cygknits

Fliptop Mitts

2011-03-06T09:10:00.001-05:00

New England is officially thawing out. Today's temp is a balmy 50 degrees! It seems that the weather gods are finally showing us some love. After our worst winter in decades, with snow up to our ears (literally), it is pretty nice (if not somewhat strange) to see grass again, poking up through the melting snow. I'm going to reserve comment on all of the mud - beggers can't be choosers, right?

Despite the warming trend, it's not exactly tropical out there. There's nothing worse than chilly hands when you are trying to enjoy the great outdoors for the first time in months. Then again - sweaty hands tucked inside wooly mittens aren't much better (yuck!). Fliptop mittens are the perfect solution to this metacarpal conundrum; everyone should have a pair.

I bought my first pair of fliptop mittens while traveling in Estonia as a college kid. I still cherish the grey wool fliptops that I bought there at a local market for something like the equivalent of $3 - they're practical and stylish, but also a reminder of a simpler time in my life when I thought nothing of doing fun and adventurous things like, well, traveling to Estonia! Over the years, my Estonian mitts have worn thin at the thumbs and palms and slowly but surely are facing retirement.

This season I went a little nuts with the fliptop mits - they made great holiday gifts, and were a fun way to learn some new knitting techniques. Some people have the patience to knit fingerless gloves under the fliptop - not me. I stuck with patterns that had a cuff opening for all 4 fingers, and then a full thumb. These knit up faster, and I haven't had any complaints (:

My first attempt was with Ysolda Teague's pattern called Snapdragon fliptops - I really enjoy Ysolda's patterns and was enticed by the funky cable pattern on the wrist of this one. I used Spud and Chole Sweater, in "turtle" - it was a good choice. I think they came out just great.

They're a smidge too big - a common phenomenon for me (despite checking my gauge and going down a needle size on most projects...) so I'm holding on to them and waiting for the perfect gift-giving opportunity to come along.

I thought these would make perfect gifts for some special gals in my life, but wanted to eliminate the cabling - both to make the construction a bit quicker, and to show off the variegated yarn that I chose (Farmhouse Yarn's Andy Merino), so I tweaked the pattern just a bit and came out with these:

I wanted to try another version of a fliptop mit and stumbled upon a pattern called Frances, by Jane Richmond, another awesome knitwear designer. This pattern has a larger gauge (i.e. fewer stitches per inch) and worked out beautifully in Lion Brand Nature's Choice Organic Cotton. They looked like they needed a little embellishment, so I made duplicate stitch snowflakes on the fliptop of each. A tiny snap is sewn in to keep the tops fastened away when fingers are needed

Bottom line: Fliptops are fun and functional - try 'em!

Block-n-Roll

2010-10-17T09:02:00.001-04:00

Blocking is another one of those things that knitters love to hate. I mean - you've spent a zillion hours knitting up something incredible, you finally bind off, seam up, and just want to throw on that masterpiece and show it off to all your friends. I get it, I've been there. But if you really want your pieces to shine, step back and Block On, man! (insert hand gesture and air guitar here). Blocking is a simple way to make your finished products look even more professional and polished. Plus, it helps you to shape individual pieces so that seaming is a cinch and your fit is fab.

To put is simply, blocking is your way of telling those stitches who's boss. By wetting or steaming your work after it has been pinned into shape, it dries in the form it is destined to take. This makes your stitches line up like little soldiers and your finished pieces lay flat (hence the cinchy seaming). Some fiber types have more memory than others, and some are more fragile when wet. Because of this, there are several different ways to block so that you don't hurt anyone - it's a bit of tough love. I'll tell you about my favorite way to block, and you can check out this great article on knitty for more info on blocking specific types of yarn.

Before you start, you'll need some tools which you probably already have at home:

a spray bottle (for damp blocking)
a towel that you won't need to use for a few hours
an iron with a steam setting (for steam blocking)
pins (rust-proof pins are best, but I use whatever I have in my sewing stash and they work just fine)
measuring tape or ruler

Blocking can be done on an ironing board (for small pieces), on a sofa cushion, on your bed, or on a blocking board which you can easily make yourself by covering a piece of plywood with a layer of batting covered with fabric that has been secured to the back. You are basically looking for a soft surface that you can pin on to. Or, if you are pinning to your towel, you want to lay the towel onto a surface that can withstand the occasional pin prick. I usually block onto a towel that is laying on my guest bed (making sure to keep any curious animals out for the duration of the block).

If you are knittng a garment such as a sweater, there is typically a blueprint-like picture in the pattern which shows you the finished dimensions of each piece. Find the picture that matches the size that you made, and gently stretch and pin each piece to your blocking surface (tough love, remember?), according to the recommended dimensions. Here are some pictures from when I blocked Presto Chango:

Once every piece is pinned into place, you want to secure the yarn's memory by wetting or steaming so when it is dry and unpinned a few hours later, it remembers the shape. I do this by spritzing all pieces until damp with a spray bottle filled with water. Alternatively, you can hover an iron on the "steam" setting over the pieces, or dampen a towel, put it over your pieces, and warm iron over it. When the pieces are dry, unpin, seam, and you're done! It's SO worth it. Seriously.

Jessica Fenlon Thomas' article on knitty describes a really cool way to use blocking to create drape - check it out and give it a try!

xo.

Placemats for Herringbone Interiors

2010-10-03T12:59:00.000-04:00

One of my oldest (in the we-went-to-nursery-school-toghether sort of way...), closest friends is not only an awesome, loyal, fun-loving person, but a talented entrepreneur who has an interior design business that is getting tons of acclaim! Her blog is here - Herringbone Interiors. She's, like...famous! She recently had a show at the Hampton Classic Horse Show in Binghamton, NY, and her design space came in third for the best interiors (I'm telling you, she's famous!). She was kind enough to ask for some hand-knitted pieces to add to her decor and I was thrilled to oblige. I thought for weeks about what to contribute - I mean, where would baby booties or a knitted cowl fit into a chic interior?? But in my search for inspiration, I stumbled on the idea of...(drum roll, please...) knitted placemats! Consider it an 'Ah Ha' knitting moment!

I chose a washable yarn in a neutral shade that would not only funk up any table setting, but could be tossed into the washing machine when ketchup/red wine/spaghetti sauce needed removal. I also sought out yarn at a price point that would keep the construction costs low - the pattern is made with a super bulky yarn, 2 strands held together...so these suckers use a lot of yarn. I ended up going with Lion Brand Wool-Ease Thick & Quick in Oatmeal and was very happy with the outcome. Mine are 19" x 14" - which is what was recommended by the interior-designer-extraordinaire, but can be made any size. It is a basic seed stitch - couldn't be simpler. Give 'em a try!

Thanks JMM!! You are the best.

xoxo.

Stitch DC

2010-08-29T10:37:00.000-04:00

There are so many awesome things about traveling...seeing how other people live and work, eating at new restaurants, exploring cool neighborhoods, and maybe most importantly, stepping out of your own little bubble and realizing that there is so much out there to experience and enjoy. It's refreshing to return home with new perspective, new ideas, and maybe even some new appreciation for what you have.

A favorite part of my travels is looking up area yarn shops and seeing how the locals knit. I dream of one day being a yarn shop owner myself, so I really enjoy seeing the variation from shop to shop and tucking away little ideas for "some day".

A recent trip to our nations capital gave me the chance to visit Stitch DC - a lovely shop that was bursting with inspiration. Nestled in Capital Hill, Stitch DC resides in an historic row house on 8th Street SE and has some great neighbors - hip restaurants, trendy baby stores, organic markets, etc.

Inside, I met Marie Connelly: shop-owner, pattern-designer, book-writer, knitting-blogger, you name it. Master of all things knit, crocheted, and quilted. And on top of it, a super nice person! I was excited to hear about her recent book, The Expectant Knitter - a book that I can't wait to have on my bookshelf (they, unsurprisingly, had sold out at Stitch DC). With all of the babies and new moms around me, this will soon be a bible in my knitting library.

Aside from a lovely, neat, organized selection of great yarns, this shop has a wall of quilting cotton which is a brilliant addition. Sure, it's handy for the quilting classes (one starts October 9th!), but how about all of the other uses for fabric in the fiber world? Who wants to make an extra stop at a giant chain craft store when all you need one yard of cute cotton to line a knitted handbag? Not me! It's like having to go to the grocery store - oversized, obnoxious, and full of old acquaintances who want to chat - for one last pesky ingredient after you've enjoyed a morning at the farmer's market collecting everything else. So THANKS Stitch DC for believing in one-stop crafting! Now will you just open a shop in Connecticut?

The shop also has a beautiful, cozy classroom in back, another super-cool feature...

My Stitch DC purchases included:

a yard of mint green fabric with a pattern of cars, trucks, and traffic signs sketched about...sounds cute but chaotic? You're right. But I'm using it to line this Art Lace Bag by Teva Durham, and the pattern itself could easily be summed up with the same two words. Perhaps so could the District of Columbia?
two skeins of Spud and Chole Superwash Sweater yarn in Turtle - a perky emerald green that I couldn't live without. I've been curious about Spud and Chloe but haven't knit with any of their yarns. Not sure what I'll do with my Turtle yet...maybe knit something from The Expectant Knitter?

Thanks, Marie and Stitch DC for adding a ~~little~~ lot! of inspiration to my trip. Will be sure to stop by again next time I'm in Capitol Hill.

xoxo.

Birth Day Buddies

2010-08-17T22:16:00.001-04:00

If I am blessed to have a kiddo of my own some day, I wonder if I'll take the plunge and learn the baby's sex at that second trimester ultrasound. I've had friends who have done it and friends who haven't, and I'm sure a quick stroll through baby blogs would confirm my suspicion - there are pros and cons, ups and downs, pluses and minuses, to each side of the story.

What I DO know is that knitting for a gender-yet-to-be-determined bambino takes some serious thought. Little sweaters and booties are often quintessenially BOY or GIRL, even if you play with the colors. And if you don't have the time to commit to a neutral throw or baby blanket, what's a girl to do??

I encountered this conundrum recently. One of my most-specialist friends spent most of 2010 (and part of 2009) wondering if the little nugget in her belly was a boy or a girl. We all waited with bated breath on the big day, pacing back and forth in our little corners of the world, awaiting the text or call or email with the news. When little L. made his grand entrance, exactly 50% of us bragged, "I KNEW she was having a boy!". Funny how those odds work out! Now rewind several months, again to me pacing, but this time around my LYS...wondering what the heck to knit for this mysteriously gendered baby. If I had only known then what I know now! Every baby - boy, girl, big, small, premature or late-to-the-party - needs a snuggly little friend to enter this world beside.

Then I found this: Knitted Toy Tales: Irresistible characters for all ages by Laura Long. What a life saver! It is full of patterns for lots of quirky little friends - a frog prince, three adorable babushkas, the owl and the pussycat. I thought that baby L. would probably like a piglet and a teddy bear, so I set to work on my first attempt at knitted "toys". I was pleasantly surprised to find how simple the knitting and construction was. I chose baby-safe yarn and made sure to sew the seams securely, to prevent little hands from beheading or de-tailing his new pals. Here's what was born:

I nestled these guys in a vintage-looking tub that can be used to store toys or laundry once unwrapped. They were accompanied by a baby sling that I made using this tutorial, and an incredibly soft baby blanket I bought at Sprout Baby Boutique (if you are ever in Pacific Grove, CA - you must go!).

Piggy's head shot

I used scraps of funky quilting cotton for the paw pads and inner ear lining. I hand-sewed them in place, and then finished off the facial details (and belly button) with embroidery floss.

Voila!

To little LMH, the newest little Schmicky - I love you and can't wait to meet you in September!

xoxo.

Made by Mandi.

2010-08-14T19:11:00.000-04:00

Thanks to my pal Ashley at LetterKissed, I'm working on some "business" cards. Inspired by my bib-scribble from C.'s shower...

This...

...will become something like this...

...but much tidier. The real thing should arrive any day. Not sure who I'll give 'em to, but you never know!

Baby Uggs

2010-08-14T19:03:00.001-04:00

They've been gifted, now they can be posted :) For all the deets, see my "Pacific Grove" post...

Peaches is going to be the coolest chick on the block in these things!

xoxo.

Baby Sweet-Pea

2010-06-17T21:56:00.003-04:00

Thanks to bekahknits, the Baby Moc-a-Socs have a girlfriend...

(Baby Sweet-Pea).

Despite the blackberry-quality photos, still quite cute, I think.

Knit in the same fashion as the Baby Moc-a-Socs...and with the same yarns, Baby Sweet-Pea can be adapted for different sized tootsies. And since the inner sock has all of that ribbing, I'm hoping they'll stay put. A wise friend recommends sewing a elastic inside the top edge of the sock to keep these anchored on little feet. I forget sometimes that baby knits are made for real, live, squirmy infants. You mean babies don't lay around all day sleeping soundly and looking angelic? WTF! Auntie Mands has a lot to learn...

xoxo.

Pacific Grove

2010-06-16T20:51:00.004-04:00

Yikes! I guess I've had Blogger's Block! A whole month with nothing to share?? One would have thought that May 2010 was a horribly boring, uncreative 31 days of my life. But actually, it was quite the opposite. I have been knitting up a storm, and have even taught myself to crochet (although that was technically a June event...more on why it's been classified as an "event" later).

A highlight of my May was a trip to California to visit some very special friends and celebrate the upcoming delivery of a very special baby. Here are the deets:

Pacific Grove, California - "PG" to the locals - is the hometown of my wonderful friend C. (who happens to have an *amazing* food blog). I've been so lucky to have C. on the East coast for the past 7-or-so years - her friendship is a true blessing in my life. I've also been lucky to have the opportunity to travel to "PG" once or twice to see her 'hood and celebrate some important events. If you've never been to PG or the Monterey peninsula, you should probably just stop reading right now and hop onto orbitz or travelocity or kayak.com or...something! You are totally missing out. It's beyond ridiculously gorgeous...blue water, rocky coastline, abundant succulents of all shapes and sizes. And the people - creative, friendly, open-minded. I mean seriously - take a look:

Heaven!

PG is also home to Monarch Knitting and Quilts, a great yarn shop nestled into downtown with a huge supply of cool stuff. C. has asked me to knit/crochet her a pair of these, which she found on etsy (twist my arm!!) - they are baby versions of these knitted Uggs...and are so irresistable. Her little girl is going to look so freaking cute sporting these things! I like the crocheted version MUCH better than the knit version (hence the crochet "event" that pretty much consumed my life last week) and have been committed to producing them with perfection since I was charged with the task. I'm happy to say that after several botched attempts, and a few sleepless nights, I finally have a finished product and can now call myself a (beginner) crocheter! (And certifiably OCD). I will post the pics in a few weeks, after the mini-Uggs have been gifted to my dear C. (and baby Peaches).

C. and I spent some time together at Monarch the morning of her baby shower and she picked out the coolest yarn for these booties. It is made by women in Bolivia and distributed by a non-profit called Frog Tree Yarns - a company which imports eco-friendly, fair trade, hand crafted items from South America, primarily Peru and Bolivia. Their website tells their story - check it out, and ask your LYS if they carry their stuff. If they don't, they should. We found a blue-ish gray sport weight Alpaca which worked out perfectly. C. also picked out some adorable buttons that give the booties a girlie twist but keep them funky. I can't wait to post the pics!!

The trip to Monarch was only one highlight of my California adventure. I got to spend lots of quality time with my friend P., who recently relocated from Boston to Santa Monica (and whom I miss dearly), and C.'s baby shower was beautiful, fun, and so darn creative! Her friend A. hosted the event and is brilliantly creative - (check out her stationary company) so the shower was full of clever details. So inspiring! The icing on the cake is that I even got to make a pit stop in Chicago (thanks to an airline snafu) to see N. and baby Lilah!!! What a treat!!! I'm still buzzing...

I certainly didn't think that this blog would evolve into being all about baby knitting, but that's just where I'm at right now I guess (er...I mean where my friends are at! Don't get too excited yet Mom!!)

I'll leave you with this:

xoxo.

Baby Benton in a Pea Pod

2010-04-25T16:42:00.001-04:00

Isn't he the cutest thing you've ever seen? This is Benton, the newest addition to my dear friend Kate's family. I can't wait to meet him! Here he is in a "baby pea pod" that I knit for his mom's shower...he's the perfect model! So snuggly!

There are many versions of the baby pea pod by many different designers - if you do a quick search on google or ravelry, you can find one you like best. The pattern I used is by Paige Marecle - I found it on Ravelry but you can also purchase on Etsy by clicking here. It's a piece of cake, with some simple decreases to create the pod shape. I used a neat yarn called Blizzard by Reynolds. It's a soft alpaca blend that can be hand washed without too much trouble. Try it, you'll like it!

Dragon Skin Wrap (for babies)

2010-04-11T11:07:00.002-04:00

One of my VBFFs (very-best FF) is having a little girl! I can't wait. She lives in Chicago, so I haven't been able to see her much but she sends picture updates so we can keep tabs on her growing belly...and her absolute *glow*! I wanted to make something sassy and stylish for the little lady, and the Dragon Skin Wrap has both written all over it.

The pattern is from Interweave Knits, and can be seen and/or purchased here. I used a soft, yummy baby yarn called Baby Boutique from Plymouth Yarns. It's machine washable (always a plus for baby gear) and was great to work with.

It's a fun pattern, but definitely kept me on my toes. I knit up a few swatches until I was comfortable with the dragon skin pattern repeat and that was a big help. I also consulted the web more than once - there is an error in the original pattern that needed to be corrected and a few techniques were new to me. The decrease on the front edges was tricky and certainly requires undivided attention! There was a lot of counting and a lot of adjusting in order to keep the pattern intact while getting the detailing accomplished. The end product is worth it - and I hope that the little lady likes it! Her mommy looks beautiful in bright colors like this - and I know that baby O will be just as much of a stunner. Like-mother-like-daughter!

Love you NMO!! Can't wait for the littlest schmicky!

Moc-a-Socs

2010-04-11T10:50:00.000-04:00

If "adorable" could walk around on two feet, it would definitely wear these booties! I was hoping that my finished product would be as precious as the photograph on the pattern...and I think I got pretty close! This pattern is from bekahknits.com and can be downloaded for a small price - totally worth it! I'm going to start a baby girl version today...stay tuned! I love that my friends are expecting little munchkins. Knitting for babies is tons of fun.

These were made on US 2 needles and are started by knitting flat, then seaming up the back and bottom. The inner sock is added by picking up stitches around the moccasin opening and knitting in the round with 4 dpns. I used a machine washable sport weight wool from a Norweigan company called Dale. The sock is made from a fingering weight yarn so that the gauge is a little bit tighter. This way the little suckers don't fall off your baby's kicking feet! So smart. So cute!

So you wanna knit? Part six: the purl stitch

2010-03-22T22:10:00.000-04:00

If you feel good about the knit stitch, you are already half-way to becoming a Knitter (with a capital K). Pretty good!! The other half of the Knitting equation is *purling*...which essentially is just inside-out knitting. The purl stitch can feel a little awkward, especially if you are used to knitting knitting knitting. But some people LOVE to purl! Maybe you'll be one of them!

PURLING 101

1. The first thing to know about purling is that the working yarn must be kept IN FRONT of your needles. This is in contrast to knitting, where the working yarn was always behind. So before you even start, make sure your yarn is in front. Now, with your naked needle in your right hand and the stitch-filled needle in your left, insert the tip of the naked needle (x-rated knitting?) into the front of the first stitch, from right to left:

2. Take the working yarn and wrap it AROUND the tip of the right needle from right to left, or counter clockwise. Another way to describe this is going over then under the right needle with the yarn:

Hold the working yarn taught, along the length of the right needle:

3. Now, move the right needle from the front of the left needle to the back, pulling the working yarn along with it. The right needle will be moving THROUGH the loop on the left hand needle as you do this:

4. You are almost done! Pull the right needle to the right, so that the original loop that you went through in step 1 slips off of the left needle. What you'll have is a new stitch on your right needle. This is a purl stitch!

5. Repeat steps 1-4 until you have purled all stitches off of the left needle. Voila!!

When you purl every row, your work looks the same as knitting every row - *garter stitch*. If you alternate knitting an purling, magic happens! This is called *stockinette stitch* - try it! I'll post a picture of stockinette stitch soon. First see if you can discover it on your own!

Questions? Comments?? I've been told that my "comment" button doesn't appear in my posts. I'm trying to get blogger to help me fix this, but so far - no good. Please email me! cygknits@gmail.com - can't wait to hear about your progress!

So you wanna knit? Part five: the knit stitch

2010-03-14T20:33:00.004-04:00

Sorry for the delay! By now you must have MASTERED casting on...which is a good thing, because you can't knit without it! Ready for more? Consider this post the "meat and potatoes" of knitting (given the time of year, maybe the "corned beef and cabbage" is more appropriate!).

A little background about what you are about to learn. "Knitting" has two definitions. One is the general term for the craft itself. But "knitting" also describes the act of doing the "knit stitch". You see, there are two basic components of Knitting (the craft, which I'll designate with a capital K...) - knitting and purling. When you are doing the knit stitch, you are knitting. When you are doing the purl stitch, you are purling. (But either way, you are Knitting - get it?) Both knitting and purling are very simple...and once you've learned them, you can do a myriad other things. Everything else is a combination of knitting and purling, with a few detail techniques thrown in to keep you enchanted.

Whether you are knitting or purling, you are simply transferring all of your stitches from one needle to the other, then back again (over and over). That's the basic premise of Knitting. Every transfer creates a new row, and each row adds length to your project.

We are going to start by learning the knit stitch. Be patient - it takes some practice. Your head will learn first, and your hands will follow. It may feel awkward for a while, but your hands will soon catch up to your head, and you'll be a knitting machine!

KNITTING 101: the knit stitch

1. You are going to knit off of your cast-on stitches. Try casting on about 10 stitches. Hold the needle with the cast-on stitches in your left hand. Hold the other needle in the right. Look at the yarn that is hanging from the cast-on stitches. There should be two strands - one is attached to the skein of yarn - we'll call this the "working yarn", and one is a tail - which should be ignored. Be sure that as you follow the directions, you are using the "working yarn" and ignoring the tail. Some people tie something to the tail, like a button or a safety pin, so that they don't make the mistake of knitting with it.

2. With your right needle, pass the tip through the front of the first stitch on the left needle, from front to back.

3. Now take the "working yarn" and bring it around the right needle from back to front. In other words, bring it behind the needle to the left, then in front of the needle to the right, or wrap it counter-clockwise.

4. Try to get a sturdy grasp on the "working yarn" with your right hand by draping it down the length of the right needle and pretending that it is a part of the needle.

5. Now, bring the right needle from the back of the left needle to the front, dragging along the loop that you made from the "working yarn". If you have a slight tug on the "working yarn", it should follow the needle pretty easily.

Does this feel familiar? It should. You've just done the same motion that you did to cast on. But here's where things are different...

6. You now have a loop of yarn on the right needle. Pull on this loop with your right needle to that the original loop/stitch on the left needle falls right off of the left needle.

Now look at your needles -- you should have 9 stitches on the left and 1 on the right. Hooray! You just *knit* your first stitch. Keep on going in the same fashion, knitting one stitch at a time off of the left needle and adding it on to the right...

Continue with the above directions until you have knit all stitches from the left needle onto the right. Then simply change hands -- put the needle that is holding the stitches into your left hand and the naked needle into your right. You're ready to knit another row!

A few tips to remember -
-always keep the "working yarn" to the back of your stitches when you are doing the knit stitch.
-practice practice practice!
-try not to knit too tight - it makes life very difficult! Remember the rule about your favorite jeans. Your stitches should hug your needle gently, with room to wiggle.

What you are doing right now, by knitting every row, is called the garter stitch. The garter stitch is very commonly used in Knitting because it is creates a nice sturdy fabric which doesn't roll or curl. It is also reversible - the front and back look exactly the same. It makes a nice scarf!

Do you have any cool ideas for what to make using garter stitch??

The Yarn Garden

2010-03-14T14:31:00.002-04:00

Big trouble!! I've stumbled upon a new LYS (local yarn shop)!! And it's awesome and adorable. It's called The Yarn Garden and is on Elm Street in Meriden, CT. If you weren't looking for it, you might not see it - it is literally tucked into a cottage-like home in the middle of a quiet neighborhood. But what a gem! It is cozy and friendly and is chock-full of scrumptious yarns. They also have a huge library of patterns that are nicely organized. I've been there twice in the past week and have picked up some really good stuff!

1. simple knits for cherished babies - by Erika Knight

I have a lot of preggo friends...and am loving knitting baby stuff. This book is a staple for baby-knits and I'm excited to tackle some of the patterns inside.

2. Baby boutique by Plymouth Yarns - soft and silky, but still durable (and machine washable!). I'm using it to knit a super cute sweater for one of my BFF's baby, who is on the way :) I'll post the pattern and photos when I'm all done. I don't want to ruin any surprises!

3. Namaste - If you are looking for a hip, trendy way to carry around your knitting stuff, check out the bags and accessories made by Namaste. I bought a cute carrying case for my dpns called the mini cozy, from the "Cali collection'. Love it!

4. You might die when you see how cute these baby booties are - Toddler Merry-Jane and Toddler Moc-a-soc. I can't wait to start a pair. I bought the patterns at The Yarn Garden, but you can also buy them online and they'll be delivered to your email in 24 hours, in a PDF file. This is a great way to order patterns. You can save them on your computer, and print them when/if you need to. A good way to knit green!

Thanks Yarn Garden! See you again soon!

Presto Chango

2010-03-04T21:11:00.001-05:00

A co-worker of mine is having a baby. Soon! We are scheduled to "shower" her in a week or so...and I've been knitting away on the Presto Chango (free download!)...quite possibly the cutest baby sweater I've ever seen. I love it because it looks like a mini-grown up sweater. And the concept of a detachable/interchangable front panel is so cool. I wish I had come up with it! You can actually knit different panels that button-on when you want a new "look"...for your very stylish baby.

This is the back...

The front panel has a lovely yarnover (YO) pattern.

The buttons are very simple - I bought them at Michael's. (P.S. the baby's a girl, don't worry...)

I used organic cotton from Debbie Bliss's ECO Fairtrade Collection. The gauge is 4 stitches to the inch, and I achieved this on size US 8.

I hope baby and mama like!

So you wanna knit? Part four: casting on

2010-02-27T14:50:00.005-05:00

Ready? Good. Let's go.
Grab your needles and your yarn. Put on some good tunes. Pour a glass of wine. Let's cast on.

"Casting on" is how you get your stitches on your needles. You are building a foundation to knit off of. Your pattern will tell you how many stitches to cast on (CO). Do what you are told. If you are just playing around, it doesn't matter so much. Try casting on 20, or in Knitting-ese, "CO 20".

The first stitch that you cast on is made out of a slip knot. Have you ever made a slip knot? Probably. But maybe knot (sorry, couldn't resist). It's easier to learn by seeing it, than reading it, so here are a few pictures that might help:

SLIP KNOT 101

1. With the palm of one hand facing you, drape the tail end of your yarn over your hand from front to back. Leave about a foot of yarn hanging off the back of your hand.

2. Grab the tail of the yarn with your opposite hand and wrap it around your pointer and middle fingers one time so that it is hanging behind your fingers again. Like this:

3. Curl your pointer and middle fingers towards you and with your opposite hand, push a loop of the tail through the yarn that is wrapped around your fingers. Grab this loop with your right hand and pull your left fingers out. While holding the loop, gently tug on the yarn tail - the one that is "hanging loose" (not the one attached to the skein). This will tighten the loop.

4. You have just made a slip knot. It is called a slip knot because it easily slips into a bigger or smaller loop, depending on how you tug it. Play with it a little, and make a couple until you feel like you have the hang of it. It becomes so second nature after a while that you do it without even thinking about it. No luck?? It might be easier to watch a video. Try this one! Or just go to YouTube and type in "slip knot" - you'll find more videos than you'll know what to do with. There are lots of different ways to make a slip knot. You'll find one that works for your happy little fingers.

The loop of the slip knot gets put onto one needle. Then this needle is held in your non-dominant hand. This is going to be your working needle. You are going to add many more loops to this needle until you have as many as you need to start your project. This will be the foundation of your knitting, and what you are about to do is "cast on".

CASTING ON

Okay. You already have one stitch "cast on" to your needle - the "stitch" that was created by the slip knot. I am going to walk you through the "cable cast on" method. I like this method because as you cast on, you will also be learning the "knit stitch" (more-or-less)...so pay attention! There are other ways to cast on, but we'll save them for later.

CABLE CAST ON:

1. Hold the needle with the slip knot in your non-dominant hand. (For me this is the left, so all of my pictures will illustrate right-handed kntting. If you are a lefty, this link will walk you through how to do this in the other direction). With your dominant hand, put the tip of the other needle through the front of the stitch, keeping the right needle below the left.

2. Next, wrap the end of the yarn which is attached to the skein around the tip of the right needle, from back to front:

Give this tail a little tug, almost so it snaps into place in between the two needles, and is snug against the first loop.

3. Now, with your right hand, bring the right needle from the back to the front of the left, carrying along the yarn that you looped around. In other words, bring the yarn THROUGH the original stitch, back to front.

See what you've got?? You've got another loop. Where do you think it should go?? Next to the first loop!

4. So, with your right needle, pull a little to make the loop bigger, then slip it on to the end of the left needle.

Gently pull the tail to make this loop fit nicely next to its neighbor. You never want to cast on too TIGHT. The stitches should encircle the needle like your favorite old pair of broken-in-jeans fits your hips.

The next stitch will be made by repeating the above, but building on the stitch you just made. The only difference is this: instead of inserting your right needle through the front of the stitch, you are going to wedge it between the first stitch and second stitch, like this:

Do you see the difference? The rest is the same...wrap the yarn (which is connected to the skein) around the right needle from back to front, give it a tug, and carry it from back to front with your right needle. Then tug on the loop and add it to the left needle, next to the first two.

Do this over and over again, adding one stitch at a time, until you have "cast on" as many stitches as you need. The stitches will stack nicely next to one another, and when you are all done, it will look something like this:

Congrats! Practice makes perfect (hint, hint!).

What the...? Demystifying knitting lingo

2010-02-23T22:48:00.001-05:00

I thought I was pretty cool in seventh grade. I transformed from "Mandy" into "Mandi", got my first real boyfriend (or two), and made the executive decision to take...(drumroll)...FRENCH. Up until seventh grade, you see, my classmates and I were forced to take Spanish. Blah. Uno, dos, tres. I mean, like, didn't the teachers know that we, like, totally learned all of that stuff, like, on Sesame Street, about a TRILLION years ago?? What-EVER!

But French...ooh la la!  So exotic, so sophisticated. Someone decided that as seventh graders we were mature enough to handle the language of love, and voila! I was officially a French Student. Adios espanol!

Now, a decade (or two) later, I'm cursing that Francophilic adolescent. Don't get me wrong, I enjoyed learning French, and continued to study it through my freshman year of college (thank you Prof. Williamson!).  But now that I'm a big girl with a big-girl job, I NEED TO SPEAK SPANISH!!! Hindsight is 20/20, as they say. I am exposed to more Spanish than English on any given day in my profession. Who would have known. Rosetta Stone is my only hope at this point. If I had only stuck with Spanish back when I was still Mandy, I would probably be pretty good by now.

Despite my failed attempts at being bilingual in the traditional sort-of way, I am proud to say that I am fluent in the language of knitting.

The language of knitting is more like a shorthand. The key is learning how to decipher the abbreviations and symbols that represent knitting stitches and techniques.  The shorthand helps to keep patterns concise and easy to follow. Writing out "slip one knit-wise, knit one, and pass slipped stich over" takes up a lot more room than "SKP", and is messier for your brain to process when you are quickly glancing at a written pattern and telling your fingers how to follow. Here's a run-down of some basic abbreviations:

CO = cast on
k = knit
p = purl
dec = decrease
inc = increase
k2tog = knit two together
yo = yarn over
wyif = with yarn in front
St st = stockinette stitch
BO = bind off

There are lots more, which you will learn along the way.

Most knitting patterns will have a key which explains what their abbreviations mean. The Craft Yarn Council of America has certain standards for knitting abbreviations, and if you click here, you will find them all. Any good knitting instruction book will have an index of abbreviations, and if all else fails, type "xx knitting abbreviation" into google, and you are almost guaranteed to decipher even the most obscure notation. Knitting patterns that originate in other countries may have different abbreviations, but they are usually pretty easy to interpret with the right guidance (i.e. internet, expert knitter, LYS employee).

Allons-y!

Coming up...casting on.

Star Crossed Slouchy Beret

2010-02-21T16:35:00.002-05:00

Have you noticed how H-O-T the knitted beret is right now?? If not, look around. I like a knitted beret because it keeps you warm now, but can transition into the spring and still be stylish and appropriate. Natalie Larson has a great beret pattern on ravelry called "Star Crossed Slouchy Beret" (it's a free download). It knits up beautifully with worsted weight yarn and is a nice pattern for practicing all sorts of knitting techniques: ribbing, increasing, decreasing, and cables. Try it!

The top is like a pinwheel, made by doing a simple decrease with double pointed needles (dpns) or by using the magic loop method.

I followed Natalie's advice and used Malabrigo worsted yarn. It is a scrumptious kettle dyed merino wool that is soft yet durable. The colors are so vibrant and earthy. I literally couldn't stop buying skein after skein. Each beret used about 2/3 of a skein. Here's what it looks like on your (my) head...

Have you ever tried taking pictures of yourself in the mirror with your cell phone?? Not easy!

Fake-a-gamo

2010-02-13T11:15:00.002-05:00

My mom's friend Anna is a knitter, like me. She's cute as a button and sharp as a tack, like my mom. Anna knits beautiful purses and has a friend who sews the linings. Her final products are really somethin'. Last summer she shared a pattern with me, and it's one of my favorite projects of all time. It's for a knock-off of a Ferragamo handbag, appropriately dubbed a "Fake-a-gamo". The pattern I followed was once posted here but I can't find it anymore!! This link gives you some basics, and this has some FAQs. If you go on ravelry and search for Fake-a-gamo, you can probably find a more complete pattern.

Mine came out like this:

I loooove it.

A closer look at the stitch pattern:

When my fiance and I were in San Fran this summer, I found a vintage fabric shop in Haight-Ashbury where I bought the material that I used for the lining...

I found the bamboo handles on etsy. I'm working on a second, in midnight blue. It's gonna be a gift, but I can't say for who. Big secret!

gauge...don't be a hater

2010-02-13T09:01:00.005-05:00

I wish I could say I wasn't a gauge-hater.  Fo' real. But I am. My name is Mandi, and I'm a gauge-hater.   You will soon see why there is no room for this in the knitting-hood.

gauge ('gaj) n. 1. In knitting, a measurement of how many stitches and rows make up one inch. 2. That thing you (reluctantly) check before starting a project to prevent the compulsion to throw your knitting needles across the room

swatch ('swoch) n. 1. a segment or strip of fabric used to represent the gauge, texture, color, or pattern of the whole piece 2. The necessary evil one must knit in order to avoid the obligatory kneedle throwing (see above)

In a perfect world, you could grab some needles, pick some luxurious yarn, and be on your way. A few hours later you would have an exact replica of the $350 cable-knit sweater you saw in the window of Anthropologie, custom fit to your exact size and shape. Mmmmm...I'm taking a moment to live this fantasy. The truth is, it AIN'T THAT EASY, sister. But don't be discouraged...the real thing is way more fun and satisfying!

Many people knit from patterns, which expert knitters and fiber designers have created after hours and hours of sketching, tweaking, attempting, tweaking some more, and finally publishing. Each pattern follows a similar format and provides important preliminary information, which if followed correctly, will ensure your finished product is just as perfect as the photograph you saw online. Patterns typically start with descriptions of the following:

Size or knitted measurements - This tells you what sizes can be made with the particular pattern you have chosen. Sometimes this section will look like this: XS (S, M, L), meaning the pattern can be knit in four different sizes - extra small, small, medium, and large. The pattern directions will go on to explain each step in a similar fashion. When it says to cast on 50 (54, 60, 68) stitches, it means that if you are making a size XS, you cast on 50.  For a size S, cast on 54, and so on.

Materials - This section tells you what type of yarn the pattern was designed for. Using the exact same type of yarn is always an option, but isn't a necessity. Knowing how to substitute different types of yarns will come with experience and practice. In the beginning, have your LYS employee help you pick out an alternative if you don't want to go with what is recommended or if you can't find the yarn that was specified in the pattern. Another option is finding something that is of similar weight. Weight is often depicted with a little symbol and a number, as designated by the Craft Yarn Council of America. A link to these weights is found here. If you know the weight of the recommended yarn, you can find an alternative yarn in a similar weight and you will probably be good to go.

When choosing an alternate yarn, be careful of the drape. Drape describes how something will hang or fall, just as you might have guessed.  Different yarns create different drapes - knitter beware! Check with your LYS expert, or knit up a swatch (as described below) with the yarn you choose to see if is going to hang right.

The materials section also tells you how much yarn you will need. If you are using the same yarn as the pattern recommends, purchase as many skeins as the pattern tells you to. If you are using something different, you may have to do some math.  Let's say you are knitting a pattern that calls for three skeins of yarn, and each skein contains 110 yards. This means you will need (3 x 110) yards, or 330 yards to complete the project. You decide to use a different yarn, which is available in skeins which contain 90 yards each. To get a total of 330 yards, you need (330 divided by 90) skeins, or 3.67 skeins. Looks like you will be buying 4 skeins, and will have a little left over.

Gauge - Here is where the designer tells you how many stitches make up one inch (or four inches) using the recommended yarn and needle size. Why do you care? Well, in order for all of the proportions to be correct as you knit, your gauge has to match the pattern's gauge. This is probably the most CRUCIAL THING YOU WILL EVER DO. You will whine and mope as you knit your swatch, but it's better than whining and crying over a sweater intended for your sister that will only fit your Yorkie. Trust me...been there. The pattern will establish the necessary gauge; for example, 19 stitches and 29 rows = 4 inches/10cm using size 7 needles.  Your job is to do whatever it takes to make your yarn match this gauge.

You do this by making a swatch - a simple square, created by knitting in the stitch pattern dictated by the designer. Often, the swatch is made with stockinette stitch (St st) which you will soon be a master of.  Typically, you want to measure how many stitches in your swatch fit into 4 inches or 10 centimeters (4"/10cm), so knitting up a swatch that is at least 4" x 4" is a GREAT idea (hint, hint).  Start with the needle size that the pattern recommends and cast on the approximate number of stitches that should fit in 4", plus a few extra. Knit in the pattern stitch until you have enough rows to measure 4" up and down.  Then pull out your ruler. Measure how many stitches make up 4" across and how many rows make up 4" up and down. You can also buy one of these handy gadgets, which helps you to measure your stitches per inch:

The window enables you to count your stitches while keeping the swatch flat. With this particular gadget, count the stitches in the window (2"), then multiply by two to get your stitches in 4". If you have 22 stitches in 4" and the gauge is for 19, you have more than the recommended gauge. To fix this, you need to use LARGER needles, so that fewer stitches are in every inch. If your swatch has 16 stitches in 4 inches, you need SMALLER needles so that more stitches are in every inch. So you switch needles and knit a new swatch. Measure again and adjust again (and again and again) until you nail it.

If you are a gauge-hater like me, you might ask: "But what happens if I don't check my gauge? Who freaking cares about this gauge-(expletive)?" Well, pretend you are building a house out of bricks. Your measurements call for standard sized bricks in order for your house to be the correct size. Your local hardware store is out of standard bricks, so you decide to use something else, and you build your house out of really big cinder blocks. You follow the instructions that call for bricks...and your cute little cape is now a huge, oversized concrete warehouse. Or, you use tiny glass tiles, and your house (although lovely!) is fit for a Barbie doll. Luckily, in knitting, changing the needle size can turn your cinder blocks into bricks. Home sweet home!

Get it? If not, click here to read more.

Up next: What the...? Demystifying knitting lingo

So you wanna knit? Part three: yarn

2010-02-08T21:41:00.005-05:00

My all-time favorite teacher, Mrs. G., told me once that she became an art teacher because she loved paper. She explained this one day as she walked across the classroom - a spring in her step and a twinkle in her eye - carrying a stack of oversized construction paper; I think it was red. She loved the variety, the smoothness, the colors...the possibilities. I feel the same way about yarn. I think most knitters do. Walking into a yarn shop is like being a kid in a candy store (or an adult in a candy store if you eat as much chocolate as I do...). The skeins are arranged in bins like oversized jellybeans, with as many colors and flavors, and ignite a childlike excitement that makes you want to touch (and buy...and eat?) everything in sight.

Despite the seduction, buying yarn early-on in a knitting career can seem a bit overwhelming. The options are endless...and all so enticing. Most beginner knitters make the mistake of buying something totally exotic and gorgeous, to later find out that it's a mismatch to the project at hand. A word to the wise: one should not buy yarn out of infatuation. Instead, a carefully planned relationship is encouraged. This way, no one gets hurt.

There is a lot to learn about yarn. I'll cover some basics here, the rest you will discover with time and lots of knitting. Your LYS owner is a great resource.

Texture

To most people, yarn is a four letter word: W-O-O-L. Wool is certainly a lovely fiber, but there are many others out there, and many blends, which knit up to be really spectacular. Basically, yarn can be broken down into three categories: Animal, Vegetable, and Artificial. Another way to categorize is protein (animal), cellulose/cellulosic (vegetable), and synthetic (artificial, or man-made).

Animal fibers come from a variety of critters. "Wool" refers to the hair of a sheep or lamb, and is the oldest protein fiber around. There are zillions of varieties of wool because there are zillions of varieties of sheep - who knew? Wools differ by things like the type of sheep they come from or the farm the sheep grow up on. In general, sheep and lambs are the only animals who produce "wool." However, the Federal Trade Commission expands this definition and allows yarn spun from the hair of the angora and cashmere goat, camel, alpaca, llama, and vicuna to be called "wool", too. Wool from any source is known for its warmth - it keeps heat close to the body and absorbs moisture, just like it was intended. Here's a quick list of where other animal fibers originate, just in case you were wonderin'!

Fiber/yarn Source

mohair.......................angora goat

cashmere...................cashmere goat
angora.......................angora rabbit
camel.........................camel
alpaca........................alpaca (a relative of the llama)

Some yarns are made from less commonly shorn animals like llama, yak, opossum, and musk ox.

Silk is in a league of its own and falls somewhere between animal and vegetable. It is produced (extruded, really) by silkworms after they have gone on a 30-day binge of plant leaves - mulberry, cherry, oak, to name a few. Silk does not contain cellulose, per se, since it is not grown like a plant, but it does contain a protein fluid which is made up of digested leaves. Yum! Hence the animal-vegetable confusion. Either way, silk is luscious and - well, silky - and has been coveted for centuries for its elegance and strength.

Veggie fibers are things like cotton, linen, and hemp - all come from the cellulose found in their respective plants. They differ from the animal fibers in that they pull heat away from the body, so are great for light-weight, warm weather garments. Many are machine washable, so are a good choice for baby clothes or hand towels. Cotton comes from the cotton plant, linen from the flax plant, and hemp from the Cannabis sativa (yes, THAT cannabis plant!).

"Cellulosic" fibers are those that are produced using the same principles as cellulose fibers, but are created by man through manipulation, chemical intervention, or genetic modification. Rayon is the primary cellulosic fiber, and includes close cousins Modal, acetate, and lyocell. Newer, more "green" cellulosic fibers are made with soy, bamboo, and corn fiber.

Synthetic fibers include everything else!! Nylon, polyester, and acrylic are man-made fibers which are inexpensive, easy to care for, and highly resilient. They are often mixed with an animal or vegetable fiber to improve wearability or increase strength.

Most of these facts were found in a really interesting book that I highly recommend. It's called "The Knitter's Book of Yarn: The Ultimate Guide to Choosing, Using, and Enjoying Yarn" and was written by the very brilliant Clara Parkes. It is a must-have for the spinner or knitter and has helped me to make sense of the fibers I use. It is full of great patterns as well; each is designed to take advantage of the unique characteristics of each fiber. Really cool.

Up next: Gauge - don't be a hater!

So you wanna knit? Part two: needles

2010-02-05T21:53:00.003-05:00

Like a great chef needs her knives, a great knitter needs her needles - one to fit every purpose, project, and possibility. Acquiring all the right needles takes time (and a piggybank) and is not something that should necessarily be attempted right out of the starting gate. In my other life as a medical professional, we label something as "PRN" if it is designated as "as needed", from the Latin, "pro re nata" (translation: as circumstances require). I see needle purchases as "PRNs". Get them as you need them, as the circumstances evolve. Plan on buying a new set or two with each new project, and before you know it, you will have a nice collection to call your own. Here's my collection, to date. A needle carrier is essential once your needle family begins to grow! Find more like this in my etsy store...they'll be coming soon!

Needles come in many shapes and sizes. The basic differences are as follows:

1. Straight needles - These are the classic needles that you see in illustrations and artwork; the needles that you might picture in the hands of a little old lady in a rocking chair. They come in pairs, are long and striaght, and each one has a pointed end. The other end is wide and flat (or square, or peg-like) to keep the stitches from slipping off. They are used for "flat" knitting - that is, knitting flat pieces such as scarves, blankets, pieces of a vest, sleeves, etc. Straight needles come in several lengths, depending on the needs of your project, typically 10" and 14" long. There are a multitude of sizes (relating to needle diameter) but I'll get into that later.

2. Circular needles - These are the needles that a beginner knitter looks at and says, "huh??" A circular needle is essentially two straight needles whose butt ends are connected by a thin wire or cord. Why? To knit round things! Hats, gigantic tube socks, the body of a sweater. Knitting on circular needles is called knitting "in the round" because you literally knit around and around and around, unlike straight needles, which require knitting back and forth. Now, circular needles are very adaptive and can also be used to knit large FLAT things. They come in very handy if you are making a large afghan, for example. Picture how many stitches must be needed to knit an afghan. Now picture fitting all of those stitches onto two straight needles - there would be a limit as to how big your afghan would be, right? Circular needles come in large sizes, where your tip-to-tip length is actually longer than the total length of two straight needles added together. You work the stitches in a way that doesn't connect them, so you are working back and forth rather than "in the round." Get it? If not, don't sweat it. It will all make sense in a while. Circular needles come in different lengths too, like 16", 24", 29" and 36". They also come in varying diameters (more later).

3. Double pointed needles - These are the needles that make beginner knitters run for the hills! Not only do they look scary (two pointy ends! Ah!), but you use four or five at a time! WHAT!!?? Do not fear, double pointed needles (dpns) will soon be your BFF, and you will be forever grateful for those little suckers. DPNs are used to knit "in the round" when you are working with a small circumference (like a sock) or a circumference that is decreasing in size (like the crown of a hat).

Imagine having 50 stitches nicely spread around a circular needle. The directions tell you to start decreasing the number of stitches so that the "tube" you are making becomes more and more narrow. This is typically the situation when knitting a hat and shaping the crown. You get down to about 30 stitches on the circular needle and start to totally freak out - the stitches are stretched because the length of the circular needle is much bigger than the working circumference of your project. Major panic attack! But in come your dpns to save the day. You transfer the stitches onto three dpns, with an even number on each needle (in this case, 10 stitches on each of three needles) and the needles are arranged in a triangle, like this:

The triangle is a modified "round" and since it is made of three needles, can shrink down to the tiniest triangular circumference possible as the centers of the needles are moved towards eachother. This is also done with four dpns arranged in a square, which is able to get smaller and smaller as you decrease the number of stitches.

The fourth (or fifth) dpn is used as the "working" needle to knit the stitches from the first dpn in the triangle (or square). When all of the stitches are transferred from dpn 1 to dpn 4/5, dpn 1 becomes the working needle and is used to knit the stitches off dpn 2, and so on. Trust me, it works. It may take some time for your fingers to learn the drill, but that's par for the course in this craft!

Knitting needles, whether straight, circular, or dpns are assigned a "size" based on their diameter. The smaller the size, the smaller the diameter. The smaller the diameter, the tinier the stitches. Sizes range from 000 (super small) to 20+ (fattys!). The sizes that I am referring to are in US size range. Each US size has a corresponding metric size which is expressed in millimeters (US 9 - 5.5mm). Be sure you are looking at the right size range before you take the plunge! There's a big difference between US 8 and 8mm!

Knitting needles are made from a variety of materials, like aluminum, bamboo (my fave), wood, plastic, nylon, and Teflon. Everyone has their own preference. Some are more expensive than others. One word to the wise: if you have cats or puppies around, keep your wood and bamboo needles out of reach!! I have had too many beautiful bamboo needle tips chewed to a pulp by a hungry kitty or two!

That's knitting needles 101! I would recommend picking up a set of size 7, 8, or 9 straight needles in 10" length. They'll be easy to maneuver as you learn how to knit and are a great size for working with worsted weight yarn. We'll learn about yarn next...

So you wanna knit? Part one: supplies

2010-02-05T20:41:00.002-05:00

So you wanna give it a try?? You won't be sorry, I quadruple promise! Have you knit before? If so, this post will be boring and repetitive. If not, this may be the most important information you have received all day! So listen up!

Knitting "stuff" is almost as fun and cool as the actual knitting process itself. In a nutshell (knitshell?), at the very least, you'll need:

-knitting needles
-yarn
-scissors
-ruler
-embroidery/yarn needle

I'll explain a little more about each item listed above in the next few posts. These 5 things will get you off to a good start. When you get a little more comfortable knitting and want to tackle some new projects, you may want to go out and get a few of these:

-point protectors
-needle and stitch gauge
-stitch markers
-row counter
-stitch holder
-cable needle
-crochet hook

Just about all of these things can be purchased at one of the mega craft stores (JoAnns, A.C Moore, Michaels, or whatever you have in your geographical area). The other option is going into your LYS. Memorize this -- LYS = local yarn shop. An LYS is sort of like an LBD (little black dress, duh!). Find one you LOVE and you will never go wrong! Every girl (or guy! guys can knit too!) needs one! Google "yarn shops in XXX" and see what pops up. "My" LYS is The Village Wool, in Glastonbury, CT. It great - the walls are absolutely overflowing with amazing yarn, and there's always someone who is really willing to help. There is a table in the front of the shop where someone is always sitting, working diligently on something cool and inspring. If you're in the neighborhood, check it out! They also have these amazing sales a few times a year where you can fill a bag with yarn, and everything inside is half price. It feels like you are stealing!

The benefit of an LYS is that there's usually someone who is ready to help you find just what you need. And as a beginner this might be nice. But read on...with the following tips, you should have the confidence you need to tackle any yarn-and-needle bearing establishment...big or small!

wedding headpiece??

2010-02-04T21:15:00.003-05:00

I'm getting married next year - a year from tomorrow, in fact! I haven't even BEGUN the giant task of finding "the" dress, but I know that I'd like to knit something that I'll wear on the big day. Knitting and wedding attire don't seem to really go together, from what I've seen. If I was a lace maker or a Sworovski crystal beader, I'd be in business! To make it even more of a conundrum, I'm getting married on the beach, in Aruba. Not exactly the climate for cozy woolen accessories. I haven't envisioned myself with a veil, but I've been toying with the idea of knitting a cool, lacy headpiece. Nothing big and extravagant. Just a little guy. I'm not sure it is going to work, but I'm starting to knit up some swatches to see where it takes me.

So far I've come up with this:

Up closer:

And if it was gathered a little:

This yarn is much too fuzzy. The swatch is only about as big as maybe 5" x 5" right now. I just wanted to see how I liked the design. The stitch is called "fern lace" and goes something like this:

(over a multiple of 9 + 4)
Row 1: Purl.
Row 2 (right side): K3, *YO, K2, sl 1, K1, psso, K2tog, K2, YO, K1; rep from * to last stitch, K1.
Row 3: Purl.
Row 4: K2, *YO, K2, sl 1, K1, psso, K2tog, K2, YO, K1; rep from * to last 2 stitches, K2
Repeat these 4 rows.

Would make a nice scarf or shawl, too! I like yarn-overs. And I LOVE to K2tog.

vision

2010-02-04T20:36:00.004-05:00

Why a knitting blog? First, I'm excited to post the projects that I'm working on, have worked on, or am planning to start. The knitting community is all about sharing ideas and gaining inspiration from one another. A few of my favorite places to go to for inspiration are ravelry and etsy. If you haven't checked these sites out - do so NOW! You can always come back to cygknits later. Ravelry is this amazing forum for knitters and crocheters (is that a word? and do you pronounce the "t" when it's spelled like that?) to showcase their work, share patterns, and compare notes. There are TONS of free patterns, plus posts about techniques, yarns, and cool fiber-art stuff. Etsy is a super cool cyber craft market. On it you can find handmade EVERYTHING (jewelry, crafts, clothing, knitted goods), vintage EVERYTHING, and tons of supplies to make ANYTHING. I have a little tiny etsy shop (called cygknits!!). It has a long way to go, but feel free to poke around. Heck, go crazy and buy something! I'll be posting new stuff very soon.

My other "vision" is to document my journey to knitting instructordom. Again, not sure if this is a word. I have been looking for a way to tighten up my knitting skills so I really feel like I'm as good as I think I am. (A little background about how I learned to knit: I learned to knit when I was a freshman at Bates College in Lewiston Maine. Well, actually my grandma would be pissed if she read that, because she was probably the first one who actually taught me. She was a brilliant knitter. She still is, but her hands don't work so well anymore. Even though my Me-Me taught me when I was just a kid, I got more involved in beading, sewing, and drawing in high school...knitting didn't seem that cool I guess. When I got to Bates I saw an ad for a knitting workshop that an upperclasswoman was offering and was inspired to check it out. I'm glad I did! That was my only "formal" knitting instruction. Everything from there has been just me stumbling around from pattern to pattern, trying to teach myself a little something new every time.) After over 10 years, I've learned a lot...but there's always more to learn and do. There are lots of great websites that have helped me along the way, like knitty.

So anyways, I have been looking for a way to formalize some of my knitting knowledge and am "studying" to be a certified knitting instructor through the Craft Yarn Council of America. I just started the course and am excited to document how it goes. The course is intended to make sure that you really know your shit. Actually, that you really know your 'knit'. This is the only way you can teach other people. In addition to the homework assignments (yes, knitting homework - I'm in heaven!) and reading assignments, I have to actually do some instruction. So consider this blog a cyber knitting class. I'll be posting new techniques all the time, with one lesson building on the last - starting from the very, very beginning. I'd love to be your teacher! You're gonna have a blast. Stay tuned, I'll let you know what you need...

cast on!

2010-02-03T20:13:00.001-05:00

hi!

I really, really love to knit. Sometimes I say it out loud and I laugh at how dorky it sounds! And unless you've done it before, you'd probably agree. And that's okay. I'm over it. Everyone has their "thing". Maybe it's cooking, writing poetry, buying designer jeans half price, drinking dirty martinis...something that really revs them up. Makes them feel warm and fuzzy inside. Gives them something to look forward to at the end of the day. Keeps their life in perspective when things get out of wack. A few lucky people even get to spend all day devoted to this yummy endeavor. I hope some day I can be one of those people. I would knit all day if I could. Until my little knobby white fingers turned blue.

For now though, I need to keep my day job! It fulfills me in an intellectual and philanthropic sort of way and is the end result of a goal that I set out to achieve a very long time ago. But it leaves the right side of my brain a bit neglected, and there's nothing better than coming home, (kissing my soon-to-be hubby), and indulging in the colors, textures, and challenges of two bamboo needles (sometimes one circular or four double pointed) and a skein of wool (or cotton or cashmere). I really, really love to knit.

Cygknits is inspired by my last name, which has to do with a lovely type of large white bird, whose babies are called 'cygnets'. Cygnets were made famous by Hans Christian Anderson - he called them ugly ducklings. We all know what happened to the ugly little guys with a little time to grow. I like to think of creativity in the same way. Ideas start as little, ugly, confused bundles of potential, that blossom into beautiful swans with some blood, sweat, tears, patience and love.

All very cliche...I know! But true, no?

I hope you enjoy following my adventures in knitting. Let's cast on.