Joyce Makes Art – Page 23 – Elliebelly Knit & Dye Works

How Your Gauge Impacts Your Success As A Knitter

Posted on November 24, 2014 by Joyce Makes Art

If you are knitting a scarf you probably don't care about what your gauge is. You'll take the finished item, wrap it around your neck as many times as it will go, and move forward in life feeling warm and happy.

But for just about any other item you might make, you care. Trust me. You really should care.

Yes it's a hassle to swatch. And even more so, to block and measure your swatch. For the math challenged among us, deciding what to do when your gauge is not identical to the pattern gauge can be a problem.

Here are a few principles and thoughts to make your life with gauge a little bit easier:

Let's envision you're going to make a garment and the pattern calls for you to Cast on 150 stitches. You swatch, block, and measure:

if your gauge is 3 stitches to the inch, your finished item will measure 50 inches

if your gauge is 5 stitches to the inch, your finished item will measure 30 inches

if your gauge is 10 stitches to the inch your finished item will measure 15 inches

*If you get more stitches to the inch than your pattern calls for, your finished item will be smaller that it should be

*if you get fewer stitches to the inch than your patterns calls for, your finished item will be bigger than it should be

How do you fix gauge problems? One solution is to switch your needle size to get a different gauge:

If you switch to larger needles, you will get fewer stitches per inch and a bigger garment

If you switch to smaller needles, you will get more stitches per inch and a smaller garment

There are some variables here — you have to make sure you like how the fabric looks and hangs when knit on the new needle size and that it produces a fabric that will work for the item you are knitting. And, if you are like me, your gauge may not change a lot when you move just one or even two needle sizes. You may ultimately have to conclude that you are not going to be able to use your treasured yarn for the project you have in mind.

Some knitters have great success by deciding to knit a different pattern size. If they are persistently getting more stitches per inch than the pattern calls for, the move up a size or two on the pattern to correct. You can make this work if you are rigorous about doing the math.

More on gauge, with some swatched examples later this week. I'm hoping that if I write it all down I can refer back to it over time, and do better. I hope this helps some of you all as well! Please chime in with comments about gauge and any knifty knitter mathfu tricks you have to share.

Nevermind. My First Project With The Plucky Knitter’s Yarn.

Posted on November 23, 2014 by Joyce Makes Art

This is the start of my Nevermind hat, which took all of two days to knit. In addition to being a delightful pattern, this is my first finished object using yarn from The Plucky Knitter. The yarn is called Snug. It is a bulky blend of merino, cashmere, and alpaca. And it is heaven.

The finished hat is warm and cozy. The yarn is so soft — it seems to bring out the best of each fiber and produce a dense knit that seems unlikely to pill. Make sure you block this yarn to bring out its fabulous drape.

I've put in my order for more Snug to make sure I have the pleasure of knitting with it all winter. In one quick hat, it became my new favorite yarn.

Swatching and Knitting

Posted on November 19, 2014 by Joyce Makes Art

I'm having one of those "cast on all the things" weeks. I like weeks like this — sad about the demise of my Flyaway Hoodie (at least until I figure out the proper size and needle size and cast back on), I decided to start several smaller projects so I would have some instant gratification and knitting always ready and at the go.

(1) The Nevermind Hat. Cute Cables. And oh my goodness, the yarn! My first project with The Plucky Knitter Snug, a mix of merino, cashmere and alpaca and I want to marry it!

(2) Olivia. I need a wrap like this so much! Something to wrap around myself on a cold winter's morning and relieve the tedium of all the black I wear to work! Olivia is going to be beautiful (if I can just get my gauge right for creating the perfect warm but slightly drapey fabric).

(3) Wilde. I like this cowl. It has (subtle) stripes. I don't know how to knit stripes — I always get that funny uneven jog when knitting in the round. So this time I'm going to buckle down and figure out the jogless stripe trick that every other knitter in the world already knows.

A word about this yarn: It is Blue Sky Alpaca's Metalico and I really love it. I purchased it for another cowl, but it was too lacy and not the warm neck hug I wanted. I think this pattern will be a better fit for me as the polar vortex descends on Alabama again.

I love starting new projects and that comfortable feeling of projects all ready to be picked up on a moment's notice for a night of happy knitting. I still plan on casting on at least two more projects before the end of the year, this capelet and this skirt, as well as starting over on the Flyaway Hoodie.

A Sad Day For Sweaters

Posted on November 18, 2014 by Joyce Makes Art

This really isn't my day for sweater knitting. I've been trying to fight this conclusion over the weekend, but yesterday, I finally conceded the obvious to myself. Despite a good gauge swatch, my Flyaway Hoodie is way too small. In fact, now that I have a back-sized swatch, I measure and learned that it is only 4/5th the size it should be — making it too small for my daughter as well.

The cables are very lovely, aren't they? I've enjoyed knitting it so much! I've been vigilant about switching skeins every other row to ensure there is no deliniation between the hand-dyed skeins. I've meticulously ensured my cables cross the correct direction — each and every time. I'm in love. Now I'm going to frog it.

My poor teensy sweater that was never meant to be.

Plucky, Plucky, Plucky (The Plucky Knitter, That Is)

Posted on November 17, 2014 by Joyce Makes Art

Six months or so I stumbled across a yarn brand I had never head of before, The Plucky Knitter. The colors looked intriguing, the prices looked high. But, as I kept seeing mention of this yarn in patterns I was looking at or projects I came across, I started to read more.

The dyer was experienced and reliable. She had developed such a following over time that she was having yarns custom milled for her. And the yarns themselves were wonderful blends — merino and cashmere, merino and silk, and a few with yak or other wonderous fibers mixed in.

And, then, of course, I shopped.

The yarn is sold in a clever way, through blog updates that center around color, fiber, new pattern, and other themes. There is a bit of a carnival atmosphere and it's almost as fun to shop as it is to open the boxes when they arrive!

I'm planning to knit a shawl in one of the yarns I've just received as my first Plucky project. But I can tell just from looking and fondling this yarn that I'm hooked.

Outlander Knitting and The Polar Vortex

Posted on November 11, 2014 by Joyce Makes Art

With rumors of another polar vortex-like episode of cold weather headed for the deep south, I decided I needed a quick, but densely warm cowl, to get me through the next few weeks. I've knit several cowls that mimic the look of Claire's beautiful Sassenach cowl, as she works her way through the Scottish Highlands in the Outlander series, and I decided a modified version would be just right.

This pattern is so easy that I knit it during a drive yesterday (I was obviously a rider, not the driver), and had it ready to wear by evening. The yarn is Bulky Blue Sky Alpaca and I held it double-stranded. I used three skeins of yarn for this cowl, dividing the last skein into two even parts. The pattern is very simple: Using size 35 needles, Cast on 16 stitches using your favorite provisional cast on (I like Lucy Neatby's, using a crochet hook, which you can see here). Knit in garter stitch, i.e. knit every row, until you are almost out of yarn. You will finish the scarf with Kitchener stitch, for a seamless join. To do this, you need one length of yarn (no double stranding for this part), that is three times the width of your work. Even if you don't like to Kitchener, you can manage it for 16 stitches, and the result will be well-worth it.

For the larger cowl worn by claire — one that is long enough to twist around your neck a couple of times or spread out along your shoulders, you will want a longer cowl than this one. The modification is simple — this cowl is very bulky because of the double stranding, but using the same quantity of yarn, held single, you can produce a longer cowl that is easily wrapped around your neck.

Finally, a word about the yarn. Recently, I overdyed a sport weight Blue Sky yarn in this same pink colorway for a friend, and got a lusterous result. That yarn had silk in it, and I thought that might be responsible for the sheen of the yarn. I was curious as to whether I could replicate the result in a yarn that lacked the silk content. I tried it with this bulky yarn that is 50% Alpaca and 50% wool and you can see the result in the picture at the top — it's a deep, shimmering blue. I'm as pleased with the cowl as I am with the yarn, and look forward to staying warm through out the coming weather event.

Two Knits in Need of Blocking

Posted on November 7, 2014 by Joyce Makes Art

I finished two long-running knits this week, and although they aren't blocked yet, I couldn't wait to share them.

First up is my Lida linen shawl, which is going to be insanely beautiful once it is blocked out. This took me forever, but between carefully blocking out the pattern (which was a bit confusing) and using stitch markers to keep the repeats marked off, it got easier and easier and was a truly enjoyable knit.

I've also finished the Antler sweater, which needs buttons sewn on after a good blocking. I have some sweet little wood buttons and can't wait for this to be complete.

The sweater will be easy enough to block because it's small, but the shawl is so large that it won't fit on even my large folding blocking board. I'm going to scavenge some of those foam pieces the kids use and see if I can use them to extend it enough, because Lida is going to require some serious blocking.