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Yarn, Knitting and Crochet

Soothing Hat Knitting

Iris Rose

There are times when life becomes a little overwhelmingly busy and you need to step back from the things that you love but are really not essential to everyday life.  Blogging is one of those things for me.  I love to write and to share the things that I design and make but, in the big picture, I don’t survive on writing and the last couple of months fit the step back profile.

I have not been idle, however.  I can’t not craft so even a little bit of doing creeps into most days.  I found a charity that distributes warm hats, scarves, and mitts to school kids in disadvantaged parts of the city and decided to embrace the hat.

Knitting simple hats is a soothing and calming way to spend a bit of everyday.  I love to match colours, double yarn, add patterns, and fancy up the ribbing.  There are so many ways you can turn a simple hat pattern into a unique toque.  This also a great way to use up some stash!

The adult basic pattern for these hats was published in a blog post here three years ago.  I used the basic pattern and  adjusted it for kids of all sizes using the six stitch formula that is explained in the pattern.  I have included the pattern again at the end of this post to save you searching through my site.

I have set a goal because who can work without a goal, not me, so I am working at one hundred items for this year.  The donations are sent out in November so I started the year in mid December.  I am up to twenty-three hats and a couple of scarves so far.  These photos are a little sample of what I hope to accomplish by mid summer.

Basic Adult Winter Toque:

Yarn:     Worsted weight     130m (143yds)     5.5mm or 6mm (US 9 or 10), 40cm circular needle

Aran or Chunky     110m (121yds)     6.5mm (US 10.5), 40cm (16”) circular needle

Bulky                      95m (105yds)       8mm (US11), 40cm (16”) circular needle

You will need DPN’s in the same size to shape the crown or a same size longer circular needle for Magic Loop.  You will also need a stitch marker and a tapestry needle for weaving in the ends.

Cast on 84, (78, 72) stitches and join to work in the round.  Place a marker at the join.  Work 18, (16, 14) rounds of ribbing.  My favourite is K2, P1 as this makes a nice stretchy ribbing like a 1 x 1 but is still a little different looking.  It also lets you twist the knit stitches for a faux cable look.  Continue knitting in rounds until 30, (28, 26) rounds of stocking stitch have been worked.  Start decreases for the crown.  Divide your working stitches by six so 84 stitches will result in decreasing by K12, K2together six times.  You will decrease 78 stitches by K11, K2together six times and with 72 stitches you will work K10, K2together six times.  Next round, knit all stitches.  Continue decreasing every second round by working one stitch less between the K2togethers each consecutive decrease round.  Switch to DPN’s or Magic Loop when the stitches are too taut on the needle.  End at K1, K2together (12 stitches remaining) and, cutting a 15cm or 6” end, thread the end through the remaining stitches and gather them up off of the needles(s).  I like to thread the tail through to the wrong side and fasten it off securely inside.  Weave your beginning end and any ends from colour changes etc., and you are done.

Add a pompom for an up to date look or tassels to make it vintage looking.  Make it in stripes, a good way to use up part skeins, or with a self-striping yarn.  You can modify this pattern with a fancy stitch, but you will have to figure out how to work that into the decreases.  You can also adapt the pattern for finer yarn by increasing the number of cast on stitches, decreasing the needle size to suit, and keep your stitch count always divisible by six to keep the crown decrease in a nice shape.

I use this same formula for kid’s hats, decreasing the number of cast on stitches by six for 5 to 9 year old and 12 for younger.  Even smaller for babies is possible with another six less stitches.

Knitting

Stash Clean Up

Iris Rose

I have been busy again and missed posting last week.  I have a great excuse this time though; I was cleaning out and organizing my stash.

I have no illusions about the size of my stash.  It is huge and almost beyond the capacity of my closet and craft room to hold it all.  I wanted to have access to everything (and who doesn’t) so that I can choose some of the yarn that has been languishing for a while.  To top that off, I foolishly (or not ‘cause it was a steal) bought a stash of coned yarn for machine knitting which is hard to come by.

I any case, I wanted all of my stuff in clear containers for easy viewing and to keep it dust free.  I had solid bins that held everything but who can see through a solid plastic wall?  Every solid bin that I opened was followed with “what the hell is wrong with me?” and a lot of other cussing aimed inward.

I have read about using those shrinking bags with the air sucked out of them for yarn storage and invested in a couple of packs.  They work!  I managed to cut my storage of odd single, double, and triple balls into a workable pile stacked up in the closet.  I then had enough empty clear bins to go to town on all of the rest.  Hand knitting and crocheting yarns in the closet and most coned yarns in my teeny craft room with the machines, I almost feel like I won a huge battle.

Now all I need to do is crochet, knit, or machine knit for several hours of every day for the rest of my life, and it better be a long one, and I will cut my stash in half, haha!

I did find time before the big stash sort to knit up these cute gnomes on my standard bed machine.  I think that I will make a few more and put them around for the holidays.

 

Have a lovely week with little stress and lots of fun.  Thanks for reading and be kind.

Cooking

Soup For A Change

Iris Rose

I was going to write about a craft today but got sidetracked by soup.  We are following, and have followed for several years, a low sodium diet.  The weather turned cold here last week with the daytime highs at minus 7C or lower; today it is plus 14C, go figure.

 

Anyway, cold weather equals soup in my mind.  Using what I had on hand in the pantry and fridge, ham and bean soup sounded like it would fit the bill.  Getting back to low salt, all of the ingredients that I used are no or reduced salt but you can happily use what ever you like or what you have available.  I make my own chicken stock which is seasoned with poultry seasoning so that affects the flavour a little.

Ingredients:

Ham, 50g or 2 oz. chopped, love ham? use more

1 can mixed beans

1 can black beans

1 large can diced tomatoes

1 sweet potato peeled and chopped

¼ sweet onion diced

Handful of green beans, chopped

3 cups chicken stock

2 Tbsp flour

1 ½ Tbsp butter

½ tsp garlic powder

1 tsp chili powder

1 tsp dried cilantro

½ tsp black pepper

½ tsp cumin

 

Open the cans so they are ready, drain the beans.  Melt the butter in your soup pot and add the ham and onion.  Cook until the onion is limp and stir in the flour.  Pour in the liquid from the tomatoes and stir until it starts to thicken a little.  Add the rest of the ingredients and stir until it comes to a boil and is thickened a bit.  Turn down the heat and simmer until you are ready to serve.

You can use what you have; no green beans, add some frozen corn or peas or both.  No sweet potatoes, add carrots instead.  No ham, use diced bacon.  I’m sure that you get the picture.

I let my pot simmer for a couple of hours but that is not necessary as the ingredients are already cooked.  This made enough for about six large bowls of soup, another words for the two of us, leftovers to freeze.

Serve it up with some crusty sourdough or biscuits and it is like winter pig heaven!

 

Have a lovely week and remember to be kind.  You never know who is having a horrific day and you might just brighten it with a smile and kind word..

Knitting

Finishing

Iris Rose

I have taken a bit of a hiatus from writing this last few months so my posts have been few and far between.  I have reached a point where I am ready to connect again so here goes.

My last post in the middle of September was about unfinished projects.  Well, I did some more tidying and, low and behold, my twenty one unfinished projects turned into thirty four, yes, that is correct, thirty four.  I obviously have too many project bags and hiding places for them when I get bored with a project!

I am happy to say that all except for two are finished.  One of the remaining, a cardigan, will be finished and the last one, that shawl started in January, is going to be frogged.  Maybe.

I finished all of the toys, wait, make that five unfinished projects, (what is wrong with me!), except for a doll, a tiny bear, and a chicken hat.  Here is an example of how something started and hated can be rescued with a little imagination and colour changes.

I made this monster, a free pattern in my Ravelry store, in orange and brown, my least favourite colour combination, a couple of years ago and just could not bring myself to finish it.  Look how a change of colour (the nose) makes such a huge difference to the overall look.  I added neutral fuzzy yarn limbs and I think he or she turned out to be a real cutey.

Moral of the post: don’t be afraid to try something different and you might be surprised how things turn out.  I know that seems simple but sometimes we just have to reach out from our comfort zone and give lime green a whirl.  I have officially been blogging for five years on the 25th; I never thought I had it in me to stick to this for so long.

Thanks for reading and have a lovely crafty and safe week.  Remember to be kind.

Yarn, Knitting and Crochet

New (Old) Shawl

Iris Rose

I have been lying low this last month but have still been busy at my craft.  I spent some time going through my stash and unfinished stuff.

When I started sorting through every bag and box, I found twenty one, yes you read it, twenty one unfinished projects.  I was ready to cast on a new one but thought it was time to buckle down and get at least a couple of these finished first.

I am down to five remaining, no six, I just remembered a shawl that I started in January and am reknitting for the third time.  That one may become a frog project since the level of frustration is growing with the pattern that I am working on.

I found a shawl that I started in December or November of 2018.  Did you see how I put December first so you would think that it is not as old as November but really I think it was October or maybe September.  You know how that goes.

 

Anyway, I found a shawl worked with Caron Cotton Cakes and finished it!  I knit the top piece and, at the time, dithered with changing to crochet to finish the bottom.  I started the crochet last weekend and here is the result.  I am pretty happy with it and look at the miracle of blocking!

 

I will show you all of the toys that I finally finished off next week.  In the meantime, have a happy and crafty week.  Be kind and wear your mask please to help keep your vulnerable fellow humans safe.