Tension

On January 3, 2024December 31, 2023 By CarynIn Craft

There are many ways of doing most things. Finding what works best for you is usually a series of trials and errors. I have been knitting with fingering weight yarn the same way I knit with thicker yarn, but have been having trouble keeping even tension because the thinner yarn slips through my fingers more. I tried wrapping it three times around my pinkie, but it had more tendency to bind. I recently tried a new finger wrapping method, going clockwise around my pinkie, the counterclockwise around my ring finger. Bingo. I have more control of the yarn without binding or excessive yarn drop.

Photo description: In process knitting photo showing the working yarn wrapped around the fingers of my left hand.

Photo description: view of yarn wrapping from the top of my hand.

This little change helped increase my knitting speed as well as reduced frustration with what seemed to be uncooperative yarn.

Honored

On January 2, 2024December 30, 2023 By CarynIn Craft

I follow an Inkle band weaving group on Facebook that is under new administration, who are trying to clean up the site and get it back to Inkle weaving (and not a repository for spam). They asked for submissions for a new banner image, and my rainbow tablet weave won by popular vote!

Photo description: Private Inkle Band Weaving group on FB with my rainbow band as the banner image.

They said they would change the image frequently, which is also good. I’m excited that mine was the first picked!

This band went on to become the strap for my ukulele.

Getting back to the wheel

On December 30, 2023December 22, 2023 By CarynIn Cats, Craft

I pulled out my spinning wheel and realized that it has been a long time since I spun with it. Thor the cat has never seen it in action and he is nine months old. Hm. He was quite fascinated with the process, and after this photo had to be told to knock it off as he went for the wheel and the yarn.

Photo description: Gray tabby looking at a vintage wooden Befra Willy Spinning wheel, specifically at the yarn coming from the orifice.

Sleep caps

On December 29, 2023December 22, 2023 By CarynIn Craft

Awhile ago I made my Dad a nålbound wool cap with ear flaps. He recently had a haircut and found that sleeping in the wool was too hot, so requested a lighter version of the cap to be on his gift list. Nålbinding is inherently warm, and works best with wool or easily felted fiber, so I changed not only the fiber, but the method of construction. I had some very soft 100% cotton yarn, which is difficult to nålbind, but very easy to crochet. My favorite cushy crochet stitch is a half double crochet, so this is what I used to make a spiral round cap with ear flaps. The yarn was self-striping, and I used a shell stitch above the ears to start the flap then decreased before the flap, and increased around the flap. This was very much a stitch by feel construction.

Photo description: Striped crocheted hat with ear flaps on a table.

I had more yarn, so decided to make a second hat. I tried for a smaller size, but half-double crochet hats don’t narrow as quickly as double crochet hats, so the crown size needs to be significantly smaller. I forgot this fact, and ended up with a hat the same size, just without ear flaps. So I sent both to my Dad to try as after haircut sleep caps.

Photo description: Striped beanie style cap on a counter.

Adding a zipper to crochet

On December 28, 2023December 22, 2023 By CarynIn Craft

I wanted my owl bag to have a zipper, so I took a zipper from my stash and made a line of chain stitches a yarn needle and matching yarn on each side of the zipper.

Photo description: Purple invisible zipper with one side done with a line of embroidered chain stitch, in front of the bag to be zippered.

I then used a slip stitch to crochet the zipper to the inside of the bag, leaving one row as a lip at the top (mainly to help hide the zipper and stitches.)

Critters and Craft

Category: Craft