Loads of News!

Hi all!  Well I’ve been once again pretty silent these past few weeks, but as always with good reason!  First, I got a job (MUCH more about that below!); second, I promptly got sick after the first week of work; and third, we had visitors just as I had gotten over my fever!  I think frequent use of the bus on my way to work and back is what brought down my immune system, and I went for 2 entire days without knitting.  My friends, that is dire.  But good old Trenty took care of me, and even made delicious homemade chicken noodle soup.  As soon as I was feeling better (great timing!) Trent’s sister Amanda and her husband Brad came to visit from Seattle.  We had so much amazing fun, about which (if you are interested) you will be able to read up on TEO’s and my other blog, The Daily Scotch.  Our crazy escapades w/ B & A will be posted soon, so keep checking!

The other news I had mentioned is most exciting and unexpected:  I got a job at the most wonderful knitting shop, K1 Yarns Knitting Boutique.  I get to play with yarn, help people with their projects, and of course knit!  I’ve been working there for about a couple of weeks now, and I am having so much fun that it is easy to forget I get paid for it.  The shop is located in a gorgeous and historical part of town which is chock full of other fun shops and eateries.  Katharine Walker is the owner and she also has her main shop located in Glasgow.  The shop has a great website off of which you can order wool and patterns as well.   Kath features in our shop plenty of beautiful wool – a lot of which is 100% Scottish and some of the wool here is spun and dyed specifically just for our shops!  Kath encourages us to design and pattern using the wool that we have here, so that patrons can see and touch how the wool knits up and what possible things can be done with it.  So far I have designed 3 patterns and I have about 3 more in the works (not to mention many more jumbled in my head and scratched onto my notepad).  The patterns have been selling pretty steadily, which is an amazing feeling.  They are for sale not only in the shop but also on the website, where I even have my own bio page.  You can also find these patterns on Ravelry.  Photos have been taken by the darling and patient husband who is willing to take time away from his books for as many photos as I require.

1. The Baramdah Cowl:  I designed this cowl / snood  so that it can keep the neck super cozy but also be pulled over the head and work as a hood.  The stitch pattern is reminiscent of lattice-work and was quite a joy to knit. Find it here if you’re on Ravelry!

2. Mistake Rib Beanie:  I must admit I’ve had a recent obsession with the mistake rib, ever since I made my first tea cozy.  I used the mistake rib to make this beanie, which features a brim that can be folded down to cover your ears if the weather takes a chillier turn.  Find it here on Ravelry.

 

3.  Mistake Rib Beret:  See, I told you it was an obsession!  I had enough yarn leftover after the beanie that I thought a beret would be fitting.  It knitted up quite quickly, and the back details turned out quite nice. Ravelled here.

Needless to say, I am so ecstatic with how things have been developing!  I really love patterning, and will continue to post my patterns to my KristenMakes blog as they come!  Deepest thanks to all my friends and family (and most of all my husband) for your support and encouragement that this hobby could blossom into more.  I never really believed you, but your faith in me has helped me to get here.

 

…Cabled Bath Mat

Well we are pretty much all settled into our cozy little Edinburgh flat.  It just needs a few personal touches.  It was fully furnished, even with bedding so there wasn’t much that we needed to do, just a few little things to make this place feel like “ours.”  I am usually all about sewing up some big cushy pillows, but for the time being am lacking 2 things: (1) a sewing machine, (2) any vague idea of where to get supplies here in the city, most importantly, batting.  So the pillows will have to wait.  In the meantime, we found ourselves not too enthusiastic about stepping out of the shower onto gross, still wet towels.  Not too happy with the selection of bath mats at the local TK Maxx (you may be familiar with TJ Maxx back in the states, well here it is TKMaxx), I decided to knit one.  I had found a great pattern on Ravelry that called for fabric in lieu of yarn.  The fabric strips make the  bath mat nice and cushy, as well as absorbent, and of course durable!  The pattern is from CocoKnits. 

Well I didn’t have any fabric, and as excited as I am about fabric being available from the department stores here in our mall, I am also without money.  So I improvised.  We found ourselves with 4 queen-sized fitted sheets (between what was provided here at the flat and what we shipped over), when we really only needed three.  I chose a nice red fitted sheet that we had purchased from Target about 3 years ago, so it was ready for a new life.  Following the tutorial that the pattern provided, I set about preparing the sheet.  First I cut the elastic edge and then ripped the corner seams that give it depth.  Left with a flat sheet that was sort of shaped like a ” # ” (for lack of better symbols) I cut of the sides and started making strips from there.  Eventually the whole living room was covered with red thread and red strips.  Trent was very patient.  I connected the strips and the rolled them into a “yarn” ball the size of my cat (boy wouldn’t he have been in heaven!) and proceeded to knit.

 

It took about 3 attempts before I found the right gauge and size that I liked.  I cast on 60 instead of  26 so that it was knitted from the wide end rather than the narrower end.  This made the cable run up and down rather than from side to side, an effect I am very pleased with.  I also knitted the cable off-center because that’s always fun.  I opted out on the fringed ends because I’m just not a fringe girl.  I think it turned out pretty neat!  The pictures are taken with the bath mat situated in the kitchen because the lighting is much better, but really its new home is the bathroom.

     

Plus, it must be said that this is one of the most enjoyable things that your feet may touch!

 

…An Afterthought Pocket

OK, OK so I’ve been missing from this blog for awhile.  But I’ve still been knitting!  …and I’ve still been blogging.  FOR SHAME!  I’ve been spending my time on a-nother blog?  How dare I?  Well it is withing good reason, I promise.  My husband and I just moved to Scotland, and now that we are finally settling in and getting time to explore, we required a secondary blog with which to keep our friends and family in tune to our frolicks.  Enter, The Daily Scotch.   Beware of the shameless plug for my other blog, that is somehow, NOT about knitting.  Anyway, that has kept me pretty busy, oh, along with the actual moving process and getting to go all about Edinburgh, Scotland to discover new fun things!  So, that pathetic excuse aside, knitterly friends, I am back, and with a pretty good post…  my first HOW-TO!  Wish me luck, and please don’t hate me if my instructions lead you astray, be forwarned this is my first time.

Well, I’ve been working on the Jarrett sweater for TEO from one of my pattern books, Vintage Knits.

 

Its coming along wonderfully, in fact, by all accounts it is finished. But we (TEO & I) looked at it and though it needed something more. POCKETS! I think patch pockets are great and easy to add after the fact, but I wanted something a little more official-looking; something that said, “I intende for and knitted this pocket from the very beginning” not, “I obviously added this thing afterwards.” I recalled reading from Elizabeth Zimmerman’s Knitting Without Tears  about her so-called, “Afterthought Pocket” which is exactly for these situations. You have a finished garment, decide that you desire an official-looking pocket, and with a little calculated snipping, unraveling, picking-up, and knitting… voila! Pocket!

Rather than getting it wrong and ruining Trent’s perfect, practically finished sweater I thought, rather test this trick out first. And, I had the brilliant idea of photo-documenting if for anyone who cares to see (a remarkable few, I’m sure). If you are going to attempt this, (A) read Elizabeth Zimmerman’s version FIRST. Mine is just meant to show photos, not improve upon her way because it is her way and she explains it loads better than I. (B) Read and comprehend all the steps and images first, so that you get the overall concept of what you are doing.

 Step 1:        

I knitted a stockinette square with a garter border. I marked out, based on gauge and my desired pocket’s size, marked out where I wanted it to be. The top of my pocket, I decided, was to have a rib border which I planned to pick up and knit after the pocket’s completion. Therefore, I marked out where the rib was going to start, and where the rib was going to end (end meaning the bottom of the rib border) was to be where the actual pocket top began. This is important because that was where I am to make my snip for step two. Remember, if you are going to have a pocket on both sides of a sweater, measure the same on both sides, so that they are even.

  

Step 2:

Hold your breath, because you will be SNIPPING into your sweater, but it will be OK. Measure the very center of where the actual pocket-bag begins (not where the top of the rib band will be if you desire to have one). My pocket is 10 stitches wide so measuring out the row I wanted to begin the pocket, I located between stitches 5 and 6 of the row, and snipped.

  

Step 3:

Unravel the yarn to the left and the right. You will want to unravel however many stitches wide you want your pocket to be, so that will be one half of the stitches on the left of the snip, and the other half of the stitches on the other side of the snip. You will have live stitches on the row above AND below the row you unraveled. I have a 10-stitch wide pocket, so I have 10 stitches above and 10 below (therefore 20 live stitches total). Pick up those stitches. EZ recommends sock needles but since my yarn was so bulky, I just used size 10 double pointed needles. She says to use 2 needles to pick up the stitches on the top, and 1 needle to pick up the stitches on the bottom. From this point on you will basically be knitting the pocket-bag around.

  

 

Step 4:

Start with the stitches on the bottom and PURL them, so as to create a “good sharp fold-line” for the pocket edge. When you move around to the stitches on the top needles, knit them, and continue to knit the remainder of the pocket-bag. No more purling. Soon you will have the beginnings of a little pocket that looks like it has been turned out. Continue knitting thus, until your pocket has achieved its desired depth.

 

Step 5:

At this point you can sew the pocket closed but I really like the 3 needle bind off. So I turned the pocket to the inside and bound off using that technique. In the pictures, I purled the bind off rather than knitting, but knitting your 3-needle bind off (I later realized) is fine and in my opinion, preferable. Sew down the bottom of the pocket and weave in any ends. I used my ends to neaten up the top edge of my pocket.

 

  

Step 6:

If you do not want a rib edge, you are finished, turn it over and admire your handiwork!

 

However, if you, like me, need a border, pick up those stitches (I did a knit 1 purl 1 rib) and knit your border back and forth to its desired length. Sew it down, weave in the ends, and call it a pocket!

 

Now wish me luck, for I am about to attempt this on the real thing!  Off you go!

 

…time for catch-up

Ok, so I HAVE actually been knitting more than I have been showing in the past few months.  It is sometimes difficult to post everything one makes, esp. when one finishes a project and the next project begins calling ever so sweetly and seductively. 

And so I am playing catch up today!  First on my list:

1. Crumpet Beret
Made from Tahki Donegal Tweed that my husband and my father in law surprised me with after a trip to Ligonier, PA (Kathy’s Kreations!)

2. Clapotis
This was made from leftover yarn from my Minimalist Cardigan. I wanted it thinner and scarfier than the pattern called for, so I altered it thusly.

3. Baronness Beret
This I made when TEO & I went to visit our friends Marc & Sara in St. Augustine. I am always in need of a project on any trip and this time brought several options. Ended up making this little number! Of course I made TEO model it for me, and he sweetly obliged!

4. Sideways Cloche
This is the first pattern I have had a chance to do from one of my Christmas present knitting books, Boutique Knits. It was really quick and fun, and a great chance to use up some stash yarn that I had.

 

…a sweet sweater for Scotland!

This is the Salina sweater from Vintage Knits.

 I made it with yarn from Knitpicks and it is so soft and perfect! I was jealous of TEO’s sweater for its great fit and knitted hems so I redid the gauge to fit my body, and knitted the hems in (Elizabeth Zimmerman-style) rather than having them in the bulky seed stitch. I also altered the collar to stand up rather than lay flat:

 

• I placed all stitches of the collar onto a holder except the last 10 (?) on each end.
• Then I knitted each end back and forth, picking up and knitting a stitch from the holder so that it “ate” up the holder stitches as I progressed.
• When all holder stitches were “eaten,” I grafted the 10 stitches on each side together. In some of the pictures you can see that seam.

   

 

…a Top-Down Pullover

Well, I mentioned in my last post that I was struggling to get back in the knitting groove.  So I decided that enough was enough, head down, power through!  So I started and finished the Leaf Pullover by Bernat in less than 3 weeks!  It was simple and fun, and was knitted from the top down, so I was easily able to make it the perfect length and fit.  Great pattern!

 

 

…my first shawl

Well, readers.  It has happened.  My knitting obsession has finally turned me into a granny. 

 

Proof:  I knitted my first shawl.  I have always thought that shawls were so frumpy and grandmotherly.  When I first picked up knitting needles as a serious knitter, I planned only to represent the cool, young knitters out there.  None of that old world knitting crap.

Alas, I eat my words.  I now like shawls.  Granted, the patterns out there are quite cute and shawls no longer have to be the huuuuge, drapey, mothball-smelling germ-factory that they once were (at least as they once were in MY opinion). 

Plus shawls are pretty flexible.  As my model, Ruby has clearly demonstrated throughout this post, one can wear them as a shawl, or as scarf, or even as a kercheif (which is funnily enough starting to become quite a fashion).

      

The shawl featured is the Arrowhead Shawl from Interweave Knits magazine and also featured in knittingdaily.com.  The pattern was pretty simple and fun.  I think I used berrocco sockease yarn, purchased so generously for my by my mother at the Knit and Stitch Boutique in Cocoa Village, FL.  I also got my first ever skeins of Noro yarn in a really nice off-white colorway.  I’m too intimidated to use it as of yet.

 

…a minimalist cardigan

Probably at least 2 months ago, I ordered some yarn from Joanns.com to make this cardigan.  They sent me about 3 more skeins than I remember ordering, darn!  Anyway, I liked how simple this cardigan is, how it hangs very casually.  It knit up pretty quickly, too.

The moss stitch has some a really nice detailed look.  It’s not too thick and overly warm, even with the yarn being 100% wool.

I like how it’s cropped so it looks pretty cute with jeans, or with a dress.  I think it may be a little too cropped, and I get slightly annoyed that I unintentionally made the sleeves and the hem end at the same point.  Oh well.

    

Modifications that I made to the pattern:

• I sewed down the collar/placket rather than allowing the stockinette stitch to curl and roll under.
• I think I also made it a little shorter than the pattern.
• The sleeves came out too baggy so I (gasp) took it to my sewing machine, sewed in about an inch of seam allowance, trimmed the excess, seam-finished the yarny edges, and steam-set the seam with my iron.  I know this is taboo in the knitting world but I wouldn’t have it it with the sleeves as frumpy as they were.