Sunday 30 September 2007

Alice Springs comes to Canberra
and Sydney goes to see!!

The travelling exhibition from the Alice Springs Beanie Festival is on display at Floriade. After watching Better Homes and Gardens on Friday night, WM and I worked out the only day we had available to visit Canberra was yesterday - so we did!

The highlight for me was, of course, the beanies - knitted, crocheted and felted. I'd like to show you lots of photos but it would be a breach of copyright. Please go to the above websites to see some samples. I also bought Colours of the Country: Celebrating ten years of the Alice Springs Beanie Festival. It contains many photographs, a written history of the festival and some crochet and knit patterns [and one beanie from the exhibition on the cover]. The book is available from TAFTA for $25.

Dolls! Dolls! Dolls!


Here are dolls #4, #5, #3, #8, #7 and #6!

Marymead in Canberra will distribute these little sweeties to needy children.

Friday 28 September 2007

Clapotis

[edited 30 September to add photo]

Well, I've succumbed. I know I'm not the last person in the knitting world to cast on for Clapotis, but am I the last in blogland?

Anyway, I'm making 'that wrap' for a friend's 50th birthday present. Lion and Lamb was out of my budget for gifts, as was Merino et Soie. I settled on a beautiful handpainted 8ply NZ wool yarn from the Montage Collection, colourway 'Lavender'. I really liked another colourway called 'Copper' but it had a lot of orange in it, and orange is one of those colours you either love or hate, and I can't recall seeing my friend wear orange in the 27 years I've known her. The purple/blue/maroon combination of lavender is a lot safer - if she doesn't like it she can always give it back to me and I'll give her the money!

Here is one unballed 200g and one already balled - unfortunately it's not a centre pull ball! It's so difficult to take photos of purple! The red in this photo heads more towards purple than the red-brown shown in this photo.

I've joined a small Clapotis KAL [with Georgie, Tinkingbell and RoseRed] just for fun; it'll be good to share the experience with others.

Wednesday 26 September 2007

Southern Summer of Socks KAL

I've joined the Southern Summer of Socks KAL. Shouldn't be too difficult, considering my current addiction to socks! LOL

I'm also hooked on lace at the moment, so lace socks? Maybe I'll try Lacy or Fancy Feet. Anyone know any other good lace sock patterns?

My first goal is to knit a pair of toe-up socks for me. Pattern? Probably my usual basic pattern from Lynne Vogel's The Twisted Sister Sock Workbook. I may consider knitting socks on two circulars, and perhaps two socks on two circulars. I've tried both these techniques at the Guild workshops but prefer my dpns.

I have only two balls of sock yarn in my stash but yesterday I ordered Cascade Fixation in two colourways [Plum and Wisteria] so soon I'll have four! Not that the amount of sock yarn I own counts, I knitted seven pair of socks for charity in 8ply acrylic between June and August! I can almost see the end of my acrylic stash but there may be one or two more pair of socks before it's over!

I've also [jokingly] told Bells that I knit sock dolls - they are knitted on dpns, include increases, decreases and grafting [Kitchener stitch]. Like socks heels, the face and the rest of the head are knitted flat and then joined again to continue working in the round. These dolls are socks without heels!! LOL

And, if you haven't seen the SSS KAL blog, tell me please: what's your favourite sock book and why?

Monday 24 September 2007

The lace it did a-frogging go!

After blocking the sample of my horseshoeprint lace, which I should have done before I started knitting [when will I ever learn?], I decided I didn't like the edges. They look fine in the unblocked version but a bit scrappy after blocking.
What to do? Frog of course! I decided to use a simple edge pattern all the way around and to make the scarf wider. The original was three patterns in width which measured 12cm, after blocking it was 14cm [an increase of approximately 16.5%]. I decided to use five pattern repeats plus a K1P1 rib plus yarnover border which I 'created'. I'm sure this edge probably exists in some pattern book - it's ridiculously simple - but I just created one that I thought complemented the lace pattern by its simplicity: K1, P1, K1, P1, yo, sl 1, k1, psso for right edge, K1, P1, K1, P1, yo, K2 tog for left edge.

So, time to cast on again. I needed 63 stitches - 51 for the pattern repeats [multiple of 10 +1] and 12 for the border. I used a provisional cast-on; the gap between the stitches grew and grew until I had 15cm [6 inches] of yarn between the stitches and I was only halfway through knitting the first row!! What to do? [lightbulb moment]: Use a smaller needle than I planned to knit with and a thicker waste yarn! It worked perfectly.

So, after several hours of knitting yesterday, I am about a quarter of the way through the scarf. Now, I'm not sure about the length - will 150cm [60 inches] be enough? Decisions, decisions! This is what happens one chooses to design an original instead of using a pattern! LOL

Presenting: the Small Diamond Wrap
and two coathangers


Completed wrap: 175cm x 40cm [70in x 40in]
56 squares 12.5cm x 12.5cm [5in x 5in] knitted on the diagonal. 11.25 metres [12.5 yards] of seaming and 200+ ends to sew in! The joys of using two strands of 4ply as a substitute for 8ply!

Was it worth it? The result speaks for itself - and someone will soon be wrapped in a thick warm blanket.


I know lace coathangers are not everyone's taste but I like nice coathangers. Better than those plastic triangle-shaped things DD prefers!

Saturday 22 September 2007

Socks! Socks! Socks!

Some time ago - just a few months actually - I was sure I would never knit socks. Why knit socks when you can buy them for $2 a pair? WM even gets his free as part of his uniform! But I was intrigued by the idea and seduced by the beautiful colourful socks in Lynne Vogel's The Twisted Sisters Sock Workbook. I borrowed that from the Guild library to read about dyeing and colour theory but got sucked into socks!

I knitted the first pair from 8ply acrylic. I was curious to see how the new Effects range from Carnival would knit up in a sock. Very nice! The photo's a bit green, but I needed to bump it up to reproduce the colours more accurately.

WM saw that first pair and wanted some. He can only wear them on Sundays because he works six days a week and has to wear regulation issue socks! Here's his first pair. They are knitted from Heirloom Jigsaw colour #26.

If he can only wear handknitted socks one day a week, why did he need a second pair? Here they are - Heirloom Jigsaw colour #29.



I was addicted but WM didn't need any more handknitted socks, and DD refused to consider the idea! I wear conservative black or brown socks and didn't even think about a pair for me! So, it was back to the charity knitting. This has advantages: warmth is the issue so 8ply is a good thickness, and 8ply knits up quickly; I could try all kinds of stitch patterns; and whatever size I knit them, the socks will always fit someone!

First off the rank: a brown fair isle pair which, like the blue pair, knitted up very softly considering the size 3.25mm needles [8 ply is usually knitted on 4mm]. Then I cast on a pair of navy socks in a beautiful soft acrylic I bought in Spotlight for just $2 a skein. I knitted those socks while staying with my parents for a few days. Mum loved them so much I gave them to her [before I took a photo]. She assured me she would only keep them for 'good' and would handwash them! Mum, they're acrylic! Throw them in the machine and when they're worn out I'll knit you another pair!!

Another navy pair followed, this time in stocking stitch, which didn't photograph well. Then a black pair in a moss stitch rib, shown here in close up. This pattern is similar to the one I used for mum's socks - for her it was broken rib [also known as mistake rib]. And then, another pair of black socks in a rib pattern.

Then came the experiment with different coloured toes and heels which was not as successful as I would have liked! Think I'll stick to single yarns in future!

These socks are mostly in dark colours because they will be going to homeless people and somehow I just think dark colours would be more useful. They're acrylic because it's inexpensive for me and hardwearing for the wearer - and acrylic doesn't need careful handwashing and blocking!

That's nine pairs of socks in three months! Oh yeah, I have the tenth pair of socks [from Tofutsies yarn] on the needles waiting to be grafted [Kitchener stitch] and they're for me! :-) The only reason they're not finished is because I'm not sure if the foot length is right - I don't want to graft, sew in the ends and then find they're the wrong size! Any suggestions for getting a good fit while there are still needles in the toes?

Now I've learnt how to do a provisional cast-on, I won't have the above problem any more because I'm going to try toe-up socks. And, to feed my addiction, I've joined Bells and RoseRed for the Southern Summer of Socks KAL. Why don't you join us too?

Large Triangle Wrap


I really like this finished blanket [afghan]. The pattern and colours work really well. It's hard to get a good photo of something so big!
Finshed size: 175cm x 100cm [70in x 40in]
Knitted mostly in acrylic 8ply on 4mm needles
28 squares - 25cm x 25cm [10in x 10in] knitted in garter stitch on the diagonal
c.o. 3 stitches
knit 2 rows
increase either end of next and alternate rows until 65 stitches
knit 1 row
change colour
decrease either end of next and alternate rows until 3 stitches remain
cast off [bind off], sew together using mattress stitch

Friday 21 September 2007

The Name Game

I found this on Leah's blog:

The Name Game

1. YOUR ROCK STAR NAME: (first pet & current car),
Thomasina Elantra

2. YOUR GANGSTA NAME: (fave ice cream flavor, favorite cookie),
Chocolate Chip Quatro

3. YOUR “FLY Guy/Girl” NAME: (first initial of first name, first three letters of your last name),
L. Fra

4. YOUR DETECTIVE NAME: (favorite color, favorite animal),
Purple Feline

5. YOUR SOAP OPERA NAME: (middle name, city where you were born),
Marie Sydney

6. YOUR STAR WARS NAME: (the first 3 letters of your last name, first 2 letters of your first)
Fraly

7. SUPERHERO NAME: (”The” + 2nd favorite color, favorite drink)
The Red Tea

8. NASCAR NAME: (the first names of your grandfathers),
Frank Alfred

9. STRIPPER NAME: ( the name of your favorite perfume/cologne/scent, favorite candy),
Joy Lindt

10.WITNESS PROTECTION NAME: (mother’s & father’s middle names ),
Theresa Francis

11. TV WEATHER ANCHOR NAME: (Your 5th grade teacher’s last name, a major city that starts with the same letter),
Fitzgerald Fremantle (it's hard to find a city starting with F!)

12. SPY NAME/BOND GIRL: (your favorite season/holiday, flower).
Christmas Rose

13. CARTOON NAME: (favorite fruit, article of clothing you’re wearing right now + “ie” or “y”)
Cherry Uggie

14. HIPPY NAME: (What you ate for breakfast, your favorite tree),
Toasty Silver Birch

15. YOUR ROCKSTAR TOUR NAME: (”The” + Your fave hobby/craft, fave weather element + “Tour”)
The Knitting Sunshine Tour


Try it - it's fun!

Wednesday 19 September 2007

Last night I had a strange dream -
the strange effects of provisional cast-on

I dreamt that my [ESL] students and I were knitting provisional cast-ons! And, even more strangely, we were listening to the news: someone was in danger and our knitting could save them! [And then I woke up - the English teachers' pet hate at the end of a text!!]

Bizarrely, when I finally went back to sleep [two hours later] I dreamt about knitting again!
So, what's with the provisional cast-on? Last weekend I attended a lace workshop tutored by Raelene for the Blue Mountains branch of the Knitters' Guild and I learnt provisional cast-on. I've tried it before but became frustrated by the stretching apart of the provisional stitches when knitting the first row - apparently this is normal [the stretching not the frustration]. We knitted several repeats of a feather and fan stitch pattern and then learnt how to knit a border without breaking off the yarn from the body of knitting! Traditionally, lace knitting [and knitted lace] is not sewn together because sewing doesn't have the elasticity of knitting; however, it's easier to write patterns where x number of pieces are knitted and then sewn together. Knitting the border on is easy and I don't understand why it can't be part of the pattern explanation. Anything that involves less sewing up would be welcome by most knitters, I would think!

After the Guild meeting, we were shown the correct method to block. Blocking is essential to lace making - sometimes lace looks like nothing until it has been blocked but then it's revealed in all its awesome glory! Hint: If giving [not "gifting"] the lace project to a non-knitter, block it several times so that it is more likely to hold its correct size and shape.

Two things we didn't learn [and I wished I'd known to ask]: the best way to sew in ends and if there are any special techniques for joining in a new ball of yarn. Of course, the best way is to avoid joining yarn at all - buy yarn in big skeins!!

Since the workshop, I have cast on a scarf in white 3ply baby yarn (on 3.75mm needles) as a gift for a dear lady's 80th birthday. I'm knitting the horseshoe print stitch pattern from the Harmony Book of Knitting Stitches. I have not yet decided what border pattern I will use. Each pattern repeat [8 rows] measures about 28mm and I have done 15 repeats since Monday so I think I will easily finish and block it by 20th October. This is what it looks like so far.

Monday 10 September 2007

My first doll is not a comfort doll
and neither is my second!

A couple of weeks ago, I joined the artdollz yahoo group and have been very inspired. The dolls made by this group are generally not knitted but that didn't stop me from giving it a go!


On Sunday, I finished my first knitted doll.
"Art" she is not! She's not even well crafted - but I won't point out my mistakes (don't look too closely! LOL). She's knitted on 3.25mm dpns in 8ply acrylic leftovers - believe it or not, there are 40 strands of yarn - some as short as 15cm - in that 15cm doll! If you click on the image and enlarge it you will see the variations of colour. I'm not really happy with her but DD thinks she's cute. The first time he saw her, WM said, "Babushka" which was pleasing because that's what I had in mind while I was 'designing' her (on the needles).

Today I completed the second knitted doll - this time I knitted from the head down using 3ply baby nylon (it's soft and cuddly) on 2.25mm dpns. I knitted flat to the neck then a tube to the feet.
The fair isle pattern is random: Fibonacci numbers (1-1, 1-1, 1-2, 2-1, 2-3, 3-2, 2-1, 1-2, 1-1, 1-1) repeated three times. I'm still designing on the needles and playing with ideas - and there are still bugs to be ironed out in the construction! The face is one of those "what if" moments - what if I try to draw a simple face rather than embroider one? I used permanent markers - the result is more or less what I expected from drawing on such a fibrous fabric.

Both were an exercise in playing with shape and size and turned out a lot wider than I think is suitable for the comfort doll project. However, I'm sure two little girls in Asia will appreciate them because I will donate them to Operation Christmas Child through my contact at the Knitters' Guild.

What is the comfort doll project? I'm glad you asked! Comfort dolls are small (maximum size 15cm /6 inches) to fit in a purse or handbag and are given to women who've been raped, abused or otherwise traumatised. The dolls are given to women's shelters or refuges, and the staff pass them on to the recipients. You can find out more about this project by looking at these photos or the originator's blog. And here is a link for the project in NZ. As yet, there is no link for Oz but, hopefully, that will soon change. A friend of mine has put her hand up as a collection point in Oz, so if you want to join the project, email me at this address teacherDOTlynneATyahooDOTcomDOTau and I will send you further information as it comes to hand. Make sure you give me a reply address! :-)

Saturday 8 September 2007

New season - new look

It's spring and I felt the need for a change. Wider posts but the layout is basically the same.

I like it - hope you do too!

Wednesday 5 September 2007

knitted art dolls and sockewolle

Three and half weeks since my last - very short - post! Life has been hectic to say the least.

My holiday in NT was great but it seems like a very long time ago. I think WM has finally finished editing his 800+ photos (and stopped hogging the computer)!

DD and I went to the craft show at Rose Hill racecourse a couple of weeks ago. I didn't intend to go but saw an article on Sydney Weekender about a product/craft I hadn't seen before so, of course, I had to go! On t.v. it looked some form of terracotta but it turned out to be more like a form of PVA glue - the version used on t.v. was terracotta coloured. The product is used to make weather-proof sculpture from fabric - but could be used for yarn too! Which got me thinking about yarn as an art medium rather than a material for making practical items.

We saw a fashion parade of knitted/crocheted items by Threads and More (Brisbane) so, naturally enough, took an extra hard look at their stall. Hiding in the corner I found sockewolle for $15.00 a skein. I tried to choose only one but ended up buying two - one for WM, one for me (or is that two for me?!) Colours 789 and 795 Who said I was obsessed with knitting socks?

While at the craft show, I saw some interesting "art dolls" - not the kind of thing made to give to children as play things, but fine art soft sculptures. These also captured my imagination and, for the moment, I'm obsessed with the idea of knitting an art doll. Of course, I've never knitted a doll of any kind before, but I'm not one to let that stop me! So, does anyone know anyone who knits art dolls? Can you point me in their direction? Why should such a great art form be the domain of fabric artists?