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

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

Free Pattern – Star Tams!

My gift to fellow knitters this holiday – a free pattern available on Ravelry and in my Payhip store – ‘Star Tams'.

The tams need only 1 skein of the tam’s MC with a small amount (approx 1/2 to 1 oz) of the CC color for the brim and I-cord bow.

Sampled in Cascade Yarns Eco Duo and Cloud.  Eco Duo is a beautifully soft merino singles, of which the Zebra colorway is my favorite!

Two samples are size M-L, and use the yarns held singly.  The 3rd sample is size S-M and uses the yarns held double.  As the Eco Duo is a palindrome, it's very easy to line up the colors, for knitting doubled.

Tams are a quick-to-knit gift for a loved one or yourself, and who doesn't love a one skein (ish) project!

Happy Knitting!
Dawn

New Pattern!

It took far longer than I wanted, but pattern #12 for this year (Nordic Kids’ Cardigan) is finally done and published to Ravelry, Etsy, and my website!  The 26 charts is what slowed me down, but I wanted the pattern to be easy enough to follow for almost any knitter.

One sample used Lamb’s Pride Worsted, one of my go-to yarns, and for the 2nd sample I used Garnstudio/Drops Nepal.  

I haven’t used Nepal in many years, the last time I think was for some socks, so I had forgotten how nice this yarn is, as well as inexpensive.  I no longer ask yarn companies for yarn support – I buy all the yarns for my patterns, so cost is definitely important.

I do try to use US grown and processed yarns, but I also love the softness that alpaca lends to yarns, and that means Peru.

Just two more patterns to finish up before the end of December, although ideally I’d like to get them finished in the next 10 days!  That may be over-reaching, but I know that once I begin getting and mailing out Christmas gifts and cards, my mind won’t be up to  writing patterns!  

Knitting, however, continues almost without interruption.  And these days, with hubby’s health throwing us curve balls now and then, having things to knit is imperative.  

This following cardigan design will likely be done in January, as this is the first sample, and I tend to want to knit 2 samples for sweater patterns.  It’s a teaser photo, as it’s showing the WS of the pattern!  I’m really pleased with the design, and the yarn (Valley Yarns Becket) is SO soft and cozy.  As you can see, it's in 2 blues, white, and sand – one of my favorite color groupings.  Can’t wait to wear it!

Personal-use knits tend to be socks – thick, thin, and everything in between!  But, this winter, I am adding a larger, personal-use item to the To-Knit list, and that’s a pair of wool slacks.  Wool pants on eBay tend to be lined and for going to work.  I don't like the former (cold nylon!) and I'm not doing the latter!  I have several patterns saved, which I need to study and, very likely, amend.  

Many years ago, I knit a pair of EZ’s tights/leggings, long ago deconstructed, when they were no longer needed.  If I didn’t need to wear Molnlycke’s Tubigrip from feet to knees to help the legs deal with their inclination towards swelling, I’d just reknit her tights in my now more slender size.  These days, though, I need pant legs with a bit of ease - no skinny legged jeans for me!

There’s still time for me to cogitate about what yarn I want to knit them in – Nepal?  Alaska?  Nature Spun Worsted?  Galway? A strand each extra fine merino and baby alpaca?  I intend on choosing wisely!

If you’re knitting or weaving holiday gifts, may your yarn never tangle, may your stitches be even, and may your selvedges be a thing of beauty!

Onward!
Dawn

The Finish Line

I have been diligently trying to create and release 12 new designs this year, and hopefully, in every year to come, in an effort to make up for far too many years when I couldn’t work on many new designs.

The 2 designs below are #’s 9 and 10 for this year, and as it’s October, it seems I am on track for this year!  At least until the holiday season and hubby’s new batch of upcoming surgeries derails me a bit, as well as the weaving I’d like to get back to, if only for a short time.  

And lest I forget, I still have outdoor garden work to finish, as well as cleaning the rest of the outdoor windows I began a week or so ago!

As I *am* only one person, some things have long ago fallen by the wayside, like the bi-weekly bread baking, or continuing with the bagel-making experiments, or even getting to finish this year’s spring cleaning!

12 patterns may not sound like a lot, but patterns do take a long time.  There’s knitting the samples, making the charts, writing, editing, and proofing the text, taking and adjusting oodles of photos, to get the best ones, then tweaking the layout, so everything logically fits into just as much space as it needs, and no more.  I tend to spend as much time writing the patterns as I do knitting the samples!

Some knitters may wonder if I use test knitters or tech editors.  Short answer: I do not.

Not only have I been designing and publishing my work for over 30 years, but my experience with designing for print publications for many years, as well as being a juried member of the AKD (Association of Knitwear Designers), previously known as PKDG (Professional Knitwear Designers Guild) helped hone these skills.

LOL, now I wouldn't mind having an assistant to take some of the load off, leaving me more time to design.  If said person was also good at creating social media posts and newsletters, all the better!  Like many creatives, I’m not very good at promoting myself.  

Although, to this end, I spent some time recently reinstalling the IOS into the older iPad.  It’s amazing how clogged up that thing got over the years.  Even after deleting everything that the iPad allows one to delete, its entire memory was still full.  

As we no longer depend on it for day-to-day productivity, I just re-installed the IOS from within iTunes on my iMac.  Now, it has under 400 MB memory used up for system, leaving me plenty of space for work. Yay!

I am not one to throw away old technology, willy nilly.  It will serve me to take photos, and hopefully, videos, to upload to instagram.  I do not need a cell phone, and hence do not have one, and although I researched how to upload to IG from a desktop, it was too bothersome to do it that way.  

Now I just need to find time to make IG posts, as well as the FB ones I normally do, and the Mailchimp new product emails, after uploading new designs to 4 websites!  But as the world has long gone visual, instead of written (more’s the pity, as I do love words!), I do need to try and fit into customer’s expectations.  We’ll see how it goes!

Now, those 2 new patterns!

Marina

About the Design:
This is an easy-to-knit and wear triangular scarf / mini shawl. I knit the first one many years ago in aran weight cashmere, although without the I-cord edging, and have used it almost every day! It serves as a scarf, and as a head scarf on cold mornings. It is knit from the center bottom outward, with Applied I-cord, and can be knit to any width.

I’ve sampled it in squishy, soft, undyed 100% superfine merino, as well as in frothy Cascade Yarns Kid Seta in a shimmering aquamarine held with Kraemer Yarns Stotts Ranch Limited in navy.  

Dimensions - before blocking
Width, tip to tip: 50”
Depth, at the center bottom: 12 to 12.5”

Finished Dimensions
Width, tip to tip: 52 to 54.5”  
(The aqua/navy fabric blocks a bit larger than the merino.)
Depth, at the center: 12.5 to 12.75”

Materials:
Natural Sample: YarnUndyed non-superwash merino, 182 yds/100 gr: 2 skeins
Sample weighs 159 gr. (5.6 oz.)

Aqua/Navy Sample: Cascade Yarns Kid Seta, 70% mohair, 30% silk, 230 yd / 25 gm: 3 balls #24 aquamarine; and 
Kraemer Yarns Stotts Ranch Limited, 52% Luxurious Diamond Fiber Kid Mohair / 48% Superfine Merino Wool, 610 yd / 100 gr: 1 skein
Sample weighs 109 gr. (3.85 oz.)

24-32” US size 10.5 (6.5 mm) ckn
2 Size 10.5 dpns

Tapestry ndl

Gauge:
Natural Merino Sample: 18 sts sts & 24 rows = 4” (10 cm) in St st, and 14 sts and 28 rows (7 ridges) = 4” in garter stitch with size 10.5 ndls.


Aqua / Navy Sample: 16 sts sts & 20 rows = 4” (10 cm) in St st, and 13 sts and 28 rows (7 ridges) = 4” in garter stitch with size 10.5 ndls.
To save time, take time to check gauge

Substitute Yarn Weight: Worsted to Aran (WPI = 11.5 to 13)

Skill Level: Beginner

Beach Roses Hat & Mittens

About The Design:
I first used this Fair Isle pattern for a cell phone cover, then immediately planned these women’s mittens and hat.  Most of the color changes are easy to work, only the center motif changes colors frequently.

The roomy mittens are worked Norwegian-style with a back of hand pattern, palm pattern, and 3-st stripes running up each side.  

You can knit the hat first, to get familiar with the patterning, as its only shaping is at the crown. I left the hat pompom-less to show off the flowers circling the top, in between the crown shaping stitches.  

This set would make a special gift!
 
Finished Dimensions
Hat Circ: 21.5”, Hat Depth to Top of Crown: 9”
Mitten Circ: 9”, Total Mitten Length: 10”
Cuff Length: 3”, Hand Length: 7”

Materials - Mittens
Lamb’s Pride Worsted, 85% wool / 15% mohair, 190 yd / 4 oz.:

2.64 oz. / 125 yds. #M10 Creme (MC),

.28 oz. / 13 yds. #M04 Charcoal Heather (A),
1.67 oz. / 79 yds. #M166 Plum Smoke (B),

.51 oz. / 24 yds. #M157 Orchid Blush (C),

.31 oz. / 15 yds. #M159 Deep Coral (E),

.08 oz. / 5 yds. #M03 Grey Heather (F), and
Harborside Aran, 100% wool, 162 yd / 100 gr.: .2 oz. / 10 yds. Sandstone (D).
One pair weighs 4.3 oz.

US size 5 (3.75 mm) dpns, set of 5
Tapestry ndl

4 stitch markers

Stitch holder or waste yarn

Materials - Hat
Lamb’s Pride Worsted:

1.87 oz. / 89 yds. #M10 Creme (MC),

.26 oz. / 13 yds. #M04 Charcoal Heather (A),

.46 oz. / 22 yds. #M166 Plum Smoke (B),

1.17 oz. / 56 yds. #M157 Orchid Blush (C),

.2 oz. / 10 yds. #M159 Deep Coral (E),

.11 oz. / 6 yds. #Mo3 Grey Heather (F), and
Harborside Aran: .19 oz. / 9 yds. Sandstone (D).
One hat weighs 3.88 ozs.

US size 7 (4.5 mm) dpns, set of 5
16-24” size 7 ckn

Tapestry ndl

6 stitch markers

Substitute Yarn Weight: heavy worsted

Gauge:
22 sts and 30 rnds = 4” (10 cm) in St st, and 24 and 26 sts = 4” in color patt with size 5 ndls, or size to give gauge.


20 sts and 28 rnds = 4” (10 cm) in St st, and 22 and 25 sts = 4” in color patt with size 7 ndls, or size to give gauge.

Marina is $3.50, Beach Roses is $6, both on Ravelry, Etsy, my site, and Lovecrafts.

Happy Knitting!
Dawn

June Update

Every season except a couple months in winter seems to be rife with time-sensitive work and projects – so much has been in the process of needing to be done, with no time to blog.  So, finally, here is what I’ve been up to, and how things are progressing.  Naturally, it’s all interspersed with the usual cooking, baking, laundry, and cleaning, esp. the spring cleaning, which is still in progress – my bedroom and the entire upstairs still need doing.  It would help if I had the 6 arms of the Buddhist goddess Vasudhārā.

I weeded then manured the 2 raised beds, made hills, and planted Italian zucchini in one bed, which is coming up well,

and Ronde de Nice (French heirloom) zucchini in the other bed, which isn’t coming up well.   As you can see, our picket fence is sorely in need of repainting, though not sure if hubby will be able to get to it - his hands are now both needing surgery.  We'd just get them replaced, but the fence sections are 10' wide, not the 8' wide which seem to be all that can be bought now.

I grew this variety exclusively back in the mid-hudson, and it flourished, but not so much here, so yesterday I added enough Italian zucchini seeds to fill out that bed.

The pine of these beds *really* needs to be ripped out, as they’re rotting, which means ant fodder, but that will need to wait until autumn – springtime is just too busy!

8 heirloom tomato plants are planted in amongst the heirloom roses, where I hope they’ll be happy.  I rigged up simple bamboo pole teepees around each one, which I may need to reinforce with some thicker bamboo poles, if there’s any left in the bamboo patch in the back yard.  I used to have a slew of them, which have magically disappeared!

The 2 gutters hanging on the stockade fence have been seeded with Five Color Rainbow beets.  They won’t grow large in their shallow beds, but there’s no other place to plant them, and at least their colorful leaves will brighten up that area of the fence.  One of these years, I’d love to plant some kind of flowering vine along the entire stockade fence, as it’s just a long, tall, boring brown wall.  It’s screaming for a living adornment.

Pots of chives and parsley seed on the back deck railing.

The 2 hydrangeas I planted a couple years ago, on both sides of the front of the house, seem to have taken well, but not the 4 azaleas which flanked them, so I’ll need to rethink what to plant there next spring.  Buying bulbs and plants seems to be as iffy a proposition as buying veg from Stop and Shop!  LOL, which is why we don’t, we only get veg from Shaw’s.

 

Remember these 3 white begonia plants? 

I bought the 3 begonia bulbs when I bought the gladiolus, astilbe, ranunculus, and lily of the valley bulbs for the driveway bed.  As I posted to FB last year, “Like race horses, one shot out of the gate at breakneck speed, one can’t get out of second place, and one remains firmly in last place, dragging its butt.”  

Well, Mr. Dragging Its Butt went kaput.  Mr. Second Place has been on the way to kaput, leaving just Mr. Breakneck Speed remaining.  Fortunately bulbs cost a lot less than plants.  So, I am adding that to the List - find other bulbs I can grow indoors. A plus would be if the flowers are scented.  Unscented flowers always seem pointless to me, though showy flowers make up for it.

Adding to the scentless flowers is this waxed Amaryllis, which was a Christmas gift from a neighbor.  Not wanting to throw it out, after the flower died, as many do, I googled and found this video that walks through the process of removing the wax and planting it.  Susan also points out that these Amaryllis really aren’t, they’re Hippeastrum.  And the bulb is re-growing, so I'm very pleased!

They’re rather pretty shown together in the softer colors, so I’ll be looking to get some – the house needs more plants!

Speaking of which, after the scent of lilacs and lily of the valley filled the air for several weeks, the air is now redolent with roses, especially wild roses!  Hubby gave this bush a massive haircut a few years ago, which the bush seems to have not minded at all, as it’s blooming wildly now!

He also gave this rose bush a huge pruning last fall, which I’m sure was necessary, as everything growing on that side of the house was planted too closely together (by previous owners), and it was all getting tangled up.  

The huge, ugly holly bush took awhile to cut down and out, but now the rose bush gets the sun it needs.  As it was all so overgrown, we couldn’t see the *form* of this rose bush until now.  Its canes are tall and arching, so now I need to think about a trellis of some kind to anchor the canes.  Come autumn I will need to re-prune it and try to root the cuttings.

The small honeysuckle I planted 2 yrs. ago by the arbor is finally growing.  I think it was just an inexpensive qt. size plant, so I knew it would take several years to grow up into the arbor and the adjoining picket fence, so I’m pleased that at least it hasn’t gone kaput like the azaleas and a couple of the white begonias.

The driveway bulb bed is mostly flush with green and buds, esp. what looks like hollyhocks at the front of the bed, that I thought I had all pulled out last year!  Summer is so humid here, that the hollyhocks get a fungus and die off, eh, like my heirloom roses.  BUT, I searched for natural DIY anti-fungals and have a batch mixed up, awaiting several spray bottles (in 3 diff. colors) to come from Amazon, for the anti-fungal spray, and for the bunny-stop spray!  So, we’ll see if I can keep the hocks and roses looking healthy this year. 

 I can't wait until the astilbe bulbs below get to their full width and height - their feathery flowers will be a nice textural change from the gladiolus and hocks.  I've not seen many ranunculus come up yet, so they might not have survived, despite the 4 layers of frost cloth on the bed this past winter – will see!

 

Indoor work is no less busy!  The very long (70”) kitchen window, kitchen door and sliding glass door in the breakfast area all need new curtains.  The kitchen window faces east, and the morning light is blinding, esp. if one needs to get up to pee at 5 am and through half-closed eyes one gets a shock of unwanted bright light, making it hard to return to sleep.  So, the color and thickness of the fabric for that window is critical.

The other issue with curtaining that long window is the type of rod.  The current tension rod is wimpy.  Even being supported midway, the rod sags on both sides.  I don’t want a surface mount rod, which hangs the curtains 2.5 to 3” from the window, so I’ve begun the search for a better tension rod, whose ends will fit the 3/4” available for them.

For this project, I’ve pulled out every unused curtain and valance we either had or bought at local thrift stores, along with my small stash of fabrics, and am in the process of seeing how to rework what I have into something pleasing yet situationally functional for all these windows.  My vintage Brother VX-710 still plugs along sewing straight and zigzag.

 

After that is tackled, I need to rework my bedroom curtains, as this time of year lets too much early morning light in as well!  The 5 windows in the adjoining living and dining rooms also need a rethink, although I may just buy all new curtains, instead of getting a 20 yd bolt of fabric, which is about what would be needed to sew 10 panels, not counting lining fabric!  I really don’t want to be glued to the sewing machine for weeks on end.

Now, this is more enjoyable - knitting a pullover design sample in heavenly extra-fine merino, from Yarn Undyed.

It’s listed as DK wt. and has the exact same yardage/100 grams as the Nature Spun Worsted, in the first design sample, but I am finding that both yarns also knit rather well at the usual 5 sts/1” worsted wt. gauge.  I never judge a yarn by the words ‘worsted’, ‘dk’, or ‘bulky’ in its name or its suggested gauge, as I’ve seen enough yarns that are mis-classified.  

Both these yarns have 70 yds/oz. which screams DK wt, They both can easily knit a dk wt. gauge, but, perhaps its their 3-ply construction, making rounded instead of flattened sts, which also allow for a worsted knit gauge.  Whatever the reason is, I’m happy with the fabrics, which is saying something, as I’m rather fussy about knitting good wearing fabrics, which usually means more snugly than recommended.

The merino also still smells lightly of the sheep it came from, which I love!  Every now and then, I stop and take a deep sniff of this lovely wool.  

And knitting it?  Stitches seem to just fly off the ndls.  It does only come in the one natural white color (hence ’Yarn Undyed’), but I am sorely lacking in white sweaters, as in I have none, so in addition to this v-neck pullover, I definitely see a cardigan and perhaps an aran design in my future, not to mention that it would also be fab in hat, scarf, and cowl designs - SO much to dream up!  

Onward!
Dawn