Tag: lace knitting

Yarn, Knitting and Crochet

Buying More Gradients, Oh No! and Shawl Part 4

Iris Rose

I seem to be on a trend lately. I have acquired a number of gradient yarns and have a couple of more cakes on the way. I found a new online vendor, Hobbii, on Facebook and decided to give them a go. The yarn has not yet arrived but I am expecting it this week and will review it next post for you. They are a Danish company and seem to have customer service top of mind. The yarns appear to be good quality with fair prices and free shipping to Canada if the order is over $74.00 USD and only $6.50 if under that amount. Anyway, I ordered some (okay four) of the cotton/acrylic gradient cakes that they had on sale and one of the gradient cotton cakes. If they are anything like Scheepjes Whirl, I will be a happy woman.


Okay, now the pressure is on to design and write patterns for the gradients that are piling up in my stash but I think that I am up to it. I am on a shawl trend lately too; I have started a new one that is knit from Caron Cotton Cakes (a gift from DD1), not a gradient but close enough. I hope to include crochet in this one too. I am in the mulling stage but will get there eventually I am sure. It is very pretty so far; maybe photos will follow in the next couple of weeks.

Anyway, I bet that you are wondering when I will get to Shawl Part 4. Here it is.

Row1: Work border stitches as before, slip marker, YO, (K3, S2K1PSSO, K3, YO, K1, YO) to 3 stitches remaining, K3, YO, slip marker, K5, slip marker, YO, K3, (YO, K1, YO, K3, S2K1PSSO, K3) to next marker, YO, slip marker, worker border stitches as before.

Row 2 and all wrong side rows: Work border stitches as before, P all stitches to last marker, slipping markers at centre spine, slip marker, work border stitches as before.

Row 3: Work border stitches as before, slip marker, YO, K1, YO, (K2, S2K1PSSO, K2, YO, K3, YO) to last 4 stitches, K2, K2tog, K1, YO, slip marker, K5, slip marker, YO, K1, K2tog, K2, (YO, K3, YO, K2, S2K1PSSO, K2) to end, YO, K1, YO, slip marker, work border stitches as before.

Row 5: Work border stitches as before, YO, K2, YO, (K1, S2K1PSSO, K1, YO, K5, YO) to last 5 stitches, K1, S2K1PSSO, K1, YO, slip marker, K5, slip marker, YO, K1, S2K1PSSO, K1, (YO, K5, YO, K1, S2K1PSSO, K1) to end, YO, K2, YO, slip marker, work border stitches as before.

Row 7: Work border stitches as before, YO, K3, YO, (S2K1PSSO, YO, K7, YO) to last 5 stitches, S2K1PSSO, YO, K1, YO, slip marker, K5, slip marker, YO, K1, YO, S2K1PSSO, (YO, K7, YO, S2K1PSSO,)to end, YO, K3, YO, slip marker, work border stitches as before.

This is one repeat of the lace pattern for this part. Work these 8 rows once again working another repeat of the lace in after and before the markers as you can. If this is difficult for you, just work these extra stitches in stocking stitch but don’t forget your YO at the beginning and end of each lace section between the markers.

And there you have it, Part 4 which is a simple horseshoe lace. As always, if you find any errors or need help, contact me here or on Ravelry.  Next week we have the border, the last section of the shawl. My finished and blocked shawl turned out to be 160cm x 56cm or 62” x 22”.  I used the full skein with very little left!

Here is a sneak peak of the finished shawl.  Have a happy week full of yarny goodness!

Knitting

Shawl Part 3, Easy Peasy

Iris Rose

Wow, August! Why does the summer go by so fast and the winter so slowly? I guess that there is so much more activity in our part of the world when the air is warm than there is when it is cold. There must be at least five festivals every weekend (or so it seems) and it is nice just to relax outside.  I baked this banana cream pie last night for DH’s birthday today.  You might want to have a slice before you listen to my complaining.

Banana Cream Pie

I still find time to craft amidst all of the activity and have been working on a few new patterns. I have kind of been taking a break from publishing. While I don’t mind constructive criticism and am always, always happy to help, sometimes the negative remarks sting, especially on the free stuff which is way more popular than the paid. I guess that is an unfortunate part of the internet culture, where it is okay to be rude and nasty and hide behind the anonymity.

Okay then, my rant is over and I hope that I didn’t offend anyone. I really do appreciate your support.

 

On to the subject of this blog post, Part 3 of my Shawl in Parts pattern. I am going to change the name when it is done but am waiting to see how pretty it is before I decide on the best name for this lovely shawl. Carry on and have fun!

Shawl Part 3:

You will be working the borders and the centre five stitch spine throughout this part in the same way that you did for Parts 1 and 2. You are going to notice that the stitch used in this part, double moss, tends to pull the work in from the relaxed lace stitch. Remember the miracle of blocking and don’t worry; your shawl will be lovely when finished and blocked.

Row 1: Work your border stitches as before, slip marker, YO, (K1, P1) across to last stitch, K1, YO, slip marker, K5, slip marker, YO, (K1, P1) to last stitch, K1, YO, slip marker and work the border as before.

Row 2: Work your border stitches as before, slip marker, P1, (P1, K1) across to last stitch, P2, slip marker, P5, slip marker, P1, (P1, K1) to last stitch, P2, slip marker and work the border as before.

Work Rows 1 and 2 until you have 115 stitches between the border markers and the centre markers on each side.

That was easy, wasn’t it? Next week we are back to a bit of lace and then we will be on to the final border which I am still conflicted about. I am sure that I will have my inner argument settled and the shawl ready by then.  Have a happy week!

Yarn, Knitting and Crochet

New Shawl, Free Pattern in Parts

Iris Rose

This week has been a finish before you are allowed to start anything else week. I made a deal with myself to get the stack of WIP’s finished even though I was dying to start something new. You all know how that goes, I am sure.

I did break that pact with myself (what can I say, I am weak, just weak!) and started a new shawl. I will post the pattern is parts starting below with the first section and continuing over the next few weeks. I had a cake of gradient yarn that was crying very loudly to be used and here is the beginning of what I hope will be something lovely.

I did manage to get caught up on the WIP’s; all are done except one and that one is close to finished. Anyhow, here is the beginning part to the shawl, a triangular one with a wider than normal spine.


Materials: 380m or 435 yds of sock weight gradient yarn. If you don’t have a gradient, go ahead and use any sock weight yarn that appeals to you. I was panting to use up this cake that I had in front of me since I bought it.  Like this one only a different colour as you can see above.

Tools: 4mm or US 6 circular needle, 60cm or 24” or longer, 4 stitch markers.

Note: you will start every row, once the garter tab is done, with slip one with the yarn in front and carry the yarn over to knit the next stitch. There will be a 4 stitch garter border on each side. The slipped stitch is knitted together with the yarn over on the return row to make a pretty braid look edge. If you want, you can simply knit 4 at the beginning and end of each row.

Start the shawl with a garter tab, that is cast on 4 stitches and knit 1 row. You will make the slip, yarn over only on one side for this part.
Row 2: Slip 1, yarn over and knit 3.
Row 3: Knit 4 (slipped stitch and yarn over knit together make the last stitch).
Repeat these two rows 4 more times, work Row 1 once more.
Pick up and knit 5 stitches along the side of the rows without the slipped stitches. Pick up and knit 4 stitches along the beginning edge.  Your garter tab is done.

 

Start the main part of the shawl from here.
Row 1: Slip 1 purlwise with yarn in front, YO, K3, place marker, P5, place marker, K4, don’t forget to work the last stitch together with the yarn over.
Row 2: Slip 1 purlwise with yarn in front, YO, K3, slip marker, YO, place marker, K5, place marker, YO, slip marker, K4.
Row 3: Slip 1 purlwise with yarn in front, YO, K3, slip marker, P1, slip marker, P5, slip marker, P1, slip marker, K4.
Row 4: Slip 1 purlwise with yarn in front, YO, K3, slip marker, YO, K1, YO, slip marker, K5, slip marker, YO, K1, YO, slip marker, K4.
Row 5: Slip 1 purlwise with yarn in front, YO, K3, slip marker, P3, slip marker, P5, slip marker, P3, slip marker, K4.

Continue increasing by repeating Rows 4 and 5 with the number of stitches between the first and second markers growing by 2 on each side of the centre spine on each right side row.
Work in this pattern until you have 65 stitches between the first and second then third and fourth markers in each side on the five stitch spine.

If you have questions, you can contact me here or on Ravelry as Bluechicken.

Next week we will start on the first lace pattern section. Until then, have fun with this very easy shawl and have a happy week!

Yarn, Knitting and Crochet

Coupon Code and Pattern Roundup

Iris Rose

It is raining and cold outside. I am feeling whiny and a little bit like I need a batch of cookies. I haven’t thought about posting all week so I am still stuck on what to offer you today.

I know, how about a 50% off coupon code for all of the paid patterns that I have on Ravelry? Does that make you (and me) feel better or do we still need to break out the butter and get to work on those cookies? Tell you what, you knit or crochet and I’ll take care of the cookies for you. I might even make you a nice cup of coffee or tea to go with them!

Here is run down of the patterns with links to my Ravelry store. The coupon code is 50OFF that you will need to enter on the checkout page. Have fun!

  

A Wrap For Spring                     Delphinium Shoulder Scarf 

    

Gradient Cable Poncho               Knit and Sewn Kid’s Dress

  
Little Lovely Lacey Cardigan               Lovely Lacey Cardigan

  
Northern Rose Shawl          Pink Ice Cream Jumper

  

Simple Stripes Wrap                        Sweet Doll Bed

   

Toddlers Pretty Crocheted Cardigan     Twisted Stitches Scarf and Hat

Vine Lace Wrap

Roses and Lace Cardigan

Have a wonderful week with sunny days ahead (or at least cookies) and don’t forget 50OFF!

Yarn, Knitting and Crochet

The Magic of Blocking

Iris Rose

So you are finished that beautiful piece of crochet or knitting, and, after all of your hard work, the piece looks like a crumpled bit of a yarny mess. It can be so disheartening after the hours and love that you have invested.

Blocking your piece will make a huge (and I mean massively amazing) difference in how the piece looks and also the size of what you have finished. You can see from the before and afters that blocking is time well spent.

     


Blocking can be done in a couple of ways. My favourite, for lace especially, is to soak the item and then pin it out to the size I want and let it dry overnight. This method works well with natural fibres. If I have used a synthetic fibre, I skip the soak, pin it out in the same way and steam it. I like to steam my shawls in particular so that the fibre softens and holds the stretched or pinned out shape. You do need to be careful not to overheat acrylic or you will end up with a melty, crunchy mess. Ask me how I know!

      

Both of these acrylic wraps were steamed to block.

      

If you only want to lightly block sweater pieces for example, I like to pin them out to match the length of seams and lightly steam them. This works with both natural and synthetics. You only want to release some of the curl and straighten out the stitches. Acrylics also respond well to a simple warm wash and a short spin in the dryer (not too hot) to look good.

      

These little sweaters were lightly steamed then washed.

My Vine Lace Wrap below was soaked and pinned.

      

      

After you have invested all of your time and lovely yarn to make a sweater, shawl or other beautiful item, spend a little extra time and block. You won’t be disappointed.

Have a wonderful crafty week and may all your yarn skeins pull smoothly from the centre!