2 Steps Forward, 1 Step Back

This is my finished little hat. I must say, I like it. It has a nice fit and it will keep me warm. The pattern is the Rescue Hat from the Yarn Harlot’s book Knitting Rules, the yarn is my own sport weight dyed in Cobalt.

I have to say, that I do not like to knit Garter Stitch very much. I knit continental style, I am usually quite fast and do not have to look much. But in Garter Stitch the stitches seem to be a little bit more turned to the left (they want to be purled), so that sometimes I do not quite catch them. Hmmm….

After finishing the hat I picked up the Pie Shawl and realized that my latest rows looked different. I have very little experience with lace knitting and I think I must have picked up the wrong strand for “M1″. It was a mistake to have put it aside for a while.

I frogged the part that I did wrong, but I am not sure I have the correct stitches on my needle and that I can save it. I also do not like the cast-on edge. It should be stretchier. So should I frog the whole thing? Probably! Stay tuned to find out….  

If You Need a Laugh

The first time I got some Vinyl Cafe stories from the library on tape I laughed so hard, that the kids came running. 

These are stories about Dave, a record store owner, his wife Morley and his two children. It is incredibly funny what happens to Dave even though he has the best intentions. Like when he discovered he could not get his wedding band off and suddenly he was desperate to do so. Or when he hires a caterer to throw a party for his wife, but the caterer gets the address wrong.   

I hope you will get to know Dave and be amused, too!

This Is How

 

This is my notebook that I use for dyeing my yarn. I got the idea from Eunny. I bought some cardboard, cut it to size and covered it with fabric. I bought these rings, that have a hinge so you can open them up. I forgot what they are called. I punched  three holes in each and framed them with eyelets. These I had leftover from a sewing project. I filled the book with blank paper.

On the first page I noted down how I made my stock solutions. Which powder I used, if it is a 1% or 2% solution and how I mixed those to get colours like blue-violet or red-orange. Then I made a list of the dyelots I wanted to make. All the other pages are filled with notes about the yarns that I dyed. I wrote down how I did it and added short pieces of the yarn to it.

I then realized that it was helpful to add dates to my notes. I now can keep leftover dyes in a jar, add a date to it and know exactly which colour that mixture made.

In the back I added a pouch for my receipts and graph paper to keep track of my expenses and sales.

I really like how this notebook turned out. It is not as sturdy as a normal book, because the rings let the cover slide around a bit. On the other hand it is flexible enough to take all my clippings without complaining. It is a nice record of my work.

Wonderful

We had such a wonderful afternoon at the beach yesterday. It was quite chilly, but the sun felt so good! I have been really busy dyeing my yarn and have done very little knitting. ( I have replaced my TV knitting with reskeining yarn…..) But these are the projects I have been working on:

This is supposed to become the Perfect Pie Shawl from Weekend Knitting. I have a completely different gauge and have cast on twice as many stitches. I am not sure if I will make 5 wedges… The yarn is Misti Alpaca that I have overdyed.

This is going to be a Rescue Hat from Knitting Rules. I am not sure if that kind of hat will look good on me, but I need something warmer than the little Scullcap that I made a few weeks ago. The yarn is my own hand dyed superwash Merino in cobalt. 

Have a nice Sunday everyone!

In The Spirit of Things

Yesterday I received an e-mail from a customer who told me how much she loved my yarn that had just arrived in the mail. It seems, she would even like more of it! That made me work harder (until 10pm) last night!

Before I dye the yarn, I wind the yarn into very long skeins so that  I get a nice distribution of colour and avoid pooling. This process is quite time consuming, but well worth it, I think.

And look, I have dyed some yarn to match my flowers:

Some FOs

Look what I had for breakfast:

 This is the Berne Brot from this book and it tastes simply delicious!

I also finished my socks last night. The green yarn is Gems Opal and the pink is my own in the colourway “Love Letter”. The garter stitch slipped stitch pattern is from Knitting on the edge. I really like how these socks have turned out: bright and cheerful!

I also received a big yarn order yesterday and have already started dyeing. The first colourway is in spring colours and will hopefully brighten up somebody’s spirits!  I have also dyed one skein that I still had from my previous order. The colours are so bright that I called it Bite Me. I did a little experimenting with this yarn and dyed it striped, but the stripes have all different widths. You can find it in my Etsy store.

I hope it is not raining where you are!

Yeah, They Are Back!

Many Podcasters are back into business: Brenda is feeling better, but has still some bad days (Let’s hope that she will have few of these in the future!). Lara was sick too, but tells us now how to adjust a hat pattern in her latest podcast.

We have all missed Rhonda with her latest knitting news and I hope she finds the time to Podcast regularly.  Guido has a new Podcast out, too. 

Happy Anniversary to Carry who has been podcasting now for a year! Thank you, Carry, for all these wonderful stories (I like both kind)!

I have been dyeing some stash yarn, which has turned out really well. I am making a lace scarf from Weekend Knitting. My second sock is also almost done. Pictures coming soon!

I should get my yarn order on Monday or Tuesday. This time I  have ordered the Kona Superwash in fingering weight, which I had not been able to get before. I hope you will like it!

I am getting prepared! I have set up my dyeing table and filled up my stock dyes. I have also thought about some new colourways.  Should I dye up some more yarn in the “Love Letter” colourway for Valentine’s?

Happy crafting and listening everybody!

Dressmaker’s Doll Part 2

After I had finished shaping my body double I found instructions on how to use it in Vogue Patterns issue June/ July 2006. This article is written by Jean Haas who is pictured standing next to a dressmaker’s doll with many lines on it. These lines represents all the places where you should be measured for a perfectly fitting garment. I tried to copy these as best as I could using a permanent marker.

Many people do not like the silver and somewhat “rough” look of the Duct Tape and cover the whole thing with a stretchy fabric. I decided not to do that, because I thought it would be a lot of work to make it look nice and without folds. That is why I could just paint my lines on. In the magazine it looks like they have used a black narrow tape tacked or glued in place.

The next step is to cut out a basic pattern that you want to use. Leave plenty of paper around your pattern so that you can redraw the lines. I used masking paper to hold the tissue in place. Jean Haas explains every step, but I want to give you the general idea. In the front you anchor the pattern at the bust point and the align the center front. After that you smooth out the paper going up to the shoulder and check if you need to change the shoulder line. You basically copy the lines on your doll onto the pattern paper. I found the whole process easy and was quite surprised how much I had to change.

The first pattern that I used was a commercial pattern for an easy jacket. But I often draft my own patterns. So I pulled out a simple sweater pattern that I had sewn several sweaters with. I realized I had to change the shoulder line and then I had a hard time smoothing out the paper in the back. I noticed that if I added a dart in the back everything behaved.

When I knit Salina I made a gauge swatch and used my tissue pattern to figure out how many stitches to cast on for the front. Then I looked where the narrowest place in the waist is. I found out that at 9″ hight I had to have 1″ worth of stitches less on my needles on every side. I decreased these evenly. I basically tried to knit so that the fabric would fit my tissue pattern. I made sketches for me to see how my pattern was different from the original and wrote down what I had to change. Although it was quite some work I now have a well fitting sweater. Plus I kept my instructions so that I could use these for another sweater.  

I love Podcasts

I think it all began when I discovered books on tape at the library. I have been an avid reader all my life, but sometimes it is hard to find the time for it. Now I get tapes on a regular basis and listen to them while driving, crafting or doing housework. It is great!

When I got an Ipod almost 2 years ago I used it mainly for workouts, but then I found Podcasts. I find it amazing how someone finds the time, makes the effort and gives me this gift. I can listen for hours to someone talking about my favourite things. I feel connected, informed, educated and entertained! I am so grateful to all these Podcasters out there and I hope they keep doing it!

It is so nice to know that there are other people out there that feel the same way about knitting that I do. I can pull out my knitting while waiting somewhere and I know that all over the world people are doing the same thing.

I just wish, that when I hear”It’s time to knit!” on a Podcast I could actually sit down and do it…..

How I Got A Dressmaker’s Doll Part 1

Last year I was sewing a top out of a slippery fabric. The front alone consisted of three pieces. Two pieces for the top half that were supposed to overlap and then one for the bottom half of the front. It did not fit. So I ripped it, redid it, tried it on and it still did not fit. After I did this several times, I finally had enough. I went to my husband and asked:”Do you have plans for next Saturday?”

I wanted to make this. I put on a fairly tight T-shirt and my husband started wrapping me. It was a very funny! After a while it felt quite tight. I think, he wrapped me three or four times. The difficulty is to create nice curves and not to flatten everything. What a relief when he finally cut me out!

During the next stage everyone had to put on Mom’s body. What a sight: A 5 year old with a silver grown-up torso! After that it went very quickly. My husband sealed the bottom with cardboard, put a stick through it and filled 1/3 with construction foam. The rest we filled with packing peanuts. I put in a hanger and we taped the back seam shut. We mounted the whole thing onto a little foot stool and put it in a corner overnight.

I kept looking at it. I had lost some weight and a couple of dress sizes but my double had quite a belly. Then I had an idea. I dressed the doll in a bra and a skirt that was a bit loose on me. The skirt did not fit and the bra was hugging empty air. What a relief! I measured myself and the doll and compared. Starting from the sternum, going down my belly there was a difference of up to 2 and a half inches! Fighting the tight wraps I must have “inflated” my belly! Using a carpet knife I cut out a wedge and taped the seams together. Then I filled out the bust with polyester stuffing. Now it looked like a good copy!

While working on this the doorbell rang. It was my friend. We chatted a little in the entrance when she suddenly said:”Your dresssmaker’s doll looks great!” Puzzled I turned around. From where she stood, she could clearly see the doll, dressed in a bra and a skirt, even though it was standing in a room on the other side of the house! I was so glad it was her and not the mailman!

To be continued……..

If you want to see a glimpse of it, look at the picture of Salina.