A New Short Row Method?

This title is posed as a question, as I’m not sure I’ve seen all the short row methods there are.  As of now, I am aware of W&T,  German, Japanese, and Shadow Wraps.  I used to only use the W&T short row, but I find that this method really only looks good when used in garter stitch.

I’ve tried German short rows, but am not sure I like the double st bit.  Shadow Wraps also make a double st, as seen in Norman’s video covering this short row method.

What finally set me on this journey is the pair of steel grey wool pants i am knitting for myself.  The first pair of pants was knit in 2-rnd stripes, so I worked the bum shaping in the waist ribbing, or rather, mid-rise ribbing as I don’t like things sitting at my actual waist!

In the solid color, I wanted to work the short rows within the bum area, not within the ribbing.  

How many times do you think one wants to work short rows across 90 sts, then close up the gaps, only to have to rip it all out again, before one either throws up one’s hands in disgust, or starts tinkering!  But I want these pants, so, I tinkered.

When I saw Norman’s adjusted Japanese short rows, which looked fabulous, I thought I’d finally found the ideal short row method.

However.  And isn’t there always a however?  As he was knitting a flat swatch, he was resolving (closing the gaps of) the short rows on both the RS and WS of the fabric.

But when we are knitting in the round, we are resolving all the short rows on the RS, not half of them on the WS.  And this caused issues when resolving the WS short rows, namely messy looking sts and gaps.  (Other methods I fiddled with also made messy RS resolutions.)

But the adjusted Japanese RS short rows were perfectly fine - just as in Norman’s swatch – the issue was only with the WS short rows.

As Norman worked a SSP on the WS (which is to say slip 2 sts separately knitwise, replace them to the LH ndl, then knit them tog tbl), it made sense that working a SSK on the RS would yield the same neat looking sts he achieved, but that so wasn’t the case!

I kept finding that the yarn bar just after the slipped st would be too small to lift up and manipulate, and there would be a gap between the slipped st and the previous knit st.  This is very likely from my propensity to knit snugly – LOL, I can’t help it, I don’t think I could knit loosely, if you paid me!  Like many, if not most, things in knitting, personal styles can affect outcomes.

So, then I tried lifting up the yarn bar *between* the last knit st and the slipped st and knitting it tog with the slipped st, and that still made an unsightly mess.

Then I tried tinking back the last knit st, before the slipped st, lifting up the yarn bar of this unknit st, then using SSK, and that still didn’t make it neater.  Either I found something that worked on the WS, but not the RS, or vice versa.  I almost gave up, and *was* going to work the adjusted Japanese short rows for the RS and one of my own methods for the WS ones.

My Aims

Besides a neat-looking face to the fabric, I also don’t want the dec sts to end up feeling like little bumps after closing the gaps, which happened a lot in my trials.  Naturally, I also don’t want loose nor twisted sts, and a neat-looking WS wouldn’t go amiss, as well.

Ideally, I wanted the process to be easy, without needing st markers, or using (what some might find to be) difficult decs, like SSP (slip 2 sts separately, knitwise, slip them back to the LH ndl, then k2togtbl.

Also, ideally, the decs used should mirror image each other, but, if necessary, I could live with the same dec used on both sides of the short rows.  

Balanced decs *might* be more important in short row heels, but I (almost) never knit short row heels, always preferring heel flaps and V-heel turns, so I can work heel st through the flap *and* the turn, or knit the flap and turn in color pattern.

My pair of pants don’t necessarily need mirror-imaged decs, although having them would be a plus.

I know, I am asking for a lot!

So, what finally worked

Aside

Please do tell me if the method I am describing below does have a name!  I have NO intention of claiming another’s idea.  I Googled, of course, but haven’t seen this method mentioned thus far.  

I have also checked Barbara Abbey’s “The Complete Book of Knitting”, Montse Stanley’s “Knitter’s Handbook”, and Priscilla Gibson-Roberts’ “Knitting in the Old Way” – a book I love, BTW, and is my go-to reference for sweater designing.

If this method appeals to others, I could make a video of it, if others don’t mind waiting for it, considering how much I have to do until hubby is mobile again.}

So, going back to the Japanese short rows, which is the diving board off which I dove! – forget about stitch markers, lifting up yarn bars, or double sts.  And, definitely forget about W&T!

Instead, just work the short rows, slipping the first sts after turning.  No markers are needed, as the gaps tell you the short rows are there, but markers can, of course, be used, if desired.

Note: The swatches are 21 sts wide, with 4, 2-st wide short rows on each side, and 5 St st center sts.  I used the same type of ndls for all the swatches - my old Addi Turbos, with the blunter tips.  And the swatches are as knit, not blocked.  I retook the photos several times, but the curved nature of short rowed fabric isn't the easiest to photograph!  Do Let me know if these photos aren't clear enough.

The coral swatch is knit with Lamb's Pride Worsted, using US 8's.

To resolve the short rows, when working flat – lower coral swatch:

On the RS, knit to 1 st before the gap, slip the next st purlwise. Then with the tip of the RH ndl, insert it from the front of the work (the side facing you) into the left leg of the st in the row below the slipped st. Lift it up onto the RH ndl, then k2togtbl.

On the WS, purl to 1 st before the gap.  Slip the next st purlwise.  With the LH ndl, lift up the left leg from the row below, and place it onto the LH ndl, slip the slipped st back to the LH ndl (without twisting it) and then p2tog.

Both the left and right sides of the lower coral swatch above (sts slipped p’wise) are lumpy, where the sts between the dec’s look receded, or, conversely, the dec sts look raised.  The effect is one of hills and valleys.

Upper coral swatch

The same as above, *except* the gap sts were slipped knitwise on both the front and back.

Comparing the left and right sides of the fabric in both the coral and tan swatches (below), it’s clear that a multiple ply yarn makes much neater sts. 

In the upper part of the coral swatch, this is lessened, but still not perfect, at least, perhaps, not until blocked. 

I’m definitely leaning towards slipping purlwise on the WS, but knitwise on the RS.  This method creates smooth fabric on both the RS and WS, with no knot-like sts at each closed gap, and it uses mirror-imaged decs.

When I slipped the RS sts purlwise, they don’t look nearly as neat, but, YMMV!

Before I dove into resolving sts in the rnd, since I had struggled with so many RS variations looking neat, I thought I would rule out the unbalanced nature of the yarn I was using, which is Lamb’s Pride Worsted, a single ply yarn.

Tan Swatches

The tan swatch was knit using BS’s Heritage/Harborside Aran, a 4-ply yarn, with US 9 Turbos.

The bottom swatch below employs slipping the RS gap sts knitwise and the WS gaps sts purlwise.  This I like best.

But, to make sure, the middle tan swatch below employs slipping the RS gap sts purlwise and the WS gaps sts knitwise, which isn’t as neat.

The upper tan swatch below employs slipping the RS gap sts knitwise and the WS gap sts purlwise, then the gaps were resolved as if in the rnd.  As my swatch was flat, I pulled the yarn across the back, to begin the row at the right edge, to emulate knitting in the rnd.

To resolve the WS short rows, when you get to the gap, you know the *next* st was slipped, so, lift up the right edge of the st in the row below the slipped st, put it up onto the LH ndl and k2tog with the slipped st.

The RS short rows are resolved as before.

The front of the pants, showing the short rowed rear

The rear of the pants – the lumpiness is the front underneath

right hip short rows

 

left hip short rows

Garter St

I tried working this method in garter st, but it makes a mess of it!  I would use W&T with garter st, as the wraps blend in with the ridges.

The photos show the short rows as knit, so the fabric hasn’t been blocked yet, but, overall, I’m happy with this method, as it doesn’t involve the fiddliness of some other methods.  YMMV, of course!  But do let me know if this method works for you, and/or if you’ve seen it elsewhere!

Onward!
Dawn

A Tail of Two Ends

Although there are many interesting cast ons, the one I invariably use is long tail.  It’s quick and easy, and I can either CO in knit, in purl, or in a rib sequence, depending on the edge I want.

The only trouble knitters find with long tail is *how* long to make the tail.  No one wants to find they’ve run out of tail yarn before the total # of sts have been cast on.  I also don’t like to have an excessive tail length left over  *after* casting on, much preferring to have just 4-6” of a tail.

So, how do I achieve this?  

Firstly, I find that getting the long tail length right is easiest with the weight of yarn I knit the most – in this case, worsted to heavy worsted.  I know, from experience, to allow 1” of yarn for each st, so I pull off about 10” of yarn for every 10 sts needed, then pull off almost 1 more length, for good measure.

If you’re not quite sure how long 10” is, measure the first length of yarn pulled off the ball – I keep a wood ruler near my knitting chair, for this purpose, also for measuring wraps per inch.  One can also just wind the yarn around the ruler, keeping track of the wraps, letting the yarn off, when it’s too much, and continuing the winding process, until the # of inches have been pulled off, with a bit extra for the ending tail.

For bulky yarns, I pull off about 12-13” of yarn for every 10 sts.  For DK wt., I pull off about 8” of yarn for every 10 sts.  You get the idea!

If I’m using a wt. of yarn I don’t normally use, like sport or fingering, I will CO 15 to 20 sts, knit a few rows in St st, then stop.  With the ruler handy, I will then pinch the end of the working yarn, as I slowly rip back 10 sts, then measure the amount of yarn those 10 sts required.  If in doubt, I’ll rip back another 10 sts and remeasure.

I don’t always eyeball the lengths properly, so, yes, I do need to rip out a CO now and then!  Alternately, one can use a tip presented by Arne & Carlos where they would just add in a separate length of the CO yarn, by pulling off enough length for the CO, then cutting the yarn and continuing to CO sts with the new tail.  Or by using the outside-of-the-ball tail, or a tail from a 2nd ball of yarn.  

Personally, I would only consider this method if I was casting on oodles of sts, more than 200.  But then, if I was CO a lot of sts, I would just pull off way more than I think I will need.  I’d much rather have a too long remaining tail, than a wonky CO edge, as a too-long tail can be trimmed, then the yarn length saved for grafting, repairs, or duplicate stitching over errors, etc.

When I weave, the thrums pile can build too quickly, requiring a system for their storage and organization, but knitting builds the pile slowly.  Just a corner of a small drawer holds yarn snippets, up to a few yards in length – everything not long enough to wind into balls.  

4-6” yarn snippets make (what I think are) perfect stitch markers.  As I don’t like hard stitch markers, in the pile, there’s always a color to contrast with what I’m knitting, so I don’t have to fiddle with an unyielding stitch marker.  It’s also one less gadget I need to buy.  

I also use these short lengths to mark shaping, as seen here in a pair of wool pants, by just weaving the snippet through a few sts on the row or rnd that has shaping, to facilitate counting.  If the yarn is at least the same thickness as my knitting yarn, the snippet stays put.

Longer thrums come in handy when I need to reinforce a wearing-out sock heel or ball of foot in my thicker house socks.  I’m not fussy about the colors, of even the yarns used, for mending socks – no one needs to look at the bottom of my feet!

Onward!
Dawn

Are We Having Fun Yet? Life Update

For those who aren’t already aware, my husband had a leg amputated, then spent a couple months in various rehab nursing homes, esp. as his remaining leg also needed some minor surgery, and has had wounds that are slowly healing, with the help of a leg vac.

We’ve been trying to simplify the day’s onerous demands on me, and have made some progress, but not nearly enough, for someone my age, with a heart condition and adrenal insufficiency.  

Doing absolutely everything for an invalid is exhausting.  Doing absolutely everything with a limited amount of energy means an unhealthily elevated HR and an inability to fall asleep, despite being well medicated.  8.28 weeks in and I’ve had it.  I’m ready to book a flight to somewhere beautiful and chill.

I’ve seen mention of resources for caregivers to manage their time and deal with feelings of guilt.  Ha.  I don’t believe in guilt – I’m just fed up with being exhausted from having to be on-demand from the moment I wake until I go to bed, trying to squeeze my basic needs into the time available.

It’ll be another 2 weeks before he sees the vascular dr., and *hopefully* gets the stump shaper, so he can *eventually* get fitted with a prosthetic leg.  

They give no timeline for this process – it goes on as long as it needs to, but *I* need a timeline.  I need to know when I can get some semblance of my life back.  In lieu of that, they can hurry up and get us an aide to take over the morning duties, as there’s way too much to do in the mornings, before I have the energy to do it.  

This wouldn’t be such a burden if he could just sleep closer to the time I get up (which is already earlier than I used to get up), but no, he’s awake up to 2 hrs earlier than me, so, delaying all the fetching and doing can’t wait.

I don’t like to gripe – it solves nothing – so, this is more for me than the few who might be reading this.  Sometimes I just need to say it or write it, to get it out of my body, even if it does still hang around in my psyche.

I should have some knitting pattern related news to relate the next time I post!  

Onward,
Dawn

To Steek or Not to Steek – that is the question!

Early on in my self-publishing career, I steeked sweaters, whether they were cardigans or v-neck pullovers (my preferred neck style).  Wherever I could continue in the round, I added steek sts.  I no longer do so.  Why, you may ask?

There are several reasons:

1) The yarn weight I like to use – usually heavy worsted – adds too much bulk to each area where the steeks are used, compounded by the knit facings, even if the facings were knit with  thinner yarn. 

If I still had some of my early sweaters, I could show the steeks and facings and their thickness, but, unfortunately, I don’t have them – I don’t even remember where they all went, except for one sweater, my Tree of Life Pullover, which I gave to my daughter the last time she visited.  (LOL, she laughed when I gave it to her, as she was the model for it, almost 30 yrs ago!). The photo isn’t that large, but you can still see the thickness of the fabric where the body meets the sleeve.

2) With steeks, one cannot try the garment on, as one knits.  You’ll need to know for sure, that it will fit as you want it to.

3) Any time saved by not having to purl every other row, is spent sewing or crocheting the steeks, cutting them, tacking them down, then knitting facings and tacking them down!  As well as the down time from downing enough wine to calm the nerves before cutting the steeks!  (Just joking!  I tend to be fearless, so, wine wasn’t needed.). 

For the wary, I always suggest steeking a swatch or swatches first.  It doesn't need to be a circular swatch, it can be knit flat, with steek sts at the center.  Each side of the cut fabric can be finished differently – one side of the steek can be machine sewn, the other side could be crocheted, then cut the steek and tack down the edges, to see which finishing you prefer.

And

4) Steeked sweaters negates ever being able to deconstruct the sweater, when one tires of it, or it no longer fits.  The only salvageable yarn would come from the sleeves.  This may not apply to you, but I’m a waste not want not kind of person, and so, I re-use the yarns from no longer loved sweaters to (generally) knit house socks.

Yes, steeks are common in traditional sweaters, like Shetland wool Fair Isles and Norwegian Fanas and Setesdals.  I think what makes steeks work well in those sweaters are the thinner yarns used – fingering wt. in the Fair Isles, like J&S’s 2 ply jumper weight and sport wt. in the Norwegian sweaters, like Dalegarn’s Heilo, Falk, and Tiur.  Purling back in color pattern at the smaller gauges can make knitting these types of sweaters interminable, and would certainly turn me off from knitting it!

The deep drop shoulders in Norwegian sweaters also mean the steeks and facings aren’t crowding the wearer’s upper arms.

Which leads to a recommendation (even though I try to never make recommendations!) – when considering adding steek sts to a cardigan, first check the armhole depth in the pattern.

For instance, although 50% of C (the sweater circumference) is the norm for the armhole depth in many types of traditional sweaters, I don’t like the extra bulk at the underarms, so I prefer to use 45%. 

It doesn’t sound like a lot of difference, but in a 40” sweater, 50% is 20” or a 10” deep armhole, where 45% is 18” or a 9” deep armhole - a whole inch difference.  As sizes increase, this 5% will yield increasingly more than a 1" difference – 1.25" for a 50" sweater and 1.5" for a 60" sweater.

So, if one wishes to add steeks and especially if also planning on covering them with facings, it may be a good idea to make the armholes that inch deeper.

Happy Knitting!
Dawn

Warm Wool Winter Slacks

   

 

In my previous post, I mentioned having begun a pair of bottom-up wool pants/slacks.  In this post, I’ll lay out the pattern, such as it is.  It’s really such basic knitting, that a pattern is almost not needed!

The legs are easily tried on for length and circ., and once the legs have been joined, the whole shebang can be tried on, if half the sts are first slipped to another long ckn.

As mentioned, I’ve used 3 different worsted wt. wool yarns.  

Materials
3 skeins YarnUndyed worsted/aran wt. non-superwash extra fine merino (A)

3 skeins Brown Sheep Nature Spun Worsted in Buckskin (B)

1 skein Kelbourne Woolens Germantown, in Pink (a salmony pink) (C)

The pants weigh 22.4 ozs. (635 g), not incl’g the tie.

Size 7 (4.5 mm) ckns (16” and 29-32”)
3 different color stitch markers
Stitch holders or waste yarn
Tapestry ndl
Length of t-shirt yarn – for the tie

Gauge: 5 sts and 7 rnds/1” in St st, and 6.5 sts/1”, in  k2, p1 rib, with size 7 ndls or size to give gauge.

Size: about size 8.

Finished Dimensions
Leg Inseam: 29”
Leg Circ. from Lower Edge to Mid-Knee: 17.5”
Circ. of Upper Thighs (mid-knee to crotch): 20”
Hips: 36”
Rise: 10”, measured along the front
Waist: 32”

Legs (make 2)
With C and shorter ckn, long tail CO 114 sts, place rnd marker.

Setup Rib: (K2, p1) around.
Work rib until 2” from CO edge.

Dec Rnd: (K2, k2tog)28x, k2 = 86 sts.

With B, knit 2 rnds.
With C, knit 2 rnds.

Rep last 4 rnds 3x more = approx. 4.5” from CO edge.

With B, knit 2 rnds.
With A, knit 2 rnds.

Rep last 4 rnds 16x more, then knit 2 rnds B = approx. 16.25” from CO edge.  

Try On: At any point, you can slip the sts to a long ckn and try the leg on, to make sure it has the amount of ease you desire.

Thigh Shaping
On the next rnd, with A, k1, m1, knit to end of rnd, m1 = 88 sts.
Work 11 rnds in est. stripe patt.
Rep last 12 rnds 6x more = 100 sts.

Try On: At this point, you can slip the sts to a long ckn and try the leg on again, to ascertain if enough sts have been inc’d.

Knit around in stripe patt for 20 more rnds, end after finishing the 2-rnd B stripe = 29” from CO edge, or knit to desired length.  Break both colors.

Crotch
Slip the first and last 10 sts of the rnd onto a holder or waste yarn.  Rep for the 2nd leg. The crotch sts will be seamed or 3-ndl BO, later.

On the next rnd, with B and the longer ckn, join yarn and knit around on the rem 90 sts, then knit the 2nd leg’s 90 sts onto the same ckn = 180 sts.

Hips
Knit around in stripe patt for 39 more rnds = approx. 5.75” from the crotch.

Waist Shaping
Place a different color stitch marker at the outer right hip (between sts 90 and 91), so that the front and rear each have 90 sts, to facilitate the waist shaping, as well as the short rows that need to be worked across the rear only.

Rnds still begin at outer left thigh.

Keeping to stripe patt, on the next rnd, k1, k2tog, knit to 2 sts before the next marker (at right hip), ssk, k1, k2tog, knit to 2 sts before the end of rnd, ssk = 176 sts.

Patt 3 rnds even.

Rep last 4 rnds 3x more, then rep the dec rnd with A, then knit 1 rnd in A = 160 sts, 8.75” from the crotch and has approx. a 32” circ.  Break A.  

With B, knit 1 rnd, dec 1 st = 159 sts.

Short Rows
The short rows will be worked within the ribbed waistband.  If working the pants in one color, the short rows could be worked earlier, if desired, at approx.   4 to 5” from the crotch.

Short Row 1
With B (k2, p1) all the way around to 3 sts before the first (rnd) marker at outer left thigh, W&T, rib to 3 sts before the marker at outer right thigh, W&T.

Short Row 2
Rib to 6 sts before the rnd marker at outer left thigh, W&T, purl to 6 sts before the marker at outer right thigh, W&T.

Rib 1 rnd, ending at the right hip marker, working the wraps along with their sts.

Short Row 3
Rib to 9 sts before the first (rnd) marker at outer left thigh, W&T, rib to 9 sts before the marker at outer right thigh, W&T.

Short Row 4
Rib to 12 sts before the first (rnd) marker at outer left thigh, W&T, rib to 12 sts before the marker at outer right thigh, W&T.

Rib 1 rnd, ending at the right hip marker, working the wraps along with their sts.

Short Row 5
Rib to 15 sts before the first (rnd) marker at outer left thigh, W&T, rib to 15 sts before the marker at outer right thigh, W&T.

Rib 1 rnd, ending at the right hip marker, working the wraps along with their sts.

At this point, the rear has 15 rows worked, while just 5 rows have been worked across the front = a 10 row (1.4”) difference in height.

Try On: At this point, you can slip half the sts to another long ckn and try the pants on, to see of you need more short rows worked.  

Eyelets for Waist Cord/Tie
Place the 3rd marker at center front, between sts 40 and 41.

On the next rnd (k2tog, yo, p1) to the center front marker, k2, then (p1, yo, k2tog) to the end of the rnd.

Work 3 more rnds in rib = a 11.75” rise at the rear and a 10.25” rise at the front.  BO in rib on the next rnd.

Finishing
To seam the crotch, you can either place the sts onto 2 ndls and work 3-needle BO from the WS, with B, or weave the 2 edges together.  By leaving a tail at the beg and end of your joining method, the tails can be used to sew up the gaps at both ends of the crotch seam.

Waistband Tie
When it comes to waistband ties, I have become very fond of this simple solution – just cut a length of t-shirt yarn, like Hoooked Zpagetti or Ribbon XL.  Thread through the eyelets, then tie a couple overhand knots into each end.  Every time I need to replace the tie in some sweat pants or PJs, a length of t-shirt yarn does the job, as it stretches so well!

Naturally, if you prefer, you can knit an I-cord tie or crochet a slip stitch tie.

Drops Nepal, in  a med. grey mix, is on its way to me, for a 2nd pair.  As it will mainly be in a solid color, I will likely work the short rows within the hip area.  Will post pics when they are done, although it will take quite awhile, as life, right now, isn’t allowing for hardly anything enjoyable, but that’s for another post, if I decide to actually post how I feel about the current situation.

Here's to somehow finding the time and energy to work on new knitting designs, or at least finish up the 4-design set I began last year!

Onward!
Dawn

Project Exposition - Knit Wool Pants

Many years ago, I knit EZ’s wool tights for myself, in Cascade Yarns Ecological wool yarn.  I’m sure I kept project notes, but, for the life of me, I cannot find them!  

I would prefer pants/slacks rather than tights, this time around, to, firstly, be more comfortable, and secondly, have a more spacious leg opening that will allow for the wearing of the compression sleeves I need on my legs.  I am now so used to the compression sleeves, I feel naked without them!  They also help to keep the legs warm in colder seasons.  I also found that knit wool tights tend to bag at the knees, looking sloppy, because of their close fit

So, the idea is to have the pants from the waist to about the knees have approximately 1” ease, but from the knees down, an amount of ease that will skirt past the calves and hang straight.

It’s this measurement which has been giving me trouble.  As a guide, I’ve measured the legs of the several fleece pants I wear, but after 2 attempts, I found the legs to be too large.  Then I remembered that these fleece pants are rather old (they do last forever, don’t they!) and hence are much larger than I now need.  I’ve long ago taken in the waist and hips on these pants, but I left the legs as they were, which is to say, loose.

I am now on my 3rd attempt, and thus far, I’m fine with the fit – not tight and not too loose.

I am not working these pants from the waist down, instead, from the ankles up.  Perhaps it’s because I’ve only ever worked clothing bottom up that I cannot wrap my head around wanting to work upside down.  

The tops of sweaters, or pants, are the most fiddly parts – the rest is easy – so I prefer to work all the easy parts first, whilst I cogitate about all the shaping needed for the upper part.  I don’t like to figure out the hard part first.  I just plot enough of the design to get me started knitting!

When working color patterns, I also don’t like the look of upside-down stitches!  To my eye, the bottom of all stitches needs to show as a “v”, not as a “^”.  This preference does cause issues when knitting a color-patterned sweater, but, that’s for another time.

Working from the ankles up also means the project is a good one for summer traveling or just knitting outdoors, at least until both legs are done, and ready to be joined.

Now, the yarn. Preferably, it needs to fill the following criteria:
1) wool or a wool/alpaca or wool/(soft) mohair blend for warmth
2) plied, for sturdiness
3) comfortably soft, but doesn’t need to be merino
4) DK, worsted or heavy worsted weight, so that the knitting won’t be interminable (as I do have a LOT of other things to do, including the knitting of new design samples)
5) completely made in the US
6) the cost of which won’t break the bank, best under $50
7) light in weight for its grist (thickness)

I don’t have enough skeins of a *pants” color in stash, which, for me, would be steel grey, charcoal grey, tan, denim, or navy blue.  

I’m not crazy about black – I find it gives too stark a contrast with the sweaters I would wear, and it’s rather a depressing color, or rather, lack of color!  Black always feels like the easy way out, when, in fact, black isn’t easy to pair with color, it tends to want to be paired with grey or white, but I prefer some color and pattern.

I’ve considered many yarns, but have settled on a few options:

Brown Sheep Lamb’s Pride Worsted.  Have used it *many* times before.  It *is* a single ply, but it’s spun well enough to be strong enough. The mohair helps in this regard, as well, although it could be a bit prickly on the legs.

Brown Sheep Nature Spun Worsted.  US made 3-ply with no mohair, so it would feel more comfortable than LPW, but I’d prefer something a bit softer.

Brown Sheep Prairie Spun DK.  US made, all wool, 3 ply, and gets good reviews, but 6 or 7 skeins would end up over budget.

Drops Alpaca Bouclé.  Not US made, but a boucle would surely make a light in weight pair of pants, and at a reasonable cost.

Sandnes Garn Peer Gynt.  Again, not US made, but this Norwegian yarn is sturdy, and the last thing I want to happen after spending all that time knitting pants is to have them pill or felt from frequent wearing.

Drops Alaska.  I’ve used it before and like the feel of it.  It fills many of the criteria, but it’s not US made.

Drops Nepal.  Also not US-made, but after having knit a sweater sample in it, I find I like it a lot.  It’s inexpensive and soft, so it’s a strong contender!

For the first pair of pants, I decided on 3 colors from 3 different worsted wt. yarns in my stash – 2.5 skeins Nature Spun Worsted in Buckskin (tan), 2.5 skeins Yarn Undyed’s worsted/aran wt. non-superwash extrafine merino, and 1 skein of the new Germantown in pink, which looks more coral pink.

As to the design – I will use stockinette – no texture or color patterns – so, the only details to flesh out will be:

1) Whether the shaping should run along the inner thighs, the outer thighs, or down the front and back, or a mix of these, used at different parts of the construction.  

I decided on the inner thighs - to keep the increases basically out of sight.

2) Whether to have a fold-over waistband with elastic, a waistband with ties, eyelets and ties, a button band with buttons, perhaps in the style of the old sailor’s pants, or ribbing with knit in elastic thread.  As I don’t like bulk at my waist, I won’t be knitting a fold-over waistband.

3) Whether the bum short-rowing should be worked in the bum area, just before the ribbing, or within the ribbing, as with EZ’s tights, or if I should just shape the front to be lower than the back.

The front and back of sweaters and pants are the same in that the back needs to be higher than the front, which we can achieve by either raising the back or lowering the front.

I think this is the hardest decision.  Unless one’s short rows are neat as a pin, and snug, they will show, if worked in the bum area.  If, however, I decide on the sailor styling, the back and front panels will be worked separately, so i may allow for another way of raising the back section, but the sailor-styling looks best with wide legs, which I am not doing, for the lack of enough yarn.  But, perhaps I can find a middle ground, we’ll see.

Designing is always filled with these quandaries, which need appropriate resolutions!

4) Whether I want hemmed cuffs or ribbed cuffs.  If hemmed, then perhaps knit in a thinner yarn, to reduce bulk.  The same could apply to the waistband, whether for elastic or ties.  To keep this simple, I decided on k2, p1 ribbing, which I’ve been preferring over other ribbings for quite some time.

When I knit EZ’s tights, I skipped the under foot tab, and just began with the few rounds of garter stitch.  I otherwise followed her instructions, including having the ribbed waist.  I really wasn’t crazy about the ribbed waist and how the bum and waist fit, but then, my bum was more bodacious back then.  Menopause tends to shift weight around on a woman’s body, and so, it has with me, removing about half my bum.  So, it may turn out that I won’t need much shaping.

As I’m short waisted, I also like all my bottoms to sit mid-rise, below my belly button.  To me, there’s little worse than fabric bunching up at the waist, when I sit!  I also like the waistband to sit in place firmly – no wiggling waistbands!  It’s the little things that annoy us.  But, isn’t that one reason we knit?  To get exactly what we want or need.

Despite having ripped out 2 legs while figuring out this design, the plain knitting-in-the-round is just what I need right now, whilst I deal with hubby being in the hospital twice and in 3 rehab/nursing homes over the past 2 months.  

Mentally, I’ve been in limbo, finding it difficult to focus on my work – woe to the 4 related designs which are only partly knit and barely written up! 

I keep expecting that he should be able to come home soon, when I will then be quite busy all day taking care of him, and the house and cooking.  The reality is that I haven’t a clue how much longer he will need to be in rehab, so I do need to snap out of this mental fog and get done what I can, while I can.  

At least as of the other day, he has his new cell phone connected to his account and his previous phone #, which he naturally didn’t want to give up.  Hopefully, this phone won’t go missing, like his old phone – it’s why when I was in the hospital, I didn’t even bring my contact lenses, knowing how things go missing in hospitals.

I’m just at the point of beginning to increase gently for the thighs.  I’ll post again when both legs have been joined and I’ve decided on the styling for the top of the pants!

Onward, Dawn

Life Update

Hubby has had new health issues since mid-November, which did not improve, so in the beginning of February, he had a major, life-changing surgery, then a couple of followup procedures.  He is now in a great rehab hospital.  For how long, we don’t know, as his other musculoskeletal issues are slowing his rehabilitation.

While he was in the ICU, then acute care, so make it easier on my energy, I needed to slow my design work down to just spinning, so to refill the depleted bins of handspun Falkland yarns for sale on Etsy. 

Now that he’s in rehab, I am inching back into my work – there’s SO much I want to get accomplished this year:  

1) The floor loom needs a day or 2 to get it put back together, then rewarped with the rug warp still on the warp beam, then the remaining 3 weft-faced rugs woven and hemmed (which will take more than a day or 2 to do).

2) I am planning a lighter weight series of woven scarves, for the rigid heddle loom.

3) I’d love to get some RH loom patterns put together and published.

4) The 4 knitting designs on the ndls need to get done, then the patterns, charts, photos, the whole shebang finished.

5)  I’d like to start to offer some of my patterns in other languages besides English,  To this end, I did some analysis of my patterns – which are favorited the most, along with which have sold the most, on Ravelry and Etsy.  There are 6 designs I should start with.  I am thinking of getting them translated into Norwegian, Danish, Swedish, then possibly also French and German.  As this will take investment in translation fees, and as I earn very little each year, I’ll be dipping a toe in, before I dive in.

Swimming around in my head is also thinking about how much medical paraphernalia hubby will need once he’s home, and how much rearranging of the rooms in this house will be needed to accommodate his needs, as well as mine.  This is no small deal.  

If he will need me to be nearby to help with getting out of bed and getting to the bathroom, little will change, except the living room where he has been sleeping will be even more crowded with equipment.

If he won’t need me nearby, he could be moved into the only main floor bedroom - mine.  Then I will need to sleep upstairs, which is no biggee, but my bedroom is also my office and knitting/RH weaving room.  All of this will need to be moved into the living room, which then gives me no privacy or quiet work space, which will SO not be good for me.  My nervous system needs a room with a door, for auditory quiet.  I can’t work with others in my space.

The only other option is that if he doesn’t need me nearby, we can get a stair lift, so he can sleep in his bedroom upstairs, and use the upstairs bathroom when he is up there.

The bathrooms here are small, though, and tight. That could well be yet another problem, if he can’t manage crutches and will need to use a wheelchair, it may not get through the doorways and past the shower end walls, to the toilets.  Which not only means I’ll be emptying commode(s) throughout the day, but his shower access could also be a problem.

Before my brain explodes!, I need to now go lock all the worries and concerns into a large closet, for now, and get back to spinning, then continue knitting on the 2nd design sample, whilst I think about what to cook for my dinner.  Eh, cooking for one stinks.  The usual things I’d cook are too much trouble for just one person.  Maybe a smallish pot of chicken soup…

Onward,
Dawn