written by Carole Wulster
Leah just emailed me a picture of her Stork’s Nest Scarf in progress.
She chose Blossom Pink for the color.
I wanted to post the picture, so that you can see how beautifully twined this cashmere is. The way in which the cashmere is spun enhances the stitch definition. Yet, the yarn remains as soft as a baby’s bottom.
Filed under: Knitting, Projects by cwulster
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Have you ever asked yourself why a piece of knitting just grabs you? I have, but I have no answer. I just know, that I look at 100’s of pictures of knitted garments a year, and never think twice about them. Then, I see one and I become obsessed until I knit the piece.
Perhaps this happens when I see a piece that is so stunning that it would it would be a sin to substitute the yarn. The piece is the perfect combination of yarn, stitch, and function. In other words, it couldn’t be more aesthetically pleasing.
This is exactly the way I felt when I saw Nancy Bush’s "A Stork’s Nest Scarf To Knit" in the January/February 2008 issue of Piecework magazine.
I can get lost in the photo by Joe Coca. I sense the pleasure in knitting this scarf.
The scarf is knit with one skein of Jojoland 2 ply Cashmere. Knitting with this cashmere is a tactile delight. It is well spun, soft, and as with all of Jojoland’s yarns, the colors can only be described as rich.
Nancy Bush’s design is perfectly executed. The stitch is lovely and the yarn enhances the lace. I think this design is going to be a classic.
There is one caveat. The chart for Stork’s Nest is beautifully done. The text directions state clearly the number of vertical repeats to complete the scarf. The horizontal repeat is marked off in red on the chart. However, the number of times to repeat the block in red has been omitted. It should be stated to repeat the stitches blocked off in red 3 times total.
Filed under: Knitting by cwulster
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I spent the weekend learning how to knit! Yes, I did.
I know that you know that I know how to knit, but this weekend, I used Andrea Wong’s DVD, Learn How to Knit Portuguese Style, to master a new technique.
I remember reading in Mary Thomas’s Knitting Book about shepherds in Landes (an area of France), walking on stilts and knitting. The shepherds used a hook attached to a shoulder strap to tension the yarn. At some other point in time, and in another book, I read about Peruvian knitters who tensioned the yarn around the neck. These knitters often knit on the wrong side of the garment, because purling was so much faster than knitting with the yarn tensioned in this style.
In neither case, did the author go on to describe the technique in detail. Obviously, I was intrigued, because I never forgot either description.
Recently, Andrea Wong and her DVD came to our attention. As soon as I read that the yarn was held on a pin or around the neck, I knew that I had to see it and if was well done, we would stock it at Knitting Software.
Saturday afternoon, I reminded myself of every knitter whom I have ever taught. I was holding my knitting needles so tightly that my hands were cramping. I couldn’t believe how much effort it took me to relax. In fact, it took me more effort to relax my hands than to master the technique.
I discovered very quickly that I had to forget how to do the knit stitch to learn to do the knit stitch with this method. It isn’t hard, but I found that I really had to listen to what Andrea was saying about inserting the needle.
The left thumb controls the yarn over the needle in this method. Because the yarn is fed from the left and already tensioned by either a pin or looping the yarn around your neck, the left thumb flicks the yarn into position whether it is for knit or for purl.
Today, when I picked up the needles, I was totally comfortable with the technique. I decided that it was time to do knit and purl in the same row.
Ribbing with this technique is an absolute delight. The tensioning was perfect and I think that I can produce rib in half the time that it normally takes. There is such economy of movement using this method.
To really put the ribbing through its paces, I did a 4 x 4 rib. That too was perfect. How often have you done a wide rib, and have a row of loose knit stitches? It happens to me, and I have to make a concerted effort to be sure that the last knit stitch is of the group is always pulled tighter. Not anymore!
I don’t know if I will totally covert to the Portuguese style, but I do know that it is the method that I will be using for my ribbing from now on.
I am afraid that I haven’t touched on any of the practical reasons to try this method of knitting as described on the cover of the DVD…”fast, efficient, easier on the hands”.
I am so happy that Andrea Wong made this DVD. She satisfied my curiosity stemming from those paragraphs that I read years ago. And, in addition to teaching me how to knit Portuguese style, I learned a new bind-off, and now have a perfect rib solution in my repertoire.
Filed under: Knitting, Techniques by cwulster
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The more I knit, the more I realize that in some cases the simplest solutions are the best.
The easiest and probably the most efficient way of placing stitches on hold is to use a tapestry needle and waste yarn. Waste yarn is the way in which we describe yarn that is not used in the actual knitted fabric. It can be any yarn that is available in a different color than the work in progress.
When using waste yarn as a holder, you will find that using a yarn that is thicker than the yarn being used for the project will facilitate the transfer back to the needle. If you don’t have yarn available that is thicker, then double the waste yarn when threading it through the stitches that are being placed on hold.
Using waste yarn as a holder is a simple technique to master. Thread a tapestry needle with the waste yarn. Insert the tapestry needle into the first stitch that is to be placed on a holder purlwise (as if to purl). Continue in this manner until all stitches designated for hold are on the waste yarn.
Leave a long tail on both ends. If you are worried about your stitches slipping off the waste yarn, tie the two tails together.
When it is time to work the stitches that have been placed on hold, insert the working needle into each stitch on the waste yarn purlwise. If you have used yarn that is thicker than the yarn with which you are knitting, you will find it very easy to insert the needle into each stitch in front of the waste yarn. When all stitches are on the needle, pull the waste yarn and remove.
If the waste yarn becomes stuck, stop. Find the spot that is causing the problem and carefully snip the waste yarn on either side.
I haven’t used a metal holder in years. Waste yarn allows the fabric-on-hold to fold in on itself and never causes stretching on the edges.
For several years, I have been using crochet cotton as waste yarn. I love the fact that it is smooth and doesn’t split. The stitches slide easily on the crochet cotton. Because crochet cotton is tightly twined, it makes the transfer of the stitches back to the knitting needle that much easier.
I keep the ball of crochet cotton at the bottom of my knitting bag or basket. It always there when I need it. Since it is a different texture than almost knitting yarns, I don’t even worry about having a contrasting color. If it is not thick enough, I double and even triple it when threading it through the stitches.
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This week, as I finished a sweater with a hood, I found myself wondering to myself who was the first knitter to close a hood with Kitchener Stitch grafting.
In fact, I wondered who first developed Kitchener Stitch? Is the answer in Principles of Knitting or in Mary Thomas’s Knitting Book? Was Kitchener a person? I will have to look later and let you know.
This person was very clever. By using Kitchener Stitch grafting to close the top of the hood, there is no inside seam. This is important in a hood. The hood is seen more often hanging on the back of the sweater, with the inside of the hood facing the world. A seam would not be aesthetically pleasing.
I know that many of you think that grafting is a very difficult technique. Actually, you are doing a type of knitting with a tapestry needle. What is hard is that there seem to be so many more steps than a knit stitch or a purl stitch. Interruptions can be fatal to the graft when one is first looking.
But, please let me encourage you to learn and master the Kitchener Stitch. As with any knitting technique, it takes practice. But, once you have it, you will own it. Once your fingers have learned the steps, they will never forget.
Isn’t that the miracle of knitting? First you learn with your mind, and then somehow your brain transfers the knowledge to your fingers, and then your fingers just know what to do when you ask them.
Filed under: Knitting, Techniques by cwulster
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