Knitted washcloths

These washcloths are knitted on Size 3 needles from fingering weight cotton. The pattern is from "A Washcloth in a Suitcase" in PIecework Magazine, November/December 2013 issue. These have taken so long to post because they were Christmas presents that were delivered late, and who wants to find out what they are getting for Christmas from the Internet??

I could knit these forever. They are garter stitch short rows, and the last three stitches form that cute little scalloped border.

Recent Knitting is All Blue

I have three finished knitting projects, and look! they are all blue.

Number One:  A pair of sockweight lace gauntlets. These were a Downton Abbey Mystery Knit-a-Long. The idea was that we got a piece of the pattern each week, to knit as we watched the latest installment of Downton Abbey. These were  finished back in February. Yarn: Knit-Picks Stroll fingering weight.

Number Two:  This wavy hat is knit  in a fan lace pattern.

Yarn is Madeleine Tosh Merino DK, Color Mica.  Pattern is the cover pattern from Weekend Hats, by Cecily Glowik MacDonald and Melissa LaBarre.

While it appears that it is knitted from side to side, it is actually a fancy twisted rib. 20 stitch x 18 row pattern.

Number Three: The Dragon Wing Shawl This is a nice circular shawl in a pretty pattern. (You can have your very own - they are on sale at YarnSmith Knitting Patterns.  Yarn:  JoJoland Melody. The photos are not color exact, but it's a nice mottled denim color.

The top section is knit back and forth, increasing in an arc to keep it round, then there is what seemed like an unending border knit around the bottom 32 sts x 12 rows. Actually, the edging is interesting - it is a combination of three patterns.

Market bag

The pattern is from Jane Austen Knits, Summer 2012. They called it the "Pemberly Reticule" in the magazine, but I call it a Market Bag. Yarn from Knit Picks, Comfy Fingering (75% Pima Cotton, 25% Acrylic), color: Blackberry. The pattern calls for 861 yards, but this bag only used about 550 yards. The bottom is worked with double yarn on size six needles. The upper pattern, called "Cathedral Windows" was knit half on size 5 needles and half on size 4.

Green Lace Shawl

This one is being back-posted. I finished it, a long last, between Christmas and New Year's. It is from a pattern in Victorian Lace Today, by Jane Sowerby. I think I have had the yarn for about five years, and I think it took me most of 2012 to knit. I am very, very happy to be finished with it.

I think that I have the urge to knit with laceweight yarn out of my system for a few months.  Knitting the leaf border around the edge - a 12 stitch border - became very boring after about the 60th repeat.

It is 21" x 76". I couldn't find a model to show it off, so I have doubled it and hung it over the back of a chair for this photo.

Mittens complete !

These are from the Woodland Mittens from Knit Picks. There were patterns for six pairs of mittens in the kit -- this pair is NOVEMBER.

Another beaded scarf

I love these scarves. They don't take terribly long to knit and they always turn out pretty.

One mitten finished!

Left mitten is complete. Even the thumb. Remaining : right thumb, snipping all the thread ends and, of course,  blocking. Will I have to block them on my hands?

Navajo yarn hat

Lisa brought home five skeins of yarn in five colors, spun on the reservation. Then, she split the five skeins into five balls and she and four of her friends ended up with the equivalent of one full skein, but five colors: black, white, red, gray, and brown. Because I was afraid I would run out of yarn, I chose a random color pattern. So, here is my Navajo wool hat.

The Button Stitch

This stitch was featured in a sweater pattern book from the library, and I thought it was very, very cute. I have needed to complete something, too, so I whipped up a cotton washcloth made in the Button Stitch.

This pattern is purl 1 row, knit 1 row, in stockinette stitch for five rows. Knit one row of button stitches. Repeat.


The Button Stitch

From the front, insert the Right Hand Needle (RHN) between the second and third stitch on the Left Hand Needle (LHN). Yarn over (YO), pull a stitch through to the front and place on the left-hand needle. Knit this stitch. Slip the next two stitches from left to right as if to purl. Slip the third stitch on the RHN (the one you just knitted) over the two slipped stitches.


In this sample, I knitted a full row of button stitches with no spacing stitches between.

Linen Stitch Scarf

Another Scarf FINISHED!!

There is a scarf pattern that is everyone's favorite at Saint Mary's College this year. I took a look at the pattern, and it is simply a linen stitch, knitted lengthwise. Knit with sock yarn. I looked up the linen stitch and reproduced the scarf.  This one is made with three different variegated colors of Deborah Norville's Serenity sock weight yarn. This is a Michael's yarn. Everyone at work makes it out of Lorna's Laces, and the like. I chose to experiment with the inexpensive choice.

Linen Stitch 

Cast on an even number of stitches
Row 1:  *K1, bring yarn to front, slip 1 purlwise,* repeat between *'s until last stitch, K1
Row 2:  K1, *with yarn to back, slip 1 purlwise, p1 * repeat between *'s until last stitch, K1
Change to new ball of yarn. 

That's it! Two rows, change yarn, two rows, change yarn. Until the scarf is 4 or 5 inches wide. Because the yarn is variegated, the colors twinkle a little bit, and the knitted fabric looks woven.

Beware - this scarf began with Cast on 450. Even knitted on size 6 needles, every row took FOREVER. And because of all those slipped stitches, it actually took two rows to make the usual progress of one row. By the time my scarf was 4 inches wide, I couldn't stand working on it anymore and I happily bound off.

Another Beaded Scarf

This is the fourth scarf I have knit from the pattern. It is easy to knit, and I receive a lot of compliments when I wear one.  In most cases, it can be made from a single skein.  The beads are strung on the yarn before knitting begins. It is important to choose a bead with a hole big enough to move smoothly on the yarn. The pattern calls for 5/0 beads.

Pattern from PatternWrite Designs, Filomena

Yarn: Classic Elite Yarns Firefly, 75% viscose, 25% linen
50 gram ball = approx 155 yards
(note that I had less than ten yards left)
Beads from a mixed bag of glass beads. 

~~Sheila

Wishful Thinking Wrist Warmers

Wishful Thinking Wrist Warmers

(just in case it gets cold enough here to wear these!)

Pattern: ‘Karin Wristwarmers’ by Alexandra Blick. Free on Ravelry

Yarn: Lorna’s Laces Worsted in ‘Douglas Fir’
Needles: US7 circular – Addi Turbo

Julie's 2012 socks

Julie knits her annual pair of socks, apparently. Here is the pair for 2012:

Stripes Gone Awry Socks

Pattern:  ‘Columbine Peak’ from ‘Socks Soar on Two Circular Needles’ by Cat Bordhi

Yarn:  Lorna’s Laces Sock in ‘Fiddle Fern’

Needles:  US1 circular- Addi Turbo

Knitted Table Runner

This table runner is knitted with Cascade Ultra Pima cotton - three skeins with 220 yards per skein. The finished dimensions are 38 inches by 10 inches. I increased the center stockinette stitch from 10 stitches in the original pattern to a broader 20 stitches. The lace edge is a simple pattern and is almost mindless knitting. Oddly enough, the pattern is knitted on the wrong side, and then appears, as you see, on the right side of the knitting.

Pattern "Scalloped Table Runner"
at http://sites.google.com/site/amystender/
by Amy Stender
homepage: http://fluidmotion.blogspot.com
Ravelry Name: vermontgirl

Wanting to see what these look like AFTER felting, but that was part of the gift - the fun of felting herself . . . . they're supposed to fit MY feet -- we'll see . . . .

This project was almost done for 6 whole months -- the two halves were just waiting for a bit of stitching up the sides, but that needed ME to sit down with the teapot . . . . Thank you Julie for the kit and the inspiration!

The Ribbon Scarf

Yesterday, I sat down I knit this scarf from yarn bought about five years ago. I have not owned the yarn for the full five years. About two years ago I gave it away it a fit of getting rid of stuff. However, last month it reappeared in someone else's giveaway. I thought it was a portent. I really like the yarn, I had not been able to figure out what to do with it. So I decided to knit a scarf, and here it is.

It is a ribbon yarn with alternating sections of chips and solid. It is plain garter stitch.

24 hours have passed, and I really don't like the scarf. I described it to Nora as looking and feeling like rubber tires. Even though I knit it on size 15 needles so that it would look and airy, what I like about the yarn doesn't shine through. And it is much too bulky.

So, I decided to rip it out. And, I did. Then, I ironed the entire skein of yarn, which returned it to its original beauty. Yes, I ironed it. Every yard.  See photo.

Green Cotton Sweater

 After four days of blocking (blocking a cotton sweater in the cold of winter can take a Very Long Time), the green cotton sweater is dry. While watching the first episode of season two Downton Abbey, I sewed on the buttons. IT. IS. DONE. Here is a photo of Nora wearing it! 

pattern:  "Decimal", by Snowden Becker was featured on Knitty.Com in the Spring 2009 issue.

Yarn:  Knit Picks Shine Sport

The border is a variation on the Gazebo Lace from Nicky Epstein's Knitting on the Edge. It reminds me of dragon scales. The lace itself is a great pattern - only two rows, and a ten-stitch repeat. I am including some detail below. And aren't those cute little buttons?

Noro Tea Cozy

Another thing finished! The knitting has been completed for close to a month, I think, but today I sat down, in the spirit of Getting Things Done, and did all the sewing in of tails, clipping of yarn ends, etc.

This tea cozy was designed specifically for my Bee House teapot, which is featured in the photo. I made it with one skein ofKogarashi Noro yarn.  To make the pattern stand out, I divided the skein into halves, and alternated the halves for each section, which created the convenient stripes.

Another pair of fingerless gloves

I am happy to report that I have finished knitting another pair of fingerless gloves. These are knitted in sock yarn (one ball picked up from a clearance bin in Pacific Grove) with size 1 needles What makes the fingers work well are three rows of seed stitch at the top of each. This keeps the end tight and does not roll.

I felt that the fingers of my first pair were a little short, so I purposefully knitted this pair with fingers all the way to my fingernails.

Now I can begin knitting mittens!!