Switching needles

On January 19, 2022January 22, 2022 By CarynIn Craft

I don’t like metal knitting needles. The are so slick I feel like I’m going to drop them, and if you don’t notice them coming unscrewed from the cable, you have an extreme panic moment when you suddenly have loose stitches at the end of the needle. The nylon cable has also taken on a permanent twist, which makes it fight the needle movement.

Interchangeable circular knitting needles with stiff nylon cord

My Grandma used metal replaceable needle tips on her interchangeable circular needles. Although I want to finish her project, it won’t be with her needles if I want to retain what sanity I have left. I understand that at the time they were the latest thing and better than what came before, but there are now even better options. I ordered some Prym circular needles in the same size Grandma used, but with a fixed multi-strand steel cable, which is strong and flexible. These needles are easier on my hands as I knit because I don’t have a death grip on slippery slidey needles that have a mind of their own.

Switching from metal needles to Prym ergonomic knitting needles

I do not get a kick back from Prym, in case you are wondering, I just really enjoy the thought and engineering that went into their design.

Hello from the rag basket

On January 18, 2022January 14, 2022 By CarynIn Cats

Izzy says hello from the rag basket under the sink because… cat, basket. That it is full of bits of cloth is a bonus. She really isn’t that small. It is a big basket.

Paper picks

On January 17, 2022January 17, 2022 By CarynIn Craft

I was feeling weak when I walked through the craft store. I must have been, because a book of origami paper caught my eye and I bought it. A book. Of origami paper. What was I thinking? The pages were glued into the spine, rather than loose as in a package of origami paper, and even though I can bend the spine open to get the pages our relatively cleanly, they aren’t perfectly square. What to do with all this paper that isn’t quite suited for origami as torn? Maybe a wreath?

I found instructions for folded paper flowers (I’m not calling it origami, because it involves more than just folding), that uses wire, glue, and beads. I have wire, glue, and beads.

The way the flowers are folded allows me to hide the gaps due to the imprecise paper shape.

The way the wire goes around the paper, it makes sense to twist the two sides together to make a pick. Picks make it easier to stick the flower into a wreath form.

I’ll update y’all later on how the wreath comes out.

Squirrel

On January 16, 2022 By CarynIn Wildlife

Nice job trail cam. I like your composition, and the lighting is suburb. A little blurry on your subject, but overall a nice shot.

Edging with i-cord

On January 15, 2022January 11, 2022 By CarynIn Craft

Could it be? Have I found a knitting technique I really enjoy? Maybe! This is another thing that looks complicated on paper, but in practice is not bad at all. I rather like sliding the double pointed needle from one side to the other to start the next row; it is satisfying. In fact, I like knitting it to the edge, rather than sewing on an i-cord, not only because it is a nice finish, but it also hides the edge inside the cord. Neat! There are all sorts of instructions out there, and I admit I did resort to watching a video, so I won’t spell out the steps here. So I remember for next time, though, I used a four stitch i-cord, and used the slip one, knit two together in the back method for decreases at the beginning of a row.