Monday, September 19, 2005

Finished Knitted Lace

This is the first piece of circular knitted lace I have made, which was a birthday gift for my mother. Except for beginning it (see previous entry), it was a very enjoyable piece to knit. (Click on pictures to enlarge.)


Pattern: Knud II
Pattern from: Kunststrik II, by Sonja Esbensen
Finished size: Just under 14 inches in diameter
Thread used: DMC Cordonnet Special; 100% cotton; size 30; color Ecru; almost 2 balls, 197 m/20g each
Where purchased: Book, thread, and some needles at Velona Needlecraft
Needles: 1.5 mm (U.S. size 000 or 3/0) in 3.5 inch Inox double-points; 8 inch Addi double-points; 16"/40 cm HiyaHiya circular; 20"/50 cm Addi Turbo circular; 24"/60 cm Addi Turbo circular. Also, for final cast-off round, 1.25 mm Susan Bates steel crochet hook.
Started: Early August 2005
Finished: Mid-September 2005
For whom: My mother


What I learned: This type of project is great summertime knitting, portable, and a nice balance of excitement (can't wait to get to the next pattern set), concentration when establishing a new pattern, and "conversation" knitting when going around the plain knit rows.

The most difficult part was casting on. It took many attempts to finagle eight tiny stitches on four tiny needles and successfully knit a couple rounds without a) the stitches slipping off or b) the needles and stitches twisting and not being able to tell which way to straighten them. The small needles helped. (I've since learned that knitting needles in small sizes and lengths can be purchased through miniature doll house furnishing suppliers.) Also, leaning on my elbows and forearms on my bed with my legs tucked under me so that I could lay the knitting on the flat surface of the bed was the only posture in which I finally managed to get the first rounds going.

Next time I will try a method Larry told me about, Emily Ocker's cast-on. (The method is also described in the introductory notes in Folk Shawls by Cheryl Oberle, pp. 12-13.)

Additionally, I will try obtain all the needles I need from the same brand (Addi). There is a difference in size amongst the brands that does make a small difference in the tension or gauge.

I cast off by crocheting two stitches together and then making two crochet chains before picking up the next two knitted stitches.


The pattern components of the doily are quite simple: octagonal swirl; knitted diamonds and eyelet diamonds; purl rows; and two sections of feather and fan or Old Shale.

After casting off, I sewed in the ends, including trying to tidy up my cast-on attempt. Then I soaked the doily in cool water and Woolite, rinsed it, and rolled it in a towel to squeeze out the extra water. Then I pinned it out on a towel. I didn't use a template to make sure I got perfect circle, but I think it came out OK. The picture below is a little more true to the ecru color than the pictures I took outdoors above.


Knitting in Danish was accomplished by: using the English translation of the symbol chart that came with the book (or available here in .pdf); looking up words in Knitting Languages, by Margaret Heathman, published by Schoolhouse Press (although I don't see it listed on their Web site at the moment); and consulting a woman from my church who speaks Danish and who loaned me beautiful knitted lace pieces her sister knit in Denmark.

8 comments:

Janice Bakke said...

Other ideas for casting on: http://larissmix.typepad.com/stitch_marker/2005/05/starting_a_pinw.html

Laura said...

Wow! That is beautiful, JBB.

Anonymous said...

What beautiful work. I will treasure it always. A wonderful reminder of my Danish heritage.
Thank you JBB. Love, Mum

Janice Bakke said...

Thanks, Laura!

I thought of you today at work as I listened to L&T twice. I finally bought headphones so I could listen to music at work because I've been put onto a rather tedious user acceptance testing project of some new software. Dylan certainly makes the job easier to take!

Janice Bakke said...

You're welcome, Mum. I certainly enjoyed making it for YOU. With much love.

Susie said...

Wow, that is beautiful! It looks so intricate and difficult! You should be proud of that handiwork.

Janice Bakke said...

Thank you, Susie! It looks more difficult than it was--a lesson for me in concentrating on one row at a time and not worrying about the final piece until it was all done.

Nora said...

I start circular pieces with an I-cord of scrap yarn. It's the only method that works for me.

Beautiful work, by the way