A quick and easy way to add curve hugging shape to a boxy sweater is to add ribbing. The question is, how much ribbing? Equal ribbing (ex. 1x1, 2x2, 3x3, etc.) is about half as wide as StSt in the same stitch count.
For example, if 20 sts in StSt is 4 inches wide, the same 20 sts would be 2 inches wide in equal ribbing.
x inches in StSt = x/2 inches in equal rib
Sleepytime Bear Nightgown GIVEAWAY !!!!!!!
Violet has been getting into very girly nightgowns lately. She would love this one. I am so glad Grosgrain's oldest daughter is about the same size as Violet. If I win I get a darling outfit for her, and if I loose, I still get great inspiration.
I finally finished the back of the Holly Jacket from Interweave Knits' Spring 2008 issue. I had to modify it a bit, because I have a VERY long torso, but my waist is the same distance from my hips as a "normally" proportioned person. I ended up adding a few inches (yes, I said inches) to the length between the arm shaping and the shoulder, making it 9.5" long - the same length as a 50.5" jacket, even though I am knitting the 37.5" jacket. Based on my measurements I should actually make it longer, but I am counting on the cotton to stretch under it's own weight.
The was a few instructions in the pattern that I found rather vague. When you begin the neck shaping for the back, you cast of a middle section of sts, and then are instructed to work on both sides at once. The pattern then states, "At each neck edge, BO 2 sts once, then 1 st once - 10 sts rem each side. Shape Shoulders: BO 5 sts at each shoulder 2 times - no sts rem."
Which side of the shoulder are you supposed to BO? Your guess is as good as mine. After carefully reading the instructions for the front portions of the sweater, this is what I came up with;
on the set of sts 1st presenting (the set that has the original ball attached)
Row 1: Knit
Row 2: BO 2, P to end
Row 3: Knit
Row 4: BO 1, P to end
Shape Shoulder
Row 5: BO 5, K to end
Row 6: Purl
Row 7: BO 5 (no sts remain)
on 2nd set of sts
Row 1: BO 2, k to end
Row 2: Purl
Row 3: BO 1, k to end
Row 4: BO 5, P to end
Row 5: Knit
Row 6: BO 5 (no sts remain)
Okay. Off to Cast on the fronts.
(My son thinks anything with wheels is his)
Yesterday I finally took the plunge and bought a spinning wheel. It is a Schacht Ladybug, Schacht's version of a beginner wheel.
I began thinking about getting a wheel shortly after I got my spindle. I liked the product I was making with the spindle, but I was, and am, extremely slow. It seemed as if it would take a life time to spin enough yarn to make a sweater. A spinning wheel seemed perfect. I could spin much faster, and as an ex-avid cyclist I already like to peddle.
(a little ladybug is hidden somewhere on every wheel)
For over a year I have been researching wheels and saving to buy one. After obsessively comparing features and reading reviews I picked the Ladybug. This is why;
(The initial Product)
(about one hour later - only the green is mine)I think I am really going to enjoy this.
Annie Modesitt is one of my favorite pattern designers because she usually gives an estimate of the yardage used when she uses only a small portion of a skein. Most patterns indicate that you need an entire skein even if you only need a few yards. In designs like Fair Isle where multiple colors are used, buying an entire ball of each color can get expensive. If you know the yardage of each color used, you can figure out if your partial skein has enough yardage left, or dye the yardage needed from only a few skeins.
Even if you are not using one of Annie's patterns it can still be useful to estimate the yardage you have used, and the yardage you have left. You may want to add up the yardage in several partial skeins, see if you have enough yarn left to make the same project again, or detail the yardage used in your own design project. You can even find out if you have enough yarn left for an additional pattern repeat.
The Process:
1) Weigh your full ball/skein on a scale accurate to at least 1/10th of a gram (A good kitchen scale should do), and take note of the humidity.
---> The weight of yarn will change based on the amount of water in the air. If there is a big moisture change during shipping, or even in your home, there can be a measurable weight change.
2) Check the yardage of your full ball/skein by checking the ball band or another reliable source, such as the manufacturer's website. We must assume that this measurement is correct, but it may not be. Most wool mills measure yarn by weight only, and again, if the humidity has changed the weight will change, and therefore the yardage as well. For example, in high humidity yarn will be heavier because it contains more water. So when the mill measures out a 100 gram skein of sock yarn, the skein might contain 430 yards. On the other hand, if the skein is measured in low humidity, where the same amount of yarn weighs less, a 100 gram skein might contain 440 yards. The yardage on the ball band is a good estimate of how many yards the skein actually contains.
3) Calculate the weight per yard (the amount each yard of yarn weighs) by dividing the weight of the skein by the stated yardage.
weight
------- = weight per yard
yards
For example: If a skein of Cascade Heritage weighs 100 grams, and is 437 yards long, the weight per yard would be 100 grams divided by 437 yards, or .229 grams per yard.
4) Use as much yarn as you need.
5) Calculate the yardage of the left over yarn. Weigh the partial skein. Then divide the weight of the partial skein by the weight per yard. In our example, if I had 50 grams left in my partial skein, I would divide 50 grams by .229 grams indicating that I had 218.341 yards left.
grams in partial skein
---------------------- = yards in partial skein
(grams per yard)
6) Calculate the yardage of the yarn used. Subtract the weight of the partial skein from the weight of the full skein, to find the weight of the yarn used.
weight of full skein - weight of partial skein = weight of the yarn used
Then divide the weight of the yarn used by the weight per yard.
Note 1: This is an estimate. Its accuracy relies on factors outside our control, and therefore cannot be considered an accurate measure of yardage. I recommend rounding up measures of yardage used to avoid problems of too little yarn.
Note 2: Meters can be substituted for yards.
Did you know that your Amazon.com wish list is now a universal wish list? Thats right, you can add anything you find on the web. How? Just log into your amazon account, view your wish list, and there should be a notice near the top of the screen telling you how to make the magic happen.
Violet will be three soon, but she is already the height of the average four year old, and has the waist circumference of the average 2 year old. She is quickly out growing her clothing in length even though most of fits her just fine. The other morning, while I watched her walk around the house in too short pj's, I decided to make her a new night gown. So at 7:00 that night - 1 hour till bed time - I started making the gown that she would wear to bed that night.
Here is the finished result;
I had seen a similar gown made for adults out of vintage pillow cases; however, I had no vintage pillow cases, and while tall, Violet is much smaller than an adult. I do have a fabric stash though, which includes the cute paisley shown from Robert Kaufman's Barn Dandy's collection.
The gown was very simple in construction, basically a tube with semi-circle cut outs for the arm openings. Here is how I made it.
1) First I cut a rectangle that was about 125% of her chest circumference by her shoulder to knee length.
2) Next I used a french seam to attach the two shorter ends. This could be done using a regular seam. I used a French seam to give the garment a more finished look, without the use of a serger.
How to do a French seam:
a) Sew the seam with WRONG sides facing.
b) Trim the seam allowance.
Pre -trim
Post Trim
c) Turn inside out so that the right sides are facing, and press the seam.
d) Sew the seam with the right sides facing.
This is what a finished French seam looks like.
3) Hem the bottom edge.
4)Cut the arm holes. I lay the garment out with the seam denoting the center back. I marked the garment at four inches from the top and four inches from the side on both the right and left sides of the top of the gown. Then I cut a half u shape connecting the marks through BOTH layers of fabric.
5) Finish arm hole edge by turning over twice and stitching in place like a hem.
6) Hem the unfinished top edges by turning them over a small amount, pressing, then turning them over about 1 inch and stitching them in place leaving the side edges open.
7) Cut a very long length of ribbon, and run it through the open side of the top front of the garment (as seen above), then through the corresponding side of the back top. Tie the ends in a bow on one side.
Ta-da!
I promised more knitting math formulas, so here goes;
Increasing Evenly Across a Row
If you have any trouble with this formula, or find a situation in which this formula does not work, please let me know so that I can improve it.
Thanks
~Gerwerken
I saw this little interview on Gadabout knitter's blog, and I had to interview my own husband. So here goes...
Me: What is your favorite thing about my knitting?
Him: It’s a hobby that you really enjoy that also produces really practical things.
Me: What is your least favorite thing about my knitting?
Him: Sometimes you tend to get “tunnel vision” regarding your projects.
Me: What do you mean by “tunnel vision”?
Him: A hyper focused state where every spare moment is spent seeing that to completion.
Me: What is something I have knitted that you recall as being good?
Him: All of the sweaters you have done have been beautiful. I really get a lot of use out of my socks, and I tried to eat the sushi. I coughed it back up, it was too dry.
Me: Do you think knitters have an expensive hobby?
Him: Compared to cyclists, no.
Me: Do you have any hobbies?
Him: (Evil smile) Oh, yes.
Me: What are your hobbies?
Him: Cycling, rock climbing, automotive repair, civil disobedience.
Me: If we compared money spent on hobbies, who would win?
Him: Are you seriously asking me that?
Me: Yes.
Him: I think this is the first time I have won something that I had completely and totally no desire to win.
Me: Has my knitting in public ever embarrassed you?
Him: Of all the things you could do in public that is probably the least likely thing you could do to embarrass me.
Me: Do you know my favorite kind of yarn?
Him: Malabridgo. Is it?
Me: That is one of my favorites.
Him: Ah…... wait, ohh. The kind you are going to make with the bag of wool in the garage.
Me: Can you name another blog?
Him: (cracks knuckles), Gadabout Knitter, um, that chic that runs wooly bully has one, there is a thread on Ravelry about willy warmers, Debbie Stoller (hopeful look), the Australian guy that gets looked at funny on the railway (Sticks and String).
Me: Do you mind that I want to check out yarn stores everywhere we go?
Him: Nope.
Me: Do you understand the importance of a swatch?
Him: (thinking) I think I do; you use it to figure out if the gauge needles you use work for the yarn. Essentially you use it to size up and yarn and needles for the project.
Me: Do you read my blog?
Him: Uh huh (Nods head)
Me: Have you ever left a comment?
Him: (nose scrunch) I think I have.
Me: I don’t think you have.
Him: If I didn’t I’ve meant to.
Me: Do you think the house would be cleaner if I didn't knit?
Him: I think the house has been cleaner since you have been knitting.
Me: Is there anything you would like to add in closing?
Him: A closing statement? I think any hobby is beneficial in that it provides relief from our life’s work. The point at which a hobby becomes an obsession is when it needs reevaluation. I am qualifying obsession as something that would cause you to loose site of your responsibilities and duties.
Me: Are you trying to tell me something?
Him: You specifically, no. This is for everyone.
I have created a formula to help you figure out exactly what you are supposed to knit, when a pattern asks you to decrease evenly across a row. Check it out (in PDF format to retain formula construction). I hope it helps you the next time you come across ambiguous pattern instructions.
I will likely put a few more of these up in the near future, as I realized how little mathematical knitting instruction there is out there while researching for this topic.
The Louisiana Children's Museum is a play to learn museum. In other words, there are none of the typical museum exhibits. Instead there are toys targeted at the elementary and under crowd. Through play the kids are introduced to scientific concepts.
Here is my Dad and Jack-Jack on a couch that is both very funny, and a lesson in perspective.
Violet plays with giant bubbles, mixing such concepts as air pressure, viscosity, and tension.
This human size bubble allowed you to see and hear the world from inside a bubble.
In short the museum was fun for children and adults.
Wrap Up:
New Orleans is a beautiful city of contradictions. I loved visiting my sister there, and want to go back again and again; however, (as cliché as it may sound) I wouldn't want to live there. I prefer the small, academic city.
This is part four of a four part series.
It has, yet again, been a while since I have posted on the knitting, but fear not! Knitting has been accomplished.
This ice cream cone was made on the trip to NOLA (no small feat since I get really bad motion sickness). It is from the scooped pattern by I like lemons.
My daughter was also a big fan of the corn I made.
Ravioli - Free Pattern #1
I love this quick, little sewing pattern.
Directions: Cut off-white felt into 3"x3" squares. With two pieces of felt together, sew around three sides (leaving 1" seam allowance), stuff the square with a small amount of filling, then finish sewing the last side. Using pinking shears cut a small amount off the edges of the piece. Voila! Quick , easy, adorable.
Spicy Tuna - Free Pattern #2
This one is mixed media, but mostly knitting. Some hand sewing is involved.
Using worsted weight yarn in US6 needles.
CO 10 in yellow.
Knit in StSt for two inches.
Switch to white, and knit in seed stitch until the seed stitch portion is long enough to loosely wrap around the yellow part two times - about 5 inches.
BO.
In red CO 3 sts in work in i-cord till the cord is 1 inch taller than width of previous piece. BO.
In red CO 3 sts in work in i-cord till the cord is 2 inch taller than width of previous piece. BO.
Tie in all ends.
Place red pieces on yellow part of roll. With red pieces flush with one side of the roll, and beginning with the yellow end, tightly roll the sushi until the white part has wrapped around twice (adjust rolling tension if necessary). Fasten end of roll to the rest of the roll.
Cut dark green felt the height of the roll, and long enough to wrap around the roll once. Using invisible thread, fasten the ends of the felt together.
Run a few pieces of invisible thread the entire width of the roll, being careful to catch the red middle pieces. With invisible thread fasten anywhere else that needs to be secured.
Hop you like it!
New Orleans' City Park is a huge, fully equipped, public park in the heart of city. The park is bordered on two sides by tributaries from lake Pontchartrain, and dangerously close to what looks like a ridiculously simple earthen dam (I was told the earthen dam was actually a levee - no wonder they broke).
After Katrina, City Park and the surrounding area was under several feet of water. All considered I thought the park was in remarkable shape, although parts are still under construction. The towering live oaks were especially beautiful.
Here are a few pics of time spent on the playground. With yards small and often shared, it must be a draw for kids miles around - it was for mine. My kids were determined to play on the equipment, even though it was intolerably hot (coming from a Floridian - thats hot).
Garden Party Frock GIVEAWAY!!!!
I am really hoping I win this one. Violet would look adorable in it.
My sister just moved into an adorable little place in uptown. It is one of three apartments carved from a house originally built in the 1840's. While the original builders probably wouldn't recognize the building in its current state (with the addition of kitchens and bathrooms for instance), some of the pieces in the house look as if they could be original to the structure.
I fell so completely in love with this little place that I decided to make a pictorial tour of it (with my sister's permission of course), so that everyone else could see it too. While I did my best to capture the charm inherent in this place, the pictures still don't do it justice. I hope that some of it's polished, and rustic beauty still shines through.
The Living Room
The house opens to a cozy living room, with the first of two fireplaces in the space. Sometime during the last century the fireplace were converted to gas, but I can still picture a roaring log fire burning in it. The small room is separated from the kitchen by ancient looking pocket doors just out of the frame of this picture.
This is a close up of that beautiful fireplace grate. At first I thought that it might be an original part of the house, but on closer inspection the grate didn't appear to be metal. Based on the sound it made when tapped, I thought it might even be plastic.
On a personal note, the pillows in the chair were my creation. I was glad to see my sister using them.
My favorite feature in her new house were these highly decorative ceiling lamp base. There was one in the living room, and another in the kitchen. There was no way to tell what these were made of as the ceilings were 15 feet tall, but plaster or plastic, they are gorgeous.
The Kitchen
The kitchen was larger than I expected, with room off to one side for a small table. The kitchen was certainly added long after the house was built , but still looked older, and in keeping with the rest of the house.
I took a picture of the mint growing on my sister's window sill because I thought it looked both picturesque and quaint. I was also proud of my sister's ability to keep it alive, as she has a notoriously black thumb.
The Office/Hallway
My sister used this large walk through space as her office. The room has access to her bedroom and bathroom, the backyard, and the enormous loft pictured.
It also contains the second fireplace.....
....And this ancient looking knob and lock combo.
The Bedroom
I skipped over the bathroom, as it is really the only unfortunate space in the house. My sister's bedroom does not have the architectural elements that the rest of the space has, but I think when she is finished with it, it will perfectly match her personality - sophisticated, yet fun and funky.
Part 3: City Park
The other day I realized that in three short months I will have been blogging for a full year (Well okay, it hasn’t been consistent for nearly that long, but that is when I started it). I also realized that while I have mentioned the goings on of myself and my family, I have said very little about us. I also want to give everyone in my family an official name, because I tick myself off with all of the DH, DS, and DD stuff. Soon it will make me Deranged. Ha, ha! I love bad jokes.
At first I thought about using everyone’s actual nicknames, but since my husband is known as his nick name in most settings, I thought it might not be wise. Then I realized that names relating to fictional characters would not give away any privileged information, while at the same time saying a lot about ones personality if the character was chosen correctly. So……
Meet the Incredible’s:
Mr. Incredible – My Husband
Elastigirl – Me
Violet – My Daughter
Jack Jack – My Son
The reason I chose these characters will become more clear in the next few posts.
The kids and I just got back from visiting my sister in New Orleans. Even though she moved there a year ago, it was our first time visiting her there, as well as our first visit to the city.
My impression of New Orleans was that it is a city with incredibly obvious dichotomies. The over priced and opulent sits directly next to the ramshackle and dilapidated. I was shocked at the distinct differences, made only more noticeable by their close proximity.
When we first got there and began walking around the streets, I was surprised that many of the people on the streets did not say hello as we walked by. In fact, many people didn't seem to acknowledge our existence. I thought that perhaps there was still a bit of racial animosity left over from Katrina, as most of the people we passed on the street were black, and we are white. But that wasn't the case. As I met more people, I realized that there didn't seem to be any racial animosity. I met people of all races that were incredibly pleasant , friendly, and helpful, and an equal number of people that were cold and distant. However, I met few people that were in between.
The houses were equally dichotomous. A beautifully restored 200 year old mansion stood next to boarded by houses that could barely stand under their own weight. The houseing situation was even worse in the areas hit hardest be Katrina (I did not see the 9th ward, and cannot speak to its current condition). Some of the houses that had been flooded were fully restored and occupied, but I saw a few homes that still bore Katrina body counts.
The famous magazine street was also a surprise. I was familiar with many of the high end shops that called magazine home, through online shopping. I expected the exteriors of these shops to be as opulent as the inside. Instead, I found them distinctly shabby and run down.
I don't want to give the wrong impression, however. Overall, I found the city, beautiful, friendly, and most of all comfortable. I could see how such a city could survive a disaster like Katrina, why many people were reluctant to leave before the storm, and why the cities inhabitants are so proud of it - it feels like home. I felt welcome there, and even as a tourist I didn't feel out of place.
Here are a few of my favorite pictures of things around the city.
Mardi Gras beads in trees.
"Graffiti" as art. 
Tree size bougainvillea.
Inside a cafe on Magazine.
Beautiful home detail in uptown.
Lawn Ornament.
One of the many iron fences around yards.
Crape Myrtle.
Surprisingly tropical foliage (we also saw banana trees in fruit).
Part 2: My sister's new digs
The summer squash pattern had a mistake (it can happen to the best of us right?).
The pattern should read;
Rows 30, 32, 34-39, 41: sl 1, k1, sl 1, then knit all sts to end of row
Rows 31, 33, 40, 42: k1, sl 1, then knit all sts to end of row
I hope this clears things up!
Nantucket Weekend GIVEAWAY!!!!
If you haven't checked out these adorable clothes, you really should, even if you don't have kids.
Another Giveaway from Grosgrain.
Crafting a Life.
Welcome to Gerwerken Crafts, Home of the Hang Your Hat Podcast, and information about DIY, crafts, home improvement and much more.
