Knitting Types and Terms

Here are some words you’ve heard and may not know the difference between. All are known as “traditional” knitting in the sense that the patterns have been used for many years and are passed down from generation to generation. I’ve tried them all, but today my interest is in Lace Knitting.

Aran Knitting uses a variety of stitches to create texture. This is where you see cables and bobbles and twisting vines.

Fair Isle Knitting is based on patterns created with color changes. Think Nordic ski sweaters.

Intarsia incorporates blocks of color. Think Argyles.

Lace Knitting and Knitted Lace are based on structure and openness and are usually of all one color. The difference between them is that Lace Knitting alternates a pattern row with a plain row and Knitted Lace uses a pattern for every row. Both are meant to be blocked to open the holes and create the lace look.

I have been trying Lace Knitting and I find it extremely fascinating. Using size 1 (or smaller) needles and lace weight fiber I’ve experimented with several patterns from my favorite book The Lacy Knitting of Mary Schiffmann by Nancy Nehring.

Above you see a Lacy Tidy (cute name!) and also a sample pattern. Most lace patterns are in chart form. I find this so much easier than written instructions which sometimes take up pages and pages. Pillowcase edgings, doilies, and hankies are not in common use today, but preserving the patterns is important. One of the oldest patterns is called “Shale” or “Shell.” This was taught to me by my Scottish grandmother, Grace MacLeod Chapman Anderson. Like some other basic life skills, I have always known how to do this and don’t even remember learning it.

Watch this space for instructions and more photos at some later date.

The Road to Hell

I had every intention of making a pair, but there is one blue thumbless mitten waiting for a mate. The pattern has gone to live elsewhere and who knows how I made the first one. This may need to be “frogged.” You know, of course, what that is. Ripping the whole thing out, winding the yarn into a skein, washing it, weighting it, and hanging it to dry and starting all over again.

And there is the multi-colored striped afghan I started in Missouri before I moved. I wrote about it in Down Home Musings. Almost finished…but not quite. The purpose was to use up mounds of acrylic yarn I had inherited from various people or had left over from projects of my own back when I used cheap yarn because that was all I could afford. Most of the acrylic is gone now. Maybe I will just bind off.

There is also a green wool scarf waiting to be unraveled. I used up all the yarn on hand and it barely goes around my neck. Two other scarves made for tiny-necked midgets. These will be frogged and worked into a future felting project.

My friend, Lin, (of the Sixteen Color Vest story) knows I am not the best finisher. Once I knit strips of an Aran afghan that sat around for months (years?) before she took it home and finished it for me. Which reminds me I have a box somewhere with maybe 80 crocheted squares waiting to be assembled into an afghan. I started making those from colors I favored in the fall of 1995 while I was living in Scott’s closet. (Another story there.)

Ghosts of Projects Past

In the back corner of my closet is a three drawer cardboard chest that I have had since 1978. You can imagine how beat up it is! Nevertheless, it is still in service and houses three projects started long ago and yet to be finished. Started, that is, before I moved to Oregon. Leftovers from the Terrapin Station years. Two items of clothing and an afghan.

They may be lurking out of sight, but they are still on the radar. Mostly finished, but waiting to be assembled. Pieces of a Homespun Vest that would be really nice to have on these cold days. It involves sewing some seams with a tapestry needle. How hard is that!?

And the Epitome of Never Finished: A Sixteen Color Vest made from beautiful Liisu yarn that I started when my friend Lin visited me in Osceola in 2003. This one is difficult, or at the very least time consuming. All those loose ends from the color changes to be woven in.

Finally…a crocheted Camouflage Afghan [no photo available] that I am making for my dog training pal back in Missouri who likes to go out in the cold and hunt birds and sit for long periods of time in cramped quarters. I have forgotten what size hook I was using, but I still have plenty of cammo yarn.

Soon, the day may come, when I have nothing else to do and I will drag one of these out and finish it. 1) When I got the other Vest pieces out to photograph I realized I would have liked to have the finished product to put on right then. I had actually forgotten about it. 2) I got an e-mail that the rep from Liisu Yarns will be at Rose and Ram Yarn Shop in Independence, Oregon in March. I could take the Sixteen Color Vest down there for technical assistance. And 3) George has been a good friend for a long time and winter is a more appropriate time to send an Afghan to someone who lives in Missouri rather than the hot summer. Progress on any or all of these will be reported here as it happens. Or not.

The Wee Small Ones

Little Brayden Bolden was born October 18, 2005 and I met him when he came to Portland early in 2006. When I learned he was coming, I made an afghan for him and I was so thrilled that his mom, my niece Teresa, loved it and wrapped him in it right away. Brayden, nick-named B-Bo, would have been my sister’s great grandson. I know she would have made him gifts and so I am stepping in to fill the gap. Later you will see a little quilt I made him for his first birthday and then a Christmas sweater. Above is the newborn blanket.

Little (and I do mean little) Maddy Jones was due in March 2006 but came January 14, 2006 way ahead of schedule. A very tiny preemie, but she has turned into a robust and healthy baby. I hurried to finish the baby afghan I was making for her. My friend Kim loved it and sent a photo of Maddy sleeping with it tucked around her.

You have to hurry when making baby things because if you dawdle they are no longer babies. I loved making both of these which are basketweave crochet and I could not possibly tell you how to do it. My friend Lin taught me and I could demonstrate it, but I don’t know how to read or write crochet patterns. Every time I start one, I have to close my eyes and just let my hands go on their own. If I try to think about it, it confuses me.

January Cnyttenings:

Yarn Yoga: We met on January 15th at Craft Warehouse and the ladies (no men in this group although Portland does have a Men Who Knit contingent) showed their felted projects. Guess who did not join in. I just had too much going on to start learning to punch roving although it did look like a great activity for releasing anger. Not too much in Show and Tell. We talked about current trends (socks) and what is falling out of fashion (novelty yarns). I don’t consider those loom things “knitting” but they are a fiber craft and one lady was making an awesome baby blanket on an oblong-shaped loom. The Challenge Swatch for February 19th is Tweeded Mock Ribbing. Pattern will follow in another posting. After I finish it. If I do.

Knit for Fun (Fairview Library): January 2007 meeting cancelled due to major weather considerations as the Pacific Northwest was hit by a major snowstorm.

St. Luke the Physician Episcopal Church Ladies: I admit I missed on both Thursdays, the 11th and the 18th. I wonder who did make it as we are all in the “Senior Driver” category and tend to stay home when the streets are sheets of ice. On the 23rd Karla brought her inventory of felted tote bags. Norma was finishing an awesome black and white feather boa. Arletta churns out a potholder a week with her speedy crochet hook. Some ladies just sit and watch the rest of us and enjoy the collegial atmosphere (and the delicious treats!).

New on the Horizon: A small knit shop called Yarnin’ Around has opened in Gresham right down the street from the Library and there is an open invitation to drop by on Wednesday afternoons from 2:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m. and…surprise, surprise…sit and knit. I enjoyed meeting the owner Ramona and seeing Jen, my friend from Yarn Yoga. I will continue to go to this group as well.

Meet the Kittys

When I am not knitting, I am crocheting or quilting so the projects pile up. Here you see an afghan I made out of yarn leftover from some of my late sister’s projects. That’s my rockin’ kitten…Skye…in the chair. It’s her comfy spot to watch her favorite TV shows…cartoons and NASCAR racing. I don’t know how to read crochet patterns and I don’t know one stitch from another, but if I just pick up a hook and close my eyes and don’t think about it too much, I can make a granny square. A skill learned in childhood that resides in the Compartment of Residuals in my gradually atrophying brain.

In the other photo, you can see a little haphazard quilt and my older cat, Lenny. The quilt was intended to be a sampler of different ways to assemble nine-patch blocks. Lenny insisted on sleeping on the pieces, and then the blocks as they were put together, and then the quilt top. I wrestled it away long enough to put a back on it and some lumpy binding. It is not an example of my prize-winning best work but it works to keep cat hair off the chair where guests sit.

The Hap (Shawl)

The word hap is an antiquated one of unknown origin, which in the Scottish Highlands can be defined as “warm wrap.” It has come to mean a type of everyday shoulder shawl. Haps were almost invariably of a dark color to permit more wear with less washing. Traditional “colors” were grey or brown as haps were made from natural undyed fiber. Haps are very different from the white or cream Shetland lace shawls that were elegant fancy wear.

The everyday hap hung on a hook by the door, to be grabbed and tossed over the shoulders in a hurry as a woman went about chores going in and out into chilly or cold weather for firewood or to feed livestock. Knitting these shawls kept hands busy during periods sitting by the fire at the end of a long exhausting day. And along with socks and sweaters, shawls were a wardrobe staple for the Celtic women of Scotland and the Shetland Isles.

Today I find myself sitting by the TV at the end of a long exhausting day and knitting useful items just as my ancestors did. This hap was made for my dear friend, Rose, who lives in Grass Valley, California. It’s made from soft Brown Heather 100% Peruvian wool on a size 8 36″ circular needle. The pattern is from a book by Martha Waterman called Traditional Knitted Lace Shawls (Interweave Press).

Wrap-It-Up Department

I just finished a hat and scarf for myself. I call it the One-Skein/ One-Day Hat. I made it on Christmas Day while sitting in the corner of my son’s living room and enjoying the leisure of not having any responsibility for anything. To go with it, I made the Two-Skeins/Two-Day Scarf over the New Year’s weekend sitting on my couch and watching New Years Around the World and the Rose Parade on TV .

I bought the pattern and yarn for the Easy Rolled Brim Hat in Friday Harbor, WA before leaving on the trawler for Alaska last summer. One cannot embark on a vacation trip without a project. Knit on #9 needles with worsted weight yarn, it knit up very quickly. Which left me knitting dishcloths for the rest of the trip. (I just happened to have a stash of cotton yarn tucked in my backpack.) The red hat I made on the voyage turned out to be a little large for me, but fit my daughter perfectly. I still wanted one for myself so I bought some Foliage Berroco yarn at Craft Warehouse and voila… the One Skein-One-Day Christmas Hat. The scarf from the same wool is simple garter stitch on size 13 needles.

Here’s the hat pattern: Easy Roll Brimmed Hat (from Island Wools, Friday Harbor, WA)

A simple hat made in stockinette stitch without ribbing. The edge will roll to form brim. Size may vary according to yarn and tension of knitter. If it doesn’t fit you it will fit somebody else.

Materials:
One skein any worsted weight weight yarn
One 16″ size 8 circular needle and one set size 8 double point needles

Directions:
Cast on 88 (L) or 80 (M) or 72 (S) stitches. Join and knit around and around until piece measures 6″-8″ or desired length. (Crown to forehead.)

Place marker at beginning of round. Begin decrease rounds and change to dp needles when circumference is too small for circular needle.
Round 1: K 6, K2tog. Repeat around
Round 2 and all even rounds: Knit around.
Round 3: K5, K2tog. Knit around.
Round 5: K4, K2tog. Knit around.
Round 7: K3, K2tog. Knit around.
Round 9: K2, K2tog. Knit around.
Round 11: K1, K2tog. Knit around.
Round 13: K2tog all around. Then K2tog until only 4 or 5 stitches are left. Thread tapestry needle and pull tightly. Bring yarn to inside and weave in end.

You can try stripes, patterns, different textures, novelty yarns, and add bangles, baubles or beads. Or for those who care for them…pom-poms.

The Red Scarf Project for 2007

I just finished my contribution to the Red Scarf Project. Knit on the diagonal (bias) from a DIY Network pattern with bright red variegated yarn (Bernat Softee Chunky), it went very quickly and will hopefully brighten some foster kid’s life. This is a great effort by knitters everywhere and I am pleased to be a part of it.

Read about the Red Scarf Project:
http://www.orphan.org/red_scarf_project.xhtml

The Pattern: http://www.diynetwork.com/diy/na_knitting/article/0,2025,DIY_14141_4329628,00.html

Get busy. January is almost over!

Knit Happens

From time to time (more and more often, I see) news of my knitting wanders onto my other blog. Some of my readers are not particularly crafty, I know, and don’t care much about the merits of Opal and Koigu yarns. Lately…that would be in 2006…I’ve been pretty involved with sticks and string and it has occurred to me that I could have a knitting blog and put all this fiber jabber there and spare the rest of my readers. Of course, as is true with most all of my life adventures, there are some humorous moments and some that bring tears. Which may, or may not, be something you want to read about. But to add to the fun and novelty of the whole thing, I have learned to use a digital camera. Unfortunately, the truly awesome items I have made have been given away, so the photos are mostly of the tragic mistakes and the ones that never made it to the finish line.

January 2007 has brought some severe weather to Portland and that means I am home more than usual and watching Law and Order reruns and knitting away. I don’t need an excuse to knit, but I am glad the weather is providing one nonetheless. So…welcome to my crafty corner. The name comes from the Olde English word cnyttan which means "to tie, to knot, or to join." The syttan part is self-explanatory.

Sock It To Me

My new project, as if I don’t have enough things going on already, is SOCKS. Well…to be honest…right now it is SOCK singular, but there is always hope a pair will eventually emerge. Kelley, my co-worker at Friends of the Gorge, has been having Stitch ‘n Bitch parties and it seems the younger women are all into making Socks That Rock. She brought me the pattern she has been using, and I found it a great excuse to buy some beautiful hand-painted wool I had been admiring at the Knit-Purl (http://www.knit-purl.com) yarn shop. I only shop there on the rare occasions when I get downtown. Which is where I was earlier this month to meet with Kelley on some website-related stuff.

We talked business for awhile and then switched to knitting. She’s on her third pair of socks from this pattern. I have struggled with socks in the past, including an unfinished pair of garish argyles (yellow, red and black) started when I was in college. Having a Sock Tutor might just make a difference though, and she seems very confident about helping me with the picking-up-stitches part that always has defeated me. So here I go again. On size ONE needles and using Koigu KPPM wool. When will I finish them? Will I wear them IF I finish them? Place your bets now.