Tag Archives: Design

Humpday Update: Designing the Bryce Canyon Shawl

Knoontime Knitting

The design of the Bryce Canyon Shawl is coming together.  I selected two more lace diamonds to incorporate; they’ll start at the midpoint of the center medallion.  I’m estimating the shape on the fly, rather than working it out mathematically; I decided I didn’t want to draw it out but am trusting my gut.  We shall see.

I’m loving the colors and the way the yarn looks in the pattern.  Lion Brand did a nice job with this fiber.

As an aside, my birthday present arrived from KnitPicks and now I’m all excited.  I want to play with it (16 balls of electric dark blue and 16 balls of maple syrup brown), but I’m staying focused on the shawl at the moment.  I don’t know if I want to make one blue sweater and one brown, or do two mosaics with both colors.  We shall see.

But for now, here are some pictures of the Bryce Canyon Shawl so you can see how the design progresses:

This is a picture from last week, and you can see the start of the center medallion.  It will be a diamond and has a 3 stitch border in plain stockinette stitch on either side, with a yarn over (i.e. a hole) just inside that.

The two small clear crystals aren’t beads, those are stitch markers and they sit on either side of the medallion (this is one way you can keep track of knitting pattern changes).  They don’t have to be fancy, and in fact I have several plain steel rings on the needles but I wanted to use my fancy rings for the medallion since I have them and they’re pretty.

They’re actually a little annoying to work with, to be honest.  There’s a bar that hangs down from the ring, and it’s twisted metal.  That’s what is used to attach the crystal.  The problem is that a) it attaches to the stitches sometimes, and b) it gets in the way of the needles when I’m knitting.  I make it work, because I like the way they look as I’m working, but they’re not the most practical of beasts.  I prefer the plain steel rings my husband made for me from heavy-gauge steel wire.

Here is how it looks today. The faux cable look of the center “V” is deceptive; that’s just because the needle isn’t long enough to let the pattern lay flat.  But in this view, you can see the center medallion progressing up to its middle panel (a helix laying sideways that mimics the vertical one you can see).

The little white bit that looks like a scrap of paper on the left is a scrap of paper.  🙂  I was knitting outside yesterday, sitting on the grass by the river, and dropped one of my rings.  The grass ate it.  I spent quit a while looking for it, too, but no luck.

I decided to stop increasing the lace lattice that is on the outside.  Since I’m adding two medallions and they have their own increases/decreases, I stopped adding stitches at the sides and will let it grow from the stitches within the medallions.  I may change my mind once it grows some more, but we’ll see.  (That’s the geometry I mentioned earlier.)

This final image shows the right-hand medallion just beginning.  There are only about 6 rows so far, so it’s not easy to see in this image, but you can at least get an idea of where it will go.  The lattice will continue between the medallions on the sides and the center panel, to keep the overall feel of the shawl consistent.

That’s our Wednesday update.  Happy knitting!

New Shawl Design

Knoontime Knitting

I bought some lovely yarn from Lion Brand, called “Amazing.”  The colorway is Regatta, which is a subtle rainbow of overdyed colors.  I decided to make a triangle shawl with it, using a couple different lace patterns and center diamonds from Barbara Walker’s Fourth Treasury of Knitting Patterns.

In designing, I first tried a swatch of stockinette stitch.  Somehow, I misread the ball band and thought it wanted Size 6 U.S. and made the swatch with those needles.  It didn’t look the way I wanted, especially the honeycomb slipped stitch design.

Then I read the ball band.  Size 9 U.S.

Oh.

Trying it with Size 9 produced better results, but still too dense of a pattern when I knitted a simple moss stitch.  I took that out and played with Vertical Lace Trellis, also by Barbara Walker but this time in her A Treasury of Knitting Patterns.  I added an increase stitch on either side of every even row.  Due to the nature of the pattern, I simply didn’t use a decrease on the one side, but added a make 1 to the other.  While this allowed me to get the correct stitch count, it pulled the design out of shape.

I’m going to pull this swatch out, and try it again with simple make ones, while banding the lace with a simple garter stitch edge.  That will let me center the triangle in the middle, keeping the edges straight.  We’ll see how that works from here.

Fabric As Inspiration

Knoontime Knitting

In working with the Artist’s Way, one of the things we focus on is baby steps.  I am finding that my baby steps are much smaller than I assume they “should” be.  As a friend reminds me, “shoulds” are poison.

It’s frustrating, though, that there are so many relative to sewing.  Putting that aside is difficult.  I went to an amazing fabric store with a friend, the Textile Discount Outlet.  It’s overwhelming and fun at the same time.  They have a whole wall of fabric that’s under $4 a yard, where I found a lovely, satiny black fabric with blue detailing that looks Asian.

The left side of the picture above is the “right” side of the fabric, with the black detailing.  On the right, it’s the dark part with blue detailing.

I love the way the light falls with the fabric drape.  It had different colors depending on where the light hits it.

Here’s a detail of the images on the fabric.  Trees and structures are all over it.  I’d like to make a long vest or jacket with it, so that it can take advantage of the flow of the fabric.

Here’s the reverse; I like it just as much as the other side.

I find it interesting how my inner Critic wants to fight with my decision, though.  I look at the fabric and doubts surface.  I can see that it’s my Critic and not something realistic, but it’s painful regardless.

What do you do to conquer your own Critic?

Update from the Itinerant Knitter

Knoontime Knitting

Our writing group, the Writers Retreat, had a mini-retreat March 4th through the 6th in Indianapolis, Indiana. Authors A. Catherine Noon, Nicole Gordon, Darla M. Sands, and the Pack Rat met for a weekend of touring and hanging out and, of course, writing.
Since I went along, we of course had to do a side-trip to the LYS (Local Yarn Shop). We visited:

Mass. Ave. Knit Shop
Susan Brennan, Proprietor
862 Virginia Avenue
Indianapolis, Indiana 46203
Main tel: (317) 638-1833
Website

It’s a very large store with a big sale room. I found some neat stuff on sale:

di.ve brand, from Biella – Itally, a ribbon yarn that’s full of luscious fall colors and a startlingly bright silver splash. It’s the Luxus line, which is 91% Polyamid and 9% Polyester; I bought color 29204, lot 1496.

I first swatched with garter stitch on size 10 needles. It yielded a very dense fabric, springy and stiff. I didn’t like it, and since garter uses up so much yarn and I only bought three balls, I decided to try something else.

I swatched a pattern from Barbara Walker’s A Treasury of Knitting Patterns called “Vertical Lace Trellis.”

Vertical Lace Trellis
Odd # sts.
R1 & 3 (WS): P
R2: K1 *YO, K2T
R4 *SSK, YO, REP *, END K1

Since it’s only 4 rows, and only 2 of those rows are the pattern row and the rest is purl stitches, it’s a very easy pattern to follow. I’ve done another scarf in this pattern, but need to post some pictures of it. In the meantime, here’s what I’m trying with the Luxus:

CO 3
YO after first and before last stitch, all even-numbered rows; do pattern in the middle on the odd-numbered stitches.

This will create a triangle shawl.

I think I’ll add a bead at the point of the triangle for weight, or maybe some tassels. We’ll see.

Mochi Progress

Knoontime Knitting

I’ve been working away… well, playing away, really… with my shawl.  Here are a couple quick updates.

I’m on row 14 of a 16 stitch sample of rippled rib.  I may extend it past this current spot because I like how it’s shaping up and one repeat of the pattern is a little too little to see.
I’m learning to read charts now, which is getting easier the more I play with them.  I’m using post-its to track the row I’m on and I numbered the stitches on the post-it, which helped me to keep track of them.  I found that to be a lot more helpful than trying to count in the middle of the row.  As long as I kept count of what stitch I’m on in the knitting itself, then I know what stitch I’m on in the diagram.

The stitch in the middle is the cross-stitch pattern that I mentioned in my previous article on this project.  It has less give than other patterns, and would be good for a jacket or something that needs to hold its shape.  I love the look of it, but it’s less loose than I would like for a shawl.  I may continue with it for this project anyway, simply for the practice.

The wavy ribs that I’m working now are at the top of the photograph and in the detail below; I like them in the book but less so on this project so far because it’s only one pattern repeat.  That’s why I think I might continue the pattern through several more repeats in order for it to establish itself on the piece.

This shows the lace in the pattern, but it’s hard to see the rows of wavy ribs that go up vertically along it.  I’d love to try it with a worsted-weight or heavy yarn in a scarf with a couple of repeats width will allow the pattern to really shine.  (This yarn is a lace weight, maybe a DK, but very light.  Worsted-weight is more traditional, what Americans think of when they think ‘skein of yarn’ in the store.)

Box Loff – The Extended Cut

Knoontime Knitting

I found some more pictures.  (Can you tell I’m finally cleaning out my photo folders?)

I finished the stitching on the pieces, and have actually sewn the bottom of the box.  I need to get going on finishing it so I can move on to the next project, but here’s some more pictures of the process:


Here are the four pieces for the sides.

I varied the green, rather than the blue or the brown, in order to get the width I wanted.  I’m using the green to sew up the box, in order to provide contrast and give the design ‘pop.’

Detail of one of the side pieces.  I doubled up on the brown yarn, since it was more of a DK weight than the other two, which were worsted weight (the green, even, seemed a little on the bulky side).

Here are all ten pieces.  The set on the left is for the top, and the right is for the bottom.  The box top will sit down over the entire part of the bottom.

I’m making the box to hold my essential oils from Jeanne Rose, because my cat, Boria, likes to toss them all over the table when I have them all nice and organized.  (Necessity is the mother of invention?  Whoever said that never had a cat!  Defense of one’s things is the mother of invention!)

Here is a close-up of the top of the box:

It’s got quite a bit of loft from the yarn.  Since I’m doing a standard needlepoint stitch, it’s as thick on the bottom as it is on the top.  It gives it a lot of padding.  The plastic mesh, though, isn’t very strong, so it wouldn’t be a good candidate for a box to be carried in a purse.  I’d like to see if there are materials (metal screen, maybe?) that would be good for that.

This is the bottom of the box.  You can clearly see the extra row around the edge where the top of the box, once it’s sewn, will sit down over the bottom.  The outer edge of the bottom will just have a satin stitch around the edge.

Here are both pieces side-by-side; they are 3″ square.

This is the in-process view of the sides for the top of the box.  I did the brown design first because I wanted to see how it would look in the finished product; the reason we used brown was to match the table that it will be sitting on and I wanted to see if that worked.  It does.  I don’t yet have a picture of the box on that table, but will get one once the box is completed.

It’s a little out of focus, but here is a detail of the brown yarn.  It’s held double, whereas the green and blue are just single.

Here is a little better shot of the same detail where you can get a good look at the plastic mesh. 

Here is a detail of all three colors interacting together.  It’s not an arrangement I would have thought of just off the cuff, but I’m glad we decided to put them all together.  I think the finished design is pleasing and it matches the table, so it’s a success all around.

Box Loff Revisited

Knoontime Knitting

As you know, last year I experimented with needlepoint boxes.  When Rachel visited in July, I showed her the box in my office. Later on, we got to talking and came up with a design for another one.

I have several images that I’m tardy in posting, but here are a few.

This first one actually has nothing to do with the box itself, exactly; it’s one of two shots from the impromptu artist date I took the morning I had my perio cleaning.  I was very upset about having to do it, scared and sad, and I decided to go to the park to sit and try to relax and ground.  This was one of the views from my chair:

This is part of the Forest Preserve of Cook County, a huge green space that rings the city of Chicago.  It’s quite beautiful.  We’re lucky to be surrounded by such green; and in fact, the motto of the city is Urbs in Horto, or City in a Garden.

The camera on my telephone doesn’t do a very good color balance with the sun, but the view this direction went into a little shaded grotto-like space I could imagine all sorts of little fairy-like creatures inhabiting.

My chair and the calligraphy set that I bought myself as a present.  It’s not actually a very good set of pens, but I did at least support my art.

Inside the famous knitting bag.  It’s getting very ratty now, and is going to need some surgery on the handle, but I still like it.  (My mother, who died in July of 2000, made it.)

This is the top and bottom of the box, and the side I’m holding is the back-side of the bottom to show the stitches.  The brown matches the brown on my table at home, and the blue is a Brede’s Knot, a symbol of the Goddess, Brede.

Here are the two pieces side by side, to get an idea of the pattern.  We drew it out on paper first, coloring in the boxes, and had a couple different drafts before settling on this one.

Mochi Update – Tunisian Redux

Knoontime Knitting

I decided to change the project I used the Mochi Mini yarn for.  Originally, I wanted to do a Tunisian scarf, but it kept not working out the way I wanted.  I blogged about it here.

Using a design by Cheryl Oberle as a starting point, I am doing a triangular shawl.  I’m using a stitch from Barbara Walker’s stitch dictionary, the second volume, for the middle panel.  In the original pattern, it’s a 35 row repeat of garter; instead, I’m doing a 36 row repeat of the texture stitch.

The funny part is that when I started it, I thought the top was where the triangle was supposed to form.  There is a four-stitch increase every other row, two of which are in the center; which means it’s a mitered corner.

Uh, duh.

You can see I sort of pulled the center out of shape and will have to block aggressively when I finish it.  I think I’ll also add a picot row along that top since in the center there’s only the two yarn-overs to hold the edge, which will be subjected to quite a bit of stress.

This next image shows the mitering and the center yarn-over increases.  I like the striping effect of this yarn.  One thing I don’t care for, though, is the way it knots with itself.  The filament has quite a bit of fuzz that develops pills, and then the yarn knots on itself.  I’ve already had several severe tangles in just this first yarn ball and, despite the appearance, won’t work with this yarn again because of that.  It’s just not worth the time to untangle everything.

This shot shows the four row texture repeat from Barbara Walker’s guide.  I like this stitch a lot and think I might make a regular scarf in a rectangle to show it off.  It’s got an interesting slip stitch pass over that makes the horizontal bars; it reminds me a little of Tunisian because of the square shape.  In a worsted weight yarn, I think the texture would show up even more.

Update on Design

Knoontime Knitting

My bag is coming along. I’ve finished the main body, and put in a round of purl stitches for a fold. Then the lining is stockinette.

The unit is 12″ wide, 9″ deep, and 0.75″ thick. This view shows the 12″ width. I’ll need to block the outside, the 9″ part, to make sure it fits. I’ll pick up stitches at the top and add an envelope closure, and probably make a button.

This view shows the lining inside the bag. I couldn’t get it down inside deeply because of the needles; while I could slip the stitches off to a string as a holder, I don’t really need to see how it works since I can size it by putting the unit itself inside to ensure it fits.

This shows the ridge of the purl row separating the pattern fabric from the lining. You can even see in this shot how the lining leans away from the body. That will make the lining sit down inside without tacking.

I’ll update soon with more.

What Am I Designing Now!

Knoontime Knitting

I have an AlphaSmart 2000 portable keyboard that I use to write while I’m on the train or the bus. I got to thinking, it needs a cover! I knit!

These two things taste great together!

So. Here’s what I did:
I knit a gauge swatch on size 7 dpn (double point needles, the kind used for making socks). I got a good gauge from them, but realized when I started to cast on that 100 stitches wouldn’t fit on them.

I knit a gauge swatch on size 9 circulars, 24″, without really thinking about the length of the circular part. I realized, though, that if my circumference wasn’t 24″, I was toasted when I wanted to cast on since I wanted to knit in the round.

The third time’s the charm. I found my size 7 circulars with I think 8″ or 12″, and knit a gauge swatch. Then I figured, 9″ x 2, plus 1.5″ is 19.5. Make it an even 20.

Just a smidge too small to make it around the circular part. The unit is 12″ wide, though, and even though I originally wanted the stitches to face the other way, 12″ x 2 + 1.5″ works on circulars that are the length I have, but only just barely.

I did a knitted cast on and realized two things: I should have cast on one needle size up, since it’s a pretty tight cast on, and that the knitted cast on curls just like stockinette fabric does, even if you use a straight weave for the fabric itself. This isn’t a bad thing, exactly, it’s just a thing – but I got to thinking: next, I want to try a ribbed knit cast on, and see if purl stitches work as well as knit stitches, to eliminate the curl.

I have about 4.5″ on the needles now, and today decided to make sure it “fit.” That’s what this picture is:

I like the fit quite well, actually. I think I’ll do two rows of reverse stockinette, then another 9″ of plain stockinette, for a lining; finished with a 3 needle bind off. The closure will be picked up and knitted into a triangle, with a button closure. I need some sort of window cover for privacy, but I haven’t worked out yet how I want to do that.

The stitch for the body is a garter rib stitch: 1 row of rib, 1 row of knit. That gives a purl bump in the rib columns that’s pretty but retains the elasticity of a true rib.