Veil of Isis Baby Shawl

This was a planned knit for our new baby. I bought the yarn, a custom dye, from Knitabulous, about 6 months ago. I cast on before Christmas, but it took a concerted effort down to the line to get it finished. I am pleased to say it was finished and blocked with a week to spare.

I used it for the baby last night and he was toasty warm to cuddle for middle of the night feeds.

Pattern: Veil of Isis

I knit the repeats as written, but without beads. It is a very simple lace pattern and lots of fun once you find the rhythm. Although I rarely reknit patterns, I could see myself doing this one, just to try the beads.

Yarn: Knitabulous 2ply Merino lace, in colour “Lemon Crisp”

Ravelry Project page

Secret Nightswimming

This is an old post, written about two months ago, that didn’t get uploaded. I blame pregnancy dementia.

I have never knit a Cookie A design, which I feel as a deficiency, being a sock knitter and all. (She is a very trendy internet age sock pattern designer)

So I cast on Clandestine, by Cookie A, from a recent Knitty. The suggested semi-solid gave me a chance to cast on my first Mayhem and Chaos Socky Goodness. This is yarn I bought from a friend after she did a lot of work organising the Ravlery meet up at Bendigo this year.

Pattern: Clandestine (Ravelry)

Yarn: Mayhem and Chaos Socky Goodness in “Nightswimming

Ravelry Project Page

NB. In this photo I am pretty sure I have these on the wrong feet. I wear them the other way around now, but it was really hot that day, so this was like a speed shot.

Bitey Socks Pattern

As part of the Sock Knitters Anonymous “Sockdown” challenge, I designed a “monster sock” to use up leftovers from other patterns. I intended to have them use up different yarns, but it turns out I only needed two colours for each sock - Knitabulous Softsock in merlot and Noro Kureyon in s150.

The pattern is fairly simple, and I intend to write it up properly once I have two socks finished, but I thought I would share it here now. Basically, it is a top-down sock with a flap heel and wedge toe, using a slip stitch pattern that shows up as “monster teeth.”

Bitey Socks

Can you see the teeth?

Divide your leftovers into two piles (A and B) - light and dark, red and blue, cool and warm. Whatever works for you.

These are (essentially) striped socks using one yarn from each of your groups. When you run out of one colour, then add in another yarn from the same group. You can choose to divide your leftovers so that you maintain the same colours in each sock, or keep them separate.

Slip Stitch Pattern:

nb. All slip stitches are slipped purlwise with the yarn in back.

R1-3:Knit in A
R3 (with colour B): *K1, slip stitch purlwise* rpt until end of row
R4: (B): *K2, slip 1, K1. Rpt from * until end of row
R5+6 (B) knit all stitches

Repeat from row 1. This forms pattern for the entire sock.

The Pattern

Cast on 64 stitches on 2.5mm needles with A. (you will need more stitches than you normally need due to the stranded, in a multiple of 4)

Work K1 P1 rib for 20 rows, 3cm or desired length.

Knit one row in yarn A.

Work bitey slip stitch pattern until leg is desired length. End immediately before a row where you will use the colour group you are planning to use for the heel (A or B).

Heel:

Work flap heel on 32 stitches.

R1: sl1 (purlwise), k1 across flap
R2: sl1 (purlwise), purl across flap

Repeat rows one and two until flap is desired length (or 32 rows), ending on purl row

Turn heel:
R1: Sl1, knit 16, K2tog, k1, turn
R2: sl1, P3, P2tog, P1, turn

Continue in this fashion until all heel stitches have been turned.

Pick up one stitch in each slipped stitch along edge of heel flap. The total amount doesn’t matter, but note it. It will be about half the number of heel flap rows worked.

Work across instep in pattern.

Pick up the same number of stitches along second half of heel flap. You may have to fudge a bit.

Continue in pattern along foot. I kept plain stripes on the bottom of the foot and maintained the slip stitch pattern on the instep only. Keep the instep stitches on one needle and the sole stitches on one or more needles.

Decrease gusset:
Next row (decrease row): Knit to end of sole, stopping 3 stitches before start of instep. K2tog k1 one. Work instep in pattern. (next needle) K1, SSK, finish round.

Work one row without decreases.

Alternate decrease row and plain row until you have 64 stitches total.

Continue in pattern until sock is desired length.

Work toe using wedge decreases.

Slanted Saami

I finished these fabulous socks on Boxing Day. They were my Sockdown December socks, and the marriage of yarn and pattern is great. This colourway is not subtle, but this simple pattern lets it work. And yes, I love flashing.*

• Pattern: Slant, by Hunter Hammerson
• Yarn: Wollmeise 100% Superwash in “Saami”
• Needles: 2.5mm for the leg, 2.25mm for heel and foot
• Modifications: Added an extra repeat on the leg, although it still ended up shorter than my normal socks.
• Memories: These were cast on and almost finished on my Noosa holiday this year, and are my first Wollmeise project.
• Ravelry Project Page

*Flashing: When hand-painted yarns cause colours to stack and swirl. Also called pooling, but I think that sounds more negative.

Baktuseria

I, too, fell prey to the Baktus phenomena. However, despite reading the instructions to work it in sock-weight yarn, I tried it in bulky handspun. This is handspun that I was never really excited about. It ended up nice, but bulky. (Du-uh!). Although it gets cold in Melbourne, I don’t wear thick scarves, so this one languished for a long time.

Finally, I realised that it would be a perfect gift for my snow-field-living sister. So it has been finally blocked and gifted. I will knit this again in handspun, but I will choose something I will love.

And how do you take a photo of these things without a mannequin?

Pattern: Baktus

Yarn: Handspun bulky merino/silk, unknown colourway

Ravelry Project page

Lookie Lookie

Husband Luke needed something special for his birthday this year. He is the sort of guy who only wants gifts with electricity and LEDs in them, which he is much better at buying himself.

So, of course, I designed and knit him some cashmere socks.

They have an arrow motif that points up on one sock and down on the other. They were absolutely gorgeous to knit. I got this wool/cashmere blend from a destash, but I am definitely gonna get some to knit me some socks.

Pattern: Lookie Lookie (Designed by me - and I will publish it soon)

Yarn: Squoosh Fibre Arts Merino Cashmere Sock in “espresso”

My Ravelry Project Page

Of course, he now tells me that handknitted gifts are more like a gift for me than him. I am really wishing that these were my sort of colour, now. (He is forgiven, but I am not knitting him more socks for a while).

Merlot Mystery

October is celebrated on Ravelry as Socktober. In light of this, Kirsten Kapur of Through the Loops hosted a mystery sock pattern. I broke open my first skein of Knitabulous Softsock and had a great time with my first mystery socks.

For those who are unfamiliar with the concept of a mystery sock, the sock pattern is released in four (or more parts) a week apart. When you start knitting, you have some suggestions for yarn choice and gauge, but you have no idea what the socks will end up like.

I love how these turned out. There is faux-cable patterning on the dorsum of the foot, and also down the sides of the leg, which flows into the heel-flap. They fit great and I have worn them for a long day operating in theatre and they were very comfortable.

The yarn is a thin crisp-type sock yarn and would work well with twisted stitches. There is no haze, but it is a bit stiff to work with. I expect it will soften with washing. I thought I was going to have too few stitiches (64st cast on) but they fit well.

Pattern: Mystery Sock 09

Yarn: Knitabulous Softsock in “Merlot Friday”

My Ravelry Project Page

A Warm Hug

I have always been a bit of a selfish knitter - I really only knit presents for people very close to me, and only if they beg. I guess this comes from the fact that my Mum and sisters are also crafters, and so can make anything they would like for themselves. And then there was that disastrous boyfriend jumper, which was worn twice ever.

Anyway, I realised that I have taken this selfishness a bit too far. I have never given anything back to the person who taught me to love handmade goods - my Mum. She taught me to knit and spin, so long ago that I can’t really put a date on either. She helps me acquire a fledgling stash as a teenager, and still lets me rummage through hers, when I am in need of after-hours yarn.

It is her birthday today, and I decided to create something special. I had a number of false starts, but in the end I have made her a hug out of warmest natural alpaca.

I spun this skein in stripes of natural alpaca.

I then knit it into a drapy shoulder shawl - a warm hug.

Pattern: Gaia Shoulder Hug (rav link)

More details on my Ravelry Project Page

Comments: This pattern was written for Noro or similar gradual striping yarn, and uses the colour changes as a point to change to reverse stocking stitch. The idea is to make the shawl reversible. I was worried that the effect would be much different with sow few stripes. It is, but I like it post blocking. I give it to Mum today. Hope she likes it!

(I just want to add that I find it pretty funny to give a shawl to my Mum at the start of summer in the midst of our first heatwave for the year. Facepalm.)

Spintastic

Over the month of October, I did a lot of spinning. When I use a phrase like that, I can’t help being reminded of the German slang word, “Spinner” which means crazy person. Sigh.

Anyway, the first skein was in response to a challenge on the Ewe Give Me the Knits Ravelry Board. The theme was “Steampunk.” I have never deliberately spun anything else but a smooth plied yarn, but I decided to have a go.

This yarn was spun from 50% BFL/bamboo blend from Ewe Give Me the Knits, which I dyed in the crockpot with onion skins. I tried to spin as bulky as I could and plied the single with a silver rayon sewing thread, which was thread with glass beads and ribbon. It is about 10wpi. I called it “Golden Steampunk.“*

The next skein is spun from three colours of alpaca top that I received from Moseley Park in the first installment of their natural fibre club. The total weight was about 120g, and the colours were not equal. I spun it into a striped yarn by splitting the colours in four and spinning them in ABCABC sequence in each single. The aim was to get some sections at each join where the plies were not matched. It ended as 270m at 10wpi.

The final skein I spun in October was a new technique for me. I am unable to attend the March workshops with art-spinning guru Insubordiknit in Melbourne, due to the arrival of a small wriggly child at around that time. So I bought her DVD and worked through the first technique - fat and thin singles. I used an old braid of “wool” that I got in my early stash-building days. It is a great colour, but was a tad felted, which probably didn’t help with the technique. It looks good, but it is a bit fragile, so I need some more practice on this one. I called it “Swamp Rattails”*.

* = It is all Ravelry’s fault that I name my handspun now. It is too hard to leave the “Name” field blank.

A skein of frosted cream

One of the spinning projects I started during Tour de Fleece is finally finished. This is undyed BFL/bamboo from Ewe Give Me the Knits. I was intending to make a traditional three ply sock yarn, as bamboo has cooling and odourising properties. However, as I was spinning this, I has real troubles with the fibre and ended up getting pretty cranky with it.

It is really, really slippery. I tried two spindles and finally swapped it over to my wheel. I was struggling a lot until I decided to Navajo or chain-ply the lot and that made me feel better about it, as I didn’t have to worry about splitting the fibre evenly. By the time I got to that, I was completely over it.

However, I am really happy with the outcome - 340m of white/cream (colour is accurate in the photo below) three ply in about sock weight. It is very soft, and I am guessing not strong enough for socks. I am yet to make that decision. For the time-being, it is just for patting.