Van Gogh's Knitters

Check out the paintings of knitters at Habetrot.

Thoughts on handwork

Change

What is needed for dramatic change is an accumulation of acts--adding, adding to, adding more, continuing.

Clarissa Pinkola Estés in The Bloomsbury Review, quoted in Knitting in the Old Way by Priscilla A. Gibson-Roberts and Deborah Robson, p. 9.

Shetland lace

[In Shetland] it was a source of pride that the patterns, learnt at a mother's knee* or worked out from an example, were retained in the knitter's head.

*girls started to learn to knit patterns by knitting the alternate plain rows between the patterned ones their mothers work. (p. 8)

From Heirloom Knitting: A Shetland Lace Knitter's Pattern and Workbook by Sharon Miller, 2002.

On knitting

From Weldon's Practical Knitter, latter part of the 19th century. As reprinted in Knitting: 19th Century Sources, ed. by Jules and Kaethe Kliot, published by Lacis in Berkeley, California.

From time immemorial we have had various revivals of what is termed the "lost arts." At present the art of knitting is undergoing one of these processes, although it can by no means be called a lost art, even though for years it has not, as in earlier days, been considered a necessary part of a young woman's education. The more practical German and English workers have never neglected it, as they have a decided preference for substantial hand-made articles.

In addition to the fact that the knowledge may be turned to account in case of necessity, as there is always a market for hand-made goods, it is a most delightful occupation.

An ancient writer says: "It does not distract the attention or check the powers of imagination. It forms a ready resource when a vacuity occurs in conversation; it impairs neither body nor mind, and requires no straining of the eyesight. It may be interrupted without loss, and again resumed without trouble. The whole apparatus is so cheap, needs so little room, and is so light, that it can be kept and gracefully carried about in a basket, the beauty of which displays the expertise and tast of the fair worker."

Swallowtail Shawl

On my recent train ride from Los Angeles to Seattle, I finished knitting the Swallowtail Shawl (mine is more of a scarf size) as a gift for a former boss. It was in lieu of another shawl I had started last year but never finished.


Pattern: Swallowtail Shawl, by Evelyn A. Clark
Pattern from: Interweave Knits, Fall 2006
Wool used: Misti Alpaca Lace, Sea Mist color. I used about one skein (50 grams, 437 yards) single strand.
Where purchased: Knit Cafe in Los Angeles, CA
Needles: Addi Turbo circular, U.S. 4
Started: September 2006
Completed: November 2006
For whom: A former boss
What I learned: Knitting five stitches together can be a bit tricky with the blunt Addi needles.

Shawl point—


Shawl body—


Shawl edge—

Nether garments

My latest project is knitting some nether garments from Elizabeth Zimmerman's Knitter's Almanac using Rygja wool I bought at a thrift store.


Following the "Washing" instructions on this Recycling Yarn page, I soaked the hanks of wool in hot water and shampoo.


When the water cooled off, I rinsed the hanks in Eucalan Woolwash and hung them out to dry and, hopefully, lose some of the rancid lanolin smell.


Then I wound one of the hanks into a ball and started knitting to find out the gauge. I'm getting 5 stitches to the inch on size 5 U.S. (3.75mm).

And I've started knitting. Here's the first ankle. I'm not worrying too much about the irregularities of my knitting as these are long underwear. (I probably won't wear them under a housedress with boots, EZ style!) The wool is quite rough, and I'm hoping blocking will help even out the stitches somewhat.


I've started increasing up the back seam for the calf and knee shaping. It's tricky trying to increase the way EZ recommends. But I should figure it out before I finish.


This is my knitting project for a two-day train ride. Hopefully, I'll have nether garments well on their way to being completed by the time I reach Seattle!

P.S. There is an EZ knit-along, Zimmermania, that is currently quite active.

Knitting books II

Shelf 1: Small items—toys and doll clothes, collections of small items, socks, mittens, hats, bags, furnishings; collections of generally larger items (mainly sweaters)

Shelf 2 right: Children and infants, "knit lit," crocheting

Knitting books I

Shelf 1: How-to; Elizabeth Zimmerman; pattern stitch and motifs, including afghans; garment construction and general patterns; knitted fabric techniques (e.g., color work); finishing

Shelf 2: Knitted lace and scarf/shawl patterns; Scandinavian knitting; Fair Isle; Aran, including Starmore books; traditional British

Beach socks

I started a pair of socks on my recent trip to Hawaii. I ripped out the first attempt because size one needles were too large. I found a pair of size 0s at The Needlework Shop in Lahaina, Maui, and started again.

I'm using Lorna's Laces Shepherd Sock wool in Aslan (beige, lilac, light blues), which I won in a drawing at the former Knitty Gritty.


The pattern is from Wendy Johnson: her toe-up feather and fan sock pattern (.pdf).


Sock has been knit while on Maui beaches, in the condo, and in the airport. The first attempt on too-large needles kept me occupied on the flight over.

Blocked Flower Basket shawl

If you have good neighbors (like I do), living in a duplex can be a handy thing—for example, if you need someone to model your freshly blocked Flower Basket Shawl.


I would have liked to make it a couple repeats larger, but I had a deadline, so I hope this size will work.


Details in two previous posts.

It's blocking

I picked up a 40 x 60 inch piece of foam board, which, of course, did not fit in my car. So I had to put it in the trunk, and then, of course, I didn't have anything to tie down the trunk. So I found a large plastic sack stuffed away, ripped it open, managed to feed it through the latch on the top of the trunk and tie it to the matching latch on the inside of the trunk.

I drove home with the trunk more or less open, but at least the plastic tie held it somewhat, and I was able to take side streets.

The colors ran quite a bit when I soaked the shawl, even with vinegar. Then I rolled it in towels and laid it out on the foam board.

I've never made a shawl before, so I now see the advantage of buying blocking wires to keep the straight edge of the shawl straight. As a substitute, I thread dental floss through the eyelets along the top edge using a double-pointed needle that also has an eye on one end and pulled it tight. Then I tried to pin the edge without making too many bumps. The scalloped edges are easier, although it's difficult to stop re-pinning to make the scallops as symmetrical as possible. I was still re-pinning after I took this picture.


I knitted three extra repeats of the main pattern for ten repeats total. The Flower Basket shawl is still slightly smaller than the dimensions suggested. It will be more of a scarf/shawl than a shawl to wrap up in. The dimensions are about 55 inches across the top edge and just over 26 inches from the top edge to the bottom point.


More pictures when the shawl is dry!

Unblocked Flower Basket shawl

For the past few weeks I've been working on a Flower Basket shawl for my former boss and colleague. Today was her last day at work, but I just finished knitting the shawl around mid-night last night. So it still needs to be washed and blocked. I gave it to her anyway at her good-bye picnic and then took it back so I could block it.


Pattern: Flower Basket Shawl, by Evelyn A. Clark
Pattern from: Interweave Knits, Fall 2004
Wool used: Cherry Tree Hill Glitter Alpaca, Martha's Vineyard colorway. I used about one and three-quarters skeins (50 grams, 222 yards each) single strand.
Where purchased: Unwind in Burbank, CA
Needles: Clover bamboo circular, U.S. 5
Started: Mid-May 2006
Completed: Mid-June 2006

I like the bumpy texture of the back of the shawl, again, unblocked.

Lacy Scarf

Originally posted March 4, 2005.

My mum's belated birthday gift arrived in the mail today [edit: that is, my gift to her—her gifts to me are never belated!], so here are some pictures.


Pattern: Vine Lace Scarf
Pattern from: "A Trio of Lacy Scarves" pamphlet by Catherine Vardy, Fireweed Originals. Purchased for $0.25 at a sadly now-closed thrift shop that had a wonderful section of linens and handicraft items.
Wool used: Cherry Tree Hill Suri Alpaca (I think; I've temporarily misplaced the label) in the Northern Lights colorway.
Where purchased: Skein in Pasadena, CA, with the counsel of Larry.
Needles: Crystal Palace bamboo double-pointed U.S. 7 (4.5 mm)
Started: September 2004
Completed: February 2005
For whom: My mother's birthday gift
What I learned: How to knit with lace-weight wool on large needles. With only 58 stitches cast on, the 8" bamboo double-points were a definite advantage over the 14" needles.
Blocking method: Washed the scarf in cool (or maybe warm) water with a touch of Woolite. I should have added vinegar to stabilize the colors, which did run a bit. After rinsing, I rolled the scarf in towels to absorb the excess water, and then pinned out the scarf taut on a towel laid over the carpet.

[Updated 3/5/05]

In the package by the front door

A used copy of Classic British Knits: 40 Traditional Patterns from England, Scotland and Ireland by Madeline Weston, for considerably less than currently listed on Amazon.com.

In the package by the back door

A new reprint by Dover Publications of Traditional Aran Knitting by Shelagh Hollingworth.

Projects Update

Although you wouldn't know it by the frequency of my posts here, I have been knitting. I was hoping to show a picture of my completed Evening in Eden / Blackberry Ridge stole that I finished knitting almost two weeks ago, but I haven't had a chance to block it yet.

So here it is in its unblocked glory. The fence between my neighbors' house and mine is just rough enough that it acts as light Velcro or—an older technology—as flannel for flannel graph pictures and holds woolen knitting in place. The side of the stole is not really that crooked—I was in a rush to take the photo before the sun set and the wood kept catching the wool.


I need to clear enough space on my bedroom floor to pin out the stole (which is five feet in length unblocked). The rest of the house is my cats' domain and, hence, not suitable for laying out woolen items on the floor.

Now I'm working on the Atherton jacket from Jean Frost Jackets. I've finished the back, and this is the left front. I have just cast off for the sleeve shaping.











Here's a detail of the slip-stitch pattern in a combination of linen and mohair yarns.

Dad's socks II

The socks are finished (except for weaving in the ends), and I did run out of the Trekking wool. So I undid the first sock from the toe and joined the wool to the second sock. I would undo a few rows on the first sock and then knit a few rows on the second sock until the two socks were at the same place. Then I joined the black wool and finished knitting each sock separately.

Which meant I had to use Kitchener stitch again to finish the toes. Schurch has a clear explanation in her socks book on page 24. However, on the first sock I was not doing the "as if to knit" correctly. I was "knitting" into the back of the stitch on the back row instead of the front of the stitch. The second sock is better, although still not perfect. Maybe next time....

Dad's socks

I finished the first of my dad's birthday/Christmas socks on Sunday (1/29). I'm using the instructions from Charlene Schurch's new, excellent book, Sensational Knitted Socks.


The instructions are very thorough and have charts for all different sizes. I'm using a very simple pattern, the first one in the book. Wool: Trekking XXL, 75% superwash wool, 25% nylon, 100 grams/2 ½ oz, 420 m/459 yds; Color: # 111 (black, grey, and yellow flecks); Needles: 2 mm (U.S. 0).

One ball of wool should be enough, although I was a little unsure. So I had the attendant at the mail room at work weigh the completed sock and then the remaining wool. He said they weighed exactly the same, so I hope I'll have enough to finish. If not, I plan to undo the toe of the completed sock and finish both toes in black wool. (Color # 111 seems to be discontinued.)

Knitting in Norway

I have many favorite knitting sites I visit. Currently, they are stored in two Bookmarks' folders, Knitting Blogs and Knitting Blogs II, and each folder links to about 30 sites.

One of those sites is Helenes side, a knitting and craft site from Norway. Helene writes in both Norwegian and English and posts lots of pictures.

Helene's most recent project is making sheepskin rugs. She also has had some interesting posts on medieval/Viking craft fairs, camps, and re-enactment events.