Swatches Swatches Swatches More ideas

After a lot of swatching and a lot of new techniques, the swatches have been piling up.  Here's some more ideas for you.

A use for 5 more swatches is a plant hanger.  Create just like the beanie, join 4 into a ring and put the 5th on a side to close it in.  Now add 4 straps, set at the juncture of 2 squares, keeping the open side of the block facing up.  The straps need to be the same length.  Tie a knot or otherwise fasten them together at the loose ends to allow it to be hung.  Sew around a large ring at this end to facilitate hanging.  The straps can be small 2 round granny squares joined into a long line, macramé, or heavy twisted cording.

A use for another dozen or so is a tea cozy.  Pick some of the larger swatches for the outside and smaller ones for the inside.  Outside first:  Starting with the larger swatches.  Seam 5 together into a ring.  Seam another 3 together into a ring.  Now seam the two rings together to create a type of open cone shape.  Put a single swatch on the small end of the cone.  Now repeat this with smaller swatches for the inside without the single swatch on the small end of the cone.  Instead run a line of stitching around the small end of the cone and pull tight.  Line with quilting batt or fiberfil thickly and seam the bottom edges together.

Another use for some is to create dresser scarves.  This is dependent more on the size you want and the size of the piece of furniture.  For those who don't understand, think placemat, except larger.  I might hesitate to put this on my fine wood furniture if I'm using coarse yarn.  But this is a great way to hide the scars on a well loved chest or dresser.  This might be an old fashioned idea but it can come in handy.  Perhaps this is not one of the greatest ideas for those swatches with a lot of high profile texture.  Things can tip over on bobbles.

As you can see, the uses are limitless and not just for afghans.  The key to keeping it from looking like a paint display exploded is color choice.  To a lesser extent the choice of patterns is also important.  By this I mean, choose 1 to 3 colors that coordinate by sitting next to each other on the color wheel or are the same color just a shade darker or a hue lighter.  I might also pair laces with laces, textures that are all close in the amount of "lumpiness", cables with cables.

November is National Alzheimer's month

National Alzheimer's disease month.  We all know someone who is affected by this disease. In the early stages,  it gets passed off as general forgetfulness,  things like I forgot to mark my calendar.

When it reaches the end stages,  the people probably won't recognize family members or be able to live safely at home even with round the clock supervision. 

No matter how far down the line this disease has progressed,  people have tactile memories.  Smell is one of the first things to go as we get older with or without Alzheimer's, as is the sense of taste.  These go hand in hand.  Sight may go.  Hearing may go.  We don't know completely how the brain interprets these senses as the disease progresses.  One thing that doesn't change much is the sense of feel.   This can show itself as fidgeting, a love for touch or a fear of human touch.  It depends on how the individual's brain interprets these and what latent memories from earliest life are available.  Others lose their sense of touch in places.  They lose the ability to feel pain, to feel hunger, to feel thirst.  In many cases the victims of Alzheimer's will lose the muscle memory for swallowing as the disease enters its end stage.

A way to help these people to stay safe instead of up and wandering around to get lost or to fall is to create a fidget cloth.  Before I knew about these and could make one for my maternal grandmother, she would shred a box of facial tissues a day, one tissue at a time.  However, a fidget cloth is something like a lap robe or smaller like the size of a napkin.  It uses texture instead of color to create interest.  It uses pockets, ties, zippers, buttons and other things to create tactile interest.

Crochet textures can include front post and back post stitches, lace stitches, cables, heavy seams on patch pockets, beaded strings to feel and fiddle with, crochet chains for tying or wrapping around fingers and unwrapping, buttons to do and undo, snaps to feel snapping, zippers to zip.  Be sure to make these embellishments stay firmly attached.  Choking is not something we want.

National Knit Month is November

November is National Knit Month.  So awe inspiring. So daunting.  If I choose to knit all month, what should I do???  Things for me?  Things that are gifts?  Things for charity?  Something completely different?

Well, since January is selfish knitting month in response to the gift knitting that has been taking place, I guess things for me can wait.  Charity items and gifts seem to be at the top of my list.

Gift items this year will be including...…  Well I don't have that exactly figured out yet.  I know I want to do a pair of monster pants for my newest granddaughter.  I thought a pair for her older brother might be interesting.  Different sizes and different colors are a given.  Her oldest brother?  A dinosaur sweater?  Some toys?  I don't know.  For my oldest granddaughters I have no real clue.  Sizing is difficult from across the country.  I've been kicking around the idea of ruffled skirts for them paired with legggings.  I also wondered about a cardigan for each.

I have 2 sons, a daughter in law and a prospective daughter in law.  I have no ideas for these adults.

Something a Bit Different but Still Yarn Related

I have a very small orchard, vineyard and berry patch.  Truth be told, it's a dwarf pear tree (5 varieties on one trunk), 2 dwarf apple trees (one red delicious and one 5 on 1), a dwarf peach, 8 raspberry bushes, 2 black berry bushes, 2 concord grape vines.  My fruit is extra yummy because it is picked at the peak of ripeness.  Tonight I am canning 3 quarts of grape juice concentrate.  There's a fourth in the refrigerator because there isn't enough in the jar for safe canning.  But I digress.

The part that gets me is the colors of autumn and harvest season.  Over winter the canes of the berry patch give a nice red to mahogany color to the landscape.  The grapes get cut back.  The trees are all bare.

Come spring, the colors really get going.  New leaves come out in varying degrees of green and in some cases red to purple.  The apple trees have a dirty-ish white flower.  The peach tree has delicate pink flowers as do the raspberry bushes.  The pear tree has white to the very palest pink flowers.  Blackberries have a white to a very pale peach color.  The grapes have a green tone flower.

Once a decent summer shows up, the leaves deepen in color and the fruits start growing.  This year with 2 months of almost continual rain was not ideal.  The berries start growing in maroon hairy sepals.  When they burst open they are bright red and darken to deep purple.  The grapes are green ripening to dark purple blue.  The peaches and apples also start hard, small and green.  As they ripen in their seasons, they change colors.

In autumn, the fruits are long eaten or preserved and their leaves turn colors.  This is dependent on the weather, just like most of the other changes.  The apples, pear and peach leaves usually turn brown.  The grapes turn a beautiful chartreuse.  The berries turn a beautiful dark red.  Some years the colors are spectacular.

Then there are years like this.  This year the colors that have changed so far have  been mostly drab in color.

The colors have inspired me to look for yarns in these colors.  I want to knit fingering weight shawls in these autumnal colors.   This is so unlike me.  I have on my calendar to knit or crochet 2 sweaters for my beautiful 7 year old granddaughters in San Diego, a sweater for a grandson who is 5, a sweater for a 2 year old grand son and something for our newest granddaughter.

Pi(e) Shawls

I was recently testing some yarn for wool content before rehoming it to a local elementary school.  A big ball of black fingering weight came back wool.  It must be merino from the feel of it. It's so wonderfully soft.  It's been calling to me that it wants to be a Pi shawl.

Before I started, I wanted to finish some things.  I got some of them finished and some are half way done.   The soft black yarn finally won.  

In my version, I started with 5 size 3.5 mm wood done. Using a magic ring,  I cast on 4 to each needle.  I knit a round.  I knit 1 and yarn overed for a round.   I knit 2 rounds.  I repeated the knit 1, yarn over round.   I knit 4 rounds.  I repeated the increase round.   I'm currently working on the next 8 rounds of knit. I moved the work to a US size 5 (3.75mm) 16 inch circular needle.

Then I thought to look at Pinterest to see what others might be doing with this.  I thought about various lace patterns I could include. All I need is the right number of stitches for the repeats to work out.   But back to Pinterest...

Donna Druchunas has some beautiful pi shawl patterns.  Brooklyn Tweed also has some great ideas and patterns for the pi  shawl concept.   Were I using any color other than black,  I'd be all over them.  Sadly black doesn't show stitch patterns to their best advantage.  I continued looking.  

Surprisingly,  there are a number of methods for working the Pi shawl.  Some make the increase round the 3rd round. Others use the 4th round.   Depending on the number of stitches cast on and the size of the hole left in the center,  you could start with almost any number of stitches.

There are 2 different versions from Elizabeth Zimmermann.  One is the almost solid knit with the increase rounds at 1, 4, 9, 18, 36, 72, 144, 256, 576 or something like that.   The other one is the concentric circles of yarn overs coupled with the k2tog unless it's an increase round, following the same numbers as the solid.

The only thing I wouldn't recommend is cables.  Cables tend to draw in the work. Sometimes it can take in the knitting 30 to 50%.  Smocking stitches will do the same.  Some slip stitch patterns will also.   Indian cross stitch comes to mind.

Charity Begins at Home

We've all heard this at one time or another. I heard it growing up, little did I know how much it was true.  But let's look at the different ways this applies to us.  Here is one way to apply knit and crochet to people in need.

1. What is charity?  If we consult a dictionary,  it will say something like an agency set up  to provide help and raise money for those in need. It's also the things given as help.   For our purposes,  charity is the time, talents, and money we contribute to those in need.  My cooking for homeless people is time and talent spent in charitable works.  Sometimes, though,  money is the best fit.

My local clothing bank needs men's socks in particular. The knitter in me says sure I can knit socks. Realistically speaking,  I don't have time to knit men's socks.   Not only are men's feet larger,  but the leg must be longer and they prefer dark colors that can be hard to see. Plus in a week's time, I can only do maybe a sock.   It's far more expedient to use the sock money to purchase a package of 3 to 12 pairs of socks in appropriate colors.  I have saved time and helped more people for the same outlay of money. 

Now if I know that every year they will need socks,  I can knit throughout the year and feel great about that.  I do this with blanket squares.   Check out my year of crochet stitches and year of knit stitches posts for ideas. 

Other charities to consider are Humane Society to help pets, environmental causes,

Baby Showers

Babies seem to be cyclical in my life.  What handcrafted items do you like to give?  What fibers do you use?   What weight of yarn do you use?  With so many people utilizing gift registry,  it's sometimes difficult to figure out what to give that will meet all the expectations of both the expectant mother and the giver. 

What are the expectations?  As an experienced mother, my expectations are softness,  durability,  washability, fit, and looks good.  A new mother to be might be looking for the WOW factor before some of the other things. 

One gift that is a usually a hit is a bling blanket.   No I'm not suggesting that we add beads,  crystals, or anything like that.  Bling here means a special stitch pattern or a fabulous yarn that meets safety first and foremost, then other features.  All this unless you want it to be an heirloom,  beautiful but virtually unused to be passed on to future children or generations. 

Yarn choice :  I stress washability.  All of us who have kids, been around kids, been a kid, know that illness is a thing that happens whether caused by germs or over eating.  There's always the dirt from being dragged around because it is so loved.  I stress that wash after wash the thing must hold up and look great. No one wants a shabby looking blankie, onsie suit or anything else after a couple of washes.  The broomstick lace from Sept. 16 is a fabulous blanket stitch.

I also think that bibs make a great gift.  No matter which way you slice it, babies drool.  No one likes  a wet chest, especially in these days of no coats being worn in a car seat. However, new moms to be don't seem as enthused by these.  Perhaps I or they are missing something?  Bibs protect clothes from getting soaked and dirty.  Bibs can protect from babies learning to eat.  Those of us who have had strained veggies erupt all over know that bibs on both feedee and feeder can be great laundry savers.

Toys have the WOW factor but not necessarily the safety factor.  Besides who says that the theme mom has laid out for the new little one is what the kid will like.....  Safety is very important.  I advocate embroidered facial features as well as most other details.  Tight stitches to prevent stuffing from coming out is important.  

lubushka

Have you seen this shawl by Irina Poludnenko?   Something about this speaks to me.  It could be the colors.  So many colors. It could be the auto pilot knitting of so many mitered squares and stripes.


My knitting guild is doing this shawl as a project.  It calls for some really interesting amounts of yarn.  I chose to go stash diving.  I prefer autumn colors.  I have a lot of wool needlepoint yarns, a lot of partial balls of wool yarn.  It calls for 33 colors in varying amounts.  I may have to make up the difference in a deep chocolate and cream yarns.

I could see this taking almost a year to make if just one square was done each day and one strip was done each day.  It would not be overwhelming that way  But it would be the project that seems to never end.

I can't wait to start.

A Year of Stitches

Broomstick Lace.   It has a history of a couple of hundred years, possibly more.  It moves along quickly.  Traditionally done,  there are teardrops in rows and a ridge or two between those rows. Sounds simple. And it is.  There's a knit version and a crochet version.

Knit broomstick lace

1 size 35US needle
1 pair size 8US needle
Worsted weight yarn

This is going to be a 5 stitch repeat.

Cast on 25 sts, using smaller needle.
K 1 r using small needles.
R2:  using large needle,  k 1 row.
R3: * using small needle,  insert into first 5 sts, (k,  p,  k,  p,  k)  in those 5 sts then drop off the left needle. Rep from * across.
R4-5:  k  using small needle.
Two rows 2-5 for desired length. Bind off using smaller needle.

Crochet broomstick lace

1 size 35US knitting needle
1 size H (5mm)  crochet hook
Worsted weight yarn

This is going to be a 5 stitch repeat.

Ch 25.
R1: Sc in 2nd ch and each ch to the end. Do not turn. (24 sc)
R2:  put the loop on the knitting needle,  * insert hook in bl of next st,  put on needle.  Rep from * across. (25 loops)
R3: * insert hook into 5 loops,  work 5 SC in those loops before removing loops from needle.  Rep from * across.

Rep R2 and R3 for pattern until desired length is reached.

This stitch is great for blankets.  Sweaters would be fantastic done with finer yarns and a smaller "broomstick " (I suggest size US 13 to US 19) and  smaller needle or hook suitable for the yarn choice.

Share your attempts below in the comments.

Hurricanes

I sit in my son's living room listening to the weather channel.   Currently hurricane Florence is bearing down on southeastern US.   There's another heading for Hawaii.   There's a third one with the potential to crash into Texas. Before the ones on the East Coast cause issues for the US,  a multitude of Caribbean islands will feel the effects.

Stay safe.  Follow the protocols you have.  Things can be replaced.  Family, friends and pets can't.

Take food,  water,  clothes,  medicines,  etc with you. Board up windows and doors.   Do whatever you can to protect your home.  Then leave.

This is my prayer for all in the affected areas.  That you are safe and sound.

In the News

Have you seen this???  This is an amazing work of love. Here is a link to the original story. Some people scoff at the lowly home knitting machine.  No, they are not for everything. They generally don't do some things great but they do other things great.   This shows that with enough time and patience monumental things are possible.

This woman has a lot more body confidence than most of us.   Would you wear it?   Would you make modifications?   I'd like to make it but acknowledge it would have to be lined or have a shirt and leggings worn with it for me. I'd also change the color.

Here's a group of stitches dedicated to the short term needs.  The group does things in the UK. Check out their charity choices.

Weather.  It's all around us everyday,  all day. There's a quip in quite a few locales about how if you don't like the weather at that time,  wait 5 minutes,  it'll change.  Here is a new term in weather, crochet.  I never knew. Did you? 

I like this one much better. Pictured is my weather report.  It's too stinkin' hot, so crochet and knit small things using cool fibers such as cotton and linen, or this Red Heart scrubby yarn. Most of my summer has been raining. Then mid August it went hot,  Hot,  HOT.  

A Year of Stitches Week 12

A Year of Knit Stitches and A Year of Crochet Stitches have sadly fallen by the wayside after a new baby then a family emergency with an elderly family member having a stroke.  So here are two new stitches for you to try. 

A year of stitches is a challenging thing to work on long term.  Some people find it very hard to do an actual project after so much swatching.  "I can do a swatch but really don't know if I can handle a whole sweater in that stitch" is one of the comments I've heard repeatedly. Do you like them?  Do you try the stitches?  Do you have any ideas what to do with some of them?  This is why I also created the what can I do with the swatches series.  I'll start with some of the more complicated ideas to give more instruction.

Double Linen Stitch

Multiple of 4 stitches + 2

Cast on 26

R1:  *k2, sl 2 wyif.  Rep from *, end k2
R2:  *p2, sl 2 wyib.  Rep from * end p2
R3:  k2, *k2, sl 2wyif.  Rep from *, ending k4
R4:  P2, *p2, sl 2wyib.  Rep from *, ending p4

To vary this even more, change colors every 2 rows or every row.

Waffles

I don't know too many people who don't like waffles.  This stitch is a multiple of 3 stitches plus 1.  To make it extra cushy,  use  a hook 2 sizes larger than usual for the yarn being used.

Ch23. 

 DC in 4th ch and each ch.  The ch3 counts as a Dc now and throughout. Turn.

**Ch3,  * bptr in next 2 DC,  fptr in next st. Rep from * across. Turn

Ch3,  * fptr in next 2 sts,  bptr in next St. Rep from * across.  Turn**

Rep these 2 rows until you have a square or rectangle of desired size.  

This would be great as a warm baby blanket  for a gift.

Update to the Masters

I know it's been a very long time since this has been mentioned.  Let me recap.   I applied for the CGoA Master Crochet level 1.  This required a bunch of written questions and answers.   This required upwards of four dozen swatches.

I revised my responses a few times until I was happy with what I had. I wavered between a short answer and writing books.   In the end,  I tried to keep it succinct, short enough to be readable but long enough for details.

My swatches used more than a 7 oz skein.   I had to buy a second.  The rules are specific that all must be single color unless specified. 

Once the family emergency and church festival were over and life was drifting back to a more normal pace,  I sent my portfolio to my designated evaluate.   Now I wait.  I can only hope that the mailing of my portfolio didn't cause the swatches to malformed.   There is no blocking so I don't have to worry about that.  I know blocking can come undone in transit.

In the News....

People are amazing with the things they can accomplish, especially if no one says they can't.

Amazing person beautiful work.

This is definitely worth a look.

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This isn't your granny's crochet.

Another fashionable look at crochet.

I wouldn't look good in these particular clothes, but I can add crochet embellishment to a lot of my things...… The ideas are fabulous

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Here's a way to take things that are trash and upcycle them into something usable and useful.

charity begins at home

This does take a while whether knit or crochet.  Collecting the materials requires the help of many.

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The value of crochet, priceless no matter who you are

Reading like Crochet are important skills

Both can help you find an escape, a way to cope, a way to be your own person.  What can you do with them??

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So many appeals for knit and crochet items.  Help is needed around the world.

Australia needs help
Jeppe Girls help with 67 Blankets 
poppy appeal

Can you help?  I can send a poppy or two.

Charity Knitting and Charity Crocheting

While there is a specific month dedicated to this (January), I will be talking about it in the summer.

Most of the charities will utilize small items.  Small squares can be made into larger afghans for distribution.  Hats and scarves are small.  Mittens and gloves are small.  Cowls can be small.  These are all things that can be made for charitable distribution during the hot summer months.

Some thoughts about charity knitting and crocheting.  Think about the intended recipients.  Men tend to like darker colors in "man colors", black, chocolate, navy, maroon, forest. These colors also tend to not show dirt for those who are living rough.

For kids, brighter colors are the rule.  Kids, in my experience, tend to like colors that match up with their favorite book, movie or cartoon characters.  I'm thinking back to a few years ago when Harry Potter was all the rage.  House colors ruled.  Dora the Explorer and Minions took over a few years ago for the younger set.

Choose easy care fibers. But more importantly, check out the requirements for your specific donation site. They might have special needs. Knitted knockers is this way.  My go-to for charity work is acrylic.  It can be tossed in the  washer/dryer. It can be hand washed and hung out to dry or laid flat.

A new yarn I'm testing out.   Lion Brand Scarfie has been on the market for at least 2 years.   It was gifted to me a while ago and only now am using it.   I picked up a second ball of this. I'm doing a Clapotis.  I chose neutral colors to have maximum appeal. 

Knit in Public Day a little late

Courtesy of a church festival and a family emergency,  I didn't get a chance to attend any of the festivities locally or further afield.  I have a facebook  post about some of the goings on.  

From everything I have seen online,  WWKIP was a smashing success.  There were even considerations made for crochet and some of the other needle arts, depending on your locale.

Had I been able to attend, I was asked to teach a fabulous crochet flower and a crochet butterfly at my local outing.

Here's the basic idea for the flower.

Ch 4 and join with a slst to form a ring.

R1:  ch 2, 15 hdc in ring.  Join with a slst in top of ch 2.

R2:  working in front loop, ch 1, sc in same St as join, *  2 hdc in each of next 2 hdc,  sc in next.  Rep from * around. Slst in sc.

R3: * working in the back loop,  (ch 2, dc, 2 tr, dc, ch 2, sl st, sl st in next bl).  Rep from * around.

Fasten off.

Weave in the ends and use as an embellishment.  To add more interest to the flower, use variegated yarns or different shades of the same color for the rounds.

Here's the basic idea for the butterfly.

Ch 5 and join with a sl st to form a ring.

R1: ch 3, dc in ring, * ch 2, 2 dc in ring.  Rep from * 6 times.  ch 2, sl st in top of ch 3.  8 ch 2 spaces.

R2:  sl st to ch 2 sp, ch 3,  2 dc, ch, 3dc in ch 2 sp, * 3 dc, ch 2, 3 dc, ch 1 in next ch 2 sp.  Rep from * around.  

R3:  ch 1, sc in ch 1 sp, * in next ch 2 sp,  3 dc, 4 tr, 3 dc, sc in ch 1 sp.  Rep from * around.

Fold in half.  With black, Ch 2, make a long sc around the center of the folded butterfly.  This is the body.  Ch 11, sl st in 3 ch from hook, sl st in next 6 ch, 3 hdc in sc, ch 8, sl st in 3rd ch from hook and each of next 6 ch.  Fasten off.

You can change up the butterfly by using variegated yarns, a different color on round, add fanciful curlicues to the last round  in the middle of the 4tr.

Our Comfort Zone

I was reading an article on LinkedIn recently about people not really living to their fullest potential.  The graphic was spot on and while it made me think about relationships more than the professional; I really started thinking how it applied to knitting and crocheting.  Let's check this out....

In the center are those things we hold near and dear to ourselves or which don't cause stress.  The further from the center we go are those which are harder and harder for us.  

So in the center is some nice yarn.   Nothing more stressful than being sure you have enough for your project.  Or perhaps picking colors is hard for you.  And you move that a little further from the center.  I have in the very bottom of the right hand the watermark from the app I used to create this.  For me this was important to be there.  This is something new I am learning to do and it doesn't come naturally to me.

Running in the medium go around I would put things like garter stitch, stockinette stitch, double crochet, single crochet and granny squares.  These are easy things that can be made harder either by inexperience, illness, or little tweaks hear and there.  Further out go the intricate cables, color work, shaping for sweaters and such.  Shaping for clothes isn't hard.  Getting the proper fit can take a bit of time especially if you are new to it.

Socks and laces are things that can be challenging to the person who has never tried.  They tend to look complicated.  The directions tend to make little sense unless you are actually at that point in your work.  Some of the stitches also don't make a lot of sense in lace.  Most are straight forward but some just make you wonder whether you are reading through before starting or actually at that point.  

Having a teacher to walk you through directions or stitches or trouble shoot your work can be very beneficial.  Who is your teacher??  Comment below about how you learned to knit or crochet.  

Laura Ingalls Wilder

Recently I was listening to a podcast called Still Growing.  It's about gardening, a hobby I enjoy.   The episode (585) that prompted this post is about Laura Ingalls Wilder.  The podcast interviews a writer who suggests that Mrs Wilder should be thought of as an environmental writer in addition to a children's author. 

This has me thinking about her textiles in her books.  I do not begin to suggest that the Ingalls wove all their cloth to make their clothes (we'll peek in at the Wilders in due course).   But there are considerable mentions of sewing,  quilting, embroidery,  knitting and, I believe,  even  crochet. 

Here's a list of the titles in order of publication. 

  *  Little House in the Big Woods 

  *  Little House on the Prairie 

  *  Farmer Boy

  *  On the Banks of Plum Creek

  *  By the Shore of Silver Lake 

  *  The Long Winter

  *  Little Town on the Prairie 

  *  These Happy Golden Years 

  

And as an unfinished book that was later published as found,  The First Four Years 

Ma sewed all the clothes for the family by hand, no sewing machine here until near the end of the series.   She did use factory made yard goods.  The fabrics were gotten from nearby towns.  Some of this explains why clothes were treated better than we do today and why they lasted longer as well, in some ways.   I think some has to do with our electric dryers also.   

Ma also knits their stockings and socks by hand.  These are carefully mended as needed,  again by hand.  I have to imagine that some of these are knit of thicker yarn than we currently use (sport weight Vs.  Fingering or lace weight), especially the work socks. They learned to knit and share the work as witnessed by the mittens they knit for Carrie in By the Shores of Silver Lake at Christmas time.  

Mary and Laura learn to hand sew,  carefully picking out wonky seams and tiny stitches until perfection is achieved.  From the early books we see that quilt blocks were the early seam practice.  Smooth straight seams are important for the comfort of clothes and bed linens as well as the way the clothes look and fit. 

As the books progress,  things become a trifle easier.   A sewing machine is acquired.   This is not today's electric whiz machine.  The sewing machine of Laura's day was a treadle machine. It required foot power to make the needle go up and down. Even so,  there was a lot of hand finishing to do. 

Towards the end of the series we see Laura preparing for marriage by teaching 3 terms of school and working as a seamstress and assistant milliner.  The teaching may have been easy but she didn't care for the sewing required.  She learned how to do it quickly and neatly to get it over with but not have to redo it. 

We also see Mary contribute to the household by being able to knit and sew even though blinded by illness, as well as keep baby Grace occupied and out of trouble while others did heavier work that required vision.  Mary braids fabric strips to be sewn into rugs. 

Now let's look in on the Wilders of the book,  Farmer Boy.  Mother and Father Wilder are prosperous farmers.  They can afford fine fabrics purchased from the store for Sunday best.   School clothes and work clothes were woven from wool from their sheep, dyed with natural dyes from things found on the farm.  Father may have raised the sheep and sheared the sheep.   Mother carded the wool,  spun the wool, wove and knit the yarn, dyed the resulting fabrics,  cut and sewed the clothes. She did all this for four children and Mother and Father in the book without benefit of a sewing machine.  In reality there were more children.  

If you would like to read these books for yourself,  check out your local library.

Anti boredom month

Have you eve heard of this month?  I'm willing to bet you have.  It's more commonly known as July.

Why the name change?  Here in the U.S.,  most schools use a 9 month on 3month off clock.  By this I mean school is in session for 9 months and then nothing for 3 months.  How many of us have heard about 4 weeks into summer "I'm bored. There's nothing to do."

As a way to combat this, I suggest each week,  the kids learn something new.  A crafty way to release some of their creative juices.  Sculpting with clay, painting, knitting, crocheting,  jewelry making, metal working,  woodworking and these are just the tip of the iceberg.   We all have the waxy sticks of wonder known as crayons.  We all have colored pencils and markers.  There are only so many hours a kid will sit still and color either in coloring books (are these still a thing?) or use sticker books.  There are only so many hours a day we can park the kids in front of the tv to watch or play games on whatever system is currently popular or in front of a computer screen.  These are pretty much one in the same to me.

For younger children,  there are usually kits for most of these.   As the kids get older, try thinking outside the box.   These can also be an opening for them to become involved in volunteer work.  Your religious organization can be a great place to start.  A local charity can also be a good start. There are usually jobs to be done that are not skilled work which are very good for those not really acquainted with the systems used by that organization.  Recently my church had a paint day for woodwork.   

I'd like to see more kids knitting or crocheting.  Check out my website for ideas that will keep kids busy and productive with their time.  For the 4 - 7 year olds, I have finger knitting and finger crochet.  For the 5 + ages I have straw weaving, basic knitting, basic crochet, weaving on cardboard, arm knitting and dying with the food dyes.  These classes are free with the exception of having to purchase yarn and tools you don't have.  See your local big box craft store or thrift shop.

Ideas for the kids to use to create something from their handwork can be found here and in other posts of a similar name.

Don't forget to get out and exercise.  An hour a day can help the waistline and the mood of the family.  Play kickball with the kids, or maybe Frisbee.  Running games like little league or pickup games in the neighborhood are also great. 

Whatever you do, don't forget to stay hydrated and wear sunscreen.

Im mortality

That is the name of a writing prompt I saw recently.  It is supposedly a rough translation from Latin to mean 999 lives.  In reality it is a bad way write the Roman numerals for 999 and the Latin for death. So it is 999 deaths.   Death implies there is life to go with it.   I like that rough translation despite the liberties taken.

It begged me to wonder.  What could I accomplish with that many lives to knit and crochet? What else could I do with that time?  How long will each life last? How would I keep track of time?   Where in my life timeline would I start the next life? Would I retain the knowledge and abilities gained in previous lives?  When in time would each life be lived?  This being a creative writing prompt.  I can pretty much do anything.

I choose that I keep abilities, knowledge, and memories of the previous lives.  I choose that each new life starts at age 20.  This way I'm beyond the formative years.  Each life,  unless I make stupid choices, will last until I am between 80 and 100.  I have no clue how I will keep track of each life.

My first two lives I choose to knit and crochet everything in my queue on ravelry plus the offline list of things that are not on ravelry. 

I think after this every other lifetime will be donated to making things for the charities near and dear to me.   I'll make breasts for breast cancer survivors,  items for the homeless (scarves,  gloves,  hats,  blankets),  items for babies.  With a lot of luck some of the trouble will be eradicated or at least lessened.

I don't know what I want to do with the other half of the lives.   Maybe conquering fears?   Learn how to do more extensive needlework techniques?   I'll leave those choices for another day.

Hope you enjoyed this bit of fiction.   Share your thoughts and ideas below.

Swatch! Swatch! Swatch! There's so many Swatches!

Moving right along with what to do with them all, we come to what to do with more than a dozen at a time.  The obvious idea that we can all see is...........AFGHANS!!!!  These can use from 2 dozen up to 9 or 10 dozen.  You decide how many based on how big you want it to be and how big the blocks/squares are made.

OK.  Now that that has been said.  Let's come up with more ideas.

1. Bathmat:  Take a dozen in a 3 x 4 pattern of swatches/blocks that are 6 - 12 inches each in cotton.  
2. Welcome Mat:  Take another dozen in a 3 x 4 pattern of swatches done in jute, clothesline, rope or twine.  These fibers will stand up to some abuse.  The swatches/blocks should be at least 9 inches.
3. Heating Pad Cover:  Take 24 blocks/swatches in a 4 x 6 pattern.  Fold in half.  Seam along 2 sides.  Put buttons on half of the third open side and crochet along the other half of the open side and add some chain loops to fit over the buttons to act as button holes.  Insert the heating pad and button.  
4. Slippers:  With a dozen swatches/blocks you can make 2 slippers 6 swatches each that resemble booties.
5. Jacket or Coat:  With another 4 - 6 dozen blocks/swatches, you can make a coat or jacket of any size.  With tiny 2 inch granny squares you can make a baby cardi.  See this post for the basic layout.  To make this a longer coat, add more rows to the body.
6. Poncho:  With three and a half dozen (that's 42) swatches/blocks, you can make a poncho.  You can line them up in a diamond pattern or a very long rectangle to make the poncho.  It's up to you.
7. Rocking Chair Back:  With another two dozen in a 4 x 6 pattern and a couple of ties, you can make a wooden rocker back more cozy and comfy or cover a worn back.  Be sure to measure your rocking chair so you know your back will fit.
8. Contoured Bath Rug:  With a dozen more swatches/blocks that are 9 inches each arrange in this configuration.   Make it from absorbent cotton so it's easy care and can be warm to your feet in the middle of winter.
9. A variable number of squares or rounded grannies to fit your window, make a chevron shaped valance to add interest to a window that doesn’t need to be fully covered.
10. With 19 squares and some lining fabric, you can make a rectangular tote bag, 6 on each side and the rest are the gusset (sides and bottom to make it more usable).  Line for stability.  Add purchased handles or strap.
11. With 30 tiny thread squares sewn together into a long ring, you have a fancy lanyard for a convention name badge or scissors.

Now that's another 20 dozen or more swatches or granny square blocks used.  Leave comments with other ideas.  I'd love to hear them.

Games Knitters Play

This post could go a couple of directions.   This will not be ways to lie to yourself and others about how much you or they spend,  how big the stash is or anything else. Deception is not something I advocate especially between spouses. 

I am games mistress for retreats in my knitting guild.   I will give you a peek between the skeins at some of the games we have played and might play in the future.  Sometimes the prizes are knit cash to be used for an auction.  Monopoly money could be substituted.  Sometimes the prizes are actual knit related items.  You can also google knitting games and there are a lot more there.

Trivia  ::  before a retreat, I will Google knitting trivia.  I print questions with the answers and a bit of history if available.  I use this as a way to keep the retreat goers on their toes and earn knit cash.  I just blurt out a question with an amount that I think it's worth.  All correct answers will collect that amount.  Obviously easy questions are worth less.

Stories   ::   someone reads a story that has a lot of repetition of a few words or phrases.  All retreat goers sit in a circle.   There is a ball of yarn that gets tossed around according to the predetermined terms.  Ie. If a is said the person tosses it across the circle while holding the part they caught, or a quarter of the way around either left or right. The final goal is to have a web of knitter's.

Magic ball  ::  this is similar to the stories above.   All sit in a circle.   A story is read and at predetermined terms the yarn ball is passed left or right by 1, 2, or 3 people unwinding as it goes.  The magic is that there are small trinkets wound in the ball, fancy stitch markers,  small tape measures,  blunt yarn needles, buttons, charms.  The person who gets the prize is the one is sitting at the slip knot holding the trinket to the ball.

Ugly sweater card game  ::  by changing the rules this can accommodate a large group with only a deck or two.  Dole out the cards.  Play as directed mostly.  The oldest or youngest starts.  Pull a card from person to right or left. Make a pair if you can and display it.  Next person does same.   If you pull and can make a pair that leaves You without cards, you are out.  You can have 2 winners if you use the ugly sweater cards only.  You can have 3 winners if you use the 2 ugly sweater cards and the person with the most pairs.  You can have 4 winners if you use the same as 3 and include the first person to be out of cards.  This can take a while until all the pairs are made.

Knitting relay races  ::  these can be fun.  Timer is needed for these.

1.  Have the people pair up.  More fun if they are not great friends.  Have a set of straights for each pair with a long tail cast on already on the needles.  20 sts seems right.  Each pair has to knit with one person holding a needle.   Use a timer and the pair with the most sts or rows each win.

2.  Each person knits onto the left needle  as opposed to the way you normally knit onto the right.  Again most sts or rows wins.

3.  Line up in teams of 4 or 5.  Each person knits a row and passes to the next person.  Keep going until time is up.  Team with most rows wins.

4.  Using set number of stitches already cast on, each person has to knit behind their backs.  Winner will be the person with the most sts or rows. 

5.  Again with already cast on needles, each players runs in place while knitting.  Winner will be the person with the most sts or rows.

6.  Another relay type of game inspired by Elizabeth Zimmerman.  I am thinking of the picture of EZ knitting on a shawl with someone else that is in one of her books.  Cast on in the round and knit 30 rds using 4-7 balls and 4-7 circular needles.   Have several of these set up to accommodate all players.  Usually this works best with 2 to 4 people per circle.  Divide retreatants into groups and  each person gets an end to 2 separate circs as well as their own ball of yarn.  winning team has the most rounds with fewest dropped stitches.

This last can be set to music and played like a variant of musical chairs.  2 people knit until the music stops, they trade places and continue knitting until the next break in the music.  Winning team has the most rounds with fewest dropped stitches.

Jeopardy  ::  play just like the t.v. show.   Make up the board large enough for all to see.  Have each player use a different ringtone on their cell phone for their buzzer.  Topics are all yarn, fiber and knitting related.  Utilize your knit cash.  All cash won is kept for an auction or other game.

Auction  ::  run just like any auction you have attended.  Utilize your knit cash here.

Knitting bingo  ::  I made up 2 types.  1 knitting bingo game I combined 3 different bingo games from Untangled Knots  blog post found here.  Things you hear knitting in public, Christmas knitting and summer knitting.   I used these 75 terms plus some from the comments and made up cards that mixed these.  Knitting bingo 2 is a swatch bingo.  4x4 swatches that are tagged with not only the name but how to knit them.  Names are mixed on the cards.   I pull the swatches from a small suitcase and it doubles as a trunk show.  Many are not things everyone has seen.  For this I had a head start in that I used my certification swatches and the increase/decrease swatches are 2 calls.

I also have other ideas for using kids games and changing the directions to knitting terms.   Candyland cards, each color is something different like red is k4, orange is p6, yellow is a yo,  and so on.  When I get the game set up, I'll post about it.

Chutes and ladders and again each move is a knitting term.  I wonder what ideas could be done with clue, monopoly,  hearts, slap Jack, war.....

I also saw an interesting Christmas game recently.   Pick up sticks using candy canes held in the mouth.  It brought an idea to mind.  Pick up sticks using straight needles and crochet hooks or cable needles to pick up the straights, maybe not by mouth.  I don't think it's hygienic or tasty.

Premium Fibers and Yarns

What are premium fibers?  Are they worth the price?  Are they easy or hard to work With? 

Premium fibers are high end but not necessarily super expensive.  They can be synthetic,  animal and some plant origin.  They can be a fancy synthetic that adds glamour and glitz.  At the top of the spectrum is the yarn made from pearls in 2012 to celebrate an anniversary of Vogue Knitting, as well as yarn made from vicuna or musk oxen (quiviut).  These fibers range in price from a few hundred dollars an ounce to nearly a thousand for actual yarn.  This goes down a bit (not much) if you can get the fiber and spin it yourself or if you can get the yarn from a wholesale site or auction site.

Not many of us can easily afford these super premium fibers.  So let's step back a bit and look at this list below. Note that the higher end fibers will be mixed with wool or cotton to bring down the price charged to the public.

• angora bunny fiber
• angora goat fiber (mohair)
• cashmere goat fiber (cashmere)
• llama
• alpaca
• bison
• possum (New Zealand possums, not the sole marsupial of North America)
• hemp
• linen
• merino
• silk
• organic cotton
• Sea Island cotton

I'm not listing synthetics because there are so many brands.  There's the most affordable and readily available Red Heart and Caron Simply Soft, but these aren't really premium.  They are however the go to for many people for many reasons (affordability by the masses, wide range of colors to name a couple). 

Even wools and cottons can go from pedestrian to premium.  Dishcloth cotton (think sugar and crème and handicrafter and kitchen cotton) can range from inexpensive but durable to more expensive but not necessarily out of  pocket expensive (think takhi mercerized cotton yarn to name one) yarns that yield some perks that the readily available don't.  Wools can range from animals that are known as meat animals (very coarse wool that is more suitable for rugs and other non wearables) to the finest merinos which can be so very soft.  

Now all this goes completely out the window when we travel to other countries than the US.  Some of the most readily available yarns in the US are actually are very expensive and desired in other countries.  Location, location, location as my favorite realtor says really does mean a lot.  Fabulous silks are commonplace in other parts of the world.  Premium cottons like Egyptian are common elsewhere.  

So while this list is incomplete at best, it is a starting place for you to consider what might be a purchase of something out of your ordinary and a way to consider more premium fibers.  Most importantly, purchase the fibers and yarns you will actually enjoy working with and wearing as well as meet your needs.  Only you can answer these questions.  Own your knitting and crocheting.  Be proud of what you create.  

Knit/Crochet and Bullet Journal Lists

Bullet Journals.  This is a new way to say what I saw my mom doing every day when I was young.  Meals were planned. Grocery shopping done.  Dates and days of recycling pick up and other upcoming events that she didn't want to forget.  After a while it went to a calendar and the tablet.  One difference was that once the tablet was full or the day had a line through each chore, it got tossed.  Bullet journals today get kept, those lists didn't.  Another difference there was no drawing in it, no doodling either.  I'm a great list maker.  Sadly I'm really great at losing them too.  Cue a notebook rather than a slip of paper.

I have decided to offer a few of my lists as ideas for you:

• A list of fibers to try that are new to you
• 
  
• A list of techniques to try that are new to you.
• 
  
• A list of UFOs and the location of each and maybe the progress of each.
• 
  
• A list of patterns to try.  Bonus if you have at least a few kitted up.
• 
  
• A list of new dyers or spinners to try.
• 
  
• A list of fiber festivals to attend
• 
  
• A list of teachers to take classes from
• 
  

These are a few ideas to get you started.  

Earth Day

With earth day come and gone, let's check out some ideas.  I know everyone else is hot for recycling.   I am as well, but my ideas run a bit different from others.  Here's a post from last year with ideas.  Knit or crochet reusable shopping bags.

Recycle jeans. 

If the jeans are in good shape, donate them to a resale shop.  This way someone else will be able to wear them and for an affordable price.  Also I will feel better about helping people who need it and my closet will be more trim.  But say those jeans are not so great and can't be resold to be worn.  What then?  I'd suggest creating blocks from the good parts of the fabric in specific sizes and using them for quilts or patching.  Another idea is to create a fabric from the blocks and make purses, wallets and other small things.  Pinterest has many ideas to inspire you.  I've done this for each of my sons'.  As an added interest and type of scrapbook, I sewed all the patches they had from scouts and various adventures they went on growing up. 

Replace swiffer cloths and other disposable cloths.

I have a person in my family, ok many people, who must wear steel toed shoes and boots.  Because of foot configuration, I have a lot of socks with holes on the top of the toes but are otherwise in almost new condition. Darning them is a waste of time. I have tried that. It lasts a shorter time than the new sock does.  I use these for disposable jobs.  I start with cutting the elasticized part from the foot. Cut the toe off. Now I cut down the side of each part.  Flat rags waiting for a mess.  If the mess is washable,  I'll clean these for re-use. If Not, no tree was cut down to make a cloth that I'm paying for just to throw it away.  As for the swiffer and other dusting tools, there are plenty of patterns to knit and crochet. See Pinterest again for more ideas. And Pinterest also has green cleaning solutions to stop poisoning the planet and ourselves.  Pinterest has an amazing array of recycling ideas for the viewing.

Shrunk and felted sweaters.

It's a sad thing when a beautiful sweater gets shrunk because it got mixed in the regular laundry rather than the hand washable basket.  You can use this as a basis for many things.  Have a small dog?  The sleeves can be used to create dog sweaters.  The body has a myriad of ideas.  How about a small shopping bag? Just sew across the bottom and remove the sleeves. How about a pillow? Cut off at the underarm and seam. Stuff and seam the other side. Make pillows for a myriad of places. Cut the neck pieces from the pillow-pa-looza apart to be joined into a cowl or scarf of your favorite sweaters.

These are just a few ideas to get you started.  What ideas can you share?

Temperature Blankets and scarves

Have you been bitten by this bug?  What is this phenomena?  Temperature blankets!  What is it exactly?  Well that depends.  A very loose and quick explanation is pick a year, easy would be to pick the current year and for the high temperature every day knit or crochet a row in a specific color to correspond.

So many have so many questions about this.  Do I have to do a blanket?  No, You can choose to do a scarf, a skirt or a series of lap robes (one month or two months per robe) for just a few ideas.  If choosing an article of clothing, It might be wise to choose fingering weight yarns and fine hooks or needles even if you are only doing 6 months.  A full year is 365 days or 365 rows, unless it's a leap year then 366.  But let's all admit that's a lot of rows.  

First choice to make, what are you making?  A blanket?  Great.  What stitch choices do you have?  To keep things from growing to house cozy size, garter stitch/stockinette stitch or single crochet/moss stitch.  You could even choose to do a granny square of one round  or two rounds.

Let's discuss what year to do.  The current year ensures that you only do a row or two a day.  But maybe you want to commemorate a special year.  How about the year you were born?  The year you were married?  The year you received your degree?  What special year do you want to remember?  What about a year with really peculiar weather?  Those with children and/or grandchildren may want to create a blanket for the year they were born or   The choice is wide open.  NOAA has weather for the last 30 - 40 years.  You can google for the websites that will tell you the temperature.  Pick the site that meets your needs.  Don't forget to plug in location.  That will have an effect.

Now let's choose colors.  How do you want to divide up the temperatures?  hmmm.......how big of a range do you have to work with?  How many colors do you want to work with?  As an example, I want to work with 14 colors.  I want to do both high and low temperatures.  My range is from 0 to 104.  I will choose 7 colors, one dark and one light.  My high temperature is the light and my low is the dark. You never know when the high and low temps of the day won't change.  If I divide my 104 by 7, my divisions are as follows:

	0 – 15
	16 - 30
	31 – 45
	46 – 60
	61 – 75
	76 – 90
	91 - 104

For yarn choice, I'm thinking of a sport weight superwash wool.  But that might not be readily available.  What is readily available is worsted weight in acrylic.  There are hundreds of hues spanning the rainbow.  I also want to have snowfalls and rain days marked.  For those days of precipitation, I'll use white eyelash yarn and grey eyelash yarns.  I'll hold these double with the color for the temperatures.  For days with no precipitation, I'll just use the color single.  Days of phenomenal downpour will get double white (blizzards) or dark grey or black (hurricanes), blue eyelash for wind storms.......  Of course this assumes I can find the colors and weights I'm planning.

My pattern?  As noted above, I have a few obvious choices and a few not so obvious.  I could utilize Apache Tears, or ripple stitches in single crochet half doubles or pineapple stitch.  There are many short stitches that can be used.  What about changing stitch pattern every month??  I'm thinking of utilizing a two round granny square.  High temperature in the center and low temperature around it.  One "square" for each day.  For days that don't exist in the 6 x 6 grid, I'll crochet or knit a patch that has the month name worked in white with black lettering.  For the special day of the year???  Gold or silver eyelash yarn or sequin yarn!!  No special day?  No need to find the fancy stuff.

How wide will it be?  For a scarf, I would choose 4 to 12 inches.  For an afghan, I will start with 48 inches.  But if I want the afghan to cover a bed, I'll take the top measurement from a chart of the most common sizes (you can find one here).  A different take on it would be to go 180 stitches if you are doing a 6 month afghan, 365 stitches for a whole year......

You are the boss of your work.  You make the choices!

Swatch! Swatch! Swatch! What can I do with them all?

We've found a home for so many swatches.  How many you ask???  Would you believe 99 swatches of a variety of sizes?  It's amazing.  Can you come up with any new ideas?  Here are ideas for 8 to 10 swatches each.

1. Seat Cushions:  Nine granny squares is also the right size for a seat cushion for the dining room chairs.
2. Tote bag cover:  Nine four-inch granny squares can cover the side of a slightly worn, but ohso-handy tote. Eighteen squares and you can cover the whole thing!
3. Doll House Afghan:  Nine tiny granny squares will make a doll house afghan. The best yarn to use here is one strand of three-ply needle point yarn.
4. Tote Bag Cover:  Eight 6 inch squares and you can cover the same tote above.
5. A whole sofa cushion:  Eight swatches or squares and you can cover on both sides of a sofa cushion
6. Slippers:  ten 3 -4 inch squares, 5 to each one can make slippers.  
7. Vest:  For larger children and adults, 10 swatches of 2 sizes will make a vest.  Take 2 very large swatches for the front and back panels.  Use 3 small swatches seamed to the left and right side of the front.  Seam them now to the back panel.  Seam 2 of the remaining 4 small swatches together on one side to form a shoulder strap.  Repeat.  To place the straps, start at the 1/4 mark and the 3/4 mark at the top of the tube you formed before and seam them working toward the outside edge.  To give a finished appearance, single crochet around the outside edges.  

And here we have found a home for another 63 squares/swatches in a variety of sizes.  Bet you can't guess what all there is in store for next month!

A Yarn Tasting

A number of years ago, I offered a yarn tasting opportunity to students.  I was rereading old posts and came across this topic again.  This is something that I like to do from time to time.  I have new ideas for old topics or have learned something new.  I can offer new insights to this courtesy of recent events.

If I were to go to any big box craft store, I could find all the usual yarns, smooth acrylics, boucle acrylics, a smooth wool or two, some dishcloth cotton (smooth but sheds when washed the first time), a possible eyelash or furry yarn, and recently a chenille yarn.  And that would be about it.  Most of it is worsted weight or heavier.

However, I attended a fiber festival recently, as you have seen from a recent post.  On a first go around, most of what I have seen there was smooth fingering weight wool, usually merino or merino and nylon.  But further investigation reveals other things.  There were smooth cottons, some linens, some silks both smooth and on the textured side, wools from lace weight to super bulky smooth to boucle, alpaca, and there was even a hemp and a few linen and linen blends.  Notice what isn't here??

I decided that I wanted to taste quite a few things.  I got a little of many things.  I have a silk that is smooth and delicious.  I have wools that are fine and smooth and soft to a heavier, more textured and not so soft.  I got some of my favorite alpaca.  I didn't get any linen but am kicking myself now.  I did get hemp.  I have more cotton than I need at home so I didn't get any.

I definitely suggest going to a fiber festival to try new things.   There's almost never yarns from the huge commercial sources that you can get at a big box craft store.   You will support local dyers and spinners.  Local is relative,  not the people next door but not across the country either.

Try something new....

My Knitting Bag & My Notions Bag

What do I have to have?  What do I actually have?  Why? How many do I Have?  Why?  The mysteries will be answered, hopefully.

First up the knitting or crocheting project bag.....

Yarn, hooks or needles, pattern.  These are the obvious suspects.  We all have these items with us in our project bag.  But what else might there be?  I have a notions container.  For this I use an old altoids tin or other plastic or metal candy container.  In this I keep a small snips, yarn needle, stitch markers, beads if needed for the project, a row counter, post it notes or a tablet plus a pen.  These all seem to be rather straight forward, I admit.  But there's more.....

I also keep a nail file or emery board, hand lotion, a travel container of antiacids/ibuprofen/cough drop or hard candies, eye drops, lip balm (in winter only or if a long cold) and tissues.  The file or emery board are for both my hands and needles/hooks.  One never knows when a nail or tool will develop a burr that snags yarn or finished fabric.  The lotion does the same for skin.  I can also use lotion on the tools to speed up the process.  The rest is for my comfort.  I suffer from headaches, indigestion, dry mouth and coughs as well as dry eyes.  Tissues come in handy for many things. 

I don't carry chocolates or other meltable items.  They can make a mess.  I never carry a drink unless it's water.  Water doesn't stain.  Wine, beer, tea, coffee, sodas, juices can all stain, especially the natural fibers.  

I never carry my keys in my bag.  I learned the hard way not to do this.  My keyring has a corkscrew which is bad for yarn.  My keyring has jagged sided keys, also bad for yarn.  Some of the rings are a clup type and those catches are bad for yarn.  

I don't allow Velcro in my bags, again this is bad for yarn and finished fabric.  The grippy side causes pulls.  If you have the adhesive type, that can also cause pulls.  When the adhesive comes off the backing, you will have a heck of a time getting it off the yarn.  depending on the yarn constructrion, you will tear out a lot of individual fibers creating thinner yarn.  Just say no to Velcro.  You might want to include zippers too.  They can catch yarn in the teeth.

To join or not to join...a group that knits or crochets

Recently I saw this topic and I thought about the obvious benefits and detriments of joining a knitting group or a crocheting group.   Then the question of online or in person popped up.

The benefits are easy to see. 

1.  You get to talk to others about how they might proceed with a trouble spot,  color choice, stitch pattern....

2.  You have someone to knit or crochet with while solving the problems of the world or something more close to home.

3.  You might have a segment of time to learn something new

4.  You can find new friends of all ages, backgrounds and experience levels.

5.  You will see fabulous new patterns or yarns, or tools in action.

6.  You have people around you to commiserate about uncaring recipients.

7.  As you become closer to these people,  they can help if a tragedy befalls your family.

8.  The members might bring new charities to the attention of the group and ask for a donation to the charity.

Now for the detriments of joining a knitting group or a crocheting group.

1.  You will see many, many things that will tempt you to want to start many new projects. If you are a slower paced stitcher or work a full time job or have people to take care of,  you may be gaining a lot of ufos.

2.  The politicians don't solve the problems the way you worked out.

3.  Your bank account might suffer from purchasing fantastic but more expensive yarns.

Now the question of online or in person.

The above benefits and detriments mostly apply to both in person and online.

1.   Most online groups have no politics talk allowed. 

2.  Online groups will have many times more people than in person groups to entice you to want to purchase yarn, tools and patterns. 

3.  There are also more people to encourage you. 

4.  There are more ways thought of to work out a problem. They might not all meet the standards you have for your stitching.

5.  Online groups will probably have a wider age range and more different backgrounds.

6.  Online groups are mostly anonymous despite profile pictures and the sense of community.  You won't hear inflections in the written word.   In person groups allow you to get to know the members on a personal level and do things with them.  Mostly online groups will be further afield,  not allowing you to get together on a regular basis in person.

My first fiber festival

I went to a local fiber festival. There were few if any classes but that wasn't my primary reason for going.  I wanted a taste of the experience. The festival was the Allentown fiber festival.  I went with a sister in law and we met up with a friend of mine there.

First thing I should have considered was travel.  This was an easy drive for us.  Unexpected road construction worked against us for arriving at our anticipated time.  All in all not terrible. 

Once we arrived and met up with the rest of our party, the real fun started.  Catching up is always great with friends you don't get to see often.  There were outside vendors.  Some were in open canopies. They were pretty smart. There were quite a few in the closed sided tent provided.  That was stifling in the heat.  But a lot of very interesting things were there.

Project V Process

What is This? What am I?  Does it matter?  Does it change?  Related to this is do you get yarn first or pick the pattern first?  If you go with yarn first how much? If you go with pattern first, how do you choose yarn?  Boy I have a lot of questions.   Luckily I have some answers and so do you.

First up what is a process stitcher?  This is a person who knits, crochets, embroiders,  quilts, other just to have the rhythmic action in their hands.  Some call it mindless, some autopilot.  The hands know the movements so well conscious thought isn't needed.  These are people who don't actually care about if the item gets finished or not or If it fits anybody, for that matter. 

By contrast the question of what is a project stitcher almost needs no answer.  This is a person who stitches to have the finished product. For the most part this person wants the thing to  be perfect, or as perfect as they can make it.  These people enjoy the process as long as it takes to get the finished thing.

Many stitchers fall between the two.

Desert Island Crochet and Knit

We've all done the what if..... game.  Either when we were bored or couldn't sleep or maybe as part of a getting to know you exercise. Here is my adaptation of this.

If you were on a tropical deserted island,  what would you want to crochet? Knit?  Fiber, weight, type of item, specific pattern or designer.

What if you were on an arctic deserted island, what would you want to crochet and Knit? Fiber? Weight? Type of item?  Specific pattern or designer?

Would you need a book for This?  Name the book.

On the tropical island,  I would want to have cotton, linen and hemp in lingering weight to worsted weight yarn.

Swatch! Swatch! Swatch! What can I do with them all??

Again these are ideas for uses for ways to use the swatches.  We've covered many ideas for just a few for each article.  Let's try 5 or 6 swatches for each thing this month.  By summer, we should be up to the many and miscellaneous.  Or you have run out of swatches.

1. Table runner:  Seam 5 or 6 large swatches (10-12 inches square) into one long piece.  Line or not with coordinating fabric as desired.
2. Place mats:  Seam 6 together in a 2 x 3 grid.  Each swatch should be 4 - 6 inches.  Line or not as desired.
3. Cowl:  Seam 5 or 6 together as for a runner, then complete the ring.  The size of each swatch should be 8 inches or so.  Use fibers that feel nice.  Line with fleece or not.  Wear with pride
4. Beanie:  Seam 4 swatches 5" each in a long piece then complete the ring.  Add a 5th 5" swatch at the 5th side (like the ceiling in a 4 walled room).  This should fit an adult.  You can crochet around the bottom edge to give it a finished edge.
5. Scarf:  Seam 5 or 6 together just like for the table runner.  Use fibers that feel nice.  Wear with pride.
6. Hand towel/Dish towel:  Sew 6 6 inch swatches in a 2 x 3 configuration.  Add trim as desired.  Use cotton for the absorbency.
7. Baby block toy:  Seam 6 into a block and stuff before the last seam is sewn.  I like to add a jingle bell (with the X squeezed tighter to prevent the ball clapper from being potentially swallowed) in the center of the stuffing.  Use pattern stitches that are not lace like or otherwise open.
8. Diaper cover:  This is more cute than functional for keeping the baby's surroundings dry.  Seam 5 in the shape of a T.  For this two pieces of 1 x 1 inch Velcro will be helpful by being sewn on the ends of the arms of the T.  The other side of the Velcro gets sewn to the edges of the foot of the T.  

Knit Popcorn, Bobbles, Nupps, and Puff stiches

What are the differences between popcorns, bobbles, nupps or puffs?  Is there a difference?  Yes, there is a difference.  Let's see what they look like. Let’s see how they are worked. There is one thing that you need to be sure of when working with them.  Be watchful where they are placed.  Many a garment has been ruined by misplaced bobbles and popcorns, not so much nupps and puffs.  These textural details can be used in columns to separate other stitch patterns, to replicate a charted design, in rows to separate other stitch patterns, and most dangerously as an allover detail.

If the above seems familiar, you are not wrong. It's nearly word for word from the Crochet Popcorn, Bobbles, and Clusters.  Why??  I'm not that lazy.  The information applies whether we are working with knitting or crocheting.

Let's start with Bobbles.....

This is the largest of all the textural bumps.  Start by knitting to the point in the pattern where a bobble is to be made or where you determine a bobble should be. In the stitch, you k, yo, k, yo, k.  Five to nine stitches are the norm for a bobble.  Turn the work, purl back, turn.  K5tog.  Continue with the rest of the row.  If you use seven stitches, add another k row and p row before knitting all the stitches together.  If you use nine stitches, add two more rows of stockinette stitch before k9tog.  This keeps it symmetrical.  If you don't like this look, you can make them wide and short or slender and tall.  Experiment to see what you like.  Nine is about the most you want to use.  Beyond that it becomes unwieldy.

Let's look at popcorn and nupp next.  One is a one row "bump".  The other is a two row application.  Do you know the difference?  The popcorn is one row.  Popcorn is four to seven stitches.  Kfbfb.  Sl the 2nd st of the four over the first (count from the left to the right).  Sl the 3rd st of the four over the first.  Sl the 4th of the four over the first.  Continue with the rest of the row.  

Now the nupp.  This is an Estonian technique.  It's pronounced like soup.  I learned about this from the Knitmore Girls Podcast Interview with Galina Khmeleva.  Nupps are always seven stitches as I understand.  Nupps are a two row operation.  Kfbfbfbf.  Continue with the pattern or as desired.  On the return row,  p7tog.  This will be challenging.  Don't work the knit stitches on the right side tightly.  And that is the nupp.  

The knit puff stitch is an anomaly.  There is no increasing or decreasing.  It is a series of short rows worked over 5 stitches.  It is a 10 stitch repeat plus 4.  It is worked over a  whole fabric or in a panel that meets this requirement.  Let's cast on 24 sts.  Knit a row, purl a row.  Repeat these two rows.  

***k 7, *turn p 5, turn, k5 *. Rep from * to * 3 or 4 more times.

k7,  rep from * to *.

k7,  rep from * to *, ending with a k 2.

P a row, k a row, p a row.***

Rep *** to *** for desired length.

What do you think of these?

The crochet bobble, popcorn, puffs and clusters plus the knit popcorn, bobbles, nupps and puff stitch will take our year of stitches from week 11 to week 15 which is the week after Easter on April 1.

See you April 15 with the next installment of A Year of Stitches