Knitting, Fiber Art, and Lofty Thoughts
“Easter Greetings” from Stitchcraft, April 1962! According to “editress” Patience Horne, “everyone is getting that “out-of-doors” feeling”. I and my …
April 1962: Overview
If you are not following The Stitchcraft Sixties, I highly recommend it. Tres drole.
(Image credit The Knitting Goddess)
Karen posted a sock quiz! I’m a notorious sock knitting eschewer but quizzes are great for personal development and blog fodder.
1. Do you knit/crochet socks?
I want to knit socks. I have knit socks. But generally, no, I don’t.
2. If yes, how long have you been making them? If no, why not?
It doesn’t sound fun. I’m primarily a sweater and hat knitter.
3. What is your preferred method? Top down, toe up? Which needles? Do you have a preferred heel type?
I prefer toe up so I can make sure the foot fits well. I hate a baggy sock. I prefer fine yarn for socks but they sure do take a long time! I like a well-turned heel. I’ve never tried an afterthought heel. Are their more flaps than that? Double point needles for me.
4. Have you gifted socks? Were they worn, loved and appreciated?
Never! I am considering knitting a pair for Bob, though. It’s a lot of pressure.
5. Could you make nothing but socks for the rest of your life and be happy?
If I can knit one more pair of socks (I’ve made two pair in my life so far) I could be happy the rest of my life never knitting them again. Or, who knows, I might knit another pair and enjoy them so much I will want to knit more! That’s my hope.
6. One of the most addictive things about sock knitting is the amazing selection of fingering weight yarn that is available. What is your favorite yarn for socks? Do you prefer solid or multicolor yarn? Do you have a fiber preference?
For me it will need to be crazy hand painted colors or solid yarn with textured knitting. Wool plus silk (for strength) is my favorite fiber combo. Throw some cashmere in there and I’m hooked.
Well, that was fun and inspiring. Maybe I will cast on a pair of socks today.
February Frogs:
I’m pulling out the linen stitch cowl. It is taking too long and I am afraid I don’t have enough yarn for it. My Hogwarts yarn will make a great pair of clog socks though.
I’m pulling out this Bousta Beanie. It’s not happening.
Do you like my new photo prop? It’s Fair Trade and I picked it up at Pachamama Market when I was in Troy, OH for a work meeting.
I think one should feel good about frogging and this wool felt sunflower does the trick for me.
The new The Just Craft is up!
Someone has been watching too much Great British Baking Show! I’ve never made mincemeat before, but I’ve tasted it, and it’s pretty gross. So Bob made his amazing gluten free pie crust and I made my own delicious and tart mincemeat! It includes Granny Smith apples, apple cider, butter, sugar, Bob’s pumpkin pie spice, crystallized ginger, and dried sultanas, cranberries, sour cherries, and figs. Also sunflower nuts and pepitas since I can’t have tree nuts. And orange zest and a pinch of salt!
My flavors are there, but the crust could have used another minute.
I’m going to eat one while watching the next episode.
I have a new-to-me favorite Christmas song. Enjoy!
Look at this gorgeous fabric I ordered. Unfortunately it weighs a ton. It is bonded! If I made a jumpsuit out of it, I’d feel like I was wearing a carpet. I think it will make a nice coat, though. So I’ll look for a coat pattern on Seamwork. I think my last issue of Ottobre has a coat too.
In the meantime, maybe I’ll try to make the jumper out of some knit fabric I purchased for a dress but never made. Then I can put it on hold until spring.
Whenever I get any new fabric or yarn, I take it to my studio. Then I think, why? I’m moving out of here in less than a month! I’m sad about giving up my studio, but I know it’s the right thing to do.
I don’t know if I will be able to sew after I move out. I’m guessing most of my things will go to the basement. I think I will keep my studio membership which allows me to use the sewing machine and sergers there. There is also a local sewing business where you can go and rent the use of a machine for $10 an hour. The problem is I need to be alone when I sew. I don’t have the ability to sew and chat, unfortunately.
Are you a community sewist or a solo sewist?
One of our vendors recently traveled to Puno, Peru to visit the artisans they work with, and they shared these videos.
I love the way the artisans carry the yarn around their neck, and how quickly they knit!
On the home front, my Boost Your Knitting book arrived. I’m so glad they put everything in a book at the end of the club, because otherwise I wouldn’t be able to complete all the lessons!
I’ve been meaning to blog about my DNA test because I recently came across some new information.
These tests are only as accurate as the pool of DNA they have to compare it against. For example, I have documented French Huguenot ancestry, but DNA testing is outlawed in France, so there is no comparative DNA.
I found the West Asian DNA surprising, although you just never know for sure. But I was open to the idea, even though there is no family lore about it.
But I recently read about a man with documented Cherokee ancestry who had West Asian ancestry show up in his DNA test, but no Native American ancestry. The article went further to say that often people descended from Eastern tribes like Cherokee, Choctaw, and Creek will show up as West Asian, because that is their original and closest descent, while Western tribes will show up as East Asian/ Polynesian. This made sense because we have undocumented Choctaw ancestry according to family lore. There probably won’t be any way to verify this until more First Nations people choose to have their DNA tested.
ETA: I’ve done a little more research and it sounds like this West Asian – Native American connection is a bunch of hooey. Live and learn!
I suspect the Baltic comes from my maternal Grandmother’s Vance line.
Also, you might have ancestry that doesn’t show up in your DNA test because you didn’t get those genes.
Still killing time at the BMV…
Isn’t this blue linen pretty?
I originally bought it to make another pair of Emerson Pants. But I thought it was too pretty for pants. So today I cut out a Farrow Dress instead.
(Photo courtesy of Grainline Studios)
I hope to start sewing it together tomorrow. Shout out to my Mom who sent me some birthday cash which I promptly blew on linen fabric from Lithuania. (I’m so glad I did!)
I also worked on my felt painting today.
This is mostly Romeldale-CVM and local (Ohio) Shetland wool. I’m hoping to get to the felting part tomorrow. This is for a group show with Mother Artists at Work in July.
I even knit on my Celtic Myths today.
Today was a good day.
I went to the studio today and made a linen tee.
I found this fabric rather challenging to work with. It’s a tissue linen knit. Since it’s almost transparent I doubled the fabric on the body. I didn’t have enough to make them the same size so I went with the fluttery look by making the top layer a little shorter.
I left the edges unfinished. I accidentally sewed the neck binding on backwards, but you can’t really tell. Especially now that I’ve washed it.
I bought this fabric to make pj pants, but now I’m thinking of making the Lily top with it. What do you think?
I’m designing the perfect beanie with this Malabrigo.
I re-cast-on my lilac heather cumulus blouse. I tried to fix the messed up raglan shoulder, but wasn’t able to make it work. So I frogged it. All shoulders are looking good now!
What are you working on this weekend?
A Q and A from Kathy:
Q. Have you been to a baby or wedding shower where no gifts were opened during the gathering?
A. No. I think that would make me feel a little sad. I did go to a baby shower where you were supposed to bring something used. That was fun.
Q. Do you have an amazon echo dot or the like?
A. Absolutely not. I don’t talk to my phone either.
Q. Did you watch the Kentucky Derby? Did you agree with the ruling on the race winner?
A. I did not watch the Kentucky Derby.
Q. When are you most hungry during our 24 hour days?
A. I am most hungry in the late afternoon.
and
Q. Do you use margarine anymore?
A. We use Earth Balance, so yes. I prefer butter but I am allergic to dairy.
This is a reblog about the process of turning flax into linen fiber. I meant to post this months ago but forgot about it lingering in my drafts.
Hello! It’s snowing again. This should not surprise me. It’s March in Ohio.
I spent most of my studio time today preparing knitting for my trip to Oklahoma. Because I am taking four sweaters to knit on for the week. FOUR. The Oa, Midnight Merino Raglan, and two new ones: Cricket Hitofude and Meara XO.
I think we can safely call this The Year of the Sweater.
This is a merino and silk yarn in colorway Cricket for the Hitofude cardigan. This is my spring cardi I wanted to wear with my new tunic. It didn’t take me long to work out what I wanted.
Have you ever seen the Gilmore Girls episode when Lorelei is preparing for her wedding with Luke and all the planning falls together seamlessly so she knew it was meant to be? That’s what happened with this sweater.
If you’ve seen that episode, you know it turns out to be ill fated, but let’s stay positive and assume Cricket will come together seamlessly. The top of the cardigan is begun like a shrug. Have you ever knit a shrug?
Also, are you participating in Make It Yourself March? I am participating on Instagram, and one of the prompts later in the month is “most worn.” In preparation, I photographed myself in this shrug I knit about 10 years ago.
I wear this shrug every winter, most recently over this Mata Traders blouse. It’s knit from Knitpicks alpaca and silk, and the pattern may have been Knitpicks too. I can’t remember.
That first photo is a little goofy, but I never know how to pose myself in photos, so I typically ham it up.
It is also, according to Skeinherder, Malabrigo March. I thought that was the perfect excuse I didn’t need to buy a single skein of Malabrigo in my favorite color, cerulean. (That’s fun to say.) What will I make? I am thinking I will make the perfect beanie. When I know what that means, I will let you know.
Here is my tweedy Fibre Co. Arranmore yarn in colorway Meara. I’m calling the sweater Meara XO because it’s an all over cable pattern with XOs down the center front and back.
The pattern, Staghorn, is from the book A Fine Fleece. I like calling it XO because in The Expanse (and apparently the military) they call the executive officer XO. I secretly want my staff at work to call me XO as a term of endearment. But, as you know, nicknames cannot be forced.
Look at this hank of gradient yarn that turned out to be five different hanks of single color yarn. Boy do I feel stupid. I guess I’ll have to buy another hank of verifiably gradient yarn so I can knit my Bramen Cowl for the first lesson from Year of Techniques. (I copied Quiteayarnblog.) There were so many techniques on the list I didn’t know, I signed right up!
I think I’ll hold off on buying the yarn so I have an excuse to go yarn shopping in OKC when I’m there.
I’m still reknitting the bottom of my Carbeth. I’ve had to rip it out twice. But I think third time’s the charm on this one.
I’ve linked to two other bloggers in this post. I really blog for the community. Thanks for reading my blog and being part of my community!
