Knitting

One More Festival and Then Home

Festival Travels

May has been quite a busy travel month. This weekend is the Hoosier Hills Fiber Festival in Franklin, IN. We have a long history with this show beginning in 2008, which was the year of the Flood. If you were there, you know what I mean. That year, Friday was epically rainy but the turn out was pretty good, considering the weather. Saturday morning it was STILL raining and things were looking dire. Roads were closing due to ponding and about midday we were told we would need to start loading up because a nearby dam broke. It sounds scary, but really the biggest problem was finding a route out of the area when roads and even Interstate 65S was closed for a time. We made it out fine. We did, however, have to take the long way home via I74 East through Cincinnati to Louisville.

But, I digress. Hoosier Hills is the last festival on our schedule from the first half of 2024. I am setting up the booth in a few hours from now. The market hours are 10:30-5:30 on Friday and 9-4 on Saturday. When I get home on Sunday I have a break from traveling. I have got more yarn ordered to dye over the summer break. It is arriving in a week or two.

Here are a couple pictures from The Great Lakes Fiber Show last weekend. We had a really wonderful turn out this year. The weather was nice for the most part, except for Friday, which was set up day for vendors.

So, as I mentioned above, I have been busy. I am working on my two projects but not as much as I would like.

Sample Sock Merino Bamboo — Miss BB Left front

Miss BB is coming along. I completed the left front piece but I didn’t have time to block it yet.

My other knitting project is my sock in Classic Merino Bamboo. As you may recall, this was originally Stephen West’s Mingling Daisies Socks. That is no longer the plan and let me explain why that happened.

I began the pattern stitch section after the ribbing, which started with the Daisy Stitch. I remember that when working this on the shawl it was a bit fiddly until the fabric grew. The fiddly bit is worked on the wrong side and is done by working P3tog, leave those on the left needle, YO, P3tog again into those same three stitches. It got easier as the fabric grew.

The problem, for me, was that with the socks it is done on the right side. So, that means that you are working in the round (for me on DPN’s) on 2.25mm needles and doing the stitch pattern as K3tog, YO K3tog. Oh. My. Goodness. That was so slow and aggravating to me. AND, you have to shift the beginning of row every other row. UGH. I worked a few repeats and I hated it. I also promptly trashed any plans for making the companion sock pattern that was ALL Daisy stitch.

So, the 2.5″ ribbing was knit. I ripped back to that and got out my stitch pattern books. I decided to pick 2-3 out and make up a sample sock pattern. I looked for ones that were multiples of 4 or 8 since I have 64 stitches. I am using one called Swedish Check, the Broken Rib that was in Mingling Daisies, and a lacy pattern called Little Frogs. I just finished the gusset decreases last night.

I think that’s enough for today’s post since it is getting close to time to go set up the booth. See you again soon!

Posted on May 30, 2024May 30, 2024 by yarnmama — 2 Comments

Is This a Year of Knitting for Me?

If you take a look at the projects that I currently have on the needles, it looks like it is a year of knitting for me. I haven’t done this much in the last 18 years. It is mostly sample knitting in my knitting bag, but at the moment it’s all “just because” knitting. Let’s get to the details.

Sweater Knitting

I shared with you in my last post that I am making Miss BB in some stash yarn. I like using natural colored yarn every now and then. I also like working with non-superwash wool for outerwear. It has a nice woolly feel and smell. I also appreciate the structure of a seamed garment. The knitting is easier on my hands because it is made in pieces which means that you don’t have the full weight of the garment as it gets nearer to completion.

I finished the back piece and have washed and blocked it. I prefer to do this as I go so that I can get straight to the seaming once all the pieces are done. Another advantage is that I don’t have to have the whole thing in my project bag when I am traveling, like I am right now. I left the finished back at home. More on that later in the post.

I have completed about half of the left front of the cardigan. It is going rather quickly when you consider my limitations on knitting time each day.

Sock and Other Knitting

I am normally project monogamous, but I am breaking that practice just because I feel like it. I have cast on for a pair of socks, plus I have two other small projects that I will cast on this week.

yarn for Lazy Daisy Socks — Mingling Daisies Socks

On the left is the start of my Mingling Daisies Socks in my Classic Merino Bamboo in Midnight Blue. I enjoyed making the Mingling Daisies Shawl, so I hope these will be fun to make and wear. I have never made a pair of socks for myself from this base, and I am interested to try the results. I often am asked by customers how they wear for socks and now I will be able to answer more accurately. I am using this color for the whole sock instead of the three colors Stephen uses for his sample. I don’t care for changing colors in socks because one color means only two ends to weave in. :-)

The middle yarn is going to be the other Year of Socks 2024 May release, Lazy Daisy Socks. I neglected to mention above that the Mingling Daisies Socks were also from the May release. I am having a lot of fun doing these this year. I haven’t made a few of them, but that doesn’t mean I won’t get to them at some point. The yarn I have wound is some stash yarn I bought from Webs in 2010. It is Kollage Yarns Sock-a-licious in Stormy.

My final soon to be project is Veritas Shawl. There is a story for how this got into my queue. I was at the Midwest Fiber Festival a couple of weeks ago. A fellow vendor friend who has her first grandchild on the way, saw that I had a retired baby sweater sample for sale. She asked if I wanted to do a trade for it since she is short on knitting time. I agreed and the yarn on the right was what I chose from her booth.

The yarn is a very lovely hand dyed dyed skein of Leading Men Fiber Arts Monologue. I am linking to Ravelry because it is a discontinued yarn. I did a pattern search on Ravelry for something to make with this one skein since I didn’t want to make socks with a single ply yarn. I found the above shawl, which I am very excited to begin. I think this will be a nice scarf type shawl and I love the color!

Travels

So, as I mentioned above I am on the road this weekend. I drove to Beloit, Wisconsin on Wednesday and stopped for the night. On Thursday I completed my drive to Hudson, Wisconsin which is just a couple of miles from the Minnesota state line. Here is a view from my hotel room window at the Wisconsin country-side. That’s my rig in the parking lot. :-)

I am going to be setting up the booth later today at Shepherd’s Harvest Festival. I really like doing this show. It’s a bit of a haul to get here, but it is always worth the trip. I first discovered it 13 years ago, in 2011.

I love the atmosphere of the festival. There’s always a nice turn out of fiber enthusiasts but it’s not overwhelming. There are lots of great fiber vendors, food vendors, and live music. Sometimes the weather can be a bit cool, to me anyway, coming from the south, but this year looks to be in the low 70’s and 80’s. That’s pretty warm in my experience. I am also glad that the rain, which had been forecast for today, seems gone and set up should be much more pleasant.

I will close this post for now since it’s getting close to the time that I need to head out for the days work. Thanks for reading!

Posted on May 10, 2024May 10, 2024 by yarnmama — 1 Comment

The Perfect Time for Sweater Knitting

It may seem weird, but I think spring is the perfect time for sweater knitting.

Baby Sweater Knitting

I am continuing my spring sweater knitting with some more baby sweaters. You may recall that after I finished the large size Dora Cardigan, I planned to partially re-knit the other two sizes.

I have already finished the small size sample. In the picture below it is the green one. I have added back the buttons after I took the picture but I am waiting until I finish the white one to wash and block them together.

This morning I ripped back the cotton version with the aid of my Yarn Swift so that I could steam out the crinkles as much as possible. I have it back in the needles so I can work on it this evening. I like to use a needle that is a couple of sizes smaller than my working needle for this task. I find it is easier to catch the stitches.

It may take two evenings to complete. I would really like to have it ready to wash and lay out to dry by tomorrow if I can. I would like them both ready to be back in the booth this coming weekend in Ann Arbor for the Spring Fiber Expo.

Another Sweater and Socks

I finished my Glittering Snowscape Socks while I at the Greencastle Wool Show. I washed them in the hotel room sink, and wore them in the booth on Saturday. I love there socks and can see them being favorites in my stash.

Miss BB sweater back cast on — Glittering Snowscape Socks

Since the baby sweaters were in the booth at the time, I cast on for one of the sweaters I had yarn with me to make. It is the Miss BB Cardigan that I am making with stash yarn. This has been in my queue for many years. I knit it’s predecessor around 15-20 years ago. I am not sure when it was. Bonnie Marie Burns originally released the Miss CB’s Camp Jacket that is shown on the far right. I made that from some Bartlett Yarn and it is my coat on the rare occasion that I need something that heavy. This newer version of that pattern is much smaller and more in sweater territory.

It is a pieced garment. I rather like to knit sweaters in pieces. The knitting is more portable since you can just have the piece you are working on in your project bag. I also like the structure from the seams which helps it keep it’s shape. I make seamless sweaters too and can appreciate their benefits but I don’t shy away from seamed garments. What are your thoughts? Seamless, seamed, or both have their place?

Posted on April 16, 2024April 16, 2024 by yarnmama — 3 Comments

New Booth Sample Knitting is Done

I have a new booth sample finished. There is a bit of sock knitting going on when I am able.

Dora Cardigan and Other Knitting

I am so pleased with the new booth sample for my Dora Cardigan pattern. I made the updates to the pattern for all three sizes. I will be altering the other two samples to match the changes soon.

As you can see, I have been knitting the second Glittering Snowscape Sock. I am almost to the heel flap and turn. As I am knitting this, I find myself with the idea of reviving this discontinued color.

I am considering using it as a replacement in my palette for Cerise. The Cerise is a much less muted cool red. The above color is a deep rose pink. The dark rose might fit more into my palette. If I do that it will be this summer. I will probably tweak the color mix a bit, so it may be a different version of this color. Here’s a picture that compares the two:

back to business as usual — The Dark Rose is on the far right

Shop Restocking

Speaking of dyeing, I spent about five days this past week getting all the fresh dyed yarn labeled and stored. The website inventories are all updated also.

On the heels of that task, came the new Darning Eggs. Jerry has spent the past several weeks working on more Darning Eggs. On Thursday, we applied the first layer of linseed oil. Yesterday, after that had time to cure, I applied the wax coat. Then got them all labeled and added to the inventory.

We have more Cherry, but we replaced some other woods that have been out of stock for a bit. These include, Mahogany, Maple, Oak, and Walnut. I love them all, but my particular favorite is the Mahogany ones. I love the rich color and the interesting grain. They feel as satiny as they look.

I will have a full selection of these in my booth at Greencastle Wool Show next weekend. I will be in the Community Building in booths 135-136.

Posted on April 6, 2024April 6, 2024 by yarnmama — 1 Comment

Yarn Dyeing is Done and Some Knitting Happened

The rest of the yarn dyeing is done and I managed to make some knitting progress too.

Yarn dyeing

Thursday was set up day, and Friday, and Saturday were the Middle Tennesse Fiber Festival, as I told you in my last post. We had another fabulous show! It was great seeing all the attendees enjoying the day and having a blast.

I took Sunday off to re-cooperate, but we were back out at the dye pots on Monday and Tuesday. We got all of the remaining yarn dyed. We had some wet and windy weather on Monday and early on Tuesday. We were able to work because of the covered area we built but we had to forego drying the yarn until late Tuesday and Wednesday. By yesterday afternoon it was all dry and ready to await labeling.

I spent some of yesterday and today working on labels and updating the inventory. I still love my office space!

Knitting

I got some knitting time while in the booth over the weekend. I tried to work a bit in the evenings too, but some nights I was too exhausted. Nevertheless, I finished the first Glittering Snowscape Sock. I am very happy with the fit. I like lacy socks and these are going to be fun to wear!

The Dora Cardigan is getting so close to the finish line that I am expending all my knitting energy on it. I was not totally sure that the color would show the lace but I like it. It’s the Classic Merino Superwash Sport in Damson Plum.

I am also getting to the part of the pattern that I will be revising. It will be easier than I thought to make the changes I want to make. I may also end up re-knitting part of the other two sizes after I make the changes so that I know they work and to update them to match the revisions. I can unravel the top of the yokes and just re-knit that part I think. That is the plan, anyway.

I think I may have this finished by my next post. See you next time!

Posted on March 28, 2024March 28, 2024 by yarnmama — 10 Comments

Back Home with Knitting and Dyeing Updates

I have been back home from Raleigh, NC for more than a week. I have tried many times to write a blog post with knitting and dyeing updates. Today is the day it worked out.

Carolina Fiber Festival

The festival was wonderful. We had a great turn out as usual and much fun was had by all. I am already looking forward to next year. I am sure I am not alone in being excited about the date shift which will mean we won’t be sharing the fairgrounds with the dog show. It will be nice to have easier parking access in the future.

Knitting

I was pretty busy the festival weekend and since I have been home, so the knitting has been less than I like. I do have some progress to share.

My first Glittering Snowscape Sock is almost done. I only have the toe to knit. I am glad I decided to make these in just a single color of Classic Merino Superwash Sock yarn. I love the look and the textures. The three gradients look nice but it’s more work to change colors and these look fine with less fuss. There will only be two ends to weave in. I love that about socks.

I am about halfway up the lower body of the Dora Cardigan. I haven’t touched it since I got home though. Once I got close to finishing my sock, I gave it all my attention. I am planning to get back to the sweater as soon as the first sock is of the needles.

Yarn Dyeing

I received most of the yarn order I was waiting for on Thursday. I spent the days leading up to that getting the dyes mixed. On Friday, I got all the yarn prepared for a day’s dyeing. Saturday was Day One dye day. We will have two more dyeing days next week.

There are two reasons that we have to delay the rest of the yarn dyeing until next week.

One reason is that we are still waiting for one of the yarn bases to arrive. It is delivering tomorrow. I will get that yarn prepared for dye Day Two when it arrives. I already have all the dyes and the other three bases prepped for that. I would probably be doing that on Thursday and then the Day Three dyeing on Saturday. The reason I can’t do that is because we have a local festival this coming weekend.

We will be at the Middle Tennessee Fiber Festival in Dickson, TN on March 22-23, 2024. On Thursday afternoon I will be setting up the booth. This is a Friday and Saturday show. The hours are 10-4 on Friday and 9-4 on Saturday. We weren’t given our booth numbers yet, but I think I will be in the same place I was last year. If you are in the area, please come say hello!

Posted on March 19, 2024March 19, 2024 by yarnmama — 9 Comments

Some Finishing, Frogging, and New Beginnings

Let’s get started with some finishing, then move on to some frogging and some new beginnings in my knitting.

Sorrel (Finishing)

I mentioned in my last post that Sorrel would be done very soon and here she is! This is the smallest of the three sizes in the pattern. All three of the sizes can be knit from one skein of Classic Merino Bamboo. I used 65g, which is about 320 yards, to make this size.

sorrel back — Sorrel front (color more accurate here)

It is quick to knit and fairly simple for even newer knitters. You need to be comfortable with knitting in the round. The shaping is simple and the stitch pattern is only knit and purl. What I think the most special attribute of this design is that the range for wearing is flexible. It can be made a bit larger and be worn as a dress, but later as the baby grows it can still fit as a top.

Spiral Splash Socks (Frogging)

There is a story here.

When I began the Spiral Splash Socks in late January, I had a hard time choosing the size to make. My foot size was in between sizes 2 and 3. Size 2 began with 60 stitches and size 3 with 72 stitches. I know that socks that fit me best are 66-68 stitches but 64 can work too. It was with trepidation that I went for size 3.

Here’s the next problem I was worried about: the leg stitches increase after the cuff to 80/88 respectively for sizes 2/3. This is to account for the slipped stitches, I assume, to prevent them being to tight. This was feeling very wrong to me all the time I was knitting them. You know how it is though. You’ve already invested the hours and you hope if you keep going it will work out. Hint, it usually doesn’t. Trust your knitter instincts.

After I knit the heel flap and turned the heel, I tried them on. You can see how huge that leg is. My ankle was swimming in there. It was a little painful to do it, but I frogged them. I considered casting on the size 2, but I really don’t see how 8 stitches less was gonna help that leg section fit. They were way more than 1 inch too large. So, that brings me to the new beginnings part of my post.

Knitting Glittering Snowscape Socks and Dora (Beginnings)

I am using that same Dark Rose Classic Merino Superwash Sock yarn to make the Glittering Snowscape Socks by Stephen West. I am making the size 2 this time which begins with 64 stitches. I thought about going with a three color gradient, but then changed my mind. I am not in the mood for the extra fuss of color changing so I am just using the one color throughout.

dora cardigan sleeves — Glittering Snowscape Sock

My other cast on project is the Dora Cardigan in the large size. I showed you the yarn in my last post. I like to begin this sweater by knitting the sleeves. These are small and quick and work as a swatch too. I am spot on for the gauge on size 3 US (3.25mm) needles.

The sleeves are knit flat and then joined to the body stitches after that piece is knit to the underarm length. The raglan shaping forms the top section. The button bands are knit along with the body. When the knitting is complete, the sleeves are quick to seam and you stitch closed the underarm stitches at the same time.

I knit about 1-2 inches of the sweater body but I didn’t take a picture yet. I’ll show you next time. It will be big enough by then to see that lace better. I hope I will get some time to finish it while I am in Raleigh, NC this weekend.

I am leaving on Wednesday for the Carolina Fiber Fest. I am setting up the booth bright and early at 6am on Thursday. I received by booth number today, so if you are planning to come, look for me in booth 21.

Posted on March 4, 2024March 4, 2024 by yarnmama — 7 Comments

Just a Few More Rows to Take the Edge Off

As I was having my coffee this morning, some strong storms were rolling through, bringing cooler weather in its wake. It was good to have my knitting to calm my slight anxiety that storms can bring to me now. I used to enjoy stormy weather, as long as it wasn’t too scary. They all make me a bit edgy since the tornado in December.

Knitting

I am just a few rows from finishing my Sorrel. Okay, there is also grafting the underarm stitches and then applying the button loop and button. But that is probably, altogether, about an hour’s worth of effort.

I am going to try to get back to my Spiral Splash Sock, but there is also another booth sample I want to start.

I designed Dora about 7 or 8 years ago. I want to make a large size, which I have not knit before. When I do that, I think I am going to revise the neck shaping a bit. I am planning to use Classic Merino Superwash Sport in Damson Plum to make it. I like the idea of having both a light and dark color example of this in the booth. I have the small size in the same yarn in Lichen. I have the medium-sized sample in the natural color Organic Cotton Sport.

Dora Small Classic Merino Superwash Sport Lichen

Dora Cardigan Organic Cotton Sport — Dora Small Classic Merino Superwash Sport Lichen

Festival Season

It is almost time for our first festival of 2024. I will be in Raleigh, NC, March 6-10, for the Carolina FiberFest. We have gotten a lot of the preparations done. I have been packaging new Shawl/Hair Sticks this week. They are on the website, and I added the singles, which is new. We used to only have those at shows. Since we have over a hundred now, I decided to go ahead and list them online as well.

As I am writing this post, the storms have passed. I should probably get my day’s work started. I should have a finished project and a new one cast on soon.

Posted on February 28, 2024February 28, 2024 by yarnmama — 4 Comments

Two More Knitting Projects Done

Two more knitting projects are done this week. I cast on for another and I am still working on my sock in progress.

Knitting Projects Done

My large Classic Baby Cardigan is all finished, even down to the buttons. I ended up using almost 460 yards of Classic Merino Superwash Sport for this sample. In the Earl Grey I used about 105g and about 30g in the Garnet. This is the second time that I have knit this size and I am glad to find that my required yardage in the pattern is accurate. I recommend 450-475 yards total, and I stayed within that range.

classic baby cardigan trio — Classic Baby Cardigan Large size

The other knitting project that I have completed is the Spiral Effect Cowl. I used about 353 yards of Classic Merino Superwash Sock yarn in Heather to make this cowl. The first time that I knit this pattern, I knit it with US 6 needles, but the last two times I went down to a US 4 and I prefer that size. The lace is very open anyway, and I think the texture comes through better with a smaller needle.

spiral effect cowl on catherine — Spiral Effect Cowl

Current Projects

I am still working on the Spiral Splash Socks but they are progressing slower than I would like. I think I only pick them up to work on them about 2-3 a week, so that is part of the problem. What also slows me down while knitting them is the stitch pattern. It’s pretty simple but I find changing colors every other round is just not as fast as using only one color. I hope that by the next knitting session on them, I can get to the heel flap. That always feels like a milestone to me when knitting a sock.

spiral splash sock in progress — Spiral Splash Socks

Here is the other reason that my sock in progress is languishing. I started a re-knit of another booth sample that I designed about 12 years ago. This is the smallest size of Sorrel made in my Classic Merino Bamboo, also in Heather. This skein of yarn was already in my stash. I pulled it from inventory last summer when we dyed it, but I can’t remember why. I judged it slightly irregular, and I think it was that the color was off a bit from the rest, for some unknown reason. It works fine for a booth sample though. :-)

This project is a simple and fast knit. I am also highly motivated to have it ready for my first festival in a couple weeks. That is probably why I am making much more progress on this than on the sock.

Posted on February 22, 2024February 22, 2024 by yarnmama — 6 Comments

Valentine’s Day Dinner with Knitting

We don’t get into holidays too much but I do enjoy making a nice meal. What better reason is there to make my guys their favorite meal, than Valentine’s Day dinner?

Valentine’s Day Dinner

Now, to be fair, I freely admit that fresh pasta is also one of my favorites. So, it isn’t entirely selfless, but it is a labor of love. I enjoy making fresh pasta by hand. I mix it on the table and knead by hand for 10 minutes. Then just let it rest, covered, about 1-2 hours. This allows the gluten to develop and relax before rolling it out.

The rolling and cutting doesn’t really take that much time, maybe 30 minutes for the whole pound. I use a rotary pizza cutter to cut it. I don’t have a pasta drying rack, so I lay it all out on two floured half-sheet pans. I let the cut pasta dry on the sheet pans for another hour. Then it’s ready to be cooked.

Meanwhile, while the pasta dough is resting, I start my marinara sauce. My secret ingredients for my sauce are fresh basil, lots of fresh garlic and olive oil, a bay leaf, and whatever red wine I have on hand. I like to slow simmer this for at least 2-3 hours, and sometimes even longer. We usually don’t add meat to the sauce, but I occasionally make turkey meat balls on the side. We had vegetarian style today.

Then comes the best part, the eating! A little red wine makes it a perfect celebratory meal. It was delicious and we have enough left over marinara for another day.

A Little Dyeing

Before I get to the knitting half of my post, I have a bit of dyeing to show you.

I think I mentioned that I put in a big order with the mill the first week of January. This is so we can restock for the spring fiber festivals. I like to do my dyeing for this in February, since the days are lengthening and there is usually some warmer weather too. I was expecting to have received it by the first week of February, but there was a delay with my order.

I always order more yarn than I need at the time, so I have extra on hand for situations like this. Yesterday I did this small batch to restock the yarns and colors that were lowest, in case I can’t get to the full restock dyeing until mid March. My first festival of the year, Carolina Fiber Festival, is March 8-9. I will have time after the festival to work on the rest since I only have one other festival in March, and it is here in Tennessee.

Knitting for this week

Now let’s talk about the knitting I am working on this week.

These two have seen a little bit of action. The left is Spiral Splash Socks and the right is Spiral Effect Cowl. Both are knit in my Classic Merino Superwash Sock yarn. I want to work on them more and will do that as soon as I am done with the Classic Baby Cardigan.

As you can see I only have the collar edging to pick up and knit. I should be able to get that done this evening.

I began to run into an issue with yarn as I got to the edging. I was down to 11g of the Garnet, and only 2.3 g of the Earl Grey. I originally planned to make the edgings in only the Earl Grey if I had enough. My plan B was to do a small stripe of the red on the edging if needed. I didn’t even have enough of the grey to do one of the button bands though.

So, I found a swatch I made in this yarn for a sweater I made in 2022. I also found a 10g mini skein from when I was sampling the color mix 4-5 years ago. I like to keep these since they are handy for referencing, or in this case, cannibalizing. :-) I have ripped out the swatch and wound it and the mini skein for using in the collar and button bands. That brought my total of Earl Grey yarn up to 20g which should by plenty, along with the two rows of red in each edging.

I should have a finished sweater by my next post!

Posted on February 14, 2024February 14, 2024 by yarnmama — 10 Comments

Festival Travels

Knitting

Share this:

Like this:

Sweater Knitting

Sock and Other Knitting

Travels

Share this:

Like this:

Baby Sweater Knitting

Another Sweater and Socks

Share this:

Like this:

Dora Cardigan and Other Knitting

Shop Restocking

Share this:

Like this:

Yarn dyeing

Knitting

Share this:

Like this:

Knitting

Yarn Dyeing

Share this:

Like this:

Sorrel (Finishing)

Spiral Splash Socks (Frogging)

Knitting Glittering Snowscape Socks and Dora (Beginnings)

Share this:

Like this:

Knitting

Festival Season

Share this:

Like this:

Knitting Projects Done

Current Projects

Share this:

Like this:

Valentine’s Day Dinner

A Little Dyeing

Knitting for this week

Share this:

Like this: