Knitting by the Compass

I've started knitting a baby sweater. They are so much fun, so small and sooo quick. Just started yesterday and have quite a nice bit done already. It's worked so far in Cherry Cotton Tweed so will be bright and cheerful.

This one is worked in 4 directions of the compass.

It starts with the neckband. Then the right shoulder saddle goes West and here I'm just starting the left shoulder saddle (East), leaving the remaining stitches on hold at the neckband.

Lots of garter stitch and counting of ridges which is great for TV knitting in the evening.

Then on to the Back (North) and then the Front (South). Travelling in my armchair!!

Couldn't be easier. Almost ready for a colour change.
Stay tuned,
Deb

Add Mosaic

Adding a little bit of Mosaic to this vest really makes it look different. Can't wait until the class I'm teaching on Sunday gets started so I can see how it looks in different colours. I did it in Cotton Tweed Denim with Sky Blue. It would look more dramatic with a greater contrast between the colours.

As you know, blue is my go-to colour. But I'm going to see what other colours I can choose to make more impact. The vests in the class will give me some good ideas I bet. Now I'm going button shoping. Always an adventure.
-Deb

It's 9am and I have sewn 3 buttons on my latest knit of the Last Minute Baby Vest in Cotton Tweed worsted,

and if you know my feelings about sewing on buttons you know this is last minute (ha, ha) and urgent. Yup. Tomorrow we leave to go to the Kitchener-Waterloo Knitter's Fair in Kitchener, ON. It's shades of Christmas Eve around here, last minute sewing and knitting and wrapping up.

10:30am.  I sewed in the ends on a new pair of Ergonomic Mittens called Striped Mitten (I have to work on  garment naming, obviously) in Northern Lights chunky, soaked the mittens and set them out to dry (I don't think all my crossing of fingers is going to help my knitting dry in this humidity). All the time drinking very cold coffee since I forgot about it while sewing buttons on, a task that seems to take my undivided attention so there is no bloodshed.

11:30am Then I edited new patterns: 1920's Stripes (hat) which match the Striped Mittens. Phew, can't believe I have this much done already. Best to get everything done before the temperature soars. Load patterns up on Ravelry. Done. Check.

Afternoon: Now I'm trying to finish that last knitted garment. Doesn't this bring back December 24th and not in a particularly good way? One more Swirl Cowl in a new variegated Cottage Colours worsted wool. I really like watching the swirl cut across the colour but I'd enjoy it more if it went just a teensy weensy bit faster.

It might be a late night! If you're going to the K-W show come by and say Hi. We're having a SHOW SPECIAL. Come and check it out.

-Deb

Underarm Baby Vest Solution

After much pondering I think I have a solution to the Vest underarm quandary. With Baby sizes a top down doesn't need any stitches cast on at the underarm so at the Divide Row the Front and Back are being joined up as you work the row. I'd like the join between the Front and Back to be nice and tight and I also have to reduce the stitch numbers so the stitch pattern can continue across the entire body.

On the Divide Row, after casting off the stitches of the first sleeve, pass the last stitch of the Front over the last Cast Off stitch of sleeve. This will join the Front and Back together. It works. I hope the diagram helps to explain it in the pattern. What do you think?

-Deb

Girl Stepped Pattern

I'm testknitting the Baby Vest pattern with a stepped stitch pattern. The boy's version is done and now I'm knitting one in a girl colour. 

I've done charts and written instructions. It's so logical to me when I look at the charted version. It's the written instructions that take quite a bit longer to write and check. Charts or written, which works for you?

I'm really pleased that the pattern is showing up so well. Almost to the Great Divide. A vest is so quick to knit. I feel like I'm almost done.
-Deb

Stepped Stitch Pattern

This is a little baby vest I just finished knitting for a workshop I'm giving this weekend at the Eastern Needlers Retreat in Gananoque, ON. We'll be experimenting with adding stitch patterns to top down garments. This little vest is based on the Basic pattern from the Need A Baby Cardigan book. Working cap sleeves makes it a really quick knit. I added the waffle stitch on the Fronts and Back.

Patterns are a little more of a challenge to introduce from the top down. This pattern is stepped. The stitch pattern is 4 stitches wide. Increases are worked at the Raglan line and when 4 more increases are worked there are 4 more stitches available on the Front to work another repeat of the pattern.  I'm going to write this one up next week so you can try it yourself.

Deb

Mom's newest

I'm up at camp and Mom showed me her newest projects. Her neighbours, Nan & Dave, are expecting new twin grandbabies and asked Mom to knit them each a sweater, so here they are and excuse my feet!

Mom used the new book "Need A Baby Cardigan?" (which we'll start shipping next week) and the "Need A Hat?" book for the hats.
-Lyn

We're off to TNNA!

Deb and I are off to the TNNA show today with our new book: NEED A BABY CARDIGAN?

Super cute baby in a pretty cardigan! This new book is the third in the "Need A ... " series of books. The first two were Need A Hat? and Need A Sock? This series is a "multi-gauge" approach to each topic. So, for example, the new Need A Baby Cardigan? provides you with a range of cardigans (with colour, textures & lace) in 4 sizes (newborn to 18 months) in NINE (yes, 9!) gauges from sock yarn right up to chunky weight.
We'll be providing support and taking orders with Barb from Up North Fiber Arts Supply, our U.S. Distributor. Here's another shot of the cutie from the book:

-Lyn

We're almost there. This is the last baby sweater I knit.

It's been fun. Tomorrow Bernice and I are going up to Huntsville to work on the very, very last one. Phew. I think we have a lot of baby sweaters. I've lost count. I think I'm going to be very surprised when we get the stack of sweaters back.

Time to do something nice and adult-sized.

This is the 3 - Button Jacket from Classic Elite's Curvy Knits series of books. I'm exploring plus-size Top Down sweaters to see what other designers are doing with them. I worked the neckband and then the short rows, ripped it back and redid the short rows in my own way, worked down to the bottom of the yoke then ripped it back a couple of inches and did my own finish to the yoke to get the number of stitches required for the size. So although I started with this pattern and tried what they did I usually ended up doing it a slightly different way in the end. But I learned a couple of things along the way and that was the point.
Deb

Surprise, it's not a sock.

Have you ever gone back to a sweater you have knit before and worked it all over again? How could I have forgetten so much of the pattern? This is the Hurdy Gurdy from the Baby V booklet which I have knit a couple of times before. But it was a whole new experience knitting it again after quite a bit of time had passed since the last one. I had to read the pattern quite carefully because I found myself making assumptions, the biggest assumption being that I remembered it in all it's details. It was fun and the colours came out beautifully.

-Deb

I think it's really coming along. And are you noticing that lace is showing up everywhere? So to jump on the bandwagon I decided to put a lace border on my summer sweater. It must be this lovely sunny weather that is causing this outbreak of lace.

I think lace knitters would call this scarf 'true lace' where you work the lace pattern on both the right side and the wrong side of the scarf. No gooffing off with a Purl Back row. I am testknitting this pattern so I have worked through both the written instructions and the Chart. I'm definitely a chart person. It makes so much more sense to me to follow the pattern when it's in chart form. But my state of mind is rather jumbled and disjointed at present and I'm finding I can only concentrate for small periods of time (totally me and not the pattern which is lovely to knit) so I've been sitting and working through one set of motifs and then putting it down for a bit. By working this a couple times a day I'm hoping to finish this scarf up next week.

Because I'm also knitting a very quick couple of  Last Minute Baby samples in cotton. They are fast and fun and a really easy TV watching project. I am quite convinced that one must have several projects on the go. Lace for when you are bright and want to really create something beautiful, a simpler lace to add a certain something to a plain sweater and the dead easy, work it in your sleep, project for when you're asleep at the needles. I'm sure that's not enough yet, I should start a sock soon too.

-Deb

Country Woman Magazine

Sophy and I were trying to figure out why we were having a little run of orders for 3 balls of our Cotton Tweed DK Lemon. Then were were getting orders for various colours of Cotton Tweed DK but all for 3 balls. We were perplexed! 

All was explained by an email from Diane, owner of Georgetown Yarn & Crafts. Diane got her copy of Country Woman Magazine and she recognized the yarn as soon as she saw it (Diane was one of the first stores to carry our yarn so she knows it well). She wondered if we knew our yarn was used in this sweater? Well, we didn't so I zipped out to Chapters and bought a copy. Here's a photo of the very cute sweater (and a very nice magazine it is too).

Country Woman Magazine, April/May 2010 issue. Yarn supplied for the design contest by HandKnitting.com

- Lynda

Hello from Santa Clara

Karen and I are having a ball here in California at the Stitches West show. This is one busy, busy show! Our hand-dyed Silk & Silver yarn and the lace shawls have been a big hit (have to take down the display today as there's none left). It's been great fun visiting with our customers who come back year after year and some brought their completed projects:

Sandy Paulson brought in this gorgeous example of the work she is doing from The Buttons Cardigan. She's added a beautiful ruffle to the edges and the colour accents really set it all off. I gather this is one of many, many she's done.

Robin Gordon brought in two of the Side to Side shawls that she's completed with a butter soft alpaca yarn (Misti I think the name was). While she was showing me the shawls, people could not resist coming up and stroking the back of our random model (that's Robin on the right and I don't know the name of the model as she just came to help with the photo and put the shawl on). The pattern really shows off the yarn and Robin says it's "so comfortable to wear".

And check out this handsome guy! He bought one of our T-Shirt's and was proudly wearing it yesterday! In fact we had two men running around the show with them on. They thought they were pretty funny. 

You'll be wondering about this next shot: 

Yes, those are oranges : )    Gwen Bortner, who is a teacher at the show, and a friend of us Canadians, brings us fresh (and I mean picked the day before) oranges from the tree in her back yard. We (Don & Buffy, Lana & Diane, Jill & Ron and Karen & I) devoured them. They are delicious and smell so good. It's our annual treat for sure.

OK, time to get off to the show.

-Lyn

New Pattern Now Out

I've just posted Deb's new pattern #622 Last Minute Baby on our web site and in a downloadable format on PatternFish. Here's the final image ... but you've watched the work in progress the last little while! It's a top down, super fast knit using heavy worsted/aran weight yarn. You change the size by adjusting the needles. If you need a quick baby gift, this pattern is the one!

I've got some lovely yarn to dye and try it out myself!
-Lyn

Lace and Cables

Hope you had a happy halloween. We had very few kids show up at the door. Our neighbourhood must be aging or else kids don't come to strangers' houses anymore. Lots of candy left for me, yay.

I have a new project to show you. I am at the testknitting stage on a design by Elizabeth McCarten. She's commented on the blog so you already know her a little. It's a great design and I have the little bit I've knit to show you.

That's the set up of the top down neck shaping. I know you can't see very well but it worked perfectly.Is the pattern on the back terrific or what?! It's fun to knit and I can't wait to get going on the rest. I have been searching for a yarn which would suit this design and show off all the cables. I'm really happy with how this wool worked out and today I'm going to buy enough to get going on it for real.

I decided to try the cardigan as a vest. You can see where I ripped back a couple of times. I decided on the vest idea after I was a good way down the sweater. Note to self: planning ahead might be a good idea, ha, ha. You never know when an idea will pop up. Often it's at an inconvenient time.This is a really quick knit. I should be able to get this finished and up on the website soon.

-Deb

Quickie

So now, from the last class I taught, I have a small baby sweater pattern which is really quick to knit. Yay!

I am doing a test knit so I can show you the short rows and what they can do. First I cast on stitches for the neckband and worked a garter stitch neckband with the first buttonhole in it. The short rows begin here. When you work short rows you don't work across all of the stitches on the row. You turn part way across the row, turn and leave some stitches on the needle unworked.

I am now at the end of the second set of short rows. At this point I have turned and am ready to do a knit row leaving the 7 sts at the end of that row unworked (on the right of photo). Every time you turn in the middle of a row you create a gap. The last time I turned is indicated by the guitar pick on the left. On the next short row I will work past the gap indicated, close the gap as I pass by it, turn again a little further along, leaving only 5 sts unworked.

I have worked to the second last short row here. On the left, I have worked all the way to the end of the row (the hole you see on the left near the end of the row is the buttonhole in the neckband). I am going to put my camera down, turn my work to the wrong side and work the last purl short row which will close the gap indicated by the guitar pick and work to the end of that row.All done. You can see that across the Back (top of the photo) you have 8 rows of knitting. At the Front edge of the sweater I have 2 rows next to the neckband. More rows across the back of the neck than at the Front edge means the Front will be lower than the Back and in this case form a V neck like in the red sweater above. Aren't short rows the most amazing things?

I got all that done with my first coffee, I told you it was quick. Have a great weekend.

-Deb

numbers on the brain

Don't you hate when you can't think of the rest of a rhyme or when a dumb song gets stuck in your head and you can't get it out? Thanks samm (see last post comment). Or the flip side when your brain is overfunctioning. Do you find that when you're knitting along, generally thinking of other things, there is a pause in your thoughts and the number 47 pops into your head, and then 48, 49. You are counting stitches unbeknownst to yourself. Somewhere in the back of your brain it's ticking off stitches that you don't even need to count. Right now I'm knitting garter stitch without having to count, just knit from one end to the other, turn and repeat. No problem, right? But my brain thinks there should be more to it than that. Stop counting! It's OK, really, we're doing fine here. I know what I am doing this time.

My J jacket is coming along but not too different than last time so I'm waiting until I have something spectacular to show you before presenting it again. I have been knitting on other projects too, small ones. I am almost finished a sample for a top down class which I am teaching on October 18 at the Unwind shop in Newmarker, ON http://www.unwindyarnhouse.com/ .Just the sleeves to finish up. I am trying a new approach. Since a lot of knitters like to do a project-based class, I am doing this top down class with aran (heavy worsted) weight yarn and a large needle so that the sample produces a cardigan for a 3 month old. Usually the class does a teddy bear sized sample. I think the students will be able to complete about half of this sweater in class. That covers all of the pertinent technical parts of a top down and leaves the plain knitting to be finished at home. Between teaching the V-neck shaping, talking about general adaptations, fitting adjustments (assuming the knitter might some day tackle an adult sweater where fit really matters a lot), and showing where the knitter can add in their own design features, it takes all of the 3 hours to get that far. I'll finish this little guy up and take it down to the store to entice unwary knitters into my class, hee, hee, said the knitting spider to the fly.

I'm also reknitting a lovely beaded mitten (http://www.cabinfever.ca/P129.html) which is really fun. I haven't done much beading, in fact this might be the first one, that's not possible is it? It is definitely the first project where I have had to string the beads and carry them along. It's easy, much easier than I thought it would be. And great results.I have all fall to knit the thumb, ha.

-Deb

Ooops

I just uploaded some new patterns to Patternfish and forgot to let you know! Julia usually takes a few days to post new patterns but she was right on it this week. So, my apologies and here's the current status.

I uploaded a new photograph for Deb's Point to Point Shawl:

I posted my Jane Austen Shawls:

Bernice's new preemie to 18 months, 3 in one cardigans called Sam, Sadira & Katie was posted and I expect it to be available in the next day or two:

And I also loaded up Shirl the Purl's "Shirl's Mittlets" so you should be up be up in a day or two as well:

I will be uploading several more (7 more? no, must be 5 as the socks are already on Patternfish) over the coming days and week so I'll keep you posted. My deadline is to have everything posted before we leave for the TNNA show ... will I make it? Now back to updating the catalogue.

-Lynda

First Outing

I like to go away but I hate leaving. Does this make any sense? Tonight I leave for the NENA show in Sturbridge, MA. A trade show where we get to talk to lots of knitting store owners and see lots of knitting products. We'll see what the initial reaction is to our Need A Hat? booklet. First time out of the box, oh my.

I'm also teaching a Top Down class at The Fiberloft store in Harvard, MA on Saturday afternoon. I'm looking forward to that a lot. It's going to be fun. But before I start my mad dash around the house collecting bits of clothing and my 5 knitting projects which I won't even work on and the 2 books I won't have time to read, I did get some more done on the little pink sweater.

I'm calling this the Tuxedo shaping. You get to decorate the shirt front with whatever pattern you like. I'm going to try the broken rib pattern next because that would look like a shirt with pleats.

A nice wide panel across the centre back to play with, which is of course not tuxedo-like but I'm trying not to get too caught up with that one. I have some alterations to do on this and then a reknit. I'm going to think about it over the weekend. See you next week.
-Deb

P.S. Commenters
Thanks for the kind comments. It's always a little nerve racking taking a new project to it's first outing. You have given me a boost.

Top & toes

I had an excellent weekend away and still got some work done. I listened to 2 audio books while I knit and even managed to read two other books too. I was working on hats and socks to match the sweaters in the Baby V booklet. My goal was a hat and sock set done every day which was going great until I ran out of navy yarn. As soon as that happened I sort of lost my momentum but not a bad haul for the weekend.
-Deb