Stitch marker necklace

On October 3, 2022September 30, 2022 By CarynIn Craft

I thought I would make up stitch marker necklaces for the stitch marker swap at the Fiber Fest. I’m good with wire, but not entirely sure that wire is the right material for hand made stitch markers. It seems they would catch on the yarn. So I made holders instead. I have a large spool of square copper wire (20 gauge) that looks awesome twisted. I used satin cord for the necklaces with a simple slide knot so the length is adjustable.

From top to bottom:
Form a loop at one end of the wire,
twist the wire using the loop and a bent angle,
form a hook at the opposite end of the wire,
form a circle and catch the hook around the base of the loop

Full disclosure, it has been awhile since I’ve done wire work, and it took my hands a few rounds before they remembered the moves with efficiency. I also didn’t make it to the swap meet. I was quite ambitious of me to attempt a four hour stretch at my first festival in many years. It is OK I only made it an hour and a half. Next year I will plan better. And make markers like these:

Stitch marker made from satin cord (objects in the image are smaller than they appear)

My First Fiber Fest

On September 26, 2022 By CarynIn Craft

“What?” you say, “you have never been to a fiber festival? How is that possible?” Well, you might not say it, but the woman in the elevator did. I must say that she said it after cheering that it was my first visit. Yes, I have been working with yarn for around 40 years, but I only took up spinning just before the pandemic, and during the pandemic all the festivals were shut down. I have been searching out fibers to spin locally and online. Walking into a convention center with a huge room full of fiber was mind blowing.

Panoramic photo of the convention area, which really does not give justice to the amount of fiber that was really there

Probably 90% of the fibers at the festival were already spun and dyed, ready for the eager knitters that lined the aisles. But there were pockets of un-spun fiber in various preparations. I found bamboo, hemp, nettle, and yak (!) spinning fibers, all of which I have not yet attempted to spin. There were a few raw fleeces as well: mohair and Rambouillet. I caved on some white mohair (it was the first time the seller was offering raw fleece and it looked like she did a nice job skirting and labeling). Rambouillet is now on my wish list; I couldn’t quite face a whole fleece right now, but the processed yarn and blankets were divine.

I did find myself some wool combs, which appeared to be the last pair in the room. I also found an intriguing Turkish spindle 3D printed from flexible filament (more on those another day). The booths did cater mostly to the knitter, but there was representation for weavers, crocheters, felters, spinners, and there were even some nålbinding needles! After about an hour and a half, my brain shut down. It appears that I will have to work up my festival stamina!

The convention center was yarn bombed, which is fabulous

Rainbow runner

On September 2, 2022 By CarynIn Craft

Darn it. I’m happily knitting along and look back at my work and I’ve purled where I should have knit. For one stitch. The thought of ripping out several whole rows in brioche knit is horrifying, maybe I can run back just one column?

I transfer the stitches to the left of the target column onto a stitch holder, and carefully undo the loops in the column down to the offensive stitch. I make sure the loops are lined up with their respective yarn overs (one of the things that makes brioche brioche, and the main reason ripping out large portions is scary).

I then took a crochet hook and linked the loops back together in the proper orientation (so they look like a chain).

Connecting the loops in the column with a crochet hook

Success! And I have a new tool in my knitting toolbox, although I think this method will only work for a knit/purl swap because the amount of yarn used is the same.

I still don’t consider myself a Knitter (with the capital K), but I’m glad I’m picking up skills. (I feel like being a Knitter means you like knitting as a primary activity; I still prefer spinning.)

Managing rainbow spaghetti

On August 29, 2022August 26, 2022 By CarynIn Craft

I have embarked on a new long-term knitting project: a rainbow scarf in brioche knit with vertical stripes of color. The yarn is from Wanderlust Fiber Co in Dallas TX, and it was purchased through a fundraiser through JuJu Knits for #LGBQTSaves. I reached out to the yarn dyers for more of the sparkly white so I had enough to back all the color in the scarf. The most terrifying thing about this project is if all those beautiful colors get tangled (seriously, the horror). So I devised a method to keep it all from turning to rainbow spaghetti. Enter one of DIYers top three multipurpose supplies: the pool noodle. (Which has a close following to duct tape and hot glue.) I cut a length of pool noodle, then slit it down the side to make a clamp for the center pull balls of yarn. The pressure on the yarn keeps the balls from rolling or swinging about, and since they are center-pull, the yarn feeds out easily.

Another use for the ubiquitous pool noodle: yarn holder

The colors came in mini skeins, which, once they are wound into cakes, are a perfect size for a pool noodle clamp. As I knit the colored rows, I do need to watch carefully which way to route the yarn, but if I do mess up, I can take the tangled yarn out of the clamp, untangle, and slide it back in place. No worries.

The sparkly white stays out of the clamp, because it runs its rows independently of the colors. It is working quite well. And the pool noodle sits along my thigh when I sit in my chair and stays put.

This is definitely not a travel project, it stays in the knitting bag by my chair. So it will be in process for while. I’ll post updates as construction continues.

Swatch again

On August 25, 2022August 24, 2022 By CarynIn Craft

I attempted another cotton swatch, and tried again for doing brioche knit, vertical stripes, and cables. Uh no. You can see the one row of failed experiment in the photos. I did not rip out this time because it would have been demoralizing (and it is just a swatch that will go in the wash cloth bin). The combination of all the things is possible, but not at my usual level of concentration, which is always split at least two ways. (I am very distractible, if you haven’t noticed.)

Cotton brioche knit with vertical stripes and failed cables

This swatch was a learning experience for certain. I’m getting better at recognizing which way the brioche knit stitches go, and can read the knitting rather than relying on a pattern for each row. Most importantly, I have decided that the next project will use vertical color stripes, but not cables. Brioche knit is not easy (for me) to rip out partially, and cables introduce too many opportunities for error that I don’t catch until many rows later.

Critters and Craft

Tag: knitting