Friday, September 29, 2006

Time for a little joining

September has been a month to join things - some on line, some in real life. I'm trying to emphasize the real life activities; it's healthier. So here's what I've been up to:



Supporting Diabetes research - Walk for Diabetes - a six-mile walk on the shoreline in Fairfield, CT on October 15th. I'd love to have your support and company on the walk.






Then, Rhinebeck. DH is joining me on the trip to Rhinebeck, and will be searching for the mythical "man tent", which is filled with flat-screen TVs, a digital satellite feed, recliners, beer and snack food. I'll be in heaven, fondling fibers and searching for other bloggers. I've ordered the tote bag, so will have that in plain site.



On the knitting side of things I just finished the main section of the Funky Scarf, and will cast on for the second section in time to take it with me to the band competition tomorrow. The band did okay tonight (I'm not a good judge) and we were finally able to positively identify DD tonight. They all look the same in those uniforms, with the hat pulled low on the forehead.

Saturday, September 23, 2006

The importance of finishing

The process is similar to felting, but much gentler. Gentle cycle, 5 minutes, minimum agitation. The idea is to have the fibers "full", or relax and expand. The huck lace pattern is more obvious - the floats (where the weft, or horizontal, yarn travels over several warp threads) become more pronounced, emphasizing the pattern. A key step in weaving is to plan for enough material for a washing sample. Key when you're working with new fibers and aren't sure how they'll react to the finishing process. If something felts easily, it's best to find out with the sample, and not the blanket.


Yes, the edges are pretty scary looking. Practice is the only thing that will help there.









Time for an update on Icarus. I'm finally on the last full repeat of Chart 1. I am bound and determined to finish this before starting my Christmas knitting.











It has not, however, gotten in the way of my sock knitting.


This is the "Snakes on a Sock" pattern from Lime & Violet, with my special Random Fibers colorway sock yarn from Mama-E. I highly recommend this pattern - it's a fun and quick knit, and shows off sock yarn very nicely.

In related news. I'm co-host of the Lime & Violet Knitalong, featuring the L&V colorway from Lisa Souza. The KAL officially starts on Friday, October 13th, though sign-ups have already started. There is no specific pattern, though we'll have some suggested patterns to pick from. Like Snakes on a Sock.
I still haven't decided about Rhinebeck Bingo.

Sunday, September 17, 2006

Huck lace off the loom

and with wonky edges. Any skill I picked up at weaving camp has disappeared. It's off the loom, and awaits finishing - a quick run through the washing machine on gentle, warm and delicate, then drying on the rack outside. Hopefully the edges will improve somewhat after that step.

Next on the loom will be some of the Harrisville yarn that came with the loom, in a log cabin pattern. Once weaving with wool turns out okay, I'll try the cotton flake that was on sale at WEBS a couple of months ago.







The baby kimono was completed just in time to go to the shower. I borrowed an idea from Liz at FidoKnits, and bought a teddy bear, which wore the kimono.

The bear was very cute and very soft, and mom-to-be was thrilled with both.











The Funky Scarf Swap has been a lot of fun, especially in terms of coming up with a design. It took a couple of tries to get the gauge correct, but now the scarf looks as I envisioned it.

In the first cast on, with many more stitches, I knit 4 inches of scarf and went through 20% of the yarn, enough that I noticed. I weighed both the used and unused balls of yarn, and figured I had to make a major design change, or end up with a very odd, instead of funky, scarf.






Last, but definitely not least, I've signed up to walk with Karen in the October 15th Walk for Diabetes in Fairfield, CT, along the beach. So head over to her blog to get more details of the walk.

Wednesday, September 13, 2006

Snakes on a Sock

I'm not completely sure of how I discovered the Lime & Violet podcast, but since then I've turned into a loyal listener. To the extent that when I heard about the Lisa Souza colorway, limenviolet, I went to check it out, and lo and behold, it's now in my possession. It's 450 yards of superwash wool/nylon, just waiting for the right pattern.














Then, you may ask, what is/are Snakes on a Sock, besides an obvious take off of a reportedly pretty bad movie? It's a sock pattern, by Miss Lime of limenviolet fame, shown here on my SP8 custom colorway. The picture is mediocre, because I didn't feel like waiting for good natural light (could be several days away), before taking the picture. Hopefully you get the general idea of the pattern, which has two "raised" sections twining around the sock. Very fun to knit.













Not ready for prime-time is the baby kimono from Mason-Dixon knitting, as a gift for a baby shower this Saturday. Yes, that's right, I have three nights to finish knitting, weave in ends, block and sew together. Oh, and make I-cord for the ties. Though I should buy some ribbon just in case.

Thursday, September 07, 2006

Real weaving, at last


This is the continuation of the huck lace that we learned at weaving camp. I warped the loom, threaded the heddles, set the tension and started weaving.

The edges are wonky. No doubt about it, any rhythm and smoothness that I developed at the class needs to be relearned. But, the pull-in is okay, and it looks pretty even. I'll do one more repeat of the pattern, then cut it off the loom, tie some fringe and throw it in the washing machine. The goal isn't to felt it, but for the wool fibers to "full". So it'll go in on gentle for just a few minutes and we'll see what it looks like. If all goes well, the huck sections will stand out and the pattern will become visible. We could have a table runner here!