters I know do not read this. And if you are a knitter who will be getting a present from me, you should know this won't be your present! *grin*)

I started with one for my sister-in-law. Only to rip the entire thing out and pick another pattern.

The first pattern I picked was:

http://www.jimsyldesign.com/dishbout/kpatterns/smocked.html

Pretty, but I realized the carried over strands that are picked up are a terrible idea for a dish towel! It would get caught on anything like utensils and such! Not sure why so many people have made that one on Ravelry. I think it would be fine as a washcloth, but not a dishcloth in my opinion.

I end up doing this one instead:

http://www.jimsyldesign.com/dishbout/kpatterns/ostplume.html

It is simpler than it looks but pretty. I think my sister-in-law will like it. *crosses fingers*

Ostrich Plume Dish Towel Xmas Present

Cast On:

November 4 2008

Pattern:

Ostrich Plume Dishcloth by Edith Taylor

http://www.jimsyldesign.com/dishbout/kpatterns/ostplume.html

Made for:

Sister-in-law J

Needles:

US 7 / 4.5 mm Knitpicks Options

Yarn:

Lily Elite Cotton - Dyed by Me

1 skeins = 184.0 yards (168.2m)

Purchased at Smiley's Yarns in Woodhaven, New York

The purple, brown & mixed grey and other colors are for some of my other in-laws. The brown & grey were to compliment their kitchen colors. (Though I am not sure about the grey one. I will knit it up, but it may end up getting redyed or some The purple is just because I know my sister-in-law likes purple. I am figuring the red & green for some Xmas towels.

I still have 4 balls of the Lily Elite Cotton that isn't dyed. I am debating what I will do. One of my sister-in-laws like cows. So I was thinking about doing something about that for one of them. But I didn't dye that up. I was originally thinking about knitting it first and then dyeing it. But now I am thinking it would make more sense to dye it first.

I will see if I have any left over brown from the one. Also, there is a Smiley sale the first week of December. So I can check if they have more of the cotton in other colors.

I used up all my black dye, the fire red and some others during the dyeing over the weekend. So I either need to replenish it or just go with what I have for the time being. I have plenty of knitting ahead of me. So we will see. *smile*

Also, here is a pic of the Panda Cotton sock blank I dyed over the weekend.

Sock Blank Purchased from Whimsy Pimsy etsy shop:

http://WhimsyPimsy.etsy.com

I am honestly not sure about the colors. They aren't what I was expecting. But I think it will be interesting.

I am leaning towards doing something like a chevron to get movement to the stripes. But I also do not want anything too complex given this will be my first time knitting with a sock black.

The Sock Knitters Anonymous KAL for Nov. is either a Wendy Johnson pattern or mosaic knitting. I am very tempted by mosaic knitting but do not have yarn for it. I was thinking about using one of the Wendy Johnson toe up patterns and adding a chevron to it. I am a bit tempted by her toe-up feather and fan pattern. But I suspect that would be too busy for the yarn.

Arrow Socks Completed

I finished the Arrow socks for my friend Meredith on Monday. I just got around to taking pics of them.

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Cast On:

Saturday, July 12, 2008

Completed:

Monday, August 25 2008

Pattern:

Arrow Socks (ravelry link)

From Sensational Knitted Socks by Charlene Schurch

Made for:

My friend Meredith

Size:

10 3/4" ankles, but 9" at ball of foot

Needles:

Knitpicks Options & Harmony US 1 1/2 / 2.5 mm needles

Done 2 socks on 2 circs

Yarn:

Base yarn -

Cosmic Fibers Bamboo Sock

1 skeins = 385.0 yards (352.0m)

Purchased at Dharmafey's Cosmic Fibers - http://cosmicfibersyarn.etsy.com

Colorway -

Chocolates - dyed by me, not Dharmahey

The challenging part of these socks was that my friend's ball of the foot is 1 3/4" narrower than her ankle. Luckily she pointed out she has wide ankles. Otherwise I wouldn't have measured them and the socks wouldn't have had a prayer of fitting. I am still hoping they will fit her well. I see her tonight and will give her to her.

Cast on 80 sts. I am hopeful they will stretch enough for her ankles and calves. *crosses fingers*

I decreased after the gusset to get the foot more narrow. But I didn't want to lose the pattern on the top of the foot. So the bottom is less stitches than the top. I think it worked out alright. It wasn't such a huge difference. So she won't be stepping on the pattern. I think it will be okay.

It is definitely harder making socks for someone else. When I make them for myself, I can try them on and make sure they fit properly. But with someone else, you just have to hope the measurements are good and that it all works out.

The yarn is a bamboo/superwash wool/nylon blend that I dyed myself. Meredith wanted browns & black so that is what I did for her. I actually really like the way the yarn looks. It isn't my colors but I like it.

The pattern isn't too complex, just long (16 rows). Rows 1, 3 & 5 are just knitting. 2, 4, 6 are different. Then 7-16 alternate rows. It became easier to remember most lines of the pattern which helped. But I still needed to have it by my side while knitting it. I know a lot of people memorize far more complex repeats. I am just not one of them it seems.

I feel like these socks took longer than they should have. I suspect part of that was I started them while in the midst of the Tour de Fleece. That took a lot of my knitting time. I did finish them before the end of August. So they are done for the July Sock Knitters Anonymous KAL (you have two months for any KAL).

Of course now I am wondering what to cast on next. Hmmm. I was really learning towards doing something with the Scout's Swag Soctoberfest colorway I got from Silvercat. It has some orange in it which would be nice to wear around Halloween.

Though this morning I was working on plying the superwash wool I spun. So I am debating knitting socks with that instead. I am doing my first 3-ply. So I suspect they are house socks, not outside socks. The yarn is pretty thick for socks. They should be a quick knit.

I also have the other batch of bamboo/superwash wool/nylon blend yarn that I dyed . I really like the colors. Dark and moody. I am leaning towards doing those in the Zombie sock pattern. Unfortunately for non-Ravelry, it only seems to be available as a Ravelry download.

The September KAL is either orange socks or a Cookie A. pattern. I could do another Cookie pattern, but I just don't think that is what I want to do with the yarns I want to use next.

Of course I am also thinking I really should cast on a sweater already! I keep saying I will and avoiding it. Part of it is that I lost the alpaca sweater I started. But part is because I fear I will never actually finish an adult sized sweater! *chuckle*

Decisions decisions... Whee!

Handpainted Yarns

I dyed this yarn I bought as blank skeins from Dharmafey. It is a Superwash/Bamboo/Nylon blend.

I did two batches. Both were handpainted with Dharma fiber reactive dyes with vinegar as the agent mixed with the chemical water. I let it sit around 20 hours then steam set them.

Black Orchid

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I wanted something dark and rich. I love the Raven colorways from Blue Moon Fiber Arts. But after their Atomic 6 colorway fading so badly that it isn't even the same colors, I am unwilling to buy more of their yarn. So I figured why not dye a colorway similar but yet my own.

There are four dyes - black as well as deep purple, burgundy & fire red all mixed with varying amounts of black.

I really like the way this colorway came out. I think it will look wonderful in socks.

The name is inspired by the graphic novel by Neil Gaiman & Dave McKean.

Chocolates

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This batch was dyed for my friend Meredith. She said she really just wanted brown & black. So that is what I did. Pretty simple. It is two different concentrations of chocolate brown & black (same black as the Black Orchid).

I think it came out well and hope she will like it.

Because of the Superwash/Bamboo/Nylon blend, there is a shimmer to the yarn. It looks wonderful. I need to buy more of this yarn. It also super soft.

I made my Baudelaire socks out of this base yarn dyed by Dharmafey. I really love them. They feel great and are super comfy. They are wearing pretty well.

First Time I Plyed Two Spun Singles Together

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This is the first yarn where I have spun two singles and plied them together. The others yarns I had done were so irregular and thick in spots that I plied them with thread as not to add more bulk to them.

It is 4 oz. of Finn that the woman who sold me the Babe wheel gave me. It spun really nicely. I think it had a nice long staple which meant I could draft it out pretty well.

While I am still not super consistent about the thickness, I am improving. There are some thicker & thinner bits in the yarn. But overall, it is much better in consistency. I am still learning a lot but it is getting better the more I am spinning.

I really do love the wheel. I was having some issues with it, but I think that was me getting used to the wheel. Most of them have been resolved by my being attentive to how I sit, where I put my feet on the treadles & my darling hubby tightening up some screws on the wheel. So I think things are good!

I also did my first batch of dyeing with Kool-Aid. It was pretty easy and the color is okay. I think I would have liked more richness to the color. But it did work well. I really liked that I could do it in the microwave because it was all edible products. So I didn't have to stress about it being toxic.

The purple is created with grape Kool-Aid. It is sorta dusty purple. The red is tropical punch. I had wanted black cherry as it is darker. But the store didn't have any. The colors are pretty decent. I also added some red & blue food coloring to some of the sections. Though honestly, you can't see a difference between the sections with the food coloring and the ones without. *shrugs*

I had planned to just lay out the yarn in a large container and do it that way. But when I poured the dye onto the yarn, I found that there was no way with that method that the colors would remain in place. So I took the cups I mixed the different dyes in and just kept the yarn in each of the cups.

I used the 2 minutes in the microwave, two minutes rest. I would spoon the color over the parts that were sticking up over the edges of the cups. It worked pretty well.

Overall I am happy with the results. I might decide to overdye the color. But it is just as likely I will leave it as it is.

I definitely think I should invest in some acid dyes. What I liked about this dyeing process is that you are supposed to heat it until the water becomes clear. So that is a lot less rinsing. And after handpainting with the fiber reactive dyes and the rinsing that takes all day, not spending hours rinsing is very appealing. *chuckle* Also, for creating painted rovings, the acid dyes are a better way to go. I will have to check into them.

The yarn is only around 55 yards though. Ah well. Maybe I will create a thin decorative scarf. I am not sure. Either way I am definitely having fun with spinning. Now that I have gotten the hang of it, it is getting really calming to do it.

Spring Socks

I just finished these yesterday. The timing is kinda perfect given it is the first day of spring. The colors are definitely on target for that. And I am wearing them today.

Cast On:
March 3 2008

Finished:
March 19 2008

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Pattern:
Combo of
Basic Sock Pattern from The Knitter's Handy Book of Patterns
http://www.amazon.com/Knitters-Handy-Book-Patterns-Interweave/dp/1931499047/
&
The stitch pattern of Ladder of Life socks
http://www.interweave.com/knit/files/ladder.pdf
both by Ann Budd

Made for:
Me - 9 1/4" circumference & length

Needles:
US 3 / 3.25 mm Knitpick Options & Harmony
2 socks on 2 circs method

Yarn:
Sarah's Yarns 100% Bamboo
http://www.sarahsyarns.com
Handdyed by me
1.2 skeins = 120 grams / 342 yards

I combined two of the Anne Budd patterns. I took the # of stitches and design from her basic sock pattern in the "The Knitter’s Handy Book of Patterns". The stitch pattern is from her Ladder of Life.

The Ladder of Life requires 5 sts = 1”. Too large for most of my socks. But I figured the pattern would flatter the self-striping yarn I dyed. It is enough to keep me interested, yet simple enough to be a good knit right now.

Things are kinda crazed so I really wanted some comfort knitting. Something familiar yet also bright. I think this definitely fit the bill.

I cast on 64 stitches. However, I found it was too big. So I decreased the stitches to 56 so I could keep the pattern going. It also gave me a larger area over the calf which I tend to need.

I think I liked the hand dyeing I did more before I knit it. I think I didn't lay it out well. The stripping didn't come out even because of the yarn. I tried to match them but quickly gave up on that as they weren't lining up right. I need to figure out how to do it better next time. I think I understand what I did wrong. I think the piece I was using pulled in the more yarn I laid out. So that the length of the stripes was not consistent. I know how to fix that for next time and have the pieces to do it. So I hope my next self-striping attempt will be better.

The socks feel great on. They are very soft. And there is a nice sheen to the yarn. I am still concern about the memory of the socks. But I am hopeful that they will work well. I am finding they fall down a bit. But I suspect I didn't make the top tight enough. I still like them and suspect they will be ideal summer socks.

Yummy Yummy Sock Yarn!

I just got the sock yarn I ordered! It is very yummy and very squishy.

It is the Dexter colorway in Bamboo Sock (60% superwash merino/30% bamboo/10% nylon). It was dyed by Carrie aka Dharmafey of the Socks in the City podcast. She posted about it on Ravelry. She also has an Etsy shop. Though I think she is doing the Dexter colorways by request, not just listing them on her Etsy page.

Here is a pic of hers of the Dexter colorway:


My batch is seems to be a light grey overall with smaller patches of red here and there. Personally, I like it better than the one she pictured which has white in it.

She has a bunch of her colorways on her flickr site:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/dharmafey/sets/72157603576877947/

I can't wait to see how it knits up. I think it will be largely a grey sock with flecks of red in it.

I am hooked on the show Dexter as well. Paul and I have been watching it (though we are only about 6 episodes in, probably will watch some more this weekend). It is really delightful. Definitely dark.

I can't see how they will edit it to show it on CBS. There is too much profanity and some nudity as well. I think they are going to hack it up to a point it will be unwatchable.

NOTHING on My Needles! *gasp*

Currently I have NOTHING on my needles! *gulp*

On Ravelry, I am saying that the pillow is only 95% done. But it is cast off. So not on my needles! I just haven't actually sewn it to fabric & stuffed it yet. I *have* to finish that this weekend. I need to get it mailed off to her.

Rushing Rivulets Socks in Undertow Bamboo Yarn

Cast on:

Saturday, Dec. 1st

Finished:

Monday, December 31st

Pattern:

Stitch Pattern -

Rushing Rivulet

by Cat Bordhi

http://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/rushing-rivulet-riverbed-architecture

Basic Sock Recipe -

Basic Sock Pattern from The Knitter's Handy Book of Patterns

by Ann Budd

http://www.amazon.com/o/ASIN/1931499047/

Yarn:

Sarah's Yarns 100% Bamboo

http://www.sarahsyarns.com/SY100PctBamboo.html

Used about 100 grams (I dyed 150 grams and have about 54 gms left)

That should be around 285 yards (260.6m)

Needles:

Knitpicks Option & Harmony US 1 1/2 / 2.5 mm circulars

Done 2 socks on 2 circs

I am really thrilled with the Xmas socks I did for my sister-in-law Jennifer. I suspect she will like them. Though I am kinda nervous about them. My sister-in-law Tee sent me Jennifer's measurements for the socks she made for her. So I think they will fit.

I stopped the toe about a 1/2" shorter than Jennifer's foot. So they are 7 1/2" in length when Tee told me Jennifer's feet are 8". I thought about redoing it. But I tried them on my feet which are 9 1/4" long and much wider. I *could* wear them. I can pull them on my feet and they have enough give that they would fit. So I am not terribly worried that they won't fit.

I am hoping Jennifer likes them. *crosses fingers*

I did cut out some white cardboard to put inside to show off where the holes were in the pattern. I don't know if that shows off well in the photos.

Definitely click on the image for more detail. I have a much large size on flickr.

2nd Attempted at the Tomten Sweater

There are a few more pics as well:

http://www.flickr.com/search/?s=int&w=11372712@N04&q=tomten&m=text

Cast on:

Cast On: Monday, Dec. 10th

Finished:

Around Dec. 20-23. Wish I had marked it at the time.

Pattern:

Modular Tomten Jacket from Knitting Without Tears

by Elizabeth Zimmermann

http://www.amazon.com/o/ASIN/0684135051/

Yarn:

TLC Heathers in Teal (though more blue) with Barn Red accents

http://www.coatsandclark.com/Products/Knitting/Medium+Yarns/TLC+Heathers.htm

Used about 1 1/2 of the blue & less than half skein of red

Needles:

Knitpicks Option US 9 / 5.5 mm circular from set

I can't believe I forgot to post these pics. I really meant to while I was on vacation but I forgot. I really don't get online much when I am home. I had to push myself to post about the Trouble with Tomtens. *laugh* It was the mobius sweater! Thanks Tee for helping!!

I also had a bunch of trouble with the zipper. I got one zipper in the city. Great. Double zipper so that it could be zipped at top and bottom. Cut to size. All good.

I tried to adhere it with crazy glue and nearly screwed up the entire sweater!! *sigh* I got it off, had to soak it with nail polish remover to try and get the glue off. Then I washed the sweater to get rid of the terrible smell. The good news is that it is machine wash & dry. *grin*

So I went out to get another zipper. Found one at Wal-Mart after searching several places. Turns out that it was the kind that was sewn closed on the bottom. So why did it say universal zipper?! *pout*

Three was the charm. Got another zipper at a Joanne's. Though the closest Joanne's was a good ways from home. And I was fighting crud. Paul offered to go get it for me, but I knew that wasn't fair to him. So we also got a bit more shopping done before Xmas while we were out. So that was the up side.

Bat Pillow

Cast on:

Not sure honestly. *scratches head* Think around the 17th or 18th, maybe later.

Cast Off:

Around Dec. 29-30. Wish I had marked it at the time.

Can't say finished til I make it into a pillow. Need to add it to fabric & stuff the pillow.

Pattern:

Chart created using KnitPro website -

http://www.microrevolt.org/knitPro/

Image taken from -

http://www.wonder-shirts.com/images/bat_moon.jpg

Basically the pattern was created by tweaking those.

Yarn:

Bernat Softee Chunky in black & white

http://www.bernat.com/product.php?LGC=softeechunky

Nearly all the black and about half the white were used.

Needles:

Knitpicks Option US 9 / 5.5 mm circular from set

The image is an Edward Gorey drawing. I took it and tweaked it a lot to make it solid areas of black & white. Originally, I had some areas to highlight the wings, but I found it wasn't helping with the image. So I changed the bat to solid black. I think it worked out better that way, but honestly, I am not sure.

I want to post the chart here. I meant to bring it into work but I keep forgetting. The KnitPro website outputs to a pdf. However, it had various greys in the image as it doesn't seem able to clearly tell that there were only two colors in the original. So I went over the chart with white out & a black marker to make sure it was good.

I also added lines for each 10 stitches and put stitch markers to make it easier to count off the stitches. I found that helped me to have less of a headache with counting.

The piece is a mix of intarsia and fair isle knitting. I carried the yarn where it was less than 7 stitches, but I did intarsia when it was a larger area. Overall, I think it came out okay. There is definitely a bit at the edges of the moon where it looks raised because I pulled a bit too much. But honestly, it works. It looks almost intentional as it rises up a little.

I would not do a graphic chart with such a thick yarn again. The stitches are too large. But I wanted to get this done for Xmas. I knew it would be kinda late, but not too late if I did it in a bulky yarn.

Problem is that even going down a needle size, the stitches are not tight enough. I should have gone down at least 1 or 2 more to get it tighter. So I will line it with fabric on both the front and back. I had intended on knitting the back as well. But given the front has to be fabric lined, I am not going to bother with knitting the back panel. Lazy I know. *grin*

I hope Karen will enjoy it honestly. I never really know what to get her. She is kinda challenging to buy for in that I can find her a lot of things she would like, but not a lot that will grab her. So I figured she might enjoy this as she likes bats. (Most people know she likes elephants and it has gotten to the point where she has too many.)

Overall, I like the bat. Kinda tempted to do a smaller one for me sometime.

Two Xmas Pressies in Progress

I have two Xmas pressies in the works. One is for grand nephew who will be a year old in February. The other is for my sister-in-law.

Tomten Jacket

Cast On:
Sunday, Dec. 2nd.

Pattern:
Modular Tomten Jacket by Elizabeth Zimmermann
From Knitting without Tears http://www.amazon.com/Knitting-Without-Tears-Easy-Follow/dp/0684135051/
Need to buy this book (and probably all of Zimmermann's books). Took it out of the library.

Yarn:
TLC Heathers Teal (though really looks blue) & Barn Red
http://www.coatsandclark.com/Products/Knitting/Medium+Yarns/TLC+Heathers.htm
Picked up at Smiley NJ sale. Was $4 for 3 skeins. Cheap, but hey, it is machine washable. Good for a baby

Needles:
US 9 Knitpicks Options 32"

Made for:
Denny aka Littlest George

Size:
Aiming for around 2 years old, but plenty of flex on size

I am making as an Xmas present for Littlest George who will be one in February.

The pattern doesn't have a lot of seaming which definitely appeals to me. It is pretty straight forward yet cute.

I am using blue for the body & red for the edges. The label on the blue says teal, but it really isn't. It is pretty blue.

I cast on the 112 stitches as the pattern says. I decided to just use 6 stitches on each side in the red rather than having to add a button band or such. I like the way it looks.

It is my first time with intarsia. It is interesting doing two colors. This is pretty straight forward. Though I wasn't doing it correctly in some spots. So the yarn peeks out where it shouldn't. Live and learn.

I didn't think anyone would notice other than me. However, Paul did. So I am overstitching it along the bad edges. But on the bright side, I have learned how to do intarsia now. Not sure I want to do it much. But it is good to know I can.


Modified Rushing Rivulet Socks

Cast on:
Saturday, Dec. 1st

Pattern:
Generic Sock Pattern
Pattern taken from Rushing Rivulet (Riverbed Architecture) by Cat Bordhi
http://www.amazon.com/New-Pathways-Sock-Knitters-Book/dp/0970886969/

Yarn:
Sarah's Yarns 100% Bamboo - Hand dyed Undertow
http://www.sarahsyarns.com/SY100PctBamboo.html

Dye:
Dharma Fiber Reactive Procion Dyes
http://www.dharmatrading.com/html/eng/3796-AA.shtml?lnav=dyes.html

Needles:
US 1 1/2 / 2.5 mm Knitpicks Options & Harmony
2 socks on 2 circs method

Made for:
Jennifer

Size:
7.5

I am taking the Rushing Rivulet stitch pattern from the Bordhi book. Given I don't have Jennifer's exact measurements, I figured it is safer to work from a more standard pattern.

I was going to do a toe up sock so I could use all the yarn. However, Jennifer has a high arch. So my sister-in-law, Tee, who has made Jennifer socks suggested doing cuff down with a heel flap. She said it fits better for a high arch. So I am going with her suggestion.

Also, I am still not sure how much stretch/memory the 100% bamboo yarn will have. It feels like it will work well given the swatches I have done. I really should have made a pair for myself first in the 100% bamboo yarn to check the elasticity. But I want to complete these for Xmas.

I cast on 56 stitches. My swatch was 8 stitches per inch. So it should be 7 inches wide.

The weird thing was that it seemed smaller. So I figured I would increase my needle size. But after two repeats, it looks to be right around 7" wide. So I think it is okay. *crosses fingers*

I really hope they turns out well. I definitely like the yarn and I think she will too.

Most Recent Batch of Dyed Yarn

I dyed another batch of the Sarah's Yarns 100% Bamboo yarn last weekend. It is so soft and has a great sheen to it. I really do like it.

Yarn:
Sarah's Yarns 100% Bamboo
http://www.sarahsyarns.com/SY100PctBamboo.html

Dye:
Dharma Fiber Reactive Procion Dyes
www.dharmatrading.com/html/eng/3796-AA.shtml?lnav=dyes.html

I am calling it Berry Tasty for lack of a better name. *chuckle* Not so inspired but hey, I am sleepy!

It is various purples with a bit of burgundy & a touch of black. I was good. The only black is some dashes for some self patterning areas. There are 3 or 4 different purples in there.

This batch was a long skein for self-striping with some self patterning areas. There were 12 areas of 3 feet each so about 36'.

I took the pieces from one of the swifts. I placed them on flat on the table with the additional pegs sticking up. I then used the pegs as a warping mill. It worked out pretty well other than they shifted with the tension. Paul picked up some more wood. He is going to modify one of the swifts so that the end holes go all the way through. This way I can have a warping mill and a swift from the pieces. This should help with creating long skeins for the self striping/patterning yarn.

I have to thank the folks on Ravelry boards for all their thoughts and suggestions. This wasn't half as tangled as the last batches. So that is a definitely plus!

I am soaking it for longer. I am allowing each soak to sit for half an hour. I did 4 soaks that way. The water was nearly clear after that. I washed it with the Synapol just once. I am also not agitating the yarn as much when I am washing it.

I am also trying to snap the yarn as Cynthia on Ravelry suggested. It seems to help as the yarn fibers separate out from each other.

I used two swifts with the correct distance between them to get the yarn off the skeins and into balls. Since it is for me, I don't need to reskein it. It went fairly well. Took a while, but not it wasn't tangled. It was about some modifications than need to be swifts & figuring out what to do with the loose end.

Though I am curious if anyone has experience with the long skeins. I am not sure what to do with the loose end. It was getting tangled into the yarn as I was unskeining it. I am thinking next time I would just a slip knot at the point where it comes back to the beginning of the loop. I have been tying it to the yarn I use to tie off the points.

The entire process was far less painful than the previous batches. So I am really thrilled. And I do like the colorway a lot. It is always hard to capture the color in photos.

I am going to have small pics. Please click on them to see larger pics. I know I am posting a lot of pics. So I don't want to kill anyone's connection. I know some folks still have dialup.

Dyeing & Reskeining Issues

I am consistently having some of the same issues when I am dyeing. I really need to figure out if it is something I am doing or if it a product of the dyes I am using.

I had been using Dharma Fiber Reactive Procion Dyes. I think they are working very well.

The problem is they seem to take forever to rinse out. It takes several hours. I am soaking them for 15 minutes, then swishing them around, trying to work the dye out for under the tied points. I empty the sink and do it again. I generally have to do that 5-6 times before the water is light enough that I can wash it.

Then I wash it with Synthrapol. I have to wash it at least twice with this. Again, there is even more color coming out as I rinse it.

Then I wash it with Milsoft. This softens the fibers and gives back some of the feel the yarn had. But there is still color coming out during this part of the process as well.

This all takes 4-5 hours. So if I want to dye, I have to have a complete weekend at home. Saturday is dye day, Sunday is wash day.

So all that is done, right. It is done. Right? Nope.

Now comes the nightmare of reskeining/making balls of the yarn.

Thing is, I haven't had an easy time of this either. I had hoped the swifts would really resolve this issue. It didn't.

I suspect part of that is about the way I have been tying up the skeins. I have been tying them all together. For instance, with this last batch there was 3 different pieces of yarn. I think it is a big problem that I tied them together. So they get tangled into each other. So it makes a mess. I suspect that is part of the issue. The next batch each length of yarn will be tied off separately.

I also fear that part of it is about the way I wash the yarn. I am trying to get the dye out from under the tie points. I think that by moving it around with my fingers, it is tangling the yarn under the tie points. Thus making a mess of it.

Here is a pic of the tangles:

This only happened at the tie points. Not at the parts where the yarn was loose. So I think that by working at those points, it is making things worse.

I really want to make this process better. I do love dyeing yarn. I love creating interesting colorways and playing with the colors. It is very free form and a lot of fun for me.

The problem is that I am not sure it is worth all this time and frustration. Every time I am pulling out my hair by the end of the reskeining/ball process. I spend hours untangling yarn. And it doesn't seem to make any sense.

I keep wondering if it isn't something in my process that is doing this. I can't imagine anyone would dye yarns in small batches to sell if they go through all this.

But part of me just keeps wondering if this isn't more about the fiber reactive vs. acid dyes. And also wool yarn vs. cotton/bamboo/etc.. I am hopeful that there is something in my process I can change so that this doesn't continue to be such a headache.

Hand Dyed Yarn Batch - Undertow

This is the batch of 100% Bamboo yarn I dyed.

It is in different greens with a bit of blue. So I named it undertow. Just reminded me of seaweed & the water.

I should have taken some pics before I tried to wind it into balls. It would show all the colors. Ah well.

Tangled bits after dyeing:

Yarn:

Sarah's Yarns 100% Bamboo

Dyes:

Dharma Fiber Reactive Procion Dyes

Skein:

Large skein made with swift. Given I had it on the largest size I could get, it should be around 12' I think.

Color Length:

Colors are in 2" to 6" sections. Random. Not self patterning.

I dyed this yarn for my sister-in-law who loved green. I used the forest green dye as well as mixing two other greens & a weaker mix of the forest green. I also added azure blue.

I like the shimmer/shine that the bamboo has. It doesn't take the dyes as deeply as the cotton. But they look really good.

Overall, I really like this batch of yarn a lot. I am hopeful my sister in law will like it as socks.

I admit I am nervous about making her socks. I am still not sure about the bamboo yarn having enough stretch. Though the swatch I knit had a lot more give than I figured it would. So I am hopeful.

I am leaning towards a simple rib for this. Mainly because I am not sure what else would have enough elasticity to it to be sure it will stay up on the calf. Open to ideas though.

I will probably do these as toe up shoes to make sure I have enough yarn to complete them. I keep wondering if I should make my bamboo socks first to check out the yarn. Or if I should just dive in on Jennifer's. Decisions decisions. *grin*