Tag: Ravelry

Posted in knitting

Friday Follow up

Posted on by Laura Kate

Last week I said that I would write more about my latest knitting project.

…..so here I am to do just that.

It started with some discount yarn I had purchased on Knitpicks from a product line called Impressionist. I got the “impression” that the line would be discontinued soon because the price was deeply slashed.

It’s a sport weight yarn with fibers of extra-fine merino wool and nylon. The yarn is really stretchy, light weight and very fuzzy. I purchased 2 – 25 gram balls, giving me about 330 yards. I thought it might work well in a stranded design, paired with a sturdier yarn in a neutral color.

Here’s better photo showing the multitude of shades. The color is called Renoir.

The neutral creamy white that will be Renoir’s partner is Paragon, again from Knitpicks. This is a luxury yarn blended of fine merino wool, baby alpaca and mulberry silk. It was NOT on sale (but I only needed one skein.) It’s also a sport-weight, but heavier than the multi-hued yarn, and just as soft.

The amount of yardage I purchased led me to search for cowl patterns. My criteria was tube construction. This means the cowl would be knit in the round, always a plus when working stranded patterns. It will keep the wrong side of the knitting on the inside of the tube and out of view.

Velvet Mirror, by Andrea Mowry matched my criteria and called for sport weight yarns.

This pattern has been knit by more than 500 ravelers and has a 4.9 out of 5 star rating. The pattern is charted, not difficult once you get going. I’m having a very good time working it.

Each chart is worked twice. When the knitting is complete, the two edges will be connected using Kitchener stitch, that clever and invisible stitch most frequently used to close up the toes of knitted socks.

What are you working on these days, and how is it going for you?

Posted in hand embroidery, knitting, painting

This Week’s Work – Branching out

Posted on by Laura Kate

In week three, The Artist’s Way has me focus on Recovering a Sense of Power. The words for focusing are Anger, Synchronicity and Shame. In Watercolor is for Everyone, the daily practice work seems to be mostly representational, as opposed to abstract.

I am also sharing my fiber work from this week. Let’s start with that.

Knitting: I’m a bit errant in not posting about my newest project. I’ve chosen a cowl design by Andrea Mowry. It’s super lovely.

I’ll do a full post on this project next week.

I have also returned to an art quilt that has been languishing since last year. I call it Here be Dragons. This week, I spent my evenings hand-quilting one of the panels.

Bill’s photographs provided the reference for my dragonflies. The background and dragonflies were painted onto white cotton fabric with textile paint and micron pens. Next I embroidered detail on the dragonflies. The final step is to work embroidery stitches into the background as a way to marry together the three layers of the quilt. It is slow work, but I am determined to carry on and get this piece mounted and displayed before year end.

Here are the watercolor exercises completed this week.

This little landscape was based on a photo I took of a Wisconsin farm.

My magical hummingbird is inspired by Janet Weight-Reed’s beautiful hummingbird paintings. I used a photograph from this month’s National Geographic for reference.

Thank you for reading.

Posted in knitting

Friday Finish: Back to Stashbusting

Posted on by Laura Kate

And back to a favorite designer, Kate Davies, of KateDaviesDesign. This pattern for adult booties was included in her recent publication Margery Allingham’s Mysterious Knits, but it was also released individually on Ravelry.

https://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/slippers-bellew

The yarn I am using is from Ewetopia, a Christmas gift from my daughter. Ewetopia is a Wisconsin yarn maker headquartered in Viroqua. The fibers are mysterious, described by the maker simply as “it’s all good.” I used all but half an ounce of the generously sized ball.

Here is a view of the 3-needle bind-off, which closes the foot and circles the ankle.

The heavy-worsted two-ply yarn refused to give me gauge, even when knit with the size 4 needle. Consequently, I cast on 44 stitches instead of the 52 as instructed.

This decision required some minor adjustments as I went along. But I am an acolyte of the Elizabeth Zimmerman school of knitting. She reminds me that I am the boss of my own knitting, and need not be cowed into submission by a designer.

The resulting booties are a perfect fit for my size 6 1/2 feet. I expect to wear them while lounging, but not for any vigorous walking indoors. They slide smoothly across wooden floors. A fun game for the young, but not recommended for those of us with less than perfect bones.

Posted in colorwork, knitting

Autumn Blooms

Posted on by Laura Kate
LOOK UP!

This past week I cast on a project that has been in my queue most of the summer. It is a pullover sweater for Mandy, using some Malabrigo Rios yarn as the main color.

I was thunderstruck to see that my palette is a near match for the colors I see outside right now. The gold color is 035 Frank Ochre and I purchased it online from Jimmie Beans. The two contrasting colors are from Knitpicks: Hawthorne dk in Foster Powell Multi and Swish dk in Moss.

My daughter chose the pattern from three or four options I gave her out of my Ravelry favorites. She liked Autumn Bloom by Olga Putano.

It is knit top down starting with a very beautiful and somewhat complex yoke.

In this photo I have worked to the point where the main color is joined. When that happens, the knitter is faced with working three yarns at the same time for about four rounds – slow and tricky work involving a lot of catching the long floats of unused strands under the working yarn.

Here is my progress with the yoke chart completed.

In the bright sunlight, the colors almost glow. That gold will definitely brighten up a dark winter day when sunshine is rare.

The project is almost to the point where a fitting is required. I have some doubts and fears about sizing and whether my stranded knitting will block out smoothly. Since I won’t have access to the recipient for another four weeks or so, I would be wise to cool my needles and put the project aside until the next time we are together.

Posted in knitting

Friday Finish – no, really

Posted on by Laura Kate

Yes, I know it’s Saturday. I photographed the image above yesterday. It is Little Whiskey, a sweet cape pattern for a little girl designed by Erica Jackofsky.

This morning, I sewed on Laura Lu’s prized button and took the garment out to the garden for a photo session.

The pattern was easy to follow. Because I didn’t quite get gauge, I cast on extra stitches and followed the instructions for the next larger size. Ultimately, the process of washing and blocking widened out the knitting, but didn’t add any length, which is a good thing. I got the length I was aiming for.

Wrong side view, close up of lace pattern

The lace pattern was not difficult, except for the popcorn stitch, which the designer called Nupps. They are kind of hard to see in the photos. They add some texture to what is mostly stockinette knitting. They also echo the picot edge stitches nicely.

This capelet will go with us on our next trip to Wisconsin. At that time, I’ll get a photo of the recipient wearing it, and know for sure if the fit works.