I just couldn't wait to post about my newest project. Or, should I say, my addiction, obsession, and my own personal black hole for any free time I happen to find. I only started it last Sunday, and today being Sunday again, I have worked on this for a full week, and right now it's getting close to halfway done. I can't wait till it's finished!
In case you're wondering what exactly this project is, it's a triangular shawl that's knit on the bias. That basically means that you increase on one edge and decrease on the other edge, but you do more increases than decreases, so the fabric leans to one side while also getting wider. This makes it drape beautifully and gives it awesome stretch! The pattern calls for two balls of fingering weight yarn, so I have two balls of sock yarn, each well over 400 yards. The green one is Malabrigo sock yarn in the color "Solis", and the red is Miss Babs Yummy 2-Ply in the color "Did You Ever?". The pattern is broken up into three sections, the first of which is simply a garter stitch that forms the first corner of the triangular shawl. You can see a good picture of it in the first picture of the gallery below. The second section is a mosaic diamond pattern, incorporating both colors of yarn. I've never done colorwork with the mosaic method before, it's quite different but I'm liking it. It's so much better than trying to drag both colors of yarn along on the same row, and having a tangle of loose yarn on the back of the design. With the mosaic method, you knit two rows with one color, slipping the stitches that aren't supposed to be that color, then you do two rows of the other color. It took me a while to see the pattern, but I think that's because both of my colors are rather dark. If there was more contrast you would be able to see the patterning better. Also, the mosaic technique of colorwork gives an amazingly stretchy and light fabric, not the dense stuff that other colorwork techniques produce. The third section of the pattern will be a lace panel, using one color of yarn. I haven't gotten that far in the pattern yet, but I'm getting close. I'm so excited to see how the red yarn looks with the diamond lace pattern! The needles I've been using are interchangeable cable needles from Knit Picks. I'm using size 5 with the mosaic pattern and size 4 for the rest of the pattern. I just switched from a shorter cable (probably 36", but I can't remember for sure what size it is!) to a longer one that's 47", to accommodate my ever-growing obsession.... I mean, shawl. And now, enjoy some photographs I've captured of the growth of my little lovely over the past week. I might be biased, but I think it is quite photogenic, from the curve and drape of the fabric, to the rich jewel tones of the two balls of yarn I'm using, to the squishy, lush texture of the stitches and the interplay of the colors in the mosaic pattern. With the rate I'm going at it, I hope to post an update (and maybe "finished" pics) soon! Don't be afraid to be creative, Nicole
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So, I'm doing something really exciting lately... knitting a shop sample for my local yarn store, Yarn Stories! I was so excited when I saw the post on their Facebook page announcing their new shop sample program. I was given some options of what project I would like to make for the shop sample, and I fell in LOVE with the Smaug socks, so that's what I agreed to make! At the time I'm writing this post, I'm about 30% done with the first sock, and I'm loving the pattern and the yarn! As mentioned, I'm using the Smaug sock pattern found on Ravelry, and the shop provided the yarn for the project.... Malabrigo sock yarn in the color Botticelli Red. I confess, I did drool over this yarn for a couple of days before I actually started rolling it into a ball, and when I did start rolling it I was so obsessed that I had to take tons of pictures of the process! So I'm including a slide show below for you all to enjoy the splendor of my newest sock adventure. :) Don't be afraid to be creative, Nicole That's right... it's not even a week into the new year, and I already have produced a masterpiece. In all fairness, I did start it back in October. October 28th, to be precise. The reason I started such an ambitious project in the middle of the fall semester was that I needed it done by Christmastime, because I was giving it to my boyfriend. He loves animals, particularly ones that are large, deadly, or extinct. You may be wondering what exactly an Aurochs is. You might even have googled it in another tab of your browser, if you are anything like me. According to Wikipedia, it is "an extinct type of large wild cattle that inhabited Europe, Asia, and North Africa." They are much larger than typical cattle, which is why my boyfriend likes them so much. Another milestone with this project: I actually managed to write down EVERY ROW in my knitting journal! This means I could actually go back and follow my own instructions to make another one, if the need ever arose! This is a big thing for me because I've made animals before, but didn't write down much of anything by way of instructions, so I have no written record of how I made them! Sumitra the camel and M1 the wolverine are two of these cases. (And you can see pictures of them over in my project gallery!) Unfortunately, these two masterpieces can never be completely duplicated, because there is no way that I can remember each row, increase, and decrease I did in them. Another thing I am very proud about in this project is my shaping. By using short rows on the horns, and clever increases and decreases on the legs, I was able to replicate the curved horns of a real Aurochs bull and the backward joints on the hind legs of all cattle. Well, without further ado, here are the pictures! If you have any questions about this project, my pattern, or the process, you can put them in the comments or send me a message on the contact page. |
AuthorI am a college student who loves being creative and resourceful. I have passions for knitting, subsistence farming, Scripture memory, and anything creative! I hope this blog will prove to be a good creative outlet for me, and inspiring for you! Archives
August 2017
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