After: A Steek is Born

Lynda's finished zip cardigan
Originally uploaded by Loretta.

After cutting the steek, basting and sewing in the zipper. Viola! Lynda's finished zip front cardigan. Now she has a sweater she will wear instead of something relegated to the bottom of a drawer or the back of a closet.

Before: A steek is born

Lynda's first steek before cutting
Originally uploaded by Loretta.

First, we painstakingly counted all the stiches in the front of the sweater. This was made difficult by the fact that it is knit in a very tiny gauge and the chaotic atmosphere in my sisters house. With all of us there talking and laughing and stirring up the dogs, it was pretty difficult to keep on count.

Second, we sewed a basting line down the center front stitch of the sweater. I started it to show her how, then Lynda finished the basting.

Since Lynda is the experienced seamstress, she did the machine sewing. She machine stitched up one side of the center stitch and down the other side.

Contrary to popular fears, cutting steeks will not give you heart failure

Making the first cuts on the steek
Originally uploaded by Loretta.

I was visitng my family and my sister had a beautiful sweater that someone had brought her from Scotland. Problem: the sweater was a turtleneck. She does not wear turtlenecks. We examined the sweater with the possibility of making it into a v-neck in mind, but then decided that it would make a lovely zip front cardigan.

So I took time off from the Fair Isle

Knitted sweatshirt
Originally uploaded by Loretta.

I was doing a bit of traveling and didn't want to carry a million colors of yarn with me on the plane. This was a good project for the trip. It has a hood now. More pictures to come.

It's a Knitted sweatshirt with front pocket. I made it out of Cascade Sierra (50% cotton/50% wool). Based on the Wonderful Wallaby, but with several of my own modifications. I hadn't finished the hood in this picture. It's done now though and very comfortable. As soon as it gets cool again this sweater will get a lot of wear.

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Knit Picks Palette Fair Isle Sampler Cardigan and it's chart

Knit Picks Palette fair isle sampler cardigan and chart
Originally uploaded by Loretta.

Having finished the Sunburst Sweater, I played around with it a bit before I started in on this one. It's going pretty fast (about one stripe pattern per day). I started it last Saturday and have mostly been knitting it on the bus on the way to school and outside on the lawn at school between classes. I suppose I should have been in the library studying, but the weather was so nice it just didn't scream "Come inside and do statistics problems!"

This is done in the traditional fair isle fashion with a steek for the front which will eventually be cut to make it a cardigan. As soon as I get to armpit depth, I'll be inserting steeks for the armholes. I'm pretty sure I'm going to crochet the steeks. I experimented with different steek styles when I was teaching a cardigan class in the Spring of 2004. The crochet steeks were nice and neat and easy to do without hauling out the sewing machine. I do already have the machine out as I was making sand bags for my yoga teacher's studio. But that's another project.

I do like the yarn a lot and the sampler pack is quite nice with all the colors they have. The price can't be beat either. I will definitely make some more things form this yarn.

I'll take pictures of the crocheted steeks when i get to them.

Sunburst sweater Finished

Sunburst sweater front
Originally uploaded by Loretta.

Then I figured out that it's darn hard to get a picture of this one. Much of the interesting stuff is on the back. I had my husband take several pictures of me wearing it, but I just couldn't get what I wanted. I finally took a picture of the back of the sweater with him wearing it (proving what a good sport he is). It's still not exactly what I wanted but oh well. I'm hoping to get a some good pictures of my mom in it when I give it to her. It's a mother's day present, but I'm going out to visit at the end of June, so I though I'd wait and give it in person.

I thought I wasn't going to like the drop stitch bottoms of the sleeves, but it turns out that I do. It makes the sleeves bell out and lightens them up quite a bit. I still haven't knit the i-cord ties, but I was thinking about a button/loop for the inside and then the ties for the outside.

Sunburst Sweater done in time for Mother's Day

Sunburst sweater
Originally uploaded by Loretta.

The knitting went really fast. It was a little hard to figure out how to block and I'm still tweaking around with it. Although I'm not a big fan of drop stitch patterns, The dropped stitches at the bottoms of the sleeves (picture forthcoming), add a nice lightness. I hope my mom will like it.

A sweater is born

What the heck is it?
Originally uploaded by Loretta.

But when you look at it now you think, "What the heck is that thing? Long johns? and octopus cozy?" It's really Knit Picks Starburst Sweater knit in their Merino Style yarn. I started it last Saturday. I didn't have much time to knit last quarter because of my weird schedule. But the new quarter started this week and I can ride the bus to school instead of driving. That gives me lots more time to knit.

I've also bought the Palette Sampler Pack from Knit Picks and I'm going to start the sampler pack fair isle sweater soon. I was thinking about alternating weeks with these two sweaters, but I think I'll finish the right front on the Starburst before I start the fair isle.

This is my first experience with Knit Picks yarn and patterns and I'm very pleased so far. I really love that they have come out with a line of affordable and beautiful yarns. As I've been knitting on the Starburst, I've been thinking of all the other great things I can knit with the Merino Style. The patterns, so far, are well written. The thing I really like about the fair isle pattern is that the charts are printed in color. I much prefer classic yarns to all the new novelty yarns and Knit Picks has a lovely and reasonably priced selection.

Knitted Moebiuses (Moebii?)

More Moebii
Originally uploaded by Loretta.

I got Cat Bordhi's Magical Knitting books this summer and started knitting moebius projects. If you've ever played with paper moebius strips as a kid, you'll know that a moebius is an interesting conpect. Topologically it is one surface with one edge. When you knit I-cord onto the edge of a moebius you will see this demonstrated.

In A Treasury of Magical Knitting and A Second Treasury of Magical Knitting, Cat Bordhi teaches her ingenius method for making a moebius on one long needle. The first book contain mostly garments, like the lotus moebius hats I've made here as well as scarves, shawls and socks. The second book features more containers like baskets, purses and cat beds.

There is something absolutely fascinating about this knitting technique, so if you want an engaging project (or projects, you can't knit just one) start a moebius.

Post-Christmas Knitting and Cleaning

I realize that I haven't posted anything since December 12. I've spent my knitting time since then finishing up 4 pairs of the Urban Rustic Gloves from the Winter '05 issue of Knitty for last minute gifts. After the first pair, I decided that instead of the vent I wanted solid wrist coverage and I added to the wrist length by three stitches. I neglected to take any pictures of the ones I made for my mom. D'oh! Maybe I can get her to take a pic and send it to me.

I took some days off of knitting to rest my wrists, but the time was well spent cleaning out my big closet. You wouldn't believe how much yarn I found buried in there. I also found quite a lot of spinning fibers and (gasp!) some moth damaged items. Here's why knitters and moths are natural enemies. Yikes! I have decided that these mittens deserve a rebirth so I will be re-making them from some lovely brown and cream alpaca that I bought at a yarn shop in Las Vegas a couple of years ago. Take that, moths!

I found lots of lovely spinning fibers in the closet too, so I was compelled to dust off my Ashford Traditional and spin a bit. I forgot how engaging it is. I invested in some organizing drawers and space bags, the combination of which now nicely contains my yarn and fiber stash. I'm ready to get snowed in. Food? who needs it, I have yarn!


Space bag full of fiber









Different forms of silk. Some cocoons, some fibers ready to spin, some of my handspun silk yarn. What can I make from that?







Wool and alpaca fibers, including a skein that I spun several years ago from some really great New Zealand wool. Oooooh! It's going to be a good new year!






In the closet, I found some Dale of Norway Tiur, sport weight mohair and wool in dark purple. I'm trying to duplicate Sophie's "Prithee, which way to the monastery" Moebius with it. I'm knitting it on Size 10 needles, but because of the mystery of the magic moebius technique I won't know the finished size until it's off the needles. I'm hoping for the shoulder hugging size like Sophie's version. Stay tuned for pictures! My dear family was good to me for Christmas (as usual) and I got many gift certificates for yarn and whatnot. I don't know what is more fun, shopping or the anticipation of shopping.

Another Weekend Off From Knitting

Knitting hand
Originally uploaded by Loretta.

After finishing the Urban Rustic Gloves I was trying to decide what to knit next. I have a Wonderful Wallaby started in purple Cascade Sierra. The body is done up to the armpits and I'm comtemplating doing a cable pattern at the bottoms of the sleeves. I can't seem to decide on a cable pattern, so I've set it aside for now until I find something that strikes my fancy.

I always feel lost when I don't have a work schedule or a school schedule. The school break is only 3 weeks, but some days it feels like forever. This weekend, I spent several hours reading about drawing, getting supplies, and doing pencil drawings. I'm particularly having fun with drawing my hands. I remember a really intricate hand drawing that someone did in a drawing class I was in about 25 years ago. It made enough of an impression on me that it has stuck in my mind to this day. One thing that was really interesting was that she showed both of her hands in the drawing and her hands were sewing with a needle and thread on a cabbage. As I remember, the assignment was a to draw vegetable out of context. I haven't tried drawing my right hand yet. After drawing the left hand mudra, I thought of my left-handed friend, LisaTV, who got taken to task in a yoga workshop for wanting to use her left hand in a traditional mudra.

Insomnia Sucks

Even if I can't sleep, I'll usually just lie in bed "resting" until such a time as I either a) eventually fall asleep or b) estimate that it is officially morning and I can go ahead and get up. Option b happened for me this morning at 5AM. Of course I have to put on my glasses and stumble out to the living room to figure that out without turning on the light in the bedroom, which will wake the other members of my tribe. But this time of year it's frickin' dark at 5AM or even 6:30AM. Whoever decided that it was a good idea to make people go into work at 7AM or some such should be hunted down and bitch slapped. Luckily I don't have to go into work at 7AM, unlike some of my unlucky fellow human beings. I know they are out there brushing their teeth (hopefully) right now. Sometimes in the summer I can't sleep when it gets light too early. So whatinthehell is my problem now? TOO DARK?? It's always something.

For the last hour and a half I was attempting to amuse myself by reading people's knitting blogs, something for which I don't usually have very much time. I saw one person's comment about the madness of trying to finish knitted Christmas presents in December and how people don't appreciate how you knit your fingers to the bone for them. However, I learned a long time ago, that it's a waste of my time and effort to knit for people who don't appreciate the work that goes into knitting. A corollary of this universal law, is that it's a waste of time to knit for people who will not wear or care for your knitted pieces, or even those who might (gasp!) banish them to a thrift store. This is why my two fabulous sisters are the lucky recipients of most of my hard work. They appreciate the art and the work. They cherish and care for even the most delicate of knitted pieces. And they WEAR them. Well, it's also lucky that they happen to live in Colorado where it's freezing in the winter. So I can knit them the warmest of sweaters (and socks, hats, mittens, scarves, blankets, etc, etc.)

Urban Rustic Gloves

Urban Rustic Gloves in work
Originally uploaded by Loretta.

There's lots of cute stuff in the new winter '05 issue of knitty.com, but the Urban Rustic Gloves caught my fancy.

I was looking for a quick diversion for my Tuesday night sit & knit group. These are quick, fun and can even be knit with some distractions. It looks like the one ball of Crystal Palace Yarns Iceland will make a pair. I love projects with unusual construction and these definitely fill that bill. They could even be a last minute Christmas gift.

Weekend "off" from knitting

Finished lip balm and lotion bars in mold
Originally uploaded by Loretta.

For some reason I found myself wanting to make lip balm. My friend who owns brambleberry.com , a lovely soapmaking supply company, has told me that lip balm is about the easiest thing to make (and incidentally, has a huge price markup.)

So with a little inspiration and a recipe from notmartha.org, I went down to Brambleberry's retail shop, Otion. I ended up making a few colors of lip balm and lotion bars for stocking stuffers.

So if you have a half hour or so and want to whip up some fun gifts, lip balm fills the bill. You can make girly colored and/or flavored balms. Or you can stick to a basic recipe that even men will love. Hey! guys get chapped lips too.

The lotion bars have slightly different proportions of the same basic ingredients as the balm. And are made by pouring the melted lotion balm into molds. I also picked up some pretty little organza bags at Otion and card stickers at JoAnn's for a nice gift presentation.

Besides knitting, I'm not one of those artsy-crafty people. I generally don't like stuff that makes a mess (or has mess making potential.) But this little set of projects had very little mess involved and it took only a relatively small space on my kitchen counter and simple tools to assemble and process all the ingredients.

Winter is here

We have snow on the ground, a rare occurence for Bellingham . I know that the grass is still peeking through in this picture and that people who live in snowier parts of the world are not impressed. But it's a little deeper today and any day when I get to wear my Sorels is a good day. The kids across the street somehow managed to get enough snow together to build a massive snow woman, complete with strapless evening gown. But she didn't survive the night and is now a massive blue cone.

The multicolor moebius is now off the needles and I've started a pair of silk/wool blend socks. I'm long since bored with plain, rectangular scarves, but I'm finding these moebiuses (moebii ?) endlessly fascinating. There are so many posssibilities for color, style, size and form. Cat Bordhi is correct in her two moebius books A Treasury of Magical Knitting and A Second Treasury of Magical Knitting, this is magic. I have done a couple moebius scarves in Elizabeth Zimmerman's style, where you basically knit a long rectangle, then join the ends with a twist, creating the moebius. But Cat Bordhi's cast on to a long needle with the twist built in adds magic to the knitting. I'd like to think that Elizabeth would have loved it, had she lived to see it. I'll try to get some pictures up this weekend of some of the various moebius projects I've done this year.

Well, with me in my moebius and pa in his cap, the kitties are tucked in for a long winter's nap. Not that they confine their napping to winter! Smokey is doing her monitor top impressionist/Mona Lisa impression and we're about to head out for winter provisions (AKA cat food and yarn). The school quarter is all but wrapped up and I'm trying to talk "pa" into a downtown gallery walk tonight sponsored by the Whatcom Museum.


Despite the darkness and the cold and the short days. I really love winter. It's the height of the knitting season. It's easy to find plenty of days to curl up on the couch with yarn and needles. Cats, yarn, books...Life is good!

Well, it's snowing outside, not as those of you who live in colder climates actually experience snow. But the snowflakes are swirling around in the air and making the road wet. I'm hoping that since it started early it'll be cold enough tonight to actually have some accumulation overnight. It's fun to have a few days to actually put the Quattro all-wheel-drive through its paces. The scary thing is that so many people here don't know how to drive in the snow because they never have had to. I'll probably ride the bus to school tomorrow so I can finish the multicolor moebius.

On the needles this Monday

Moebius in work
Originally uploaded by Loretta.

It's cold outside. There was frost on the ground this morning which is a rare occurence here. So I trundled off to the bus stop wearing the new yorrick scarf, the new lotus moebius hat, mittens, and a sweater under my coat. I felt like Ralphie's little brother on A Christmas Story. But it was a good opportunity to bundle up in my handknits and you never do know how long you'll be at the bus stop or what the angle of the sun will be there.

For knitting on the bus I'm working this moebius scarf out of some hand spun yarn I bought at the local weaver's guild show a few years ago. I'll probably have enough of this for another scarf. Maybe I'll add in something fuzzy for the second one.

Felted yorrick

Felted yorrick
Originally uploaded by Loretta.

It's finished and the Lush did felt really well, all the while keeping it's angora fuzziness. It's going to be fun wearing it when it's dry.

Finished Yorrick

Finished Yorrick
Originally uploaded by Loretta.

It's Sunday and the knitting on the yorrick and my lab reports and pathology presentation are all done. Not a bad weekend considering that all I did on Saturday was go to yoga class and then sit on the couch watching movies and the history channel on TV.

The scarf is in the washer right now felting. I checked it after 10 minutes to cut out the eye & nose strings and it's looking really great. I guess that sometimes it does pay to use the yarn called for in the pattern. Classis Elite Lush really felts great. I think it's going to be soft and warm, which is great as we are getting our obligatory week of cold winter weather. I know that people living in really cold places would be thrilled with just one week of cold weather but what can I say we're spoiled in Western Washington.

Half a yorrick

half-a-yorrick
Originally uploaded by Loretta.

Friday night's knitting. Now all I need to do is knit the other half. Really I love knitting with this soft yarn so much I keep thinking of other things to make out of it as I knit.