She Was Twisted

I have found that the urge to go out to eat on my lunch break becomes null and void as long as I have an exciting knitting project with me. Knit AND save money? Cha-ching! That TV dinner that I brought to work with me suddenly seems A-OK.

I actually snapped this photo a few days ago, of the beginnings of the Fast Track Handbag by the lovely Nikol Lohr. I’m knitting with my corespun yarn from a few post back. I still have to handles to do and it is complete. Will post pics soon.

Next!

QUICK! SOMEBODY PUT SOME PANTS ON THAT POOR BOY! is what the caption should say. ha ha. Yes folks, this is a real vintage knitting pattern. Always entertaining!  (the sweater and vest are really cute though!)

I’ve been experimenting with corespinning lately, and I’m just loving the effects. But I started to wonder whether all the extra time and effort was worth it. Let’s take a look:

First, what is a corespun yarn?
In my own simple way of explaining things – A corespun yarn is created when you wrap your fiber at a 90 degree-ish angle around a center core, usually a thin cotton or wool yarn. You can control how tight or loose and fluffy you want the wrap to be by controlling the amount of twist with your treadling. (something I am still working at.) The effect is quite lovely, as it takes on an appearance all on its own.  …or does it?

These 2 skeins were created by using one of my crazy batts, split in half. One half is spun into a super bulky single (left), the other is corespun around a cotton thread (right). As you can see right off the bat, they are quite different in appearance. Also, the corespun yarn is almost twice the size of the regular spun yarn. (the cotton core is the same yarn you see in the photo that I used to tie the skeins – not thick at all.) Nice! Now do remember that I am a beginner corespinner, so mine is not quite wrapped at the 90-degree angle it should have probably been. I kept finding myself trying to angle my fiber supply down as I normally would. Habits! So moral of the story, is that I’m sure as I practice I will get a more distinct wrap.

Before spinning, both of these batts weighed 1.6 oz. I was able to get 50 yards from the corespun, while only 26 from the regular spun. (Do note, however, that the regular spun is a tiny bit bulkier, so take these numbers with a grain of salt.) Corespinning does indeed stretch the life of your fiber while creating a lighter and fluffier yarn.

See the difference in the twist? The right (corespun) has more of a distinct barber pole effect than the left. (regular spun) If you were to hold these two skeins in your hands, you would be amazed with how soft and fluffy the corespun yarn is. It is just gorgeous!

Now the burning question? Is it worth it?
It took me about 40 minutes to spin the corespun, vs. a merely 20 to spin the regular. I’m sure as I spin more, I could get faster, but not too much. It does take a lot more effort and time to corespin, in my opinion. However, look at the yardage! Talk about being able to extend a precious fiber!  So YES, I think it is indeed worth it if you do not mind the extra time and effort. It creates an incredibly soft yarn with a nice round shape, and perfect balance.

I think I will spin some more!

Test knitting with your own handspun is the best ever. You get to spin something you might not otherwise spin – all for yourself. This one is not too daring, however. All I did was spin scraps of handpainted rovings, separated by a solid color, alternating thick sections with thin sections. I didn’t pay any attention to what colors worked or not. I just grabbed one after the other. So far, so good!

Eventually this will be a neck warmer-type thing. I’m hoping I have enough yarn to get the length I need. Good stuff!

I spun this yarn years ago and knitted it into a scarf that I didn’t like. Too loose a gauge and too much shedding. So I ripped it out and decided to try again with some mitts knit at a tight gauge. Loving it so far!

Here is a quick and beautiful way to stretch your handspun yarn by using a coordinating sock-weight yarn along with your handspun. It adds a nice lacy feel to the scarf while keeping it light and airy. I used 30 yards of my super-bulky single-ply along with a skein of navy blue sock-weight wool yarn. My finished scarf is 3.5″ wide and 4 feet long. -just long enough to tie or wrap around my neck. Use more handspun for a longer or wider scarf.

Note: This is the first pattern I have ever written, so bear with me and its clunkiness.

Stretch that Handspun, Scarf Pattern
Yarn A: bulky or super-bulky handspun, 30 yards or more.
Yarn B: sock, sport of DK yarn. Partial skein.
Needles: US 11

Gauge is not important.

CO 10 stitches. (For a wider scarf, cast on 15-20 stitches.)
Row 1 – 3: Knit with Yarn A. (A)

Begin Pattern
Row 4: Purl with yarn B. (B)
Row 5: Knit (B)
Row 6: Knit (A)
Row 7: Purl (A)
Row 8: Purl (B)
Row 9: Knit (B)
Row 10: Purl (B)
Row 11: Knit (B)
Row 12: Knit (A)
Row 13: Purl (A)

Repeat rows 4-13 until desired length or until you have about 3 yards of handspun left.

Knit 3 rows.
Bind off.
Enjoy!

Notes: When you get to row 10, carry Yarn A (handspun) up the edge of the row so you do not have a large loop when you start row 12. I purposely designed this scarf to alternate knit and purl rows so it would not curl on itself.

Now some more pics:

Knitting!

The sun was shining, it is warm and lovely – you couldn’t ask for a better day. Well, except for the fact that I am stuck inside working.

I actually completed these socks many months back, but never got around to blogging about them. Aren’t they gorgeous?!

These were my first socks knit from a Knit Picks sock blank. I followed the pattern, Two at Once, Toe Up, Magic Loop Socks. A very easy knit! (If you are seasoned in sock knitting.) I’m mentioned before that knitting with a sock blank is the best ever. Plus, you can control the color striping, which is what I loved. Here is what the blank looked like after I dyed it. You can see the beginning of the knitted socks at the bottom:

The only problem I had, is that I did not squish the dyes enough into the yarn. This made it knit up much lighter with white speckles where the dye did not go all the way through. I still love how it turned out, however!

Definitely something you should give a try, if you love knitting socks with simple stripes. I’m on my second pair now. Will post pics of the new socks soon!

I bought a set of  Knit Picks Interchangeable Needles about 6 months ago, and of course, I just love them. The needle case that comes with them, however, has MUCH to be desired. So I set out to make one of my own.

Here is what I did:

I found a $10 wallet that had the perfect lineup of pockets to put the needles, cables and what-nots. Then armored with a big needle and thread, I sewed on a strip of  1/2-inch elastic band for two rows of needles. The sewing part is hideous, due to the fact that I was having to push the needle through thick vinyl, but it does the job. I can tip the case upside-down when it is closed, and the needles tips do not fall out. There is room for many other notions too. Perfect! I just love my case, and for $10 plus some minor labor, you can’t go wrong. Here are some more pics:

Pretty sweet, huh? I dig it.

I loved knitting my last pair of sock blank socks so much that I decided to knit another pair. What is a sock blank? Let me enlighten you!

Here is one of the reviews from Knit Picks:

“Anyone who’s ever hand-dyed sock yarn, or knit from a skein of hand-dyed sock yarn, has been bedeviled by pooling colors. Knit Picks has a new product which takes the guesswork out of dyeing sock yarn. Sock Blanks are pre-knit tubes of undyed sock yarn. You dye the pre-knit tube with the stripes that you want, then knit your socks directly off the tube. Somehow this seems like cheating, but in a good way.” Yarn Scoop

Here is what my blank looked like after dyeing:

Things I love most about knitting socks from a sock blank:

1. You can easily dye stripes and patterns.
2. It is double stranded so you can knit two socks at once.
3. When knitting, the yarn does not twist and tangle the way it does when knitting from two separate balls of yarn.
4. You end up with two identical socks.
5. It keeps your knitting interesting without the need for any pattern repeats.
6. Provides endless mind-boggling for others trying to figure out why in the world you are creating TWO knitted pieces without any yarn in between.

Definitely give it a try. I’m not sure if I will ever knit any other way. Yes, I’m that impressed.