'web knits

Hiatus

2011-02-10T19:31:00.000Z

So I refound my knitting mojo, only to lose it again fairly swiftly. I'm having to do a lot of lying down now as my ankles swell up so much, and my back and ribs hurt. You are supposed to lie on your left side where possible, and that means I'm at the wrong end of the sofa for my knitting light. Plus its hard to knit lying down :-(

But I have a date for being induced now, so don't have long to go.

My knitting group were amazing, and I have a hand-made quilt, bibs, changing bag and a knitted purple and black outfit, complete with skull and crossbones on the jumper. All made of win.

So no knitting progress to report, but baby is coming along well :D

Something finished!

2010-11-20T21:14:00.002Z

cowl_1
Originally uploaded by cob_web

I finished my Forest Canopy Cowl. I picked up this yarn in America, and had NO IDEA what to do with it, it just had to come home with me. But this pattern was written for it. WIN! I Did the smaller size, which was a very good idea as it is a little loose. Nice pattern.

Hello World

2010-10-30T11:29:00.002+01:00

Well I haven't been blogging lately, neither here nor LJ. Indeed, I haven't been doing much of anything, other than incubating a bean. Yes, in case you didn't know from other places on the interwebs, tomorrow I will be 22 weeks pregnant. Its been a long journey to get here, and I am finally accepting that there might be a real live baby at the end of it all. Various problems + my diabetes have made this a rather stressful adventure, but the 20 week scan was all good, and little ninja-bean appears to be a boy. Which kind of sucks as I don't like boys names and had a sizeable list of lovely girls names! But quite frankly what sex it is has been the least of my worries!

Knitting has most definitely taken a back seat, and dying even more so (indeed, my best dying pan is on long term loan to a friend). I've been too brain dead and tired to do anything other than flump when I get home from work.

I have recently picked up something I started for a friend's bump (I won't link to it yet as I think this gets picked up by Buzz). The pattern is so shockingly written it really is evil, but I want to get it finished to a) find out if my bodging was successful and b) it will be so cute and perfect for the recipient that it just has to be finished. I've not knit anything for my own bean, all the knitting I touch seems to break. Even a simple cowl I started at 12 weeks, thinking it would take my mind off things I have messed up and can't face ripping back.

So yes, its been a knitting disaster area lately, but hopefully I'm getting back into it. Who knows, I may even be able to knit something for bean before he arrives and chaos descends!

Sock Yarn

2010-05-15T15:18:00.002+01:00

Do you think I have enough?

Top row (left to right):

Lidl sock yarn (x2) dyed with logwood;
Nice sock yarn dyed with logwood;
Nice sock yarn dyed with some other natural dye I forgot;
3 skeins dyed with acid dye;
Koigu (x2) (from New York)
Malabrigo sock (x2) (from Boston)

Bottom row (left to right):
Noro Kureyon sock (x2) from Tokyo
Noro Silk Garden Sock
Noro Kureyon sock
My first ever dyeing attempt using easter egg dyes
Zauberball
Abstract Cat sock
Fyberspates (x2)

Natural dyeing

2010-02-06T13:55:00.001Z

P1010905
Originally uploaded by cob_web

A few weeks ago I dyed up the really cheap sock yarn I got from Lidl ages ago. The logwood at the bottom turned out the best. The middle is madder powder, so not at impressive as the madder bark I used a while back. The top is also supposed to be a red but.... yeah. Thems the breaks with natural dyeing!

Not sure what to do with this as the yarn is a workhorse yarn, and very rough and ready. I'm knitting the logwood up into a shawl as I like the colour, but it is rough! The other colours aren't really my thing, but I can't sell it.

Paraphernalia

2010-02-06T13:46:00.002Z

P1010886
Originally uploaded by cob_web

I finished these socks a little while ago and they are lovely. The pattern is Paraphernalia and is really nice. One word of warning, the pattern doesn't have any finished dimensions, and it was only by luck that I didn't follow the pattern to the letter - they'd have been knee length! But without calf shaping. Other than that small niggle I'm so pleased with them.

The yarn is Dream in Color Stardust, an "experimental" yarn. Subtley sparkly, and such a gorgeous colour. The yarn was nice to knit with, although was occasionally a bit thin, I got the feeling it was overspun at those spots. Can't tell in the finished object though. The yarn was a gift, which made them extra special to knit.

healing socks

2009-12-28T15:00:00.002Z

healing socks3
Originally uploaded by cob_web

Apparently I didn't post my finished socks! These are the spiralling socks pattern from The Knitter. Lots of new things for me here, knitting toe-up, after thought heel, and the spiralling method (thought up by Grumperina I think).

Loved the toe-up method, although the turkish cast on was tricky without 2 circs! I bought some for sock number 2! They are a bit short, but not too short, and I like the afterthought heel.

Shame the 2nd sock found a knot in on of the balls of yarn, which gives a disjointed effect, but I still like them.

The Zauberball was interesting, a bit thick and thin in places, and doesn't strike me as particularly hard wearing. Love the effect though!

When they were washed they twisted a bit, probably due to the spiralling nature of them.

More socks

2009-12-28T14:46:00.002Z

P1010857
Originally uploaded by cob_web

With the lovely dream in colour stardust yarn given to me when I was going through a really hard time in November by my friend Kate I have cast on some Paraphernalia socks.

There are no measurements in the pattern, so it wasn't until I got to the end of the chart for the 2nd time that I realised these socks were going to be a strange length. Mid-calf - so not knee length but somewhere in the middle. I wasn't keen on that so I completely ignored the instructions about dong a 3rd repeat up to a certain point before starting the heel. Fingers crossed this doesn't screw things up later!

Shroooom!

2009-12-24T17:46:00.001Z

P1010861
Originally uploaded by cob_web

So I made a hat from the latest Knitty. Matt laughed when I first put it on. Oh well, it was a fun knit.

A hat for Pip

2009-12-13T15:07:00.001Z

piphat3
Originally uploaded by cob_web

I have no idea what to get my friend for Christmas, especially since she said she doesn't want anything for herself, and she can't eat diary at the moment so chocolates are out and she doesn't drink alcohol. So I decided to knit a hat for her baby, Pip. Pip is 7 (probably 8 now) months old, and the pattern (Umbilical cord hat from Stitch n Bitch) was for up to 6 months. So I added an inch in diameter and knit for a bit longer before decreasing.

I hope it fits!

More Aliens

2009-12-13T15:03:00.001Z

Kate Alien
Originally uploaded by cob_web

and another one...

aliens!

2009-11-29T19:44:00.001Z

aliens!
Originally uploaded by cob_web

I'm making lots of little aliens to add to gifts at Christmas. I am putting them on keychains as they are small enough. I think they are really cute! Being me I want to knit them all out of different yarn, but its proving tricky! The pattern calls for DK, but I just don't have much DK. As each one only takes about 10g of yarn I can't really justify buying yarn, even the cheapo stuff is more than £1.50 a ball - and that is for 100g! I don't need 100g!

Sock yarn doubled is working OK, but it is very tight to knit. I could go up a bit to 3.25mm, but then they'll be larger, and I like them being very mini.

The Naked Sheep

2009-11-29T19:39:00.002Z

The Naked Sheep
Originally uploaded by cob_web

So, yesterday my mum took me to the Naked Sheep, along with my sister and brother-in-law. Matt stayed at home to watch tennis. Anyway, it was a lovely little place!

I went to school in Buckingham, but haven’t been back for years, and it is a nice little town now. The shop is near Stowe Landscape Gardens, so if you are into that sort of thing the two combined would make a nice little day-trip. If not, Buckingham has some nice little shops now, there was a quilting shop with some yarns in, and some gifty/boutique/gallery type places.

Its a nice drive out of Buckingham to the farm, as you drive up the road towards the gate to Stowe, which is impressive.

Once at the farm, we had to negotiate the free range chickens (they have 6000, and some are more free range than the rest and just roam around the farm as they like). Once parked we decided to do the Naked Sheep first incase the others had to leave me there while they went to the farm shop! On the way we got sidetracked by the Alpacas, who were gorgeous! You can buy a bag of feed to give them, but some small people were already doing that. Then the owner of the shop came out and told us all bits about the Alpaca and all their names and what they are like. One had a punk hair do as his fringe kept going in his eyes so they have to tie it up!

Then we went into the little shop, which was lovely. They do all their own spinning, and keep each fleece separate. They have a small team of knitters, who handknit all sorts of items which you can buy. As you can imagine they are not cheap! The owner was lovely, and spent quite a while chatting to us, and let me take photos.

Apparently at the moment they have 6 knitters, but she said that they have casual knitters too, who will knit a garment like a hat or scarf for them in exchange for yarn. Sounds like a good deal to me! Sadly I had to explain I didn’t live nearby any more (I think she was trying to recruit me). I was able to show her photos of my shawl though, which she liked!

She would have even let us look round the spinning room if we wanted, but time was limited so we didn’t.

I bought 50g of alpaca yarn (£8 - promptly confiscated by my mum as I couldn’t think of anything I wanted for christmas!) and was given a hat pattern to go with it.

As well as alpaca and sheep yarn from the farm they sold Jamisons, and a few other UK-based spun yarn.

She had some things knitted from Buffalo and Qivit (or however you spell it), and it really is as soft as the people say. Luckily she didn’t have any yarn for sale, as it is the second most expensive yarn in the world!

Then we went to the farm shop, where there was lots of lovely stuff, and they have a cafe/restaurant as well.

Finished Shawl

2009-11-08T17:22:00.002Z

I finished the shawl for my sister's wedding about a week before the date! Just enough time to block it. Blocking was hard work, I didn't have enough space to block it all at once, and then I ran out of pins for the complex half, so it was blocked in three stages! The basket weave half was easy to block as you could line things up well. The cherry blossom half was much harder.

Anyway, here is me wearing it on the day:

and here are two shots to show the ends, taken after the wedding, so it is a bit crumpled!

Dyeing again

2009-09-27T19:39:00.003+01:00

I've been doing some acid-dyeing today, in theory it is less faff than natural dying, but you know, its really not! Its equally unpredictable.

I had one nice result with some purple and black yarn, but the sea-green variegated yarn I was going for hasn't worked at all. In fact, it didn't hold onto the dye at all well, and I have green hands! I stopped using gloves for rinsing as the yarn always soaked up all the dye. I guess I'll go back to using gloves in future!

I'll have to assess the colour in daylight when it is all dried out (so probably next weekend then now winter is creeping up!), but currently I don't like it, its just a mid-green, very plain. I might try over-dying one skein and leave the other.

We shall see!

Shawl progress

2009-09-22T17:35:00.001+01:00

hanami 3
Originally uploaded by cob_web

I got to the end of chart C of the blossom section last night. 3 more charts to go!

A Yarn Crawl

2009-09-21T12:18:00.002+01:00

So I've been going to some knit-nights with Ravelry-types. We meet every other week and alternate between Woking and Guildford. Woking is great because i just go after work, Guildford is great cos I get the train and can drink cider... mmmm... cider...

We got loads of new people last time, but prior to that there was a core of just 4 of us, and we get on well, share a slightly wicked sense of humour!

It was proposed that we should do a yarn crawl around the area, and this coincided with the Stitch and Craft show at Sandown Racecourse. So on saturday we all met up at Woking station, and greentrianglegirl (I never know whether to use real names or not in internetland, I shall stick to Rav names) gamely volunteered to drive. She had cause to utilise her London driving Skilz so I was glad it wasn't me behind the wheel, I am far too meek a driver for almost-London-driving!

The show was a disappointment, especially since we were led to believe there would be wizards (long story) and, well, more yarn! There was one nice stall with a less-nice sales lady, plus a stand with real life angora rabbits (cute!). I got a bag of 10 balls of RYC Angora Soft (or something) in a nice purple colour for less than half price at a discount stall. Its a bit boucle-ly, which is never good, but its not too extreme, and should make a cosy jumper or cardigan. It will be stashed for now though, ready for when I can't afford yarn any more!

Other than that we all left with lovely lovely cheese.

Then we went to Hampton to find a rather bizarre yarn store with a hair dressers in the back. We were clearly not their usual age-range, and there wan't much for us there (not bad as such, just nothing out of the ordinary). Redcathy saved the day by buying a yarn pen thing, and then we ran away.

Then we went to Kingston to John Lewis. This is apparently my closed JL, but after experiencing Kingston and the car parks I'll stick to Reading thanks! No more sales, so we left slightly disappointed and raced down the A3 and A31 to Farnham. InterKnit Cafe was the highlight of the day really. They have less Collinette than they used to, but though it always looks lovely I've never had great success knitting it, so that's no bad thing. They stock Zauberballs! But I have 2 already so was good. Good to see they stock KnitPro needles now, I shall remember that when I need to stock up!

Then we went to Guildford and took in CandH fabrics and Pandora (where were not appreciated, we left after one of the staff members made a pointed comment about wanting to hoover but not being able to).

We had a nice drink, and then I got the train home. Reading trains appear to miss out Ash on saturdays now, so I had to wait for the Ascot train, but it wasn't too long to wait, and I got to sit next to a proper punk with an impressive mohecan while I waited!

Got home, and promptly tried to burn the house down :-(

As for actual knitting - I'm still plodding along with the shawl, near the end of chart C of the blossom end now, hurrah!

I'm knitting the second Giraffe sock at knit-nights, but the talking and the cider at the last one mean I've messed up quite significantly. I'm not ripping it though, they are for me.

Progress

2009-07-20T22:08:00.001+01:00

hanami2
Originally uploaded by cob_web

I've done 4 repeats of the first half now, so a quarter of the way through!

experiments

2009-07-05T13:50:00.001+01:00

experiments
Originally uploaded by cob_web

Earlier this week I did some experimenting. Unfortunately I lost track of what was what :-/

I have here fustic, common horsetail and tansey. The pink is madder exhaust. I used some organic 100% merino, and it definitely feels nicer than the superwash sock yarn. Not sure about the wisdom of knitting socks with no nylon in though. I was kind of hoping that the four colours would go together and I could knit some socks using the spiral technique to combine the yarns, but the pink doesn't go. No idea what do with these now, they aren't my kind of colours at all!

From bloodroot to madder

2009-06-28T16:19:00.001+01:00

From bloodroot to Madder
Originally uploaded by cob_web

This photo shows the journey of the poor experimental skein.

Bloodroot, then Cherry Bark, then Madder.

Out of the dye-pot

2009-06-28T16:06:00.001+01:00

madder2_both
Originally uploaded by cob_web

So the madder experiment was a success! The skeins were left in the dye pot overnight. When we got up this morning I removed the bags of madder, but we had to dash out to the farmers market. So rinsing was done after we got back.

As with the log wood there is still some dye washing out after many rinses, but I have acid dyed yarn from other people that is still bleeding even after knitting and repeated wearing/washing! Unlike the logwood there was still dye in the bath, so I could have got a paler batch, but I think 3 skeins is enough red yarn for me!

The colouring is slightly uneven. There are darker patches where the yarn sat on the bags of madder for too long at the start, and paler patches where I tied it a bit tight, but not into the variegated league. To be honest I like a slight variation, especially in something hand-dyed. You can get perfectly solid colour from factories.

Once again I am blown away by the vibrancy from natural dyes! When the madder skeins are fully dry (didn't want to leave them out in the sun TOO long) I will have to do a photo shoot with the logwood.

The yarn is 75% new wool, 25% nylon sock yarn, 100g/400m, just in case you are interested in obtaining one of these ;-)

madder

2009-06-27T20:05:00.001+01:00

madder
Originally uploaded by cob_web

I couldn't wait to show you the results of my latest natural dye experiment. Behold madder red! Isn't it lovely? I think the colour will be slightly uneven due to having to put the bark in musin bags, but I think I like that. I tossed in the poo-coloured yarn (which on rational appraisal was more gold coloured, but not my thing) and it is going a lovely dark red.

fun, fun fun :-)

oops!

2009-06-25T18:40:00.001+01:00

I guess I shouldn't really post from work, hey? I shall leave the disclaimer there for comedy value.

Hurrah!

2009-06-25T10:38:00.001+01:00

Things are improving on the lace front. For some reason I hadn’t thought of spit splicing – thanks Christina! It worked like a charm and no ends to weave in.

I also managed to fix the mistake. It was so simple to do in the end. I just needed to take a step back and have a break before the fog would lift! Just in case I ever go back and read these in future – Jess, DON’T KNIT LACE WHEN ILL!!

So although I didn’t get much done, I fixed the mistake and got back to where I had been before – so I am now two repeats into the basket weave section (of 7 repeats). This means I am 14% through the whole shawl. That sounds a bit high to me, but that’s what the maths says!

I should get on with my work now (I can’t access blogger from work, but you can update by email – handy!). Problem is my brain is still not fully used to the new drugs, and I’m having to do some complex stuff using GIS, excel and my brain. For once its not the IT that is letting me down… still, its after 10:30 now so I can have my first diet coke of the day…

The information in this e-mail is confidential and may be legally privileged. It is intended solely for the addressee. Access to this email by anyone else is unauthorised. Any views or opinions expressed in this e-mail may be solely those of the author and are not necessarily those of Mouchel. Mouchel Limited, Registered in England at Export House, Cawsey Way, Woking, Surrey, UK, GU21 6QX Registered No : 1686040

Dammit!

2009-06-23T22:40:00.001+01:00

Thanks to Ravelry (and here!) I think I know that I can fix my lace knitting, but I set it aside for the day as today was clearly not a lace day.

However, as I was putting it all away, I realised I have somehow snapped the yarn! Argh! I can join new yarn and weave in ends of course, but that never works as well on lacy things, and I could have completed the whole thing without needed to do this. How on EARTH did I manage that? I am a moron.

Lesson well and truly learnt, world!

update

2009-06-23T16:27:00.001+01:00

I now know exactly where the mistake is, but I don't know how to fix it. I missed a YO out 2 rows down.

Bah

2009-06-23T15:10:00.001+01:00

Lesson learnt today - don't knit lace while ill. I Can't even work out what has gone wrong :-(

zauberball!!

2009-06-23T12:33:00.001+01:00

zauberball
Originally uploaded by cob_web

The lovely Clare (one of the many people who live in my computer - at Ravelry) pointed me in the direction of Knit n'Caboodle (http://www.knitncaboodle.co.uk/) who are closing down. While it is always sad to see yarn shops closing, it did mean I could get these lovelies for less-than-normal prices. I couldn't resist! I am now drowning in sock yarn however!

Too bad I'm feeling too ill to knit today. Off work ill and not even getting knitting down. There is something particularly mean about that.

Lace!

2009-06-14T18:28:00.001+01:00

hanami1
Originally uploaded by cob_web

Well, I've just started the second repeat of Hanami. I have made a huge mistake though! I missed 2 rows out in the middle of the 2nd lot of diamonds. If you look closely you can see that they are squat :-(

I didn't notice till I was quite a few rows past. So I've left it. Not sure if I'll regret that, but Matt thinks people won't notice...

bloodroot

2009-06-04T18:58:00.001+01:00

bloodroot
Originally uploaded by cob_web

hmm... bloodroot is supposed to give you red. This is more poo-coloured! The variations in colour are my own fault. I put the roots in muslin so I wouldn't have to strain the dye... but I left them in the dye pot with the yarn. Doh!

My first disaster.

logwood

2009-06-03T21:58:00.001+01:00

logwood
Originally uploaded by cob_web

My first attempt at natural dyeing! 10% alum mordant followed by logwood. I used 18g logwood chips for 200g yarn. I was expecting a mid purpe but got very very dark! I love it.

Hmmm...

2009-06-02T22:30:00.002+01:00

Well, my first natural dyeing experiment is, erm, interesting. Instead of purple I pretty much have BLACK. Not really what I was after!

I used the right percentage solution and everything. Ah well, isn't that the joy of natural dyeing?

Yarn washed

2009-06-02T19:47:00.001+01:00

Yay! I got into a groove with the yarn winding and got it all done. The grease in the water was impressive! 2 washes with a tiny bit of washing up liquid, a clear rinse, then a rinse with hair conditioner. It is looking lovely now.

Have some logwood dye simmering on the (new) hob now :-)

ID?

2009-06-02T19:16:00.001+01:00

P1010643
Originally uploaded by cob_web

Anyone know what this is? It is one of the unidentified dye-stuffs I was given. Closeup on Flickr.

The office...

2009-06-02T15:42:00.001+01:00

The office...
Originally uploaded by cob_web

Haha! I'm working from home today as we have a new oven being delivered and fitted, I AM working, but at the same time my garden is looking rather like I'm not!

The blue is my lace weight, that I am slowly winding onto the swift so I can wash it before using it (2,300m is a LOT of yarn).

The white are three skeins of sock yarn that I mordanted last night ready for some natural dye experiments. I have such a lot of dyes to play with I don't know what to try first! I might be predictable and see if I can get anything resembling purple from the logwood.

For anyone who knows, I used an aluminium (alum) mordant, as that seems to be the safest, easiest and most commonly used.

First lace yarn

2009-06-02T15:02:00.001+01:00

colourmart2
Originally uploaded by cob_web

So I bought some lace yarn from ColourMart (yesterday as it happens, super service!) and look how perfectly it matches the dress the shawl is for!

I'm now trying to wind it from the cone onto my swift as the yarn is oiled. You can knit with it and THEN wash obviously, but I thought it would be easier to wash it first. I might be wrong...

I'm very very very bored.

Japanese Dying 2

2009-05-21T18:27:00.001+01:00

towel
Originally uploaded by cob_web

After doing the hanky I couldn't resist doing this towel too! All Japanese hand towels are this size and shape.

Japanese Indigo Dying

2009-05-21T18:26:00.001+01:00

hanky
Originally uploaded by cob_web

This is the hanky I dyed in Japan. I'm probably going to frame it and put it on the wall.

Yarn yarn yarn yarn...

2009-05-14T17:41:00.002+01:00

So, I'm back from Japan. It already feels like a distant memory :-( It was absolutely fantastic, and we are still sorting through the photos. Or would be if we didn't both have the ill.

I did some crazy yarn buying while I was there. In Kyoto I went to Avril (known as Habu everywhere else) and bought some of thier yarn with stainless steel so I could make Sea Tangles

It was a cute little shop, with people sat around knitting. There was lots of lovely yarn, but it was all quite pricy. Of course, I forgot to check how much I needed, and what the yarn was called. But MAtt encouraged me, so with the help of the phrase book I got the message across. I ended up buying two 100g cones of grey and one of black... when I got back to the hotel I found out I only needed about 90g for the jumper! Doh!

In Japan they seem to sell yarn by the gram quite a lot, so once I had said how much I wanted I had to wait while it was wound by a machine for me! Quite cool. It was VERY expensive. Lets not got there...

On the cheaper side I found one of the fantastic 7 floor craft stores was having a Noro sale, so I got 2 balls of the kureyon sock yarn for half the price you get it in the UK.

For Tinebeest

2009-04-03T18:42:00.002+01:00

japanese1
Originally uploaded by cob_web

Here is the japanese packet, there are close-ups on flicker tagged "japanese" http://www.flickr.com/photos/cob_web/tags/japanese/

Nellie

2009-04-01T21:34:00.001+01:00

P1000476
Originally uploaded by cob_web

Meet the latest addition to my family, Nellie!

Dying stuff

2009-04-01T21:32:00.001+01:00

Dying stuff
Originally uploaded by cob_web

Look at all this stuff! I said on my Yarn website that I wanted to get into natural dying next, and a lovely lady who happens to live just down the road contacted me and said she was getting rid of all her old stuff! Thank you Chrissy!

I picked it all up today. When she said she had a LOT of stuff, I don't think I quite believed her...

There are loads of bit of kit, some lovely buckets and pans, a boiler-thing that I'm not *quite* sure what I should do with and so many dyes! I couldn't resist and sat and listed them all. I will list them at the end for my own info. There were also a lot of mordants and things, but I think I will probably start afresh with those as some were quite old.

Its so exciting, but I Can't do anything till we are back from Japan. I might have to invest in a good book too so I know where to start...

Natural dye list

Something Japanese...!?
Some large Leaves??
Logwood
Cochineal
Lichen
Yew Chips
Acacia Chips
Poplar buds
Cutch
Turmeric
Common Horsetail
Marigold
Bearberry leaves
Heather flowers
Chamomile
Ivy berries
Natural Indigo
Golden Rod
Madder Powder
Madder
Bloodroot
Brazil wood
Gall nuts
Annato
Rhubarb Root
Tansy
Ossage Orange
Oak Bark
Wild Cherry Bark
Sanderswood
Alkanet
Fustic
Weld
Sticklack
Turkish Madder
Onion skins

some unidentified things!

German Shopping?

2009-03-27T21:56:00.003Z

Does anyone fancy anything from Schoppel Wool? it is a 15 Euro flat shipping charge to the UK, and I have rather fallen in love with this:

But at 10 Euros a ball I can't buy enough to make the 15 Euro shipping justifyable.

Sory for posting everywhere!

Finished Sock

2009-03-24T14:32:00.001Z

japnese giraffe 3
Originally uploaded by cob_web

I don't have a pair yet, but I'm very proud to finish these as I am struggling to keep focussed on any one thing right now.

I love Aber's pattern! These are slightly loose on me, but noro doesn't seem to have much stretch, they might be better after washing.

See more detail of the lace panel and the back of the sock at Flickr.

Baby Booties

2009-03-20T17:08:00.001Z

P1000461 (2)
Originally uploaded by cob_web

I've knitted a couple of baby hats in the days before digital camera and Ravelry, but those were sent to internet people, and I never even got a thanks, so I was put off knitting baby things. Not that I think you have to be thanked, but when a lot of work goes into things it is a bit disappointing to get no acknowledgement, especailyl when you see others getting it :-/

ANYWAY. so these are the first baby things I have knit for a long time. I know the baby in question isn't going to want for anything, but I was ill and really needed something small and fast to do. So here we go! These are knit with DK, when the pattern is for 4-ply. So they will probably be too big for the little one when she comes along, but hopefully she will grow into them. I have so much yarn I might knit two pairs.

Little Skit Hat

2009-03-17T08:36:00.001Z

littleskihat
Originally uploaded by cob_web

This is a smaller version of Ferg's hat - knit for his little brother, who he is taking skiing (well, snowboarding actually). I made the mdeium size, which isn't very medium as it fits me well, and I have a child-sized head (I have to buy kid's glasses).

I started with white at the bottom where Ferg's is blue, so hopefully they won't get mixed up!

Ferg's hat

2009-03-13T09:16:00.001Z

Fergs hat2
Originally uploaded by cob_web

After I knitted Ferg an ipod cosy, he got very excited and demanded a hat. So we went to hobbycraft after work and managed to find some half-decent yarn of the right weight. It was Sirdar Peru Naturals. So I did him a basic ribbed beanie, following a Wooly Wormhead pattern.

I used just over half a ball of the blue and just under half of the white, and apparently his brother wants a matching one...

Peru naturals is quite a nice yarn given its high acrylic content. Its not really spun though, at times it felt like knitting with narrow strips of fleece! The white was noticeably finer than the blue as well. I know the dye can have an effect on yarn qualities, but thats the first time I have seen it in action. I kept having to check the ball-bands to check I hadn't got two different weights of the same yarn by mistake!

Ferg has promised me a photo of it in action on the slopes when he goes snowboarding with his little brother in a few weeks.

New website!

2009-03-10T19:31:00.003Z

I have a new yarn website: http://cobwebyarns.wordpress.com/

I plan to do lots more dying soon, but it might have to wain until I am back from Japan as funds are tight right now.

I am also now on Ravelry as a designer. Which is very silly and I doubt anyone will knit my cosy, but its fun to be able to say that!

ipod cosy pattern

2009-03-05T18:43:00.003Z

So I thought I'd write up the pattern for the ipod nano cosy. Its a very simple pattern but it works really well, and might save others having to work it out. It will also give people a good starting point to modify and play with this basic design (I'm thinking cables, but they wouldn't be as stretchy, so that needs some thought).

The key to this pattern is the ribbing. I made ipod cosy 2.0 for a friend at work, who was simply amazed by the stretchyness, and the fact that it returned to its shape (I want to stress that this guy is not a knitter!). This is the reason the cosy works, you don't want your nice shiny ipod coming out of its cosy in your bag and getting all scratched up, so it needs to be snug.

I've used two different brands of standard weight sock yarn, 2.0 was knit with Opal, which gives you a good idea of the kind of yarn to use. Bascially this will work with any sock yarn leftovers.

Cast on 24 stitches (fairly loosely) and divide between 3 needles.

Join, being careful not to twist, then (K2, P2) and repeat across all three needles. One row done!

Repeat this until the cosy measures 9 cm (or until you can fit your ipod in).

Next row, K1, K2Tog, K6, SSK, K2, K2Tog, K6, SSK, K1 (22 Stitches remaining)

Next row, K all stitches, rearranging as you go to end up with 11 stitches on each of 2 needles.

You are then set up to graft the end, just like sock toes. Some people don't like Kitchener Stitch, but this is a good pattern to practice on if you've never attempted it before. Lots of people have written good instructions, I have linked to two below. The key is to sit somewhere quiet and tell anyone you live with not to bother you until you have finished! Any grafting errors in my knitting have always been caused by me loosing concentration and the wrong moment!

http://knitty.com/ISSUEsummer04/FEATtheresasum04.html

For a video tutorial, scroll down to the "Finishing" Section http://www.knittinghelp.com/videos/knitting-tips

Enjoy, I'd love to see any resulting cosies!

ETA: the pattern is up on Ravelry, but I'm not linked to it yet. Find it here: http://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/easy-ipod-nano-cosy

ipod cosy 2.0

2009-03-05T08:15:00.001Z

ipod_cosy2-2
Originally uploaded by cob_web

I've made another ipod cosy as my colleague loved the one I made for myself. I've improved the pattern HUGELY by thinking it through a little better, and this one is much better. I might even wright it out for others, but I don't suppose its rocket science so I doubt anyone would be interested.

ipod cosy

2009-03-03T17:51:00.001Z

I made this for my lovely new ipod I got for my 30th birthday. Knit in just one day, while I was off sick with tonsillitis (on my birthday!).

I wanted it very tight so cast on just 21 stitches (k2, p2, k2, p1)x3. I used my left over Zak and Sara sock yarn.

At the end I tried some slight shaping, but the nano isn't tapered at all, so I just decreased one for an even number, then decreased 2 at either end (like sock toes) before grafting. Should probably have decreased a bit more.

Works though, grips it tight enough that I'm not scared of it coming off, so I can throw my nano in my bag without worrying about stitches.

Japanese Giraffes Progress

2009-02-24T09:18:00.002Z

Five stars to Aberdonian's pattern! This motors along nicely, the pattern is split into a row 4-repeat, which is a nice chunk that you can get done fairly quickly, so I can pick it up, knit four rows and drop again very easily. The fact that the lace pattern is resticted to three panels means there is always the straight bit to knit fast and not think in (only 11 stitches at a time, but it helps!).

I think you can see the lace a bit better now:

The Noro is quite fun too. Much longer colour changes than most striping yarn, and much more subtle. The fun part is peering through the yarn ball to see what colours are coming up... I can just see some green poking through!

japanese giraffe

2009-02-21T21:20:00.002Z

japanese giraffe 1
Originally uploaded by cob_web

I am knitting Sam the Giraffe Socks by my internet friend Aberdonian *waves at Aber*.

I'm using some Noro sock yarn, which is quite obviously completely unsuited to the lacy bit. You can't really determine the pattern. But I am persevering. Not quite sure why. Maybe I'm crazy, but I keep thinking it will look better when there is more of it done.

The other issue with the Noro is that the suggested needle size is 2.7 to 3.3mm. Weirdarse sizing. I've stuck with the 2.5 recommended by the pattern so it is knitting up quite firmly. Maybe thats another mistake. But I figured that since the yarn isn't plied, tighter was better.

People moan a lot about noro being stiff and scratchy. It is a BIT but not at all as bad as was expecting my all the moaning on Ravelry!

Nearly Finished Object

2009-02-21T21:13:00.001Z

Sunshine blues 4
Originally uploaded by cob_web

So, I have been knitting a bag from a Rowan kit, using thier denim yarn. I had to wash it at 90 degrees to shrink it. Sadly I forgot to turn the temperatur back to 30, and Matt put a wash on... half my clothes are now shrunk as well :-(

But, the bag turned out well! I still have to line it, which I am avoiding as I can't sew straight by hand and I don't have a sewing machine.

Here is a close up of the front:

Not sure why it is called the sunshine bag, the beads look more like a snowflake, and the other shapes are hearts.

Rowan Bag

2009-02-03T22:07:00.001Z

sunshineblues1
Originally uploaded by cob_web

So my latest WIP is the Sunshine bag - a Rowan kit knit with with thier Denim yarn. I have no idea why it is called the sunshine bag. The beads make more of a snowflake design, and then there are hearts around it. Oh well. I got this in the Rowan sale a few years ago (I'm not a member, I like someone on LJ bought it for me).

I don't think I've ever knit with a 100% cotton yarn before. Its very inelastic and splitty, and a bit hard.

The stitch pattern is charted, and this is the first chart I've used. I realised I was doing it wrong, but luckily the design is symetrical, so it doesn't matter. I am finding it hard work though. The front went OK but just tonight I've had to tink back 3 times due to miscounting or misreading where I was.

It shrinks, so the idea is to put it in the wash to firm up the fabric.... I know its not felting, but I've had such bad luck with that that I'm a bit nervous! We shall see...

sheldon!

2009-01-28T08:27:00.001Z

sheldon2
Originally uploaded by cob_web

Yet another finished object! Shledon has been languishing for some time. First the crochet beat me, and he had to have a holiday to mym Mum, which did that bit for me (she even tried to teach me). Then the i-cord join beat me and he sat in a bag for a while. After finishing the socks I got him out again. I tried the i-cord AGAIN but I just don't get it. So I just sewing up up.

I'm glad I did as he is quite happy, and Matt has already adopted him. Here he is in his new home:

Birthday knitting

2009-01-25T15:12:00.002Z

So, as I posted the other day, the Clapotis was finished! Soph seemed to love it so thats good. I also made her a matching Calorimetry as she uses the other one I made her last year, and everyone likes to match :-)

So, the Clapotis, as I posted, is huge. 220 cm in the end! I did lots more central repeats than the pattern called for. Partly becuase when I took it up at Christmas I was about to start the decrease section, but Soph wanted it longer. I hope it is OK to wear.

The yarn I used was Fleece Artist Organic Wool in Ruby. Picked by Soph. I found a few yarns that would be suitible and let her pick. All were either organic or British (or both!). This one was recommended by the shop (Purlescence) owner via Ravelry. It was really nice to work with, and comes in huge 250g hanks. Thats way too big for my ball winder to cope with, so there was some hand winding that had to be done. I still have a decent amount left, despite the enormous Clapotis and the Calorimetry. It spit-spliced well, but in that sized skein there was only one join! Heaven. The dying was really nice. Subtly variagated.

The Calorimetry was knit with just 100 (I think - check my Ravelry entry) stitches cast on, as the previous one was a bit big, and my family have small heads. It fit me well, and I had a toggle button left from the last one which worked well.

Doesn't really work for me now I've had the hair cut off, but you can get the idea:

I'll have to see if Soph will give me a photo of them in action!

Hooray!

2009-01-25T15:10:00.001Z

I have finally found a way of transferring this blog to my married email address! No more having to log out and log back in to Google before posting. So now the only issue are all the photos still on Picasa under Lenham.

My Flicca

2009-01-25T14:32:00.002Z

So, I finally completed Flicca, so I guess I should post about it properly!

The pictures aren't that great, its not the best time of year and every weekend it seems to be raining or I'm simply not at home, so catching the daylight is proving tricky!

So, I used the recommended yarn, Sirdar Click Chunky in merlot, a really nice burgandy colour. I found getting guage really difficult and went up a needle size. I was still too tight, but decided to knit the size bigger than I thought I needed (I have forgotten the size now!) and stick with one the one size up. I'm glad I did as it would have been quite aloose knit fabric if I had gone up again.

The pattern was pretty straight forward. I knit the two front pieces on the same needle so they would match, which was a great plan. I also narrowed the sleeves - they are still quite wide!

Overall I'm happy with the way it came out. I have worn it and had it admired. However, the sizing seems a little off. I find that it is very big around the hips and small across the shoulders. This is odd as I am a definite pear shape - with large hips and a small bust, so I usally find the opposite! If I were to ever tackle this again I would look at making the shoulders wider. As it is the collar is wide so fills in the gap a bit - but that means it isn't doing its job as a collar and ends up lying flat.

The yarn is good. Well priced for a knit this size - can you imagine the cost if it were knit in pure wool?! Should also means it is easier to care for, which is important for something so big. It has wool in it so feels nicer than pure acrylic. I missed being able to spit splice though!!

So there you go, completed flicca.

Finished Clapotis and Flicca

2009-01-11T16:15:00.003Z

I finished the Clapotis for Soph, but it grew! She wanted it longer than the pattern suggested, but I underestimated both how much the decrease section would add and how much it would grow when I blocked it. Doh!

I also fixed the button issues on my flicca. Sorry for the rubbish photo:

Clapotis

2008-12-10T21:55:00.002Z

So I am finally knitting a Clapotis. I asked my sister what she wanted for her birthday (just before christmas) and she said she wanted a red scarf - a pashmina style one. She then said "I'd love for you to knit me one but I'm sure you don't have time". Well, she's right there, I have plenty to be knitting for myself, but how could I turn that down?! I immediately thought of Clapotis as it is sort of pashmina-like. So I sent her a link to the pattern and she really liked it. I asked around for suggestions for organic yarn that would work for this without costing the earth, and ended up with some Fleece Artist Organic Wool in a semi-solid red. It's going well! No way it will be finished for Christmas though...

Zak and Bellatrix

2008-11-23T22:40:00.001Z

bellatrix6
Originally uploaded by cob_web

Finally a photo of the first finished Bellatrix sock. Well, the ribbing needs re-doing, but still....

Socks!

2008-11-19T17:36:00.002Z

I am mildly obsessed with knitting my new socks (Rav link), which are Bellatrix socks (another Rav link). So much so that I am getting a callous on my left first finger where I push the needle. I'm using thinner needles than I ever have before, which was a little scary at first.

No real pics yet as its not light enough when I leave for work and too dark when I get home...

The main problem is that the cast-on is way too tight. I have unpicked it a bit, and it doesn't appear to be about to unravel on me, nor can I see any "live" stitches.... but I'm not convinced. The sparse advice I got on Ravelry (my posts on the main boards always sink really quickly) is to cut into the sock before the ribbing and knit back up from there. I think I'm going to finish and check I have enough before I do that.

On the other hand, if they aren't going to come apart, is there any harm in just unpicking some of the cast-on and leaving it as it is?

New Project

2008-11-12T08:27:00.001Z

bellatrix3
Originally uploaded by cob_web

These socks are going to be Bellatrix socks, knit with my Snarky yarns Zak and Sara.

Finished Socks!

2008-11-10T22:14:00.001Z

red2
Originally uploaded by cob_web

I FINALLY finished Matt's Red Socks. They were quite boring as he wanted PLAIN socks, and his feet are big! (well, not really, but big compared to mine!). As such they have taken me ages, and were not really my main project at any point.

But I'm really pleased to have them finished, and I think Matt likes them.

I didn't keep good notes on the first sock, which I kind of made up, vaguely following the Yarn Harlot's recipie. As such I ended up knitting the 2nd one too long and had to rip some rows out. OWCH. I really hate ripping socks! Picking up the stitches again was horrible!

Knitting Woe

2008-11-03T19:02:00.002Z

Argh! So I finished knitting Flicca last night, only to discover that I've put the buttons in completely the wrong locations.

The whole thing is sewn up and the ends weaved in. I can't undo it :-(

Is there any way of making an "after thought" button hole?

Finished Fetching

2008-10-13T18:54:00.001+01:00

thankyougloves2
Originally uploaded by cob_web

I finally finished my thank you gloves! These are for Cat, who made my wedding dress :-) No mods!

Knitting Dilemma

2008-09-22T14:24:00.001+01:00

Argh! A friend gave me the new computer game Spore on Friday and I am now addicted, and it is eating up my knitting time.

The other dilemma is that while I have lots of projects on the needles right now (Matt’s socks , Flicca , Sheldon ) it suddenly occurred to me that the best thank you token I could give to the person making my wedding dress would be to make her something in return. I have a ball of purple yarn I bought ages ago to make myself a pair of fetchings, and being of elegant gothic persuasion I thought a pair of purple fingerless gloves would suit her well for the coming autumn. I know she walks to work now.

Having said that red is more her colour, but I only have nasty acrylic in red. Which wouldn’t make nice gloves. I am going to hobbycraft on my way home today so I shall see if they have anything red, if not it shall be purple.

I really don’t think I can get these done by Saturday though, especially with Spore on my mind… :-D

Wind-up

2008-08-21T11:05:00.001+01:00

Of course, now I'm having such fun with my Swift I really REALLY want a ball winder.

Are they available ANYWHERE In the UK for less than £30 once you've paid postage? There are cheapish ones on eBay but they are all in the US charging £15 postage....

Swift!

2008-08-20T18:10:00.000+01:00

So I finally bought myself a yarn swift, so that I could skein up some yarn I'm dying - which although I bought it from a yarn dying website, arrived in BALLS.

Its lovely :-)

Hmmm...

2008-08-15T21:28:00.002+01:00

So Flicca is on hold while I mull over buttons. I think I'll probably go with the smaller ones, though I wish they were bigger. I'm knitting MAtt's socks. I don't think I'll be making him socks again for a while. He likes plain yarn and plain stitching and his feet are bigger than mine...

Meanwhile the yarn has arrived for my dying commission from Tolly. It looks like lovely yarn but... its in BALLS. I bought it from a hand-dying website and they've sent it BALLED!! Arse. I was thinking of buying a swift anyway, but it looks like I need to get one sooner than I thought.

I'm off to London tomorrow for a day out with friends. I doubt I'll have a chance to go to iKnit, but I'm not going to order anything tonight. I wonder if Waterloo has a left luggage facility, then I could go in earlier and go to iKnit before meeting my friends - but I don't want to lug a swift around all day...

Buttons?

2008-08-10T18:55:00.002+01:00

What buttons should I use for flicca do you think?

I've got three big brown wooden ones:

Or 4 smaller black and silver ones:

HELP!!

Pain is...

2008-08-03T18:33:00.001+01:00

Picking up 88 stitches, knitting them, then finding your rib is wrong and you have to take it all out again...

I'm not dead

2008-07-31T09:06:00.002+01:00

Just busy frogging.

Have I ever mentioned how much I hate picking up stitches? I finally got the number of stitches right, and now I've got to wait and do a few rows before I can see if the ribbing resolves itself and stops looking shit. I've found one gaping hole, but if there is just one I'll just sew it up....

bah humbug.

Meme!

2008-07-01T12:54:00.002+01:00

Penny tagged me!

The Rules: Each player answers the five questions about themselves. At the end of the post, the player then tags 5-6 people and posts their names, then goes to their blogs and leaves them a comment, letting them know they’ve been tagged and asking them to read your blog. Let the person who tagged you know when you’ve posted your answer.

1. What I was doing 10 years ago:
10 years ago I was 19, adn would have just finished my first year exams at Bristol Uni. I was studying Environmental Geoscience and was very releived to have passed Chemistry. I was going out with Phil (started going out with Matt in Oct/Nov '98) and was probably back at home already working at Laura Ashley in Aylesbury for the summer. Which sucked.

2. What 5 things are on on my to-do list for today (not in any particular order):
Finish my letter to the Planner I'm working for
Respond to comments on a piece of work I did without saying "you are a twat" too many times
Do the financial reporting for all my current jobs
Do the weekly Sainsbury's shop
Sleep

3. Snacks I enjoy:
toffee waffles (I think these are the same as stroopwaffles)
cheese
strawberries
vegetable crisps
dark chocolate

4. Things I would do if I was a billionaire:
buy every book I wanted
buy a bigger house in a cooler area
Give lots of money to charities I care about
Work part time
Travel

5. Places I have lived:
Suffolk
Buckinghamshite (that is a genuine typo there...)
Bristol
Nottingham
Surrey

I should tag 5 people, but I think almost every knit-blog I read has done this already! If you haven't, please consider this a nomination. :-)

My poor, neglected blog

2008-06-08T19:45:00.002+01:00

Hello knit blog!

Well, Flicca is taking me an age, and with all the sport on the telly at the moment I haven't been knitting much (I like knitting infront of the TV - but I don't like sport! We only have one TV).

I have instead been doing more reading. I'm half way through the Night Watch Trilogy by Sergei Lukyanenko. Its kind of trashy but cool nevertheless. Its certainly ticking my fantasy-but-not-sword-and-sorcery-quest-epics boxes at any rate. I have read half of the 2nd book (The Day Watch) just today (lets see, it was Moto GP, Tennis, Football, Formula1, Cricket, and now more football....) so when I popped into Farnborough (more on that in a mo) I went into WHSmiths, and luckily they had the 3rd book there on the shelf... hurrah!

I went to Farnborough as it is my nearest ASDA, and there were rumors on Ravelry that they were selling foam jigsaw pieces that could be used as a blocking board for cheapness. They were! I got one pack, but nearly bought 2... but I don't do lace and just wanted an alternative to covering the floor in towels, which get soggy. So £9 bought me a "noughts and crosses" board of 9 tiles that make nearly 1m square.

As for actually knitting, well Flicca is progressing. The back and fronts are blocked and dry and I'm on the 2nd sleeve.

Matt's socks are still in limbo, although they are further along than when this pic was taken:

Sheldon has returned! He was on holiday with my mum as she can actually crochet, and was going to do a few more rows on his shell-bottom for me. She visited yesterday for a trip to a Silk shop in Guildford, and returned him. So I need to try and master the i-cord join thing that defeated me before.

So I think once Flicca is done I shall finish poor old Sheldon, then tackle Matt's socks (they are just so dull, he wanted PLAIN socks, so they are red and stst...).

After that I must knit up my Zak and Sara into socks for ME! I'm currently thinking Bellatrix or Slip-up socks - any thoughts?

Yarn for sale

2008-05-24T23:07:00.000+01:00

Just a quick reminder about my hand-dyed yarn website :-)

flicca back

2008-05-24T22:44:00.001+01:00

flicca back
Originally uploaded by cob_web

This is the back of Flicca. It is now on the floor of the spare room blocking. AKA soaking the carpet...

Taken with my brand new camera :-)

I'm into the 2nd 3rd of the fronts now. I say fronts because I had the genius idea of knitting them both at the same time on one needle so they would match. Why I didn't do that with the solitary sleeve which is staring at me forlornly I don't know. Especially as I modded the sleeve... oh well!

drying yarn

2008-05-11T17:03:00.001+01:00

spring_1
Originally uploaded by cobweb_yarns

More dying!

More dying

2008-05-01T18:09:00.001+01:00

Ubik Version 2:

Sunshine (Sold already!):

Yarn for sale

2008-04-24T21:32:00.002+01:00

I have two skeins of hand-dyed sock yarn for sale. I have offered them up on my favourite forum (no, not Ravelry!) and sold two, but these are still up for grabs. Martian Timeslip is my favourite, and I will be sad to see it go! Chaos was a bit of a disaster and I don't think anyone will want it. I may try over-dying it with grey to mute the colours and even them out. But anyway, thought I'd offer them up in here if anyone was interested. I don't knit fast enough to use all this yarn I'm going to end up dying!

£10 (ONO) inc postage. Martian Timeslip is a base yarn from DT-crafts (75% bluefaced leicester, 25% nylon), Chaos is Trekking XXL (75% new wool, 25% nylon).

Martian Timeslip:

Chaos:

Dying

2008-04-24T21:30:00.001+01:00

grey lady 2
Originally uploaded by cobweb_yarns

I called this one Grey Lady and made it on the request of someone from the Cowshed. It didn't turn out quite how I wanted but its not bad! Hope the person likes it :-)

Vancouver

2008-04-22T16:13:00.003+01:00

Not much to report recently. I had a small dying disaster at the weekend, but I haven't taken photos yet. People may like them more than I so I shall still offer them for sale.

Sold some yarn to the lovely Gok from the cowshed - can't wait to see it knitted up!

Matt gets to go to Vancouver in a couple of weeks for a conference. I am INSANELY jealous. Currently planning a shopping list for him. Any suggestions on the yarn front? He may not have time, but its looking like he might have 3 FREE days, so he bloody well better manage to fit in a bit of compensational shopping on my behalf!

Had my first attempt at felting a couple of weeks ago. It was a bit of a disaster, I promose to post a full report.

Matt's socks are boring me (stocking stitch socks are fine with self-patterning/variagated yarn. Less so with plain!) and flicca is progressing slowly.

Results!

2008-03-31T18:51:00.002+01:00

So here is the big photo shoot of the results of my yarn dyeing adventure! Photo heavy as I couldn't choose which ones to post :-)

I haven't re-skeined as I don't have a swift. I've called the green/blue one Ubik and the black/purple/pink one Martian Timeslip as I've been reading a lot of Philip K Dick recently.

Lots of photos:

Yarn Dying

2008-03-30T19:51:00.002+01:00

So this afternoon I tried out the Procion Dyes (fibre-reactive) I bought with my birthday money. I had two skeins of sock yarn (75% blue-faced Leicester, 25% nylon) and 8 colours to play with.

I'd heard that black was hard to do but had an idea of doing a black/purple/pink yarn in my head, so decided to go for it.

So first you soak the yarn in water with the appropriate amounts of salt and fixer. I used citric acid as it smells much less than vinegar.

After 45 minutes you take the yarn out and squeeze out the excess water. The damper you leave it the more the dyes will bleed.

While it was soaking I made up my dye solutions. I worked out I needed about 500ml of dye in total for each skein, but had lots left over. I made up 200ml of each colour, slightly stronger than suggested as my measuring spoons didn't go small enough. So my black was a bit stronger than 2% and the others were a bit stronger than 1%. For the black/purple/pink yarn I laid it out on a bin-liner to give myself enough space to get the colours right and applied the dye there.

Then I put the skein into an oven-dish and cooked at 140 degrees C for 30 minutes.

I seem to have forgotten to take a photo of my second attempt, which is blue and green. I used the pure blue and green, and then darkened 2nd batches with the black and made it much more random and variegated. It should come out almost semi-solid. We'll see! The skeins are drying in the airing cupboard over night.

dye!

2008-03-26T17:57:00.001Z

dyes
Originally uploaded by cob_web

Hooray! I have dying stuff! Very exciting. I have 8 colours. Red, yellow and blue (obviosuly). Purple, as its my favourite colour and apparently hard to create without the dye splitting. Black, becuase I like black. Green because nice greens are hard to mix, brown because its useful for toning down colours, and pink just becuase.

iKnit

2008-03-20T08:50:00.000Z

Oooh, we might be going to London on saturday. We get into Waterloo. which is where iKnit has just moved to. I might have to go and see... not that I need anything knitting-wise at the moment. But I have to go and LOOK don't I?!

Sirdar click fault

2008-03-16T12:21:00.002Z

Sirdar click fault
Originally uploaded by cob_web

Argh! I'm knitting the back of Flicca - thats 125 stitches. Half way through a row I find THIS in the yarn. A huge slub of untwisted yarn.

I tried knitting with it and knit back across to see what it would look like, but its totally noticeable.

Not cool, Sirdar, not cool at all.

I just have to hope there aren't too many of these or I won't have enough yarn! I bought an extra ball.

New blogs

2008-03-11T22:05:00.002Z

I love knitting blogs. I have loads of them in GoogleReader, and it is a constant source of amusement to my boss that I often spend my lunch time reading them (I think he secretly likes it as it proves I am nearly as much of a geek as him).

Anyway, I have just discovered a new one that has amused me so much I had to share. Welcome, friends, to the half-assed knit blog. Which is just made of win, and has majorly distracted me from my own knitting this evening.

Despite getting the internet back after a few days sans router (hooray! *pats the internets*) I have not spent my whole evening online and made some decent progress on the Flicca sleeve and have made the first lot of decreases.

My So-called Flicca

2008-03-11T11:37:00.001Z

flicca1
Originally uploaded by cob_web

This is the start of a sleeve for Flicca. For the first time ever I've ha da problem with Guage. I know, had to happen at some point, right?

I started knitting the sleeve on the recommended needles (7mm), thinking that it would do as a swatch, since I never have problem with guage anyway...

Now, I'm making the sleeves a bit narrower than the pattern as they are HUGE, but I had worked out how wide my mods should make them. They were coming out significantly smaller than they should have been... so I got nervous.

And frogged :-(

So I decided to knit a swatch on 8mm needles. but then ignored what it told me and cast on with them. Which was risky. meanwhile I realised I should probably wash and block said swatch as rib is a funny old thing.

The next day I measured the newly dried swatch and discovered its still a bit off. I'm getting 14 st to 10cm rather than 12.

Oh well. I come up between two sizes anyway so I'm going to knit the bigger one and hopefully it will be OK.

Ha.

Why yes, I probably am completely insane.

The advantage is that the yarn (Sirdar Click Chunky) is 70% acrylic and 30% wool, so it stands up to frogging and reknitting very well.

Of course, the irony is that by the time I finish this it will be summer! I'm also now glad that Matt's socks are plain stst, as rib sends me slightly loopy and the whole thing is ribbed.

I seem to be having a red phase, as M's socks are red too. They clash horribly together though.

ION I'm thinking of buying some procion dyes and sock yarn to have a go at more dying. The place I'm looking at buying from recommends a book, which I'm tempted to get.. but I'm wondering if there are any detailed blogs or websites out there that might be useful without paying for a book? Any ideas?

Shop I'm looking at is here: http://www.dtcrafts.co.uk/index.html
Book they recommend is here: http://www.dtcrafts.co.uk/books/bk001.html

Birthday Stuff

2008-03-08T14:36:00.002Z

Finally had sort-of enough light to take a photo of knitting-related birthday goodies!

I got a years sub to Interweave Knits (the other mag is one my mum bought by mistake!), a set of harmony dpns (which are lovely) and some fun plastic needles.

Close up of the lovely harmonys...

Plus the yarn for my Flicca has arrived:

Sirdar Click Chunky in a new colour (called merlot I think).

And a WIP:

Socks - help?

2008-03-02T20:44:00.003Z

OK, I'm trying to knit Matt some socks. Obviously Matt is a MAN. So I can't exactly follow the pattern as I have been as he is bigger than women, which seem to be who sock patterns are written for.

I roughly worked out how many stitches to cast on and merrily did so... only to find that when I had done a round of 2x2 ribbing that I had a problem. I finishedwith 2 knit stitches. But of course, I STARTED with 2 K st too... which would mean I had a wide strip in my ribbing. Bah. I cast on 70st, so I'm trying to think of some kind of rule. half of 70 is 25, which is odd. If I had cast on 72 or 68 st, half of those numbers is odd. So do I just need to stick to a number which when divided by 2 is even for the ribbing to work? ETA: Aber has pointed out the blindingly obvious. Both the fact that I was clearly searching for the fact that the stitches need to be divisible by 4, and that 2x2 rib is just a pattern repeat over 4 stitches... so CLEARLY you need a number divisble by 4. Doh!

I'm going to rip and be good and do a swatch. I got the harmony dpn set for my birthday today so have a nice range of sock needles finally. Before I only had a 2.25mm set, so was knitting every thing on those. I realised today that all my patterns (and the Opal yarn) are all written for 2.5mm so tis not really surprising that my jaywalkers are too tight is it?!

So other than the making sure my cast on number results in an even number when divided by two, does anyone have any tips for deciding how many to cast on? I measured Matt's leg at the point where the socks he was wearing came to, and it was 23 cm. Just in case that helps! The Yarn Harlot seems to suggest casting on about an inch-worth's less than the required size so they don't fall down. So that would mean making it 20.5cm I guess...

I'd like to try short row heels again rather than doing a heel flap. Are there any good web tutorials? The first socks I did were SR heels, but they were badly written and put me off. Since then I've done the heel flap and picked up the stitches, which is fine, but I hate picking up stitches....

Hand dyed yarn

2008-02-29T09:16:00.001Z

squid square2
Originally uploaded by cob_web

This is a mitred square knitting up with my hand-dyed yarn. Its not as crazy as I'd thought it would be! Its also less blue. I've never knit a mitred square before. Its erm, not very square without being pinned to within an inch of its life.

jaywalkers!

2008-02-27T17:59:00.001Z

jaywalker1
Originally uploaded by cob_web

Finally finished. If I were to knit this pattern again I'd probably make the next size up as they are very snug. Great pattern. I make no appologies for them clearly not matching, I didn't even TRY.

I think this pattern would be better on a more variagated yarn. The thick stripes in this one don't work that well. I'm not a huge fan of this colourway at all to be honest.

My first attempt at dying

2008-02-27T17:56:00.001Z

rainbow2
Originally uploaded by cob_web

I went a bit mad, I admit! The lovely forchette (on Ravelry and the CowShed) sent me some white sock yarn and some "easter egg dyes". These I presume are a bit like food colouring, but they come in tablets.

So I made the balls into skeins (not realising that 50g aint enough for a pair of socks and I'd have to dye the two the same, so they are different sizes). This bit is boring and tediuos and results in a painful arm.

Then you soak the yarn in luke-warm water for half an hour to open up the fibres. Meanwhile I prepared the dyes. I used 2 tablets of each colour and dissoved them in 250ml boiling water with 2 tablespoons of white vinegar. Obviosuly you let them cool before sticking your yarn in.

I laid out a bin liner and sqeezed most of the water out of the yarn and laid the skeins out. I put the smaller one inside the bigger one so they are vaguely similar. I had in mind a lovely subtle blue and purple colour scheme, but the colours you get are red, blue, green, orange and yellow. I wasn't quite sure if mixing the red and blue would create purple or not. So erm, I couldn't resist using ALL the colours.

I had bought a turkey baster for 90p in Sainsbury's, but it was rubbish and I had to stick my finger over the end or the dye came striaght out again.

Still, it was pretty easy and less messy than I expected as the yarn sucked up most of the liquid like a sponge.

Once I was happy I squeezed out most of the water (the dye sticks to the yarn and leaves a mostly clear water) and put the yarn in a deep baking tray, covered this in foil and baked in the oven for an hour at 80 degrees C. That bit would be much easier if you have a microwave.

After the heating, I squeezed out more water and hung them to dry overnight in the airing cupboard. The next day I rinsed them out, using a small amount of baby shampoo. Then they were left to dry again for 2 days.

Easy really! I think I am addicted though....

My Fashionable Life?

2008-02-23T22:17:00.000Z

I'm thinking of asking Matt for the yarn to knit Flicca:

My Fashionable Life: Flicca pattern

For my birthday. Sirdar Click Chunky is pretty cheap (~£2 a ball) but this takes around 20 balls!

Has anyone else knit this? I'd want to add some buttons, like this (ravelry link) I think, but I've never done buttons before. Anyone know of any tutorials?

Anyone else knit this? Its rather big given my slow knitting speed! I think its nice, but I'm not well known for my fashion sense...

Present!

2008-02-20T10:46:00.001Z

socks to dye
Originally uploaded by cob_web

Look what I got!

I sent a lovely lady from the Cowshed forum a handbag clasp I got free with Simply Knitting as I knew I would never use it. In return she sent me some white sock wool and some easter egg dyes so I can have a go at some hand dying! How lovely is that? The easter egg dyes are similar to koolaid I think, and her results have been stunning. I don't have a microwave so setting the dye is going to be interesting. I have instructions on how to do it in the oven, but I don't want to dye my dishes! LOL I might see if I can get some of those large disposable tin foil trays.

more woes

2008-02-14T10:00:00.001Z

Last night was one step forward two steps back in knitting terms. I picked up all the stitches I'd ripped out and started knitting the rib border again. I had the exact same problem (big holes at the point of the V) and was ready to rip it out again when I realised the problem and was able to fix it. Where the V splits you have to start a new ball of yarn for one side. I hadn't secured the end of this yarn as I wanted to make the whole thing as easy to frog as possible in case it doesn't fit its recipient. Once I had tightened this up the hole mostly went.

Then came the next problem. The ribbing is k1p1 with a decrease either side of the central stitch on each row. So on one side the decreases are knit decreases, on the next purl decreases.

Somehow (goodness knows how, I counted many times) I had ended up with an odd number of stitches on one side. So when I got the the decrease section the ribbing was out of sync. At this point I had managed 2 rows.

ARGH!

so

riiiiiip!

I managed to pick up the stiches without having to go back to the crochet hook (which is the only way I can actually pick up new stitches) but then the first row took me ages because I managed to pick up all the stitches backwards so had to untwist each one as I went.

So there is one row of ribbing done. 2 more to go, the ribbing for both sleeves and the sewing up to do. Ideally by the end of today. I'm pretty sure thats not possible. Its certainly making it very hard to concentrate at work today.

cries

2008-02-11T21:49:00.000Z

Last night I did the dreaded picking up of stitches along the V-neck. Today I sat here and started the ribbing. Which looked awful to begin with last time. This time however it was a disaster. I had to rip out the whole thing :-( I want to get it finished by Thursday, but I just can' tface it at the moment. *sigh*

I hate picking up stitches.

Decreasing

2008-02-10T15:13:00.000Z

So, I'm knitting Forever Green (Ravelry link) again for my sister, and thought I'd post about somthing that bugged me the last I did it, and is bugging me even more now I'm knitting it for someone else.

Its the decreases. The first photo -->

shows the GOOD side, where I have used K2tog along the V-neck line. This looks fine.

The problem is shown in the 2nd picture below. I followed the advice in SnB and mirrored the decreases, so on the other side I used SSK.

As you can see it looks crap. Not a nice neat change in direction as in picture one.

What am I doing wrong?